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colony, had a fine silver mounted rifle which he was holding in his hands while the wagons were standing. An Indian walked up and asked to look at the rifle. As McGill handed it out the Indian seized it and attempted to run off. McGill caught the breech of the rifle and the Indian the Muzzle. Several other Indians caught the muzzle and as many others as could took hold of these who had hold of the gun and a desperate struggle ensued. In the meantime several white men ran to McGill's aid and held the breech, but the Indians proved of greater strength and drew them through the house. At this juncture my grandfather saw the trouble and called to the men at the top of his voice to turn the gun loose. They did so, and the result was that every Indian in the pull fell flat. The one who coveted the gun most rose with it and made his way to the woods. So McGill lost his fine rifle and never recovered it.
The colony moved on and, as I said before, settled in Wayne County, Mississippi.
Later on the Creeks Indians began to get troublesome and	the	settlers	did	not	consider
themselves safe at their homes ................(At this
point there is a page missing from the
manuscript)......... were sufficient defence in the
event the Creeks Indians should come in force. He conceived the idea of constructing a wooden cannon, and sent to the forest and had brought in a hickory log 8 feet long and ten inches in diameter. The log was squared	and	a hole bored	with	a 2 inch
auger for 6 ft., the	depth of	the	square. The
barrel part was	banded at both	ends	and	a touch
hole made. The cannon was charged with a quarter pound of powder on which a tight wad was placed, and it was then mounted on some wheels with the breech end toward the tongue and the barrel tied to the axletree.	A	slow	match	was arranged and all
hands got out of the way. It soon fired and the result was a mass of splinters where the cannon formerly stood.
It was about the time that the massacre of Ft. Mimms took place.
The fall	of	Ft.	Mimms	created great alarm
among the settlers; so much so, that a regiment of militia and a	company	of cavalry was formed. My
father got up	a	company and	joined the regiment.
Capt. Thos. Berdeaux commanded the cavalry. This
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regiment was stationed somewhere north of Mobile and west of the Bigbee river but the exact place is not known, neither is the exact time known when it started out. It was somewhere in the fall or winter of 1814, possibly Nov. or Dec.
Soon after, it was found out that a few Creek Indians had crossed the river, and my father's company of infantry and Capt. Berdeaux's company of cavalry got in (on?) their trail and pursued them to their hiding place in the swamp. These two companies scoured the swamp and soon found the Creeks Indians and opened fire on them, killing al] but one. This Indian ran out of the swamp and as he entered the open pine woods he turned and fired back at his pursuers. My father and Capt. Berdeaux were standing some two hundred yards from where the Indian entered the opening. My father remarked to Capt. Berdeaux that the Indian's gun was empty and that he could catch him before he could reload his gun. In a moment Berdeaux put spurs to his horse, and my father witnessed the chase. Just as Berdeaux was about to overtake him, the Indian made for a large pine tree and as he dodged on one side Berdeaux reined his horse to the other. As they met, a lick from Berdeaux's sword split the Indian's head open. The killing of these spies or scouts put a stop to their crossing the Bigbee river. The sword that Capt. Berdeaux killed the Indian with is still in possession of the Berdeaux family, possibly of ex-sheriff Berdeaux of Lauderdale Springs, Miss. It is kept as a relic of the War of 1812.
In connection with the history of the Creek War of 1813 Possibly some have read the "Life of Sam Dale" by J. F. H. Claiborne. Claiborne says that Dale in carrying dispatches from Georgia to Jackson's headquarters at New Orleans, arrived there just as the battle was on and wanted to go into it. Jackson prevented him, however, and after resting a day or two Dale was started back with news as to the result of the battle. Dale, on his return, swam streams when there was no other way of crossing, and after a long and tiresome (journey) made his way as far back as the regiment which I have before spoken of. He reached it after dark, and the sentinel on the outpost hailed him. Dale could not give the pass word or countersign, and asked the sentinel to fire the alarm and call for the corporal of the guard. In a few minutes the corporal came and conducted Dale through the lines,
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