and began to look about to know what it meant. We saw a fresh-skinned deer hanging up by the side of a tree, and not being able to see the Indians, who we supposed had killed it, I cut off the hams, and carried them away with us. A little distance farther brought us in view of another deer skinned, like the first, suspended from the side of a tree, and I cut his hams off as I did the other, tied them on the pack, and we proceeded. We had in our company a very superstitious old bachelor, who, no doubt, had often swooned at a ghost story, and who, on this occasion, became very suspicious that the Indians had insinuated some deadly poison into the deer we had purloined, with a view to ensnare the unwary traveller, and to plunder him. In those days I was by nature so full of fun that often the slightest cause was sufficient to make it overrun its bounds, and inundate all in reach who could not swim. I immediately went about making a confederate of one of the company, who was to feign himself sick, and this being arranged, I prepared several small wisps of hair, and put them into my vest pocket. The venison was nicely served, and the old bachelor was one of

those men who have a kind of gluttonous appetite, and who, when they come to their meals, would eat the meat though the green poison were issuing from every pore of it; so after supper, at which he ate very heartily of the venison, my confederate began to appear very sick; said he felt something bitter to the taste, and was very hot all over; that his mouth and throat were very dry, and he felt a sense of distressing tightness there. Violent vomiting came on. He complained of great pain in the stomach and bowels, and said that his pulse was too frequent, and showed that his breathing was quick and difficult. He appeared to be somewhat intoxicated, and informed us that he felt a kind of numbness, showing evidently that he had swallowed some one of the vegetable poisons. I could scarcely suppress my risibles at the effectual manner in which the sick man put on; but I expressed great alarm, and went straight about examining a piece of venison which had been left at supper, and slipping my little balls into it, cried out, "Here it is! we are all done for; yes, we are all poisoned." The old bachelor began to stare and gag. I did the same; and as fortune would have it, he vomited

before the venom had entered the circulation, and of course in time to save his life; but he imagined that he could feel the effects of it for several weeks afterwards. We succeeded in keeping him in profound ignorance about the trick until long after he had made many an old woman's hair stand straight on her head by the great solemnity with which he had a hundred times related the circumstances of this his narrow escape. The fun which we had once and again at the old fellow's expense served greatly towards shortening our journey, and proved very salutary to himself, by removing from his mind the innumerable companies of hobgoblins which had resided with him for above forty years.

Upon our arrival at Cumberland, I discovered that a great change had taken place in the country. The population had increased, fields were opened and fences erected, and there were actually several neighborhood roads. Soon the people began to come in such numbers from the older States that it was impossible for them all to get a supply of provisions; but I had not noticed their distresses long before I took compassion on them, and one morning threw my gun upon my

shoulder, and before noon I had fired her above a dozen times, and as many quadrupeds had ceased their pilgrimage upon this earth; and before night I had banished all the apprehensions of famine from around every camp-fire. I had laid food enough before them to last for the week to come; and during my stay among them I killed and carried in many another good horse-load of wild meat. They offered me pay for my trouble, but I could not have the heart to receive a single shilling.

CHAPTER XI.

IN the spring of 1796, I came with Elmore Douglass and others to commence a settlement on the south side of CUMBERLAND RIVER. When we arrived, we stuck the pegs of our tent, the first that were ever stuck within the present boundaries of Smith county, at the head of a fine fountain of water which we found breaking up in the midst of a beautiful forest, now a charming lawn spreading out extensively before a handsome twostory mansion, the early residence of that splendid old citizen, Hickerson Barksdall, whose recent death has been so much lamented by a large circle of friends, and mourned over by five promising sons and one interesting daughter. It is now occupied by Thomas, the oldest child. This mansion was also the abode, at an early date, of a very excellent old pioneer, Capt. Green B. Lowe. Soon after our arrival, John Ward and his wife,