Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1916-06-07
Chapter v.

VI lltc hulllciS, Sllll uHueT the con-
duct of Moitoy, from the one to the
other side OF the upper branch Of
the Keowee River, now called the Jo-
cassee. but which, at that time, went
by the name OF Sarratay. The vari-
GUS bands prepared to move with the
daylight; and, still near, and still
in sight OF one another, the Occonies
and EStatoees took up their line of
march with the rest. The long poles
Of the two, bearing the Green Bird
of the one and the Brown Viper Of
| the other, in the hands Of their re-
spectivc bearers s--stout warriors cho-
sen for this purpose with reference
to strength and valour--wavcd in
| parallel courses, though the space
| between them was made as great as
possible by the common policy of
both parties. Following the route
Of the caravan, which had been form
cd of the ancient men, the women
and children to whom had been en-
| trusted the skins taken in the hunt,
etc. the great body of hunters were
soon in motion for other and better
nG-grounds, several miles dist
| ant, beyond the river.
| ''The Indian warriors have their
| own mode OF doing business, and do
not often travel with the stiff precis-
ion which marks European civiliza-
ton. Though having all one point of
| destination, each hunter took his
own route to gain it, and in this man
ner asserted his independence. This
had been the education Of the Indian
| boy, and this self-reliance is one
! source Of that spirit and characte"
which will not suffer him to feel sur
| prise in any situation. Their way.
generally, wound along a pleasant
valley, unbroken for several miles,
| until you came to Big-Knob, a huge
crag which completely divides it, ris-
ing formidably up in the midst, and
narrowing the valley on either hand
| to fSsure. necessarily compelling
| a closer march for all parties than
had heretofore been pursued. Strag-
Cling about as they had been, Of
course but little order was percepti-
bic when they came together, in lit
tie groups, where the mountain
forced their junction. One OF the
Bear tribe found himself alongside
handful Of Foxes, and a chief Of
the Allgators plunged promiscuously
into the center OF cluster of the
Turkey tribe, whose own chief was
probably doing the proper courtesies
among the Alligators. These little
crossings, however, were amusing
rather than annoying, and were,
generally, productive OF little incon-
vcnience and no strife. But it so
happened that there was one excep-
ton to the accustomed harmony The
Occonies and Estatoees, like the rest,
had broken up in small parties, and,
as might have been foreseen, when
they came individually to where the
crag divided the valley into two,
other hand. and it was not until one
OF the paths they had taken opened
into Il little plain in which the woods
were bald--a sort of prairie-,that
that they had among them two of
their detested rivals. the Little Esta-
toees. What made the matter worse,
one OF these stragglcrs was the i'll
to cary the badge of his tribe; and
there, high above their heads-the
heads OF the Brown Vipers-the de-
tcstable symbol, the green bird it.
self.
"rhcrc was no standing that. The
Brown Vipers, as if with a common
instinct. were Immediately up in
arms. They gappled the offending
stragglcrs without gloves. They
tore the green bird from the pole,
stamped it under foot, smothered it.
in the mud, and pulling out the cone
tuft OF its head. utterly degraded it
Ill lHeiF OWN as "cll as Ill the eStlma-
ton Of the EstatOees. Not content
with this, they hung the desecrated
emblem about the neck Of the bear
er of it. and, spite Of all their strug.
giles. binding the arms Of the two
stragglcrs behind their backs, the
relentless vipers thrust the long pole
which had borne the bird, in such
manner hot Wnnn thnir nltnrnafo q rma