Southern Argus. [volume] (Columbus, Miss.) 1834-1842, 1838-06-05
COLUMBUs, NITl TUEsDAY, JUNE 5, 1888

the Peruvian historian, zone Of the nosl
polite, proud and warlike Of the native
chieftains ofth South. He has left his
name indelbly stamped IN a river, and
the capital of the neighboring State Of AL.
ALBANIA. His territories must have com.
promised great part Of what are now
the States Of Alabama and Mississippi.
The SPaniards entered his town of Mau.
villa, evidently the origin Of Mobile
which is supposed to have stood about
about the junction of the Tombeckbee
with the Alabama river. Here was the
scene of one of the bloodiest battles be.
tween the natives and the invaders. The
ruins of this town, sacked and burned by
the Spaniards, became the tomb of the
heroic chief Of Tuscaloosa, and, several
thousands of his subjects. The plain a.
round the town was strewn with more
than $500 bodies. Within the walls, the
streets were blocked up by the dead. p
"In one building a thousand persisted in
the flames" "a greater part Of them fe.
males. " 1t is some compensation for this
demonlac havoc, that its authors did moi
entirely escape from the calamities they
had brought upon these distant shores
Eighty.two Spaniards cased as they were
in armour of steel, and forty.two Spanish
horses were killed by the Indians, and
RlOwTned, ''says the same historian" "as
if they had been so many fellow-soldiers. .
The baggage and stores Of the Spaniards
were consumed in the flames ofthe town.
The next point reached by the expedition,
of immediate interest to US, is the. pro.
vince and town of Chicaza or Chickasaw.
This is supposed to have been the upper
part of this State on the Western bank of
the Yazoo, about 240 miles Northwest Of
Mobile. Here the Spaniards experienced
a desperate night attack from the Indians,
losing many Of their men and more Of
their horses, then unknown in America,
and so precious to the invaders s"e-'
After many similar adventures, all ties.
tifying to the undaunted bravery and per-
severing fortitude in the natives, the Span.
ish party came in sight of the Mississippi
on the Rio Grande, as they called it,
Below the lowest Chickasaw Bluff, the
present site Of Memphis, just ten miles
above the northern limits of this State, is
an ancient and convenient passage over
the great river. Here De Soto is suppos.
ed to have crossed the Mississippi, and left
the territory of our State. 1t does not
compOrt with the purpose of this discourse
to follow this gallant, but unfortunate wan.
derer beyond the limits of the Mississippi.
| will barely mention, that, after penetra-
ting to the highlands of White river, 200
rs1iles Ereu.. tL~ AE;sDis9SiPPis zAIttIC al.
RE, the Salines and Hot Springs of Wash
itta, the Spanish Captain reached the
country about the mouth of Red river
Here he sent out party to explore the
country farther to the south. The fire..
quent bayous, the impossible canebrakes,
and the dense woods, permitted them TO
proceed but 40 miles in eight days; thus
INSTRUCTED, the party returned with the
disheartening intelligence they had pro-
cured. This disappointment, added to
the sorrows of his whole career in these
regions, so different from his fate on the
golden coast Of Peru, and defiance sent
him by tribe of Indians near Natchez,
completed the work of melancholy, and
broke the heart of De Soto. He fell a
prey to mortal disorder; and to conceal
the body Of the dauntless associate of Pi.
zarro, the Governor of Cuba and the first
explorer of these southwestern regions,
athe corpse wrapt in mantle and in the
stiffness Of midnight, was silently sunk in
the Mississippi" Thus the discoyerer of
Mississippi slept beneath its waters. "He
had crossed the continent in search of
gold,' says tie eloquent and most learn
ed Bancroft, ''and had found nothing so
remarkable as his burial place." Three
hundred out of one thousand, vino had
embarked with DcSoto, alone lvedto re.
turn to Mexico and to his heart broken
wife, the noble Bobadilla.