THE BEAR HUNT.1 BY ABRAHAM LINCOLN. A wild bear chace didst never see? Shew host thou lived in rains Thy Richest bump of glorious gled, A WILD-BEAR chace, didst never see? Then hast thou lived in vain- When first my father settled here, 'Twas then the frontier line; The panther's scream filled night with fear But wo for Bruin's short-lived fun, Now man and horse, with dog and gun, A sound of danger strikes his ear, On press his foes, and reach the ground, The dogs, in circles, scent around, With instant cry away they dash, And men as fast pursue; O'er logs they leap, through water splash, And shout the brisk halloo. Now to elude the eager pack, Bear shuns the open ground; Th[r]ough matted vines he shapes his track in 1 We are indebted to R. A. Brock, Esq., Corresponding Secretary of the Historical Society of Virginia, for this valuable contribution, in the letter enclosing which occurs the following ample voucher for its authenticity, "It is a copy verbatim et literatim of the original lines in my possession, which are written upon blue ruled paper folio size, covering the first three pages, and the final stanza a portion of the fourth page. A fac-simile of the first stanza which accompanies this, will be considered a full authentifi- | cation of the document itself, by those familiar with the autograph of the lamented President, whose tragic end was | so universally deprecated, and whose office it was to steer our national bark through a period as fateful and yet more trying than were the troublous days of '76, if, indeed, characteristic internal evidences of thought and expression should fail to convince. But the positive identification lies before me--a letter from a prominent member of the legal profession of this city, who writes: It is the composition of Mr. Lincoln himself, and wholly written by him, the endorsement on the back [The Bear Hunt] only excepted, and it was sent to me by him.'" The tall fleet cur, with deep mouthed voice, While half-grown pup, and short-legged fice, And fresh recruits are dropping in To join the merry corps; With yelp and yell, a mingled din— And round, and round the chace now goes, Now sorely pressed, bear glances back, When as, to force him from his track, Across the glade he sweeps for flight, The dogs, new-fired by the sight, The foremost ones now reach his rear, At top of speed the horsemen come, "Whoop! Take him Tiger-seize him Drum-" And furious now, the dogs he tears, Wheels right and left, and upward rears, But leaden death is at his heart, Vain all the strength he plies And now a dinsome clamor rose, 'Bout who should have his skin; But who did this, and how to trace "TRUTH CONCERNING THE EXPEDITION OF GEORGE ROGERS CLARK." BY SAMUEL EVANS. WILLIAM WIRT HENRY, Esq., in attempting to give the truth in regard to the expedition of General George Rogers Clark, has not stated the whole truth. The pride Virginians must feel in the achievements of her great men, is creditable to them; but they are not justified in belittleing Pennsylvanians, and their State, whom history has fully vindicated. With all her pride, Virginia has not always been neighborly or honorable with the subjects of this State. It is a curious fact that Dr. John Connelly,' one of the most turbulent and ambitious agents employed by them to retain possession of the south western portion of Pennsylvania, was a Susanna Connelly, the mother of Dr. J. Connelly, was first married to James Patterson, an Indian Trader, who settled in the manor where the Doctor was born, in the year 1717. In 1734, the Penns gave him a patent for a little just across the river, which is two miles broad at this place, upon which he turned his horses to pasture. Lord Baltimore claimed jurisdiction over all the territory southwest of the Susquehanna, and extending several miles further north than this place, which was called Conejohala Valley, and he sent in March, 1731, a brutal and reckless fellow named Thomas Cressap, to take possession of the land, and dispossess all Pennsylvanians. The first overt act committed by him and the brothers Lowe, was the shooting of two horses belonging to Patterson, who crossed the river upon the ice in 1732, with his son and two or three others, and arrested the Lowes, and took them to the Lancaster Jail. This was the beginning of "Cressap's war." The Pennsylvanians finally triumphed, as they always did when an attempt was made to dismember her territory. Mr. Patterson died in 1736, leaving several daughters, viz.: Sarah married Benjamin Chambers, who settled at Chambersburg. Suanna married James Lowery, Indian Trader, mentioned in Altmer Number of the MONTHLY; and Rebecca married John Kagy. Mrs. Patterson married a second husband, Thomas Ewing, a widower, who owned a fine farm in a Little valley two miles east of this place. He was a member of Assembly for several terms, and occupied a number of other prominent positions. By him she had several children, among whom was General James Ewing, of Revolutionary fame, who died upon his farm in York County, just back of Wrightsville, in 1806. over three hundred acres of land. He also had some land native of Lancaster County, in this State, and was born upon the farm now owned by Jacob B. Shuman, three miles south of Columbia, and