The Wilderness Way, by Merritt Parmelee Allen. Decorations by Larry Toschik. New York, London [and] Toronto: Longmans, Green and Co., [1954.] 246p.

LaSalle's first two ventures into the northern wilderness which is now Illinois in search of a route down the Mississippi River to France make up the major portion of this novel. The story revolves around the experiences of Laurent Delair, a young Frenchman who joins the first LaSalle expedition before it leaves Quebec, follows LaSalle and Tonty faithfully in two abortive attempts to reach the mouth of the Mississippi and accompanies them in their successful third trek. Opposition from the fur traders of the northwest, severe winter weather, hostile Indians, and discontent among his followers combine to delay LaSalle's success for several years. A fictionalized account of these years, The Wilderness Way is an adequate retelling of the LaSalle story, combined with excellent descriptions of the country and plenty of action to create a rousing novel of America during the late 1600s.

Book Review Digest, 1954, p. 12.

The Mound Builder's Daughter. A Legend by W. D. Armstrong, President of the Madison County Historical Society, [n.p.: n.p., n.d.] 2p.

The legend of Virga, the Mound Builder's daughter, is recounted here in a simple, straightforward manner. When Mississippi River flood waters threaten the homes of the Mound Builders near Cahokia, Virga is offered as a sacrifice to the Rain God. Illiam, her betrothed, hearing of the planned sacrifice, volunteers to take her place, but his offer is refused. At the appointed time, Virga, in a manner befitting a Master's daughter, casts herself into the raging waters of the Mississippi causing the waters to recede, and saving the homes of her people for all time.

Hearts Undaunted, A Romance of Four Frontiers, by Eleanor Atkinson. Author of "Greyfriars Bobby," "Johnny Appleseed." Illustrated. New York and London: Harper & Brothers Publishers, [1917.] 349p.

A fictionalized biography of Eleanor Lytle Kinzie, Hearts Undaunted relates the life story of the woman whose husband founded Chicago. Stolen by Indians at the age of five, Eleanor Lytle spends her childhood and youth as a captive among the Senecas. Returned to her family as a young woman, she marries Daniel McKillip, her mother's choice, in spite of her love for John Kinzie. Only after McKillip's death does she marry Kinzie and look to the Illinois country where her destiny awaits. Mrs. Atkinson's novel is based on fact and relates the details of the story accurately. However, the presentation is sentimental and the characters too heroic to suit modern tastes.

Book Review Digest, 1917, p. 19.

The Forest Princess; or, The Kickapoo Captives. A Romance of the Illinois, by Jos. E. Badger, Jr. Author of the following Dime Novels: 203. The Masked Guide; 210. Redlaw, Half-Breed; 213. Squatter Dick; 218. The Indian Spy; 222. The Mad Ranger. New York: Beadle and Company, Publishers, 98 William Street, [1871.] 102p. (Beadle Dime Novels, No. 227)

The defeat of the Shawnee Prophet at Tippecanoe in November 1811, fails to bring anticipated peace to the middle western frontier. In 1812 Indian raids along the western bank of the Wabash River in the Illinois territory prompt General Hopkins of Vincennes to send Uriah Barham and Peter Shafer on a scouting expedition to determine the mood of the Indian nations, the size of the Indian forces, and the extent of Indigo war activity. The Forest Princess relates the adventures of the two scouts as they carry out their spying mission, fight the hostile savages, are captured and held prisoner by the Kickapoos, and become enthralled with Aneola, a white girl who has been reared by the natives. The story is action-packed and accurate in most details, reflecting the authors extensive historical background. However, the author's attempts at writing authentic backwoods dialect make the reading difficult and laborious, and his occasional assays into emotional description quickly become over-sweet and syrupy. Copies of The Forest Princess are now rare and very difficult to obtain.

A Child of the Sun, by Charles Eugene Banks. Illustrations by Louis Betts. Chicago: Herbert S. Stone & Company; Eldridge Court, MDCCCC. 166p.

