Part III.] Journal. ^ 279 



such as the wafer-falls, and the minerals and mines, 

 which are possessed in such abundance by the states 

 of Ohio and Kentucky-, and by some parts of Penn- 

 sylvania. Some of these, ho-vvever, he may yet find. 

 Good water he has, at any rate. He showed me a 

 well 25 feet deep, bored partly through hard sub- 

 stances near the bottom, that was nearly overflowing 

 ■\vith water of excellent quality. 



512. Juki \st. — Left 3Ir. Birkbeck's for Harmony, 

 Indiana. The distance by the direct May is about 18 

 miles, but there is no road, as yet; indeed, it was 

 often with much difficulty that we could discover the 

 way at all. After we had crossed the Wabash, Mhich 

 we did at a place called Davis's Ferry, we hired a 

 man to conduct us some part of the way through the 

 woods. In about a mile he brought us to a track, 

 which was marked out by slips of bark being stripped 

 off the trees, once in about 40 yards ; he then left us, 

 and told us we could not mistake if we followed that 

 track. We soon lost all appearance of the track, 

 however, and of the " blazing " of the trees, as they 

 call it ; but, as it was useless to go back again for 

 another guide, our only way was to keep straight on 

 in the same direction, bring us where it Mould. Ilaving 

 no compass, this nearly cost us our sight, for it was 

 just mid-day, and we had to gaze at the sun a long 

 time before we discovered wharwas our course. Alter 

 this Me soon, to our gjroat joy, found ourselves in a 

 large corn field ; rode round it, and came to Johnson's 

 Ferry, a place where a Hayou {Boyau) of the Wabash 

 is crossed. This Bayou is a run out of the main river, 

 round a fiat portion of land, Mhich is sometimes over- 

 floMed : it is part of tlie same river, and t!ie land en- 

 compassed by it, an ishmd. Crossed this ferry in a 

 canoe, and got a ferry-man to SM'iui our horses after 

 us. Mounted again and foUoMed a track M-hich brought 

 us to Black River, >vhich mc forded without getting 

 wet, by holding our fefct up. After crossing the river 

 we found a man who Mas kind enough to shew us 

 about half a mile through the woods, by which our 

 journey was shortened five or six miles. He put us 

 into a direct track to Harmony, through lands as rich 

 N5" 



