University of Virginia Library

CHAPTER VIII.

DESCRIPTION OF THE COUNTRY ABOUT NEW HARMONY IN INDIANA, AND WINTER RESIDENCE THERE FROM
OCTOBER 19TH, 1832, TO MARCH 16TH, 1833.

New Harmony was founded by Mr. Rapp, and his Swabian followers, in a wooded plain on the
left or east bank of the Wabash, about fifteen or twenty miles distant from any other place. As
Duke Bernhard of Saxe Weimar has already spoken on this subject, I need not give any further
account of the history of this settlement; I will only add that Mr. Owen, a Scotchman, bought
the whole of Mr. Rapp, but afterwards disposed of it to Mr. William Maclure, President of the
Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. At the time of our visit, Harmony had fallen
into decay, and the people whom Mr. Maclure had settled there, were in part dispersed. Two
sons of Mr. Owen were, however, still here, and also Mr. Thomas Say, and Mr. Lesueur; the
first, well known as having accompanied Major Long in his two journeys into the interior, and the
second, by his voyage round the world with Captain Baudin, and the celebrated Piron. Though
Mr. Maclure did not appear to take any active part in the management of Harmony, because the
climate did not agree with him, and he therefore resided in Mexico, he took care to furnish Mr.
Say with a fine library of books on Natural History, which was constantly enriched with the most
valuable new works published in Europe. He likewise had here a printing press, a copper-plate
press, and an engraver. Mr. Maclure had purchased in France all the plates of Audebert
and Vicillot's splendid ornithological works, which are preserved in the library. Mr. Say has
undertaken the superintendence of Mr. Maclure's property on the Wabash, but lives in a very
retired manner, devoted to the study of natural history, and to literary pursuits.

Harmony is now a large village, with about 600 inhabitants; the buildings, which are partly
of brick, are detached from each other; the streets are at right angles, broad, and unpaved. The
church built by Mr. Rapp has been transformed into an amateur theatre. The situation of
Harmony is by no means unpleasant. The Wabash, a fine river, as broad as the Moselle, winds
between banks which are now cultivated, but were lately covered with thick forests. A hilly
tract, covered with woods, bounds the valley of the Wabash, which is frequently overflowed
by the river, and thereby gains in fertility. The place itself lies rather higher than the valley,
surrounded by orchards, and is not exposed to inundations. The Wabash divides at Harmony
into two arms, the eastern of which is called Cut-off River (Vig. VIII.), and further down into
several branches, forming many wooded islands, the largest of which are inhabited.

New Harmony (Plate II.), is surrounded on all sides by fields, which are from 600 to 800
paces in diameter; all around are lofty forests, where settlers have everywhere cultivated detached
patches. These people are generally called backwoodsmen, who live like half savages, without
any education or religious instruction. The forests which they inhabit are very extensive, and
the soil extremely fertile: vegetation is much more luxuriant than to the east of the Alleghanys;
and, therefore, a short description of the natural productions of the country will not be out of
place here.

Some remarkable peculiarities strike the observer when he looks at the forests on the Wabash;
one of these is the want of evergreens, if we except the Viscum flavescens, Pursh, Bignonia
cruciata, Equisetum hyemale, and Miegia macrosperma. The leaves of that bignonia, for the most
part, remain green in the winter, as well as those of the miegia, and the stalks of the Equisetum
hyemale, at least, in mild winters, which often grow to the height of eight or ten feet in the dry
forests. The planes often attain an enormous size, and are then generally hollow, and divided
into several colossal branches. We measured several of these trees, and found one that was forty
one feet five inches in circumference. The hollow inside was twelve feet in diameter, so that in
our winter excursions we used to light a fire in it, where we sheltered from the wind. Tall tulip
trees shoot up straight as masts, blossom, and bear seeds at their summits, unseen by human eye.
Maples of great height and circumference, many species of oak, especially the mossy overcap oak
(Q. macrocarpa), with its large acorns, which, at this time, lay on the ground, stand crowded together.
A great many species of trees are mixed together; among them the Gymnocladus Canadensis,
or Guilandina Bonduc, with its broad pods, the divers kinds of walnut trees, the Gleditschia
tricanthos, with its formidable thorns; and many climbing plants twine round the trunks, and
among them, the most beautiful of all, the Bignonia radicans.

In the forests of Indiana the ground is covered with a thick undergrowth, fifteen, twenty, or
thirty feet high, consisting chiefly of the papaw tree, the spinewood (Laurus Benzoin), and the
red bud; the flowers of the two latter precede the leaf. Under these lower trees, shrubs cover

the ground. No pine, rhododendron, kalmia, azalea, magnolia, nor even the chestnut tree, are
found in these forests; but they seem to be especially the native country of the beautiful catalpa
tree, of which it was not known in what part of America it properly grew wild, and which here
attains a considerable height and size.

These lofty forests re-echo with the hammering of the numerous woodpeckers; and, during
the winter, the scarlet cardinal (Fring. cardinalis) shines in the distance; and the titmouse
(Parus. bicolor, and Atricapillus), and the nuthatch (Sitta Carolinensis), everywhere seek for insects
and nuts.

The inhabitants of these forests would never be in want of an ample supply of wood for fuel
and for timber, if they had been at all careful. The black walnut and cherry tree wood are the
best for cabinet work; and for fuel, the hickory, which affords more heat than beech wood. The
price of wood, at Harmony, was one dollar for a cord; but the price is already rising, because
the forest in the neighbourhood of the village is gradually cleared, and the carriage is more
expensive.