The legend of the Piasau is the basis for this novel of Indian life set on the eastern shore of the Mississippi River near what is today the city of Alton. The Piasau--a bird-like monster with the face of a man, horns like a buck, beard like a buffalo bull, fiery red eyes, and thick lips drawn back over sharp white teeth; claws like an eagle, tail like a dragon, scales like a fish, and wings that produce sounds like the rushing of many winds--has terrorized the Children of the Sun for many years. When the Great Spirit appears to Minno, the prophet of the tribe, promising that a child shall be born who will slay the Piasau, the villagers rejoice; and the birth of Strongheart, Minno's son, soon after, seems to bear out the prophesy. But Strongheart's untimely death delays the fulfillment of the prophesy until his son, Waupello, grows to manhood. A Child of the Sun is a quiet, slow-moving novel written in an archaic, courtly style. The value of the work is in its meticulous re-creation of Indian legends and lore and accurate descriptions of villages, celebrations, rituals, customs, and day-to-day activities.

Black Hawk, by Arthur J. Beckhard. New York: Julian Messner, Inc., [1957.] 192p.

This fictionalized biography of Black Hawk, chief of the Sauk and Fox nations, relates his life from youth through the Black Hawk War. The author writes with sympathy and understanding of the deeds of the greatly feared and grossly misunderstood warrior leader, presenting the people and the circumstances which influence his thoughts and deeds. The lives and customs of Illinois' first inhabitants are accurately portrayed as they fight valiantly against staggering odds to keep the land which is their birthright.

Booklist, 3/1/1958, p. 397. Library Journal, 1/15/1958, p. 235.

Mike Fink; A Legend of the Ohio, by Emerson Bennett. Author of "The Renegade," "The Bandits of the Osage," "The Unknown Countess,'' "Silver Bird," Etc. Cincinnati: Robinson & Jones, 1848. 102p.

One of the many stories and legends of the Ohio River in which Mike Fink figures prominently, this tale by Emerson Bennett tells of the attack on Fink's keelboat, the Light-Foot, by a band of river pirates at Cave-In-Rock, Illinois. Boating from Cincinnati down the Ohio to New Orleans, Mike Fink puts in to shore for the night near Cave-In-Rock. Engrossed in revelry, he fails to protect his boat. During the night, it is attacked by the pirate, Orlando Camilla. and Aurelia St. Vincent, the governor's beautiful niece, is taken captive. His usual heroic self, Mike Fink reconnoiters, and in a bloody battle rescues the lady so that the journey to New Orleans can be completed. Although a willful exaggeration of the truth, this tale is not as tall as many of the Mike Fink legends which are more familiar. At least basic facts are true--Mike Fink was a keelboatman on the Ohio River, and bandits did inhabit the Cave-In-Rock area of Illinois during the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.

In the Boyhood of Lincoln, A Tale of the Tunker Schoolmaster and the Times of Black Hawk, by Hezekiah Butterworth. Author of The Log School-House on the Columbia... New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1892. 266p.

Following Jasper the Parable, a wandering minister-teacher, through the Illinois territory during the years when Illinois is seeking statehood, the reader is introduced to an astounding number of notable historic characters. On his journey from Pennsylvania to Illinois, Jasper stops in Spencer County, Indiana, where he encounters the Lincoln family of Pigeon Creek. Crossing Illinois to the upper Mississippi to meet his Indian guide, he encounters Black Hawk, the chief of the Sac Indian nation. A short residency in the Fort Dearborn area brings him into contact with John Kinzie, son of the founder of Chicago. And a trek to Kaskaskia enables him to meet the aged Lafayette. Butterworth has combined fiction and history to create one of the most fact-filled novels in this bibliography. As precisely as possible, he has reconstructed the scene of each historic event first as it was at the time, then as it existed in 1892, when he was writing the book. Although In the Boyhood of Lincoln contains a wealth of information, the style, which is similar to that of numerous nineteenth-century textbooks, will attract few readers.

Donald McElroy, Scotch Irishman, by W. W. Caldwell. Illustrated by Frank T. Merrill. Philadelphia: George W. Jacobs & Company, Publishers, [1918.] 351p.

Set within the time frame of the American Revolution, this novel concerns Donald McElroy, a young Virginian of Scotch Irish ancestry, who joins Daniel Morgan in his campaign against the British in the early days of the war, then accompanies George Rogers Clark on his campaign in the Ohio and Mississippi Valleys in 1778 and 1779. Although the scope of the novel is limited to two areas of the Revolution, the author manages to produce detailed portraits of the leaders of the two campaigns, as well as interesting glimpses of such dignitaries as George Washington and Thomas Jefferson.

