University of Virginia Library

7. CHAPTER VII.
THE ADVENTURES OF PATANKO, CONTINUED.

“Having now satisfactorily accomplished this corollary
to his grand undertaking, White-cat determined to make
up for lost time. By dint of forced marches, we soon
reached the upper part of the great Connecticut valley,
and were soon joined by two or three of the other detachments.

“The work of destruction now commenced. The
atrocities practised upon their Indian brethren, of which
I have already given a sketch, were trivial in comparison
with the butcheries to which the New England provinces
were now exposed.

“Village after village was attacked—the houses burned,
and the inhabitants massacred.

“During the continuance of the whole expedition, I
was compelled to be a spectator of the miseries of my
countrymen. I was led by a rope fastened around my
neck; while my arms were pinioned by another.

“Fortunately for the English, there had been latterly
some defalcation on the part of the Southern allies of the
Canadian Indians. Repeated quarrels had taken place,
and threats had passed so often between the different
tribes who were united in this expedition, that it was
more than probable that their arms would soon be turned
against each other.

“In consequence of this, White-cat called a council
of the chiefs upon whom he could most depend; and it
having been decided that it was dangerous to proceed
any father at present, he resolved that the village of

T—, from which we were then ten miles distant,
should be the extreme point of their expedition.

“Accordingly the destruction of the devoted village
was resolved upon, as the finale to the whole business.

“It was decided that as soon as they had accomplished
it, they would immediately retrace their steps, and return
to their own habitations.

“We assaulted the village about noon in five strong
parties, and at five different points.

“The inhabitants assembled at the sound of the terrific
Indian yell, and a desperate resistance was made.

“The party which was headed by White-cat, fought
its way up the principal street of the place, and the
ground was covered with the mangled bodies of the
victims.

“Their numbers were so inconsiderable in comparison
with ours, that they were soon obliged to yield. The
work of plunder and of massacre now succeeded.

“Old White-cat who was the most whimsical of Indians,
had throughout the expedition, insisted upon my
remaining continually at his side. I was, he facetiously
observed, an exceedingly useful aid-de-camp, and as my
labours were lightened by the two Indians who held me
by the ropes, it was hardly possible that I could be much
fatigued. All this I received as indisputable; and I believed
that the old scoundrel, from some unnatural freak,
had in reality conceived an affection for me, and I began
to think it possible eventually to escape with life.

“The whites had now nearly all surrendered. A
feeble firing was kept up from the windows of a single
house at a distant corner of the village, but as White-cat
had despatched a half-dozen warriors to reduce the occupants
to submission, he troubled himself no more about
the matter.

“I observed that the Indians had one and all a passion
for masquerading. Upon this occasion, as soon as
their more truculent appetites were satisfied, I saw a large
number of them disappear into some of the houses.

“Presently afterwards they re-appeared, having decked
themselves out in the most preposterous manner.

“Some wore white hats; and some woollen nightcaps;
some had endued themselves in bombazine petticoats,
and several of them strutted about decked in the
finery of old militia uniforms. Six of them had rigged
themselves out in flannel shirts and bandanna handkerchiefs
of the favourite scarlet colour, and now marched
gravely forward, beating time upon an iron kettle; while
one tall fellow with a woman's bonnet on his head, a
ponderous pair of boots upon his legs, and otherwise in
complete nudity, capered about with much agility, and
excited universal admiration.

“Captain White-cat looked upon these playful warriors,
and grunted from time to time with great satisfaction.
While he was thus employed, one of the principal
inhabitants of the village, and its earliest settler, was
brought before him. He had been taken captive after
having destroyed four Indians with his own hand — he
was well aware of his fate — but when he was confronted
with Wahquimacutt who was endeavouring to
assume a commanding demeanour, he regarded him
with an expression of perfect indifference and contempt.

“The old hypocrite advanced towards him, and seized
him by both hands, which he shook heartily.

“`I salute thee, my brother!' said he; `Am I not
your uncle and your brother?

“With this he commanded two of his adherents to
hold the prisoner fast, and then, without more ado, he

stripped his shirt from his back, and his boots from his
legs, and proceeded to array himself therein.