There are several kinds of officinal plants in the vicinity of Harmony; ginseng (Panax)
grows close by the village, and its roots are still in request, but not so much as formerly.
Another plant of the woods of Indiana, which is much esteemed, is the spurious Colombo root;
likewise the peppermint, which grows in every part of the United States. The wax tree (Myrica
cerifera), of the berries of which the green, fragrant tapers are made, does not grow in Indiana,
but is found on the whole east coast, from New Jersey to Florida. A kind of bark, which is now
much used, is that of the slippery elm (Ulmus rubra): if chewed, or softened for a moment in
water, it dissolves into a viscous slime, and is found very useful in dressing wounds, as it is cooling,
and allays the inflammation. It is said to have been applied with success in cholera, and is now
sold, in powder, in all the apothecaries' shops. A teaspoonful of this bark, in boiling water, makes
a very useful beverage, which is sweetened with sugar, and has the same effect as linseed.
Michaux has given a print of this elm, and it would be desirable to cultivate it in our gardens.

The country on the banks of the Wabash is as interesting to the zoologist as to the botanist;
formerly there were great numbers of the bison or buffalo of the Anglo-Americans, the elk,[1]
bear, and beaver; but they are now entirely extirpated. The Virginian deer is still pretty numerous,
but is daily becoming more scarce: when Mr. Rapp first settled here, seventy of these deer
were shot, in a day, in one of the Wabash islands. The wolf is still common, and seems to differ
but little from the European, but is a different species from the wolf of the prairies of the Missouri;

it is said that there is a black wolf in the prairies of Illinois, which may, perhaps, be a distinct
species. Of foxes, I saw only the grey, though the red fox is said to be found here. In the
works that treat of the natural history of North America, there are many errors. The racoon is
common in the forests of Harmony, and is never seen in the daytime; it is hunted in the night
with dogs, which drive it into a tree. It does not sleep through the winter, for I often obtained
it in that season. The opossum is also common, and lives much in the same manner as the
racoon. The polecat, the otter, and the mink are common; the pine marten is said to be sometimes
seen; the ermine is not rare in the prairies of Illinois. The marmot, or ground hog, grows
to a considerable size, and is found in the islands of the Wabash; the musk-rat abounds in all the
rivers. The rabbit, as it is called (Lepus Americanus), is nowhere so common as in Europe, yet
is found in all parts of the country. Of squirrels there are many species.

The most interesting of the birds of this part is the wild turkey, which was formerly
extremely numerous, and is still pretty common. A large cock was sold at Harmony for a quarter
of a dollar. A young man in the neighbourhood, who supplied the place with this delicate game,
had often ten or fifteen hanging about his horse at the same time. The pheasant or heathcock
is found in these forests, but in no great numbers. The prairie hen is common in the prairies of
Illinois, and comes in large flocks to the neighbourhood of Harmony, as soon as the cold weather
and snow set in. Partridges abound, and so do parrots (Psitt. Carolinensis) which remain here
during the winter. No other kind of parrot seems to bear so great a degree of cold as this. We
often saw them flying about in the forests, feeding on the fruit of the plane, when Reaumur's
thermometer was at 11° below zero. In the mild climate of the Ohio and Wabash they remain
all the year through. They are amusing birds in a cage, and become very tame.

There are but few species of amphibia in the country about Harmony. Soft shell turtles
and several kinds of emys are numerous, such as the snapping turtle (E. serpentina), likewise
E. geographica, picta, pulchella, &c.

There are several lizards, but no great number of species. The rattle-snake is seldom seen,
this country not being sufficiently dry and stony; the copper-head, on the contrary, is said not
to be rare, but I cannot speak with certainty. The hognose-snake is very common. There are
many kinds of adder in the Wabash that are not venomous.

The proteus (Menobranchus lateralis, Harl.) of the Ohio, and of the great Canadian lakes, is
found in the Wabash. The rude inhabitants have many superstitious notions and fables
respecting several kinds of animals, especially serpents. Of the glass-snake (Ophisaurus ventralis),
which easily breaks to pieces, they say, that when the pieces are placed together, they immediately
unite: they affirm that the horn-snake, which has a horn or sting at the end of its tail,
takes it in its mouth, and then runs along like a hoop; and that if it passes a tree it wounds it
with its sting, which always makes the tree die. Mr. Thomas Say was once informed that a

planter had brought one of these snakes, and would prove the truth of this assertion. He sent
for the man, and found that he had the tail of one of these snakes carefully wrapped up. Mr. Say
asked him whether he must die if he pricked himself with this horn? The man answered
"undoubtedly." Mr. Say immediately pricked himself with the horn and drew blood, but was
not affected by it; and the impostor, who affirmed that he had witnessed the effects of the sting,
excused himself by saying that he had been deceived by a neighbour who gave him the snake.
The inhabitants of the country generally believe that venomous serpents sting both with the
tongue and with the tail, that they fascinate other animals, an old, long since refuted fable, which,
however, is occasionally revived in American journals, with other stories of a similar kind.

There are many kinds of fish in the Wabash, on the whole the same as in the Ohio and
the Mississippi: the cat-fish is said sometimes to weigh above 100 lbs. Several species of
sturgeon and pikes are found here; the horn-fish, the buffalo (Catastomus carpio les), a large
fish resembling the carp, &c. The remarkable paddle-fish is likewise met with, but not frequently,
nor in all the rivers. Mr. Lesueur has given it the name of ptalyrostra, and has sent several
specimens of it to Paris. This naturalist, during his long residence at Harmony, has very carefully
studied this branch of zoology. He possesses a large collection of drawings and descriptions
of this class, and specimens, for the most part stuffed. He has presented many of them to the
National Museum at Paris; and it was his intention soon to visit Europe, and publish his observations
on this subject, which will form an important supplement to the great work of Cuvier and
Valenciennes.

