Part 5

I will now relate a few of the monsters that plagued them: The first enemy that appeared to question their power or disturb their peace was the fearful phenomenon of Ko-nea-rah-yah-neh, or the flying heads. The heads were enveloped in beard and hair, flaming like fire; they were of monstrous size, and shot through the air with the speed of meteors. Human power was not adequate to cope with them. The priests pronounced them a flowing power of some mysterious influence, and it remained with the priests alone to expel them by their magic power.

Drum and rattle and enchantments were deemed more effective than arrows or clubs. One evening, after they had been plagued a long time with fearful visitations, the flying head came to the door of a lodge occupied by a single female and her dog. She was sitting composedly before the fire roasting acorns, which, as they became cooked, she deliberately took from the fire and ate. Amazement seized the flying head, who put out two huge black paws from under his streaming beard. Supposing the woman to be eating live coals he withdrew, and from that time he came no more among them.

And they were also invaded by a still more fearful enemy, the Ot-nea-yar- heh, or Stonish Giants. They were a powerful tribe from the wilderness, tall, fierce and hostile, and resistance to them was vain. They defeated and overwhelmed an army which was sent out against them, and put the whole country in fear. These giants were not only of great strength, but they were cannibals, devouring men, women and children in their inroads.

It is said by the Shawnees that these giants were descended from a certain family which was journeying on the east side of the Mississippi. After some of them had crossed the river on a vine it broke, which left the main body on the east bank of the river. Those who were on the west side of the river went toward the northwest. Being abandoned in their wanderings, and being vagrants, without any knowledge of the arts of life, they forgot the rules of humanity. They at first began to eat their game in the raw flesh, which led them finally to become cannibals, and they practiced to roll themselves in the sand, which caused their bodies to be covered with a hard skin, so that the arrows of the Tuscaroras only rattled against their rough bodies and fell at their feet. And the consequence was, that they were obliged to bide in caves and glens, and were brought into subjection by those fierce invaders for many winters. At length the Holder of the Heavens visited his people, and finding that they were in great distress, he determined to relieve them of these barbarous invaders. To accomplish this he changed himself as into one of those giants. As you will remember, it is said that he was able to change himself into any shape that he wished. He then joined himself with the invaders, and brandishing his heavy war club, led them on under the pretence of finding the other five nations, which they were also in the habit of visiting. When they came near to the strong fort at Onondaga, they being weary of the long journey, and the night being dark, their leader bade them lie down at the foot of a mountain until the customary time to make the attack, which was at the break of day. But during the night the Indian benefactor ascended the height and overwhelmed the slumberers below with a vast mass of rocks. At this catastrophe only one escaped to carry the news of their dreadful fate, and he fled toward the north.

The Tuscaroras and the other five nations were so much troubled with giants and other monsters that they were obliged to build forts to protect themselves. The way they built them was always by selecting an eminence, or rocky cliff, and on the back part was dug a trench according to the plan of the fort. Then timbers were set in the trench upright, projecting above the ground several feet, and being adjusted together as close as possible, and the trench being filled in again. They had two gates, one way to get their water, the other for a sally port.

They were also molested by a terrific animal which they called Ro-qua-ho --a variegated lizzard--a swift runner and strikes very violent blows with its tail, which destroyed many hunters while lying in lurk for them. One day while a party of hunters were on their journey to camp-out for the purpose of hunting, the party consisting of four, they came to a very large hollow tree where they noticed quite a number of great marks of claws on the bark of the tree. Supposing it to be the lodge of bears, they laid their bundles down and made ready for their game. One of them bounded on the tree and climbed it, and he struck the trunk of the tree several times. When the supposed bear appeared, to their consternation it was found to be the enemy they so much dreaded, the Ro-qua-ho. The person on the tree only stepped behind it and the other three ran away for their lives. The Ro-qua-ho came down and pursued them, and while yet in sight one was caught, killed and brought back, and he carried the body into the tree. Then he went after the second which was brought in a short time, after which, he went for the third; then the one on the tree came down and ran away also. While on his way he heard a voice calling him; he stopped, and behold, a man of stately form, with long flowing hair stood and said, "Why run? I have seen the distress of my people, I have come to deliver them out of trouble; now confide in me and we will prevail. I am your benefactor, Tarenyawagon. Get behind me, the enemy is approaching."

In the twinkling of an eye this Celestial being was changed, and assumed himself into a great white bear. When the Roquaho came a great struggle ensued, but with the help of the man the enemy was killed.

