Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume II.djvu/700

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680 BLACK HAWK BLAOKIE Iowa, Oct. 3, 1838. About 1788 lie succeeded his father as chief of the Sacs. In 1804 some of the chiefs of the Sacs and Foxes sold their lands, extending for 700 m. along the Missis- sippi, for an annuity of $1,000. Black Hawk said that the chiefs were drunk when they; signed the treaty. During the war of 1812 hel took part with England. The treaty of cessio*>, was ratified in 1815, and sanctioned hy a new treaty in 1816, which was signed by Black Hawk. In 1823 the greater part of the tribes removed to their reservation across the Missis- sippi; but Black Hawk and his followers re- mained behind. In 1831, the land occupied hy their villages having been sold to settlers, the crops of the Indians were ploughed up. Black Hawk threatened to retaliate, and the militia of Illinois were called out. He then retreated across the river, and engaged not to reenter the state without permission. But in the spring of 1832 he recrossed the river; a band of 50 of his warriors were attacked by the militia and put to flight. The Indians now scattered into squads, and began an indiscrimi- nate massacre of the whites. Gen. Scott was sent against them ; but cholera broke out among the troops and hindered their operations. The Indians were finally driven to the Wisconsin river, where they were defeated on July 21 by Gen. Dodge, and on Aug. 2 by Gen. Atkinson. Black Hawk was captured, and a treaty was made by which the land of the tribes was sold, and the Indians, numbering about 3,000, re- moved to the region about Fort Des Moines. Black Hawk, two of his sons, and seven of his warriors, were for a time detained as hostages, taken through the principal cities of the eastern states, and then confined in Fortress Monroe till June 5, 1833, when they were released and rejoined their tribes. BLACK. HAWK, a N. E. county of Iowa, inter- sected by the Cedar and Wapsipinicon rivers ; area, 576 sq. m. ; pop. in 1870, 21,706. The Dubuque and Sioux City, the Burlington, Ce- dar Kapids, and Minnesota, and the Cedar Falls and Minnesota railroads traverse the county. The surface is occupied mainly by prairies, though portions of it are well wooded. The chief productions in 1870 were 1,306,824 bushels of wheat, 902,128 of Indian corn, 570,- 340 of oats, 109,771 of potatoes, 29,235 tons of hay, 17,226 Ibs. of wool, and 506,844 of butter. There were 7,456 horses, 6,407 milch cows, 8,004 other cattle, 4,479 sheep, and 13, > 438 swine. Capital, Waterloo. BLACK HILLS, a range of mountains in S. W. Dakota and 1ST. E. Wyoming, lying near the parallel of 44 N. latitude and between Ion. 103 and 105 W., about 100 m. long and 60 m. wide. They are a continuation of the Big Horn and Snow mountains, which branch off from the Rocky mountains. The base of these hills is about 2,500 or 3,000 ft. above the sea, and the highest peak is 6,700 ft. About one third of their area is covered with vast forests of magnificent pine trees. Their geological formation indicates great mineral wealth. Gold has been discovered, and it has been conclu- sively proved that this region abounds in iron, coal, lead, salt, and petroleum, besides its val- uable pine and cedar timber, limestone, and good stone for building purposes. BLACK HOLE, a small close dungeon in Fort William, Calcutta, in which on the capture of Calcutta by Surajah Dowlah, June 20, 1756, the British garrison, consisting of 146 men, under the command of Mr. Hoi well, were locked up for the night. It was a strongly barred room, 18 ft. square. There were only two win- dows, both opening toward the west, whence under the best of circumstances but little air could enter, which was further obstructed by a projecting veranda outside, and thick iron bars within. At the same time conflagrations raging in different parts of the fort gave the atmosphere an unusual oppressiveness. In a short time their sufferings from thirst and the foul and stifling air became terrible, and in a Monument in front of the Black Hole. few hours several had died. Only 23 survived till morning, when they were released. Among these was Mr. Holwell, who published a nar- rative of the event in the "Annual Register " for 1758. The black hole is now used as a warehouse, and an obelisk 50 ft. high, erected in memory of the victims, stands before the gate. y^~ BLACK IK, John Stuart, a Scottish author, born t Glasgow in July, 1809. He is the son of a Banker, studied in Scotland, Germany, and It- aly, and was professor of Latin literature in Ma- rischal college, Aberdeen, from 1841 to 1852, when he became professor of Greek in_ the university of Edinburgh, which position he* still holds (1873). He promoted university reform in Scotland and the abolition of the test act. He is a popular lecturer and an active con- tributor to periodicals and cyclopasdias. His writings include a metrical translation of Goe- the's "Faust " (1834), and of ^schylus (1850) ; " Poems, chiefly on Greek Mythology " (1857) ;