The War in the Northwest 17 



sisted by the negro woman and Mrs. Peyton, actu 

 ally succeeded in shoving the lightened boat off the 

 rock, though their clothes were cut in many places 

 by the bullets; and they rapidly drifted out of dan 

 ger. The poor little baby was killed in the hurry 

 and confusion; but its mother, not eighteen hours 

 from child-bed, in spite of the cold, wet, and exer 

 tion, kept in good health. Sailing by night as well 

 as day, they caught up with the rest of the flotilla 

 before dawn on the second morning afterward, the 

 men being roused from their watch-fires by the cries 

 of "help poor Jennings," as the wretched and worn- 

 out survivors in the disabled boat caught the first 

 glimpse of the lights on shore. 



Having successfully run the gauntlet of the 

 Chickamauga banditti, the flotilla was not again mo 

 lested by the Indians, save once when the boats 

 that drifted near shore were fired on by a roving 

 war party, and five men wounded. They ran over 

 the great Muscle Shoals in about three hours with 

 out accident, though the boats scraped on the bot 

 tom here and there. The swift, broken water surged 

 into high waves, and roared through the piles of 

 driftwood that covered the points of the small isl 

 ands, round which the currents ran in every direc 

 tion ; and those among the men who were unused to 

 river- work were much relieved when they found 

 themselves in safety. One night, after the fires had 

 been kindled, the tired travelers were alarmed by 

 the barking of the dogs. Fearing that Indians were 

 near by, they hastily got into the boats and crossed 