one mile from the Susquehanna River, in the year 1747. Somewhere about the year 1770, he went to live with his uncle, Colonel George Croghan, the celebrated Indian Agent and Trader, at Pittsburg. Nearly all of the Indian Traders--the McKees, Gibsons, and others who then resided at that place, seemed to think that Pittsburg, and for several miles east of that, was within the limits of Virginia, and refused to pay taxes to the province of Pennsylvania. As the dissatisfaction between the Colonies and Great Britain began to widen-it extended to Pittsburg. Croghan, McKee, and Connelly sympathized with the mother country, and I have no doubt it was the intention of Dr. Connelly to embarrass and complicate affairs. Lord Dunmore, who was bitterly opposed to the cause of the Colonies, in the winter of 1774, determined to assert the claims of Virginia to Pittsburg and vicinity, he dispatched Dr. Connelly with a Captain's Commission, to take possession of the country along the Monongahela, and take command at Fort Pitt, in the name of the King. The Doctor issued his proclamation to the people in January, 1774, to meet and embody themselves as Virginia Militia. Before the meeting was held, St. Clair arrested him at Pittsburg, and placed him in confinement. In 1746, Mr. Ewing died, and in the early part of 1747, his widow married John Connelly, who had been an officer in the British Army. He lived but a year. In his will he made the following devises: To his wife he gave some land, and to his brother Luke, sisters Elizabeth and Bridget, then in Ireland, he gave £50 each, to his son John (the Doctor), he gave a silver watch, silver-mounted sword, spurs, gold rings, gold buttons, silver knee and shoe buckles. Susanna Connelly, the mother of the Doctor, died in Lancaster Borough, in May, 1753, leaving a large estate. The Sherriff let him out to hunt bail. He then went to Staunton, the shire town of Augusta County, Virginia, and was sworn in as a Justice of the Peace for West Augusta County. In March, 1774, he returned to Pittsburg, with civil and military authority, to execute the laws of Virginia. On the 5th day of April, the court assembled at Hannastown, the county seat of Westmoreland County. Connelly made his appearance at the head of one hundred and fifty men, with colors flying, and dispersed the court, and arrested some of the magistrates. He returned to Pittsburg and took possession of the dismantled Fort Pitt, and rebuilt and called it Fort Dunmore. He was a turbulent and tyrannical officer, and behaved in an outrageous manner toward those who paid taxes to or claimed to be under the jurisdiction of Pennsylvania. He not only caused the murder of several Indians who were at peace with the whites, but brought on a cruel and bloody Indian war. His uncle, George Croghan, became disgusted with his conduct and ever afterward sided with Pennsylvania. In the spring of 1773, Dr. Connelly and John Campbell, Esq., sent Captain Thomas Bullitt to the Falls of the Ohio to survey some land for them, for which they received a patent from Virginia. Louisville is now built upon it. The turbulent element amongst the Scotch-Irish who settled south and west of the Monongahela River, sided with Connelly and Virginia in their dispute with Pennsylvania, as to their jurisdiction over that territory. They would pay no taxes to, nor take out patents for their land from Pennsyl vania. safe at New Orleans, where he successfully nego tiated with Don Galvas, the Spanish governor. Much of the powder was shipped by Oliver Pollock to northern ports successfully. Colonel Gibson brought a supply up the river in boats for the western forts. For that service he was promoted by Virginia to a colonelcy. He served in the Continental line during the Revolution, and participated in many battles. After the war he received no benefit from Pennsylvania for his services, because he was commissioned by Virginia, nor did he receive the slightest recognition from Congress. Virginia undertook to pay him with patents for land in Kentucky, which Colonel Gibson discovered, when le went to locate them, had already been taken up by previous patents. And thus this gallant and meritorious officer was deprived of the pay and emoluments due him. And to this day his descendants have not received a cent from the government, just because of this mistake of his in accepting a commission from Virginia. This brave officer was wounded at St Clair's defeat, from the effects of which he died a few days afterward. While wounded and unable to walk, he placed his back against a tree and declared that no red-skin should have his scalp, with out they paid dearly for it. He was rescued by some of his men and carried to Fort Hamilton, where he died. Dr. Connelly was again arrested by General St. Clair, at Pittsburg, in July, 1775, as a seditious and dangerous person, but he was released in a short time, after which he proceeded to Norfolk, to confer with Dunmore. On the 23d day of November, 1775, he and his servant were arrested by the Committee of Safety, at Frederick Town. Maryland. Connelly had a Colonel's Commission from General Gage, to raise a regiment west of the mountains and in Canada, and was on his way there when arrested. He made great efforts to