He fought through the whole War of 1812, beginning with General
Harrison at the battle of Tippecanoe, which he described to me. He says
that at the beginning of the battle, and for a considerable time, he
heard Tecumseh's voice, loudly giving orders. There was a man named
Wheatley in the American camp, a strange, incommunicative person,--a
volunteer, making war entirely on his own book, and seeking revenge for
some relatives of his, who had been killed by the Indians. In the midst
of the battle this Wheatley ran at a slow trot past R------ (my
informant), trailing his rifle, and making towards the point where
Tecumseh's voice was heard. The fight drifted around, and R------ along
with it; and by and by he reached a spot where Wheatley lay dead, with
his head on Tecumseh's breast. Tecumseh had been shot with a rifle, but,
before expiring, appeared to have shot Wheatley with a pistol, which he
still held in his hand. R------ affirms that Tecumseh was flayed by the
Kentucky men on the spot, and his skin converted into razor-straps. I
have left out the most striking point of the narrative, after all, as
R------ told it, viz. that soon after Wheatley passed him, he suddenly
ceased to hear Tecumseh's voice ringing through the forest, as he gave
his orders. He was at the battle of New Orleans, and gave me the story
of it from beginning to end; but I remember only a few particulars in
which he was personally concerned. He confesses that his hair bristled
upright--every hair in his head--when he heard the shouts of the British
soldiers before advancing to the attack.
Pages:
598
599
600
601
602
603
604
605
606
607
608
609
610
611
612
613
614
615
616
617
618
619
620
621
622