Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1891-03-27
The Sun Of White Apple.
BY MAURICE THOMPSON.


body of picked soldiers, held the little
post called Fort Rosalic, in Louisiana,
and ruled with military despotisn the
country found about. He was brave
and efficient soldier; no better ever drew
sword during the long struggle for the
upbuilding Of tho Louisiana colonies;
but, us was the cnso with most of those
hardy and intrepid Adventures, he had
little regard for the rights or the feelings
of the real owners of the soil, the ill-fated
red men, whose romantic and heroic his
tory has never been adequately recorded.
The region surrounding Fort Rosalie
was extremely fertile, and had been long
occupied by the Matches tribe of Indians,
whose knowledge and skill in ngricul-
ture were only equaled by their lofty
pride of bearing and their courage in
battle. They were inclined to DC peace
full, and treated the white invaders of
their country with great kindness ut a
time when it would have been easy to rid
themselves of their threatening presence
forever.
Bienville, lately superseded by Pericr
as Governor or Commander General of
the province of Louisiana, had treated
the Matches most brutality. True, the
Indians had massacred the settlement on
the Saintc Catherine; but before this
they had been robbed, tricked, cheated
and forced from their lands by Bienville's
followers, and their act was but the out
burst of righteous indignation long
suppressed. Bicxvillc and his officers
fearing to meet the Matches in open war
fare, sought IN interview with their
chiefs, and entered into compact to
maintain peace. No sooner were the
Indians off their guard, however, than
the French secretly took possession of
Fort Rosalie, and prepared to drive the
whole tribe into the wilderness. A
general attack was made on the quiet
and practically defenseless villages and
plantations. Many of the Indians were
slaughtered in the most inhuman way,
and to crown all, Bicnvillc demanded
that the Matches should surrender up to
him their leaders. When this was done
the brave chiefs were brutality murdered.
For time the appalled, and grief
stricken tribe appeared to be utterly sub
ducd. The braves ceased to struggle
against fate which was bearing them
down with such merciless certainty. They
became stolid tillers of the soil, opened
trade with the white men and went about
rs if heart broken.
Chopart, whose desire for gain knew
no bounds, used his official power at
Fort Rosalie as lever for hosting gold
into his Golfers. He had ceased to credit
the reports of vast deposits of precious
metals to be found farther northward,
and turned his attention to despoiling
the Indians by trickcry and intimidation.
At this time famous chicftain, one of
the noblcst of the Matches tribe, owned
u superb plantation called "NVhite Ap.
ple," upon which he lived, surrounded
by small village of his tenants. He
was man in the first prime of life, tall,
1.-the and of commanding presence; his
face, though inscrutable, was of fine
manly type, dark, but not black, straight
featured and full of quiet but lofty dig
nifty. His home at White Apple was a
spacious lodge, hung with the skins of
wild beasts and furnished with all the
savage splendor of weapons and warlike
trophies and decorations becoming q rich
and noble representative of a powerful
line of chiefs, or "suns," as the Matches
named their leaders. Generation upon
generation of his ancestors had lived and
died there, and the place had become
famous throughout the great Indian na-
tion rs the most lovely, fertile and desir-
able possession within the whole southern
region.
Seeing the valuable crops of grain
gathered by the Suns tenants, and rec
ognizing the incompatible beauty of the
White Apple plantation, Chopart made
up his mind to seize the place and hold
it as his own. No sooner had the thought
formed in his mind than he set about
carrying the design into execution. He
sent peremptory order to the Sun to
vacate the place Immediately and to take
with him his family and all his people /;
but instead of obeying, as the overbear-
ing Frenchman expected he would, the
Sun sent back naughty and unequivocal
refusal, saying that the beautiful place
was his by inheritance and should remain
his and descend to his children.
Chopart made dreadful threats, and so
intimidated the Indians that, in coun-
Gil called for the purpose, they agreed
that, if permitted to remain where they
were, they would pay heavy tribute, in
the nature of rent or tax; and so the
red men were made mere slaves in all
but name to the avarioious commander
of the fort.
1t was while matters stood thus that O
young man by the nams Of Alphonse dc
Villars arrived at Fort Rosalie. He was
Q strikingly handsome youth, with Q
dashing air, and, as ho brought letters
from Pericr, he was treated with unlim-
tied courtesy. BE had lately come over
from France, was member of distin-
guished and influential family, and was
burning with the desire for wild adven-
ture. Chopart, of course, felt the value
of the favor of SO distinguished visitor,
whose influence might hasten the pro-
motion that had been so long withheld /;
therefore,he made him his special guest,
and this led to ameeting between Made