Chapter III Summary

On March 5, 1775, Loramie puts in to shore near Simon's camp and tells Simon that he'd stopped at the wrong creek in his search for the canelands. The game is as plentiful as promised. Bison are so numerous they've created great roads. Elk, mink, skunk, beaver, raccoon, weasels, and more gather at a great salty spring. The two men even kill bear from the generous population and then clear an acre of land and plant corn. Before they are done, people begin swarming down the river, believing themselves and their families safe from Indian attack. On March 17, Judge Richard Henderson signs a treaty with the Cherokee Indians at Sycamore Shoals. The Cherokee don't actually own the land but don't care. The chief, Dragging Cane, says that they've sold Henderson the land but warns that it's under a "dark and bloody cloud". Henderson...