A B is the north trench about sixty rods long, and nearly east and west. A D is about thirty rods, and B C is fifteen rods, and terminates at the ravine at C. The trench D A, and A B lies on the brow of the descent to the streams below. At D the bend of the ravine stops the trench. At the northwest corner B, a trench is continued about 15° to the right and down the declivity 15 rods to a spring; 50 feet perhaps below A B, and B G is the brow of the descent west of the trench at B, and G C is the edge of the ravine on the west. Q W is Allen’s Creek on the east; H I K is Fordham’s Brook on the north, and L P M is the water course on the west to the precipice at M, over which the water falls at some seasons, and the surface at M is only a few feet lower than the general level of the quadrangle. The space F was a burying ground, as bones, skulls, pipes, beads, have been ploughed up there. The road R N passes through the middle nearly of the space enclosed by the trench, and at N turns to the right to descend to the flat below; but formerly the road turned to the right at U and passed down at the right of the trench at D to T.

The place was pointed out to me by H. M. Ward, Esq., who was familiar with it when it was covered with the forest. He states that the trench must have been eight to ten feet deep and as many wide; that the earth was thrown either way, but much of it inwards; that the forest trees were standing in the trench and on the sides of it and of the same apparent age and magnitude as on the ground generally; that the heart-wood of black cherry trees of large size was scattered over the ground, evidently the remains of a forest anterior to the then growth of maple and beech, and that this black cherry was used by the settlers for timber; that the road, when first made, crossed the trench at N by a bridge; that the trench at D and A was cut down the bank a few feet, or else in time water had worn a passage from the trench downwards; that there was no tradition heard of among the Indians of the country, in respect to the use or design of the work.

The underlying rock is the hydraulic limestone of this section, which is fully exposed at the falls of Allen’s Creek, half a mile south of Fort-Hill. This rock was struck in digging the trench on the north line in some places, and portions of it were thrown out with the earth.

Of the pipes found at F one was formed from granular limestone; one was of baked clay, in the form of the rude outlines of a man’s head and face, nose, eyes, &c., and it reminds one of the figures in some of Stephens’ Plates of the ruins of Palenque. It has the hollows for the ears to be fastened on, and shows no little effort. The top of the head is surrounded by a fillet or wreath, and behind are two more fillets. At the bottom of the neck is a similar ornament, and on the front is another below it. This is the most curious.

Another pipe is of reddish baked clay, with some pits or dots for ornament upon it, two rows of dots around it and another below like a chain suspended at several points and curved by its own weight.

The forest has been removed. Not a tree remains on the quadrangle, and only a few on the edge of the ravine on the west. By cultivating the land, the trench is nearly filled in some places, though the line of it is clearly seen. On the north side the trench is considerable, and where the road crosses it, is three or four feet deep at the sides of the road. It will take only a few years more to obliterate it entirely, as not even a stump remains to mark out its line.

From this view it may be seen or inferred,

1. That a real trench bounded three sides of the quadrangle. On the south side there was not found any trace of trench, palisadoes, blocks, &c.

2. It was formed long before the whites came into the country. The large trees on the ground and in the trench, carry us back to an early era.

3. The workers must have had some convenient tools for excavation.

4. The direction of the sides may have had some reference to the four cardinal points, though the situation of the ravines naturally marked out the lines.

5. It cannot have been designed merely to catch wild animals to be driven into it from the south. The oblique cut down to the spring is opposed to this supposition, as well as the insufficiency of such a trench to confine the animals of the forest.

6. The same reasons render it improbable that the quadrangle was designed to confine and protect domestic animals.

7. It was probably a sort of fortified place. There might have been a defence on the south by a stockade or some similar means, which might have entirely disappeared.

By what people was this work done?

The articles found in the burying ground at F. offer no certain reply. The axes, chisels, &c. found on the Indian grounds in this part of the State, were evidently made of the greenstone or trap of New-England, like those found on the Connecticut river, in Massachusetts. The pipe of limestone might be from that part of the country. The pipes seem to belong to different eras.

1. The limestone pipe indicates the work of the savage, or aborigines.

2. The third indicates the age of French influence over the Indians. An intelligent French gentleman says such clay pipes are frequent among the town population in parts of France.

3. The second and most curious seems to indicate an earlier age and people.

The beads found at Fort Hill are long and coarse, made of baked clay, and may have had the same origin as the third pipe.

Fort Hill cannot have been formed by the French, as one of their posts to aid in the destruction of the English colonies.

