The sunny South. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1875-1907, December 04, 1875, Image 6

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established quarters in one of its secret eham- J bers. We slept in the cave during the day, and j at night came out and took the open air. | Thus \re passed the first three days and nights, i On the fourth day, a messenger came from Black Watt and informed us that neither of the wounded men had died, but that great excite ment existed, and that several Indian scouts were searching for us. One of these had been at Black Watt’s and admitted they had been of fered large rewards by the Unakas (white men) to bring in the refugees dead or alive. We were therefore admonished to keep close until further notice. After the messenger had departed, I observed a serious expression on the countenance of Se quoyah. After the manner of his race, he be trayed by a moody silence rather than by words that something troubled him. It was not until I had made several efforts to draw him out that he gave vent to his feelings in words like the fol lowing: “No like Walegah (the messenger). He hate Sequoyah. He no friend — he snake in the grass. ” Upon further inquiry, I ascertained there was unpleasantness between them concerning Oolat- tie, a squaw no doubt beautiful, as the name in the Indian dialect is that of “ creeping lily,” known among our flora as “morning glory.” Knowing the treachery of the Indian character, I felt that there was indeed cause for the grave apprehen sions of my Indian companion, and that pru dence demanded a change of programme on our part, and that speedily. But daylight was al ready dawning, and it would be very hazardous to expose ourselves without; and as we desired to communicate with Black Watt upon the change of plans, it was concluded, not without serious misgivings, that we would remain until night, and then, under cover of darkness, steal out and go to Black Watt’s and arrange for our escape from the nation. It was agreed that one of us , should keep a careful lookout through the day Many years ago, Major John Seaborne, an ad- i from a concealed position at the mouth of the venturous pioneer in the early settlement of j cave, so that we might not be surprised or cap- [For The Sunny South.] MY FLOWER. BY H. E. SHIPLEY. An exotic I tended,— Its frail life defended From excess of sunshine or shower; Its leaflets unfolding, Filled my heart in beholding With joy and pride in my beautiful flower. But the gardener Death— Tho' with tenderest breath— Claimed my bud for the heavenly bower; From the nursery here, Spite of prayer and tear, Transplanted my beautiful flower. Now, in Bunshine eternal, 'Mid fields ever vernal, ’Neath skies whose clouds never lower, Safe from danger or blight— Oh, exquisitely bright!— Blooms my flower—my beautiful flower. When to heaven remanded, My soul shall be banded With my loved, freed from Death’s mystic pow’r, Aly bud, early taken, A deep rapture shall waken As a beautiful, immortal flower. [For The Sunny South.] A FIGHT UNDERGROUND; OB, A STRUGGLE AGAINST ODDS. A TRUE INCIDENT OF UPrER GEORGIA. BY B. C. W., 11. D. Cherokee, Georgia, related to the writer a num ber of interesting incidents connected with his life among the Cherokee Indians. One of these, detailing his “ Terrible Conflict” with the cele brated savage, George Took, was published about two years ago. In that narration, refer- tured unawares. The day had well progressed, and it was not until about three o’clock in the afternoon that a low, keen whistle from my Indian friend ap prised me of danger. The alarm was quickly followed by the presence of the sentinel, who in- ence was made to a large cave in the southwest | formed me that he had seen three Indian scouts portion of what is now known as Bartow county, Georgia. We well remember the facts of another adventure narrated by him as occurring in the same county, and in which this same cave plays an important part On one occasion, said he, when engaged in a hunt with a friendly half-breed by the name of George Guess, called by the Indians Sequoyah, night overtook us at a point on the north side of the Etowah river, in the vicinity of a large and beautiful ancient mound, near where the main trail from Alabama crossed, which came from the white settlements into the nation. Within about two hundred yards of the mound was an Indian hut, at which we sought shelter for the night. We found at this cabin a number of ruf fians who, by the free use of “ fire-water ” (whis ky) and presents, had ingratiated themselves with the savages in that locality. These men were not disposed to allow us to spend the night with them, saying that they were already crowd ed, and that we must find other