This may appear strange to the reader, but it has been a
common practice for some time. There have always been in the United
States a numerous body of individuals, who, having by their crimes been
compelled to quit the settlements of the east, have sought shelter out
of the reach of civilization. These individuals are all desperate
characters, and, uniting themselves in small bands, come fearlessly
among the savages, taking squaws, and living among them till a
sufficient period has elapsed to enable them to venture, under an
assumed name and in a distant state, to return with impunity and enjoy
the wealth acquired by plunder and assassination.
This is the history of the major portion of the western pioneers, whose
courage and virtues have been so much celebrated by American writers. As
they increased in numbers, these pioneers conceived a plan by which they
acquired great wealth. They united together, forming a society of land
privateers or buccaneers, and made incursions into the very heart of the
French and Spanish settlements of the west, where, not being expected,
they surprised the people and carried off great booty. When, however,
these Spanish and French possessions were incorporated into the United
States, they altered their system of plunder; and under the name of
Border's Buggles, they infested the states of the Mississippi and
Tennessee, where they obtained such a dreaded reputation that the
government sent out many expeditions against them, which, however, were
useless, as all the principal magistrates of these states had contrived
even themselves to be elected members of the fraternity.
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