MORAVIAN INDIAN VILLAGE CHEAP FRUIT. 191 



the St Thomas road joins that from London to Sandwich, is oak 

 openings, seemingly of inferior quality, all the way to Delaware, 

 and from thence, to six miles below Mrs Aldgeo s tavern, poor 

 clay, with small stunted wood. From this, passing through the 

 site of the old Moravian Indian village, the soil is poor sand, 

 and a little farther on, becomes loam of the best quality. 



The Moravian Indian village is situated on a bend of the 

 Thames, and the surrounding lands were bearing luxuriant 

 crops of Indian corn. The old village was burnt by the 

 Americans during the last war, and on its site, a mile to the 

 north of the present one, some fine apple-trees are standing, 

 the fruit of which we found agreeable as quenching thirst. 

 Here I observed, for the first time, a species of hawthorn with 

 glossy leaves, of a smaller size, more numerous prickles, 

 branching, and of taller growth than the common hawthorn of 

 the country, and apparently a better hedge-plant. On the 

 banks of the Thames, above Chatham, (Celestina Scandens,) 

 a climbing plant, with beautiful orange-coloured berries, was 

 first observed growing luxuriantly on many trees, entwined with 

 the vine. Apple-trees are numerous near the river, and the 

 crop so abundant, that they were breaking under their load. I 

 was offered any quantity of fruit at l^d. sterling per bushel, 

 gathering it myself. The peaches were also a great crop. A 

 pear-tree was seldom seen. 



In the evening, we walked down the banks of the Thames, 

 for the purpose of procuring horses for an excursion, and suc 

 ceeded in our mission. In returning, we observed two men of 

 colour crossing the river in a canoe, and leading a horse, which 

 was swimming. On entering into conversation with them, I 

 learned they were brothers from Kentucky, and both farmed 

 on lease, one of them renting 190 acres on the banks of the 

 river, fifty of which were cleared, for $20 per annum. On 

 asking if they had run away from Kentucky, one of them 

 answered in the affirmative, and replied, laughingly, I suppose 

 you have also run away. A great many people of colour are 

 settled in the Western parts of Upper Canada, almost all of 

 whom are runaway slaves from the United States. 



On the morning of the 5th September we left Chatham for 

 Bear creek, under the guidance of Mr John Goose, who own- 



