Herald and tribune. [volume] (Jonesborough, Tenn.) 1869-current, 1895-05-01

OF such places, who took possession il
the name Of their sovereign, entitled
the country of the discoverer to tn,
dominion and sovereignty of the soil
without this maxim, the rights t,
lands within chartered limits, ar,
without solid basis to support them
The maxim, it is true, is beyond thu
limits of ordinary comprehension, ant
like compensation in the case of com
mon recovery, is founded upon pre-
sumption which the law will not suffei
to be disproved. Its best support il
found in another consanguineous max
i'm, which is, that "de legibus non es
disputandum." The right to the sol
being thus established in the commu
nifty, and the right of the Indians being
only usufructuary, and that, too, by
the favor and permission of the allodia
owners, the state or community; ol
consequence, it follows, that no indi
vidual purchase can be valid. Upon
this ground it was, that such purchases
were forbidden, both under the regal
government and by the constitution OF
North Carolina.
When the first settlers came to the
bluff in 1779 and 1880, the country had
the appearance of one which had never
been cultivated before. There was nc
sign Of any cleared land, nor other ap.
pearance of former cultivation. Moth
ing was presented to the eye but one
large plain of woods and cane, fre
quented by buffaloes, elk, deer, wolves,
foxes, panthers and other animals
suited to the climate. The lands ad
jacent to the French Lick, which Mr..
Mansco, in 1869, called an old field,
was large open piece, frequented and
trodden by buffaloes, whose large
paths led to it from all parts of the
country, and there concentrated. On
these adjacent lands were no under.
growth, nor cane as far as the creek
reached in time of high water; OF
rather, as far as the back water reached
The country as far as to Elk river, and
beyond it, had not single permanent
inhabitant except the wild beasts of
the forest; but it had been inhabited
many centuries before by a numerous
population. At every lasting spring is
a large collection of graves made in a
particular way, with the heads in.
clined on the sides and feet stones, the
whole covered with stratum of mould
and dirt abou. eightor ten inches deep.
AT many springs 10 the appearance OF
walls ENCLOSING ancient babitations,
the found5kiobs of which resa Isib!z
wheneveB the earth was cleared and
cultivated; to which walls entrench.
ments were some times added. These
walls some times, enclose six, eight, OF
ten acres of land, and some times they
are more extensive. Judging from the
number and frequency of these appear
ances, it cannot be estimated, but that
the former inhabitants were ten times,
If not twenty times, more numerous
than those who at present occupy the
country. Voracious time, has drawn
them with the days of their ages, into
her capacious stoma ach, where, dissolv.
ing into ailments of oblivion, they
have left to be saved from annihilation
only the faint and glimmering chroni-
Giles of their former being. Were it
not for the short alphabet we now
have, possessing the wonderful power
of perpetuating The existence of things
in some future age, the fresh born man
of the day, travelling over the remains
of ourselves, might find himself puz.
zled with the perplexing question,
what human being formerly lived
hefep
Early in January, 1880, a party of
about sixty Indians of the Delaware
tribe, came from towards the Caney
Fork of Cum berland River, and passed
by the head of Mill Creek, on branch
of which they encamped; whence, it
has since been called Indian Creek
they then proceeded to Bear Creek of
Tennessee, and continued there during
the summer. This is supposed to be
the first party which molested the
whites on Cumberland.
CHHPTER ".
On the Sd of February, 1881, Gov
ernor Nash signed commission ap.
pointing Sewer to be the Colonel com.
mandant of Washington County, and
on the sixth of the same month, Gen.
eral Greene, by commission, authorized
William Christian, William Preston
Arthur Campbell, and Joseph Martin,
of Virginia, and Robert Lanier, Evan
Shelby, Joseph Williams, and John
Sewer, Of the state of North Carolina,
or any five of them, to meet com mis-
sioners. to be appointed on the part ol
the Cherokee and Chickasaws, for the
purpose of adjusting the respective
limits of each party; for exchange OF
prisoners; suspension of hostilities
and the conclusion of peace; or any
thing else, for the establishment OF
harmony and good understanding
between the parties, subject to the con.
firmation of Congress. They were tc
observe the boun larry line between
North Carolina and Virginia, and to
exchange such pledges for the observ.
ance of the treaty to be concluded on,