CHAPTER XV.

Peace and quiet reigned ones more at Ft. Henry. Before the glorious
autumn days had waned, the settlers had repaired the damage done to
their cabins, and many of them were now occupied with the fall
plowing. Never had the Fort experienced such busy days. Many new
faces were seen in the little meeting-house. Pioneers from Virginia,
from Ft. Pitt, and eastward had learned that Fort Henry had repulsed
the biggest force of Indians and soldiers that Governor Hamilton and
his minions could muster. Settlers from all points along the river
were flocking to Col. Zane's settlement. New cabins dotted the
hillside; cabins and barns in all stages of construction could be
seen. The sounds of hammers, the ringing stroke of the axe, and the
crashing down of mighty pines or poplars were heard all day long.

Col. Zane sat oftener and longer than ever before in his favorite
seat on his doorstep. On this evening he had just returned from a
hard day in the fields, and sat down to rest a moment before going
to supper. A few days previous Isaac Zane and Myeerah had come to
the settlement. Myeerah brought a treaty of peace signed by Tarhe
and the other Wyandot chieftains. The once implacable Huron was now
ready to be friendly with the white people. Col. Zane and his
brothers signed the treaty, and Betty, by dint of much persuasion,
prevailed on Wetzel to bury the hatchet with the Hurons. So
Myeerah's love, like the love of many other women, accomplished more
than years of war and bloodshed.

The genial and happy smile never left Col. Zane's face, and as he
saw the well-laden rafts coming down the river, and the air of
liveliness and animation about the growing settlement, his smile
broadened into one of pride and satisfaction. The prophecy that he
had made twelve years before was fulfilled. His dream was realized.
The wild, beautiful spot where he had once built a bark shack and
camped half a year without seeing a white man was now the scene of a
bustling settlement; and he believed he would live to see that
settlement grow into a prosperous city. He did not think of the
thousands of acres which would one day make him a wealthy man. He
was a pioneer at heart; he had opened up that rich new country; he
had conquered all obstacles, and that was enough to make him
content.

"Papa, when shall I be big enough to fight bars and bufflers and
Injuns?" asked Noah, stopping in his play and straddling his
father's knee.

"My b