In 1689, or 156 years ago, the French in Canada made various attempts to destroy the English colony of New-York. If the French had made Fort Hill a post as early as 1660, or 185 years ago, and then deserted it, the trees could not have grown to the size of the forest generally in 1810, or in 150 years afterwards. The white settlements had extended only “twelve miles west of Avon” in 1798, and some years after 1800, Fort Hill was covered with a dense forest. A chesnut tree cut down in 1842, at Rochester, showed 254 concentric circles of wood, and must have been more than 200 years old in 1800. So opposed is the notion that this was a deserted French post.

Must we not refer Fort Hill to that race which peopled this country before the Indians, who raised so many monuments greatly exceeding the power of the Indians, and who lived at a remote era?”

H. R. Schoolcraft, Esq.: I forward you the observations on Fort Hill, for your use. My speculations are added for my pleasure, and you will use them as you please. In great haste, I am obliged to close.

Your obedient,
C. DEWEY.

(H.)
Letter from Rev. Gilbert Rockwood to Henry R. Schoolcraft.

Tuscarora Mission, August 1, 1845.

Sir:—In the following communication, you can make use of such statements as you may deem proper. If all the statements should not be necessary for your official objects, yet they may be interesting to you as an individual.

This mission was commenced about fifty years since, under the care of the “New-York Missionary Society.” It was transferred to the “United Foreign Mission Society,” in 1821, and to the “American Board of Com. for Foreign Missions,” in 1826.

The church was organized in 1805, with five persons. The whole number of native members who have united since its organization is 123. The present number of native members is 53; others 5, total 58.

Between July 1st, 1844, and July 1st, 1845, there were only three admissions, two by profession and one by letter.

About one-third of the population attend meeting on the Sabbath. Their meeting house was built by themselves, with a little assistance from abroad.

They have also a school house, the expense of which was nearly all defrayed by themselves. There is but one school among them, which is kept the year through, with the exception of the vacations. The teacher is appointed by the American Board. The number of scholars the past year, is not far from 50.

I have been among these Indians now nearly eight years. I can see that there has been an advance, both in their moral and physical condition.

It is within the memory of many now living among them, when drunkenness was almost universal; now, comparatively, few are intemperate. A majority of the chiefs, are decidedly temperance men, and exert a salutary influence. They have a temperance society, and hold frequent meetings. They utterly forbid the traffic in intoxicating drinks on their own soil.

The marriage relation is being better understood by them, and more appreciated. More of the young men and women, enter into the marriage relation, in the regular Christian way, than a few years ago. Four couple have been regularly married the past year. Number of deaths, 8; an unusual number since I have been among them.

There is besides the church, above referred to, a Baptist church, organized a few years since, the particulars of which, I am unable to give. For any information you may wish respecting it, I would refer you to James Cusick, their minister.

On the whole, there is much to encourage the philanthropist and the Christian in labors for the good and well being of the Indians here, although we meet with many obstacles and difficulties in the way.

They are becoming more and more industrious in their habits, as the appearance of their farms, and the amount of produce, and their personal appearance will testify.

With these brief statements, I subscribe myself,

Yours, truly,
GILBERT ROCKWOOD.

Vocabulary of the Tuscarora, from William Chew, written out and transmitted by the Rev. Gilbert Rockwood.

Note.—In affixing Indian words, to the following vocabulary, Mr. Chew, who speaks the English very well, has promised to act as your translator and interpreter. The principal thing to be guarded against, however, is inaccuracy in the definitions, both in English and Indian.

If there is no infinitive to verbs, as I suppose, insert the simplest existing form, as He loves, &c.

Is there any participle to Tuscarora verbs!

H. R. S.

To Mr. Rockwood.

TUSCARORA.

Note.—As the above is intended to be used merely for comparing one Iroquois dialect with another, I desire that our alphabet may be used with the common English powers. If not, and you use a particular system, please to state what sounds it expresses.

H. R. S.

There is nothing answering to the infinitive and participle. I have therefore used the present indicative in the translation. I have divided the words into syllables, whether they are simple or compound. Where two or more words occur in the translation of a phrase, I have separated them by a comma. I have used the English alphabet with natural powers so far as Tuscarora sounds could be indicated by them. It is impossible to give, in many cases, a correct sound. A alone, has the sound of a in hate. Ah, like our interjection ah. The sound I intend to indicate by sunh, keuh, heuh, would be given, very nearly, by the Seneca alphabet used by Mr. Wright, thus: sah, kah, or kah, ha. The emphasis is, almost invariably, on the penultimate. Often a slight emphasis on some others. There is also often a prolongation of sound not indicated by any mark, as I supposed you would not need it.

