Gallipolis journal. [volume] (Gallipolis, Ohio) 1837-1919, 1870-04-21
EIsToRIcAL SKETCHES.
No. 6.
JOHN EWING.

Tue kShS 0AA thiOSVhC JONAHSJ' W"
adopted by a family in Delaware
Town. He often met her during
their captivity, source of grea'
pleasure to both. The little boy
John, namesake of Ewing's and
great favorite withal, for he was 6
bright, intelligent little fellow, jus
old enough to win the love and ad
miration of those around him BY
his pretty boyish ways, was present
ed by his captor to two squaws, WHIT
had kind of joint interest in him
On a quarrel arising between then
as to who should have possession
the Indian, to settle the dispute
struck him dead with tomahawk.
Having a retentive memory ano
an observing eye, Ewing soon oe
came master of the Indian language
and manners. On one OF theii
predatory excursions among the
white settlements of Tennessee, the
Indians became the unwitty posses
sors of two articles, the nature and
uses of which they did not quite
comprehend-the Bible and the
smallpox. The Bible was deliver
ed to Thobqueb, Hole an ths-day) J,
the great council chief of the Shaw
nees. His age, which he reckoned by
many hundreds Of moons, was near.
ly a hundred years. He carried
the honorable scars of many bor-
der war, and had in his wigwam
scalps and trophies innumerable.-
He commanded the Indians at the
battle of Monongahela, and among
his trophies from that field were a
number of watches, shoe buckles,
buttons and other ornaments taken
from the ILL foted officers of that dis
astrous day. Ewing represented
him as man remarkable for his sa-
gacity in council, his constant zeal,
his active spirit, and brilliant elo-
quence, all heightened by the i'm
preston of his personal appearance,
which age made still more striking.
But with all his cunning, the white
mans book was to him perplexing
He summoned Ewing to
his wigwam and commanded him to
explain. He began at the first and
it into the Indian tongue.
All seemed satisfactory 20 the chief
until he came to mans wonderful
creation: "And the Lord God form
man out of the dust of the earth,
and"-''stopn thund cred the chief.
"You say the Great Spirit made man
out of the dust of the ground, now,
was that man white man or an In
dian? Ewing, in his natural sim
plicity, said he supposed it meant
white man of course. The joke
Lickled Thobqueb immensely, and
ne forgave the boys Presumption
Said he, 81 pity your Ignorance, but
you ought at least to have sense
enough to know that the Great
Spirit never made the poor, ignor-
ant, cowardly white man before he
did the red man! But go on, 1
will listen to a little more of Your
nonsense, though 1 don't believe a
word of it," All went well until he
came to the description of the
Deluge. Here he was obliged to in
5erpret the word ark by the Indian
Tor canoe, and thus arose another
stumbling block to the chiefs un-
ierstanding of the Scriptures. Af-
Ter reading the dimensions of the
great canoe" and the number of
persons and animals put on board,
he old chief exclaimed: "Now you
NOW that's lie, there never was a
rec On the Scioto bottoms big
enough to make such canoe as
haiti
When the small-p broke out
Imong them their fear knew no
pounds. The most skillful medicine
men among them, with roots of
Vonderous power, were unable to
'tay the sweeping pestilence. 1t
'arried them off by hundreds. The
warrior whose heart was never wont |
20 quake with fear, now threw him
elf into the river, preferring a
peedy death, rather than fall at the
lands of the CHASTITY foe. Ewing's
.dopted mother and sister were
'mong the victims. When he felt
he disease fastening itself upon him,
le repaired to a field of growing
orn and squashes which he had on
he river bank short distance below
he village. Here beside spring of
parking water, he cut down large
cad she'll bark hickory and set it on
re. With buffalo robe and blanket
Or bed and roast squashes and
old water for diet, with neither
ursing nor medicine, he passed
trough the ordeal in safety, with
carcely mark to mar his features.
lie said he never found a better
emedy for small pox. +