Terms, Five Dollars a Year. | 

 Ten Cents a Copy. f 



NEW YORK, THURSDAY, NOV. 6, 1873. 



{ Volume I, Number 13. 

 ( 103 Fulton Street. 



For Forest, and Siren in. 

 THE ANGLER'S FAREWELL TO 

 LABRADOR. 



SOFT the balmy south wind blows, 

 Swift the brimming river flows; 

 Now a ruffling ripple sweeps 

 O'er the shallows and dusk deeps; 

 Tis a glorious time to try 

 "With The salmon rod and fiv. 



Now a shade obscures the stream, 

 Now a sun-flash casts its gleam. 

 Now the dark tides darker flow. 

 Now the bright waves brighter glow; 

 O'er the checkered river's face 

 Shade and sunshine run their race. 



See, by yonder sandy bar, 

 Where a rock juts black and far, 

 See, in yon undimpled pool, 

 Deep, unfathomable, cool, 

 See, where wheeling eddies gleam 

 In the centre of the stream, 

 Flashing fin and flukes display 

 Where the spangled salmon lay. 



Sweep with careful rod the flood, 

 Cast the light fly many a rood; 

 Ha! the salmon from the deeps 

 Like the nimble lightning leaps ; 

 Now he feels the barbed steel, 

 Singing, humming goes the reel ; 

 Soon the captive comes to land, 

 Gasping on the yellow sand. 



Swelling floods of Labrador, 

 Pouring rivers, torrents hoar, 

 There's a sorrow at the heart, 

 As we linger ere we part. 

 Far away, on -winter nights 

 We will dream of your delights, 

 Longing to return again. 

 To your desolate domain. 



I. McLelt.an. 



fp7i |p/*» in cgtoritfa. 



— ♦ — 



CAMPING AMONG THE SEMINOLES. 



NUMBER ONE. 



The Everglades — Lake Okeechobee — Tiger Tail — 

 Black Cypress Swamp— Alligators— Dog Meat 

 Ragouts— Indian Belles — Queer Experiences. 



BY the treaty of 1843, the few Seminoles remaining in 

 Florida after the war were confined to the southern 

 portion of the peninsula. There they still remain, be- 

 tween two and three hundred in number, leading a peace- 

 ful life, cultivating their fields, and hunting. They are 

 governed by two chiefs ; those around the southern shore of 

 Lake Okeechobee by "Tustenuggee," and those east of that 

 great lake b; "Tiger Tailee." Their intei course with 

 white men is limited to occasional trading visits to Indian 

 River and the Keys. Though they have existed as a na- 

 tion for one hundred years, very little is known regarding 

 their language, customs, and social life. 



ft was with the avowed object of studying the Indian in 

 his native wilds that I left Indian River one beautiful 

 spring morning in '72. I had provided myself with an ox- 

 cart, oxen, of course, and a guide— though just what he 

 was a guide of, and to where, I've not satisfactorily deter- 

 mined to this day — and the usual amount of hunters' traps. 

 There was also a colored individual, who had charge of 

 the frying-pan and coffee pot. Well, we progressed favor- 

 ably enough, till the second night out found us fifteen 

 miles from my camp on Indian River, thirty miles from 

 Okeechobee, and further travel apparently stopped by a 

 long line of cypress swamp. So we camped on the "Al- 

 pattiokee." Alpattiokee is Seminole for Alligator Creek. 

 Game was abundant; deer in herds on the savannas; tur- 

 keys in flocks in the "hammocks;" the half-dry creek-bed 

 swarmed with ibis and heron of every hue, and alligators 

 were in abundance. They crawled upon the banks of the 

 creek, reposed upon its sand liars, and swam its waters. 



They made night hideous with their bellowings, and kept 

 our mastiff in perpetual dread of being devoured by as- 

 sailing him while he reposed by our camp-fire. Every in- 

 ducement for the stay of hunter cr naturalist was offered, 

 and every tramp and hunt would bring new additions of 

 rare plants and birds to my collection. 



