CHAPTER III
FURTHER EXPLORATIONS BY THE ENGLISH
UNTIL 1766 these explorations
had all been confined to the French; but a restless,
roving spirit was in the breast of John Carver, a
true-born Yankee of the bluest stamp. He is supposed
to have been, and doubtless was, a descendant of the
Mayflower passenger who was first governor of the
Plymouth colony, and inherited the adventurous spirit
of his ancestor.
As early as 1763 he conceived
the design of exploring the northwest, but it was
not carried out until June, 1766, an din the November
following he arrived within the present precincts
of our territory. With only a Frenchman and Mohawk
for guides, his heroic nature defied the dangers of
the expedition; he ascended the almost unknown river
in a canoe, and exulted in the fact of being first
of the Anglo-Saxon race to view this grand scenery,
to tread this fertile soil, and listen to the roar
of the now far-famed cataract.
His winter abode was the
cave which bears his name, one mile below the CAPITOL,
and now included in the city limits of St. Paul. Carver
describes it as a "remarkable cave of amazing
depth," which the Indians termed "Wakan
Teepee." He says the entrance is about ten feet
and the arch within about fifteen feet high, and about
thirty broad, the bottom consisting of clear white
sand.
He also speaks of a lake,
which commenced about
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thirty feet from the entrance of the
cave, the water of which was transparent and extending
to an indefinite distance. Having no means to acquire
a knowledge of its extent, he says, "I threw
a pebble towards the interior part of it with my utmost
strength; I could hear that it fell into the water,
and notwithstanding it was of a small size, it caused
an astonishing noise, that reverberated through all
these gloomy regions. I found in this cave many Indian
hieroglyphics, which appeared very ancient, for time
had nearly covered them with moss, so that it was
with difficulty I could trace them. They were cut
in a rude manner upon the inside of the wall, which
was composed of a stone so extremely soft that it
might be easily penetrated with a knife." Such
is Carver's description, and though now it differs
very widely from his account, the hieroglyphics are
still visible. The utilitarian spirit of the age has
converted this cave into a commodious wareroom.
Exploring the country,
studying the language, making friends with the Indians,
shooting the buffalo, encountering the grizzly bear,
&c. occupied the time of Carver during his sojourn.
At one time we find him
far up the Minnesota River, camping with the Indians,
and wherever his canoe was seen the British flag was
flying at its head. It appears from various sources
that his visit to the Dakotas was of some service
in bringing about a friendly intercourse between them
and the commander of the English force at Mackinack.
That he acquired great influence over the various
bands with whom he mingled, we have indubitable evidence;
and had he chosen to remain with them, there is little
doubt but he would have been elected chief of the
Dakota nation.
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Carver was endowed with
unusual foresight and sagacity, and though the Falls
of St. Anthony were more than a thousand miles remote
from the nearest English settlement, he was fully
impressed with the belief that the extreme beauty
and fertility of the region would attract settlers.
Yea, he saw, with the eye of faith, and enlightened
population flooding the land, which, for their benefit,
he partitioned into colonies, with the number and
description of each. The broad, beautiful waste he
saw adorned with stately palaces, and sacred temples,
their gilded spires pointing "where man's heart
should oftener turn."
We last hear of him at
one of the great councils of the Dakotas, in the vicinity
of the "cave." Selecting some of their number
for guides, and taking a regretful leave of the remainder,
he proceeded by way of Chippewas river and Lake Superior
to Mackinack, and thence by the nearest route to England,
where he published an account of his "Adventures
in the Northwest."
In 1848, Dr. Hartwell Carver
visited the region which had been the theater of his
grandfather's rich adventures. He came as claimant
of the soil—his claims being predicated on a
title to one hundred miles square, ceded to the former
by the two head chiefs of the Dakota nation. This
conveyance of land was claimed to have been ratified
by George III. But the efforts of the heirs of Jonathan
Carver to hold the same were, and are still, unsubstantiated
by Congress; and doubtless the last lingering hope
of any right to the same has expired in the
breast of the most sanguine of the heirs.
Chapter IV
