The following is from the book "Orange County 1752-1952" that I have quoted before. It was written by Douglas L. Rights. I am not sure when it was written, but the book was published in 1953. --------------------------------------------------------------- When the curtain rose for the drama of history to begin, the land that is now Orange county was occupied by small tribes of Siouan origin. The great Trading Path from Virginia to the Catawba nation led through the region of present Hillsboro and Mebane to Haw river. The first description of this famous Indian trail was given by John LEDERER, a German doctor, in June, 1670. He told of his visit to the Eno Indians along the Eno river near present Hillsboro. His narrative read: *****Dr. Lederer's comments**** The county here, by the industry of these Indians, is very open and clear of wood. Their town is built round a field where in their sports they exercise with so much labour and violence, and in so great numbers that I have seen the ground wet with sweat that dropped from their bodies: their chief recreation is slinging of stones. They are of mean stature and courage, covetous and thievish, industrious to earn a penny; and therefore hire themselves out to their neighbours, who employ them as carryers or porters. They plant abundance of grain, reap three crops in a summer, and out of their granary supply all the adjacent parts. These and the mountain-Indians build not their houses of bark, but of watling and plaister. . . .Some houses they have of reed or bark; they build them generally round: to each house belongs a little hovel made like an oven, where they lay up their corn and mast, and keep it dry. They parch their nuts and acorns over a fire, to take away their rank oyliness; which afterwards pressed, yield a milky liquor, and the acorns an amber-colour'd oyl. In these, mingled together, they dip their cakes at great entertainments, and so serve them up to their guests as an extraordinary dainty. Their government is democratick; and the sentences of their old men are received as laws, or rather oracles, by them. ****end of Dr. Lederer's comments**** The author goes on to say that more than two centuries later the following comment was written. He does not say who wrote this comment. ********************** Not far from Eno Town the young braves of North Carolina and Duke universities still carry on their ball play with much labour and violence, the government of the county is still democratic, and the three crops a year are possible for farmers who space their corn plantings properly. *********************** {to be continued} Larry Noah - larmil-1@worldnet.att.net Listowner - NCORANGE mailing list See my Ancestors at - http://www.trailerpark.com/tango/lrnoah Gedcoms & other data are at - http://members.tripod.com/~lrnoah Florence Co,SC GenWeb - http://www.rootsweb.com/~scfloren Orange Co, NC GenWeb - http://www.rootsweb.com/~ncorange ==== NCORANGE Mailing List ==== Larry Noah - lrnoah@bigfoot.com - Listowner - NCORANGE mailing list Orange Co, NC USGenWeb site is at http://www.rootsweb.com/~ncorange GENDEX at http://www.gendex.com/gendex/ has over 1500 databases on line