Canal Commission; Colonel George A. Porterfield, CharlesTown, W. Va.; Mr. Thomas H. Clark, Law Librarian of Congress. Secretary and Treasurer: Colyer Meriwether, Washington, D. C. Administrative Council (in addition to above officers): Professor Kemp P. Battle, Chapel Hill, N. C.; Colonel R. A. Brock, Richmond, Va.; Mr. T. L. Cole, Washington, D. C.; Prof. R. H. Dabney, University of Va.; Prof. John R. Ficklen, Tulane University, New Orleans, La.; Prof. Charles Lee Smith, Liberty, Mo.; Prof. W. C. Stubbs, New Orleans, La.; Dr. S. B. Weeks, Santa Fe, New Mexico; Prof. Lucian Johnston, Baltimore, Md.; Mr. Alexander Summers, Bureau of Education; President George T. Winston, Raleigh, N. C.; Colonel J. B. Killebrew, Nashville, Tenn.; Mr. B. F. Johnson, Richmond, Va.; Colonel John B. Brownlow, Post Office Department; Prof. George P. Garrison, Austin, Texas. THE SECRETARY'S REPORT. The Seventh Annual Meeting finds our Association up to its usual average. Our membership is substantially the Our regular volume of publications equals any of its predecessors, except one, in pagination, and surpasses all in the space given to original material. Our surplus is the largest in our history. In the general field the year has not been signalized by any very unusual incident, but it can be said with safety that interest in the study of the past is gradually increasing, a slow but solid growth. No preeminent book appeared, no striking impetus was given to the cause. One new society was started, the Tennessee Valley one, and an older one, that of Louisiana, made efforts to get published by the U. S. Government a mass of important documents. A broad scheme for the whole country has been announced by a leading firm, a cooperative history of the U. S. The Carnegie Institution has also set aside a fund for investigating the sources of history in the official repositories in Washington. The national Association will for the first time in its existence gather in annual convention south of the Potomac at New Orleans, next Christmas. This will be both a testimonial to historical interest in the South, and, it is trusted, a stimulant for the future. For the first time in the life of the Association with one exception, we hold our annual meeting without the presence of Dr. J. L. M. Curry. He presided at the organization, and on the removal of Mr. W. L. Wilson from Washington, became our president and so remained till his death (on February 12). Interested in history, but specially devoted to that of our chosen field, he was always ready to aid with suggestion, with counsel, and with his pen. Ever willing to grant an interview, ever prompt till bodily weakness prevented, to answer a communication, ever punctual in fulfilling a promise of contribution, he stands, remarkable for one of his age, a model of courtesy and energy. Cheerfully giving of his valuable time and strength to a cause that could add neither to his purse nor his honors, he was a union of high purpose, strong sympathy, and noble sense of charity and culture. To education, to public service and to history he consecrated his days, and in each path he walked with a sure and fearless step. It is to be hoped that in the near future some of the institutions that he was so active in guiding will put in printed form a record of his achievements. Printing Publications, 6 Nos., vouchers 1-6, .... $536 80 Office printing, vouchers 10, 13, 16, 21, 25, 26, .. 14 75 13 54 Purchase of back volumes, vouchers 11, 12, 22, IO 22 $490 16 Surplus, certified check, voucher 31, plus cash,.. I have examined the foregoing account as Auditing Committee and find it to be correct. T L. COLE, Auditing Committee. January 8, 1903. GENERAL JOSEPH MARTIN. BY JOHN REDD. WITH ACCOMPANYING DOCUMENTS. (Continued.) About the first of April Col. Richard Henderson, with something like forty men who were on their way to Kentucky to make the first permanent settlement; they stopped at the fort 6 or 8 days to supply themselves with meat, as for bread we had none for ourselves:—as soon as they were supplied themselves, they set out on their journey.1 During the year we were not uninterrupted by the Indians, during the fall Wm. Priest with 8 or 10 men came out and built a fort a few miles above Martins. About the same time Wm. Mumps with a small party of men came out and built a fort at the Sinking Springs, 20 miles from Martins where Lee court house now is; at the forts the Settlers cut down and killed the timber on a good deal of Land, and in the Spring they were surrounded by fences made of brush and rails and planted in corn: during the past fall several small parties passed on their way to Kentucky-many of whom were murdered by the Indians, this produced a very great excitement with the Settlers in the Valley. In May 1776, Genl. Martin returned home, promising to return in four weeks, the four weeks expired and we had heard nothing from Genl. Martin: the Settlers at Priest and Mumps fort had all left and some of our own men. Days rolled on and we could hear nothing from Martin nor the Settlement we became alarmed at our situation, we knew that something of great moment had taken place or Martin would either returned or send a messenger out to let us know why he did not come at the appointed time. As our number had decreased to about 10 and we could hear nothing from Martin, we held a counsel and determined to remain 3 days longer and if we could hear nothing from the Settlement in that time to start for home. The day we held our Council Wm. Parks one of our num'See Appendix II. ber insisted upon our going some 8 miles below the fort and put up a few poles in the shape of a house, kill some trees, dig some holes in the ground and plant his corn so as to Secure a corn sight and return the third morning time enough to start with us if we Should [leave] for the Settlement. We very reluctantly gave our consent on the same evening Parks, his nephew Thomas, and his negro man set out to secure his corn right the 3 morning after Parks left the day he promised to return to our great surprise young Parks came and informed us that his uncle had left the evening before to kill some meat, shortly after his leaving he heard him shoot and had heard nothing from him since. I and 2 others set out with young Parks and on arriving at his cabin he showed us the way his uncle went. We found his tracks and followed it with great care, after going about one mile we came to where some Indians had been Lying among some lime stone rocks on the Kentucky trace about fifty yards from where the Indians had been we saw old Parks lying dead on his face on examining him we found he was shot through the heart. From his tracks he must have gone some thirty yards from where he was shot. He was scalped and a war club left sunk in his brain we skined some tough bark with it, lashed the body of old Parkes to a poll and two of us with and end of the pole on our Shoulders carried him to his cabin and buried him. The same evening returned to the fort, and among these we found an express sent out by Genl. Martin informing us that the Indians had declared war and were doing a great deal of mischief, the morning after the arrival of the express we broke up and came to Blackymore fort on clinch river at this fort we found the greater part of the men who had left Mumps and Priest forts, we soon raised a company of some 20 men returned and thin'd our corn; after this I came home on arriving at home I found that Martin had been appointed Captain, and was raising his men, the company was soon raised, officers appointed and I received the appointment of orderly. Sgt. The company was ordered to start imme |