The bivalve shells (Unio, Alasmodon, and Anodonta), of which there are a great many different
species, some of them very large and beautiful, are an interesting portion of the natural productions
of the Ohio, the Wabash, and the tributary streams, especially Fox River. Several American
naturalists have written on this subject. Mr. Say, who was the first, states the number of species
of these bivalves at forty-four. He would have given descriptions and drawings of all the species
existing in this country, as well on land as in the rivers, in his natural history of the North American
testacea, had not death called him from this world, too soon for his friends and for science. He
died on the 10th of October, 1834, soon after I had left him in good health on my second visit to
Harmony. This part of the country has two species of crustacea (Astacus Bartoni, Bosc.), and
(Astacus affinis, Say), which are here called craw-fish. These are the only large species of crustacea,
but there are many smaller ones. Mr. Say, by many years' study, made himself fully acquainted
with the insects. It is remarkable that the bee, which was brought to America by the Europeans,
is now common in all the forests; the Indians are said to call this insect the white-man's fly.
Many beautiful butterflies and moths adorn the woods of Indiana.

The eminences about Harmony are of secondary formation, with a basis of limestone, and
upon that, strata of sandstone, clay-slate and indurated clay. The land in the neighbourhood of

Harmony is extremely fertile. The fields are not manured for many successive years, and produce
the finest crops; such land, however, in good situations, is no longer cheap. The climate
is salubrious, and the inhabitants attain a great age. The winters are generally mild; the changes
of temperature are often very great and rapid. The cholera has not yet visited this country. We
arrived at the season called the Indian summer, when, with a temperature of + 16° to 17° Reaumur,
the atmosphere was gloomy and misty. Most persons experience, at this season, irregularities in
the digestive organs, and head-ache. Pöppig gives a very accurate account of the North American
autumn, and Mrs. Trollope felt the peculiar effect of this warm autumnal weather on strangers; it
is, however, very remarkable that this state of the atmosphere in the Ohio Valley quickly put an
end to the cholera, on which Dr. Daniel Drake wrote an essay. The weather in the winter-time
is generally bright and clear; sometimes there are fogs, and hoar frost, which encrusts the trees
with the most beautiful crystals: parhelia and aurora borealis are frequently seen. On the 14th
of December we had a tremendous thunder-storm at daybreak; Reaumur's thermometer was at
+ 2°; the rain, thunder, and lightning were equally violent; the latter covered the heavens with
a sheet of fire, and was extremely dazzling; the thunder resembled a discharge of artillery. We
were told that, in the preceding year, 1831, the weather had been exceedingly unhealthy, and the
inhabitants even affirmed that wounds would not heal.

Like the whole of the interior of North America, the country on the Wabash has still
numerous traces of a very early extinct original population, of which even the present Indians have no
traditions, and whose remains have been spoken of by many writers. Warden, in his account of the
United States, and more particularly in the great work, entitled "Antiquités Mexicaines," has
mentioned such remains in all the States, and collected much information on this subject. Here,
too, in the neighbourhood of Harmony, there are ancient tumuli, which, externally, are exactly
similar to those which are everywhere found in our German forests. Lesueur had examined
many of these tumuli, and sent part of the articles found in them to France. Some of the most
considerable tumuli were found on the spot, near the back of the village, where Rapp made his
churchyard, and which is now planted with acacias. The bones of the Swabian peasants are here
mingled with those of the aboriginal Indians. Lesueur dug through some of those tumuli,
which are now much levelled, and covered with greensward, and found a right-angled oblong
parallelogram, level at the bottom, formed of large flat stones, set edgewise, and likewise covered
over with similar stones. Some decayed bones were found in it, of which I received a considerable
number from Mr. Lesueur, and sent them to Mr. Blumenbach, at Göttingen. This mode of
interment is not that of the present Indians, who themselves affirm that these tumuli were made
by the whites. Most of the skulls which were found were without the bones of the face, and all
were very much decayed. The race of men to which they belonged were not smaller than those
now existing, and, consequently, afford no evidence of a dwarfish race, which has been fabulously

ascribed to America. Potsherds were found in many of the tumuli; they were made of a grey
clay, and in general marked with stripes, or rings; it would appear that they had been moulded
in a cloth, or basket, as they were marked with similar impressions, or figures. Mr. Lesueur has
seen unbroken vessels of this kind, which were large, very flat, and had figured handles. Broken
shells are frequently found intermixed with the dark grey clay of these vessels. In one of the
tumuli was found, together with the human bones, the jawbones of an animal of the stag kind;
in others, battle-axes, arrow-heads, and tobacco-pipe heads of clay, different in form from those
now used in Indiana.

One of these pipes was in the shape of a squatting frog, the mouth serving for the tobacco;
some of them are represented in the accompanying woodcuts.[2] Some of the most interesting

articles found in and near these graves, are the narrow, oblong, square pieces of flint, which those
nations made use of instead of knives. They are from two to two inches and a half long, and
scarcely half an inch broad; very thin and very sharp on all the four sides. Several of these knives
were discovered near New Harmony, and Mr. Lesueur found one during my stay there. There
is a very remarkable coincidence of these knives with the perfectly similar instruments of
obsidian or volcanic glass, which are found, even now, in Mexico, some of which Mr. T. Say
brought with him, from his journey to that country, and wrote a paper respecting them.[3] In the
forty-eighth plate, I have represented the two kinds of stone knives together, as they seem to
testify the affinity of the aborigines of the interior of North America with those of Mexico, which
is supported by other reasons.

