Daniel Boone TAMING THE WILDS by Katharine E. Wilkie SCHOLASTIC BOOK SERVICES Published by Scholastic Book Services, a division ofScholastic Magazines, Inc. , New York, N. Y. Transcriber's Note: Extensive research did not reveal any evidence thatthe U. S. Copyright on this publication was renewed. DANIEL BOONE: TAMING THE WILDS is one of the books in the _DiscoverySeries_ published by The Garrard Publishing Company, Champaign, Illinois. Other Discovery Books available in hardcover editions fromThe Garrard Publishing Company are: Clara BartonAlexander Graham BellBuffalo BillDaniel BooneLuther BurbankRichard E. ByrdKit CarsonGeorge Washington CarverHenry ClayStephen DecaturAmelia EarhartThomas Alva EdisonBenjamin FranklinUlysses S. GrantHenry HudsonAndrew JacksonThomas JeffersonJohn Paul JonesFrancis Scott KeyLafayetteRobert E. LeeLeif the LuckyAbraham LincolnFrancis MarionSamuel F. B. MorseFlorence NightingaleAnnie OakleyRobert E. PearyWilliam PennPaul RevereTheodore RooseveltBooker T. WashingtonGeorge WashingtonEli WhitneyWright Brothers Copyright © 1960 by Katherine E. Wilkie. Copyright © 1961 by ScholasticMagazines, Inc. This Scholastic Book Services edition is published byarrangement with The Garrard Publishing Company. 8th printing August 1966 Printed in the U. S. A. Single copy price 45¢. Quantity prices available on request. Daniel Boone TAMING THE WILDS _For David Lee_ CONTENTS Page Daniel's Indian Friend 7 Moving On 15 A Knock at the Door 20 On to Kentucky 27 Attacked by Indians 34 The Wilderness Road 39 The Rescue 45 The Fort Is Saved 51 Daniel Boone's Reward 59 Daniel's Indian Friend Daniel Boone was a boy who lived on the edge of the deep woods inPennsylvania. At that time this country still belonged to England. Friendly Indians often came out of the woods to visit the white men. Daniel liked the Indians. He liked them so well that he wished he couldlive with them. One day he was taking care of his father's cattle. The pasture wasseveral miles from the settlement. Although Daniel was a ten-year-oldboy, he sometimes became lonely by himself. Today he lay on a hillside and sang aloud. He wanted to hear a voice, even if it was only his own. There was a low laugh behind him. Daniel sprang to his feet. A tall, slim Indian boy stood a few feet away. The white boy liked him at once. "I sing, too, " the young Indian said. He threw back his head and sang. Daniel could not understand a word. "I sing to the sun and the wind and the rain, " the boy explained. "I like your Indian song, " Daniel said, "but I'm glad you speakEnglish. " The boy patted the bow that hung over his right shoulder. "You likethis?" The bow was strong and shining. Daniel ran a finger along the smoothwood. "I like it very much, " he said. The other boy took an arrow and placed it on the bowstring. He pulledback the bow. The arrow flew away. "You get, " the Indian said. Daniel ran after the arrow. He picked it up and looked back. The Indianboy was right beside him. He took the arrow from Daniel. Again he shot it. Again the white boyran after it. The young Indian ran beside him. He shook his head when Daniel handed him the arrow. He handed Daniel the bow. "Shoot!" he said. Daniel took the bow in his hands. He pulled it back and let the arrowfly. By now Daniel had forgotten the cattle. He had forgotten everything butthe wonderful bow, his new friend, and the wide, wild woods. After a while the boys came to a high hill. At the bottom was an Indianvillage. The brown-skinned boy took Daniel by the hand and ran towardthe settlement. Several dogs barked at them. Some women were hoeing their gardens. Theyhardly looked up as the boys passed. An old woman was stirring something in an iron pot over a fire. Itsmelled good. Daniel remembered that he had eaten nothing sincebreakfast. His friend stopped and pointed to Daniel and himself. The old womannodded. With a sharp stick, she lifted a piece of meat from the pot. The Indian boy took a broad leaf from a near-by bush. The woman droppedthe hot meat on it. Now Daniel knew what to do. He, too, found a leaf. The woman gave himsome meat. Soon the hungry boys had finished their lunch. That afternoon they swam in the clear, broad river. Then they lay onthe bank in the sunshine. Daniel had never been so happy. However, heknew he must soon go home. His mother would worry if he did not returnbefore dark. "I must go now. I must drive the cows home, " he told his Indian friend. The boy frowned. "Women's work, " he told Daniel. Daniel laughed. "It may be for the Indians, but it's not at the Boones'house. I think I'd like being an Indian. An Indian boy has more funthan a white boy. " "There is much for an Indian to learn, " the other told him. "We mustlearn to hunt, track