The Ely miner., 1930-08-22

young giant. Tails OF wild animals
hung from wampum belt and bow
and arrow swung across his broad
shoulders. These intimate details have
been carefully preserved in connection
with the world-old story of love at
first sight
Laughing Water rose gracefully to
welcome him, but she reckoned with
out her naughty father, TO whom the
sight of an Usage was poison ivy. But
none the less, Laughing Water had
mind Of her own, as daughters of a
tribal chieftain should have, and she
encouraged the shots from the love
arrow of the Usage warrior.
''Day by day the young couple
roamed the forest or fioated on the
silvery waters of the Niangua, Laugh
ing Water sang like birds in tree tops
or laughed till the forest rang with
melody as her lover related his sto-
ries of wonderful adventure. Then as
now, lovers it would seem were prone
to spread a glamour around their
past.
1.-The Usage warrior came to friendly
terms with the Shawnee braves, as
their bitter jealousies vanished before
evidences of his skill as fisherman
and hunter and prowess as q warrior.
They took him into their council, but
old Grey Eagle would not mix medi-
cine potions that would enable him
to become a son-in-law.
"Courtship of this pair lasted during
the summer, and every means of win
ming the fathers consent proved un-
availing. Laughing Water was urged
to flee the tribal domain and become
one of the Usage people. But her
Shawnee blood would not permit, so
the young couple decided since they
could not live together they would die
together. Thus united in the land of
the great silence their love would be
unhindered by the wishes of a medi-
cine chief.
Face to face and hand to hand the
Indian lovers plighted their everlast-
ing troth, sought high bluff on the
river beneath which the waters formed
a great swirling eddy, cast themselves
far into the channel and no trace of
them was ever discovered"
A similar detailed account of an
other Lovers Leap, which bears the
more prosaic name of Jump mountain,
was told in recent issue of the
Lexington (va.) Gazette, prefaced
with this editors note: "The follow
ing article has been contributed by a
friend who is satisfied that the ac-
count is historical
"At a distance of about three miles
from the Baths, and easy of access, is
the Jump, one of the mountains that
form the Goshen pass, gradually rising
in height until at the distance of a
mile and a half from the river it ter
inmates abruptly, making depth to
the bottom below of two thousand
feet, and presents view as extensive
as interesting.
sThe valleys of the Baths and Walk
er's creek were once the favorite
hunting ground of the proud and
brave Cherokee, who, driven south
ward by the advance of civilization,
nearly one hundred years afterwards
| contested, with varied fortune, the
| prowess of the United States forces
| amidst the savannas of the South, and
at last yielded only with the right to
| select and remove to other and better
hunting grounds beyond the Missis-
| sippi. While out on hunt on one
occasion, the Cherokees ventured in
what is now known as the little Calf
Pasture. to which their neighbors. the
Shawnees across the mountain. claimed
an exclusive privilege. They were or
dered off. and refusing to go, fight
ensued, which ended in discontinue
| Of the Shawnees, who proceeded at