ran from the enemy, in the direction of the
plain, for about two hundred yards--here it was evident he had been
overtaken, and his skull cloven with a tomahawk from behind. We soon
discovered his remains in the sand, denuded of every particle of flesh
and muscle by the vultures and the ravenous wolves. We collected the
bones with reverential care, and placed them in the waggon, for transit
to Fort Andrews.

On the bones of the little finger of the left hand was an emerald ring,
which I had often seen the murdered man wear, and which, being covered
with blood and sand at the time of the catastrophe, no doubt escaped the
attention of the villians who perpetrated the atrocious act. The left
jaw was fractured by a rifle-bullet, which knocked him off his horse
backwards, as described by one of the survivors.

In the pines opposite the place of ambush, we found several balls
imbedded, and one had lodged in the pummel of the saddle of the man who
was present, and who formed one of our party. It appeared probable that
there were not more than four or five Indians engaged in the attack; a
force which might easily have been repelled and annihilated with
ordinary courage, but formidable enough to men wanting the presence of
mind which is necessary under such circumstances.

After a fatiguing journey, for which I was at the time almost totally
unfitted by ill-health, our party reached Fort Andrews, with the mangled
remains of the victim. A short time afterwards these were committed to
the sand, a military salute being fired over the grave by some soldiers
at the garrison. On an elevated slab of wood, to the north of Fort
Andrews, may be seen a zinc plate, erected by me to the memory of my
friend, with his name, the date of his death, and an epitome of the
circumstances attending it. This memento of regard has, in all
probability, escaped the cupidity of the Indians, for I took the
precaution to have it placed as much out of sight as possible, and the
place of burial was off the beaten track.

Thus perished miserably, one whose generous openness and manly virtues
rendered him dear to all who had the privilege of his acquaintance. He
was a native of somewhere near Arbroath in Scotland, but his accent did
not betray his nativity.

In traversing the sandy deserts of West Florida, I had frequent
opportunities of tracing the devastating effects of those awful
visitations in tropical climates--hurricanes, or tornadoes; and,
notwiths