Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

THE REFLECTOR- MILLEDGEVILLE, G. TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER.22, 1818. NO. 46. I'THKRN INDIANS. journal Witten in the Crock-nation of Indians. _ svernment of the Creeks is in form ii, each town or village elect ;i chief whose authority :s never disputed,’ he remains in office, and who rc- his town in the great council at business of the nation is transact- hcre a speaker or head man of the lected. The military authority is nd subordinate to the civil. M’ln- relebratcd warrior, reports to and orders from the civil head of the -nt. But although their chiefs arc .ted, they are invested with more an any legitimate sovereign in Eti- 1 the submission the people pay to riors is so remarkable that they bmit to the most arbitrary acts of iefs of towns execute, the laws in summary manner. Murder is pull ing them by putting the murderer if he can lie found ; if lie abscond, i death his nearest male relation, nerates the original aggressor, who safely return. If a man kills a e himself is not executed for the t they put to death his sister or o- fcinnic relation. In many instances, s make relations responsible for each lis has created among them a great to family ; there is little social in- :, except among those, united by tin lood. The knowledge they have nt ideations and branches, not only <>i -n family but of those of the whole surprising. No lieraldy office could correct or minute than the heads of their old men. I was once aked by an, who spoke a little English, “ you e f” I answered “ no.” «» No !” he ed, “ why my father killed six men attle and was astonished that any should not know a man who was thus islicd by his ancestor. In one of tin I passed, there had been a lew days a frac as, at which a man was killed, rderer was immediately secured, ami ef ordered him to dig a grave, for he had killed and put him into it.— had done this, lie was told to put . over the man ; while doing this knocked hi.n in the head, and buri- both together, acting himself ury, executioner and sexton, ng marks so much the barbarous, ed state of these savages, as tli in which their women are treated.— y is allowed among them, they are d to have as many wives they are pport. The consent of the woman age is never asked, she must h om her father, to him application is hen, if accompanied with presents, refused, and a marriage takes plat he parties having previously ex it word wi'.’i each other. Ail assein- rrlations to drink or dance, is all ony used on the occasion. From art either party may he divorced, three months before-hand, that corn is ripened, it is their int.cn- rt. The women are employed in servile, menial drudgery, working "ield, cooking, pounding or grind- anil drying fish are their prin- upations. A widow is compel! ain single four years after the deal! ‘band. meat to ardent spirits is a general pg '.'lose people. Teeuinseh end vain to eradicate tlris inveterate Mississippi into hostility against the United States. This was a field worthy of his great and enterprising genius. lie commenced in the year J 809, and in the execution of his project he displayed unequalled adroitness, loquence and courage. He insinuated him self into every tribe from Micliilimackinak to Georgia and was invariably successful in his attempts to bring them over to his views, lie played upon their feelings, but principal ly upon their superstitions, and sometimes assumed the character of a prophet, and car ried with him a red stick, to which lie at tached certain mystical properties, and the acceptance of which was considered as the joining of Ids party, from hence the name Red Stick is applied to all Indians hostile to the United States. Unfortunately for Te- cumsch, but happily for the United States was it, that before his plan hail become ma tured, before his arrangements for general hostility were perfected, before, in fact, he had properly organized or brought into the field any of his forces, his brother made a premature attack upon the troops of the U. States, under the command of colonel Boyd, in the summer of 1811, at Tippecanoe, iii w hit'll he suffered asigual defeat. The disas ter marred the prospect of the gallant Tccuin- seli; his own soul was unshaken, but it (lamped the ardor of his associates ; and al though many continued firm in their warlik< Attitude and hostile intentions towards the whites, yet numbers shrunk from a contest 'hat had commenced with defeat, and all the hurts of Teeuinseh were unavailing to s ip- ply the links thus broken in his chain of ope rations. The w^r against England declared soon after this event by the United States, opened new views to the talents of Teeuinseh. llis merits were duly appreciated