Horace Kephart

Captives Among the Indians Horace Kephart

There is a lot of talk these days about the peaceful indegenous peoples that lived in happiness in the untamed wilderness that was the new world, before Columbus set foot at the ground there. But the reality is that life was brutal among the diverse indian tribes. Not very much written accounts of the harsh reality of those times survived. We have to rely on the close contacts, that our ancestors had with the original inhabitants of America. These are first-hand narratives of Indian Wars, Customs, Tortures, and Habits of Life in Colonial Times. First there is the story of Captain James Smith, who was captured by the Delawares at the time of Braddock's defeat, was adopted into the tribe, and for four years lived as an Indian, hunting with them, studying their habits, and learning their point of view. Then there is the story of Father Bressani who felt the tortures of the Iroquois, of Mary Rowlandson who was among the human spoils of King Philip's war, and of Mercy Harbison who suffered in the red flood that followed St. Clair's defeat. All are personal records made by the captives themselves in those old days when the Indian was constantly at our forefathers's doors. This collection was edited in 1915, and takes the reader back to a time when not all was as good as we nowadays think it was. They give us an adequate and realistic snapshot of the puberty of the US. Notoir Books is a publisher of books on topics of esoteric interests, eccentric memoirs, overlooked history, otherworldly stories and distinctive voices. You can visit us at notoirbooks.com for more.