The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1850-11-09

poet Campbell, the author of rihe Flnasurrs
af Hope" Il Hlay ha known 10 every ane
that this almost unriyAlled poem Was written
by tho a,1hor At the age of twenty, while o
studmtin the university, although IL was MT
published till two years afterwards. / saw
that fine poem IN manuscript IN the hands Of
John Grcig, aud committed 20 memory.many
sianzas oft while I was young boy AZ the
Academy at Canandauia, WcslerdkeSow
York, As yet, IL had not been published,
and Il was more than year afterwards. when
u hrsi went to print la Europe john Greig
hcing bosom companion Of Campbdl, fall
Of Poetica fire himself and possessing the
finest taste in such compositions, had copied
at fall length aud 10 bis own boautihil cfirog-
raphy "1hp Pleasures Of Hope" and display
ed II 10 tho admiration Of hi Young friends in
the new world long before il was seen by the
British public, ] doubt whether this fact has
been generally known to the literary world
Ny readers will nndertand hy this, that
about half o century Ago, John Grcig the
scoti shepherd boy, was Ia america. ifc
! was' and knew hin4 there for many years
afterwards. lie had taken his degrees with
honor gt The university In scotlandi but in
the growing proniacy of the seats Of learn
ing in this country, he had we'll nigh exhaust
cd the funds provided for him l,y the consid-
crate Nanny aud what would have been more
painful Ia the old patroness, had she still been
living, her protcRc oyiDced no partialitics for
the church John Grcig was neither inGdcl,
scoilcr, nor hypocrito lie respected the or
dinancos Of religion; but he could not feel
that sinful lfee-liyer like himself had a
/ right ia assume the sacred vocation. This
call hc had not-hc therefore refused 10 touch
4 the ark with unsanctifcd hands. hut what
did lac go To america forg Why, like thous,
Ands of others, lac went there 10 seek his for
tunc aud he found il, AZ CanAndaigua, be-
ing some three or four hundred miles west
rsf As@ fqFk, he aiaRpedi aad tLe Gral Lnew
Of him was a. an npprcntccd clerk, or rather
student NJ law, in Mr. n nowclls law office
that gentleman being the most learned and
able lawyer for hundreds of niles round. 1t
was while an that relation, that the Prince
Lout Philippe, late King of lie French then
a fugitive from France aud waudcrer over
the Wild- of America came through the al
most ntcrminnblc forests Of the west, 10 the
remote village of Canondagua He was q
Guc Wll fellow; aud o. John Grrig was nm
European ns wcl u. himself aud they were
both far FROM thcir ancestral homes, they ba-
gaoao hoon companions. saw them shod ia
go ont after the deer aud Wild ducks ON the
border. of Cannndaigua lake, Tho intimacy
thu, formed was renewed in ancr years, IN
der very afford circumstances.
The shepherd boy passed through his rcgu-
lar studies at law, was admitted as a solicitor,
harristcr, aud tbcu ay 5q16st't1r.Et ttTu-rCv
cral COURTS aud on the Invitation of his for
mcr MASTER, he entered into partnership with
him, aud enjoyed an extensive practice
Diving this connection, the young Scotch
man distinguished himself n an able adyo-
cate aud special plcndcr gathering fame from
all ranks Of clients md had he continued in
that profession, 40 dOubt hc hal attained ity
highest honors. But very singular circum-
stance rendered his profession d.ta,tcful 10
him,and hc quilted it 20 return Ia it no more.
F, 4 few adventurous pioneers had pcnclra-
ted the forests 20 the foot Of Lake Erie, aud
thrown mp aicw log huts on the spot where
/ the city of Buffalo now stands. These out
landish men, | doubt not, were worse in their
moral characters than the tribe of Seneca ln-
dams inhabiting the Buffalo tracts, lying u
/ bout two miles from the new settlement The
whites carried raw whiskcy into the country
as part of their stores; and they freely used
their fr,-tcdicr, as the lndinns call it, in their
trading intercourse with the natives. II was
mot unusual, therefore, for wild aud unsccmly
rcvcls to occur in the night time, at one or
I Tnurr u tir-- toy. t,tt; ttt,,l ,tttatIs at - dea-
pcratc character sometimes ensucd between
the red and white men. At one of these, an
Indian warrior known to tho whites by the
name Of stin armed Joe, killed two of the
pioneers in a desperate fray. There was
fault on both sides, no doubt; but when the
fatal blows were struck 10y the warrior, his
,iu;,ms followed him IN his retreat. whom lac
suddenly turned upon them and despatched
THEN, viii, his- -tanaahaMk--Ihiz red warrior
was captured, and imprisoned atCanandagua
aud Indicted by white grand jury for will.
fh'f7'''h.h
General, John Greig, the shepherd boy Of
Pcrthshire, was spccinily commissioned rs
public prosecutor of the red warrior, Tho
celebrated lndnn Chief and orator, Red
jacket, who was at the head of the tribe
/ where tho homicide had occurred, appeared
AS sole advocate for the accused warrior. Greil
knew but little of the ilustrious chief whcr
he took his seat opposite to him ON the trial
, Red jacket was always too proud as a savage
. King to speak in any language know in Eu
! rope though he understood French auC
A English we'll ON this occasion, two able in
5 trrprctors were instructed by the Court Il
: give the literal meaning TO the testimony Of
r. some Indian witnesses, and Ia translate a
e. length into English whatever might fall frou
i Red ,lacket
e Z should have said that the presiding iudg
y rwas none other than Chief Justice Kent