The Star and Republican banner. (Gettysburg, Pa.) 1832-1847, November 28, 1836, Image 1

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"‘With fiweete.t flowers enriehNt.
From varipturp‘rdeiu.coll'tl with rare."
SUIVVYLER 7 S GONE.
Hark, through the dim woodairying,
With a moan,
Faintly the woods nre sighing—
Sulinneet4 gone !
There who - 1111y bruised hearkfveletli,
Pinkly uly footstep stealeth
• %veep moor.
Hour oner hour I yvatider,
By men 11/1.4CC11-
And mully my wrung Ihonglits ponder,
On ~ vhan huh: been:
Summer's gone!
There in our own green bowers
I.ollj 01,,0
Our pvll through tangled flowers
'Pre:Mina., slow;
Oft level and hand entwining—
Oft side by side reclining—
'We've wwched in crimson shining
The iwnrct, glow :
Dimly the sun now hurnctli
For mi. ixine—
Spring after spring retunwth,
But thou art..gone:
Summer's gone!
Still nn my warm cheek pinyeth
The restless . hretze :
Still in its freshness strayeth
Between the trees.
Still the blue sfreatnlet gusheth—
Still the broad river rusheth—
Still the calm silence husheth
The hearts disease:
But who shall bring our ineetings
Back again 7
What shall recall thy greetings—
Loved in vain
Suinuner'H gone !
VarA a'TDDLJI.ti-x*.D271,)
'File Creole Village.
IN travelling about our motley country, I am
often reminded of Ariosto's account of the moon,
in which the good paladin Astolpho found every
thing garnered up, that had been lost on earth.—
So I am apt to imagine, that many things lost in
the old world, ire treasured up and perpetuated in
rho new; having been continued from generation
to generation, since the early days of the rolonic , .
A European antiquary, therefore, curious in his
researches after the ancient and almost obliterated
customs and usages of his country, would do well
to put himself upon the track of sonic early band
of emigrants, follow them across the Atlantic, and
rummage among their descendants on our shores.
• In the phraseology of New-England might he
found many an old Eng proyinc•inl phrase, long
since obsolete in the parent country: while Vir
ginin cherishes peculiarities characteristic of the
days of Elizabeth and Sir Walter Raleigh.
In the same way, the sturdy yeomanry of New-
Jersey and Pennsylvania keep up many usages
fading away in ancient Germany; while man!, an
honest, broad-bottomed custom, nearly extinct in
venerable; Holland, may be found flourishing in
pristine vigor and luxuriance in some of the ortho
dox Dutch villages, still lingering on the banks of
the Mohawk and the Hudson.
In no part of our country, however, are the cus
toms and peculiarities, imported front the old
world by the early settlers, kept up with more fidel
ity than in the little poverty-stricken villages of
Spanish and French origin, that border the rivers
of ancient Louisiana. Their population is gener
ally made itp of the descendants of those nations,
married and interwoven together. and occasionally
crossed with a slight dash of the Indian. The
French character. however, floats on top, ns, front
its buoyant qualities it is sure to do, whenever it
forms a particle, however small, of an ie
tore.
In these serene and dilapidated villages, art and
nature sewn to staid still, and the world forgets to
turn round. The revolutions that distract other
parts of this mutable planet, reach not here, or
!Pass over without leaving any trace. The inhab_
itants are deficient in that public s pi r it w hi c h ex
tends its cares beyond its horizon, and imparts
trouble and perplexity front all quarters in news.
papers. In fart, newspapers are ahnost unknown
in these villages, and 'as French is the current
language, the inhohitants have little community of
opinion with their republican neighbors. They
retain, therefore, their old habits of pas , i‘c obedi
ence to the decrees of government. as though tlicy
still lived tinder the absolute away of colonial
commandments, instead of being part and parcel
of the sovereign people, and having a voice in the
legi dation.
A few aged men, who haxe grown gray on their
heliditary neres. and arc of the good old colonial
stook, exert a kind of patriarchal sway in all mat_
tort of public rind private ire port; their opinions
arc considered oracular, and their word iii
The inhabitants, moreover, have none of that
,/ougernes4 f r gain, and riec for improvement,
Avhich keep our 'wo r k continually on the move,
~)and our country towns incessantly in a state of
trate,ition. There the magic phrases, gown lets,'
,water and other compre
hensive and soul-stirrin g words, from the specula
tor's vccahulary, are never heard. The residents
dwell in toe salon houses in which their forefathers
dwelt, without thinking of enlarging or modern.
icing them, or pulling them down and turning
them into granite store.:. They suftltr the trees,
under which they hare been horn, and have play.
ed In Malley, to tlouridt undistinbed; thought, by
cutting them down, they might open new streets,
and put money in their pockets. In a word, the
almighty dollar, that great object of universal de
votion throughout our land, seems to have no gen
uine devotees in these peculiar villages; and unless
some of its missionaries penetrate there, and erect
banking houses and other 'pious shrines, there is
no kpowing how long the inhabitants may remain
in their present state of contented powntr.