While hunting along the various creeks I discovered 

 signs of Indians — in the sand of the dry creek-bed the im- 

 pressions of moccasined feet; on its banks a "cabbage 

 palm" with its terminal bud torn out and the leaves scat- 

 tered. An old Indian camp, strewn with bones of deer, 

 turkey, and tortoise showed that the place was a favorite 

 hunting ground. There were fresh tracks of three Indian 

 hunters, beside fainter ones of a woman and child. One 

 day Jim came in with the pickininny's playthings — an alli- 

 gator tooth, two or three grotesquely-shaped pieces of briar 

 root, and a walnut. While we were examining them we heard 

 a faint tinkling in the distance, and a preliminary recon- 

 noisance revealed three Indians approaching the ford in 

 the creek near our camp. Affecting to be employed with 

 our duties, we only looked up as they appeared, and they, 

 taking no notice of us, marched on with heads erect till 

 brought to a halt by Jim, who ran forward with extended 

 hand and a hearty "Hxrwrty." Then their swarthy faces 

 displaj r ed grins which grew broad <and loud as we sum- 

 moned unhappy Tom to prepare a repast for the weary 

 aborigines. Removing from their pony a huge pack, upon 

 which was a tin kettle, which had made the tin-tinabula- 

 tion we had heard, they hobbled his feet and sat dr-wn. 

 While they were demolishing the huge piles of flapjacks 

 which Jim set before them, I had an opportunity for study- 

 ing their dress and features. 



"Tiger," the oldest, was about seventy years old, and 

 had fought in the Seminole war. He was rather above the 

 medium height, broad shouldered, massive arms, and legs 

 like mahogany pillars, worn smooth and polished by many 

 a brush with thicket and briar. His nose and lips indi- 

 cated a trace of negro blood. His iron gray hair straggled 

 over a greasy bandana bound about his temples. His broad 

 shoulders were artistically draped in two ragged shirts of 

 "hickory," or striped homespun, the inner one about a foot 

 longer than the outer, and reaching nearly to his knees. 

 A breech cloth and moccasins completed his attire. "Char- 

 ley Osceola" was a young man of twenty, claiming to be a 

 descendant of the famous chief Osceola. Over six feet 

 high, with broad shoulders and finely-shaped limbs, 

 erect and straight, he was my beau ideal of an Indian 

 brave. His eyes were small, black, and keen, his voice 

 was musical, and he spoke in a firm, gentle manner that 

 won my heart at once. His hair was thick, coarse, and 

 black, with the changeable purple of the raven's wing. It 

 was shaved close at the sides, leaving a ridge on the crown 

 spreading toward the neck, and hanging in braids over the 

 shoulders. His dress was similar to Tiger's. The picka- 

 ninny was hardly worth a description. Each carried a 

 rifle, a reserve supply of bows and arrows, and a pouch for 

 ammunition, etc. 



They obstinately refused to talk "Yankaistahadka," or 

 Yankee talk, but used their own language. It was a long 

 time before I could be made to understand that "shatoka- 

 nowa humkin" meant one dollar, the price of a set of bows 

 and arrows, but after much labor I mastered their system 

 of numeration up to a thousand, though I will now admit 

 that I was much exercised at "chopkakolehokolin," and 

 gave it up. 



While Osceola was making me some talipikahs, or moc- 

 casins, Jim was endeavoring to extract from Tiger the 

 proper route to Lake Okeechobee, and whether we could 

 reach it with our ox-cart. Jim had mingled with the In- 

 dians in his youth, and prided himself upon his accomplish- 

 ments in the manner of dealing with them, and speaking 

 their language. Tiger sat upon his haunches beneath the 

 spreading branches of a live oak, looking like some raVo-ed 

 Turk. 



Jim (in a loud vojce)-r "Okeechobee; you save?.?" 

 Tiger— "Eucah," (yes). 



Jim — "Okeechobee; me go; walkah (oxen) go; Yankais- 

 tahadka go; hey?" 



Tiger — "Eucah; walkah, me eatum; good!" 



