The western bands took their route through Jefferson county, in hopes to
add more scalps to the number of their trophies. Colonel Floyd led out a
force to protect the country. They marched through the region on Salt
river, and saw no traces of Indians. They dispersed on their return. The
greater number of them reached their station, and laid down, fatigued
and exhausted, without any precaution against a foe. The Indians came
upon them in this predicament in the night, and killed several women and
children. A few escaped under the cover of the darkness. A woman, taken
prisoner that night, escaped from her savage captors by throwing herself
into the bushes, while they passed on. She wandered about the woods
eighteen days, subsisting only on wild fruits, and was then found and
carried to Lynn's station. She survived the extreme state of exhaustion
in which she was discovered. Another woman, taken with four children, at
the same time, was carried to Detroit.
The terrible blow which the savages had struck at the Blue Licks,
excited a general and immediate purpose of retaliation through Kentucky.
General Clarke was appointed commander-in-chief, and Colonel Logan next
under him in command of the expedition, to be raised for that purpose.
The forces were to rendezvous at Licking. The last of September, 1782,
General Clarke, with one thousand men, marched from the present site of
Cincinnati, for the Indian towns on the Miami. They fell in on their
route with the camp of Simon Girty, who would have been completely
surprised with his Indians, had not a straggling savage espied the
advance, and reported it to them just in season to enable them to
scatter in every direction.
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