quarters. The night being wet and stormy, I could not regard this refusal on the part of these men otherwise than as very unkind, and even insulting—the more so that they were themselves lodgers and not proprietors of the house. Being then young, bold and reckless, I protested at once against this treatment, and gave vent to my feelings in no very mild or measured terms; whereupon, a man by the name of Leathers, who afterwards became notorious as a leader of a gang of horse- thieves, spoke very insultingly to me, but took care to keep well back amongst the ruffian crowd, not choosing to measure strength with me. I was then a stout, active young man, accustomed to perilous adventure anu reckless of danger. I was well armed, and so was Sequoyah, my Indian comrade. At this juncture, my compan ion beckoned me aside, and judiciously re marked: “ Too many white braves—Indian too much drunk; let us go.” But before I had time to reply or to act upon this suggestion, a large, bushy-whiskered man by the name of Beeves came to the door and commenced cursing us. I measured him with my eye. He was a powerful fellow, and carried a large pistol at his side. He closed his tirade of abuse in words to this effect, addressed to my Indian friend, whose talk he had overheard: “Yery sound advice, my young red-skin. We have no room for you, much less for Jack Sea borne; he is not of our sort.” Fired with passion, I retorted: “What have I done to you, you infernal horse- thief, scoundrel, ruffian?” at the same instant, drawing my pistol. Beeves sprang behind the door-post, and ! reaching his arm around, fired at but missed me. I rushed upon him, but before I could reach him, he fell back amidst the party within, curs- j ing, raving and calling for vengeance upon me, j saying I had shot at the crowd. The whole ruf- ! fian gang, Indians and all, then came rushing toward us with yells and whoops. I stood at bay with pistol drawn, and defied them all, dar ing them to send out Beeves and Leathers, and we would thrash them on the spot. At this in stant, Leathers came forward and fired a shot, which grazed and burnt the skin on my left shoulder. I instantly returned the fire, as the crowd jumped aside. My shot wounded him severely, and he staggered into the cabin and crawled out of view. The whole gang, number ing five or six desperate white men, and not less than a dozen savages with tomahawks, now rushed upon us. I knocked down Beeves with the butt end of my pistol, while my Indian com rade fired his pistol, wounding one of the whites and floored a savage with his tomahawk. But they still pressed upon us, and fired several shots, fortunately missing their aim. It was ev ident we must retreat or be overpowered. I called out to my Indian friend to save himself as best he could, and we both retreated to the woods, he in one direction and I in another. It was already dark, and the pursuers followed but a short distance. About twelve miles west of the mound alluded to on Two-run creek (Toorunnah or perch, a fish in which this creek abounds), there resided a man of some celebrity in the nation, by the name of Black Watt Adair. He had married a woman of mixed blood, and had long resided among the Indians. Sequoyah was very intimate with this family, and I had often sojourned with them in my travels through the nation. There had been no time or opportunity for us to agree upon a place of rendezvous, but each naturally directed his way to Adair’s, and arrived near the same hour of the night, probably about twelve o’clock, and held a council as to the course to pursue in regard to the late trouble, for we well knew that the ruffians would put the savages on our track by daylight next morning. We awoke Black Watt from his bed and advised with him. The result was, we decided to take refuge in the Saltpetre Cave, which was about two miles dis tant. If attacked, it would be a strong point of defense, and there was every probability that we would remain secure and undiscovered. We could stay there until the excitement died out, and then, if necessary, could escape to the white set tlements. In the meantime, Black Watt could at the foot of the hill, and that they were stealth ily approaching the mouth of the cave. We at once prepared our arms for use and extinguished the light in our subterranean chamber. It was not long until the three scouts were vis ible at the external opening, to which point, from our position at the bottom, there was a steep ascent of about two hundred feet. They were evidently in great doubt as to what course to pursue in order to discover us, as we were in position to see them while they could not see us. But with that cat-like motion peculiar to the Indian, they commenced the descent along the rocky and