In the Current of the Revolution 35 



the garrison, they often eluded the Indians, or slew 

 them if an encounter took place, but very frequently 

 indeed they were themselves slain. The Indians 

 always trusted greatly to wiles and feints to draw 

 their foes into their power. As ever in this wood- 

 land fighting, their superiority in hiding, or taking 

 advantage of cover, counterbalanced the superiority 

 of the whites as marksmen; and their war parties 

 were thus at least a match, man against man, for the 

 Kentuckians, though the latter, together with the 

 Watauga men, were the best woodsmen and fighters 

 of the frontier. Only a very few of the whites be- 

 came, like Boone and Kenton, able to beat the best 

 of the savages at their own game. 



The innumerable sieges that took place during 

 the long years of Indian warfare differed in detail, 

 but generally closely resembled one another as re- 

 gards the main points. Those that occurred in 1777 

 may be considered as samples of the rest; and ac- 

 counts of these have been preserved by the two 

 chief actors, Boone and Clark. 18 Boonesborough, 

 which was held by twenty-two riflemen, was at- 

 tacked twice, once in April and again in July, on 

 each occasion by a party of fifty or a hundred war- 



18 In Boone's narrative, written down by Filson, and in 

 Clark's diary, as given by Morehead. The McAfee MSS. and 

 Butler's history give some valuable information. Boone as- 

 serts that at this time the "Long Knives" proved themselves 

 superior to their foe in almost every battle ; but the facts do 

 not seem to sustain him, though the statement was doubtless 

 true as regards a few picked men. His estimate of the Indian 

 numbers and losses must be received with great caution. 



