merica, in 1783, yet the Savages, who had been pers suaded to take a part with the former were unwilling to bury the bloody hatchet-they had not sufficiently bathed that destructive weapon in the blood of the Americans without any pretext whatever, they continued to exercise toward them the most wanton acts of barbarity> It appeared from respectable evidence, that from the year 1783, until the month of October 1790, the time the United States commenced offensive operations against the said Indians, that, on the Ohio, and the frontiers on the south side thereof, they killed, wounded and took prisoners, about one thousand five hundred men, women and children, besides carrying off upwards of two thousand horses, and other property to the amount of fifty thousand dollars.

The particulars of many of the instances of barbarity exercised upon the prisoners, of different ages, and sexes, although supported by indisputable evidence, are of too shocking a nature to be presented to the public-it is sufficient here to observe that the scalping knife and tomahawk, were the mildest instruments of death. That in some cases torture by fire, and other execrable means were used.

But the outrages which were committed upon the frontier inhabitants, were not the only injuries that were sustained; repeated attacks upon detachments of the troops of the United States, were at different times made. The following from its peculiar enormity deserves recital.-In April 1790, Maj. DOUGHTY (in service of the United States) was ordered to the friendly Chicasaws on public business. He performed this duty in a boat, hav ing with him a party of fifteen men. While ascending the Tennesse river, he was met by a party of forty Indians, in four canoes, consisting principally of Shawanese and out cast Cherokees.-They approached under

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a white flag, the well known emblem of peace. They came on board the Major's boat, received his presents, continued with him nearly an hour, and then departed in the most friendly manner.-But, they had scarcely cleared his oars before they poured in a fire upon his crew, which was returned as soon as circumstances would permit, and a most unequal combat was sustained for several hours. when they abandoned their design, but not until they had killed and wounded eleven out of fifteen of the boat's crew.

All overtures of peace failing, and the depredations still continuing, an attempt at coertion became indispensable; accordingly, on the 30th September, 1790, the President, by and with the consent and advice of the Congress of the United States, despatched Gen. HARMER, with 320 Federal troops and 1133 militia, under his com mand, to attack and destroy their principal villages.

The troops after seventeen days march from Miami, reached the great Miami village, without any other molestation than that of having a number of their pack horses stolen. On their arrival they found the village deserted, and all the valuable buildings in flames, set on fire by the Indians. After a short tarry, they proceeded to the neighboring villages, without molestation, and destroyed five of them, and a large quantity of corn, computed at fifteen thousand bushels, which they found buried in different places; and very large quantities of vegitables of every kind.

The first opposition that was met with a party of about 150 Kentucky militia, and 30 regular troops, all under the command of Col. HARDING, of Kentucky, were de tached from the main body lying in the great Miami vil. lage, to pursue the trail of a party of Indians, which had the day before been discovered. After a pursuit of about six miles, they came up with, and were attacked on sur

prize by a body of Indians who were concealed in the thickets on every side of a large plain; and on the first onset the militia without exchanging a single shot, made a most precipitate retreat and left the regular troops to stand the whole charge of the Indians; the conflict was short and bloody, the troops were soon overpowered by numbers, and all fell except two officers, and two or three privates, after defending themselves at their bayonet points, with the greatest possible obstinacy. Ensign HARTSHORN was one of the officers who providentially escaped, and his escape appeared to depend more on a Jucky circumstance of faltering over a log in his retreat, and by that means screening himself from the eye of his pursuers, than from any other circumstance. Captain ARMSTRONG, who commanded the party, likewise made his escape, by plunging himself into a pound or swamp up to his neck, within two hundred yards of the field of action, where he remained the whole night a spectator to the horrid scene of the war dance performed over the dead and wounded bodies of the poor soldiers that had fallen the preceding day; where their shrieks, mixed with the horrid yells of the savages, rendered his situation shocking.

After this, some few skirmishes succeeded, but nothing material, until the second capital action, which happened two days after the army left the Miami villageat ten miles distance from the town, the General order. ed a halt, and detached from four to five hundred militia, and about sixty regular soldiers, under the command of Major WYLLYS and Colonel HARDING, who were ordered to march back to the town. On their first entrance there appeared a small body of Indians, who immediate. ly fled at the first onset, and by that means decoyed the whole body of the militia, by making their flight in dif ferent directions, and encouraging the militia to pursue ;

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by this stratagem the few regular troops were left alone, and the Indians had effected their design, for the moment they found the small handful of regular troops detached from the main body of the militia, they commenced the attack with their whole force, excepting the flying parties that had divided the militia; and although they soon found some part of the militia returning on their backs, pursued their object of routing and destroying the troops, as the only sure plan of success; which after a most bloody conflict on each side, they effected.

Nothing could exceed the intrepidity of the savages on this occasion; the militia they appeared to despise, and with all the undauntedness conceivable, threw down their guns, and rushed upon the bayonets of the regular soldiers; a number of them fell, but being so far superior in numbers, the regulars were soon overpowered, for while the poor solder had his bayonet in one Indian, two more would sink their tomahawks in his head. The defeat of the troops was complete, the dead and wounded were left on the field of action, in possession of the savages.

The following is a copy of the official return of the killed and wounded in the expedition :

Killed of the Federal Troopst

1 Major, 1 Lieutenant, 73 rank and file-total 75Wounded-3 rank and file.

Killed of the Militia.

1 Major, 3 Captains, 2 Lieutenants, 4 Ensigns, 98 rank and file-total 108-Wounded-2 Lieutenants, Ensign, 25 rank and file-total-28.

The regular troops all to nine, including two commis sioned officers, were killed-among the slain was Major WYLLYS, and a number of brave and valuable soldiers. The Indians, it appeared, from some cause, did not think it prudent to pursue their successes from the field of as

tion, as most of the troops that were not killed or badly wounded, made their escape, which, they could not have effected had the enemy pursued with their usual fary.

CHAP. IX.

EXPEDITIONS OF GENERAL'S SCOTT AND WILKINSON,

IN MAY AND AUGUST, 1791.

GEN. SCOTT TO THE SECRETARY OF WAR.

SIR,

"IN prosecution of the enterprise, I marched (with 850 troops under my command) four miles from the banks of the Ohio on the 23d May, and on the 24th I resumed my march, and pushed forward with the utmost industry, directing my route to Ouiattannan, in the best manner my guides and information enabled me, though I found myself greatly deficient in both.

"By the 31st, I had marched one hundred and thirtyfive miles, over a country cut by four large branches of White River, and many smaller streams with steep muddy banks During this march, I traversed a country alternately interspersed with the most luxurious soil, and deep clayey bogs from one to five miles wide, rendered almost impervious by brush and briars. Rain fell in torrents every day, with frequent blasts of wind and thunder storms. These obstacles impeded my progress, wore down my horses, and destroyed my provisions.

"On the morning of the 1st instant as the army entered an extensive praire, I perceived an Indian on horse. back a few miles to the right: I immediately made a de