precipitous pathway, crawling from point to point and concealing themselves as best they could behind the huge boulders, along the rugged declivity. We noticed that one of them carried a bundle of torch-pine, in dicating their intention to light up the cave, and thus expose us to view; but on this point we felt little concern, knowing that a light kin dled by them in the pitchy darkness below would but render them the more conspicuous as targets for our rifles, whilst we could easily conceal ourselves from view amid the distant and dismal shadows within. It was not our plan to kill or fire upon them if it could be avoided, but, if possible, to conceai ourselves and evade discovery, letting them depart in the belief that we were not in the cave, and had made our exit from it before their arrival; but if they should unfortunately discover us, then it were better to kill all three of them, so that they could not re port to the outside enemy. As they approached, we cautiously receded, but kept tolerably close together, so as to act in concert or assist each other in whatever emer gency might present. They were suffered to reach tha bottom unmolested. We kept perfectly quiet, and so did the enemy. The death-like stillness was only broken by that audible throb bing of the heart so perceptible and even painful in moments of peril and excitement. After sev eral minutes’ delay and eager listening on the part of the enemy, they were seen, by the feeble light which penetrated that portion of the cav ern, to approach each other from different points and engage in a low, whispered conversation for some moments. Two of them then stealthily moved off, the one to the right, the other to the left or larger chamber or division, the same in which we were secreted. We knew that he was approaching us, yet he was quickly enveloped in darkness, and we could neither see nor hear him. We yet remained motionless and silent, but with pistol in hand, ready for instant use. We were perhaps ten feet apart. My companion was crouched behind a large rock, and I stood behind a large stalagmite or stone column, and hence had no fear of an accidental contact or collision with the hidden enemy, as he must first encounter the column, and I would thus discover his proximity. The position of my friend seemed scarcely less favorable, the rock j interposing to prevent contact, though so low as to compel him to remain in a crouched position. We were for some moments on tiptoe of expect- antcy and listening intently. It was evident that they were acting upon the presumption that we were not suspecting danger, perhaps asleep in one of the inner chambers, and were reconnoitering in hope of discovering us by our camp-fire, or, if awake, to hear our conversation and thus be enabled to slip upon us unawares and kill or capture us. The man with the pine, in the meanwhile, was to be ready to strike a light at a given signal should it become necessary to aid them in their exit or for other purposes. The plan was well conceived, and would in all probability have succeeded had we not been on the alert. As it was, our knowledge of their plan and movements placed them at great disadvantage, and nothing but our desire to avoid discovery seemed to prevent their easy destruction. How long we remained in suspense and ex pectancy I know not, but it seemed that there had been ample time for the reconnoitering par ties to have satisfied themselves as to the possi bility of making any discoveries in that way, and I had commenced watching the place from whence they diverged, expecting to see them return for further conference, when suddenly I felt that instinctive and unaccountable sense of the near presence of another party, which, per haps, at some period of his life, every one has experienced. I realized a presence and felt a touch upon my arm on the opposite side from whence the enemy was looked for. The touch was not with a finger, but with a hard object or stick. I shrank back a step and presented my pistol in that direction; but it suddenly occurred to me that it might be Sequoyah, who had taken this method of communicating with me for some purpose; so I desisted, but instantly remembered that a very low hiss had been agreed upon as a signal by which to find each other or give warn ing of danger. As this was not a hiss, but a touch, it must be the enemy, who had passed us and was now returning. As this solution of the matter occurred to my mind, I instantly gave the signal-hiss myself, at the same time cocking my pistol, whereupon the Indian rushed by me toward the outlet with a wild, shrill war-whoop that reverberated through the dismal vaults and keep a watch upon our adversaries, and advise ; sent back echoes as of a thousand hideous fiends us