They were again molested by an extraordinary and ferocious animal in various places--a mammoth bear. One morning while a party of hunters were in their camp, they were alarmed by a great tumult breaking out from the forest. Upon going to ascertain the cause of this extraordinary noise, they saw the great monster on the bank pawing and rolling stones and logs in every direction, exhibiting the utmost rage. Another great animal of the cat kind appeared, and seized the bear and a dreadful fight ensued. In the end the bear got the worst of it and retired horribly mangled, and never was heard of afterwards.

After a while a pestiferous and annoying creature of the insect kind appeared in the guise of the Ro-tay-yo (a huge mosquito). It first appeared among the Tuscaroras along the Neuse river. It flew about with vast wings, making a loud noise, with a long stinger; and on whomsoever it lighted it sucked out all the blood and killed them. Many warriors were destroyed in this way, and all attempts made to subdue it were vain; but at length it retired of itself. Next they heard that it appeared about the fort at Onondaga, where it also destroyed many lives, until Tarenyawagon made a visit to the ruler of the Onondagas. The great mosquito happened to come flying about the fort as usual at that time. Tarenyawago immediately made his attack, but such was the rapidity of its flight, that he could scarcely keep in sight of it. He chased it around the borders of the great lakes, towards the sun-setting, and around the great country at large, east and west. At last he overtook it, and took his strong bow and sent an arrow which struck him through the heart and killed him, near Gen-an-do-a (the salt lake of Onondaga). From the blood flowing out on this occasion were the present species of small mosquito originated.

I have now related a few of the tragedies of the dark recesses of the forest, from the many that our tradition relates.

There was also a little old man of singular appearance that frequented among them at their ball plays, and did not seem to be inclined to make acquaintance with any one, but kept by himself and appeared to be mild and humble. At length this man became very sick with putrefying sores from head to foot and was very loathesome. Nobody knew who he was or where he came from: he had no home; he gave his name as Qua-ra, or Rabbit: he went from house to house of all the different clans or tribes in the nation, as for instance, the Eel, Snipe, Beaver, Turtle, Wolf, Deer. When he would approach the house, seemingly to go in, they would loathe him to enter, and when he came to the doorstep he would seem to hear their thoughts and then return; thus he was repulsed from all the houses of the above clans, he finally came to the house of the Bear clan. When the mistress of the house observed him coming, she had pity on him, and presently prepared a bed for him with the best deerskins she had; when he came to the door he knew her hospitable heart and went in. She immediately assured him of his welcome in her meanly hut, and that she was ready to do everything in her power to relieve his distress, and appointed his lodge where he had laid himself nearly exhausted. He then told her to go and get the root of a certain kind of plant, which she immediately did and prepared according to his direction, which he took and readily recovered. He then went through a series of diseases, directing her as before to get the different kind of medicines for the different diseases. Lastly, he became sick with that fatal disease, consumption. This he said was incurable, and he must die. He then told her he was a messenger from Tarenyawagon, to show them the diseases that they should be subjected to, and also the medicine to cure them. And also to tell them the predictions of their fate and doom. Said he could not withhold the water from his eyes, or keep from quaking when he thought of their irrevocable doom to which they were destined, and said: "There is a habitation beyond these great waters towards the sun-rising, which are inhabited by beings of very pale faces, and are looking only to themselves, have pity for nobody, and make their delight in doing mischief. They have killed Rah-wah-ne-yo (God); they mocked him and done all manner of bad things to him, and finally, they fastened him to a tree until he died. But death and the grave had not power to hold him. He arose and lives again, and he has gone to the world above, in those happy hunting grounds where all good O-qua-ho-wa (Indians), will go when they die, and will see him as he is.

"Now this class of pale-faces will come across the great waters and make their abode on this island, and will bring poison to give you to drink, which will poison the spirit and kill the body. They will kill your husbands, brothers and sons, and drive you away to the sun-setting, and will deprive the children that are coming behind, off their domain. They will drive you until you are in the great salt water up to your waist. Oh, hostess, this is the final doom of your great nation.

"And now as for you, Oh, mother, I have no words that I can utter, to express the sincere gratitude of my inmost soul. I have nothing to give to compensate you for all the tenderness you have given me. But my blessings I will leave with you. I place in the midst of your clan, the Bear, a majestic pine tree, which is ever green, and as the top reaches above all other trees, so will your clan be. Wherever the nation will be driven to, your clan will multiply above all others, and be the ruler of the nation. This is all I have to deliver unto you. I now commend myself to that Great Spirit that has made us all, who ruleth above."