by the Bri tish go /eminent, and they made him a bri gadier general in their service. At the head of Itis formidable warriors, he more than once turned the scale of victory against the Americans, and Detroit, river Basin and Fort Meigs were witnesses of his conduct and valor. In 1813, w hen general IiarriBon entered Canada, Tccumseh advised colonel 1’roetor to attack him ; the British colonel prelered retreating ; an attack was, howe ver sustained near the river Thames, in which Teeuinseh displayed his usual ability, and laid down his life for the cause he had espoused. An Indian is at home in any part of the forest; lie curries with him parched corn pulverised, and at night, if lie has shot no tiling, lie cooks his parched corn with water alone, which although insipid to liio taste is exceedingly nutritious, and sleeps in the. o- pen air. If he- intends civamping lor seve ral days, or the weather is bad, he strips the bark from a pine tree and makes shelter that secures him from rain. sell was the most‘extraordinary In- lias ever appeared in their history, y birth a Shawannees, and would a great nran in any age or nation nt of the most consummate couragi s a warrior, and all the charactcr- ncss of his race, he was endowed with all the attributes of a mind for great political combinations.— understanding very e.tly in lift im,that they were gradually yield- whites, who were acquiring an im- ucnce over them. Instigated lit iderations, and, perhaps, by hi unity and attachment to war, lie lecided enemy to the whites, and invincible determination (lie sur- but with his life) to regain for tire proud independence lie sup- ad lost. For a number of years most in every actol hostility com- inst those lie conceived were the of his countrymen* and was equal- able for intrepidity* as skill* in ats that took place under his ban- re, at length, of the extent, num- wer of the United States, he be- convinced of the futility of any n of red men attempting to cope He formed therefore the grand uniting all the tribes ejist of the I passed where a little girl had been shot through the arm, and scalped notw ithstand ing which she is in a fair way to recover.— Scalping is a custom among these people wlirn they have killed or wounded an enemy, by making a circle r.unid the top of the head with a knife and stripping off the skin ; this ncrally followed by acoup-de-gracc with the tomahawk. Scalps arc trophies held in great esteem among them ; and lie who can produce the largest number is entitled to the high honors awarded a great warrior, a till Of much distinction among them. Frequent instances have occurred of recovery of per sons who have been scalped when the other wounds they have received were slight.— During the war of the revolution, and in the last war, the Indians employed by the Brit ish government received their compensation in a stipulated price for each scalp they pro- ddred. 1 am sorry to say that the practice of scalping is sometimes adopted by our fron tier militia. The facility with which an Indian can dis cover the track or trail of man or beast is really surprising: where an inexperienced observer is unable to discover that either have passed, an Indian will trace the marks with unerring accuracy anil be able to tell how many there were, and how long it lias been since they passed. On all subjects that it is indispensably necessary for them to have an acquaintance with, in the prosecution of their wars, or in the pursuit of game, they discover an acuteness and sagacity very sur prising, considering their ignorance on ab stract subjects. General Gaines lias bad a narrow escape ; when general Jackson arrived at Hartford, general Gaines, anxious to prepare his brig ade for movement, and fearful that the offi- •cr commanding at Fort Scott should, un aware of the approach of supplies, abandon Ids post, resolved on making the hazardous attempt of reaching the Fort. The Flint river, on which Fort Scott is situated, was at this time very much swollen, and its cur rent exceedingly rapid and w ide. He em barked on board a boat with two officers and twelve men. He had proceeded down the river hilt 70 miles, when his boat struck upon a stump on an island then overflowed by w ater,the boat, filled but luckily did not sink. It was nignt; major Wright and two sol diers immediately attempted to swim ashore, but they perished iu the attempt. The gen eral remained in the boat about one hour, lie then prepared himself to swim and start ed with five soldiers and a strong active Iu|. dian named Billy. The current was ex tremely rapid, and they had half a mile to swim. The Indian had torn a piece of hoard from the boat to which he attached a string that lie carried in his teeth, and by that means rendered the general great assistance. They reached the shore, with the loss of three out of the seven that started. General Gaines hailed the boat and informed major Nicks of the loss he had sustained, in con sequence of which, those who survived re mained on the wreck until next day, when they all, except one, reached the shore, op posite to that on w hich the gen. had landed. General Gaines now found himself naked, without food,- in a wilderness, surrounded by hostile Indians who would immediately put him to death if they discovered him.