animals, fish, and find our way in thewilderness. " "Those things are not work. They are fun, " Daniel told him. "I wish Iwere an Indian. I believe I'd make a better Indian than a white boy. " When Daniel reached home at last, his mother scolded him. "You should not have gone off with that Indian boy. You can't trust theIndians, " she told her son. "He was a good boy. I liked him, " Daniel said. His mother shook her head. "Indians are not like us. We thinkdifferently from them. " Daniel said nothing. But he thought his mother was mistaken. "_I believe I can think like an Indian_, " he said to himself. "_Exceptfor color, I'm more like an Indian than a white boy. _" Moving On Several years went by. Then Father Boone called the family together. "Pack your things, " he told them. "We are leaving here. Boones neverstay long in one place. Besides, our farm land is worn out. We can buyrich land cheap to the southwest of here. We will settle there. " Sixteen-year-old Daniel was happy. "I'm glad we are going, " he said. "Ifeel crowded here. There are too many houses and too many people. Andthe game is getting scarce. " Father Boone made ready for the journey. He got out the big wagon andhitched two horses to it. Mother Boone packed clothes, quilts, dishes, pots, pans, and kettles. She would fix food for the family along theway. Daniel tied a cow behind the wagon. The family said good-by to the neighbors and to their old home, andstarted. Mother, the girls, and the little children rode in the wagon. Father and the boys took turns riding the horses. Sometimes all of theBoones walked so that the horses could rest. Father and the boys hadguns to kill birds and small animals for food along the way. The Boones traveled across Pennsylvania. On and on they went toward thenew country. Daniel caught many rabbits, which his mother stewed. Oncehe shot a small black bear. Another time he killed a deer. This gavethe Boones food for several days. At last the family came to the rolling, green Yadkin Valley in NorthCarolina. There were a few houses there already, but it was much wilderthan in Pennsylvania. Father Boone said, "This is good farming land. We will stop here. " Daniel looked all about him. There was level land close by. There werewoods not far away. And there were mountains in the west. Daniel knewthe hunting would be good. "I like this place, " he said. "There's plenty of room here. " Father Boone and the boys jumped off the horses. Mother Boone and thegirls climbed down from the wagon. They fed the horses and the cow. They made a campfire. Father and the boys cut down trees and started tobuild a log house. Soon the Boones had a new home in the new land. The years went by. Daniel grew taller. His shoulders became wider. Hewas fair-haired and blue-eyed, lean and rugged. He hunted in the woodsof the Yadkin Valley. He often brought home deer and bear. The Boones'neighbors said that Daniel was the best shot for miles around. DanielBoone had grown up. A Knock at the Door When Daniel Boone was a young man, there was war between England andFrance. England sent troops to fight against the French in America. TheFrench claimed the land west of the mountains. The English claimed thesame land. The Indians sided with the French. Daniel Boone drove a supply wagon for the English and the Americans. Hemade friends with another young wagoner named John Finley. Finley hadbeen to the land southwest of the mountains. Each night he and Boonesat by the campfire and talked. "I've been deep in the wilderness they call Kentucky, " Finley toldBoone. "It is a wonderful place. The forests go on and on and on. Thereare thousands of buffalo in Kentucky. There are deer, bear and smallanimals, too. It is a great land for hunters. " "I want to go there, " Daniel said. "There are Indians in the wilderness, " Finley told Daniel. "They liveto the north of Kentucky and to the south of Kentucky. They call theland their hunting ground. They do not like the white men to go there. " "There should be room enough for both Indians and white men, " DanielBoone replied. He thought for a while. "Some day I am going toKentucky. " When Daniel went back home to the Yadkin Valley, he married a tall, dark-haired girl named Rebecca Bryan. Sometimes he liked to tease her. One summer day before they married he was sitting beside her under abig tree. Suddenly he took his broad-bladed knife and cut a long slitin her fresh white apron. "Why did you do that, Daniel?" she asked mildly. His blue eyes twinkled. "I guess I wanted to see if you had a temper, "he said. Because she wasn't angry, Daniel felt that she would make him a goodwife. Life in the wilderness was often difficult and dangerous. Hewanted a wife who did not become