In descending one of our great western rivers
in it steam-boat, I met with two worthies from one
of these villages, who had been on a distant ex
cm:sion, the longest they had ever made, as they
seldom ventured far from home. One was the
great man, or Grand Signor of the village; not that
he enjoyed any legal privileges or power there,
every thing of the kind having been done away
when the province was ceded by France to the
United States. His sway over his neighbors was
merely one of custom and conviction, out of defer
enre to his family. Beside, he was worth full fifty
thousand dollars, an amount almost equal, in the
imagination of the villagers, to the treasures of
king Solomon.
This very substanti,al old gentleman, though of
the fourth or fifth generation in this country. re
tained the true ilullir stamp of feature and peen-
Rarity of deportment, and reminded me of one of
those provineial potentates, the important man of
a.petty arromlisement, that are to be met with in
the remote parts of France. He was of a large
frame, a ginger-bread complexion, strong faatures,
eyes that stood out like glass knobs, and a prom
inent nose, which he frequently regaled from n
gold snuffbox, and occa:iou3lly blew with a col
oured handkerchief until it sounded like a trum
pet, lie was attended by an old negro, as black as
ebony, t 4 lilt n huge mouth, in a continual grin.—
This was evilently a privileged and favorite ser
vant, and one that had grown up and grown old
with him. He was dressed in creole style—with
white jacket and trowsers, a stiff shirt collar, that
thn.atned to cut off his ears; a bright inadrass
handkerchief tied round his heal, and large gold
earingq. He was the politest negro I met with in
a wide western tour; and that is saviv n great
deal, for excepting thi.lndians, the negroes are the
most gentlemanlike personages one meets with in
those parts. It is true, they differ from the Indi
ans in being n little extra polite and complimenta
ry. He we; also one of the merrier% and here,
too, the' nearoes, however we mny deplore their
unhappy condition, have the advantage of their
masters. The whites are. in -_Teneral too free and
prosperous to be merry. The cares of maintain_
ing, their -rights and liberties, and of ridding to
dm , wealth, engross all their thoughts. and dry up
nil the !noisome of their souls. If you hear abroad.
n hearty, devil-may-care lat:gh, be assured it is a
IlPgrOP
Beside this African dornect:r. the signor of the
village hail another no lc:4 cherished and privileged
attendant. 'Phis was a lingo dog, of the mastiff
breed, with a deep, hanging mouth, that gave an
air of surly gravity to his physiognomy. He
walked about the cabin with the air of a dog per
fectly at home. and who had paid tier his passage.
At dinner he took his scat beside his master, giv
ing him a glance now and then out of the corner
of hi 4 eve, that bespoke perfect confidence that he
would not be forgotten. Nor was he—every now
on then a huge marsel would be thrown to him,
prrad‘enture the half-picked leg of a fowl, which
hr would receive with a snap that sounded like
the springing of a steel t-a7—enc. itallp, and all
was down; and a glance of the eye told his master
that he was ready for another consignment.
The other village worthy. travelling in company
with this signor, wns of n totally different stamp.
He was small, thin, and wetmen-faced, such as
Frenchmen are apt to be represented in caricature,
with a bright stptirrel-like eye, and a gold ring in
his ear. His dress was flimsy, and sat loosely on
his frame, and he had altogether the look of one
with but little coin in his pocket. Yet, though
one of the poorest I was aSsured lie , vas one of the
men ie,tt and most popular personages in hi.; native
village.
Compere Martin, as he was commonly called,
was theflictotoin of the place—sp ,rtsman, school
mailer, and land surveyor. He could sing, dance,
an , ', above all, play on the fiddle, an invaluable
accomplishment in one of these old French creole
villages, for the inhabitants have a hcriditary love
for halls and fetes; if they work but little, they
dance a great deal, and a fiddle is the joy of their
heart.