I have not been able to finish this translation until now, (Oct. 20,) as I was absent, or otherwise engaged for some time after you had left; and when finally I was ready, Mr. Chew was not, until recently. I hope it has not been too long delayed.

I received your letter from New-York, of Sept. 16th. Nicholas Cusick, the father of James and David, was about 82 when he died. I have not been able to learn where he was born. He died at this place October, 1840. I do not know that there was anything very peculiar about him. He never was a “priest or juggler in his earlier days,” that I can learn.

Yours, truly,
GILBERT ROCKWOOD.

Inquiries.

There are several words in your vocabulary of the Tuscarora, in which the sound of F is used, always, however, as a terminal sound, as in “Eh noo keuh’f,” mankind.

Is this to be understood as denoting the ordinary sound of the letter?

Does it occur in other positions in words?

What is to be understood by the comma, which is invariably put before it?

H. R. S.

Tuscarora Mission, Dec. 6th, 1845.

Dear Sir—Your letter of December 1st is this day received. In reference to the vocabulary of Indian words we furnished you, I have further to remark, that the language having never been reduced to writing, each individual undertaking to reduce any portion of it, will have a system in part, at least, of his own. I have tried three different ways myself. It is difficult, if not impossible, to represent all the Tuscarora sounds by any combination of the English alphabet. I presume a stranger to the language would not, with the use of the vocabulary we have furnished you, give the correct sound in many instances.

The letter f terminating a word, has the sound of f in chief. I do not know as the comma before it, as in the word Eh noo keuh’f, is of any use. In common conversation, or at any time when they speak rapidly, the sound of f is not distinguished, as a general thing. Yet when they speak a word entire, there is this f sound, slowly and distinctly; it seems to be a distinct sound, or very nearly so. It appears to be a little separated from the main part of the syllable, as though another syllable was to follow immediately beginning with f; but as soon as the sound of f, as in find, is given, the person stops short. Thus instead of Eh noo keuh find, (I use the English word find, because the power of f in this word is the power of the letter intended in the Indian word given,) we say Eh noo keuhf, breaking off when you have given the sound of f, without proceeding to give the sound of ind. Perhaps if a comma is used at all, it would be more proper to place it after the f, thus: f’; or the f might join the syllable, thus: Keuhf.

I do not recollect that the sound of f is heard in any other part of a word than as a terminating sound.

Sometimes an r occurs separated, you will observe, by a comma from the rest of the syllable. It matters not much whether the r is joined to the preceding or following syllable. There is the sound of an r between them when the word is spoken. I have been puzzled to know where to place it. It seems to answer either way. Thus, in the word for to-morrow: Euh yuh’r heuh; or Euh yuh’ rheuh. If joined to the syllable yuh, without being separated by the comma, you would pronounce it very nearly like the English word your. As it is, thus, yuh’r, its sound is very nearly like the English word use, and I am not sure but that would be a preferable way of writing it, thus: Euh use heuh; yet there is a twirl or r sound you do not get as in the other mode of writing it. R terminating a word has much the same sound.

Instead of using the word find above, I might have used any other word beginning with f. It has its ordinary sound.

Any other information you may wish, if in my power to give it, you may be free to ask. Yours, truly,

G. ROCKWOOD.

(I.)
Letter from Rev. Asher Bliss to Henry R. Schoolcraft.

Cattaraugus Mission, Sept. 4th, 1845.

Dear Sir—Agreeably to your request I forward you some facts in regard to the establishment and progress of the gospel among the natives of this reservation. The Cattaraugus Mission Church was organized July 8th, 1827, (which is a little more than 18 years.) It consisted of Mr. Wm. A. Thayer, the teacher, his wife, and 12 native members. There have been additions to it from time to time, until the whole number who have held a connection with this church is one hundred and eighteen. Thirteen of these have been white persons and most of them connected with the mission family. Of the one hundred and five native members seven or eight have come by letter from other reservations, so that the number who have united on profession of faith is a little short of one hundred. Twenty-five of these have gone to their final account. Some have died in the triumphs of faith, and we humbly hope and trust that they are among the blessed, in the kingdom of our common Father. A number (as it was natural to expect from converts out of heathenish darkness) have apostatized from Christianity, and returned to their former courses. The proportion of these is not probably more than one in ten. Between sixty and seventy are now connected with some of the mission churches. A few only have removed to Allegany, Tuscarora, while the remainder still live on this reservation.

