Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1851-08-28
MltstelInneolls.
The Missionary and the Robber.

In the year OF our Lord 49,, a missionary
from one of the eastern States, who had lust
completed his studies, and had received com.
mission from the - Missionary Society, was
passing In a westerly direction over tho praries
of Illinois.
He had seen, occasionally, an article in some
of the three Or four religious periodicals of that
period, about the Far West and with the
benevolent desire of doing good to the destitute
and scattered pioneers of this remote, and then
scarcely known region, had travelled on horse
back from his native village, preaching en- Sab
baths, as ocCasions offered, during his long jour
ney. Ohio was then said to be- a land of moral
desolation; Indiana was supposed to be many
degrees lower in the scale of civilization; and
the new State of Illinois was imagined 10 be
situated very near the Jumping of-place.'
vague and somewhat doubtful impression existed
as to the locality and character of Missouri II
and Kentucky was known abroad by report for
its fighting and gouging propensities, while the
population was characterized, as "half horse,
half alligator, and touch of the swapping tur-
| tle"
Amongst the vague and rather indistinct i'm
pressions of the character and habits of frontier
adventures, that hoated over the mind of the
young missionary, were those robbery and mur-
| ders.
During the period Of inquiry and anxious
meditation about devoting his life as a missiona-
ry of the cross in the wilds of the west the idea
of robbery and murder occupied no minor place
in his imagination. Still, with commendable
resolution and martyr spirit, he resolved to
hazard even life, with the sacrifice, of every
earthly comfort, to preach the gospel and intro
duce the meliorating influences of civilization
amongst people who belonged to the same ma
tion with himself, and who might eventually ex-
ert controlling influence over the destines of
the republic.
1t was on a cloudy and cold day in the month
of December that our missionaryfriend was seen
crossing an arm of the Grand prairie, east of the
Okau, as the Kaskaskia river, by abbrevlaton,
Tau KdS,) and French accent, had been called
He had travelled long distance that day, by
following devious and obscure trail, or bride
PATH and through skirt of timber-then across
the point Of prairie, without seeing log.cab-
in, or any other sign of human residence
Night was fast approaching, The landlord,
where he had been accommodated with private
entertainment the preceding night, had directed
him on blind trail to fording place across
the Okau, beyond which, and in the same direc-
ton was the town of G., to which he was
iourneyng Both horse and rider were fatigued
with long fasting and hard road, and the mis-
sionary could form no conjecture how far it might
be from settlement, which he had hoped to
reach before nightfall
Anxious and somewhat bewildered, he looked
in each direction for signs of human habitatton,
when an uncouth specimen of humanity appear
ed on horseback, and coming in a rapid move.
ment, and in a diagonal direction, across the
prairie towards the path Of the missionary. Az
the man approached, his personal appearance
: dress and equippage manifested no friendly de
sign. His head was covered with the skin o
the prairie wolf, with the tail hanging behind-
: His outer garment was neither coat, frock, o
blouse. In western parlance it was hunting
shirt, made of dressed deer-skln, with the cap
a and sde-strips curiously notched and fringed
Y but to the missionary it had an alarming aspect
/. Over it hung a powder-horn and bullet
t pouch, and around his body was wide leather
o belt, in which was thrust a formidable knife
Q A loaded rifle carelessly lay across the rider
# shoulder.
a Learning, upon inquiry, that his route wa
J. across the river TO settlement some fifteen {
twenty miles distant, the supposed robber reptile
8. in voice by no means mild or attractive,-'yo
J. can't get there to-night-besides, the old ford
!. washed away, and you can't find the new one
n follow mel can. fla yOur
The term fix had an ominous import, but tt
exact degree of outrage implied in this new for
of speech was not very clear to the mssionar
But there was no alternative. He was alor
j. and wholly unprotected He was small in sta
IS ure, of slender make, had no weapons b
spiritual ones, ane successful resistance WI
r, hopeless. He knew not the path to the rive
l. and were he to attempt flight the death-dealin
., rifle might stop him. So he turned as directe
e into the trail and followed the guide. AS the
d slowly rode in Indian fe' through the ia
Il grass, with points Of timber and brushwood Fl
e the space Of two miles, the missionary drew
s. fancy picture on his imagination of cave al
1t gang OF robbers, who would soon fix him,
ID determine his fate. He brealhed more free
" when he found only single cabin, rough loo
lie ing stable for horses, and a cornfeld, of fe
or acres, with no signs of accomplices.
It, Light, stranger, and take your saddle. bai
-pll GT your horse.'
b. Taking his saddle-bags on his arm as direC
- ed, he entered the cabin through low doorwa
h Here was woman and three children, but thu
"a personal appearance might, or might not in,
p cate danger to the traveller. On her head W
ur covering of coarse Gotten, called, in the Ia
Nv guage of former generations, 'sun-bonnet.'
he It nearly hid her face from observation.
ne Reaching forward a stool, the only salutati
a given vas take seat by the fire, stranger.
lst Recollecting what Ledyard, and other trav,
At ers have said of the humanity and hospitality
to the female sex, the missionary mused on
ur probabilities of escaping with life feeling
III. degree of reconciliation to this loss of his hor
ors his saddle.bags, and the loss of his purse, whi
W. last contained butt few dollars for travelling ,
st, penses In his saddle bags were divers artic
w, Of apparel which he could spare, and there "
'ir, the pocket bible, the gift of mother now
70: heaven, a hymn-book, and small package
he neatly written sermons, which had cost him S,
tn era months labor, and, as he fancled, were
ed mirabv adanted 10 disnanae tho clorJs oc -,