What had sent Compere Martin travelling with
the Grand Signor I could not learn; he evidently
looked up to him with great deference, and was
assidirms in renderim; him petty attentions; from
which I concluded that ho lived at home upon the
crumbs which fill from his table. He was gayest
when out of his sight; and had his sfmq and his
joke when forward, among the deck passengers;
but altogether Compere Ma:titi was nut of his cle
ment on board of a steam-boat. He was quite
another being, I am told, when at home, in his
own village.
Like his opulent fellow traveler, he too had his
canine follower and retainer—and one suited to his
different fortunes—one of the civilest, homebred,
most unotli•nding little dogs in the world. Un
like the lordly mastiff, he seemed to think he had
no right on board of the steam-boat; if you did
hnt look hard at him, he would throw himself up_
pun his back, and lift up his legs, as if imploring
mercy.
At table he took his scat at a little distance from
his master, not with the bur confident air of the
mastiff hut quietly and diffidently; his head on
one side, with one ear dubiously slouched, the
other hopefully cocked up; his under teeth inject
ing beyond his black nose, and his eye wistfully
following each morsel that went into his master's
mouth.
If Compere Martin now and then should ven
ture to ab :tract a morsel from his plate, to give to
his humble companion, it was edifying to see with
what diffidence the exemplary little animal would
take hold of it, with the very tip of his teeth, as if
he would almost rather not, or was fearful of taking
too great a liberty. And then with what decorum
would he cat it! How many elThrts would he
make in swallowing it, ss if it stuck in his throat;
with what daintiness would he lick his lips; and
theti with what an air of thankfulness would he
resume his seat, with his teeth once more project
ing beyond his nose, and an eye of humble expec
tyinn fixed upon his master.
It was late in the afternoon when the steam-boat
stoppeii at the village which was the residence of
my fellow voyagers. It stood on the high bank of
the river, and bore truces of having . been a frontier
trading post. There were the remains of the
stockades that once protected it from the Indians,
and the houses were in The ancient Spanish and
French colonial taste, the place having been sue=
cessively under the domination of both those na
tions prior to tho cession of Louisiana to the Uni
ted States.
"I WISH NO OTHER HERALD, NO OTHER SPEAKER OF MT LIVING ACTIONS, To KEEP MINE HONOR FROM CORRUPTION."BHAX
Pb atic.OJP2halto apbTpzßargitaza 9a, aa,2ac,
is to become of the poor little creole cillage!
HOME CuirtrivrrA xs.---These are the true chris
dans. A late divine being asked what he thought
of a certain pious individual remarked, Ni have
never lived with him." This is the true test.—
That man who is whnt the Bible requires him to
ho, lets his light shine at home even more brightly
than it does before the world.
The arrival of the signor of fifty thousand doL
lars, and his humble companion Compere Martin,
had evidently been looked forward to as an event
in the village. Numbers of men, women, and
chidren, white, yellow, and black, were collected
on the river hank; most of them clad in old fashion
ed French garments and their heads decorated
with colored handkerchiefs or white nightcap,—
The moment the steam-boat came within sight and
hearing, there commenced a waving of handker
chiefs,& a screaming & bawling of g,rectings,& re
lutntions,and felicitations that bade all description.
The old gentleman of fifty thousand dollars was
received by a train of relatives, and friends, and
children, and grandchildren, whom he kissed on
each check, and who formed a procession in his
rear, with a legion of domestics, of all ages, fol
lowing him to a large oldfashioned French house,
that domineered over the village.
His black valet de chambre, in white jacket and
trowsers, and gold ear-rings, was met on the shore
by a boon, though rustic companion, a tall negro
fellow, with a long, goodhumnred home face.
which stood out in strong relief from beneath a
narrow-rimmed straw hat, stuck on the back of his
head. The explosions of laughter of these two
varlets on first meeting. with each other, and ex
changing compliments, were enough to electrify
the whole country round.
The most hearty reception, however, was that
given to Compere Martin. Every body, young
and old, hailed him before he got to land. Every
body had a joke for Compere Martin, and Com
pere Martin had a joke for every body. Soon hie
little dog appeared, to partake of his popularity, and
to be carressed by every hand. Indeed, he was
quite, a ditfilrent animal the moment he touched
the land. Here lie was at home; here he was of
COIP;CtiIICTICC. He harked, he leaped, he frisked
about his 4 old friends, and then would skim round
the place in a wide circle, as if mad.
