pf ave troy a a 
218. Observations made during a Tour in the United Siatess [O8. 1, 
vermin, hep fpcainainteds or rather daub 
“, with blue, red, and yellow paint, 
My 
ilst her other beauties were attempted 
to be concealed by a piece of old blue 
loth, wrapped about her shoulders, and 
the remnant of a black petticoat descend- 
from her waist),-what family she had, 
A most egregiously mistook the quese 
tion, and first pointing to her month, and 
then to a bottle she had in her hand, re- 
peated the word whisky, burst into a 
harse-laugh, nodded significantly at an 
aqjolning wood, and strongly expressed 
r disposition to exchange ber favours 
far somue of that bewitching | liquor. With 
such bipeds one would think noman who 
ad ever associated with the civilized 
world would live; but all men do not 
partake of these feelings. With Captain 
john’s party came @ white man, who had 
much interest with the Pottawottamies. 
He was a native of Massachusetts, of a 
very respectable family of the name of 
Coffin; his brother being at that time a 
nator in the legislatuye, of that state, 
He said he had .accompanied Sir J. 
ackenzie on his, tour to the N.W. 
coast, and had since lived and been na- 
turalized, with the Indians, whose habits 
and manners he strictly, unitated., [He 
was a man of much strength of mind, 
but of the most. depraved and inamoral 
habits. Like the Indians, he yas often 
drunk, mixed in their uoisy revelries and 
drunken quarrels; but, ‘like them, was 
instantly silenced, al ad, seut to, his tent, 
by the order of that Indian whom, before 
the party began to drink, they had ap- 
pointed to euard them frum the evil con- 
sequences of ot their inebricty (and_ this 
man,'be he whom he might, never drank). 
Coffin had married a squaw, and was, 
when I saw. him, labouring, under a dis- 
ease of the jaw-bone, the effect ofa mus- 
ket ball, received.by him in a rencontre 
with,some Spaniards. The day after we 
met, he called me aside from my friends, 
desired me to examine his jaw, and with 
expressions stronger and more brutal, 
with oaths and imprecations more horris 
ble, than I ever before or since heard, 
told me he knew L could cure him, if I 
would, and plainly insinuated that if £ 
-would not, the object of our expedition 
should fail, and the whole party. be mur- 
dere. Ie was of too much consequence 
to-be despised ; and asia piece of the jaw 
was absolutely about to exfoliate, and 
therefore it was not improbable he would 
‘soon be well, I gave him something, 1 
forget. what, that cauld dono harm, nor 
probably aay,.good, boldly promised his 
recovery in abours!x weeks ; but asl did 
not stay with him! so long, Lam unable, to 
state my prophe uc _ pretensions. 
; 4 
This 
man’s physiognomy was rendered. a in 
bly disgusting by the i bageiahe: his ch 
and his voice material lly a cold by. in 
enlargement of the jaw, which had beew 
injured by the ball, 
The Indians we were with were fond of 
gymnastic exercises ; they frequently ran, 
races with the whites, hut were always 
‘beaten when the race was short ; when 
it extended, say more than 2 or 300 yards, 
they were as inyariably conquerors. 
Their children were remarkably expert 
with the bow and arrow. Making a small 
slit in a cane, which we set upright in. the; 
ground, we irequently used to insert in it 
the sixteenth part of a dollar, which the 
eldest son of Standing Stone was to shoot ° 
vat,and generally struck it at the distance; 
of about fifteen yards, when it became 
hisown; his eye was so accurate, and 
his honesty so. exemplary, that when he 
displaced the silver by hitting the eane, 
so that we could not determine whether 
it or the silver received the blow, we 
used to leave it to his decision; nor do [, 
believe he ever claimed the rewe rard, when 
the silver itself was not struck, His bros, 
ther was equally expert at shorter dis- 
tances, as well, as several other Indian 
boys. 
The language. of the Indians is gut~ 
tural. It would seem as if they could 
not exert themselves to speak distinctly. 
Every few words terminated, with a. word: 
which comes as near to hough, as aspix 
rated as L can, spell it, aad seemed to 
be the counter-part of the inaspiras 
tion of ahog. At least such was. the, 
idea assigned to this pronunciation by 
my ear. 
Before I conclude these. straggling 
remarks, collected. in or, near) Cleve~ 
land, I, must inform you, that about, six 
miles therefrom lives Mr. Wiliams. He, 
was the first settler in the county, of 
Trumbull, into which he removed in July 
1798, and fixed his. residence upwards of 
ninety miles trom the nearest. white, fay 
inily, His wife was then pregnant; he 
himself was compelled to leave. her, and 
navigate the lake as far as, Buffaloe 
Creck , in. the State of New. York, for 
fresh provisions. Returning. late in, Nos 
vember, he encountered.a severe storm 
and was driven far, from, his se ted 
port. Tis wife ‘supposed ‘that he had 
perished, and was, delivered early,in Des 
cember, in the midst. of this distress, ofa 
boy. She, however, gat through-her diflin 
culties, and her husband, atier sometime, 
returned in. tie, year 1800,, When the 
Reserve was divided, the proprietors sets 
tled 500 acres on the boy, as the first+ 
born of the NASPINeS he, however, did 
not live te enjoy ihe ere nov. do E 
think 
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