The Pascagoula democrat-star. (Pascagoula, Miss.) 1878-1920, 1897-11-26
BILL ARP'S LETTER.

by Indians. The other night rs |
came from Macon to Atlanta my
friend. Judge Hall, introduced nc to
DR.. Peterson, Of st. Louis. very
learned and cultured gentleman who
was connected with the chronological
department OF the government and
was engaged in examining Indian
mounds and in writing up the history
Df the Indian tribes. especially of the
five tribes known us civilized, viz. the
Cherokecs, Creeks, Chickasaws. Choc-
taws and Scminolcs. AS these were
our indians, | became much int crest
ed in his discourse, for he had been
careful and diligcnt in his research.
and what he knew. he knew well,
We talked about DeSoto aud how.
with handful OF brave soldiers. he
nverran this country and took captive
us many Indian girls US his men
wanted.
"Why did not these Indians over.
wlclm DcSot0 and his handful of
followers and cXtiDguish thcm?" !
asked. because" said the doctor.
they were paralyzed with fear OF
this new and aggressive race Of people
just as the Peruvians we're patalyzed
by Pizarro, who overran and con
oucrcd Peru with less than a hundred
men,"
The doctor has been to eastern
North Carolina Investigating tho
tribe Of 1900 CroatOans over there.
They were originally called lIatteras
Indians, hut about three hundred
years ago Sir Walter Raleigh planted
"A colony of English and Portuguese
on Roanoke island and put them in
charge OF Governor John White, q
very practical and accomplished gen
tlcman. A few days after landing
Governor Whites daughter Eleanor
who had married a Mr.. Dare, gave
birth to II child and she was nance
virginia, and so Virginia Dare wa.
the first English child born on Amcri
can soil. Let the boys and girls re
member that. But no man knows
/ anything more about her. G0vern0
, White and Sir Walter went back Il
England for supplies and farming
/, tools for the colony and on their re
4 lturn trip got into fight with SOM
r Spanish cruisers and lcst their carg
and many Of their men and had to e
$ hack to England, and it was sevcri
d years before they made another ven
ture, and when they arrived at TIL
island the colony was nowhere to b
II found and little Virginia has ncve
been heard of. The colony left som
y marks on Il tree painting to an India
l.. town called Croatoan, but the tow
was deserted. The doctors invcstigi
If tions have satisfied him that til
colony did not perish nor were the
killed, but that the men wanted wivt
and went ictO the interior and CT
habitcd with the CroatOans-f0r
was found a hundred years after tha
y, these Indians were OF mixed cOlO
i and many Of them spoke broken {
to mixed English and Portuguese,
though they had no intercourse vii
ut white people until the colony can
Al nor for n hundred years after i
y, believes that Virginia Dare prohab
=. grew up with those Indians and h
\, descendants are now Of mixed blood
1t seems that these Cr0at0ans We
.. never Americanized until the Ia
i, civil war, when many OF them eau
II to the front with their guns and sa
'st they wanted to fight some. TIL
n were accepted and enrolled and d
vs llght for the COnfcderucy. Durll
the war there was an election held
of- u county where sOmc 0f them live
pr- and they were persuaded by an III
w. bilious candidate to 20 to the po
y, and vote for him. Their votes w
" challenged by the other fellow up