savages; and long after the influx of immigration which succeeded the
peace, the fruits, the meadows, and the tilled fields of these oases in
the desert, rendered them conspicuous amidst the blackened stumps,
piled logs, and smooty fallows of an active and bustling settlement. At
even a much later day, they were to be distinguished by the smoother
surfaces of their fields, the greater growth and more bountiful yield
of their orchards, and by the general appearance of a more finished
civilization, and of greater age. Here and there, a hamlet had sprung
up; and isolated places, like Cherry Valley and Wyoming, were found,
that have since become known to the general history of the country.

Our present tale now leads us to the description of one of those early,
personal, or family settlements, that had grown up, in what was then a
very remote part of the territory in question, under the care and
supervision of an ancient officer of the name of Willoughby. Captain
Willoughby, after serving many years, had married an American wife, and
continuing his services until a son and daughter were born, he sold his
commission, procured a grant of land, and determined to retire to his
new possessions, in order to pass the close of his life in the tranquil
pursuits of agriculture, and in the bosom of his family. An adopted
child was also added to his cares. Being an educated as well as a
provident man, Captain Willoughby had set about the execution of this
scheme with deliberation, prudence, and intelligence. On the frontiers,
or lines, as it is the custom to term the American boundaries, he had
become acquainted with a Tuscarora, known by the English
_sobriquet_ of "Saucy Nick." This fellow, a sort of half-outcast from
his own people, had early attached himself to the whites, had acquired
their language, and owing to a singular mixture of good and bad
qualities, blended with great native shrewdness, he had wormed himself
into the confidence of several commanders of small garrisons, among