306 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 73 
In the summer of this same year (1670) John Lederer, exploring 
southwest from Virginia on his own recognizance, heard of this 
tribe through their neighbors and enemies, the Catawba, whom he 
calls Ushery. He says: 
This prince fi. e., the prince of the Ushery Indians], though his dominions are large 
and populous, is in continual fear of the Oustack Indians on the opposite side of the 
lake — a people so addicted to arms that even their women come into the field and 
shoot arrows over their husbands' shoulders, who shield them with leathern targets. 
The men it seems should fight with silver- hatchets; for one of the Usheryes told me 
that they were of the same metal with the pom el of my sword. They are a cruel 
generation, and prey upon people whom they either steal or force away from the Ush- 
eryes in Periago's, to sacrifice to their idols. 1 
That the Westo were then at war with the Iswa (Lederer's 
Ushery), a branch of the Catawba, is plainly indicated in the South 
Carolina archives. 2 
In 1672-73 they attacked the South Carolina settlers. 3 In 1674 
Henry Woodward, the interpreter of the colony, visited a Westo 
town on Savannah River somewhere below the present Augusta. 
He describes his visit thus: 
Haveing paddled about a league upp [the Savannah] wee came in sight of ye Westoe 
towne, alias ye Hickauhaugau which stands uppon a poynt of ye river (which is 
undoubtedly ye river May) uppon ye Westerne side soe y* ye river encompasseth 
two-thirds thereof. When we came w th in [sight] of the towne I fired my fowling piece 
& pistol w ch was answered with a hollow & imediately thereuppon they gave mee 
a vollew of fifty or sixty small arms. Here was a concourse of some hundred of Indians 
drest up in their anticke fighting garbe. Through ye midst of whom being conducted 
to their cheiftaines house ye which not being capable to containe ye crowd y* came 
to see me, ye smaller fry got up & uncouvered the top of ye house to satisfy their 
curiosity. Ye cheife of ye Indians made long speeches intimateing their own strength 
(& as I judged their desire of Freindship w th us). This night first haveing oyled my 
eyes and joynts -with beares oyl, they presented mee divers deare skins setting before 
me sufficient of their food to satisfy at least half a dozen of their owne appetites. Here 
takeing my first nights repose, ye next day I viewed ye Towne which is built in a 
confused manner, consisting of many long houses whose sides and tops are both arti- 
fitially done w th barke uppon ye tops of most whereof fastened to ye ends of long poles 
hang ye locks of haire of Indians that they have slaine. Ye inland side of ye towne 
being duble Pallisadoed, & y* part which fronts ye river haveing only a single one, 
under whose steep banks seldom ly less then one hundred faire canoes ready uppon 
all occasions. They are well provided with arms, amunition, tradeing cloath & 
other trade from ye northward for which at set times of ye year they truck drest deare 
skins furrs & young Indian Slaves. In ten daies time y* I tarried here I viewed ye 
adjacent part cf ye Country, they are Seated uppon a most fruitfull soyl. Ye earth is 
intermingled w th a sparkling substance like Antimony, finding severall flakes of 
Isinglass in ye paths. Ye soales of my Indian shooes in which I travelled glistened 
like sylver. Ye clay of which their pots & pipes are made is intermingled w th ye 
like substance ye wood land is abounding w th various sorts of very large straite timber. 
Eight dais journey from ye towne ye River hath it first falls West. N. West were it 
>Lederer, Discoveries, pp. 20-21. 
*S. C. Hist. Soc. Colls., v, p. 428. 
oibid., pp. 406, 427-428, 461. 
