Chapter XXII: Appendix (6)

In the course of the conference at this place, I obtained the particulars of a dispute which had arisen between the Chippewas of this quarter, which now added to their alarm, as they feared the latter would act in coincidence with their ancient enemies, the Sioux. The reports of this disturbance had reached me at the Sault, and they continued, with some variations, until my arrival here. The following are the material facts in relation to this new cause of disquietude: In the summer of 1827, Okunzhewug, an old woman, the wife of Kishkemun, the principal chief of Torch Lake, a man superannuated and blind; attended the treaty of Butte des Morts, bearing her husband’s medal. She was treated with the respect due to the character she represented, and ample presents were directed to be given to her; among other things a handsome hat. The latter article had been requested of her by a young Menomonie, and refused. It is thought a general feeling of jealousy was excited by her good reception. A number of the Menomonies went on her return route as far as the Clover Portage, where she was last seen. Having never returned to her village, the Chippewas attributed her death to the Menomonies. Her husband died soon after; but she had numerous and influential relatives to avenge her real or supposed murder. This is the account delivered by the Chippewas, and it is corroborated by reports from the traders of that section of the country. Her singular disappearance and secret death at the Clover Portage, is undisputed; and whether caused or not by any agency of the Menomonies, the belief of such agency, and that of the most direct kind, is fixed in the minds of the Chippewas, and has furnished the basis of their subsequent acts in relation to the Menomonie hunting-parties who have visited the lower part of Chippewa River. Two women belonging to one of these parties were killed by a Chippewa war-party traversing that part of the country the ensuing year. The act was disclaimed by them as not being intentional, and it was declared they supposed the women to be Sioux.[35] On a close inquiry, however, I found the persons who committed this act were relatives of Okunzewug, which renders it probable that the murder was intentionally perpetrated. This act further widened the breach between the two hitherto fraternal tribes; and the Chippewas of this quarter began to regard the Menomonie hunting-parties, who entered the mouth of the Chippewa River, as intruders on their lands. Among a people whose means of verbal information is speedy, and whose natural sense of right and wrong is acute, the more than usual friendship and apparent alliance which have taken place between the Menomonies and Sioux, in the contest between the Sacs and Foxes, and the murder by them jointly of the Fox chief White Skin and his companions at a smoking council, in 1830, have operated to increase the feeling of distrust; so much so, that it was openly reported at Chegoimegon, at Yellow River, and Ottowa Lake, that the Menomonies had formed a league with the Sioux against the Chippewas also, and they were fearful of an attack from them. A circumstance that had given point to this fear, and made it a subject of absorbing interest, when I arrived at Ottowa Lake, was the recent murder of a Menomonie chief by a Chippewa of that quarter, and the demand of satisfaction which had been made (it was sometimes said) by the Indian agent at Prairie du Chien, and sometimes by the commanding officer, with a threat to march troops into the country. This demand, I afterward learned from the Indians at Rice Lake, and from a conversation with General Street, the agent at Prairie du Chien, had not been made, either by himself or by the commanding officer; and the report had probably arisen from a conversation held by a subaltern officer in command of a wood or timber-party near the mouth of the Chippewa River, with some Chippewas who were casually met. Its effects, however, were to alarm them, and to lead them to desire a reconciliation with the Menomonies. I requested them to lose no time in sending tobacco to the Menomonies, and adjusting this difference. Mozojeed observed that the murder of the Menomonie had been committed by a person _non compos_, and he deplored the folly of it, and disclaimed all agency in it for himself and his band. The murderer, I believe, belonged to his band; he desired a reconciliation. He also said the measures adopted at Yellow River, to bring about a firm peace with the Sioux, had his fullest approbation, and that nothing on his part should be wanting to promote a result in every view so wise and so advantageous to the Indians. In this sentiment, Wabezhais and Odabossa, who made distinct speeches, also concurred. They confirmed their words by pipes, and all the assembly made an audible assent. I invested Mozojeed with a flag and a medal, that he might exert the influence he has acquired among the Indians beneficially for them and for us, and that his hands might thus be officially strengthened to accomplish the work of pacification. I then distributed presents to the chiefs, warriors, women, and children, in the order of their being seated, and immediately embarked, leaving them under a lively and enlivened sense of the good-will and friendship of the American government, on this first official visit to them, and with a sincere disposition, so far as could be judged, to act in obedience to its expressed and known wishes.

The Indians at Torch Lake being dispersed, and my message to them not having been delivered, from this uncertainty of their location, I should have found reasons for not proceeding in that direction, independent of the actual and known difficulties of the route at that time. I was still apprehensive that my appearance had not wholly disconcerted the war-party of Neenaba, and lost no time in proceeding to his village on the Red Cedar fork. We found the village at Lake Chetac, which in 1824 was 217 strong, almost totally deserted, and the trading-house burnt. Scattering Indians were found along the river. The mutual fear of interruption was such that Mr. B. Cadotte, sen., the trader at Ottowa Lake, thought it advisable to follow in our train for the purpose of collecting his credits at Rice Lake.