Jim — "No, you old fool, (emphasized); you know more'n 

 you portend; walkah no slumpy, shimpy, no sticky, icky 

 in the mud; that's what I mean." 



Tiger— "Haigh!" 



Jim — "Oh, you old black leg; you consarncd old mana- 

 tee! Can't you talk Istachatta (Indian), or do yer mean tft 

 go back on yer native tongue? Come, now, talk Yankee 

 talk; none of your dog-goned nonsense and hog Latin. 

 Okeechobee, me go; walkah go; cartah go; Istalusta (mu- 

 latto) go; no get stuckah, no have to come backah; hey?" 



[This in fearful tones, for Jim held, with many others, 

 that you could make any foreigner understand, provided 

 you spoke loud enough]. 



Tiger — "Istalusta; shookah, me give ran.; pablen!" and 

 he looked wistfully at Tom. 



Jim — "Ten hogs for that nigger! There, I'll give up; 

 the — something — heathenish old chatlymico don't know 

 Injun no more'n a cracker!" 



A peculiar twinkle of Tiger's eyes convinced me that lie 

 "knew more'n he pertended," but what his reasons were 

 for baffling Jim's curiosity I didn't know till later. 



That night w r e left our camp on the Alpattioke, and made 

 our fire at the foot of the "forked cabbage," on a branch 

 of the Alpattie. The Indians accompainied us, though 

 unasked. It seems that Tiger had divined Jim's mean- 

 ing, and had determined to prevent us from reaching our 

 destination. He had concocted a fearful scheme to pre- 

 vent our departure— it was to eat us out. I didn't know it 

 at the time, or I shouldn't have aided them as I did. 



The shades of night and the time for our evening repast 

 drew near. In honor of our guests, Tom had cooked just 

 four times the usual quantity of flapjacks, besides our last 

 steak of venison. I had devoured but one flapjack, and 

 was about securing another, when, lo! they were not. 

 Tiger sat dignified and sad; Charley dignified and serious; 

 "Fistilokeen" dignified and dirty. The corners of their 

 mouths ran hog juice, their faces and hands were unctuous 

 with it, yet there they sat, patiently waiting, sad and se- 

 rious; grieved, even, judging from their countenances. 



Tom refused to cook any more. 



"Is-ta-lus-ta lazy; ho-la-wan-gus!" said Tiger. 



Thus taunted, Tom broke open our last package of flour 

 and busied himself, cursing the Indian the while, till they 

 all united in a satisfied "me full!" These untutored "sons 

 of the forest" soon left us with their customary "me hi- 

 epus j" (me go), and we were not very sorry that, to use 

 their own expression, they were "sui-cus j" (gone). From 

 Tom's quarters that night I heard a muttered blessing upon 

 the "Is-ta-chat-tas." In the morning they brought a peace 

 offering of venison, and that night we had an alligator 

 hunt by moonlight. 



I shall never forget the weird aspect of the scene spread 

 out before us, as we assembled silently upon the banks of 

 the creek. The creek-bed could be traced through the vast 

 plain by the occasional clumps of palms till lost in the 

 swamp far beyond. The bright plumaged herons, that told 

 of its meanderings as they hovered over it by day, were 

 now gone, and silence, as of the grave, reigned over us. 

 The creek-bed was dry and exposed, except at intervals 

 there were great holes full of alligators — rightly called 

 "alligator holes." Here, crowded together, they were pa- 

 tiently awaiting the setting in of the rainy season, which 

 would set them free from their narrow prisons. 



The '"gaitors" seemed to have had notice of our cominp- 

 as, when we gathered upon the steep bank, not a head was 

 visible. " "Ump, ump, ump!" said Fistilokeen, imitatinn- 

 the grunting of a young alligator. Soon a dozen knotty 

 heads showed themselves, peering anxiously above the 

 water. At the slightest motion they would disappear. 



"Ump, ump, ump, ump, ump!" 



The evil-looking eyes again appeared, and the round noses 

 gave utterance to similar though louder sounds. Up they 

 ly, till I counted twenty-seven 

 1 i; " 1 "i l iifnii 1 iiiiii'frTi" 



