The Wyandot pioneer. (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) 1853-1868, 1857-01-22


ted, and he could not help it. He soor
learned to swing the axe as well as tht
sturdy Peter; but the latter was his su
:. perlor in every point where an inventive
talent was brought into play. It was
owing to the Yankee ingenuity of Pete,
Potter that his own humble cabin was
SO much superior in comfortto the gener-
ality of squatters' homes; and he now
exercised his skill freely in rendering his
neighbors' equally as comfortable; for he
was continually plying the delicate lady
for the hardships she would have to en-
dure. The heighth Of his efforts was at
tanned in the construction of stuffed
chair, in which she was to sit to rest her
self and nurse her little May. 1t was
made like rustic arbor chair, of supple
branches of hickory iutertwined, bark an,
swering the purpose OF nails or glue; it
had high back and low arms, and the
whole was covered with some blue check
which had lain on hand for the children's
aprons, and stuffed thick with prairie hay
and the inner husks of corn shred fine.
1t was the first day of September when
all things were finally in readiness for
the occupancyof the new cabin Baby
May was six weeks old that day. She
smiled as she was carried across the
threshold of her home; and her mother
was glad to accept her smile as an omen
of prosperity.
Alice had improved the time of her
stay with Mrs. Potter to learn how to do
many things. She could concoct three
kinds Of corn bread of excellent quality,
namely, johnny cake, griddle- cakes. and
corn dodgers. 1t required no teaching
to roast potatoes. She had learned to
make butter, too; for The squatter, al
though 10th, had consented to part with
bis little two-year old cow, who was going
to give milk some time, if she did not
then. For the present, they were depen-
dent upon the two year-old's mother.
Shortly after she went to housekeep
ing, wild -plums of delicious richness of
flavor began to ripen upon the prairies,
SO chat they had not only enough fo~ pres
ent uses, but were enabled to preserve a
quantity in maple molasses, manufattur-
ed by the Potters from the trees about
their door. Alice amused herself much
over this primitive cooking; but as she
happened to like very well the peculiar
flavor OF the maple her sweetmeats were
not to be despised. Toadd to other good
fortune, Mr.. Potter found bee-tree rich
" stored with honey, which he cut down
and divided the spoils. Add to this that
there was fine supply Of fowls about the
place, furnishing eggs enough for all
kinds Of delicate and palatable dishes, and
it will be seen that our cmigrants were
indeed fortunate in settling down where
they could profit by the superior expert
ence oftheir neightors.
The great amusement Of the two men
Of this tiny settlement was hunting. Mr..
Lancaster had been in at the death of
many fox in his own country, likewise,
an occasional deer; but such bunting as
he now heard of had never entered into
his. dreams; and the bare description of
It fired his blood with the desire to share
N its excite ements. A grand buffalo hunt
Tor instance, with fifty men in the party
and a hudred miles of prairie for hunt
ng ground, would be something worth
engaging in. But they had not the men
for this kind Of an undertaking. A big
gray wolf killed about ten miles from
home, was one of their trophies; and they
brought down deer enough in the course
Of the autumn to provide themselves
with dried and picked yenison for the
winter. Prairie fowls, pigeons, quails,.
and pheasants were everyday luxuries,
with occasionally a wild-turkey. Edwin
lad not been a backwoods long
enough to succeed well in hunting this
3hy game, which called into action all the
skill Of the old hunter. Mr.. Potter at
asst constructed trap or pen for tn EN-,
nto which be decoyed goodly number.
All through the gorgeous autumn,
while her husband was away from her
his out door pursuits, Alice bad
many hours for quiet musing. Her pres
ent life was indeed q strange one, and
strange were some of the thoughts hichl
t brought to her No books, no music,
lone of the arts of refined society with
which to occupy her mind, she was turn
ID back upon the resources OF her own
nature for enjoyment. Fortunately, she
lad poetical temperament and richly
stored memory, or she might have pined
away of eh'aui. She eagerly sought after
yerything beautiful or interesting in SUR ,
'ounding circumstances. During the
golden afternoons of October, she would