Daniel Boone, Backwoodsman

by C. H. Forbes-Lindsay

But it was not in Boone’s mind to make any attempt to escape for the present. It was his purpose to turn his captivity to good account by improving his knowledge of the Indians and gaining information as to their contemplated movements against the settlers. His efforts were now bent towards increasing the feeling of friendliness that they entertained towards him and exciting their confidence in him. He took part in the sports and contests of the young braves, but shrewdly regulated his conduct so as to arouse their admiration without exciting their envy. In the shooting matches he might easily have outdone the best of them, but he contented himself with making a good showing without equalling the performances of their best marksmen.

Boone’s judicious behavior soon created in the Indians the state of mind that he had desired. Blackfish grew quite fond of his adopted son, and in the course of a few weeks began to entertain the belief that he had made up his mind to remain with the Indians and continue the life that appeared to be so congenial to him. Boone was now permitted to go on occasional hunting trips alone, but the chief was not yet entirely devoid of suspicion. The hunter’s hours were limited and he was given to understand that if his absence exceeded the stipulated period of liberty, a party would be sent in search of him. The number of bullets and the charges of powder issued to him were carefully counted, and he was held to a strict accountability for the supply. But Boone was even more shrewd and cunning than Blackfish. By cutting his bullets in two and using reduced charges of powder, the backwoodsman contrived to accumulate a considerable store of ammunition, which he secreted for use in emergency.

Early in June Boone was sent with a party of braves to the salt springs of the Scioto, where they remained ten days engaged in the manufacture of salt. On his return to Chillicothe, he was greatly concerned to find in the town something like five hundred strange warriors, fully armed and bedecked in war-paint and feathers. Boone’s knowledge of the Shawnee language was more thorough than he had allowed the Indians to imagine, and mingling with the crowd in the square he had no difficulty in picking up all the information that he needed. He learned that the war party was organized for an immediate attack upon Boonesborough, to which they had been instigated by the British commandant at Detroit. He ascertained the proposed route and other details of the expedition.

Boone decided that he must escape without an hour’s unnecessary delay. That night the Indians engaged in their war dances and other ceremonies and no doubt he might have slipped away from the town without being missed until he should have gained several hours’ start, but many considerations induced him to defer his departure. Boone never lost his head. Indeed, the greater the emergency the more carefully he laid his plans before action. The first stages of his journey would be through a district difficult to traverse and with which he was little acquainted, whilst the warriors of Chillicothe were perfectly familiar with every rood of it. Consequently a night start would give him less advantage than an equal number of hours’ headway in the daytime. Furthermore, he had that day made a long march and was somewhat fatigued. The task he proposed for himself would tax his strength to the utmost and he determined to fortify himself with a night’s rest before setting out upon it.

The next morning Boone left the town with his rifle as though going upon one of his usual hunting trips. This was the more easily contrived because the presence in the place of so many strangers made it necessary for the young braves to secure a much larger supply of meat than ordinary. He had not dared to excite suspicion by providing himself with any considerable quantity of food but he managed to secrete a small piece of jerked venison in his hunting-shirt. He made directly for the spot where his reserve stock of ammunition lay hidden and filled his powder-horn and bullet-pouch. Thus equipped, he headed for the Ohio with all the speed he could command.

Boonesborough was one hundred and sixty miles away, and Boone proposed to cover the distance in the least possible time. He knew that he would be pursued within a few hours and realized that the greatest danger of his recapture would be passed if he should gain safely the other side of the Ohio. He therefore exerted himself to the utmost at the outset, combining speed with skilful efforts to hide his trail. His route lay through dense forest and led him across several streams and through more than one swamp. Where the ground was firm and fairly open, he ran with long, loping strides for hours at a time. The first night the moon served him until early morning and he kept on his way until it set, stopping to sleep for a few hours only before dawn. The next day similar progress was made, and on the morning of the third Boone arrived at the bank of the Ohio River. He had covered more than seventy miles in about forty-four hours.

Here an obstruction confronted the fugitive that had not been unforeseen. Boone was an indifferent swimmer. Recent long-continued rains had swelled the river and it was running with a strong current. It would be hazardous to delay long and Boone was hastily skirting the bank, almost decided to commit himself to the stream with a log upon the chance of reaching the other side, when he stumbled upon an abandoned canoe. The paddle lay with it but a large hole gaped in one end. This Boone stopped with his hunting-shirt, and launching the rickety craft succeeded in gaining the farther bank.

Although he began to feel confident of eluding his pursuers after putting the river between them and himself, Boone realized that he was not out of danger and pushed on rapidly. His own safety was not the only incentive to speed. If the war Party had adhered to its plan it must have left Chillicothe two days after Boone and every hour gained to Boonesborough for defence would be of account.

On the third day, after crossing the Ohio, Boone shot a turkey and made a hearty meal upon it, and this was the only one that he allowed himself in five days. At other times he had eaten morsels of his jerk as he went along. At the close of the fifth day he walked into the stockade at Boonesborough, having averaged more than thirty miles of travel for every twenty-four hours from the time of leaving Chillicothe.