About fifteen miles from Harmony, lower down the Wabash, is a part of the bank known
by the name of the Bone Bank, where the river has partly cut through a hill, or laid it bare,
in which there are numbers of human bones seen imbedded in the bank. Mr. Lesueur
sent a perfect skull from this spot to Blumenbach. An old tree having fallen down on this
place, he saw under the roots an entire human skeleton; this, therefore, was undoubtedly a
burying-place. While the observer deeply regrets that he is wholly without information respecting
these remarkable remains of antiquity, he feels that the present white population of North
America may justly be reproached for neglecting or destroying them. Nobody in Harmony was able
to give any account of the names of the Indian tribes who inhabited the country at the time when
this village was founded. One of the first settlers of the country about Mount Vernon, who had
grown up in Kentucky among the Indians, but had removed, in 1806, to the forests on the Lower
Wabash—where at that time there were no white settlers—had been well acquainted with the
Indians about Harmony, and frequently visited them in their huts. He was the only man who
was able to give me any information about them. He called them Muskoghe Indians; this
name, however, seems to be incorrect. They lived in this part of the country till 1810; but in
the year preceding the battle of Tippekanoe they all removed, and did not return. They
were not numerous, and lived chiefly about the mouth of the Wabash, and on the Big Creek.
They were a good-looking, robust race; wore a kind of apron, and had bows and arrows, in the
use of which they were very expert. They had among them thirty or forty indifferent guns;
they smoked Sumach leaves in wooden pipes,[4] the tube of which was made of cane. Their huts, at
the mouth of the Wabash, were composed of large bundles of reeds, lined inside with deer-skins.
Many of these Indians fastened their pipes to the tomahawk. Their heads were shorn, with
the exception of a tuft at the back, like the Indians of the Mississippi and Lower Missouri.
They coloured their faces with red paint. To the whites they were friendly, visited the first settlers
in their dwellings, and reposed around their hearths, especially in bad weather. At that time
there were elks and beavers, yet in no great numbers; but bears and wolves in abundance. My
informant had killed many bears, and great numbers of wild turkeys.

The early history of Indiana mentions, as the inhabitants of this State, when the French first
settled here, the Kickapoos, Musquitons, Potanons, and some other nations, remnants of which
are still to be found at the sources of the Wabash, as well as the Piankishaws, Miamis, and
Viandots. In the year 1804, a treaty was concluded with them at Vincennes for the purchase of
the lands between the Wabash and the Ohio, after which they emigrated. Some well-informed
inhabitants of Harmony, who, at the time of the Indiana emigration, when the United States had
repeatedly bought land of those people, saw the several dislodged tribes pass through this country,
assured me that the character of their physiognomy was often essentially different; and I myself
found this confirmed both in North and South America; though the fundamental features of the
American race are everywhere the same. All these Indians are now totally extirpated or
expelled from Indiana, and the country enjoys the advantage of being peopled by the backwoodsmen.

The fertile and salubrious country of Harmony has attracted a great number of settlers, who
have begun to thin the great forests of Indiana. These settlers are usually called backwoodsmen,
because they live in the remote forests. They are a robust, rough race of men, of English or
Irish origin. They dwell very isolated, scattered in the forests, and but seldom come to the
towns, only when business calls them. There is a school at Harmony where the children learn to
read and write; two dollars are paid quarterly, and the children receive instruction in the
morning and afternoon; but in the country the young people grow up without any education,
and are, probably, no better than the Indians themselves. In the Western States, the sixteenth
section of the Congress land (i. e., land belonging to the Government) is always assigned for the
benefit of the schools, but is not always employed according to the first intention. At this time
there was in the state of Indiana only one college; it was at Blooming Town. There was no
clergyman at Harmony, and, with the exception of the meetings of some religious sects, the
inhabitants were destitute of both religious and school instruction. Business, or festive
occasions, brings the backwoodsmen into the town, where they indulge their love of whisky,
which generally retards their return homeward. They have a good race of horses, and are bold
horsemen; even the women are frequently seen on the saddle, and whole families travel in this
way—man, woman, and child ofttimes mounted on the same beast. There is nothing characteristic
in their costume, like the original dresses which are met with in the country in Germany;
but they wear a medley, and bad imitation of all the fashions of English towns; caps, felt and
straw hats, frocks, great-coats, plaids, &c. The women, too, endeavour to imitate the fashions of
the towns, wear large hats with loose veils, and gaudy plaid mantles, which, altogether, have often
a most ludicrous effect in these remote forests. The winter dress of the men is often not ill
chosen, though perfectly novel to a stranger. At that season they wear great-coats made of the
common woollen horsecloths, white or green, with gay stripes on the collar, cuffs, and pockets;

nay, some are striped all over like zebras: such a coat, of the commonest kind, cannot be had here
for less than eight or ten dollars. Noisy parties of these people frequently assemble at the public-houses
of Harmony, gather round the fire, and let the whisky circulate briskly, while their horses
are frequently left the whole day, standing in the street, amid rain and snow. On Sunday, which
is kept by many of the inhabitants, though there is no divine service, they are more decently
clad, wash their faces, and make some attempt at putting their hair in order, which hangs
dishevelled about their faces. The young men often went to the chase, others played in the streets,
generally at ball, but a great number remained at their work, and the peasants and farmers, with
their huge wagons, followed their usual occupations. On certain days, especially when a magistrate,
a president, or a governor was to be chosen, all were gathered together, for they all take
great interest in the government of the country, and would not, on any account, renounce the
privilege which, in their estimation, makes them important statesmen. On such election days,
whole troops of them ride into the town; the streets are crowded with their horses, which are
tied up, and the whisky-shops resound with their tumultuous discussions. Every man gives his
vote; disputes arise; and, as in the Polish diets, their excited passions frequently lead to blows.
They are all great politicians, and some of them are well acquainted with the newspapers. In
the winter, as soon as snow fell, sledge parties commenced at Harmony. Six or eight persons
were on separate seats, two and two together, upon one sledge; others amused themselves with
skating, for which, however, they had not much opportunity in the winter of 1832-3. There
were frequent balls at the inns; on New Year's Eve they literally danced the whole night
through.

Agriculture is still in its infancy about New Harmony, and the people depend on the extraordinary
fertility of the soil. In the immediate vicinity of the town land is not cheap, having
already risen to fifteen dollars per acre; whereas, at the distance of two miles, there was still a
considerable quantity of Congress land, which might be had at one dollar per acre. There was a
tax of fifty cents, or half a dollar,[5] on every quarter of a square mile of land. What is called
Congress land, is frequently taken possession of, for a time, by new comers, who have no right to
it. They fell the wood, erect their huts, and nobody hinders them in their proceedings till the
lawful owner ejects them, who has purchased the land of the Government. A square mile of

Congress land was still to be had for 100 dollars; but these lands are subject to the periodical
inundations of the Wabash, when the farmers are obliged to fly with all their effects to more
elevated stations. They have then to look for their cattle in the great forests, and drive them
away; but they cannot always find all the animals, many of which perish. The fertility of the
soil is increased by these inundations. Congress land which was not exposed to inundation,
could be bought for one dollar twenty-five cents per acre. This high water is said often to present
an interesting scene. Hogs and other animals, even the opossum, have been found on low trees,
where they had sought protection.