as to what was going on. of war let loose. With the same impulse we , So we supplied ourselves with provisions for . both sprang forward to the pursuit. It was at week, blankets, ammunition, a lantern, etc. first too dark to see them, but as they all rushed ' early dawn, we reached the cave, and soon for escape toward the opening, the light from above soon brought them in view, and we com menced firing at them. But the ruggedness of the pathway and the insufficiency of light inter fered with the accuracy of our aim, and though our rifles and pistols were emptied of every load, all would have escaped had it not been for the dash and courage of Sequoyah, who suc ceeded in overtaking the hindmost one, who, ; not finding the true path, was endeavoring to : crawl over a huge rock, when he was caught by j my Indian friend, struck on the head with his 1 tomahawk, dragged to the bottom, and would have been scalped had I not interfered to pre vent This I did, not only because of an aver- I sion I felt to that savage custom, but because, though insensible, he was not dead; nor could his death do us any good, now that the others had escaped, but would add to our trouble by j still farther heightening the flame of excitement i and revenge against us. The object of greatest importance to us at that moment was to escape from the cave at once, and to make for the white settlements with all j possible dispatch. It was thought to be safest to take advantage of the panic of the scouts, and j rush out as though in pursuit. This we at- : tempted, but had scarcely reached the open ground above when a crack from a rifle, followed by the war-whoop from several Indians, disclosed the fact that we were already surrounded by a j considerable number of infuriated savages, and that escape was impossible. In this extremity, I we were forced to again take refuge in the cave. I We had no sooner done so than an overwhelm ing sense of our desperate condition impressed our minds; for though in the matter of defense we were almost impregnable, we were effectually i bagged, and must finally succumb to starvation if not to the assaults of the enemy. What to do in this emergency was truly a grave and perplex ing question. Black Watt, who was in sympathy I with the ridge party, then not in very good odor with a majority of the natives, would not probably attempt our rescue. It was therefore i plain that if we escaped, it could only be by j some rare fortuitous event for which there j seemed no ray of hope. During the entire day, an occasional whoop apprized us of the arrival of others to strengthen the forces of the enemy. Once, under cover of | the darkness, Sequoyah approached sufficiently [ near to hear their conversation, and learned that their plan would be to guard the mouth of the j cave night and day until starvation forced us to | surrender, when we would be burned at the j stake with a grand jubilee and dance. My In- | dian friend seemed greatly depressed, though he uttered no word of complaint. As for myself, j I had been so often in desperate straits that I | did not despair, and come what might, we re- I solved to sell our lives dearly. I directed Se- | quoyah to keep a careful watch at the mouth of the cave, while I proceeded to examine the inte rior apartments with a view to our defense should the Indians take us by assault. I had advanced in a torturous course, it seemed to me, about one hundred and fifty yards, when I came to a narrow defile which ascended rapidly for a considerable distance, and turning abruptly, entered a larger apartment. I at once decided upon this as our strong-hold. By barricading the narrow entry at the point where it made the abrupt turn, we could easily keep off with safety to ourselves any number of the enemy, whilst we could keep a light within, and yet be out of view of the approaching party. I reported the discovery to my friend, and we at once set about the work ,of fortifying our strong-hold. There was an abundance of loose rock at hand of any size desired, and we soon had the passage se curely blocked, leaving a hole only large enough for one man to enter, and with a large rock so adjusted that it could in a moment’s time be rolled against the opening thus left. We then carried into our inner chamber the wounded Indian, and tied him securely, think ing he might possibly be used as a hostage in the last extremity. We also deposited therein | our arms, ammunition, water, supplies, etc., and j a pole about twelve feet long, which we had j found in the cave, and which would be useful J as a lever in prizing rock, etc. Having thus es- i tablished ourselves, we felt that, for a time, at j least, we were safe. Unfortunately, our rations I were scarcely enough for two days, and in