While at breakfast on the banks of Sapin Lake, a returning war-party entered the opposite side of it: they were evidently surprised, and they stopped. After reconnoitring us, they were encouraged to advance, at first warily, and afterward with confidence. There were eight canoes, with two men in each; each man had a gun, war-club, knife, and ammunition bag: there was nothing else except the apparatus for managing the canoe. They were all young men, and belonged to the vicinity of Ottowa Lake. Their unexpected appearance at this place gave me the first information that the war-party at Neenaba had been broken up. They reported that some of their number had been near the mill, and that they had discovered signs of the Sioux being out in the moose having been driven up, &c. In a short conference, I recited to them the purpose of the council at Ottowa Lake, and referred them to their chiefs for particulars, enjoining their acquiescence in the proposed measures.

I found at Rice Lake a band of Chippewas, most of them young men, having a prompt and martial air, encamped in a very compact form, and prepared, at a moment’s notice, for action. They saluted our advance with a smartness and precision of firing that would have done honour to drilled troops. Neenaba was absent on a hunting-party; but one of the elder men pointed out a suitable place for my encampment, as I intended here to put new bottoms to my bark canoes. He arrived in the evening, and visited my camp with forty-two men. This visit was one of ceremony merely; as it was late, I deferred any thing further until the following day. I remained at this place part of the 7th, the 8th, and until 3 o’clock on the 9th of August. And the following facts present the result of several conferences with this distinguished young man, whose influence is entirely of his own creation, and whose endowments, personal and mental, had not been misrepresented by the Indians on my route, who uniformly spoke of him in favourable terms. He is located at the most advanced point towards the Sioux borders, and, although not in the line of ancient chiefs, upon him rests essentially the conduct of affairs in this quarter. I therefore deemed it important to acquire his confidence and secure his influence, and held frequent conversations with him. His manner was frank and bold, equally free from servility and repulsiveness. I drew his attention to several subjects. I asked him whether the sawmill on the lower part of the Red Cedar was located on Chippewa lands? He said, Yes. Whether it was built with the consent of the Chippewas? He said, No; it had been built, as it were, by stealth. I asked him if any thing had been subsequently given them in acknowledgment of their right to the soil? He said, No; that the only acknowledgment was their getting tobacco to smoke when they visited the mill: that the Sioux claimed it to be on their side of the line, but the Chippewas contended that their line ran to a certain bluff and brook below the mill. I asked him to draw a map of the lower part of Chippewa River, with all its branches, showing the exact lines as fixed by the treaty at Prairie du Chien, and as understood by them. I requested him to state the facts respecting the murder of the Menomonie, and the causes that led to it; and whether he or any of his band received any message from the agent or commanding officer at Prairie du Chien, demanding the surrender of the murderer? To the latter inquiry he answered promptly, No. He gave in his actual population at 142; but it is evident that a very considerable additional population, particularly in men, resort there for the purpose of hunting a part of the year.

The day after my arrival, I prepared for and summoned the Indians to a council, with the usual formalities. I opened it by announcing the objects of my visit. Neenaba and his followers listened to the terms of the message, the means I had adopted to enforce it, and, finally, to the request of co-operation on the part of himself and band, with strict attention. He confined his reply to an expression of thanks; allusions to the peculiarity of his situation on an exposed frontier; and general sentiments of friendship. He appeared to be mentally embarrassed by my request to drop the war-club, on the successful use of which he had relied for his popularity, and whatever of real power he possessed. He often referred to his young men, over whom he claimed no superiority, and who appeared to be ardently attached to him. I urged the principal topic upon his attention, presenting it in several lights. I finally conferred on him, personally, a medal and flag, and directed the presents intended for his band to be laid, in gross, before him.

After a pause, Neenaba got up, and spoke to the question, connecting it with obvious considerations, of which mutual rights, personal safety, and the obligation to protect the women and children, formed the basis. The latter duty was not a slight one. Last year the Sioux had killed a chief on the opposite shore of the lake, and, at the same time, decoyed two children, who were in a canoe, among the rice, and killed and beheaded them. He said, in allusion to the medal and flag, that these marks of honour were not necessary to secure his attention to any requests made by the American government. And after resuming his seat awhile (during which he overheard some remarks not pleasing to him, from an Indian on the opposite side of the ring), he finally got up and declined receiving them until they were eventually pressed upon him by the young warriors. Every thing appeared to proceed with great harmony, and the presents were quickly distributed by one of his men. It was not, however, until the next day, when my canoes were already put in the water, that he came with his entire party, to make his final reply, and to present the peace-pipe. He had thrown the flag over one arm, and held the war-club perpendicular in the other hand. He said, that although he accepted the one, he did not drop the other; he held fast to both. When he looked at the one, he should revert to the counsels with which it had been given, and he should aim to act upon those counsels; but he also deemed it necessary to hold fast the war-club; it was, however, with a determination to use it in defence, and not in attack. He had reflected upon the advice sent to the Chippewas by the President, and particularly that part of it which counselled them to sit still upon their lands; but while they sat still, they also wished to be certain that their enemies would sit still. And the pipe he was now about to offer, he offered with a request that it might be sent to the President, asking him to use his power to prevent the Sioux from crossing the lines. The pipe was then lit, handed round, the ashes knocked out, and a formal presentation of it made. This ceremony being ended, I shook hands with them, and immediately embarked.

