Southern Appalachian Digital Collections

Western Carolina University (21) View all

Kephart's address before Bryson City Women's Club

items 3 of 6 items
  • wcu_great_smoky_mtns-10441.jpg
Item
?

Item’s are ‘child’ level descriptions to ‘parent’ objects, (e.g. one page of a whole book).

  • <3) 4/ X bably in De Soto's also, ran south of west to Coosa, by way of Dahlonega. If the Indian woman had taken De Soto westward along this Coosa trail, as she was supposed to do, he might really have found gold in the Dahlonega region, where, as we know, it was afterwards discovered. But she was only biding her time to get even with him. So she led him off in the opposite direction, and then escaped, leaving him in the mazes cf,.the wilderness. Into Blue Ridge The northeasterly course took De Soto into the country of the Suwaii or Cheraw Indians,, who at that time occupied the foothills of the Blue j Ridge at the headwaters cf the Broad and Catawba rivers, around the present Rutherfordton, Marion and Old Fort. Here, at a village that the chroniclers call, in Spanish spelling, Xualn (Ksoo_ah_la), tney learned that they were on the wrong course. To reach Coosa they would have to go westward over tire mountains and then south. The Su_ali let them have some provisions and furnished pack_ carriers for the trip. It is at this point that our own interests in De Soto's route is particular excited; for he now crossed the Blue Ridge and went through the country of the mountain Cherokees. This was the hardest part of all his journey. Ranjel complains of the cold in the high mountains, although it was late in May. They had to ej_.ttrceount ridge, after ridge, only to find others blocking the way. Cherokees Flee Garcilaso_ says that the Cherokees deserted their towns on the appronct _i' the white men and fled to_ th: mo'uniains, leaving behind only old men and women and some who weM nearly blind. It was the poorest eoantry for corn that t ey had yet seen. The Indians tnemsolves were .subsisting en wild ro^ts and herbs .ind on game that they killed with oows and arrows,. So the Spaniard; ound themselves in a deserted land, where they could not "live off the ;cuntry," and they were obliged to aurry forward by forced marches, going every clay as far as possible, and _on short rations. ,.■>"■_■ e days of this flight f.oiri they came to an Indian ,t they record under the Guaxule (Gco_ksoo_lay) where they were received with kindness and given food—among other things, three hundred more or less edible dogs. They were.' so relieved by this hospitality that the very name of Guaxule became wish them 3. synonym for gcod luck. Mooney identifies Guaxule with a ;own on the site of the ancient Na_ eootchee mound, which still stands twelve miles northeast of the present Clarkesville, Georgia. The records of the Spaniards' flight through the wilderness of mountains are so_ vague that we can not plot their course with certainty. The best we can do is figure on the probabilities of the case after close ■tudy of the narratives and i_\ the light of our ^ intimate acquaintance with the lie of the land. , Slow Trave'ing Both Ranjel and the Gent'eman of Elvas say that they were five days en .the way from Ohalaque (Keowee) to Xuala. The last_named writer states that they usually made five or six leagues a day (fifteen to eighteen miles) through inhabited 'lands, but that in crossing depopulated regions they marched every day as far as possible. It is most likely that De Soto took 'the course of the old trading route i from Coosa to the Suwaii country and Virginia, which we find marked on Eoyces map of the Cherokee cessions. Five days along this trail, from Keo\vee,at the above_mentioned rate of march, would bring them to the present site of Ruitherfordton, or a little beyond_ it, on one of the forks of Broad River. . Biedma says that the province of Xuala was a rough mountain country, thinly populated and poor In pro /isiens. Garcilaso describes the town itso.f as situated close under a mountain beside a small but rapid; stream. This may have been a point j on Broad River, east of Chimney | Rock. i ._,_1 *_..' A_
Object
?

Object’s are ‘parent’ level descriptions to ‘children’ items, (e.g. a book with pages).