N. Y. Times Book Review, 2/9/1919. p. 58.

Old Kaskaskia, by Mary Hartwell Catherwood. Author of "The Lady of Fort St. John," "The Romance of Dollard," Etc. Boston and New York: Houghton, Mifflin and Company; The Riverside Press, Cambridge, 1893. 200p.

By 1806, Kaskaskia had grown to be the largest and most influential settlement in Illinois. With upwards of a thousand inhabitants, it was a political force with which to be reckoned, and a social center for the entire territory. Focusing on Pierre Menard's courtship of Angelique Saucier, his second wife, Mrs. Catherwood recreates a vivid picture of life in this thriving community which is all but destroyed when flash floods on the Mississippi River inundate the town, killing many people, and forcing others to seek shelter on higher ground. This is a rousing story relating deeds of valor, cowardice, love, and hate, resulting from a natural disaster which tries the mettle of the town's valiant inhabitants.

Atlantic, 11/1893, p. 697. Chautauquan, 9/1893, p. 761.Critic, 8/5/1893, p. 87. Dial, 8/16/1893, p. 94. Literary World, 6/3/1893, p. 178. Overland, 2/1894, p. 219.

The Crossing, by Winston Churchill. Author of "Richard Carvel," "The Crisis," "The Celebrity," Etc., Etc. With Illustrations by Sydney Adamson and Lilian Bayliss. New York: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., 1904. 598p.

Told as a memoir written by Davy Trimble, an orphan who becomes George Rogers Clark's drummer boy and grows to be one of Clark's most faithful followers, The Crossing tells the story of the conquest of the Northwest Territory, covering the years 1775 to 1805. Only a portion of Clark's total story concerns Illinois, but Davy gives a glowing report on that portion, including the capture of Fort Kaskaskia, the council with the Indian nations aroused to rebellion by the British, and the march to Vincennes to drive out the Loyalist forces who, under the leadership of Henry Hamilton, the Hair Buyer, control the Great Lakes area and the Ohio River Valley. The author gives a detailed and historically accurate account of the Clark campaigns, unfortunately wrapped up in a novel that is old-fashioned and discouragingly long.

Athenaeum, 8/27/1904, p. 266. Atlantic, 11/1904, p. 707. Bookman (NY), 8/1904, p. 607-8. Critic, 8/1904, p. 187-8. Dial, 7/16/1904, p. 38-9. Nation, 8/11/1904, p. 121. N. Y. Times Book Review, 5/28/1904, p. 354. Saturday Review, 7/23/1904, p. 115-6. Times Literary Supplement, 7/15/1904, p. 220.

The Last Fort; A Story of the French Voyageurs, by Elizabeth Coatsworth. Illustrations by Edward Shenton. Philadelphia [and] Toronto: The John C. Winston Company, [1952.] 250p. (Land of the Free)

Alexis Picard, son of a French-Canadian farmer whose extreme hatred for the British makes life in Quebec as a British subject unthinkable, sets out in the spring of 1760 for the Illinois country to obtain land near Fort de Chartres for the Picard family. The journey through the Great Lakes and down the Mississippi River is fraught with danger as Alexis and his companions encounter mutiny, thieving Indians, hostile environment, and unfriendly mercenaries. However, Alexis proves worthy of his father's confidence and sees his task completed, growing wise to the ways of the world in the bargain. Mrs. Coatsworth's story presents a good picture of the French voyageurs, of Indian life, and of Illinois' early French settlements.

Book Review Digest, 1953, p. 192.

The French Adventurer; The Life and Exploits of LaSalle, by Maurice Constantin-Weyer. Author of A Man Scans His Past (Goncourt Prize Novel), Towards the West, The Half Breed, Etc. New York: The Macaulay Company, [1931.] 255p.