— He decided on endeavoring to reach Fort Scott, distant as he immagined 35 miles, but lie soon became weak, sick, exhausted and unable to proceed. He dispatched the Indi an and a soldier, to endeavor to reach Fort Scott and bring him assistance and an cs- ort. After waiting with ail anxiety that may be t -adily imagined, a sufficient time for time for tiie Indian to have returned, lie began to apprehend that either Fort Scott hud been abandoned or that the Indian had been destroyed in attempting to reach it.— ile determined therefore to reach an Indian settlement, distant about 50 miles although doubtful whether it was a friendly or a hos tile one. lie wrote on the sand a statement >f the route lie had taken, intending if tin Indian should return, that he might be able to find him, and in his weak exhausted state proceeded, lie had no guide but the river, and his path was intersected by creeks that lie bad to swim, and swamps to wade thro*. He was obliged to travel very cautiously, the wood being filled with hostile Indians, and inalile to make a fire, and without clothes. ie suffered much from the cold, lie was witli- iut any arms but a penknife, with which he ut clubs for himself and the soldier, and he had determined, should he meet with but two or three Indians in a body, he would at- tark and endeavor to take their arms, lie requenlly saw tracts of the savage enemy, and more than once warmed himself at fires they, had just quitted. At length, after be ing about four days without tasting a mouth ful of food, he reached an Indian village : he found the warriors had all left it, and was received with great coldness by an old squaw, to whose hut he first went, and from whom with much difficulty he procured a breakfast. It is remarkable, that although the general and his soldier had been four days without, food, yet when some cooked venison was placed before them, they felt little disposi tion to eat, and experienced no inconveni ence from long abstinence. The general proceeded, and soon after joined the army. in this, however, owing to the failure of his principal mind, lie but partially succeeded ; immense breaches, it is true, were made in ils w alls, and several of the towns attached to them, laid in ruins, with the arsenal, Ac.; >ne church only was prprthrown, the steeplo of which, (the highest in Moscow) remains quite unhurt. The largest bell then hang ing in Moscow was in this steeple, which fell down at that time, and still lies upon the ground into this bell I have walked and stood upright with case, against the, hook to which the clapper was fixed. This is said to be the second largest bell in the world, the first lying in a large hole in the kremlin, where it ('•II many years ago, nearly covered with dirt, and will in a few years more be doubt* less quite hidden ; this one is said to weigh 432,000 lbs. our weight. In the. kremlin, a- inong other wonderful things, is a cannon, the weight of which, is 2100 poods or 75,600 lbs ; this was never discharged but once,, which was on the coronation of the emperor I’aul. Here too arc to he seen seven hund red and fifty-three pieces of cannon which vcrc taken from the French in the campaign >f 1812. •* Moscow, though containing many mag nificent edifices, is awkwardly and irregu larly built, presenting to the eye in the part •f it which was preserved from the flames, md in those again built up, the prince’s pal ace and the peasant’s hut, at the same time. Unlike our cities, in the very centre of it ■hi the finest streets, the most miserable buildings are to be seen, so that a person in 'Moscow can say with the strictest truth that he has almost constantly at the same lime before his eyes, the extremes of wealth and of poverty. I am sensible that I am re peating here what you have read perhaps in many books, but I flatter myself it will af ford you some satisfaction to receive the same detail from me, inasmuch as you will lecl confident that in reading it you are not reading a thing of falsehood, made up by travellers to deceive the world.” TOPOGRAPHY. LI.TTi.US FROM IIUSSIA. MOSCOW. “ I am now in Moscow for the purpose of learning the Russian language (which, let me observe by the