this : was our gravest concern. | During the entire day, following upon our dis- j covery by the enemy, no one ventured to enter | the cave, but at night many came in and prowled j about in every direction, as we dared not make ! a light Knowing that we were now on the de- | fensive, and anxious to conceal our whereabouts, they grew bold, and were frequently very near ! us, but we kept close, and in easy reach of our j chosen strong-hold. On the following morning, a large number had taken position in the first large chamber at the bottom. We could hear but could not see them, as they kept back be hind the projecting rocks, and in the dark re cesses of the huge natural vestibule there exist ing. They tried by whoops, taunts and yells to provoke us to reply, or to induce us to fire, that they might definitely locate us. Failing in this, they made a man of rags and placed it by a pile of combustible material, which they lighted by means of a trail of powder. I would instantly have fired at this object if Sequoyah had not stopped me, his better acquaintance with Indian tricks having enabled him to detect the fraud. Other devices were tried upon us, but as yet without success. When night arrived, additional numbers en tered the cave. They grew more and more ven turesome, and we were forced to fall back to the very door of our fortified chamber to avoid col lision with them. At length, they became quiet; not a sound was heard; so much so, that it seemed all had retired, or were wrapt in deepest slumber. Here again the sagacity of my In dian comrade led him to divine another trick, and he cautioned me accordingly. The sudden cessation of their whoops and de moniac yells, the pitchy darkness, the profound stillness, with a consciousness that we were sur rounded by numbers of lurking devils in the act of springing some deep and destructive plot upon us, produced upon me, I confess, an im pressive sense of impending evil, which, though almost overwhelmingly felt, cannot well be de scribed. Our suspense, however, was of short duration. Suddenly, as with a meteor’s flash, a number of savages sprang from behind a low, projecting arch into the large chamber, with arrows wrapped in turpentine rags all a-blaze, which, as they rushed across the large ante-room, they shot from their bows, lighting up the entire area about us, and exposing us to view. Simultane ously, with the fire from our pieces, a number of shots were fired at us, and fifteen or twenty j savages, with yells of triumph, came rushing to ward us. We had scarcely time to crawl into our fortified chamber before they were at our ; very heels. In the eagerness of pursuit, one of 1 their number had the temerity to attempt an en trance after us. He was quickly dispatched with a shot from my pistol. The yells of rage and revenge which followed upon this were ter rible. Then all became still again. They were doubtless holding a council, the result of which was an effort to pull away the rocks which we had placed in the pathway, whereupon we gave them another lesson which taught them exceed ing caution thereafter, as we fired through a crevice, and wounded seriously another one of their party. They then determined to starve us out, and so informed us. They even piled up more rocks in the way, lest becoming maddened and reckless, we should attempt the desperate alternative of fighting our way out. And now came our time of deep and solemn reflection. The situation seemed truly despe rate and hopeless. Our rations were nearly con sumed. The air was damp and oppressive, and i we began to feel sensibly that physical depres- 1 sion which invariably follows extraordinary i anxiety and excitement. There was now noth ing left us to do. So long as there was place for action or effort, our minds were in some degree diverted from a full realization of the situation. But now we began to awake to the utter hope lessness of our condition. Y\ e were bodily en trapped, buried alive, in a deep, dark, subter ranean vault! The wounded Indian, whom we had hoped to make useful as a hostage, was still insensible, and would probably die. It was doubtful if Black Watt could Help us even if apprized of our situation, and there was every probability that the traitor Walegah, of whose enmity he had no suspicion, would mislead or j keep him ignorant as to the facts of the case. It • could be then only a question of time as to our I doom. Our rations were nearly all consumed, j and there was no possible hope of returning or I of mercy on the part of our enemies, j As these solemn and painful reflections came i over me from time to time, I experienced a rap- idly increasing weakness of body and depres sion of spirit. Regarding our death as a speedy i and foregone conclusion, I