Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1888-01-26
A Day and Two Nights on Girty's Is.
land.
As REPoRTED BY o. THOMPSON.


The speaker as he rose to his feet cast, ,one
| eye on the collection of stores and the other
on the audience, and spoke in the following
strain:
GENTLEMAN OF THE JURY:-To write or
speak of the past, to preserve the historic
records of former age-to Gull the good
and true of any time-to render green again
the memories of by-gone days even though
blood and carnage had marked the fields and
foot prints of the periods, gone with CORY
redness and made the rivers and rivulets to
run crimson with the blood of the slain--ls
but to perform common duty to common
humanity. AT this juncture there came
voice IN clear and sharp ringing tones from
a hammock slung between two small trees,
object.) All eyes were turned in the di-
rection of the last speaker as he slipped out
of his hammock, and as he walked up to the
orator with his cane in one hand and a bound
volume in the other and presented it to him,
reminded the gentleman that he was not
speaking in court But he was equal to the
occasion. Opening the book at a place
marked with broken stick and green leaf
he resumed his oration
FRIENDS AND NEIGHBORs AND GENTLEMEN
| OF THE BAR:-The words | have selectel as a
foundation for few remarks will be folnd
recorded in Howe's Historical Collections of
the State of Ohio, page 246, and reads as
follows:
The notorious Simon Girty once resided
| i've miles above Napoleon at a place called
Girty's Point. His cabin was on the bank Of
the Maumee few rods west of the residence
| of Mr.. Elijah Gum. All traces of his hab-
itations have been obliterated, and fine
farm now surrounds the spot, (the speaker
by way of apology said.)
1t was remarked by some old wiseacre that
If man think twice before he speaks he will
speak twice the better for it, and as you are
all well aware that the honor conferred upon
me tonight was wholly unexpected, and if
the eulogy l am supposed to pronounce on
the long ago defunct Mr.. Girty. should
not come up to the style of oratory in vogue
one hundred years ago, you should remem-
Der the difficulty we labor under in bringing
our witnesses in the case into court. We
can send messenger to them but no process
has yet been invented that the proper re-
turns can be made, and it is probably the
only instance on record that a mans fun
eral has been preached so years after his
death. find myself on this occasion labor
ing under the same difficulty that colored
brother that read about was in away down
IN georgia. 1t seems that pious old darkey
was found lying dead on the barn floor with
a dead chicken under his arm, on a neigh
boring plantation. How TO preach him into
Heaven was a problem difficult to solve by
the brethren. A colored preacher was at
last found equal to the OCCASION, and if so be-,
said he, that de bruder after he COM
menced to fall from de perlin beam and be-
fore he struck de floor he repenet'd he is no
doubt in glory, but bredren it am mighty
short time to do it in.
And so we find ourselves tonight in regard
to Mr.. Girty. One hundred years ago with
his name was associated with everything cruel
and tend-like; to women and the children
in particular nothing was more terrifying
than the name of Simon Girty. 1t was be-
lieved that he had fled from justice by many
at this time, but this impression was an err
roneous one. He left the whites, Joined the
Indians, determined to do his countrymen all
the harm he could, their foes were his foes,
their friends his friends. Although trained in
! all his pursuits as an Indian, it is said that
his influence was great and it was generally
in power to protect the imploring captives
if he wished. Cat this stage of the discourse
a certain restlessness was noticed in the audi
ence, also that the speakers eyes turned
wistfnlly in the direction of the stores, and
it was considered the proper thing to adjourn
for inspection. After inspection it was no.
ticed that the speakers actions were more
war-lke and cratic, and as the audience were
called to order and he was about to resume
his discourse he stepped upon the stump in
stead of standing beside it as before.)
My friends, [ find this Simon Girty bust
ness rather too small to confne myself to
and with your permission l will take in the
noble red man and try and see what there is
in his history to interest US.
Now then, my friends, as we turn our eyes
to the North it is but a step or two as il
were until you strike the tow path of the
Wabash and Erie canal. The line of thi:
canal was once bloody war-path which has
seen many scene of horror, and this peace
full island has had its moloch, and the records
of human depravity furnish no more terrible
example of cruelty than were offered at his
shrine.
The Miami Indians, our predecessors in
the occupation of this district, had a terrible
institution whose origin and object have
been lost in the darkness of aboriginal his.
tory, but which was continued to late
period, and whose orgies, l have no doubt
were held on this very island where we now
stand. 1t was called the Man Eating So
ciety, and it was the duty of its associates tc
eat such prisoners as were preserved and
were delivered to them for that purpose. CA
perceptable shudder was noticed to pass over
the crowd as they gathered near each Other
while some threw more wood on the fire. !
The members of this society belonged to q
particular family, and the dreadful inheri.
tance decended to all the children, both
male and female; the duties it imposed couId
not be avoided and the sanctions of religion
) were added to the obligations of immemori
al usage-the feast was solemn ceremony
actors or spectators. The poor victim
was bound to a stake and burned at slow
fire with all the refnements of cruelty that
savage ingenuity could invent. There was a
traditionary ritual that regulated with re-
voting precision the whole course of pro-
cedure at these ceremonies.
And here where we are now assembled in
peace and security, celebrating and testing
the good things brought with us, our coun.
| trymen have been tortured, murdered and
| devoured, but thank God that council fire is
extinguished, the impious feast is over, the
, war dance is ended, the war song is sung
! and the war drum is silent. feeble rem
nant of this once powerful tribe which form.
| ally won their way to the dominion of this
| region by blood, and by blood maintained it,
, are to-day scattered over the Indian territory,
! others with Wild Bills great show, fitting
, around the places that know them no more
forever, they are the broken column that con
meets us with the past the ediice is in ruins
and the giant vegetation which covered and
protected it, lies as low as the once mighty
structure which was shelved in its resesses,
the ceremonies upon which our forefathers
gazed with interest, will never again be seen
In this seat of their former power. But
thanks to our ascendency, these representa-
tlons were but pageant, but a theatricalsex-
hlbit1on which with barbarous motions and
sounds and contortions, showed our ances-
tors how they conquered their enemies, and
how they glutted their revenge in blood. (The
speaker seemed to be lifted up into an inn
aginary world and carried his audience with
him, calling to your reporter for mouth full
l from his private flask, he proceeded \