The chief vegetable production of this part of the country is maize, which grows to the
height of twelve or thirteen feet; the ears are very large and heavy; I found some weighing
fourteen or fifteen ounces, and nearly three inches in diameter, in which I counted above 1,000
grains. They ripen in September, October, November, and December, and are often left standing
through the winter, till wanted for use. There are fifteen varieties of this important plant;
one kind, called sweet corn, is particularly good when roasted in an unripe state. It is calculated
that the best soil will yield 100 bushels of corn per acre. Very good cakes and bread are prepared
of maize flour, and there are many other ways of dressing it. When boiled with milk it is
called mush. All living creatures in this country subsist, almost exclusively, on this invaluable
production. When the whites arrived in America numerous Indian tribes subsisted on it;
quadrupeds, birds, nay, even fish, are fond of it. At the places where the flat boats, laden with
maize, land, the fish collect and assemble in great numbers, and fall an easy prey to the fishermen.
At this time the corn was sold at six and a half cents per bushel at Harmony; whereas,
on the frontiers of Canada, two dollars were paid for it. Living is, consequently, very cheap on
the banks of the Wabash. The maize is brought to market in large wagons, drawn by four oxen,
and a considerable quantity is thence sent by water carriage. Other kinds of grain—wheat, rye,
barley, and oats—which ripen in June, are likewise cultivated. Barley is grown for the brewers;
and oats, in considerable quantities, for the horses. Potatoes, too, are extensively cultivated, but
they are by no means so good and mealy as in Germany. There is a great variety of culinary
vegetables. There are abundance of apples, but not many pears, which do not thrive; peaches
are good, and very productive; quantities fall to the ground, where they are consumed by
the hogs; plums and cherries are rarely grown; the latter are not so good as in Europe, but
very fruitful. The vine was formerly cultivated, but it is now quite neglected. According to
Warden, cotton is grown at Vincennes, Princetown, and Harmony, but this does not seem to be
the case at present. This plant does not thrive beyond the 31st degree of latitude. The inhabitants
grow hemp and flax for their own consumption, and some tobacco; bad cigars are made at
Harmony, and, in general, good tobacco is rarely to be met with in the United States. Maple
sugar is manufactured in great abundance in Indiana. Warden says that, in 1810, 50,000 lbs.

were made in this State, and, at present, it was worth seven or eight cents a pound. Many of the
inhabitants obtain, in the spring, about 100 lbs. of this sugar. In this part of the country the
corn is not thrashed, but generally trodden out by horses; a very imperfect process, which
appears to have originated in the times of the ancient Hebrews, Greeks, and Romans.

Next to agriculture the breeding of cattle is an important object among the backwoodsmen;
but is likewise ill understood. The breed of swine furnishes the principal supply for food and
exportation, great quantities of pork being sent to New Orleans. Mr. Owen had established a
whisky distillery, and fattened the swine on the refuse. About 1,500 barrels of whisky, worth
ten dollars a barrel, were made every year in Mr. Owen's distillery. Great numbers of swine are
in the woods of Indiana, far from all human dwellings, where they grow very fat by the abundance
of oak and beech mast. They are of a reddish brown colour, with round black spots; there are
some quite wild, which anybody is at liberty to shoot. These animals are never housed, even in
the vicinity of Harmony. We observed them, in our excursions, in the depth of winter, when
the young ones often perish with cold; and we also saw them eaten by the mothers. Dead
swine were lying about in all directions, partly devoured by others. The negligence and want
of feeling with which the animals are treated, are very great; and, accordingly, the breed of cattle
can never flourish. The cattle, which are very fine, are kept in the open air day and night,
amidst ice and snow, with which their backs are covered; the same may be said of the horses;
nay, in cold moonlight nights, we saw these animals standing in the street, near their master's
dwelling, as if they hoped to be let in. The animals are generally fed in the morning with maize,
and a woman usually appears at an early hour, in her plaid, to milk the cows.

The cattle of this country are large and handsome, very hardy, and do not differ in figure
or colour from those of Germany; no food is given them in winter but the dry leaves of maize.
No clover or other forage is cultivated, so that the cattle and horses are confined to straw, the
bark of trees, and the green reed, miegia, which forms a thick underwood in the forests on the
Wabash. Everywhere one sees the bark and twigs gnawed, and even the fruit trees are often
damaged in this manner. Horses and cattle frequently starve to death in the winter. I was told
that the animals gnaw, in preference, the nettle-tree (Celtis occidentalis), the hackberry (Celtis
crassifolia), and the sugar maple. It is remarkable that the swine, which otherwise refuse no
species of fruit, will not touch that of the papaw tree (Asimina). All the beef in this country is
of a bad quality, because, as I have said, no forage is cultivated. In Pennsylvania it is quite the
reverse; there a great deal of clover is grown, and the beef is, consequently, good. In Indiana
pork is said to be much better and easier of digestion than to the east of the Alleghanys. We
saw but few sheep, and no goats, at Harmony. There were plenty of geese and domestic fowls,
but only a few tame ducks.