On the second day afterward, I reached the sawmill, the subject of such frequent allusion, and landed there at 7 o’clock in the morning. I found a Mr. Wallace in charge, who was employed, with ten men, in building a new dam on a brook of the Red Cedar, the freshet of last spring having carried away the former one. I inquired of him where the line between the Sioux and Chippewas crossed. He replied that the line crossed above the mill, he did not precisely know the place; adding, however, in the course of conversation, that he believed the land in this vicinity originally belonged to the Chippewas. He said it was seven years since any Sioux had visited the mill; and that the latter was owned by persons at Prairie du Chien.

The rapids of the Red Cedar River extend (according to the estimates contained in my notes) about twenty-four miles. They commence a few miles below the junction of Meadow River, and terminate about two miles below the mills. This extension of falling water, referred to in the treaty as a fixed point, has led to the existing uncertainty. The country itself is of a highly valuable character for its soil, its game, its wild rice, and its wood. We found the butter-nut among those species which are locally included under the name of _Bois franc_ by the traders. The land can, hereafter, be easily brought into cultivation, as it is interspersed with prairie; and its fine mill privileges will add to its value. Indeed, one mile square is intrinsically worth one hundred miles square of Chippewa country, in some other places.

The present sawmills (there are two), are situated 65 miles from the banks of the Mississippi. They are owned exclusively by private citizens, and employed for their sole benefit. The boards are formed into rafts: and these rafts are afterward attached together, and floated down the Mississippi to St. Louis, where they command a good price. The business is understood to be a profitable one. For the privilege, no equivalent has been paid either to the Indians or to the United States. The first mill was built several years ago, and before the conclusion of the treaty of Prairie du Chien, fixing boundaries to the lands. A permit was given for building, either verbal or written, as I have been informed, by a former commanding officer at Prairie du Chien. I make these statements in reference to a letter I have received from the Department since my return, but which is dated June 27th, containing a complaint of one of the owners of the mill, that the Chippewas had threatened to burn it, and requesting me to take the necessary precautionary measures. I heard nothing of such a threat, but believe that the respect which the Chippewas have professed, through me, for the American government, and the influence of my visit among them, will prevent a resort to any measures of violence; and that they will wait the peaceable adjustment of the line on the rapids. I will add, that _wherever_ that line may be determined, in a reasonable probability, to fall, the mill itself cannot be supplied with logs for any length of time, if _it is now so supplied_, without cutting them on Chippewa lands, and rafting them down the Red Cedar. Many of the logs heretofore sawed at this mill, have been rafted, _up stream_, to the mill. And I understood from the person in charge of it, that he was now anxious to ascertain new sites for chopping; that his expectations were directed up the stream, but that his actual knowledge of the country, in that direction, did not embrace a circumference of more than five miles.

The line between the Chippewa and Sioux, as drawn on the MS. map of Neenaba, strikes the rapids on Red Cedar River at a brook and bluff a short distance below the mill. It proceeds thence, across the point of land between that branch of the main Chippewa, to an island in the latter; and thence, up stream, to the mouth of Clearwater River, as called for by the treaty, and from this point to the bluffs of the Mississippi valley (where it corners on Winnebago land), on Black River, and not to the “_mouth_” of Black River, as erroneously inserted in the 5th article of the treaty; the Chippewas never having advanced any claims to the lands at the mouth of Black River. This map, being drawn by a Chippewa of sense, influence, and respectability, an exact copy of it is herewith forwarded for the use of the Department, as embracing the opinions of the Chippewas on this point. The lines and geographical marks were drawn on paper by Neenaba himself, and the names translated and written down by Mr. Johnston.

It is obvious that the adjustment of this line must precede a permanent peace on this part of the frontiers. The number of Chippewas particularly interested in it is, from my notes, 2,102; to which, 911 may be added for certain bands on Lake Superior. It embraces 27 villages, and the most influential civil and war chiefs of the region. The population is enterprising and warlike. They have the means of subsistence in _comparative_ abundance. They are increasing in numbers. They command a ready access to the Mississippi by water, and a ready return from it by land. Habits of association have taught them to look upon this stream as the theatre of war. Their young men are carried into it as the natural and almost only means of distinction. And it is in coincidence with all observation, to say that they are now, as they were in the days of Captain Carver, the terror of the east bank of this river, between the St. Croix and Chippewa Rivers. No other tribe has now, or has had, within the memory of man, a village or permanent possession on this part of the shore. It is landed on in fear. It is often passed by other nations by stealth, and at night. Such is not an exaggerated picture. And with a knowledge of their geographical advantages, and numbers, and distribution, on the tributary streams, slight causes, it may be imagined, will often excite the young and thoughtless portion of them to raise the war-club, to chant the war-song, and follow the war-path.