upset easily. They were married, and soon the first of their many children arrived. Daniel loved his children. As soon as his son James was old enough, hetaught him to hunt. In the spring and summer Daniel would farm. In the autumn he hunted, and in the winter he trapped. He made long trips in the forest andbrought home food for his family and valuable furs and deerskins. Manyof these he sold. He enjoyed exploring as much as he enjoyed hunting. Once he even went as far south as Florida with the idea of settlingthere. But he was disappointed in the land. He longed to exploreKentucky, but did not want to go alone. One day the Boone family heard a knock at the door. It was Boone's oldfriend, John Finley. "Let's go to Kentucky, Daniel!" he said. "Let's!" Daniel agreed. "I think about it all the time. You know howmuch I love the wilderness. That's the one place I really feel athome. " On to Kentucky Early in 1769, Daniel Boone, John Finley, and four other strong menstarted for Kentucky. One of the men was Daniel's brother-in-law. Theytook their guns. They carried animal traps, too. They planned to bringback skins and furs to sell. The hunters rode their horses across the mountains. Soon they came toCumberland Gap, a narrow mountain valley which led into Kentucky. TheIndians used the Gap also, but the white men did not see any of them atthis time. It was weeks before they saw a single Indian. But they did see rich green meadows, which stretched ahead for miles. Silver rivers wound like ribbons through them. In some places therewere low rolling hills and in others great towering mountains. Thewoods were thick and still. The sunlight made dancing patterns on thepine needles. Kentucky was as beautiful as John Finley had said. Everywhere they went the men found lots of game. There were deer andbuffalo. There were fur-bearing animals, such as mink and otter andbeaver. There were many different kinds of birds. When the men went hunting, they separated into pairs. One winter dayBoone and his brother-in-law were captured by Indians. The Indians didnot harm them, but they took all the white men's deerskins. "Get out of Kentucky and stay out!" the Indians told them. Daniel Boone did not scare easily. He and his brother-in-law did notwant to leave Kentucky. But the other four were afraid. They returned to the settlements. Boonenever saw Finley again. But Boone was soon joined by his brother, Squire, and a friend named Alexander Neeley. Squire had promised toharvest the crops back home and then join them in the late autumn withfresh horses, traps, and gunpowder. Skilled woodsmen that they were, the brothers somehow found each other in the wilderness. While they were hunting, the men separated again. They met every twoweeks. One week Boone's brother-in-law did not return to camp. He neverdid come back. Five years later a skeleton with a powder horn beside itwas found in a hollow tree. Perhaps he was wounded by an Indian. No onereally knows what happened to him. Neeley was scared. He decided to go home alone. But Daniel and Squirestayed on all winter and spring. They hunted and trapped until they hada lot of skins. Then Squire went home to sell the skins and buy moregunpowder and traps. Daniel stayed on in the wilderness. He did not mind being alone. He wasnever afraid. With his trusty rifle, Tick-Licker, over his shoulder, heexplored much of Kentucky. He was happy because the wilderness was wideand he felt free. After a few months, Squire came back. Again thebrothers hunted together. At last Daniel said to Squire, "I'll go home with you this time. Wehave all the skins we can carry. " "When we sell them, we'll have plenty of money to take to ourfamilies, " Squire said happily. It did not happen that way. Indians attacked the brothers when theywere nearly home and took the skins. The Boones were still poor men. But Daniel was happy. He was glad that he had roamed the wilderness fornearly two years. He was sorry he had lost the skins, but he was happythat he had seen Kentucky. Attacked by Indians Two years later Daniel Boone decided that he had been away fromKentucky long enough. "Pack up, Rebecca, " he said to his wife. "Packup, children. We Boones can't stay in one spot forever. We're going tomove to Kentucky. It's wild and beautiful there. There'll be plenty ofland for you young ones when you want homes of your own. " So the Boones packed up. Six other families joined them. People alwaysseemed ready to join Daniel in his search for adventure. The householdgoods and the farm tools were piled on pack horses. A few of the peoplerode horseback. But most of them walked. They drove their pigs andcattle before them. The rough trails made travel slow, but the familiesdid not seem to