106 ^ JOURNEY TO 



it as well as we can. After the major had convinced himself of the idleness 

 of his tenant, he returned back to Blue Stone, and Harry Morris and I went 

 in quest of a fine copper mine, which he had secured for me in the fork. 

 For which purpose, about a quarter of a mile higher than Hogen's, we crossed 

 a narrow branch of the liver into a small island, not yet taken up, and after 

 traversing that, forded a much wider branch into the fork of Roanoke river. 

 Where we landed was near three miles higher up than the point of the fork. 

 We first directed our course easterly to.wards that point, which was very 

 sharp, and each branch of the river where it divided first seemed not to ex- 

 ceed eighty yards in breadth. The land was broken and barren off from 

 the river, till we came within half a mile of- the point where the low-grounds 

 began. The same sort of low ground ran up each branch of the river. 

 That on the Staunton (being the northern branch) was but narrow, but that 

 on the south, which is called the Dan, seemed to carry a width of at least 

 half a mile. After discovering this place, for which I intended to enter, we 

 rode up the mid-land five miles to view the mine, which in my opinion hardly 

 answered the trouble of riding so far out of our way. We returned down- 

 wards again about four miles, and a mile from the point found a good 

 ford over the north branch, into the upper end of Totero island. We 

 crossed the river there, and near the head of the island saw a large quantity 

 of wild hops growing, that smelt fragrantly, and seemed to be in great per- 

 fection. At our first landing we were so hampered with brambles, vines and 

 poke bushes, that our horses could hardly force their way through them. 

 However, this difficulty held only about twenty-five yards at each end of the 

 island, all the rest being very level and free from underwood. We met with 

 old fields where the Indians had formerly lived, and the grass grew as high 

 as a horse and his rider. In one of these fields were large duck ponds, very 

 firm at the bottom, to which wild fowl resort in the winter. In the woody 

 part of the island grows a vetch, that is green all the winter, and a great 

 support for horses and cattle, though it is to be feared the hogs will root it 

 all up. There is a cave in this island, in which the last Totero king, with 

 only two of his men, defended himself against a great host of northern In- 

 dians, and at last obliged them to retire. We forded the strait out of this 

 into Occaneeche island, which was full of large trees, and rich land, and the 

 south part of it is too high for any flood less than Noah's to drown, we rode 

 about two miles down this island, (being half the length of it,) where finding 

 ourselves opposite to Blue Stone Castle, we passed the river in a canoe, 

 which had been ordered thither for that purpose, and joined our friends, very 

 much tired, not so much with the length of the journey, as with the heat of 

 the weather. 



18th. We lay by till the return of the messenger that we sent for the am- 

 munition, and other things left at the court house. Nor had the Indians yet 

 joined us according to their promise, which made us begin to doubt of their 

 veracity. I took a solitary walk to the first ford of Blue Stone creek, about 

 a quarter of a mile from the house. This creek had its name from the colour 

 of the stones, which paved the bottom of it, and are so smooth that it is pro- 

 bable they will burn into lime. I took care to return to my company by 

 dinner time, that I might not trespass upon their stomachs. In the afternoon 

 I was paddled by the overseer and one of my servants up the creek, but 

 could proceed little farther than a mile because of the shoal water. All the 

 way we perceived the bottom of the creek full of the blue stones above men- 

 tioned, sufficient in quantity to build a large castle. At our return we went 

 into the middle of the river, and stood upon a large blue rock to angle, but 

 without any success. We broke off a fragment of the rock, and found it 

 as heavy as so much lead. Discouraged by our ill luck, we repaired to the 