The mode of tilling the ground for the different kinds of grain, has been described by

many travellers; I will therefore merely observe that the plough is different in its construction
from that used in Germany, and that the oxen are attached to it by a very peculiar yoke, which
consists of a long, thick, crooked piece of wood, which is laid horizontally over the necks of the
two oxen, with two bows underneath, through which the heads of the animals are put. The
annexed figure will illustrate this:

[ILLUSTRATION]

My stay at New Harmony, which was at first intended to be only for a few days, was prolonged
by serious indisposition, nearly resembling cholera, to a four months' winter residence.
At any other place in this country I should have extremely regretted such a loss of time, but
here I derived much instruction and entertainment from my intercourse with two highly-informed
men, Mr. Thomas Say and Mr. Lesueur, who, during my two months' illness, gave me constant
proofs of kindness, and endeavoured to make our time pass agreeably and usefully. I received
also much kindness from other estimable families, Messrs. Owen (who were educated by Fellenberg,
in Switzerland), Mr. Maclure and his sister, and Mr. Twigg. My walks and hunting excursions
with the two naturalists were very instructive. Mr. Say's house was in a garden, where
he cultivated many interesting plants of the interior of Western America. I there saw a large
Maclura aurantiaca (Nuttall), the bow or yellow wood, or Osage orange, from the river Arkansas,
of the wood of which many Indian tribes make their bows. It is a prickly tree, with very
tough wood. There was one at St. Louis, in the garden of Mr. Pierre Chouteau, which did
not, however, flourish.[6] Dr. Pitcher had the kindness to give me some of the seeds of this tree,

which, however, have not succeeded. In Mr. Say's garden I likewise saw Euphorbia marginata,
from Arkansas, several beautiful phlox; and the Lonicera sempervirens was laden with its ripe
fruit. The Euphorbia marginata flourishes exceedingly well at Bonn, where it was raised from
seeds which I brought.

Mr. Say's zoological collection was confined to insects and shells. He was less anxious to
possess a complete collection, than to have a good library, which, thanks to Mr. Maclure, he
really possessed, and new insects and shells were sent to him from all parts of the United States,
which he immediately described. He had a very extensive correspondence, even with Europe,
and received many conchylia, which he used and compared for his work on American conchology.
This work was entirely got up here in Harmony, for Mrs. Say drew and coloured the figures very
faithfully after nature, which were engraved by an artist, engaged by Mr. Maclure; the text also
was printed there. Mr. Say's entomological collection was continually damaged by the rapacious
insects, which are much more dangerous and destructive here than in Europe. The most fatal
to the zoological collections, in this country, besides the common European moth (Phalæna
sarcitella), are the Dermestes lardarius, Anthrinus muscorum, Dermestes vulpinus, Necrobia violetia,
Acarus destructor, and several others, among which there are some brought from Europe.

Mr. Lesueur's labours were chiefly in the higher orders of the animal kingdom; he had
explored the country in many directions, was acquainted with everything remarkable, collected and
prepared all interesting objects, and had already sent considerable collections to France. He was
a skilful draughtsman, and his portfolios of drawings, made during his voyage round the world, and
in his residence in America, afforded us much gratification during the winter. He had paid great
attention to the fishes of the Wabash, Ohio, and Mississippi, for which his frequent visits to New
Orleans had given him the best opportunity. His friend Barrabino, who died prematurely in that
city, and took much interest in the sciences, had been of great assistance to him. It would be a
pity if the interesting labours of Mr. Lesueur, in natural history, were not communicated to the
learned world during his lifetime.

I shall always retain a most pleasing recollection of the excursions which we made in the
neighbourhood of Harmony, with Mr. Say, and to greater distances, with Mr. Lesueur. One of
the most agreeable was when we sailed down the Wabash, and landed in its wooded islands.
Immediately on the west of the river, is Fox Island, a large thickly wooded tract, between the
Wabash and Fox River. We generally left Harmony by water, in bright, sunny weather. The
Wabash divides into several arms, forming beautiful romantic islands, covered with tall forests,
partly surrounded by quantities of drift wood. The water of the river is clear and dark green,
and the bottom, which is plainly seen, is covered with large bivalve shells (Unio), as well as with
several kinds of snails. High trees uniformly clothe the shore, and colossal, wide-spreading
planes rise above the dense forests. In some places there are sand-banks, where shells are

found in abundance, and where the track of the racoon and the mink, which come here in the night
to seek their food, are imprinted in all directions on the wet ground. Under the old roots of
trees on the bank, which is from ten to twenty feet high, we saw the burrows of the minks, into
which it had taken a quantity of shells. The common people here think that this is done by the
musk-rat, which is certainly a mistake. The musk-rat lives on vegetables, and it is only the small
beasts of prey that live on shell-fish. There were various species of ducks, which rose in flocks
before us, and flew rapidly to the undisturbed parts of the banks. Besides the common wild duck,
which was the most numerous, there were the beautiful wood duck, the blue-winged teal, and the
pintail duck, or sea-pheasant. After proceeding about three quarters of an hour, we usually landed
on Fox Island, on the right bank, fastened our boat to the trunk of a large fallen tree, and then went
up the steep bank into a thick, lofty forest, where the high reeds were intersected with small, narrow
paths, made by the horses and cattle of the neighbouring farmers. From our several landing
places, we had to proceed only about 100 steps across the island to the Fox River, which runs here,
for a pretty considerable distance, parallel to the Wabash, and joins it below Fox Island. (See Mr.
Bodmer's view of this junction, Plate V.) The stream is highly picturesque, with romantic banks,
large uprooted trees, colossal planes, magnificent oaks, hickory, shellbark hickory, &c. Here grows
the lofty gymnocladus, with its large, broad pods, and the beautiful catalpa. Bignonia radicans and
cruciata wind round the trunks, as well as thick, clustering vines (Hedera quinquefolia) and the
poison vine. Vast quantities of fallen trees lay in the water, and, when it was low, often formed
a kind of bridge. The trunks of the plane are very remarkable; they are often so thick that five
or six men cannot span them. When of this size they are generally hollow. These trees are
suffered to grow so old, because they yield but indifferent timber. Twenty or thirty feet from
the ground, the trunk usually divides into several thick branches, which rise to a very great height;
they have a bark of dazzling whiteness, which forms a singular contrast with the brown forests,
when leafless and bare in winter. This tree never attains such a thickness and height in Europe,
and hence the white colour of the branches is wanting. The quiet, lonely Fox River is covered,
during the whole day, with numerous ducks. Whenever we approached cautiously through the
reeds, and over the dry leaves, scattered on the ground, we could immediately fire at them.
The kingfisher (Alcedo alcyon), is constantly seen here, and many species of birds, particularly the
blue-crested roller (Garrulus cristatus), came to the water to drink. Unluckily we had no
European hounds, which would have been of great service to us, and thus, from want of them, we
often lost the ducks we had shot. The turkey buzzards were seen hovering in the air, and,
after wet weather, were often observed sitting in the sunshine, with outspread wings, on the
highest trees. If we shot a bird, and did not immediately pick it up, it was sure to be devoured
by these ravenous creatures. If the buzzards were driven away, the cunning crows supplied
their place. The whole air was soon filled with these buzzards, hovering round and round,
while numbers of others sat together on the high trees. If we shot at them when flying, they
immediately vomited; this I likewise observed in Brazil. We found here some heads of the
paddle-fish, which lives in the stream. If we left the banks of the rivers, and advanced far
into the forests, we had often to clamber over fallen trunks of trees, covered with moss, and
to penetrate through matted reeds, where we heard the voice of the grey squirrel, and the hammering
of the numerous woodpeckers. Among the entangled climbing plants, we often saw,
throughout the whole winter, the beautiful cardinal, or red-bird; finches of various kinds;
and on the decayed trees, on the ground, some kinds of Troglodytes. Towards the end of autumn,
and early in warm days in February, nay, even in December and January, we often saw in Fox
River, on stones, and old submersed trunks of trees, large tortoises basking in the sun, which we
sometimes shot at with our fowling-pieces, but we seldom got them. They are very shy, and
plunge into the water as soon as any one approaches.

