Page:American Historical Review, Volume 12.djvu/340

330 Dociunents more game then any of our English cann ; they acknolledge a Deity butt worship Sunn Moone and stars ; they have no Reguard as to Dayes they know no sabbath ; they Sacerafize once a year to the Devill ; I was once out in the woods with my Gun thinking to shoote something and I hapned to espye an Indian with his Gun Cockt and just goeing to fire att a Couple of Deare; when on a suddan the Deare ither saw him or smelt him and so Ran away as hard as they could; the Indian imediatly tooke a little tommahauke ; a sort of lathing hamer that will cutt att one side like a hatchett ; and Cutt the Barke about a foot square from a Popp- lar tree ; and upon the tree where the Barke was he Drew the Picture of a Squirell and knelt Downe and worshipt itt : and as soone as done he tooke his Gun and away he went Cleare Contrary to which way the Deare tooke; and in less then halfe a quarter of an hower I heard him shoote; I made that away out of Curosity ; to se if he had kil'd any thing; and when I came I found he had killed a Deare; and was goeing to skin itt. I asked him whether he thought itt to be the same Deare and he told me he was sure itt was and would have the ffellow to Morrow, he had bin affter them already two Dayes before butt he beleived they allways winded him. I asked him if he thought there was any thing in the worshiping that Picture he made (that was the occasion of his killing the Deare; he told me) he did beleive there was butt as for any Reasons he could give me none ; butt it was there way ; I Parted from him and in goeing home I mett with a Gang of wild Turckies and shott two of 'em butt could nott carry them both home: I hung up one upon a small sapplin Makeing remarks upon the place that I might the Better send for itt; and when I gott home I sent a Negro for itt. he went and tooke another Negro along with him and a Gun, besides that Gun he had of me ; because I told him where about I mett with the Turkies. they never came home all night which made me think he could nott find the turkey I sent him for, butt he readily found itt butt could nott so soone find out the gang, for they traveld all Night affter the Gang but could nott find em; they guest themselves about 5 miles from home when Day began to Break; and was for comeing home butt att last espied some Turkies Pearched upon some high trees in a swamp ; they both shot and killed three, and came home about an hower after Sun rise and with that turkie I left in the woods ; these wild Turkies in that Cuntrey are of a varst wait some weying 40 some 50 and some say sixty Pounds wheigh; I have killed a turkie my selfe that has wheyed 43 Pounds out of the ffeathers and his Gutts out ; I durst nott venture to tell You the Weight that I have heard some Turkies have wheyed by Credil)le Gentlemen which I att the same time doe beleive may be true; butt I was once at one Major Greenberries' in Severn River when an Indian brought in a wild Turkie to him which I thought was the bigest that ever I saw, the major bought itt of the Indian for a Pint of Rum ' Major Charles Crccnbcrry of " White Hall " in .■ n Arundell County, a prominent member of the Lower House of Assembly.