From his youth in France to his death at the hands of murderers somewhere in the wilds of the North American continent, the life of Robert Cavelier de la Salle seems to be marked by impetuous acts, misfortune, and the ill will of his contemporaries. Spurning the religious life that his father intends for him LaSalle gives up most of his inheritance to venture to the New World in search of his own destiny. After establishing his own colony, La Chine, in New France, he becomes dissatisfied, and leaving his brother in charge of his interests there, goes into the forests to live with the Indians. Rumors of a river flowing south into the Gulf of Mexico intrigue LaSalle, and several minor attempts to verify the stories, a difficult voyage to the Ohio in 1669, and a disastrous mission into the Illinois Territory in 1671 only serve to increase his determination and interest in pursuing the search. In 1679 he sets forth on his third voyage in search of the Mississippi and a western route to China. Through the Great Lakes, across Illinois, and down the Mississippi River to its mouth LaSalle is at last successful. Leaving his friend Tonti to build Fort St. Louis near Starved Rock on the Illinois River, LaSalle returns to Canada to find his lands confiscated and his fortune gone. A trip to France provides him with funds to return to the Mississippi to colonize the area. Filled with new hope, he sets forth with 200 colonists, but becomes lost and never reaches his destination. The French Adventurer is a thorough treatment of LaSalle's early life and exploits, developing the passion for adventure which drives him to America, his jealousy of Joliet and other explorers of the time, and the impatience which causes animosity among both his peers and subordinates, leading often to the failure of his schemes.

Book Review Digest, 1931, p. 224.

Sabrina Kane, A Novel of Frontier Illinois, by Will Cook. New York: Dodd, Mead & Company, [1956.] 279p.

Reminiscent of the dime store western, Sabrina Kane is a story of southern Illinois in 1811. When her husband dies during their journey to a new home on the frontier, Sabrina, a strong-willed pioneer woman, determines to continue the trek across the Illinois wilderness. By coincidence, the morning after her husband's death, Sabrina meets Travis, an equally strong-minded pioneer man, who, seeing her plight wants to help her. But Sabrina is proud and it takes several frightening experiences, including a bloody Indian massacre, to convince her that she really needs Travis badly enough to give up her independent notions. The story touches Cairo, Shawneetown, Prairie du Rocher and Kaskaskia, and Pierre Menard plays a minor role, apparently to enhance the historical effect.

Starved Rock Legendary, by Helen Martin Donovan. Chicago, Illinois: The O'Donnell Printing Company, 1915. 44p.

Two stories comprise this book. The first, "Lolomi of the Illinois; A Legend of Lovers Leap," is a retelling of the Indian legend of Lolomi, daughter of Black Hawk, who is pledged to marry Uncas son of Chief Chassagoac. When Uncas proves unfaithful by marrying another, Lolomi casts herself from the top of Starved Rock into the waters of the Illinois River far below. The second story, "Dave and Mary; A Tale of Starved Rock Twenty Years Ago," is a similar tale, updated to the 1890's. Dave and Mary, sweethearts from childhood, are separated, and each marries another. When they are reunited twelve years later and their love is found out, they choose a fate for themselves similar to that of Lolomi. Starved Rock Legendary is a simply written account of two legends. It is of little literary significance, but of vast historical value since it records, in print, two familiar local legends which had previously gone unrecorded.

The Conquest; The True Story of Lewis and Clark, by Eva Emery Dye. Author of "McLoughlin and Old Oregon." Chicago: A. C. McClurg & Company, 1902. 443p.

More truth than fiction is employed in this detailed and historically accurate account based largely on the lives of Meriwether Lewis and the brothers, William and George Rogers Clark. A surveyor, soldier, and frontiersman, George Rogers Clark is a prime factor in Illinois history. Commander at Fort Kaskaskia immediately following the American Revolution, Clark is instrumental in quelling the Indian uprisings in the Mississippi and Ohio River Valleys, and in driving the British out of the territories which are now Illinois and Indiana. A large portion of The Conquest is devoted to the expedition of William Clark and Meriwether Lewis from the St. Louis area to Oregon. Following the long trek, Clark is appointed Director of Indian Affairs, a post which requires him to negotiate with the Sac Indians of northern Illinois during the Black Hawk War as his brother had dealt with the Indians of the south some fifty years earlier.

Athenaeum, 1/16/1904, p. 77. N. Y. Times Book Review, 11/29/1902, p. 842. N. Y. Times Book Review, 4/30/1902, p. 9.