mind. Just before they reached Cumberland Gap, Daniel Boone sent hissixteen-year-old son, James, on an errand. "Turn back to Captain Russell's cabin and ask him for the farm tools heand I were talking about, " he told the boy. "You can catch up with ustomorrow. " James reached Captain Russell's safely. He camped that night withseveral men who planned to join Boone. In the darkness some Indianscrept up and killed them all. When the families with Boone heard the news, they no longer wanted togo to Kentucky. They turned and went back over the mountains. The Boonefamily was sad because of James' death. But Daniel would not give uphis dream of living in Kentucky. It would just have to wait a little. He took his wife and children to a spot where they would be safe. Butthey did not go all the way back to the Yadkin Valley. Daniel learned that all through the Kentucky Wilderness the Indianswere fighting the white men. Too many white men were coming west. Indians wanted to keep theirhunting grounds for themselves. Daniel Boone and another man went intoKentucky to warn the surveyors who were measuring land there. Nearlyall of them escaped safely. For a time, the Indians stopped fightingand Kentucky was peaceful again. The Wilderness Road Now a rich man named Richard Henderson had a big idea. He would try tobuy Kentucky from the Indians for himself and start another colony. Hisown company would sell land to settlers. Henderson was Daniel's friend. Boone had talked to the Indians about the idea and thought they wouldsell the land. Many Indian tribes hunted in Kentucky, but the Cherokeeswere the most important. They had conquered the other tribes and ruledthe land. Henderson sent Boone to ask the Cherokees to meet him atSycamore Shoals in what is now Tennessee. Twelve hundred Indian men, women, and children came to the meetingplace. Henderson had all his trading goods spread out. There were yardsand yards of red cloth. There were hundreds of bright new guns. Therewere beads and pins and little mirrors for the women. Henderson'scompany had paid a great deal of money for the trading goods. The Indians were like children about the business of trading land forgoods. They loved the bright-colored trinkets. But they knew nothingabout the value of land. Although they had their own lawyer, they traded Kentucky to Hendersonfor a tiny part of what it was worth. The Cherokees warned the whitemen of savage Indians who came hunting from the west and the north. They told Henderson he might have trouble settling the land. Boone did not go with Henderson to Sycamore Shoals. He waited nearCumberland Gap with thirty men. When Henderson sent word that he hadbought Kentucky, Boone spoke one word to his men. "Start!" he said. The men began to make the famous Wilderness Road that was to lead toKentucky. Later it would be traveled by settlers with their horses, wagons, and cattle. Just now Boone's men chose the shortest and easiestway over the mountains and through the woods. They followed Indiantrails and buffalo paths. They swung their axes. They cut down trees. They crossed streams. Daniel Boone worked as hard as anyone. And allthe time he kept a sharp lookout for unfriendly Indians. The men did not stop until they reached the banks of the KentuckyRiver. Here they began to build a fort. Boone knew that the Shawneesand other Indian tribes would not admit that Henderson had boughtKentucky. When Henderson came to the settlement, he said, "We will call thisplace Boonesborough. It is right to name it for the man who led ushere. " Boone went back to get his family. Some of his children had grown upand married before the Boones set out for Kentucky the first time. Thirteen-year-old Jemima was his last unmarried daughter. She and hermother were the first white women to stand on the bank of the KentuckyRiver. The Rescue One Sunday afternoon, Jemima and two other girls went for a canoe rideon the Kentucky River at Boonesborough. They knew they should not goout of sight of the fort, but they went anyway. They paddled down theriver and around the bend. The current drew them in to the oppositebank. "Let's land and pick some of those bright-colored flowers, " one of thegirls suggested. Jemima shook her head. "I'm afraid of the Indians, " she said. "ThoseShawnees are mean. " By now the canoe had drifted near the shore. The girl at the bow shovedwith her paddle. The boat would not move. It was stuck fast in the mud. All at once five Indians leaped from the underbrush. They grabbed thescreaming girls and carried them into the forest. They planned to takethem north to the Indian towns and keep them there as slaves. Back at the fort no one missed the girls until after dark. Then someonesaw that the canoe was gone. When