To remove these causes, to teach them the folly of such a contest, to remind them of the treaty stipulations and promises solemnly made to the government and to the Sioux, and to induce them to renew those promises, and to act on fixed principles of political faith, were the primary objects committed to me; and they were certainly objects of exalted attainment, according as well with the character of the government as with the spirit and moral and intellectual tone of the age. To these objects I have faithfully, as I believe, devoted the means at my command. And the Chippewas cannot, hereafter, err on the subject of their hostilities with the Sioux, without knowing that the error is disapproved by the American government, and that a continuance in it will be visited upon them in measures of severity.

Without indulging the expectation that my influence on the tour will have the effect to put an end to the spirit of predatory warfare, it may be asserted that this spirit has been checked and allayed; and that a state of feeling and reflection has been produced by it, which cannot fail to be beneficial to our relations with them, and to their relations with each other. The messages sent to the Sioux chiefs, may be anticipated to have resulted in restoring a perfect peace during the present fall and ensuing winter, and will thus leave to each party the undisturbed chase of their lands. The meditated blow of Steenaba was turned aside, and his war-party arrested and dispersed at the moment it was ready to proceed. Every argument was used to show them the folly and the insecurity of a continuance of the war. And the whole tenor and effect of my visit has been to inform and reform these remote bands. It has destroyed the charm of their seclusion. It has taught them that their conduct is under the supervision of the American government; that they depend on its care and protection; that no other government has power to regulate trade and send traders among them; finally, that an adherence to foreign counsels, and to antipacific maxims, can be visited upon them in measures of coercion. That their country, hitherto deemed nearly inaccessible, can be penetrated and traversed by men and troops, with baggage and provisions, even in midsummer, when the waters are lowest; and that, in proportion as they comply with political maxims, as benevolent as they are just, will they live at peace with their enemies, and have the means of subsistence for an increased population among themselves. The conduct of the traders in this quarter, and the influence they have exerted, both moral and political, cannot here be entered upon, and must be left to some other occasion, together with statistical details and other branches of information not arising from particular instructions.

It may be said that the Indians upon the St. Croix and Chippewa Rivers, and their numerous branches, have been drawn into a close intercourse with government. But it will be obvious that a perseverance in the system of official advice and restraints, is essential to give permanence to the effects already produced, and to secure a firm and lasting peace between them and the Sioux. To this end the settlement of the line upon the Red Cedar fork is an object which claims the attention of the Department; and would justify, in my opinion, the calling together the parties interested, at some convenient spot near the junction of the Red Cedar River with the Chippewa. Indeed, the handsome elevation, and the commanding geographical advantages of this spot, render it one which, I think, might be advantageously occupied as a military post. Such an occupancy would have the effect to keep the parties at peace, and the point of land, on which the work is proposed to be erected, might be purchased from the Sioux, together with such part of the disputed lands near the mills as might be deemed necessary to quiet the title of the Chippewas. By acquiring this portion of country for the purposes of military occupancy, the United States would be justified in punishing any murders committed upon it; and I am fully convinced, that no measure which could, at this time, be adopted, would so certainly conduce to a permanent peace between the tribes. I therefore beg leave, through you, to submit these subjects to the consideration of the honorable the Secretary of War, with every distrust in my own powers of observation, and with a very full confidence in his.

I have the honor to be, sir,
Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
H. R. SCHOOLCRAFT.

No. 3.

_Yellow River, Aug. 1, 1831._

LAWRENCE TALIAFERRO, ESQ., }
_Indian Agent at St. Peters_.}

SIR:

It is in accordance with the instructions under which I am acting, to solicit your co-operation in keeping the Sioux and Chippewas at peace, and to induce them to adhere, in good faith, to the articles of the treaty of Prairie du Chien. Blind to their true interests, these tribes continue a warfare as hopeless in its termination as it is inglorious in its results. Notwithstanding every pains which has been taken by the government to convince them of the erroneous policy of such a contest, and to inspire in them fidelity to their public treaties with each other, restless and ambitious young men, on either side, continue to lead war-parties into the territories of the other, and to waylay the unsuspecting. I am satisfied that the authority of the chiefs is not always sufficient to restrain the incursions of these young warriors, who are led on by the thirst of fame, and stimulated by hereditary animosity. Such a course is not surprising among savages. But it is the dictate of humanity to restrain this false ardor, and to make use of every practicable means to put a stop to scenes at which the heart sickens. It is but recently that a Mr. Cadotte, a young half-breed of the Sault Ste. Marie, another young man of mixed blood, called the Little Frenchman, living as an Indian, and two Chippewas, one a female, travelling down the St. Croix in a canoe, were fired upon from an ambush by the Sioux, and killed. And this injury still remains unredressed.

The Chippewas complain of this mode of warfare, which it would be an idle affectation to designate by any other term than murder. They say the Sioux are indeed ready to smoke the pipe of peace with them, and never fail to do so when it is presented to them; but that a confidence, on their part, in these smoking councils, is paid with the loss of lives.