enlist Colonel John Gibson on the side of Great Britain. He was taken to Philadelphia and thrown into prison, where he remained one or two years, when he was released on parole, and was to remain upon the farm of his half-brother, General James Ewing, in York County. He was exchanged in 1781. Samuel Sample of Pittsburg, a near relative of Dr. Connelly, came to Philadelphia, n He proceeded down the river from Pittsburg, April, 1776, and attempted to get up a plot to and was several times in the power of hostile In-rel ase Connelly and the Tories from prison. dians, from whom he made his escape, and arrived In November, 1788, he appeared at Louisville, This pretentious claim of Virginia led to serious results, and was the cause of doing great injustice to many persons who were prominent actors in the Revolution. I need only cite the case of Colonel George Gibson, the father of the late Chief Justice. At the commencement of the Revolution he raised a company of one hundred riflemen, and took them to Richmond, and was commissioned captain by Virginia, after doing service at Hampton and Long Bridge. He volunteered to take a detachment down the Ohio to New Orleans to procure powder from the Spanish authorities for the use of the Continental army. and attempted to repossess himself of the land purchased in connection with Colonel John Campbell, but he was not successful. He met Colonel Thomas Marshall and some other American officers, and endeavored to enlist them in a scheme to go down the Mississippi and capture New Orleans from the Spanish, and get control of the commerce of the West. His plans were not unlike those of Aaron Burr. General Washington distrusted him, and believed that this scheming and restless man meant mischief to the United States, and at once advised that he be left alone. When or where Dr. Connelly died I am not able to say. The adherents of Connelly about Pittsburg were numerous, and there was a constant discord between those who claimed to hoid land under Virginia patents, and from the Penas. In the summer of 1781, General Clark came to Washington County in Pennsylvania, and Pittsburg, to raise men for his second expedition against the Indians. Lieutenant James Marshall, of Washington County, writing to President Reed, on the 8th day of August, 1781, says, "When I began to organize the Militia of this County, I expected the line between the States would have been run in May last; but finding they (the commissioners) did not arrive at neither of the periods given us to expect them, I thought it my duty to take the most favorable opportunity that would offer to form the Militia. About the 15th of June last, I apprehended appearances favorable, and accordingly advertised two battalion elections, but soon found that General Clark's preparations for his expedition, and the extraordinary freedom which he and his party of the old Virginia officers used with the people of this county, stood greatly in the way; they were indefatigable in propagating reports of the general being a Continental officer- having extraordinary countenance and authority from the State of Pennsylvania-in pulling down my advertisements dissuading the people from attending the elections-crying out that I was everything that was bad, and was doing all this in order to hurt the expedition, etc., all which, however false, produced a visible indisposition in the people towards attending the elections; and altho' I was not attempting any thing with design to injure his expedition, I could not do any thing to fill up the general's troops out of the Militia of this VOL. VI.-13 frontier county, not having Council's orders for that purpose; however, on the whole, and just then receiving such intelligence of the line being immediately run, as I thought authentic, I judged it most prudent to postpone the election until that event should happen, or until the departure of the armed banditti under the general, that then awed the good people of this county, and were chasing such of the inhabitants as Penticost, Sheppard and Evans; the lieutenants of Youghagaini, Monogalia and Ohio, were pleased to point out by way of drafting, as fit persons to go with the general; and on missing, these persons were violating and totally destroying their property, and accordingly I countermanded the advertisements, and let things lay still for some time, until the wanton barbarity and unparalleled arbitrary proceedings of said party convinced the people that it was impossible they could have authority from any government to act in that manner, and caused them to show a desire of being formed under this government, whereupon I again advertised five battallion districts and have had two elections, and hope shortly to have the Militia in full form. And now its like the general's expedition is on the eve of falling totally through, and I am to bear the blame; and the general, in return for the service done him by those aforesaid, is to villify me to government, and produce the aforesaid contradictory advertisements as evidence against me, in order to raise some of the said gentlemen to a higher state of favor with government than I. Whatever their attempts may be, or in what manner made, I can only say at present, I have acted such