Daniel Boone heard this, he picked uphis gun and rushed toward the river. He did not stop to put on hisshoes. He felt sure that Indians had taken Jemima and her friends away. Three young men who loved the girls very much went with Boone. The mentook another canoe and began to paddle down the river. They could notgo far in the dark. Before long, they had to stop and wait for morning. When the sun came up, Boone found the girls' trail. He thought theIndians were taking them toward the Ohio River. He knew he must catchthem before they crossed it and went to the Indian towns in the north. The white men left their canoe. They traveled all day through the deepwoods. Then they made camp and waited for the long night to end. Atdaylight they started out again. Boone took short cuts through the woods, but he always found the trail. His sharp eyes saw what the girls had left for him to see. One had dugher heels into the soft mud. Another had left bits of her dress hereand there. Boone led the young men straight through the heart of the forest toJemima and her friends. About noon the men caught sight of the girls. The Indians had stopped with them for their noon meal. The white mencrept up. Bang! Bang! Bang! went their guns. "It's Father!" Jemima cried. "Fall flat on your faces, girls!" Daniel Boone shouted. The white men ran toward the Indians. They shot their guns as they ran. The Indians were taken by surprise. One Indian threw his tomahawk. Italmost hit the girls. Two Indians were shot. The others ran away. The men took the three girls back to Boonesborough. Later the threegirls married the three young men. The Fort Is Saved Boone became known far and wide as the greatest man in the KentuckyWilderness. One winter, about a year after he had saved the girls fromthe Indians, he went with some other men to a place where there weresalt springs. These were called salt licks because the wild animalsliked to lick the salt. The men planned to camp there several weeks. They would boil the water in big kettles until there was only saltleft. Then they would take the salt back to the people atBoonesborough. One day Boone went out hunting alone. Suddenly he was surprised byIndians. They were a war party led by Chief Blackfish. They were ontheir way to Boonesborough. These Shawnee Indians came from north ofKentucky. They felt that Henderson had no right to claim their huntinggrounds. Certainly _they_ had not sold Kentucky to him. They might nothave been so warlike if the American Revolution had not started. TheBritish were making friends with the Indians everywhere and helpingthem fight the settlers. Boone knew how the Shawnees felt about having to share their huntingground with the white men. But he knew also that he must find a way tosave the fort. "Don't go to Boonesborough now, " he told the Indians. "You don't have abig enough war party. Boonesborough is far too strong for you tocapture. " This was not true at all. There were not many men at the fort. ButDaniel hoped to stall off the Shawnees until Boonesborough had time tosend for help. "Wait until spring, " he went on. "Then you won't have to fight. Thepeople will come willingly. I will bring them north to you. Right nowit is too cold for the women and the children to travel. But in thespring they will come with you. " Chief Blackfish was delighted to find that Boone was so friendly. Hehad admired Boone for a long time. He did not know that Boone wastrying hard to fool him. "What about your men?" Chief Blackfish asked. Boone thought quickly. He knew the Indians had seen the men at the saltlicks. "I will lead you to my men, " he told Chief Blackfish, "if you willpromise not to kill them. " Chief Blackfish promised. Boone took the Indians to his men. "We are in great danger, " he whispered to them. "We must go north withthe Indians, or they will kill us. The fort is in danger too. Butperhaps we can escape and warn our families. " At the end of the long journey the Indians and their prisoners reachedthe Shawnee towns in the north. There, Chief Blackfish told Boone thathe wanted him for a son. He made Boone go through a long adoptionceremony and gave him the name of Big Turtle. Boone liked Chief Blackfish, but he did not really want to be aShawnee. He pretended to be pleased about becoming the Chief's son, buthe only pretended. One day the Indians went hunting. While they were gone, Boone ran awayand started for Boonesborough. The Indians followed him, but he was too clever for them. They lost histrail. In four days he traveled one hundred and sixty miles. Finally he reached Boonesborough. "The Indians are on the way! Get ready to fight!" he told the people. Soon Chief Blackfish came with over four hundred Shawnees. He calledBoone