“When he had completed his toilet, he knocked the
captive's brains out, without farther ceremony; and then
making an incision in his breast, scooped out a handful
of blood, and drank it off with much relish.

“`I am a great man!' said the old braggadocio,
turning to me; `I am the son of the Great Spirit. I
drink the heart's blood of my foes, and it makes me fat.'

“Having finished this pretty speech, he strutted up and
down the street for a few minutes, and then ordered a
council of his most eminent warriors.

“This he informed me, was his `general court,' (a
term which he had learned in his intercourse with the
white men,) and assured me that the wisdom of its deliberations
was unequalled in the world.

“Accordingly the bare-legged legislators squatted
themselves on their hams before the council fire, and
began smoking and grunting with admirable solemnity.

“While they were thus employed, the deputation
which had been sent against the still-resisting party
above-mentioned, returned with their prisoners. The
house had been demolished, and its garrison, consisting
of two white men and an aged negro, were now placed
before the conclave.

“Although the assembly were deliberating upon other
and weighty matters, yet White-cat requested them to
assist him with their advice concerning the disposal of
these prisoners.

“A great many violent speeches were accordingly
made; but as they could arrive at no conclusion, it was
determined to defer the matter till the next day. The

prisoners were placed in strict confinement, and left for
the present in ignorance of their fate.

“The next morning the prisoners requested to know,
if possible, the punishment that was to be awarded to
them; they were informed that Wahquimacutt intended
to give a grand entertainment that afternoon, and that
their fate would be then decided.

“In the afternoon, accordingly, a very solemn council
was again assembled; the prisoners were made to sit
upon the ground in the centre of the circle, and the
proceedings were conducted in a business-like manner.

“They were of course condemned to immediate death,
and three or four set immediately about the execution.

“Their clothes were torn from their bodies and thrown
into the fire; stakes were then driven into the ground, to
which they were secured.

“A number of the savages then proceeded to draw a
circle around them, which they fancifully decorated
with flowers.

“A couple of conjurors then commenced a series of ridiculous
antics, which were supposed to give an additional
solemnity to the scene.

“As soon as this was finished, all the Indians present,
sachems, counsellors, spectators, and all, commenced
dancing and jumping violently to the music of two
drums, beaten by a couple of half-breeds, who composed
the band of the tribe.

“When this was over, three individuals, painted and
adorned in a fantastic and terrible manner, and who I
found were the executioners, now brought the brushwood,
and other combustible materials, and kindled a
fire around the stakes.

“The captives were burned; and the next day the
Indians commenced their retreat.

“After we had been two days on our homeward march,
Wahquimacutt summoned me to his presence. He told
me that I had now had sufficient opportunity to become
acquainted with his merits, and requested my consent to
join his tribe.

“I replied in the negative. He then told me the only
alternative was death. I assured him that I expected it,
and that I was wearied and disgusted with my life; that
death was the greatest favour he could bestow upon me,
and the sooner he set about it the better.

“I suppose it was the constant contempt with which I
treated him that excited the liking to which I have referred.
It was evident that he was unwilling to order
my execution, and that he was anxious to secure me to
his person.

“He seemed, however, decided on this occasion, and
bade me prepare for death on the following day. I lay
awake the whole night, devising means of escape. Early
the next morning our march was resumed.

“Very fortunately the company were a good deal dispersed
in search of game, and my two faithful guardians
and myself were left considerably behind.

“During the night I had contrived to free one of my
hands from the noose which confined them, although the
manner in which the savages had attached themselves
to my person while asleep, prevented me from profiting
by that circumstance to make my escape.

“About nine in the morning our course lay across a
deep and rapid brook. As soon as my companions
reached its edge they both stooped down to drink.

“In the twinkling of an eye I seized the lucky moment,

sprang upon the nearest like a tiger, succeeded in
wresting his knife from its sheath, and drove it through
his heart.

“The other had slipped into the water, but he rose
and grappled with me. The contest was for life; but I
was the stronger of the two. We were now in the centre
of the stream, and the water reached to our waists.
With a desperate effort I threw him down, and succeeded
in holding him under the water. In a few seconds his
struggles grew fainter and fainter—they ceased. He relaxed
his gripe—he was drowned. I possessed myself
of his knife, and the gun which was lying on the bank.