I traced Compere Martin and his little dog to
their home. It was an old ruinous Spanish house,
of large dimensions, with vimndas overshadowed
by ancient elms. The house had probably been
the residence, in old times, of the Spanish com
mandant. In brie wing or this crazy, but aristo
cratical abode, was nestled the family of my fellow
traveler, for poor devils are apt to he magnificently
clad and lodged, in the cast-off clothes and aband
oned palaces of the great and wealthy.
The arrival of Compere Martin was welcomed
by a legion of women, children, and mongrel curs;
and, as poverty and gayety generally go hand in
hand among the French and their descendants,
the crazy mansion soon resounded with loud gos
sip and light-hearted Laughter.
As the steam-boat paused a short time at the
village, I took occason to stroll about the place.—
Most of the houses were in the French taste,
with casements and rickity verandas, but most of
them in flimsy and ruinous condition. All the
wagons, ploughs, and other utensils about the
place were of ancient and inconvenient Gallic con
struction, such as had been brought from France
in the primitive days of the colony. The very
looks of the people reminded me of the villages of
France.
As I pasrmd by one of the houses, the hum of
n. spinning wheel came issuing forth, accompanied
by a scrap of song, which a girl was singing as
she sat at her labor. It was an old t'reitich chan-
son, that I hare heard many a time among the
peasantry. of Languedoc; and the sound of it
brought many a 'night and happy scene to my re
membrance. It was doubtless an old traditional
song, brought over by the first French emigrants.
and handed down from generation to generation.
Half a dozen young lasses emerged frunuthe ad
jacent dwelling - 5, reminding me, by their light
step and gay cesium, of the scenes in ancient
France, where taste in dress comes natural to eV-
cry class of females. The trim boadiec and color
ed petticoat, and the little apron, with its pockets
to receive the hands when in an attitude for con
versation; the coloured kerchief wound tastefully
round the head, with a coquettish knot perching
above one ear; and then the neat slipper and the
'tight drawn stocking, with its braid ofnarrow rib
bon embracing the ankle where it peeps from its
mysterious curtain. It is from this ambush that
Cupid sends his most inciting arrows.
While I was musing upon the recollections
thus accidently summoned up, I heard the sound
of a riddle from the mansion of Compere Martin,
the signal, no doubt, for a joyous gathering. I was
disposed to turn my steps thither, and witness the
festivities of one of the very few villages that I
had met with in my wide tour, that was yet poor
enough to he merry; but the bell of the steam-boat
summoned me to re-embark.
As we swept away from the shore, I cast hack
a wistful eye upon the moss-grown roofs and an
cient ehns of the village, and prayed that the in
habitants might long retain their happy ignorance,
their absence of all enterprise and improvement,
their respect for the fiddle, and their contempt for
the almighty dollar. I fear however my prayer is
doomed to he of no avail. In a little while the
steam-boat whirled me to an American town, just
springing into bustling and prosperous existence.
The surrounding forest had been laid out in
town lots; frames of wooden buirlingir were tisi.:7;
from among stumps and burnt trees. The place
already boasted a court-house, a jail, and two
banks, all built of pine boards, on the model of
Grecian temples. There were rival hotels, rival
churches, and rival newspapers; together with the
usual number of judges, and generals, and govern
ors; not to speak of doctors by the dozen and law
yen; by the score.
Thu place, I was told, was in an astonishing
career of improvement, with a canal and two rail
roads in embryo. Lots doubled in price every
week; every body was speculating in land; every
body was rich; and every body was growing
richer. The community, however, was torn into
pieces by new doctrines in religion and in politimd
economy; there were camp-meetings and agrarian
meetings; and an election was at hand which it iris
expected, would throw the whole country tn par
oxyism.
Alas! with such :►n enterprising neighor, what
'3a_;IITM23I(I4UI DEFLPailltorMiraia`
alloic following article from the Baltimore Mon
ument, is written in an excellent spirit, and fur
nishes some correct ideas in relation to the
Temperance reform:
Temperance.
Sweet to an American, is the reflection that the
Temperance Institution is indebted to his own
country, for its existence. When ho casts his eye
over the face of the moral world and discovers the
astonishing effects of this association—when he
sees the Genius of Temperance walking through
the earth, scattering in rich profusion, her bless
ings, and collecting her honors with her brow
blooming with the wreath of glory, and her path
strewn with the offerings of gratitude, her bosom
swells with joy and overflows with thankfulness to
Him whose hand has set his brilliant gem in the
coronet of his nation's character. Other societies,
as benevolent in their character and delightful in
their results, are the growth of foreign lands,—
they have unfolded their beauties beneath other
skies and been watered by other dews. But this
institution is not exotic—'tis the plant of our own
garden. Here. where the arts and sciences flour
ish—where religion and learning mingle their
beams—where Providence and Peace have lavish
ed their gifts—here, was it formed and supported.