endeavored to resign ! myself to the inevitable, and to prepare my mind to meet the Judge of all the earth. Yet, I could not refrain from falling into that retro spect of life common to those who for the first time are brought to realize that the sands of life are nearly run down. The scenes of the past came in rapid review before my mind. I thought of friends far away whom I should never see again—of a mother, kind and devoted, from whose affectionate embrace I had, a wayward and thoughtless youth, torn myself years ago, and whom, alas! I should never again behold on earth. As a young man, it was natural to re gret so early a separation from the pleasures of life and from the beauties of the external world. And shall I, indeed, never again gaze upon the azure sky, the forest, and the beautiful land scape, or list to the music of the babbling brook? “Seed time and harvest, winter and summer” will come, but, alas ! nevermore for me. The sun will shine again, but not for me. Not for me will his “rising and level beams melt the pale mists of morning into glittering dew- drops.” Not for me will he brighten the earth with his noontide glory, or dapple the clouds of evening with his varied and gorgeous hues. Such were the sentiments and reflections that occupied my mind during many long, dreary, ! wretched hours. In these fits of depression, 1 would sometimes prostrate myself upon the ground and groan in anguish of spirit. But my Indian comrade, with that stoicism for which his race is proverbial, sat silently and appa rently unmoved by my side. Seeing this, I would occasionally chide myself for weakness, shake off the gloom that oppressed me, and walk to and fro across our underground-chamber. We had no means of judging of the length of time thus occupied. Save the feeble rays from our lamp, all around and about us was dark, gloomy and dismal, and to our chafing and helpless spirits, the hours seemed interminably long. Although inured to danger and accus tomed to perilous adventure, I had never before experienced so great mental and physical ex haustion as then came over me. Nor had I ever supposed that any condition or circumstances, however appalling, could thus have unstrung me. In a great degree, doubtless, the lack of nourishment in connection with the loss of sleep, and the oppressiveness of the atmosphere contributed to that condition, but greater than all was the total withdrawal of that invigorating influence which hope gives to the power and energy of men. And to think of the thoughtless ness, the insane folly, the madness thus to suf fer ourselves to be entrapped, when we might at least have died in a noble and manly conflict for life. Were there but a single ray of hope or chance for action, I would not repine, nor should any cowardly impulse weaken my strong right arm, even in the last desperate grapple of death. Under such circumstances of mental anguish, men have grown gray in a few hours, and oftimes reason has been dethroned. " There are moments in which we live years— Moments which steal the roses from the cheek of health, And plow deep furrows on the brow of youth.’’ But despite these oft-recurring paroxysms of gloom and despair, I still had my rallying fits and perambulations. At length, in one of these walks, my attention was directed to the fact that the chamber we were in seemed to be terminated by a huge rock. A sudden gleam of hope sent the blood rushing tumultuously to my heart. What if there should be a continuance of the cavity be yond this rock ? Might there not be, after all, some avenue of escape ? Even if it should re enter the main chamber, it would be infinitely better to lose our lives in a deadly conflict with the savages than to be entombed alive, and to die ingloriously by the slow and horrible tor tures of starvation. Quick upon this thought, I snatched up the lamp and commenced to ex amine the ground about and beyond the rock. I took the pole and tried, but found no cavity, and my heart began again to sink within me. I cast my eye around and noticed that, unlike the other apartments, the walls were of dirt, and there were evidences of recent caving. Then it occurred to me that as we had reached this point by a considerable ascent, might we not be near the surface above. The position of the rock was not that of permanence, but rather detached and recent, as though it had rolled down against the wall of the chamber. Whence came this rock ? I examined it more carefully, and noticed on the dirt which adhered to its surface, an impression as of a rounded body, in which was a piece of bark from a root. I cast my eye upward, and there discovered an object which sent a thrill of joy to my heart. It was an excavation, corres ponding in size to the rock, and there