“I was now free from my immediate keepers, but
surrounded by my enemies.

“The morning was foggy, and I was entirely uncertain
of the direction which the savages had taken, and
was entirely ignorant of the points of the compass.

“It seemed to me therefore that my wisest course was
to conceal myself, if possible, in the neighbourhood of
this very place.

“It was probable that the Indians would proceed on
their day's journey in the same irregular manner in
which they had commenced, and that consequently my
escape would not be discovered before the evening.

“In this way, the Indians would have probably proceeded
thirty or forty miles beyond my present position;
and that distance being once placed between us, it would
not be difficult for me to profit by the night, and eventually
to effect my escape.

“On the contrary, if I endeavoured to make my way
through the mist which prevented me from discovering
any object at a rod's distance, it was highly probable that

I should stumble upon some of my enemies before I had
advanced a quarter of a mile.

“I selected, therefore, a pile of drift wood, which the
force of the water had heaped up in a marshy angle of
the brook. Under this cover I contrived to secrete myself
and my gun so completely that it was not likely that
I should accidentally be discovered, and I trusted that
not being missed I should probably not become the object
of a direct search.

“I lay snug in my hiding-place for nearly an hour,
during which time I had the satisfaction of hearing the
voices of my enemies, the crack of their rifles, and their
imitations of the different cries of the game which they
were pursuing with hardly a moment's cessation.

“At last the cries seemed to grow fainter, the shots became
less frequent, and I began to console myself with
the belief that they had at last proceeded on their
journey.

“I felt comparatively so tranquil, and had been so
much exhausted with excitement, and with my watching
the whole of the previous night, that I was already
sinking into a doze.

“Hardly, however, were my eyes closed, than I was
startled by the shrill whoop of a savage, which sounded
within a yard of my ear.

“I felt certain that I was discovered, and that this
was a yell of exultation at my discovery. I grasped
my knife and determined to sell my life as dearly as possible.

“Still, however, I lay motionless in my hiding-place.

“In a few moments the whoop was repeated, still
more savagely than before. A pause—and then it was
answered by the faint halloos of several others in the

distance. The cries grew stronger—the voices sounded
nearer—and in a few moments, a wild and unearthly
shriek—a yell from many voices—rose directly above the
place where I lay.

“My blood curdled—my fate was evidently seated;
and death, which I had been for many days expecting
with composure, seemed doubly bitter, now that I had a
glimpse of freedom.

“It was unaccountable why I had not been immediately
dragged from my hiding-place, for now several
minutes had slipped since I had first heard the yell of
the savages.

“There was a chink in the pile of wood which concealed
me. I contrived stealthily to change my position,
and to look out.

“I saw, with a feeling of relief, that I had not been
discovered. The first savagge had discovered the bodies
of my victims, whom the current had washed ashore not
far from my hiding-place, and had given the alarm to
his companions. There were now nearly a dozen of
them collected around the bodies, yelling, chattering,
gesticulating, and testifying by their voices and gestures
their rage and astonishment.

“I lay in an agony of suspense. It seemed impossible
that I could now escape. Although my lurking-place
was not yet discovered, yet it seemed impossible that it
could remain so long.

“After indulging themselves in a few more howls of
mingled anger and lamentations, they commenced
their search.

“They shook the trees—beat the bushes—traversed
the place in all directions. I heard their voices distinctly,
and several of them were often so near me that I could
have touched them.

“At last one of them observed that it was probable I
had already advanced a little way, and proposed searching
for me farther off.

“A ray of hope gleamed through my heart. The
savages seemed to assent to the proposition, One of
them, however, before departing took up a stick from the
pile which concealed me, and began scattering the heap.
Presently, another followed his example, and of course
I gave up myself for lost.

“They pitched off and threw away half a dozen bits
of wood, and during the process, they touched me repeatedly.
The morning, however, was so misty, and
the colour of my garments was so similar to that of the
bark of the wood, that I remained without discovery.

“After a short time they uttered an exclamation or
two of disappointment, and then apparently gave over
their search.

“With a beating heart I listened to their retreating
footsteps.

“At last all was quiet.