I have despatched a message to the Sioux chief, Petite Corbeau, and another to Wabisha, reminding them of their treaty engagements with the Chippewas, and of the recent violation of them above referred to, and requesting them to use their influence efficaciously to terminate further inroads. These messages are accompanied by others from Shakoba and from Kabamappa, Chippewa chiefs on the St. Croix and Snake Rivers.

I am, sir,
Very respectfully,
Your obedient servant,
H. R. SCHOOLCRAFT.

No. 4.

_Mozobodo’s speech, in relation to the murder of the
Menomonie woman._

My father at the Sault Ste. Marie: I have not forgot what was told me at Prairie du Chien, Fond du Lac, and Butte des Morts. I have kept always what you told me until the last summer. My young men were foolish, and went to war.

My father: The war-club was sent to them from Lac Chetac twice, before they accepted it. They did not go to war of their own accord. I did all I could to prevent them.

My father: They did not kill our friends intentionally. They supposed them to be their enemies, and killed them accidentally.

My father: This pipe I send to you in token of peace. My young men will hereafter keep quiet.

My father: I hope you will not take our traders away from us. If you do, our little children will suffer; and not only they, but all of us.

MOZOBODO.

_Lac du Flambeau, May 28, 1831._
Interpreted by Charles H. Oaks.

No. 5.

_Report of Doctor Houghton on the Copper of Lake Superior._

_Fredonia, N. Y., November 14, 1831._

Hon. LEWIS CASS, _Secretary of War_.

SIR:

In fulfilment of the duties assigned to me in the late expedition into the Indian country, under the direction of H. R. Schoolcraft, Esq., Indian agent, I would beg leave to transmit to you the following observations relative to the existence of copper in the country bordering on the southern shore of Lake Superior.

It is without doubt true that this subject has long been viewed with an interest far beyond its actual merit. Each mass of native copper which this country has produced, however insulated, or however it may have been separated from its original position, appears to have been considered a sure indication of the existence of that metal in beds; and hence we occasionally see, upon maps of that section of our country, particular portions marked as containing “copper mines,” where no copper now exists. But while it is certain that a combination of circumstances has served to mislead the public mind with regard to the geological situation and existing quantity of that metal, it is no less certain that a greater quantity of insulated native copper has been discovered upon the borders of Lake Superior, than in any other equal portion of North America.

Among the masses of native copper which have engaged the attention of travellers in this section of country, one, which from its great size was early noticed, is situated on the Ontonagon River, a stream which empties its waters into the southern part of Lake Superior, 331 miles above the falls of the Ste. Marie. The Ontonagon River is, with some difficulty, navigable by bateaux 36 miles, at which place by the union of two smaller streams, one from an easterly, and the other from a westerly direction, the main stream is formed. The mass of copper is situated on the western fork, at a distance of six or eight miles from the junction.

The face of the country through the upper half of the distance from Lake Superior is uneven, and the irregularity is given it by hills of marly clay, which occasionally rise quite abruptly to the height of one or two hundred feet. No rock was observed _in situ_, except in one place, where, for a distance, the red sandstone was observed, forming the bed of the river.

The mass of copper lies partly covered by water, directly at the foot of a clay hill, from which, together with numerous boulders of the primitive rocks, it has undoubtedly been washed by the action of the water of the river. Although it is completely insulated, there is much to interest in its examination. Its largest surface measures three and a half by four feet, and this, which is of malleable copper, is kept bright by the action of the water, and has the usual appearance of that metal when worn. To one surface is attached a small quantity of rock, singularly bound together by threads of copper, which pass through it in all directions. This rock, although many of its distinctive characters are lost, is evidently a dark colored serpentine, with small interspersed masses of milky quartz.

The mass of copper is so situated as to afford but little that would enable us to judge of its original geological position. In examining the eastern fork of the river, I discovered small water-worn masses of trap-rock, in which were specks of imbedded carbonate of copper and copper black; and with them were occasionally associated minute specks of serpentine, in some respects resembling that which is attached to the large mass of copper; and facts would lead us to infer that the trap formation which appears on Lake Superior east of the Ontonagon River, crosses this section of country at or near the source of that river and at length forms one of the spurs of the Porcupine Mountains.

Several smaller masses of insulated native copper have been discovered on the borders of Lake Superior, but that upon Ontonagon River is the only one which is now known to remain.

At as early a period as before the American revolution, an English mining company directed their operations to the country bordering on Lake Superior, and Ontonagon River was one point to which their attention was immediately directed. Traces of a shaft, sunk in the clay hill, near a mass of copper, are still visible, a memento of ignorance and folly.

Operations were also commenced on the southern shore of Lake Superior, near the mouth of a small stream, which, from that circumstance, is called Miners’ River. Parts of the names of the miners, carved upon the sandstone rock at the mouth of the river are still visible. What circumstance led to the selection of this spot does not now appear. No mineral traces are at this day perceptible, except occasional discolorations of the sandstone rock by what is apparently a mixture of the carbonate of iron and copper; and this is only to be observed where water, holding in solution an extremely minute portion of these salts, has trickled slowly over those rocks.