across the centre of it, was a root as large as a man’s arm, with a piece of bark removed—the identical root from which the rock had fallen. I suppressed, with difficulty, an exclamation of joy, and step ping, or rather bounding toward Sequoyah, I grasped his arm, and we approached the rock. I pointed to the impression on the rock, and then to the excavation and root above. He uttered the word “Wah !” an exclamation common to nearly all the Indian tribes, and a perceptible gleam of hope lit up his swarthy visage. It was evident that the external surface was near at hand. But how shall we penetrate the earth above so as to escape ? was the question. I had already formed a plan in my own mind by which I I felt sure we might make the opening, but how : to reach it after it was made, I was at a loss to ; determine. To the roof above us was about four teen feet. The rock at the bottom was about five feet in diameter, and the pole we had brought into the chamber with us was, as stated, about twelve feet. We could sharpen the pole with a tomahawk, and use it as an excavator above, standing on the bottom as long as we could reach, then, perhaps, finish the job by standing on the rock. I made known my plan to Sequoyah, to which he uttered the single word, “Good!” and knowing the tact and shrewdness of the Indian in plans and devices, I asked him how we were to reach the surface above. He remained silent a few minutes in deep thought, and I also put my wits j to work in an effort to solve the problem as to the plan of escape after the perforation was . made. While I was yet undecided Sequoyah sprang < to his feet, placed one end of the pole upon the j rock and the other upon the root, and turning | to me, remarked: “Dig hole, high up as can, crawl up pole, get on root, dig more high up, stand on root, make : steps like well; make little hole, peep through; | I dark, no come, wait; then big hole, crawl out, , gone—ugh !'* | I accorded with the plan, and so, the pole being sharpened, we went to work with a hearty ■ S 00 '* We commenced a shaft directly up ward, being fnrefnl not to weaken the root at the place where it penetrated the earth on the side ; opposite the point of entrance. The earth proved to be soft, and we made favorable pro gress at the rate of perhaps a foot per hour rest- : ing each other frequently, but keeping con stantly at it. The root proved to be very useful as a support upon which to slide the pole in the. act of punching out the earth above. In two or three hours’ time we reached a point where it. beoame necessary to stand on the rock, and soon my Indian friend got upon the root, sitting ! astraddle, and pushed on the work. Soon, small r* ots and pebbles begin to appear, indicating that the surface was near. A ram-rod was tried as a test, and it was ascertained that we were in one foot of the surface. We grew nervous with excitement and hope. The excavation we had ; made was two and a half feet wide and six feet high. Eagerly and vigorously the Indian worked for a short while, then more cautiously. “ Hold !” said I, for suddenly the pole pushed through the upper crust, and a glorious beam of light j from the external world penetrated into our dis mal prison vault, where no ray had ever entered ' since the epoch in the uncounted ages of the ! past, when these hills were upheaved by earth’s convulsive throes ! Never did I appreciate the glorious light of heaven before ! “God said, ‘Let there be light !* Grim darkness felt his might, And fled away ; Then startled Boas and mountains cold Shone forth, all bright in blue and gold, And cried, * *Tis day ! "tis day !’ ” Such were the sentiments which, with exuber ance of hope, came welling up from my soul, as I gazed at the bright beam from the upper and outer world ! It was now deemed prudent to suspend the work until night, lest we should be discovered. We did not know what time of day it was, nor at what part of the mountain we were about to make our exit. So we desisted for the present, not venturing to enlarge the orifice, and re clined for rest. We had long since consumed the last ration, but had been too intensely interested in our work to think of eating. 