The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1849-08-25
From The y. y. Times.
The Mothers Heroic Defence of her
ONE,


ArEAEruL sroi or rnE FRONTIER Wars.
There isuo cNnggcrnii1h IN the following
sketch, the incidents narrated having Hctunl-
y occurred during the border wars of Ken
lucky, NJ the reader may convince hiuscii-+-y
referring TO Collins History Of Kentucky,
Tie seemingly Incredible lrai lior woman
-esptclnitAl OF hitiug iu Two n muskrt bullet h
there Nuuchcd ior.
a more beautiful and q,hei scene thnn the
clearing Oh the E,khuru, which smiled and
spHtklrd ~ the iEGT ~ u CtuUrttr-H- tttiiftss,
on ihr 25ih of April, 1872, could not have
bcou found hrtwrcn Kentucky RIVER Hud
the rturiiif4iH- 4 rude lint slrourly built
g,cuhin--hnlfdwclli hull torircss-'was
tee 'He@I ennspicnuus object IN the fore.
ground. A stream the l.lkhorn, too large
to bc called creek, yet scarcely broad mud
deep enough teNcelH wtiSn during a irrslcil
To h. considered rscr, It's Fopine banks
clothed in tic tender green Of early spring,
swept with Tuwd currcui wiihiu hut rifle
shot OF Tire IRON, ufIhi-rabiu, TIE cn,irc
clearing consisted ~ nBoUt forty acres, gir-
died Oh every side los n dense forest, except
on lhc east; where broad opcning appear
rd, aud the hlpIrG II. outline col! q road was
visible tor rod or two, leodIug apparently
Ia some adjacent srilllucut. The location
NN Nl.il liNi' W lHNA ilNiNH i''.i't 'fff''' -
thrn q small village, Gud uhpGt' iwo Mules
ltum the nearest point on the Kentucky ry-
cr. of which tile Elkhurn is u trhumry.-
Nllluu tho cleared nrps lal or had Lnuc
much. The axe, which hUd let tho sunlight
ltto The heat og the wilderness, had hccu
promptly followed rs the Uluw, Tho hnrus
aud -uru.rrit- were titled 10 Overlooking,
aud tho green blades, gllsicuing with de",
hut covered thr southern slopes, gave prom
sc ofnnothcC abundant harvest.
The cabin Was Of double tlie usual size,
for II contained Two families. It's occupants
were iWo mo,hcIs. Hosea aud Jesse COOK,
their wives aud children, aud a youth OF sew
cuIrcu, named John Nc Andre, Who insisted
uia Cooks IN their. farm work. The Two
brothcrs were originally from Connec'icuL
buT bad CHIIgruirrt tn Kentucky Anlne enrs
before the tine at which oar uarraFire opens
.TcHTty tUur- ,+--44ad- elapsed slnce lhcl had
settled on the Eikhoru, aud during the whole
OF that time they had seen but one Indian.
iiUsUU's hUuSCtUtIt CUTrvrstrrt- t-t-frt--t-+i--I
Miriam, ike himself native of New Eng
lHud--u woman of commanding stature ana
great personal sircngtl--nud their daughter
Alice, n fair, golden. haired beauty, with II
face that smiled all over, Ihcn ~ her SIX
teeulh yeor. Hope, the wife of Jesse Cook
w0s.>u rosy, co",viy daughter "l virginia
much younger than her sstcr.in.lhw, WITH
two BOYS. of six mud three years old, Ht her
apron string. Young McApdrc WINS fine,
hardy Young huntsmHit, "h@se father Ind
hceu Killed M n rcncdT1ro wi,lI n parry of
WSauduis, ucnr the Blue Licks, IN thai mem
orublr era Of the frontier wars Of the west
the year l7Se,
Just MS the SUMS red disc became visible
nhuie the upper line of the forest to me east
the door OF the cabin opened aud the broth
crs passed out Tic sCeue sprcUd before
them WINS one ofpcrfert rtpose The morn
ing mist had already lifted from the stream
aud was sailing slowly upward, while NOT u
breath stirred to shake the pendeut moisture
from the forest leaves, or ripple the surface ol
the swiftly gliding water. But the Cooks
were not the men to look upon the landscape
with poet or n painters eye, and Win ihc
.-i.444!c nhseryulinn that it was fine growing
morning the elder, Hosea, St1utderrtt hts
axe, aud followed by bis brother, walked 20 ;"
pile of chesnut timber few rods west et me
house. where ,hey had been engaged lhe
preceding day la splitting out fence rails.
They we're both uunrmcd, mud would
have laughed nj the idea ol carrying "eoP-
ons TO protect themselves against me indinhS
so confident hnd their exemption from nj
tack or mulestR,iou rendered them h"'
their dream Ofsccurly wns destined !" "o
suddenly aud nwfully broken. They Ia" nor
struck twenty blows with their axes "hen
n dozen rifles,
"Too nearly,too deadly aimed to err.
cracked from cluIpp of naples about forty
Yards IN pdvauce' Of The nearest point OF
woods, ana Hosea Cook, who was IN The net
of choping, sprung like u ball into the mir Hnh
strengthening as lac descended, fell win ms
face upward, quiIe-dcud.
Jesse, although struck with the bullets anh
wounded, started in u staggering
run for the cabin, and fell a few feet from