Towards noon the scattered sportsmen usually re-assembled, with their booty, round a
cheerful fire, under ancient plane trees, on the bank of Fox River. Our frugal repast, which we
had brought with us, was seasoned by the exercise in the open air, in the fine forests of Indiana and
Illinois. Tortoises, shell-fish, birds, &c., were deposited in our boat. Mr. Lesueur frequently
accompanied us in these excursions. Once, on the 7th of March, he found, on Fox Island, a
couple of marmots above ground, one of which ran into its burrow, while the other sought refuge
on a low tree, where, however, it was shot. We then dug for the other, in hopes of finding it,
but the burrow went so far and deep into the ground, that we were forced to give it up. This
circumstance may serve as a proof that the animals which sleep throughout the winter make their
appearance about this time.

In our excursions we often visited some others of the numerous islands in the Wabash,
being particularly attracted thither by the loud cries of the wild turkey; their voice is exactly
similar to that of the European turkey. We could hear them scratching among the dry leaves on
the ground, in search of food. If we surprised them, they were generally too far off for our fowling-pieces,
loaded with small shot, for they ran away with extraordinary rapidity. Turkey Island
seemed to be a favourite place of resort. At the upper end of the island drifted wood was frequently
piled up to such a height, that it was difficult to clamber over it, and among this wood
there were generally many otters. Here we often found wild turkeys, and even the Virginian
deer; and it is really a fine sight to see a flock of these wild turkeys fly across the river, or a
swarm of wild geese, with loud screams, swim down the stream. The grey eagle was often seen
sitting on the lofty plane trees, on the bank; and the white-headed eagle hovered in the air, at a
great height.

On another hunting excursion, up the Wabash, we proceeded as far as Black River, a stream
which falls into the Wabash, three miles from Harmony. On the 5th of January, at eight

o'clock in the morning, the mercury in Reaumur's thermometer was twelve and a half degrees
above freezing point, and the fish leaped above the surface of the water as in summer. Near
some small log-houses the people were employed in felling the high trees, and our boatmen
observed that those new settlers had taken possession of this Congress land without any right
to do so. Such irregularities are very frequent here; thus, for instance, they cut down large trees
on Mr. Maclure's property for making their flat boats, and yet nobody calls them to account.
These are the backwoodsmen of Illinois and Indiana. On the high banks of the river we observed
in the forest a mink-trap. It nearly resembles, in miniature, the great bear-trap; is covered on
all sides with brushwood, so that the animal can enter only at a certain place. The Black River,
which, in some parts, is wide and expanded, was now rather narrow and shallow, the water of a pure
green colour. The bottom consists chiefly of sand or clay; it is contracted at the mouth, where a
quantity of sand has accumulated, and where poplars and lofty planes grow; colossal vines wound
round their trunks, of which we cut off one that was very thick, as a specimen. While our boatmen
were engaged in this work, and in looking for shell-fish, we advanced several miles up the stream,
where we met with frequent obstacles in the forest. The large dry leaves of the planes made
such a rustling, that we could seldom get near the ducks, numbers of which were swimming on the
stream. I collected on the bank the beautiful orange-coloured seeds of the Celastrus scandens, and
several others. We generally returned home with ducks and other birds, but we were unsuccessful
in our chase of the wild turkeys, of which we sometimes saw whole flocks fly across the
Wabash. Many an hour we passed in these forests, watching for ducks and birds of prey;
where, while we stood concealed in a hollow plane, the small birds sometimes flew almost into
the face of the sportsman, or settled on his gun.

