220 TRAVELLING PARTY. 



been carried on horseback. The waggon and horses were to 

 carry us through all the \vay, as proper posts and relays had 

 not been established on the road. We breakfasted before 

 setting out, and a guide was sent with our driver. 



Our travelling-party w T as somewhat changed from that 

 which had come from Detroit. Three of our original passen 

 gers remained ; one an Englishman, Mr L , who had been 



twelve months in the western states, and now on his way back, 

 after an excursion to the southern and eastern states of the 



Union, was accompanied by Mr D , a young gentleman, who, 



from his pronunciation of the English language, I imagined 



from Germany ; the third was W , from Detroit, an officer 



in the United States army, and the most prim individual I 

 encountered in the course of my travels. He seemed as if 

 carrying the dignity and honour of the whole army on his 

 shoulders, and I could not help remarking how very repulsive 

 he was to his countrymen who ventured to address him. 

 America may be the land of liberty and equality, but, person 

 ally, no one seemed equal to Major W , and certainly 



liberty could not be taken with him. The rest of our passen 

 gers consisted of an old revolutionary soldier and his wife, on 

 their way to join a son settled in Illinois, a Michigan farmer, 

 myself, waggoner, and guide. 



The farmer was originally from York State, now settled on 

 Nottawa Sepee prairie, on St Joseph s river, and proceeding 

 to Chicago, where an adjustment of Indian claims was taking 

 place, in the hope of obtaining recompense for losses. I had 

 not an opportunity of learning the result of his mission, but 

 from his own statement, it did not merit success. He told us 

 he intended to have made a great deal of pork this season, but 

 on collecting his pigs from the woods, where they had run 

 for five months, he could only number thirty-five instead of 

 fifty-five. The Indians had been seen hunting pigs, and he 

 expected to get payment from the government agent for 

 twenty of his which were missing. In this manner the poor 

 Indian is preyed on by his white frontier brother, and made 

 pay for the ravages of disease, wild animals, and perhaps the 

 dishonesty of white men. 



