en knew the numbers or leaders of the Indians.
At the time it was supposed that they outnumbered the whites; but it is
probable that the reverse was the case, and it may even be that they
were not more than half as numerous. It is said that the chief who led
them, both in council and battle, was Little Turtle, the Miami. At any
rate, there were present all the chiefs and picked warriors of the
Delawares, Shawnees, Wyandots, and Miamis, and all the most reckless and
adventurous young braves from among the Iroquois and the Indians of the
Upper Lakes, as well as many of the ferocious whites and half-breeds who
dwelt in the Indian villages.

Fury and Skill of the Indians.

The Indians fought with the utmost boldness and ferocity, and with the
utmost skill and caution. Under cover of the smoke of the heavy but
harmless fire from the army they came up so close that they shot the
troops down as hunters slaughter a herd of standing buffalo. Watching
their chance, they charged again and again with the tomahawk, gliding
into close quarters while their bewildered foes were still blindly
firing into the smoke-shrouded woods. The men saw no enemy as they stood
in the ranks to load and shoot; in a moment, without warning, dark faces
frowned through the haze, the war-axes gleamed, and on the frozen ground
the weapons clattered as the soldiers fell. As the comrades of the
fallen sprang forward to avenge them, the lithe warriors vanished as
rapidly as they had appeared; and once more the soldiers saw before them
only the dim forest and the shifting smoke wreaths, with vague half
glimpses of the hidden foe, while the steady singing of the Indian
bullets never ceased, and on every hand the bravest and steadiest fell
one by one.

The Troops at First Fight Resolutely.
Bravery of the Officers in Command.

At first the army as a whole fought firmly; indeed there was no choice,
for it was ringed by a wall of flame. The officers behaved very well,
cheering and encouraging their men; but they were the special targets of
the Indians, and fell rapidly. St. Clair and Butler by their cool
fearlessness in the hour of extreme peril made some amends for their
shortcomings as commanders. They walked up and down the lines from flank
to flank, passing and repassing one another; for the two lines of battle
were facing outward, and each general was busy trying to keep his wing
from falling back. St. Clair's clothes were pierced by eight bullets,