What a lustre does this fact reflect upon our
country•! Is it the boast of America that she has
given birth to a patriotic WisnixoTex, an elo
quent Hz ens and an illustrious JUTERSONI -Is
the fame of these individuals her most sacred
treasure!. It shall also be her pride that Ho even
selected her as the instrument to conceive and ex
ecute the noble plan o( liberating the world from
the tyranny of intemperance. Another "star has
been added to the crown of her -ejoicing,"—a star
equal in brilliancy to any that glitters in her con
stitution_
But a few years have elapsed since the organi
zation of the first Temperance Association.—
Though the current of opposition has been strong
—though it has luul to battle with one of the most
violent and ancient foes—Temperance has sue
t ceeded in achieving many victories and winninft
many trophies. How many neighborhoods has
it regenerated! How many families has it exalt
ed and blessed?. How many of the outcasts and
indigent has it embraced in its encircling arms, and
around what numbers has it thrown its impenetra
ble barrier? If the manners of society have not
been totally revolutionised, they have nevertheless
undergone a change—a change which the patriot
views with pleasure, and the philanthropist contem
plates with delight. The "little leaven has com
menced its operation, and it shall continue its work
until "the whole lump is leavened."
What a cheering state of things will be brought
about, when the temperance plan shall have fully
accomplished its design? Relieved of its oppressive
burden, our afflicted land shall raise her drooping
head and smile far joy. Then shall the beauty of
Eden return to our sin-desolated globe—then shall
our curse be removed, and peace and plenty shall
once more revisit our earth and spread their balmy
influence throughout her borders. Happy period!
—Longed and wished for by every virtuous heart!
!tray it soon arrive with unnumbered glories.
With such success awaiting them, shall the
friends of this reformation indulge in evil appre
hension! Can they despair, when their past un
exampled success is the prophet that foretcls this
triumph in future. Let them not despond. The
sincerity of their motives and the justness of their
cause will secure for them the approbation and aid
of God, and the assistance of all the virtuous of
their race. • -However severely the storm of oppo
sition may beat, this tree, planted by the hands of
piety and patriotism, shall strike its roots deeper
and deeper, its top shall tower higher and higher.
and its branches spread wider and wider, until all
nations shall repose in its cooling shade and par
take of its healthful fruitage.
Q'..~F3?}333440
Tut Patss.—An intellectual, fearless, liberal
and courteous journal, is an ornament to the place
of its location, and a blessing to the community in
which it circulates. Intellect is power, and
through no channel can that power he exerted
with mom salutary success, than the public press.
The press is a mighty engine for good or evil in
the hands of its conductors. To promote benefits
it must be free—untrammelled by individuals or
combinations,—it should speak no man's senti
ments exclusively, nor be an auxiliary of his prej
udices or passions. It must be courteous, stepping
not out by the wayside to attack individuals that
arc comparitively defenceless and for naught but
to indulge in personal spleen. It must be Intel
ketual, for every blockhead with vanity enough to
consider himself a writer, shall interlard its col
umns with inartificially constructed, senseless and
vulgar communications, it cannot enjoy that rep
utation which is essential to its influence. In pro
portion as it shall be divested of these qualities,—
in proportion as it shall be corrupt, licentious and
profligate,—it is a loathsome excressence—a
blighting curse:
, I. NVe copy the following from the 4.l3cllefonte
Patriot"—adding, simply, that it contains at least,
"more truth than poetry."
