SALT CREEK. 239 



on the counter, and his feet touching the roof. At first I did 

 not observe him, as the light from a candle was faint, and I 

 was surprised at hearing human sounds proceeding from such 

 an unseemly thing. He answered my enquiries regarding 

 shoe-ties dryly, without altering his position. On retiring I 

 purposely left the door of the store open, with the view of 

 rousing him from his unelegant posture. My stratagem did 

 not, however, succeed, and I began to think the individual 

 might be a philosopher engaged in study, instead of a demi- 

 savage, which his behaviour at first led me to suppose. 



On retiring to bed, I was deposited in a pretty large apart 

 ment, containing seven or eight beds, some of which were 

 occupied by sick people, and others were passing to and fro, 

 at all hours of the night. I rose early in the morning, and 

 bent my course towards Springfield, in Sangamon county, 

 leaving the river Illinois to the westward. I applied for 

 breakfast, at an early hour, at a solitary house, which an over 

 grown young woman readily supplied, baking bread and 

 stewing a fowl in a very short space of time, for which she 

 charged well. In course of conversation, I learned her hus 

 band was from the State of New York, and had lived some 

 time in Indiana.- Her children were evidently unhealthy, and 

 she said sickness was no great misfortune, as it was so easy to 

 get a living in the country. After breakfast I passed several 

 small prairies and the river Mackinaw, when I entered on a 

 large and uninhabited one, sixteen miles across. The day 

 being very warm, I felt a good deal fatigued, and was anxious 

 to obtain dinner and shelter from the sun,, but on gaining the 

 only house on the road, I was told the whole family were sick, 

 and it was impossible for me to obtain dinner. I proceeded 

 to a hotel on Salt creek, which I reached with scarcely suffi 

 cient light remaining to distinguish the house. 



The landlord of the hotel, Mr Music, was from home, and 

 two daughters and a son did the honours of the house. These 

 people seemed in good circumstances, having a well-stocked 

 farm and abundance of Indian corn. On my arrival, I was 

 asked whether I would have bread of Indian corn or wheat, 

 and all seemed surprised to hear I had never tasted the for- 



