The Sumter banner. [volume] (Sumterville, S.C.) 1846-1855, 1851-08-19

II. Picot, of the American Fur Company,
who has just como from the Indian country,
the following particulars Of the rayages of
tho cholera durihg the past two years:
At Fort Pierre. in the year 1850, the first
case Of cholera occurred on the 4,h of July.
Other'cases followed this, and the disease
continued 10 spend until some three or four
hundred Missouri Sioux Indians had fallen
victims To il.
Tho ravages of sickness were not
confined to the fnIians, 1t would appear
The cholera communicated to The cattle;
and Major Picoti says that. from his own
knowledge only, some fifty head of cattle
died Of o sickness for which he cannot
account, unless it were cholera. They
were seized suddcnly with vomiting and
p"rging, and in many instances, indeed in
the majority of instances, death ensued
alter five or Elk hours from the NANTES.
la,on oi the first symptoms.
When ,he disease was raging most vio-
Icntly among the Indians, council was
hell, after whose decision the entire nation
struck camp, and separated for various
| quarters. A portion OF them took refuge
in the mountains, and the remainder Jour
| ncvcd towards the North.
The cholera followed the party WHO had
! repaired TO the mountains, and continued
commit sad ravages among them. To add
| still more 10 their misiurtuncs, tile smallpox
broke ont among them about the same time,
| and while Il ran i,s course there were from
| five to six hundred of their numbers who
| fell victims to it, The traders did all that
! lay in their power to alleviate the sutferings
about them They we're fortunately well
| 4, 81.
| l'cot supposcs that no less than fifteen to
| twenty thousand Indians were vaccinatcd
| by them to start from tho occurrence OF the
| first case.
Tho most frigh,ful panic spread itself
among the Indians on the appearance Of
cholera in such malignant form. Neither
were sufficient bonds to keep them together
| abandoned by their husbands, parents by
their friends. Tie cholera, aud also the
| small pnx, fingered from July, 1850. TO
July, 1851, abling in winter 10 consider
able extent. In that time, numerous
children and helpless women, and old men,
wbo had been suddenly abandoned by those
rhn, had hitherto s,pp,rted them, were
picked up aud taken charge of b. the
! lradcrs.
The fact may not be without lis interest,
! that in tho present year. when The party Of
Sioux (cnn'st,n. OF one thousand 'ain:lies)
wen, 10 the North. they fell in with war
! party u! B;ackfcet, who we're IN search Of
he Crow Indians J'hc Sioux attacked
them, and murdered every person IN the
! party. Not single one was left To bear
tho tale Ia his uation.
After the occurrence Of the first few
cases IN small poX, those Indians who had
retired Ia tive north became particularly
careful III their nicrcoinmunicalicn with
,irtngcrs. Guards were stationed about
tlitir Villages, whose duty 1t was 10 warn
| ali strangers RON approaching therD, and
further 20 shoot down such as persisted
III crossing the line Of their cncau,pment
Maj. picot adds ihatgery many Indians OF
foreign tribes, as welias of The Sioux tribe
Itself, was murdered for the reason that
they disrcgarded This regulation.
stf ---sD~. -~~~-------~--e 50
I REMaRKanLE AuToMAToS TREE-We
had ar opportunity, snys sthe-ANn.verhcmp.
TO" Herald. (E"giord.) OF inspeciin:tI at
bazir al MIR Chec'han,, on Thur day last,
! an aut"inaiom. iis novel IN its action as II
IS hcauthu! in design. Tbs remarkable
piece oi mechanism consists oi a hawthorn
irrc III 'u!i bloom fiilhfniiy copiet, the
rrusied or seini-pershcd bark Of the trunk r
and ihc io'iagc beng most naturally i'm Ia.
ted and on several Of the branches two
stuffed hnnming birds are perch ID, which.
now waving iheS wings and anon hopping
from spray 10 spray and pouring fourth a
io0d ot music, almost charm the spec or
n:o ihc belle! ,l-.t II is plcasin. reality,
and not nv Illus OF, which is represented To
his admlriug view. Onc oi tho tiny crea-
tnrcS jumps from one branch 10 another in
puI-u q! a!cs and i,sccts--ano;hcr lies
hasknT IN one OF The hawthorn flowers,
nthHrJ SITS On lis nest. whist several others
lrc disposed IN diicrent parts oi the tree
Tie SINGING o! the birds is not only accu-
rate and ua;ura, hul the motion is also all
m!ra5!c, uuc oi them flying from one branch
I" "anolhcr, 4 d.sIhacc ui about eight ,nchcs,
w't. the greatest oSsi!le precision, and
alternately turning completely round III go.
'"g ar rrlnrunng, ana w!lhou, anything be-
/ ING observed 10 cause such an effect, or
even tn q S:Uvtr The motion %! this uniGnC
nnL cIrgint sIccHnca OF Industrial art. On
Tie base -! the tree, which ahounds In
moss, tufiS ut grAss, and the concouiltan,
hcth 'gc (cnnpnsct @! material which,
'!i"E: all others appears most suited 10 the
purpoac) with a nuubcr Of shells, Sc, &c,
arc a lamlI"r and Chinese is catcher, both
birds "t n,autiinl plumagc, and the latter
- lnccs7hn'IY pcckinS the carcase Of Il
go!Ien beetle amongst the moss in tho
tore g.ouHd, nos aud then stopping to Swal-
low, what he may have managed 10 Gull
with has slender henk. The artist has
achieved a work OF which he may be lust.
~ proud, the ensemble being such as 10