"EDITORS •'vn Pulsars.—The situation of
an editor is the most irkesome ono imaginable—
that is, in the compass of professions, trades, and
occupations. Under the most favorable circum
stances he is but meanly remunerated for his ser
vice.. He labors for half price, and half his
earnings never grace his pocket. His losses, '
through the negligence and dishonesty of his "pa
trons," the misconduct of postmasters, and from
other causes, are immense—amounting to at least
33 per cent of tho moneys justly due to him, and
in some instances even more. .Wo speak plain
words—perhaps "words that burn"—but they are
Me truth. Wo appeal to all acquainted with
the business, to say, arc they not! And further,
an editor is looked upon as the dear public's
very humble foot-ball,' which every jackalent in
community thinks he has a right to kick about for
his own interest and amusement! Vain delu-
Tux Couorbe, a French physician,
has recently examined the brain of a human be
ing with a powerful microscope, by which means
he finds it presents small globules slightly elipti
eal in shape. .These am larger in thn are' than
in the white substance of the brain. They are
coagulated by acids, like those of the blood and
milk. The analysis finds, besides the salts dis
covered by Vanquelin, lactic acid, sulphur and
phosphorus—a pulverent yellow fat, an elastic fat
a reddish yellow oil, white fatty matter, and cho
lestrine. portions which abound after this
analysis, or treatment with:'inther and alcohol, is
mostly composed of albumin, coagulated globes
and of membraneous substance. The elements
of the substances obtained by the analysis of
Couerbo, are carbon in the proportions of about
63 to the 100 parts, Hydrogen 10, Azotc, 5 1-2,
Phosphorus 2 1-2 Sulphur 2 1-2 tuld Oxygen 15,
in each of the five above mentioned substances,
with the exception of the last (cholcatrinc) in
which carbon is in the proportion of 85, hydrogen
12, and oxygen 3, in the 100 parts.
How A MAN MARTUED 1118 OWN RISTElt.—The
Dedham Patriot, says that a marriage once took
place at Canton, Massachusetts, under the follow
ing circumstances. The bridegroom when quite a
small boy, ran away from his parents, who lived
in Lower Canada. In process of time, the father
died—the mother married again, and the fruits of
this union were several daughters. The daught
ers grew up, and the parents not having the means
to support them, they went to work in Factories.
One strayed to Cant .n Factory, where by a fortu
itous circumstance, the runaway happened to be
at work. He soon became acquainted with this
girl, and before a full history of each other's ori
gin was developed, married her. In a few days it
was ascertained that they both had one mother.—
This of CCUTBC greatly confused and astonished
both parties, from which arose strong conscientious
scruples as to the Tropriety of brother and sister,
living together in a state of matrimony; and upon
mature consideration, they resolved mutually to
dissolve their connexion as man and wife.
TO MAK,: LEECIIER BTTE.—This is an important
object and one we perceive with pleasure to have
been effected by a Doctor Elden. Small holes are
cut in a r ' . - 3 of blotting paper corresponding to
the places on the skin which it is desired the leech
tilinH be attached. This being moistened and
applied, the leeches crawl about until they come
to the holes in the paper, when they immediately
take hold.
ALCIIEMT BErtvcn.—The late Experiments
reported at th,e British associations prove that Mr.
Cross has done more than the boldest alchemist
ever dreamed of doing, for he stated that "any
mineral,or metal," by his eleetro-galvanism,umight
be found by man!" This is neither more nor less
than the alchemist's transmutation. Truly are
the dreams of antiquity about becoming realities.
Tux REARON Wur.—Almost every thing con.
sumcd in a family, now commands exorbitant pri
ces, except. cream, of which, b 7 the way, the re i f ,
none. Inquiring of our milkman thereason of ita
erltrity, he tatistled our query by saying that
"Milk has riz go tarnal high that cream can't reach
the top!—Dedham Patriot.
OODMIO agl tili'MM fNIM W.MIEETO
Another Interesting Letter
RED PIPE STONE,
On the Coteau du Prairie s Sept.lB36. 3
I wrote you a letter a few days since from this
place, which, if it should have reached you, will
have convinced you that I am in one of tho most
curious places on the continent. Curious, for the
traditions respecting it, (some specimens of which
will be given in the present epistle,) and also for
the exceedingly picturesque and romantic appear
ance oft's° place itself. I had long ago heard many
thrilling descriptions of this place given by the In
dians, and had contracted tho most impatient desire
to visit it. It will be seen by some of tho traditions
inserted in this letter, from my notes taken on the
Upper Missouri four years since, that those tribes
.havo visited this place freely in former times, and
that it has once been held and owned in common
as neutral ground, amongst the different tribes
who met at this place to renew their pipes, under
some arrangement which stayed tho tomahawk of
these natural foes, always raised in deadly hate
and vengeance in other places. It will be seen
also,that within a few years past, (and that, proba
bly, by the instigation of the whites, who have told
them that by keeping off other tribes, and manu
facturing the pipes themselves, and trading them
to other adjoining nations, they can acquire much
influence and wealth,) the Sioux have laid entire
claim to this quarry; and as it is in the centre of
their country, and they are more powerful than any
of the other tribes, they are able successfully to
prevent any access to it. That this place should
have beets visite.' for centuries past by all the neigh-
boring tribcs,who have hidden tho war-club as they
approached it,and stayed the cruelties of the scalp.