It does not, in fact, appear that the red sandstone, which constitutes the principal rock formation of the southern shore, of Lake Superior, is in any instance metalliferous in any considerable degree. If this be true, it would require but little reflection to convince one of the inexpediency of conducting mining operations at either of the points selected for that purpose; and it is beyond a doubt true, that the company did not receive the least inducement to continue their labors.

In addition to these masses of native copper, an ore of that metal has long been known to the lake traders as the green rock, in which the characteristic substances are the green and blue carbonate of copper, accompanied by copper black. It is situated upon Keweena Point, 280 miles above the falls of the Ste. Marie. The ore is embraced by what is apparently a recently formed crag; and although it is of a kind, and so situated as to make an imposing appearance, there is little certainty of its existence in large quantities in this formation. The ore forms a thin covering to the pebbles of which the body of the rock is composed, and is rarely observed in masses separate from it. The crag is composed of angular fragments of trap-rock; and the formation is occasionally traversed by broad and continuous belts of calc. spar, here and there tinged with copper. Although the ore was not observed in any considerable quantity, except at one point, it apparently exists in minute specks through a greater part of the crag formation, which extends several miles, forming the shore of the lake.

This examination of the crag threw new interest upon the trap formation, which had been first observed to take the place of the sandstone at the bottom of a deep bay, called Montreal Bay, on the easterly side of Keweena Point. The trap-rock continues for a few miles, when the crag before noticed appears to lie directly upon it, and to form the extremity of the point; the crag, in turn, disappears, and the trap-rock is continued for a distance of six or eight miles upon the westerly side of the point, when the sandstone again reappears.

The trap-rock is of a compact granular texture, occasionally running into the amygdaloid and toadstone varieties, and is rich in imbedded minerals, such as amethystine quartz, smoky quartz, cornelian, chalcedony, agate, &c., together with several of the ores of copper. Traces of copper ore in the trap-rock were first noticed on the easterly side of Keweena Point, and near the commencement of the trap formation. This ore, which is an impure copper black, was observed in a vein of variable thickness, but not in any part exceeding 2½ inches; it is sufficiently compact and hard to receive a firm polish, but it is rather disposed to break into small irregular masses. A specimen furnished, upon analysis, 47.5 per cent. of pure copper.

On the western side of Keweena Point, the same ore appears under different circumstances, being disseminated through the body of the trap-rock, in grains varying in size from a pin’s head to a pea. Although many of these grains are wholly copper black, they are occasionally only depositions of the mineral upon specks of cornelian, chalcedony, or agate, or are more frequently composed, in part, of what is apparently an imperfect steatite. The ore is so connected with, and so much resembles in colour the rock, of which it may be said to be a constituent part, that they might easily, during a hasty examination, be confounded. A random specimen of the rock furnished, upon analysis, 3.2 per cent. of pure copper. The rock continues combined with that mineral for nearly the space of three miles. Extremely thin veins of copper black were observed to traverse this same rock; and in enlargements of these were discovered several masses of amorphous native copper. The latter mineral appeared in two forms—the one consisting of compact and malleable masses, carrying from 4 to 10 ounces each; and the other, of specks and fasciculi of pure copper, binding together confused masses of copper green, and partially disintegrated trap-rock: the latter was of several pounds’ weight. Each variety was closely embraced by the rock, although the action of the water upon the rock had occasionally exposed to view points of the metal. In addition to the accompanying copper green, which was in a disintegrated state, small specks of the oxyd of copper were associated in most of the native specimens.

Circumstances would not permit an examination of any portion of the trap formation, except that bordering directly upon the lake. But facts would lead us to infer that that formation extends from one side of Keweena Point to the other, and that a range of thickly wooded hills, which traverses the point, is based upon, if not formed of, that rock. An Indian information which, particularly upon such a subject, must be adopted with caution, would sanction the opinion that the prominent constituents are the same wherever the rock is observed.

After having duly considered the facts which are presented, I would not hesitate to offer, as an opinion, that the trap-rock formation was the original source of the masses of copper which have been observed in the country bordering on Lake Superior; and that at the present day, examinations for the ores of copper could not be made in that country with hopes of success, except in the trap-rock itself; which rock is not certainly known to exist upon any place upon Lake Superior, other than Keweena Point.

If this opinion be a correct one, the cause of failure of the mining company in this region is rendered plain. Having considered each insulated mass of pure metal as a true indication of the existence of a bed in the vicinity, operations were directed to wrong points; when, having failed to realize their anticipations, the project was abandoned without further actual investigation. We would be induced to infer, that no attempts were made to learn the original source of the metal which was discovered, and thus, while the attention was drawn to insulated masses, the ores, ordinary in appearance, but more important _in situ_, were neglected; and perhaps from the close analogy in appearance to the rock with which they were associated, no distinction was observed.