The effect of the gospel in promoting morality and civilization, may be learned in part from the fact that the public worship of God has been steadily maintained ever since the organization of the church, with members ranging from fifty to one hundred, and sometimes one hundred and fifty and two hundred as regular hearers of the word. A Sabbath school has been sustained a considerable share of the time. Many copies of the Holy Scriptures, and the New Testament, together with tracts, Sabbath school books, temperance papers, and religious periodicals, have been circulated among the children and youth. Temperance societies have been patronized by nearly all the chiefs and leading men on the reservation. Pledges have been circulated and received the signatures of a large majority of the population, of all parties, on the Washingtonian plan.

Day schools for teaching the English language have been kept in operation almost without interruption for more than twenty years, under the patronage of the A. B. C. F. M.

During the thirteen years that I have superintended these schools, nearly thirty different persons have engaged for a longer or shorter time, as teachers. For the past year there have been four schools under the patronage of the American Board, and one under the Society of Friends. The whole number who have been instructed in the five schools is probably not far from one hundred and twenty-five. The attendance of a part has been very irregular, sometimes shifting from one school to another, and sometimes attending no school at all. Several of the early pupils in the mission schools are now heads of families, well informed, industrious, temperate and religious, and in good circumstances. Some are interpreters, some teachers of schools, and others engaged in transacting the business of the nation.

You can, sir, best judge of the influence of the gospel in promoting worldly prosperity, when you have fully completed the census which is now being taken. When you count up the framed houses and barns, the horses, cattle, sheep and hogs, the acres of improved land, with the wagons, buggies and sleighs, clocks and watches, and the various productions of agriculture, you can easily conceive the difference between the present, and thirty years ago. I suppose there was not then a framed building of any description, and scarcely a log house, properly so called, no teams, no roads, no ploughed land, and but small patches of corn, beans and squashes. What an astonishing change!

As to the capacity of Indian children for improvement, my own impression is that there is no essential difference between them and white children. The fact that Indian children usually make slow progress in studying English books, can be accounted for in three ways: 1. They generally have little or no assistance from their parents at home. 2. They are irregular in their attendance on schools, for want of order and discipline on the part of parents. 3. Being ignorant of the English language, it is a long time before they comprehend fully the instruction of their teachers.

These circumstances operate to make the school room a very dull and uninteresting place to the scholar, and the reflex influence gives the scholar the same appearance. When they can once rise above these circumstances, and overcome these obstacles, they make good proficiency in their studies.

Believing that these statements cover the ground of your inquiries, I subscribe myself, dear sir,

Respectfully and truly yours,
ASHER BLISS.

P. S. Should you desire further information on any of these points, or upon others, which have been omitted, please state your questions definitely, in writing.

Yours, &c.,
A. B.

(K.)
Letter from Rev. William Hall to Henry R. Schoolcraft.

Allegany Mission, Sept. 8th, 1845.

Dear Sir:—Your inquiries in relation to the state of religion, education, &c., among the Indians of this reservation, if I rightly understand them, are briefly answered as follows:

Christianity very much prospered here during the four years next preceding the past.

The number of church members during that period, was nearly tripled, and very encouraging additions were made to their knowledge and zeal. But the past year has been one of stupidity and drought.

There has, however, been four additions from the Indians, made to the church, by profession of faith, and two whites.

The present number of Indian members is about one hundred and fifteen. The number of whites is eight. Seven of the Indian members are under censure.

I have sustained three schools during the past summer, in which about eighty Indian children have been more or less taught. One of these schools, whose whole number is only about thirty, gives an average attendance of nearly twenty-five. In this neighborhood the population is sufficiently compact for a farming community, and the younger parents are partially educated.

In the other neighborhoods, the population is very sparse, and the parents very ignorant. The consequence is, that the daily attendance falls short of one half the whole number of scholars, and cannot be called regular at that. Many do not get to school earlier than half past eleven, and very few earlier than ten, and half past ten. Those who attend regularly, evince a capacity to acquire knowledge, equaling the whites, and one of our schools will suffer nothing, in comparison with common country schools.

I am, dear sir,
Yours &c.,
WILLIAM HALL.

(L.)
Letter from Rev. Wm. McMurray to H. R. Schoolcraft.

Dundas, November 11th, 1845.

My dear Sir—I have just received the vocabularies, with the Indian words, from the Rev. Adam Elliot, of Tuscarora, to whom I sent them for the translation. The cause of the delay was his severe illness, and the difficulty of getting suitable persons to give him the Indian. He says, before you publish, if you will send him, through me, the proof sheets, he will have them corrected for you, and forwarded without delay. He is an amiable and most excellent man.

Yours, most faithfully,
WILLIAM McMURRAY.

Mohawk.