ing-knifc, under tho fear of the vengeance of the
Great Spirit,who overlooks it,will not seem strange
or unnatural when their religion and superstitions
are known. That such has been the case there
is not a shadow of doubt, and that even so recently
as to have been visited by hundreds and thousands
of Indians of different tribes, now living, and from
many of whom I have personally drawn the infor
mation, some of which will be sot forth in the fol
lowing traditions; and as an additional . (and still
more conclusive) evidence of the above position,
hero arc to be seen (and will continuo to be seen
for ages to come) the totem., or arms of tho differ
ent tribes who have visited this place for ages past,
and deeply engraved their heraldry on the rocks,
where they are to be seen and recognised in a mo
ment, (and not to he denied,) by the passing travel
ler who has been among those tribes, and acquired
even but a parrial knowledge of them.
The thousands ani'..tens of thousands of carvings
and paintings on the rocks at this place, as well as
the ancient diggings for the pipe -stone, will afford',
amusement for the world who will visit it, without
furnishing the least data of the time at which these
excavations commenced, or of the time at which
the Sioux assumed the exclusive right to it.
. Among the many traditions which I have drawn
personally from the diarent tribes, and which go
to support the opinion above advanced, is the Ill
lowing one, which was related to me by a distin
guished Knistineaux, on the Upper Missouri, four
years since. After telling me that he had been to
this place, and after describing it in all its features,
he proceeded to say:
"That in the time ofa groat freshet, which took
place many evnturie• ago, and destroyed all the
(VOL. 7--NO. 35.
nations of the earth, all the tribrs of the red men
assembled on the Coteau du Prairie to get ,out of
' the way of the waters. After they had all gather
ed here from all prat., the water continued to rise
until at length it covered them ell in a mass,'and
their flesh was converted into red pipe -stone
Therefore it has always been considered neutral
ground—it belonged to all tribes alike, and all
were allowed to got it and smoke it together,-
While they were all drowning in n mass, a young
woman (K•wap.tah-wa virgin) caught hold of the
foot ofa very large bird thnt was flying over, and,
was carried to the top ofa very high cliff, not far
off, that was above the water. Here she had
twins, and their father was the War Eagle, and
her children have since peopled the earth. The
pipe stone, which Is the flesh ofthoir ancestors, is
smoked by them as the symbol of peace, and the
eagle's r j nill decorates the heed of the bravo."
Tradition of the Sioux.—"Cocuro the creation
of man, the Great Spirit (whose tracks are yet to
be peen on the atones at the Red Pipe, in form of'
the tracks ofa large bird,) used to Coy and devour
the buffalo on the top of the entren du Prairies
and their blood, running into the ground, turned
the stones red One day, when a large snake had
crawled into the nest of the bird tn eat his l eggs,
one of the eggs hatched out in a clap of (bonder
and the Great Spirit, catching hold of a . pieee of
the pipe stoneto throw at the snake, moulded ,it
into a man. This man's feet grew fast in the
ground, where he stood for many ages, and there
fore he grew very old; ho was older than a hun
drod men at the present day: ho ho-o a delicious
fruit, some of which foil on the ground, and at last
one of them grew up to a tree,when n large snake
ate them both tiff at the roots, and they wandered
off together; from these have sprung all the pee•
ple that now inhabit the earth After many ages,
when all these different tribes were at war, the
Great Spirit sent runners, and called them alt
together at the "Red Pipe " Ho stood the
top of the rocks. and the red people, were nesern
bled on the plains helow.. Ho took out of the rock
piece of the red stone, and mndn a large pipe;
lie marked it over them all; them that It was
part oftheir flesh; that the red men were made
from it; that though they wore at war, they must
meet at this place as friends; that it belonged to
them rill; that they must make their calumets
from it, and smoke them to him whenever they
wished to appease him, or get his goodwill: the
eronke from his big pipe rolled over thorn all, and
he disappeared in its eland; at the last whiff of his
pipe, a blase afire rolled over the rocks and malt.
ed their surlitce —at that moment two equnws went
in a blare of lire under the two medicine rocks.
