6 ON THE FEONTIEE. 



thanked by the President of the then Republic of Texas, 

 and presented with a considerable grant of land on the Red 

 river. 



On the death of the head chief of the Delawares, Captain 

 Connor was elected to the vacant office, and with the entire 

 tribe removed to " The Delaware Reserve," a tract of land 

 set apart for their use for ever by the Government, and 

 where, when I knew him, he was living. 



The Captain resided in a good house on his own farm, 

 a very fine one, which was worked for him on shares by 

 a smart Yankee, who was married to one of his nieces. 

 Old " Uncle John " had numerous nieces, and it was a 

 standing joke to get the old chief over a glass of grog and 

 tangle him up trying to explain how it was he had so many 

 of them. 



Besides his farm, " Uncle John " enjoyed an annuity from 

 government, had plenty of horses and cattle on the neigh- 

 bouring prairie, and, better than all, the respect and obe- 

 dience of his tribe, over whom he reigned like a king; 

 neither writ ran, nor sheriff had jurisdiction, in his reserve ; 

 Delaware law and a Delaware executive were supreme. 



In practice, the old chief was a monogamist, having only 

 one wife, though four is the tribal allowance. He con- 

 sidered that being a professed Methodist it would not be 

 quite the correct thing to be married to more than one 

 woman. But he often wondered why the whites, who were 

 so smart about everything, should " have made such a great 

 social mistake as to set their faces against polygamy." He 

 considered the advantages of having a plurality of wives were 

 most manifest, arguing thus : " If a man's one wife is 



