[275] Copy of intelligence brought to Fort Pitt by Mr. Calhoun, MS.
[276] M’Cullough gives the following account of the murder of another of the traders, named Green:—
“About sunrise, Mussoughwhese (an Indian, my adopted brother’s nephew, known by the name of Ben Dickson, among the white people), came to our house; he had a pistol and a large scalping-knife, concealed under his blanket, belted round his body. He informed Kettoohhalend (for that was my adopted brother’s name), that he came to kill Tom Green; but Kettoohhalend endeavoured to persuade him off it. They walked out together, and Green followed them, endeavouring, as I suppose, to discover the cause of the alarm the night before; in a short time they returned to the house, and immediately went out again. Green asked me to bring him his horse, as we heard the bell a short distance off; he then went after the Indians again, and I went for the horse. As I was returning, I observed them coming out of a house about two hundred yards from ours; Kettoohhalend was foremost, Green in the middle; I took but slight notice of them, until I heard the report of a pistol; I cast my eyes towards them, and observed the smoke, and saw Green standing on the side of the path, with his hands across his breast; I thought it had been him that shot; he stood a few minutes, then fell on his face across the path. I instantly got off the horse, and held him by the bridle,—Kettoohhalend sunk his pipe tomahawk into his skull; Mussoughwhese stabbed him under the armpit with his scalping-knife; he had shot him between the shoulders with his pistol. The squaws gathered about him and stripped him naked, trailed him down the bank, and plunged him into the creek; there was a freshet in the creek at the time, which carried him off. Mussoughwhese then came to me (where I was holding the horse, as I had not moved from the spot where I was when Green was shot), with the bloody knife in his hand; he told me that he was coming to kill me next; he reached out his hand and took hold of the bridle, telling me that that was his horse; I was glad to parley with him on the terms, and delivered the horse to him. All the Indians in the town immediately collected together, and started off to the Salt Licks, where the rest of the traders were, and murdered the whole of them, and divided their goods amongst them, and likewise their horses.”
[277] Gent. Mag. XXXIII. 413. The loss is here stated at the greatly exaggerated amount of £500,000.
[278] Loskiel, 99.
[279] Heckewelder, Hist. Ind. Nat. 250.
[280] Pennsylvania Gazette, No. 1799. I shall frequently refer to the columns of this journal, which are filled with letters, and extracts from letters, written at different parts of the frontier, and containing very minute and authentic details of the events which daily occurred.
[281] Extract from a Letter—Fort Pitt, June 16, 1763 (Penn. Gaz. No. 1801).
“We have Alarms from, and Skirmishes with, the Indians every Day; but they have done us little Harm as yet. Yesterday I was out with a Party of Men, when we were fired upon, and one of the Serjeants was killed; but we beat off the Indians, and brought the Man in with his Scalp on. Last Night the Bullock Guard was fired upon, when one Cow was killed. We are obliged to be on Duty Night and Day. The Indians have cut off above 100 of our Traders in the Woods, besides all our little Posts. We have Plenty of Provisions; and the Fort is in such a good Posture of Defence, that, with God’s Assistance, we can defend it against 1000 Indians.”
[282] MS. Letter—Ecuyer to Bouquet, June 5. Ibid. June 26.