where they remain to this day, and must be con
sulted and propitiated whenever the pipe stone is
to he taken away. "
The following speech.of a Mandan, which wits
, made to me in the Mandan village four., years
since, after I had painted his picture, I have,copi
ed from my note book as corroborative of the Brim°
facts:
"My brother: You have made my *tore, and
I like it much. My friends tell me they .can see
the eyes move, and it must be very good; it must
be partly alive. lam glad it is done, though
many of my people are afraid. I am a young
man but my heart fs strong. have jumped' on
to the mania rock—l have placed my arrow on
it, and no Mandan can take it away... The red
atone is slippery, hut my foot was true; it did not
clip. My brother, Lillis pipe, which I give to you,
I brought from a high mountain—it is toward the
rising sun; many were the pipes we brought from
there—and we brought them away in paiina--.s•
We left our totems and our marks on.the rocks—
we cut them deep in the rocks, and they are there
now. The Groat Spirit told all nations to meet
there in peace, and all nations hid the war-club
and tomahawk. The Sioux, who are our ene
mies, are very strong; they, have taken up the
tomahawk. and the blond of our warriors has rim
on the rock. My friend we want to visit our
medicines—our pipes are old and worn out. My
friend, I wish you to speak to our Great Father
about this."
Shoo-di-ga-ka, chief of the Ponchas, on tho Up
per Missouri, also made the following allusion to
this place, in a speech which ho made to me . on
the occasion of presenting me a very handsome
pipe about four years since:
"My friend—This pipe, which I wish. you to,
•
accept, was dug from the ground, and cut and
polished as you now see it, by my hands. I wish
you to keep it. and when you smoke through it,
recollect that this red stone is a part of our
This is one of the lest things wo can over give
away. Our enemies, the Sioux, have raised the
red flag of blood over the pipe-stone quarrj, and
our medicine, there aro trodden under foot by
them. The Siorixar , many, and we coma go to
the mountain of the fled Pipe. We have seen all
nations smoking t.getf,er at that place; but, my
brother, it is not Cr' now."
One of the old chief of the Saes, on seeing
some specimens of the stone which I had brought
with mo from that place, observed as follows:
"My friend—When I wan young, I used to go
with our young men to the mountain of the Red
Pipe, and dig out pieceti for our pipes. We do
not go now; and our rod pipes, as you see, are
few. The Sioux have split the blood of red men
nn that place, and the Grant Spirit in offended.--
The white traders have told the Sioux to draw
their howl, upon us when we go there; and they
have offered as many of the pilule for sale, hut we
do not want to smoke thorn, far we know that
the Groat Spirt' is offendyd. My mark is tn . the
rooks in many placer, but i chill never see thorn
again. They lie where the Groat Spirit sees
them. for his eye is over that place, and sees e►.
ery thing I done there."
Ke-o-kuck, chief of the Sacs and Foxes, when
I asked him whether he had over been there, re
plied:
I have never seen it; it is in nnr enemies'
country, I wish it wore in ours, r would Fell kW
the whites for a great many boxes of money."
Such are a fcw of the traditions relating to this
curious place, and many other:4 might he given
which I have procured, though they amount near•
ly to the same thing.
The position of the pipe-stone quarry is in a
direction nearly west from the Falls of St. Antho
ny, at * distance of two hundred and twenty or
thirty miles, on the summit of the dividing ridge
between the St Peter's and the Missouri, rivers,
being about equidistant from either. This divid
ing ridge is denominated by the French the ‘ , Co.
term du Prairie," and the ttPipc-stone" is situated
near its southern extremity-, and consequently nit
exactly on its highest elevation, as its general
course is north and south, find its southern eAtm.
[,.Concluded -on the Pourlh Page.]
The manito (or leaping) rock is a part of the
precipice which has become severed from the main
part. standing within about seven or eight feet from
the wall, jug equal in height, and about seven feet in
diameter. It stands like an imiorrise column of 35
feet high, and polished like 4 mirror on its top and
sides. It requires a daring effort to !capon to Usti*
and, back again; and many a heart has sighed for tbia
honor of ihe feat without daring to mak , ' the attempt.
Some lbw have tried it with success, 41$11 hat their
arrows standing In the crevice everal of which are
seen there at this time; otbe re Lee leaped flit dime.
and fallen from the slippery surface. on trldelt
could not hold, and suffered Instant dead; ham GM
craggy rocks below Every young man in the natio*
is ambitious to perform this feat; and that who him
sumessfully date hewn allowed to boast at It all tbalt
' : ..