way, is totally different from all of the modern ones of Europe, anil consequently very difficult to learn well,) but if I succeed in it as 1 hope to do, it will probably he the cause of, or at least great inducement for my staying long iu this coun try. The advantages which the possession of the language promises, arc surely great and ought not to be thrown away, out of weakness or irresolution. “ It is very certain that, in a country where the language, manners, and every thing arc different from what they are in ours, I cannot be so happy as at home, yet in a general way, I am very well contented and I do uot allow myself to forget that 1 came here not like a lord, in search of a- ; imisemcnt. but like some of those curious fellows whose adventures we used to read of when children,« to seek my fortune.” “ And now, since I am in Moscow, I am sure you will expect me to say something to you concerning it, and much more than I am able to say. According to a book which was some years since published here con cerning it, this city is eleven versts or about 7 3-4 of our miles long, 7 3-4 versts nr 5 3-4 miles in circumference. It contains at pres ent 273 churches, and 20 monasteries and convents ; the kremlin is constructed about tbe middle of the town, on an elevated spot, and was at one time the strong hold of the ancient monarchs ; it was at first built with wood in the year 1300, and renewed with stone in the fifteenth century : the ground it encloses is considerable, and it contains 13 churches, two palaces, arsenals, &c. Ac. all fine, and somo of them magnificent build ings. It is well known to you that this was attempted to be destroyed by Bonaparte j ’ e9, ST. PETERSBURG!!. “"With regard to St. Petersburg!!, I could never express to you the sensations with which I first entered that magnificent city. After having passed over Sweden and Hol land, where (in their towns). I saw nothing remarkable, but much filth and poverty, I was not prepared for such a sight. It were vain for ine to attempt describing to you the thousand tilings I saw in it to delight me, ami not at all useful. For me to enlarge upon the beauty ot particular edifices, public works, Ac. of which, without a long and la bored description, it would be impossible for you to have an idea : suffice it to say, that the regularity, proportion, and scale of gran deur upon which every thing in it is execut ed has given me a better idea of what is ne cessary to constitute a splendid city than I had ever imagined, or (if I am to believe travellers) than those who have not been at St. Petersburg!! have ever seen. The city of St. Petersburgh is, taken as a ity, splendid in the full sense of the term-* the streets are wide, many of them intersect ed by large canals, which serve to supply every part of the town with wood, materials for building Ac. at a cheap rate : the houses are very large and bcauliful ; none of them, however, of the original color of the brick, as ours are ; they arc all plastered and col ored, occasionally yellow or green, but for the most part white. The left bank of the Neva, for two versts, and probably more, i3 beautified by a fine granite wall and walk.— The boulevard is about one verst in length. The winter palace of the Emperor Alexan der is 660 feet in length, and 510 in breadth ; it is by no means a handsome building ; its windows are small, and at every step it is deformed by columns ; it is also plastered. The houses plastered in this manner, as long as they are new, look very well; but after a while the plaster scales off, and when this is The case the appearance is very incau ; not much of this, however, is seen here, as the people are conscious of this fact, and, gener ally speaking, keep the plaster at least ia good order. The city is built on many little islands formed by the Neva; the greater portion of it is on the left bank of that river, which is fast ground. Two bridges connect thcjcity’s three principal parts, viz. that on the Vassily Ostroff, (or Basil’s island ; Os- trnff, in their language, meauing island) that on the kaminy ostroff, or stony island, and that on fast land ; these bridges are construct ed on large boats, which appear like the hulks of tolerably large vessels, but are built of pine, and flat bottomed ; each bridge is built on 18 boats, or thereabouts ; as soon as tbe ice eomes down the Neva in the fall of tho year, they are swung, and not replaced till the spring, w hen the ice is all gone. This is a great inconvenience ; for at that seasoa it is sometimes weeks that the ice continues floating, and although the river can general* ly be crossed in boats, still the inhabitants are deprived of the convenience of the bridg. i arrived here on Urn 2d wf Majr, 1814,