Produced by Juliet Sutherland and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net [Illustration: THE PRAIRIE ON FIRE.] THE AMERICAN FAMILY ROBINSON; OR, The Adventures of a Family LOST IN THE GREAT DESERT OF THE WEST. BY D. W. Belisle With Illustrations PHILADELPHIA: PORTER & COATES. Preface. The lofty mountains, mighty forests, rivers and valleys of the West, many portions of which have never been explored, furnish abundant resources for the gratification of the Naturalist, the Lapidary, and the Antiquarian. It is with the view of directing attention to these sources of information, that the author has grouped together in this little work, many startling incidents in prairie life, and alluded to relics of antiquity, bearing unmistakable indications of a high order of civilization and science, in regard to which subsequent discoveries have proved the hypothesis he assumes correct. That this country has been peopled by a civilized race of sentient beings anterior to the existence of the present tribes of Indians or their ancestors, is no longer a matter of uncertainty; for everywhere throughout the West, and in many places East of the Mississippi Valley, incontrovertible evidences attest the high antiquity of monuments and relics of a people, whose race, name and customs have been lost in the deep gloom that hangs over the mighty past. In order more successfully to call attention to these ancient reminiscences of our own country, and to incite a spirit of inquiry in the minds of the young, he has incidentally alluded to them while following the family of Mr. Duncan in their toilsome journey and wanderings through the Great American Desert. To those unacquainted with the antiquarian characteristics of this continent, some of the allusions may appear improbable; yet sufficiently competent authority has been consulted in the preparation of this work to give the allusions reliable authenticity. If we shall be successful in awakening such an inquiry, we shall be content, and feel that our labors have not been unrewarded. Philadelphia 1853. Contents. CHAPTER I. PAGE Mr. Duncan's Discontentment. He starts for the West in search of a place of Settlement. 9 CHAPTER II. The Journey. Encampment. Buffalo hunt. Anne and Edward lost. They discover an old fort. Fight with a Wolf. Take refuge in a Tree. Rescued by Howe and Lewis. Return to the Camp. 16 CHAPTER III. Howe's Story of a singular piece of Metal, resembling a shield or helmet, found on Lake Superior. 36 CHAPTER IV.