'We had, however, I drank water freely, during the last few hours, : and were now without food or drink. We began ! to feel the pangs of hunger, but the hope of ! speedy escape served to brace us up, and we pa- ! tiently waited for the arrival of night. It seemed ! to be very long. We feared to sleep lest some- 1 thing might happen to thwart our plans. Our Indian prisoner seemed slowli' reviving, but was yet unable to speak. We could hear the noise and conversation of the Indians on guard at our prison door. They expressed the opinion that we could not hold out longer than a day or two, and spoke of the fun and enjoyment they would have in burning and torturing us at the stake. When at length we perceived by the stars that shone through the opening above that it was fullly dark without, Sequoyah again resumed work, using as an excavator, "instead of the pole, his hunting-knife. In a little while he had en larged the opening to a size sufficient to pro trude his head. In my impatience it seemed to me that he was too slow, and that his Indian na ture made him over-cautious, and I was just about telling him to get down and let me come, when he startled me by a low hiss of warning. He had protruded his head, and was not only astonished but alarmed at what he saw. There, in twenty-five or thirty steps of the opening we had made, was the mouth or main entrance to the cave, and directly between ns and the mouth was a squad of ten Indians sitting around a camp-fire, and not exceeding twenty feet from the perforation out of which we must escape. That they had not detected the noise of falling dirt, or heard our conversation, was not less strange than fortunate. As soon as Sequoyah made this discovery, he stuffed his hat in the orifice and descended to my side and made known the facts. We had now another impor tant problem to solve, and one of no easy solu tion. The hole must be made larger before we could get through it. This could not be done without noise. We must work in the dark, also, as the light of our lamp, shining through the opening, would be extremely liable to attract their attention. And, even supposing the open ing complete, it would be scarcely possible to get out without being seen. And though it was probable the one who first made the exit might chance to escape by trusting to his heels, tne remaining one would almost certainly be caught. On the whole, we felt that the situation was ex ceedingly critical. After thinking over it for a considerable time, we concluded that our most prudent course was to wait until they should all fall asleep, as they would probably do in a few hours at most. We waited patiently as we could for about three hours, when Sequoyah again ascended to recon noitre. This he did with exceeding caution. The Indians were still awake chatting and smoking, and the light of their camp-fire shone plainly around and beyond the opening we had made. Enough of their conversation was heard to learn that they had sent off for the relatives of the In dians, to be present at a council to be held on the morrow to decide upon our fate. As these several parties were expected to arrive during the night, it was probable that their camp-fire would be kept burning, and that no time would occur when all would be asleep. Under these circumstances we felt, in no small degree, a sense of that sickening gloom which disappoint ment often brings to the stoutest heart. What was to be done ? It would not do to suf fer the night to pass without an effort at escape. We both became silent and reflective. At length I said to Sequoyah: “Can you think of any scheme by which the outside party could be drawn away from their present position ?” To which he answered: “Ugh! white man idea good !” After further conference upon this point, we decided upon a plan, in accordance with which Sequoyah commenced to parley with the guards at our prison entrance relative to terms of sur render, etc. They proposed to compromise the death penalty so far as to let off Sequoyah with banishment from the nation, in case the wounded Indian was given up alive, but in case of myself, I must suffer the torture. I thereupon offered to give a ransom of $1000 for my life. This we anticipated would lead to a conference of all the braves. A few would favor it, while the friends of the killed and wounded would be hard to sat isfy, and a squabble and considerable delay would result. It worked out precisely as we had surmised. The outside party were notified of our proposition, and a council of all the braves called to meet in the large entrance chamber at the bottom of the cave. This was just the thing we wanted, and my comrade quickly ascended to the opening, and looking out, found that all had retired within. And now the work was pushed with all possible vigor. The opening was soon sufficiently enlarged; I handed up the guns, which Sequoyah quickly pitched through the hole, and then sprang out himself. I fol lowed, he assisting me with his hand, and we both cautiously, but rapidly, moved off across the hill, and made our way with all possible dis patch to Black Watt Adams. We arrived about one o’clock, awoke him, and briefly told him all. As we had surmised, the traitor Wahlegah had kept him wholly in the dark in regard to the siege and desperate straits through which we had L passed. "C