They Fought & Defended
Themselves Lustily; But [There Is] No Resisting The Strongest Party, For
Our Guns Were A Terrour To Them, And Made Them Give Over.
During the fight
the women ranne away.
Five of the men weare wounded with arrowes and foure
escaped, but he that was sent with me att first to make a discovery was
horribly wounded with 2 arrowes and a blow of a club on the head. If he had
stuck to it as we, he might proceed better. We burned him with all speed,
that he might not languish long, to putt ourselves in safty. We killed 2 of
them, & 5 prisoners wee tooke, and came away to where we left our boats,
where we arrived within 2 days without resting, or eating or drinking all
the time, saveing a litle stagge's meate. We tooke all their booty, which
was of 2 sacks of Indian corne, stagges' skins, some pipes, some red and
green stoanes, and some tobacco in powder, with some small loaves of bread,
and some girdles, garters, necklaces made of goats' haire, and some small
coyne of that country, some bowes and arrowes, and clubbs well wrought. The
tournes of their heads weare of snakes' skin with bears' pawes. The hayre
of some of them very long, & all proper men. We went on the other side of
the river the soonest we could, and came to our fort. After we looked about
us least we should be surprised, and perceiving nothing, we went about to
gett meat for our wants & then to sleepe.
Att midnight we left that place. Six of us tooke a boate, 5 an other, and 2
the litle one. We row the rest of the night with all strength, & the
breaking of the day hid ourselves in very long rushes & our boats. The
litle boat went att the other side of the river, those hid it in the wood.
One of them went up a tree to spie about, in case he could perceive any
thing, to give notice to his comrades, & he was to come within sight of us
to warne us. We weare in great danger going downe the streame of that river
in the night time. We had trouble enough to carry all our baggage without
the least noise. Being come to the end of the river which empties it selfe
into a lake of some 8 or 9 leagues in compasse, we went into a small river
to kill salmons, as in deed we tooke great many with staves, and so
sturgeons, of which we made provision for a long while. Att last finding
our selves out of all feare & danger, we went freely a hunting about the
lake, where we tarried 3 dayes, and 2 of our Company mett with 2 women that
runned away from the Sanoutin's country, which is of the Iroquoit nation.
Those poore creatures having taken so much paines to sett themselves att
liberty to goe to their native country, found themselves besett in a
greater slavery then before, they being tyed [and] brought to us.
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