now, or were until the removal jo^som^uof them beyond the
Mississippi.;!; We have jao- proof*that they extendedfurther
towards the Atlantic. It is probable that the sea-shores of
Florida as-!;well as of Georgia were occupied by different
tribes now extinct. “ We know that the natives of that peninsula
were people distinct from the Muskhogees and Semi-
nojes, iwho subjugated or destroyed thent. The Colooses,
-the lastjremnant of those Floridian tribes, had beenilftdrveit,
to the Keys lying at the.southern extremity of the peninsula.
Even there th'e‘water did not protect them from the Creeksj
and in 1763 the last remnant, of this people,.epmsisting of
about eighty families,- left this last possession in. their native
land and went to the Havanna.” Many petty tribes now unknown
existed on the coast of Florida and,Georgia when the
French attempted to make settlements there, in 1,562 and
1567. None of them now existr.unless4.hey have been incorporated
in the Creek confederacy.
Mr. Gallatin, after examining a variety of. amounts which
bear upon the question, concludes that the four great southern
nations were not more numerous three hundred years ago
than at the present day, and that their manners have not
undergone much change. An exception to thisacCmark must
be admitted in respect to the late improvements of the Che-"
rokees in civilisation and in the conversion of many of them
to Christianity.
We have an account of the physical characters of these
nations from William Bartram. It is as .follows :•—
| p The males of the Cherokees, Muscogulg'es, - Seminoles,
Chicasaws, Choctaws, and confederate tribes of the Creeks,
are tall, erect,, and moderately robust; their Hmbs wellshaped,
so ^generally to form a perfect human figure ; their
featuresregular, and countenance open, dignified, and placid,
yet the forehead and brow are so formed as to strike you instantly
with heroism and bravery ; the eye, though rather
small, yet active and full of fire, the iris always black, and
the nose commonly inclining to the aquiline. Their countenance
and actions exhibit an air of magnanimity, superiority,
and independence. Their complexion is of a reddish brown
or copper colour; their hair long, lank, coarse, and black as'
a Taveri, add^feffeeting the1 like duS’tre at different exposures
to the light.?' The' wdtnë'h 1ofithe^Cherokees are tall, slender,
^'é’fect, a'nduöf a deli^te^feaine'f théir features formed with
perfë#tSyMme1fryV thê,cétt.nfehah'ceycheerful and friendly; and
they move with r’aiMcomin^^face and dignity]' |
t| “ Thé" Muscögulgë:f%oihé4^ though: remarkably short of
stature, are' Well-formed; thp$vi&agfë ‘rburid, features" regular
'and'^ nbautiful;- thé brow h igh and arohqdfef! the eye largd,
black,r arid 'languishing, exprlssiWWuf ihbdeffy, diffidence,’
and bashfulness: they'are, perhapl1/ bthéf1 smalles^Htëe of
'Womeö yè€*known, seldbmhbcfvei fi^ fè ë t high,* and' I believe
that the:'greater number never arrive to that^tature; their
hands and- feet not larger than those1 of 'EuropPahlll^bf nine
mid ten yëard’è f 'age; yet-tMe’1 ’men!'%rhEof 'gigantic stature;-
a full’size larger than Europeans j /many^&f-them above, and
few under, Six'feét, or five feet' eight or ten inche#:- Their,
complexion il Auch darker than any^of the tribes to the'
north'df them that I havqsebn. This description Will, I believe;
comprehend the Muscögulges, their hèhfédéra'tes thè
Choctaws, ’ dhd'-' the 'ChicasaWs,' (though I havé never seen
their women,) excepting, however, some bands ©f the Serail.
ho'léS, UcheS,f and Sayannaws,'“ who -rather taller and
iléödëfè^^iand their cöiilplexidn-brighter.” 1
“ The CheTokees are fet taller and mqrë robust than the
Muscogulges, and by far the largest race of men I have seen*;
their complexion brighter and somewhat of an olive cast,
especially the adults; and' some of their ybung women are
nearly as fair and blooming as European women.” *
S e c t io n I V .^Tribes between the Mobile and Mistissippi)
and between that River and the Red River.]
We know but little of the small tribes who-formerly inhabited
the 'coast between the Mobile and the Mississippi
and the banks of that river, on the coast reaching from its