to come outside the fort. Daniel Boone went out bravely. "Why did you run away?" Chief Blackfish asked Boone. "I wanted to see my wife and my children, " Boone answered. "You have seen them, " the Chief replied. "Now come back with me. Youand all your people. " "Give me a little time to think it over, " Boone said. He hoped that help would come from other forts. He waited and waited, but no help came. "We shall defend the fort as long as a man is living, " Boone told thepeople. The fight began. The Indians fired at the fort. The white men firedback. Everyone worked hard. The women and the children loaded guns andcarried food to the men. The white men were outnumbered, but theIndians did not know this. The men did not stop fighting for eight days and eight nights. By theneveryone was very tired. The Indians had shot flaming torches, and theroofs of the cabins were on fire. Not a drop of water was left in thefort. "Look! Look!" someone shouted. The sky had been dark all day. Now it was starting to rain. It rainedand it poured. The rain came down and put out the fires. It filled thetubs and pails with water to drink. Everyone felt hopeful again. When morning came, no Indians were in sight. Every single one of themwas gone. They had disappeared into the forest. The fort was saved. Daniel Boone's Reward The Indian raids kept on all over Kentucky. When the AmericanRevolution ended, the British stopped helping the Indians fight thesettlers. Some tribes kept on fighting on their own, but finally thesettlers defeated the Indians and forced them to sign a treaty. Thingsslowly became more peaceful. More and more settlers came west. They came over the Wilderness Roadthat Boone and his men had made. They came down the Ohio River in bigflatboats. These settlers killed game in the forest. They cleared land, grew crops, built houses, and started towns. Daniel Boone was fifty years old now. One day he discovered that he didnot own any of the land he had thought was his. "This does not seem right, " he said. "I was one of the first to come toKentucky. My life was hard. I risked it for the people many times. " It was not right, but it was true. Boone had been too busy hunting andtrapping to put his claims on paper. Boone lost almost all his land. He tried to farm, but he was not a goodfarmer. He tried to keep a store, but his heart was not in it. His goodwife, Rebecca, often took his place in the store, while Daniel workedas a guide showing new settlers the way down the Ohio River. And heheld some jobs with the new government. One day hunters told Daniel Boone about land farther west near thegreat Mississippi River. "It's wild and free, " they said. "There arebear and deer. There are herds of buffalo. It's the kind of landKentucky used to be. " "That's the place for me, " Boone said. "It's too crowded here. Theother day I looked out of the window and saw the smoke of another man'scabin. I'll go west. I want elbow room. " And besides elbow room, he wanted land. He had always dreamed aboutowning a lot of land. He was disappointed about losing his claims in Kentucky. So Boone and his family went west. The land where they settled belongedto Spain. Later it was traded to the French and then bought by America. It is the land we now call Missouri. The Spaniards were proud to have Daniel Boone live among them. Theygave him all the land he wanted. He hunted and trapped in the newcountry as he had in the old. He sold the furs and skins for a goodprice. Then Boone made a trip back to Kentucky. He called together all thepeople he had once known. "I owed money to you when I left here, " he said. "I want to pay mydebts. " When he returned to his family in Missouri, Boone was a poor man again. But he had a smile on his face. "I am a free man, " he said. "I owe nothing to any man. That makes itworth being poor again. " The United States Congress voted to give Boone one thousand acres ofland. It was a reward for all he had done in exploring and settling theWest. He hunted and fished until he was very old. He never stoppedexploring. He was still looking for adventure and elbow room! But Daniel Boone, traveler, hunter, woodsman, and fighter, will beremembered longest as the man who opened the way to Kentucky. * * * * * "Get out of Kentucky and stay out!" the Indians told Daniel Boone. ButDaniel Boone did not scare easily. There was the time his daughter was kidnaped by the Indians. Boonetracked the kidnapers through the forest and rescued her. There was the time Boone was captured by the Shawnees. He escaped intime to warn the people of Boonesborough: "The Indians are coming! Getready to fight!" Boone's life was full of adventure. And this book tells his story. SCHOLASTIC BOOK SERVICES, NEW YORK