Thus ended the last messenger of Tarenyawagon, who is now basking in the pleasures of that hunting ground in the world above.

TUSCARORA.

Before the discovery, by Columbus, the Tuscaroras consisted of six towns, and they were a powerful nation, numbering over twelve hundred warriors, which, at a ratio according to the rule of estimating, would bring them at about five or six thousand souls.

The Tuscaroras had many years of enjoyment and peaceful possession of their domain, consisting of six towns on the Roanoke, Neuse, Taw and Pemlico rivers, in the State of North Carolina. And they were also confederated to six other nations, which were the Corees, Mattamuskeets, Notaways and the Bear River Indians; the names of the other two nations I have been unable to obtain. My readers will readily see why some writers have it that they consisted in twelve towns, and other writers would have it that they consisted in six towns. The real Tuscaroras consisted in six towns; but with the confederate nations, altogether, were known to be in twelve towns, and all these different nations which composed the confederacy went under the name of Tuscarora, the Tuscaroras being the most powerful of the several nations.

The tradition of the Tuscaroras admits of having captured Lawson and his party, and executed some of them to death on account of their encroachments upon their domain; but concerning the massacre of Oct. 2d, 1711, the Tuscaroras emphatically deny having taken any part in the affair whatever, officially. The project was presented to them and in the council of the sachems, chiefs and warriors, they emphatically declined taking any part in such a movement, but said if the colonists made encroachments and trespass on their domain, it is no more than right and just that we defend our rights, and even cautioned their young men that they should not take any part whatever in the action; but, nevertheless, there were a few of the rash and reckless warriors that took part in the disorder.

The Corees, Mattamuskeets, and Bear River Indians seemed to be the instigators of the project: but there were several other nations that took part in the massacre. These three nations being considered Tuscaroras, on account of the confederacy, and the capture of Lawson and his party a little previous to this time by the Tuscaroras, led the colonists to conclude that it was the Tuscaroras who caused the disaster, and to them was directed the feud of the colonists.

A little previous to these disorders, it seems that there were some white men, as our tradition states, with long coats and wide brimmed hats, visited several nations of the Indians in that neighborhood, and appeared to be very friendly toward them, wished them success in everything, and told them that those settlers who were on the borders of their lands and constantly encroaching and committing depredations upon the Indians, were not of the government, but were merely squatters, who settled there of their own accord, and if they were cut off, there would be none to avenge them, and were advised to do so.

It has always been a question in my mind who those white men were, to give such rash advice. Were they Quakers? But what motive had they in advising, from which so great a disaster was the result? Or, were they men in disguise, from the county of Bath, in which the massacre was committed, to make the Indians believe that they were Quakers, as the two counties were in arms against each other at that time.

To coroborate the tradition above, I would call your attention to part of a letter from President Pollock to Lord Craven, in the year 1712, who attributes the calamity thus:

"Our divisions," says he, "chiefly occasioned by the Quakers and some other ill-disposed persons, have been the cause of all the troubles, for the Indians were informed by some of the traders that the people who lived here are only a few vagabonds, who had run away from other governments and settled here of their own accord, without any authority, so that if they were cut off, there would be none to revenge them. This with their seeing our differences rise to such a heighth, that consisting of two counties only, were in arms one against the other, encouraged them to fall upon the county of Bath, expecting it would have no assistance from this nor any other of the English plantations. This is the chief cause that moved the Indians to rise against us, as far as I understand."

The Tuscaroras never had the inclination of cutting off the inhabitance of the pale faces. Nevertheless, they did not always remain idle or unconcerned spectators of the feuds and dissensions that so long prevailed among the white people, toward the red men. The successive and regular encroachments, on their hunting grounds and plantations, which the increase of the European population occasioned, had not always been submitted to without murmur.

Although they were pleased with the neighbors, from whom they had trade for their furs, and could procure spirituous liquors and other articles, which tended to the gratification of their real or imaginary wants. And they were required to surrender larger and larger portions of their domain, and at last, the removal of families from the neighborhood of their long cherished memories of the graves of their ancestors, to the more distant and less valuable tracts of land. Other causes of animosity and ill-will were not wanting. Their hunters were shot down like so many beasts, at the edge of the settlement, killed in their wigwams, their young females' chastity violated, and many other things might be related, which their tradition shows. But I have neither heart nor inclination to bring to a resurrection the long gone-by memories of our forefathers. I would that all were cast into oblivion, where might not be found neither trace nor track; but rather that the chain of friendship which has existed for more than a century between the Tuscaroras and the United States Government may be made brighter and brighter as time rolls on.

