y, in after-years,
alluded to the indescribable sensations of sublimity and terror which
the scene inspired. The gloom of the night; the solemn flow of the
majestic river; the dim view of the forests on either side; the gleam of
the camp-fires of the Indians, around which the half-clad savages were
dancing in hideous contortions; the unearthly yells in which every
demoniac passion seemed contending for the mastery; the shout which was
given when they discovered the boats beneath the shadows of the opposite
cliffs; the pursuit of the canoes with redoubled vehemence of hooting;
the rapidity with which, with brawny arms, they paddled their boats to
and fro; the breathless silence which pervaded the flat boat while for
more than an hour the occupants awaited, momentarily expecting the
terrible onset; and above all, the fortitude and heroism displayed by
his mother,--all these combined to leave an impression upon the mind of
the boy which could never be obliterated. Few will be able to read the
record of this adventure without emotion. What then must it have been to
have experienced it in bodily presence, and to have shared in all its
terrible dangers?

As we have before said, there was no distinctly proclaimed war, at this
time, between the pioneers and the Indians. While lawless men on both
sides were committing the most atrocious outrages, the chiefs and the
legitimate authorities were nominally at peace. The red men, whether
engaged in what they deemed lawful warfare, or moving in plundering
bands, were in the habit of inflicting upon their captives the most
dreadful tortures which their ingenuity could devise. The white men
could not retaliate by the perpetration of such revolting cruelty.

It probably was a suggestion of Colonel Boone that a council might be
held with the Indian chiefs, and a treaty formed by which prisoners
should be exempted from torture and exchanged, as in civilized warfare.
The Indians were by no means reckless of the lives of their warriors,
and would probably be very ready to give up a white captive if by so
doing they could receive one of their own braves in return. A council
was held at a station where Maysville now stands. Colonel Boone was at
once selected as the man of all others most fit to take part in these
deliberations. He was not only thoroughly acquainted with the Indians,
their habits, their modes of thought, and the motives most likely to
influence their minds; but his own peculia