Voices; Birth-Marks; The Man and the ElephantHolt, Mathew Joseph
History
Voices; Birth-Marks; The Man and the Elephant
Holt, Mathew Joseph
Kentucky -- Fiction; Kentucky -- History
“No. 1. Containing forty-three scalps of Congress soldiers, killed in
different skirmishes. These are stretched on black hoops four inches in
diameter. The inside of the skin is painted red, with a small black
spot, to note their being killed with bullets; the hoops painted red,
the skin painted brown and marked with a hoe; a black circle all around
to denote their being surprised in the night; and a black hatchet in the
middle, signifying their being killed with that weapon.
“No. 2. Containing ninety-eight of farmers killed in their houses; hoops
red, figure of a hoe, to mark their profession; great white circle and
sun to show they were surprised in the day time; a little red foot to
show they stood upon their defense, and died fighting for their lives
and families.
“No. 3. Containing ninety-seven of farmers; hoop green to show they were
killed in the fields; a large white circle with a little round mark on
it for a sun to show that it was in the day time; black bullets marked
on some, a hatchet mark on others.
“No. 4. Containing one hundred and two—eighteen marked with a little
yellow flame, to denote their being of prisoners burnt alive after being
scalped; their nails pulled out at the roots and other tortures. One of
these latter being supposed to be an American clergyman; his hand being
fixed to the hoop of his scalp. Most appear to have been young or middle
aged men; there being but sixty-seven very gray heads among them all,
which makes the service more essential.
“No. 5. Containing eighty-eight scalps of women; hair long, braided in
Indian fashion to show they were mothers; hoops blue, skin yellow ground
with little red tadpoles to represent by way of triumph the tears of
grief occasioned to their relatives; black scalping knife or hatchet at
the bottom, to mark their being killed by those instruments. Seventeen
others hair very gray, black hoops, plain brown color; no marks but the
short club or cassetete, to show they were knocked down or had their
brains beat out.
“No. 6. Containing one hundred and ninety-three boys’ scalps of various
ages. Small green hoops, whitish ground on the skin, with red tears on
the middle and black marks, knife, hatchet or club as their death
happened.
“No. 7. Containing two hundred and eleven girls’ scalps, big and little,
small yellow hoops, white ground, tears, hatchet, scalping knife.
“No. 8. This package is a mixture of all the varieties above mentioned,
to the number of one hundred and twenty-two; with a box of birch bark
containing twenty-nine little infants’ scalps.
“With these packages the chiefs send to your Excellency the following
speech delivered by Conicogatachie in council:
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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