Part 1 (1/2)

Early Western Travels, 1748-1846, Volume XII

by William Faux and Adlard Welby

Volume XII

JOURNAL

(PART II)

_January 1st, 1820_--I left Princeton at ten o'clock, with Mr Phillips and Mr Wheeler; and here parted with le

I es, Judge Prince and Judge Daniel,[104] driving hoht

I reached, and rested at Petersburgh,[105] consisting of fifteen houses

I passed good far an {333} ostler, was coroo fifty dollars owing to hientleman of Evansville, he arrested him, when he went into the bounds; then he sued one of the bondsmen, who also entered the bounds The squire is next to be sued, who, it is expected, will do likewise

_Sunday, 2nd_--I rode thirty-one -hole, out of which I turned an officer's black cat, which jumped from the roof into our faces, while in bed; but she soon found her way in again, through a hole in the roof

The cat liked our fire We got no coffee nor tea, but cold milk and pork, and corn cake

_3rd_--Travelled all day, through thefrom countless hills, covered with fine timber, to breakfast, at three o'clock, p e Chae's hty, whose activity and superior horsear with Mrs Judge, while she smoked her pipe, (the first pipe I have seen here) She, as well as the old lady, is a quaker The judge was gone to thea senator, on duty[106]

The land which I passed over all this day, seemed poor, but full of wild turkeys and bears

_4th_--I reached Miller's to supper, but found no {334} coffee; cold , through a fine rolling country The wolves howled around us all night

_5th_--Passed the Silver Hills,[107] from the summit of which is a fine, extensive prospect of Kentucky, the Ohio, and of Louisville, where we breakfasted I called with Mr Flower's letter to Archer, as out I received the present of a cow-hide whip, from a lady, and prooner recently shook hands at a whiskey-shop, with abefore him that day, to be tried for h

I rode sevenfour children, who cultivate his farroes He says, ”Kentucky is ht up to live without labour: all are deuidance and governues The west has the scuo it was said, when a one to hell, or Kentucky

The people are none the better for a free, good governone or ruined Your colt, sir, of one hundred dollars, is worth only fifteen dollars At Louisville, as good a horse can be bought at ten dollars, or fifteen dollars You are therefore cheated”

The Missouri territory boasts the best land in {335} the country, but is not watered by springs Wells are, however, dug, abounding in good water, says our hearty landlord, just returned fro that country

The bottohty bushels, and wheat, from forty to sixty bushels an acre The best prairies are full of fine grass, flowers, and weeds, not coarse, benty, sticky grass, which denotes the worst of prairie land Grass, of a short fine quality, fit for pasture or hay, every where abounds The country is full of wild honey, soht barrels this season, taken out of the trees, which are cut doithout killing the bees These industrious insects do not sting, but are easily hived and made tame Our landlord likes the Missouri, but not so well as Old Kentucky

Two gri; and by six, the landlord disturbed us by cow-hiding his negro, threatening to squeeze the life out of hih a country of fine plantations, and reached Frankfort to supper, with the legislative body, where I againto look down our table, and conteent faces around ers, ere {336} invited by the landlord, (the best I have seen) to the first rush for a chance at the table's head

_7th_--I travelled this day through a fine country of rich pasture and tillage, to Lexington City, to Keen's excellent tavern I drank ith Mr Lidiard, who is re, and travelling to and fro Fine beef at three cents per lb Fat fowls, one dollar per dozen Who would not live in old Kentucky's first city?

_8th_--Being a wet day, I rested all day and this night Prairie flies bleed horses nearly to death Se to these distressed animals The Indian summer smoke reaches to the Isle of Madeira

Visited the Athenaeum Viewed some fine horses, at two hundred dollars each

_Sunday, 9th_--I quitted Lexington, and one of the best taverns in Aenteel farton, twenty-three h owning between four hundred and five hundred acres of the finest land in Kentucky, does not think it beneath him to entertain travellers and their horses, on the best fare and beds in the country

He has been offered sixty dollars, and could now have forty dollars an acre, for his land, which averages thirty bushels of wheat, and sixty bushels of corn per acre, and, in {337} natural or artificial grass, is the first in the world Sheep, (fine stores) one dollar per head; beef, fine, three cents per lb, and fowls, one dollar per dozen