What quantity of ore the trap-rock of Keweena Point may be capable of producing, can only be determined by minute and laborious examination. The indications which were presented by a hasty investigation are here imbodied, and, with deference, submitted to your consideration.

I have the honor to be,
Sir, your obedient servant,
DOUGLASS HOUGHTON.

V.

_Speech of Six Chippewa Chiefs[36] on the Sioux War, delivered at
Michilimackinac, in July, 1833._

MY father: listen to your children. Look upon the blood that is shed by our enemies. I hold in my hand the wampum belt, and the articles of the treaty of Prairie du Chien. This belt is stained by blood. It has passed through all our bands. We have all taken hold of it with our hands. So have we in our hearts taken hold of the words of the treaty. You have told us to sit still, and we have done it. But what have our enemies done? Six times we have been attacked by them. Twice on Sioux land and four times on our own. Look on us, father; our mouths are full of blood. You are the cause of this. It is owing to our listening to your advice. You bade us sit still. You told us that your arm was _long and strong_, and that you would reach it out and pull back any that crossed the lines. We believed it. We remained quiet. Even when struck, we ceased to revenge ourselves, as we formerly revenged ourselves.

We have been again struck. Our people have been killed on their own lands. Yet we are told to keep quiet. We have been killed while relying upon your flag, thinking our enemies came to smoke the pipe of peace. Father, think not that we are fools. We have right hearts. We cannot sit with our eyes shut. But we will keep them open. They are looking upon the lines. They are looking upon you. We will wait one summer more, in hopes that our voices will reach you.[37]

No. IV.

_Remarks on the Lead Mine Country on the Upper Mississippi._

[Addressed to the Editors of the New-York Mirror.]

GENTLEMEN:

Time admonishes me of my promise to furnish you some account of my journey from Galena to Fort Winnebago. But I confess, that time has taken away none of those features which make me regard it as a task. Other objects have occupied so much of my thoughts, that the subject has lost some of its vividness, and I shall be obliged to confine myself more exclusively to my notes than I had intended. This will be particularly true in speaking of geological facts. Geographical features impress themselves strongly on the mind. The shape of a mountain is not easily forgotten, and its relation to contiguous waters and woods is recollected after the lapse of many years. The succession of plains, streams, and settlements is likewise retained in the memory, while the peculiar plains, the soils overlaying them, and all the variety of their mineral and organic contents, require to be perpetuated by specimens and by notes, which impose neither a slight nor a momentary labor.

Limited sketches of this kind are furthermore liable to be misconceived. Prominent external objects can only be brought to mind, and these often reveal but an imperfect notion of the pervading character of strata, and still less knowledge of their mineral contents. Haste takes away many opportunities of observation; and scanty or inconvenient means of transporting hand specimens, often deprive us of the requisite data. Indeed, I should be loath to describe the few facts I am about to communicate, had you not personally visited and examined the great carboniferous and sandstone formation on the Mississippi and Wisconsin, and thus got the knowledge of their features. The parallelism which is apparent in these rocks, by the pinnacles which have been left standing on high—the wasting effects of time in scooping out valleys and filling up declivities—and the dark and castle-looking character of the cherty limestone bluffs, as viewed from the water, while the shadows of evening are deepening around, are suited to make vivid impressions. And these broken and denuded cliffs offer the most favorable points for making geological observations. There are no places inland where the streams have cut so deep. On gaining the height of land, the strata are found to be covered with so heavy a deposite of soil, that it is difficult to glean much that can be relied on respecting the interior structure.

The angle formed by the junction of the Wisconsin with the Mississippi is a sombre line of weather-beaten rocks. Gliding along the current, at the base of these rocks, the idea of a “hill country,” of no very productive character, is naturally impressed upon the observer. And this impression came down, probably, from the days of Marquette, who was the first European, that we read of, who descended the Wisconsin, and thus became the true discoverer of the Mississippi. The fact that it yielded lead ore, bits of which were occasionally brought in by the natives, was in accordance with this opinion; and aided, it may be supposed, in keeping out of view the real character of the country. I know not how else to account for the light which has suddenly burst upon us from this bank of the Mississippi, and which has at once proved it to be as valuable for the purposes of agriculture as for those of mining, and as sylvan in its appearance as if it were not fringed, as it were, with rocks, and lying at a great elevation above the water. This elevation is so considerable as to permit a lively descent in the streams, forming numerous mill-seats. The surface of the country is not, however, broken, but may be compared to the heavy and lazy-rolling waves of the sea after a tempest. These wave-like plains are often destitute of trees, except a few scattering ones, but present to the eye an almost boundless field of native herbage. Groves of oak sometimes diversify those native meadows, or cover the ridges which bound them. Very rarely does any rock appear above the surface. The highest elevations, the Platte mounds, and the Blue mound, are covered with soil and with trees. Numerous brooks of limpid water traverse the plains, and find their way into either the Wisconsin, Rock River, or the Mississippi. The common deer is still in possession of its favorite haunts; and the traveller is very often startled by flocks of the prairie-hen rising up in his path. The surface soil is a rich, black alluvion; it yields abundant crops of corn, and, so far as they have been tried, all the cereal gramina. I have never, either in the west or out of the west, seen a richer soil, or more stately fields of corn and oats, than upon one of the plateaux of the Blue mound.