I have said that the Tuscaroras never had the inclination of cutting off the first colonies, and if that were their desire, how readily would they have excepted the advice of President Thomas Carey, through one of his counsel--Edward Porter--in the year 1710, of which you will find in Martin's History of North Carolina a difficulty between Gov. Hyde and the above, to-wit: "Before any relief could be sent he attempted the landing of some of his men under fire of his brig, but they were repulsed by the militia of the neighborhood, which Gov. Hyde had time to collect. They returned on board, and their Chief sought a safe retreat in the swamps of the Tar river, where he raised his standard and endeavored to bring the Tuscarora Indians into an alliance. For this purpose he dispatched to them Edward Porter, one of his counsel, who endeavored by promises of great rewards to induce them to cut off all the inhabitants of that part of the province who adhered to Gov. Hyde. This was acceded to by some of his young warriors, but when the matter was debated in council the old men dissuaded them from listening to Porter."

Now, did not some of Carey's men go afterwards to some of the neighboring Indian nations and induced them, in the year 1710, to commit the massacre?

I suppose to the critical reader, and to the people generally, my writing will appear to them fictitious, because of their first impression, which has been taught them by many historians. Historians generally have given only one side of the story, and have avoided, as much as possible, to give the history of the wrongs done to the Tuscaroras, but they are very scrupulous to preserve the history of the capture of Lawson, his execution and of the massacre, which they allege to have been committed by the Tuscaroras, and are styled by many as being inimical, haughty, jealous, warlike bloodhounds, bloodthirsty and scarcely to be human. These are the first impressions made by the historians upon the mind of the world. I suppose, for the purpose of getting a general verdict, that it was right; that they were crushed as a nation, their domain snatched from them, driven into the cold world, and not a word has been written by historians, or the Tuscaroras themselves, to vindicate their cause.

But with all the great tide of prejudiced feelings towards the Tuscaroras, I have ventured to write their history as I have received it, and think it to be true.

After the massacre, and the Tuscaroras heard it reported that they were charged with being the author of the disaster, they immediately sent messengers and denied the charge of having officially taken any part in the disorder, but acknowledged that a few of the reckless and lawless warriors did take part against their admonitions, but they were willing to make all the restoration that was in their power to do, and would fight for them if necessary. At different times they petitioned, remonstrated and supplicated for peace, which was slighted and disregarded, and only produced more violence and insult.

Notice what Governor Spotswood, of Virginia, said concerning the Tuscaroras, to wit:

"On the first of the disaster I sent a detachment of the militia to the tributary Indians of this province to prevent them from joining in the war, and understanding that the Indians in some of the Tuscarora towns had refused to march against the whites, sent a messenger to invite them, with the rest of the friendly tribes, to a conference at the Nottoway line, on the southern border of Virginia, where he met them on the 7th of November."

"The Governor, after entering into some conversation with the Chiefs, had the pleasure of finding the report which his messengers had made, from their observations while in the Tuscarora towns, that they were very desirous of continuing in peace, and were greatly concerned that any of their nation should have joined in the massacre."

The Chiefs, after accounting for the delay that occurred, expressed the desire of the Indians of their towns to continue in strict friendship with the whites, and assist them in chastising the authors of the late disorder.

"But now an unfortunate difference arose between the Governor and the burgesses, the latter insisting on the passage of a bill for raising an army in Virginia, without trusting to the sincerity of the profession of the Tuscarora Chiefs. The Governor refusing to accede to this proposition, and declining to co-operate in their plans, the dispute ended by a dissolution of the assembly."

There was at one time a treaty of peace concluded between the Sachems and Chiefs of the Tuscaroras and Governor Spotswood, of Virginia, and one of the conditions of the treaty was to help in chastising the authors of the late massacre. In conformity with this pledge the Tuscaroras made an attack on the Mattamuskeets, where they obtained thirty scalps and presented them to the authorities of the whites, of which they pretended to be pleased. I don't doubt but that they were really pleased, but not with any good feelings towards the Tuscaroras. I suppose the object was to get all the other Indian nations alienated from them, so that in due time they might be easily conquered, because they were the nation that the whites seemed bent on destroying. The Tuscaroras had faith in the treaty, but only to disappoint them in the thought of having the dark cloud which hung so glowingly over them taken away. It is said by historians that the Tuscaroras disregarded the treaty and began hostilities. But I will relate a tradition, handed down from generation to generation, which is as follows, to wit: