plans. A couple of them got off their ponies, and one of them took the bridle off his pony and put it on the loose pony and let me get on the one that he was riding, but just as I was about getting on, the Indian then spoke in broken English, "You pay hap dollar." A lucky thought came into my mind. I had learned, July 24th, from Edgar, that a man by the name of Thomas lived on a river on the edge of the settlement that I was going to. I said to the Indian, in the hope that Thomas might be known to them, "Thomas pay you." It seemed that a sullen murmur passed among them, and I saw I had gained a point, and was going to get on, when the Indian, still not satisfied, caught hold of the small bundle under my arm and looked me in the eyes, saying, "Mika hiu chickamin?"—meaning, “Have you lots of money?" This, with his action and his words, I perfectly understood although I never knew a word of the jargon that he was talking. I made signs that this was clothing that I was carrying. He made one more move in the way of trying to get hold of a small sailor's knife. I shoved him back and was not further molested in mounting the pony, after which we rode in Indian file for a mile or so. When crossing a small creek I alighted to get a drink of water. Two of them dismounted under the pretense to take a drink also. One of them, as a last resort to still further see if I carried any money, pulled out a begging paper which he had obtained from some white man. I glanced at it, knowing well what it contained, and made reply, "Thomas pay you," when he said, "Thomas, hell." I saw that I had gained a strong point with them, and ending further trouble, we mounted and rode along as before, reaching William Brennan's, the first house in the settlement, and much to my relief. I think I shall never be so glad to see one of my race again as I was to see William Brennan. They lingered long after dark to learn something about me and to see if I communicated anything that had passed. I was very careful not to whisper a thing of what had happened until after they had gone. Thus ended my wanderings of five days in one of the heaviest forests that I ever saw, without knowing much of where I was going, and with but little to eat. "Thursday, July 27.-Went down in a canoe with an Indian woman and two children on the White river to the forks, or where it is joined by the Black river, and where I found my brother, Abraham F. Bryant. Oh, how much relief to be united once more, after so many difficulties and dangers! This is the first time I have seen my brother since the spring of 1852, in Iowa." The journey, which required six days at that time, is now made in as many hours on railway trains. CHAPTER XX. MR. DENNY'S NARRATIVE CONTINUED. Further extracts from Mr. Denny's work, in regard to early settlements on Puget Sound, are as follows: "When our party landed at Alki, Olympia was quite a village, having been settled in 1847 by E. Sylvester. In 1851 Captain Lafayette Balch located at Lower Steilacoom and J. B. and John M. Chapman at the upper town. Of our emigrant party who came by the Exact, James Hews and family settled at Steilacoom; H. H. Pinto and family and D. R. Bigelow at Olympia. John Alexander and family landed at Olympia, where they wintered, and in the spring of 1852 located on Whidby Island. Alfred M. Miller, who was one of the Exact's party of gold prospectors, also located on Whidby Island, and H. H. Pinto crossed back and settled at Cowlitz landing. "On the 16th of September, 1851, Henry Van Asselt, L. M. Collins, Jacob Maple and Samuel A. Maple selected claims on Duwamish river, and on the 27th of the month moved onto them from Nesqually river, where Collins had previously settled and where also William Packwood and George Shaser at one time were living, but I have not the exact date of their settlement on the Nesqually. There were of this party in all seven persons, all now dead but Van Asselt (1888). In the spring of 1851, A. A. Plummer and Charles Bachelor located at Port Townsend. A few days after our party landed at Alki Point, F. W. Pettygrove and L. B. Hastings came across from Portland and camped over night with us on their way to Port Townsend, where they had made arrangements to locate, returned and brought their families around on the schooner Mary Taylor, arriving, as I have been informed, on the 19th day of February, 1852. Of the other early settlers in the vicinity of Port Townsend now recalled, were Albert Briggs, A. B. Robinson, J. G. Clinger, E. C. Fowler, John F. Tukey, J. J. H. Van Bokkelin, Thomas Hammond, R. Ross, H. C. Wilson, Henry Webber and James Kaymes. "T. W. Glascow told me of a settlement he made on Whidby Island in 1848, or possibly not till 1849, but owing to the threats made by the Indians he determined to vacate his claim, and in the fall of 1850 Colonel Ebey located on or very near the place he had vacated. Recently I received a letter from R. H. Lansdale, who came to Oregon in October, 1849, in which he gives a narrative of his early experience on the Sound, which I think worthy of preservation, and I shall give it in his own language: "Reached Tumwater in January, 1851. Found Major Goldsborough at Simmon's and Colonel Ebey at Olympia. Being advised by Ebey, started down Sound February 5th for Whidby Island, with King George, Duke of York, and Duke of Clarence, Indian chiefs of the Clallam tribe. Steilacoom was just then being settled, a vessel unloading there at the time. Reached Port Townsend, saw immense Indian houses, but no settlers yet. Plummer not long after took his claim there. Crossed to Whidby Island and settled at Oak Harbor, February 10th. Made a good garden that year. Colonel Ebey told me of Snoqualmie Falls, and I had Indians take me. Saw the falls; prepared and walked-one Indian carrying baggage—to top of divide in Snoqualmie Pass. In the summer, Asher Sargent landed horses at Oak Harbor for William Wallace and family, who settled at Crescent Harborso named by myself. I had now been many months alone, the few men being off helping to load piles for San Francisco wharves, so I fastened up cabin, potatoes, etc., and left to spend the winter in Olympia. As I approached Alki Point I saw a white man standing on the beach with a surveyor's staff in his hand, looking to see who the white man approaching might be, and the man on the beach introduced himself as Arthur A. Denny. In March, 1852, helped to build a scow to take Crockett and Ebey's stock to Whidby Island. As soon as we landed I abandoned my claim on Oak Harbor on account of the mud flats, and took my claim at Penn's Cove. In 1851 there were three settlers at Oak Harbor, Martin Taftson, Clement W. Sumner and Ulric Friend.' "In the spring of 1853 the brig Cabott, Captain Dryden, came from Portland with a number of settlers for the island. She made Penn's Cove by way of Deception Pass. Of these now recalled who came by her were James Buzby and family, Mrs. Maddox and family, R. L. Doyle and wife, Mrs. Dr. J. C. Kellogg and family, the Doctor having crossed by way of the Cowlitz, and Mrs. Smith and daughter, mother and sister of Dr. H. A. Smith. "It may be said with propriety that the settlement of the Sound below the Olympia, or Budd's Inlet, by American citizens, began substantially in 1851. This remark, of course, does not include the Puget Sound Agricultural Company's station at Fort Nesqually, and the Hudson's Bay men connected with it, or even a few American citizens in the vicinity. At the time all white men were supposed to know each other and their location and occupation, between the mouth of the Cowlitz river and Cape Flattery. "In 1853 we had quite an accession to our population on the Sound, from the immigration of that season, a number of whom came over the mountain by the Naches Pass. "In the fall of 1853 A. L. Porter located a claim on the prairie which takes its name from him, and Dominick Corcoran and James Riley located on Muckleshoot prairie, the three being at the time the furthest out in that direction. Lower down the valley were William H. Brennan, George King, Harvey Jones, Enos Cooper, Moses Kirkland, William Cox, Joe and Arnold Lake, John M. Thomas, R. H. Beaty and D. A. Neely. At and near the junction of White and Black rivers were William H. Gilliam, Joseph Foster, Stephen Foster, A. F. Bryant, Charles E. Brownell, and further up Black river, O. M. Eaton, Joseph Fanjoy, H. H. Tobin and Dr. R. M. Bigelow. On the Dawampish river, of those now remembered who have not already been mentioned, we have John Buckley, August Hograve, George Holt, Dr. S. L. Grow, G. T. Grow, J. C. Avery, Eli B. Maple, C. C. Lewis, Bennet L. Johns. On the lake, John Harvey, E. A. Clark, T. D. Hinckley, Lemuel J. Holgate; on the bay south of town, John C. Holgate, Edward Hanford, John J. Moss, and at the mouth of the river, Charles Walker. 66 On the Puyallup were R. A. Finnel, Abiel Morrison and family, John Carson and family, J. W. McCarty and family, Isaac Woolery and family, Willis Boatman and family, Adam Benson, Daniel F. Lane, William Kincaid and family, and others not now remembered. Nichols Delin was located at the mouth of the river. "When we selected our claims we had fears that the range for our stock would not afford them sufficient feed in the winter, and it was not possible at that time to provide feed for them; which caused us a great deal of anxiety. From statements made by the Indians, which we could then but imperfectly understand, we were led to believe that there were prairie or grass lands to the northwest, where we might find feed in case of necessity, but we were too busy to explore until in December, 1852, when Bell, my brother and myself determined to look for the prairie. It was slow and tedious traveling through the unbroken forest, and before we had gone far Bell gave out and returned home, leaving us to proceed alone. In the afternoon we unexpectedly came to a body of water, and at first thought we had inclined too far eastward and struck the lake, but on examination we found it to be tide water. From our point of observation we could not see the outlet to the Sound, and our anxiety to learn more about it caused us to spend so much time that when we turned homeward it soon became so dark that we were compelled to camp for the night without dinner, supper or blankets, and we came near being without fire also, as it had rained on us nearly all day and wet our matches, so that we could only get a fire by the flash of a rifle, which was exceedingly difficult to do under the circumstances. Our camp was about midway between the mouth of the bay and the cove, and in the morning we made our way to the cove and took the beach for home. Of course our failing to return at night caused great anxiety at home, and soon after we got on the beath we met Bell coming on a hunt of us, and the thing most interesting to us just then was that he had his pockets filled with hard bread. |