a part as I thought a faithful officer ought to do in similar cases; and that I ever conceived I had no right so much as to say any of the people of this county had a right to go with General Clark without your Excellency's orders for that purpose; much less that I should lay still, on purpose that the Virginia officers should draft the Militia of this county for that service-if any complaint, of what kind soever, should be lodged against me, I hope your Excellency will favor me with a copy thereof, that I may have an opportunity of doing myself justice; and as the manner in which the general and his underlings have treated the people of this and Westmoreland Counties, has been so arbitrary and unprecedented, I think it my duty to inform your Excellency the particulars of a few facts. The first instance was with one John Harden, in Westmoreland, who, with a number of others, refused to be drafted under the government of Virginia, alleging they were undoubtedly in Pennsylvania, and declared if that government ordered a draft, they would obey cheerfully, and accordingly elected their officers, and made returns thereof to Colonel Cook. the proposed temporary line being run as soon as peal for arms to repel the enemy who had actua Mr. Marshall writes under considerable feeling, and is not without his prejudices against General Clark, who did not choose to publish to every one his design or plan of action, but a very good 10%.. can be had of the turbulent state of affairs in Southwestern Pennsylvania, over which Virgina claimed jurisdiction, and the violent measures adopted by General Clark to procure men for his expedition. After this, the general, with a party of forty or fifty horsemen, came to Harden's in quest of him to hang him, as the general himself declared; but not finding the old gentleman, took and tied his son, broke open his mill, fed away and destroyed upwards of 150 bushels wheat, rye and corn, killed his sheep and hogs, and lived away at Mr. Harden's expense in that manner for two or three Colonel Dorsey Pentecost, a member of Counci days; declared his estate forfeited, but graciously from Washington County, writes to President gave it to his wife; formed an article in which he Reed, on the 27th day of July, 1781, stating tat bound all the inhabitants he could lay hands on, he was now in General Clark's camp, three miles or by any means prevail upon to come in to him, below Fort Pitt, and was about to leave with the under the penalty of ten months in the Regular expedition. The quota of militia demanded by army, not to oppose the draft. Another man in General Clark, from Washington County, Colone. Westmoreland, being in company with Clark's Pentecost says was furnished. Colonel A. Locarg, troops, happened to say the draft was illegal, upon Lieutenant for Westmoreland County, writes to which he was immediately confined, and ordered President Reed, August 4, 1781, from Miraile's to be hanged by the general. Colonel Penticost Mill, Westmoreland County, stating that he was being willing to assist the general, issued orders to "now on my march with Captain Stokeley's con the commanding officers of the old militia compa-pany and about fifty volunteers from this county, nies to raise an armed force and collect the delin- We shall join General Clark at Fort Henry, on the quents, and although these orders were chiefly Ohio River.” disobeyed, yet there has been several armed banditti in this county, under the command of a certain Colonel Cox and others, who have acted nearly in the same manner as the general himself has done. They being in quest of John Douglass, (a gent, elected one of our Justices for this county,) and not finding him the first attempt, broke open his house in the night time, fed away and destroyed such a part of rye and corn (his property) as they thought proper, drew their swords upon his wife and children in order to make them discover where he was; the said Cox and his party have taken and confined a considerable number of the inhabitants of this county, amongst which were Hugh Scott, (one of the acting trustees of the county,) although he was not drafted, in a word, the instances of high treason against the State are too many to be enumerated, therefore shall not trouble your Excellency any more on the subject at present, but beg leave once more to urge the necessity of Colonel Lochry started down the river with over one hundred men to join General Clark, but was not able to overtake him, on the 25th day c August he landed upon the shore about ten mis below the mouth of the Miami. He was surprised by a large body of Indians under the lead of Brant, who were waiting for him, and secreted themselves near the place. Colonel Lochry and forty-one of his men were killed, and sixty-four were taken prisoners. A few probably made their escape. The militia and v'. unteers from Washington County joined Genera' Clark's army before this unfortunate expedit, n left Pittsburg. If Mr. Henry means to claim that West Augusta County embraced all of Southwestern Pennsylva nia, and that those who resided there and partic pated in General Clark's expeditions to the northwest were Virginians exclusively, I thank his claim is not well founded, and history will not bear him out. |