THE DlVlUINt; LINE. 59 



dance and sing round tliese wretched mortals, showing all the marks of 

 pleasure and jollity. And if such cruelties happen to be executed in their 

 towns, they employ their children in tormenting the prisoners, in order to 

 extinguish in them betimes all sentiments of humanity. In the mean time, 

 while these poor wretches are under the anguish of all this inhuman treat- 

 ment, they disdain so much as to groan, sigh, or show the least sign of dismay 

 or concern, so much as in their looks; on the contrary, they make it a point 

 of honour all the time to soften their features, and look as pleased as if they 

 were in the actual enjoyment of some delight ; and if they never sang before 

 in their lives, they will be sure to be melodious on this sad and dismal occa- 

 sion. So prodigious a degree of passive valour in the Indians is the more to 

 be wondered at, because in all articles of danger they are apt to behave like 

 cowards. And what is still more surprising, the very women discover, on 

 such occasions, as great fortitude and contempt, both of pain and death, as 

 the gallantest of their men can do. 



21st. The apprehensions we had of losing the horses in these copse woods 

 were too well founded, nor were the precautions we used yesterday of 

 driving them up sufficient to prevent their straying away afterwards, not- 

 withstanding they were securely hobbled. We therefore ordered the men 

 out early this morning to look diligently for them, but it was late before any 

 could be found. It seems they had straggled in quest of forage, and, besides 

 all that, the bushes grew thick enough to conceal them from being seen at 

 the smallest distance. One of the people was so bewildered in search of his 

 horse, that he lost himself, being no great forester. However, because we 

 were willing to save time, we left two of our most expert woodsmen behind 

 to beat all the adjacent woods in quest of him. 



In the mean while the surveyors proceeded vigorously on their business, 

 but were so perplexed with thickets at their first setting oflf, that their pro- 

 gress was much retarded. They were no sooner over that difficulty, but 

 they were obliged to encounter another. The rest of their day's work lay 

 over very sharp hills, where the dry leaves were so slippery that there was 

 hardly any hold for their feet. Such rubs as these prevented them from 

 measuring more than four miles and two hundred and seventy poles. Upon 

 the sides of these hills the soil was rich, though full of stones, and the trees 

 reasonably large. 



The smoke continued still to veil the mountains from our sight, which 

 made us long for rain, or a brisk gale of wind, to disperse it. Nor was the 

 loss of this wild prospect all our concern, but we were apprehensive lest the 

 woods should be burnt in the course of our line before us, or happen to take 

 fire behind us, either of which would effectually have starved the horses, and 

 made us all foot soldiers. But we were so happy, thank God ! as to escape 

 this misfortune in every part of our progress. We were exceedingly uneasy 

 about our lost man, knowing he had taken no provision of any kind, nor was 

 it much advantage towards his support, that he had taken his gun along with 

 him, because he had rarely been guilty of putting any thing to death. He 

 had unluckily wandered from the camp several miles, and after steei'ing 

 sundry unsuccessful courses, in order to return, either to us or to the line, 

 was at length so tired he could go no farther. In this distress he sat himself 

 down under a tree, to recruit his jaded spirit, and at the same time indulge a 

 few melancholy reflections. Famine was the first phantom that appeared to 

 him, and was the more frightful, because he fancied himself not quite bear 

 enough to subsist long upon licking his paws. In the mean time the two 

 persons we had sent after him hunted diligently great part of the day with- 

 out coming upon his track. They fired their pieces towards every point of 

 the compass, but could perceive no firing in return. However, advancing a 