Such is the country which appears to be richer in ores of lead than any other mineral district in the world—which yielded forty millions of pounds in seven years—produced a single lump of ore of two thousand cubic feet—and appears adequate to supply almost any amount of this article that the demands of commerce require.

The river of Galena rises in the mineral plains of Iowa county, in that part of the North-Western Territory which is attached, for the purposes of temporary government, to Michigan. It is made up of clear and permanent springs, and has a descent which affords a very valuable water-power. This has been particularly remarked at the curve called Millseat-bend. No change in its general course, which is south-west, is I believe apparent after it enters the north-west angle of the state of Illinois. The town of Galena, the capital of the mining country, occupies a somewhat precipitous semicircular bend, on the right (or north) bank of the river, six or seven miles from its entrance into the Mississippi. Backwater, from the latter, gives the stream itself the appearance, as it bears the name, of a “river,” and admits steamboat navigation thus far. It is a rapid brook immediately above the town, and of no further value for the purpose of navigation. Lead is brought in from the smelting furnaces, on heavy ox-teams, capable of carrying several tons at a load. I do not know that water _has been_, or that it _cannot_ be made subservient in the transportation of this article from the mines. The streams themselves are numerous and permanent, although they are small, and it would require the aid of so many of these, on any projected route, that it is to be feared the supply of water would be inadequate. To remedy this deficiency, the Wisconsin itself might be relied on. Could the waters of this river be conducted in a canal along its valley from the portage to the bend at Arena, they might, from this point, be deflected in a direct line to Galena? This route would cut the mine district centrally, and afford the upper tributaries of the Pekatolika and Fever River as feeders. Such a communication would open the way to a northern market, and merchandise might be supplied by the way of Green Bay, when the low state of water in the Mississippi prevents the ascent of boats. It would, at all times, obviate the tedious voyage, which goods ordered from the Atlantic cities have to perform through the straits of Florida and Gulf of Mexico. A railroad could be laid upon this route with equal, perhaps superior advantages. These things may seem too much like making arrangements for the next generation. But we cannot fix bounds to the efforts of our spreading population, and spirit of enterprise. Nor, after what we have seen in the way of internal improvement, in our own day and generation, should we deem any thing too hard to be accomplished.

I set out from Galena in a light wagon, drawn by two horses, about ten o’clock in the morning (August 17th), accompanied by Mr. B. It had rained the night and morning of the day previous, which rendered the streets and roads quite muddy. A marly soil, easily penetrated by rain, was, however, as susceptible to the influence of the sun, and in a much shorter period than would be imagined, the surface became dry. Although a heavy and continued shower had thoroughly drenched the ground, and covered it with superfluous water, but very little effects of it were to be seen at this time. We ascended into the open plain country, which appears in every direction around the town, and directed our course to Gratiot’s Grove. In this distance, which on our programme of the route, was put down at fifteen miles, a lively idea of the formation and character of the country is given. The eye is feasted with the boundlessness of its range. Grass and flowers spread before and beside the traveller, and on looking back, they fill up the vista behind him. He soon finds himself in the midst of a sylvan scene. Groves fringe the tops of the most distant elevations, and clusters of trees—more rarely, open forests—are occasionally presented. The trees appear to be almost exclusively of the species of white oak and roughbark hickory. Among the flowers, the plant called rosin-weed attracts attention by its gigantic stature, and it is accompanied, as certainly as substance by shadow, by the wild indigo, two plants which were afterward detected of less luxuriant growth on Fox River. The roads are in their natural condition, they are excellent, except for a few yards where streams are crossed. At such places there is a plunge into soft, black muck, and it requires all the powers of a horse harnessed to a wagon to emerge from the stream.

On reaching Gratiot’s Grove, I handed letters of introduction to Mr. H. and B. Gratiot. These gentlemen appear to be extensively engaged in smelting. They conducted me to see the ore prepared for smelting in the log furnace; and also the preparation of such parts of it for the ash furnace as do not undergo complete fusion in the first process. The ash furnace is a very simple kind of air furnace, with a grate so arranged as to throw a reverberating flame upon the hearth where the prepared ore is laid. It is built against a declivity, and charged by throwing the materials to be operated upon, down the flue. A silicious flux is used; and the scoria is tapped and suffered to flow out, from the side of the furnace, before drawing off the melted lead. The latter is received in an excavation made in the earth, from which it is ladled out into iron moulds. The whole process is conducted in the open air, with sometimes a slight shed. The lead ore is piled in cribs of logs, which are roofed. Hammers, ladles, a kind of tongs, and some other iron tools are required. The simplicity of the process, the absence of external show in buildings, and the direct and ready application of the means to the end, are remarkable, as pleasing characteristics about the smelting establishment.