In order to explore the forests of Harmony, in the southern direction, Mr. Say took
me to a neighbouring estate of Mr. Maclure, on Rush Creek, through a romantic, lofty
forest, where very fine tulip trees, with thick and high trunks, as straight as a ship's
mast, and very rough bark, were growing. This tall, splendid tree bears its fine large
flowers only at the very summit. The wood is of a greenish pale yellow colour, and is used by
cabinet makers. The red-headed woodpecker was almost the only bird that was seen here. The
whole track consists of steep hills, separated by small valleys, on which we particularly observed
the ancient tumuli of the aboriginal inhabitants of these forests. Passing through a valley we
came to Rush Creek, which we crossed by a very ruinous bridge of branches of trees, to the
opposite bank, where Hydrangea arborescens grew. Several species of maple grow here, which have
certainly not been properly distinguished and classed. Their trunks, covered with rough bark, are
often not to be spanned by three men, and they grow perfectly straight. Near the junction of
the Rush Creek and the Wabash, we came to the small log-house of a tenant of Mr. Maclure,
where the woman was engaged in domestic employments, while the children were picking bones,

probably of wild turkeys, with which they ate maize bread. In front of the house lay large blocks
of catalpa wood, which, when fresh cut, is of a brownish yellow colour, and emits a peculiar smell.
We were told of a stream in the neighbourhood, the water of which was said to have killed many
persons. We visited this dangerous water, which is very cold, but does not appear to have any
peculiar ingredients. One of our party, who had often drunk of it, without injury, affirmed
that those men had not been killed by the water, but by whisky; probably, however, death
was caused by drinking this excessively cold water when they were overheated.

In a dense forest, some miles to the north-west of Harmony, was a narrow pond, or, rather,
long, broad ditch, called Long Pond, which, at certain seasons of the year, is connected with Fox
River, to which we sometimes made excursions. Beyond the Wabash, in this direction, the forest
has a sandy soil, which, however, is soon succeeded by a rich clay. A man well acquainted with
the country was our conductor; we were obliged to force our way through the closely-matted
reeds, where there was no path, and our clothes were completely torn by them. On all sides we
heard the bells of the oxen and horses, and our guide easily found his own beasts, which knew his
voice. He had wished me to take a compass, which was not done, and we, in fact, twice lost our
way, in consequence; for it is not easy to discover one's latitude in such thick, bewildering reed
forests. Woodpeckers and squirrels were the usual fruits of our excursions in this wilderness.
After passing a couple of isolated habitations, we came to a hollow in the forest, about a mile long,
and full of water. This was the Long Pond, in which many varieties of water plants were growing.

Our guide had taken a hatchet and a basket, in order to dig up the roots of a yellow-flowering
Nymphæa,[7] which was growing in luxuriance, and which he intended to employ as a poultice to
a swelled face. The surface of the water was covered with an elegant plant, Azolla Caroliniana
(Wild), which formed mossy verdant spots, and is here found on all standing water. The cardinal
and the blue-crested roller frequented this place; and near a field of maize, in the forest, I saw
large flocks of parrots, of which we often shot many with great ease. They were not shy, and
soon re-assembled after our shot had dispersed them. Their manner and note much resembled
those of the long-tailed paroquet of Brazil. With a shrill cry they flew rapidly from tree to tree,
when their beautiful bright green colour was seen to great advantage. Mr. Bodmer has given
a very faithful representation of one of these flocks in Plate V. They eat the fruit of the planes;
and if we did not disturb them, they sat in a row, close together, to warm themselves in the faint
beams of the January sun. We sometimes found a great number of turkey buzzards collected
about the carcass of a dead animal; some sitting crowded on the high trees, others hovering in
the air; but it was not easy to get at them. We occasionally met with horses, which, in these

wildernesses, familiarly approach those who happen to pass, in the hope of receiving salt from
them. On our return home we were often gratified with the view of a splendid fiery evening sky
on the Wabash; the lofty crowns of the forest trees appeared to burn, while the snow-white
stems of the tall planes assumed a roseate tint, and reflected their beauty in the smooth surface
of the water.

The winter which we passed at Harmony was, on the whole, mild. Woodpeckers, pigeons,
thrushes, the great lark, the cardinal, the blue-bird, and many others, were seen in the orchards
during the whole winter. The coveys of partridges lay in the fields of maize, or the thorn
hedges, sheltered and protected from the cold. There were often very warm days in the middle of
winter. On such a day, the 31st of January, I found, at noon, the thermometer being + 5° R.,
at the foot of a thick plane tree, a great number of the red and black spotted lady-bird, which
were half frozen. Tortoises were seen, on warm days, during the whole winter. In the middle
of February, a great number of the white maple, called also the soft or swamp maple, were in
blossom in the forests; and, towards the end of that month, the song of many birds resounded
through the woods and orchards. Flights of cranes passed over. The Arabis bulbosa (Mühlenb.)
blossomed, as well as the hazel, yet there were still some cold days. The Americans have a proverb—"When
winter comes in like a lion, it goes out like a lamb," and vice versâ. This winter,
however, the cold had not set in early. At the beginning of March we had frost. On the 2nd
of March, at eight in the morning, Reaumur's thermometer was at — 16°; and at twelve o'clock at
noon, — 9°. Small pieces of water were frozen over; the ducks, especially the pintail ducks, which
were now constantly disturbed in the Wabash, by the navigation and by the sportsman, sought
for small pieces of open water; and when they were driven from these, repaired to the woods or
the maize fields. The blackbird and the robin sought their scanty food on the banks of the
brooks. Many species of animals were, however, in motion at the beginning of March. Numbers
of tortoises appeared; the note of the owl was heard in the forests, even in the daytime; the
wood-snipe fluttered about, and the young leaves of the sambucus, and the flowers of the corylus,
gave an enlivening appearance to the forest. The voice of the turtle-dove was heard as early
as the 8th of February; insects buzzed about; flocks of migratory pigeons flew towards the north
and east; and on the 9th, the first steam-boat went up the Wabash.

We had satisfactory accounts of the sanitary state of the southern and western parts of the
United States. At Cincinnati the violence of the cholera had abated at the commencement of
the Indian summer; on the Ohio it had generally ceased; and St. Louis, by the latest reports,
was perfectly healthy. Mr. Bodmer, who had made an excursion to New Orleans, in December
and January, found the cholera still there, but it had greatly abated; and I therefore resolved to
make preparations for proceeding on our journey, as soon as our collections were packed up and
sent off.