An Account of Sa-Go-Ye-Wat-Ha, or Red Jacket, and His People, 1750-1830
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Title: An Account of Sa-Go-Ye-Wat-Ha, or Red Jacket, and His People, 1750-1830
Author: John Niles Hubbard
Release date: January 1, 2005 [eBook #7339]
Most recently updated: December 30, 2020
Language: English
Other information and formats: www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/7339
Credits: Produced by Anne Soulard, Richard Prairie, Juliet Sutherland and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team
*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK AN ACCOUNT OF SA-GO-YE-WAT-HA, OR RED JACKET, AND HIS PEOPLE, 1750-1830 ***
Produced by Anne Soulard, Richard Prairie, Juliet Sutherland
and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team
AN ACCOUNT OF SA-GO-YE-WAT-HA
OR RED JACKET AND HIS PEOPLE,
1750-1830.
BY
JOHN N. HUBBARD
DEDICATION
_To the Hon. Henry G. Hubbard, of Middletown, Conn._
DEAR SIR: Your name, associated with many pleasant memories in the past,
and in later years with substantial tokens of esteem, is held in grateful
recollection; and the hope that these pages may serve to interest an
occasional leisure hour, has led to their being inscribed to you, by your
friend and relative.
THE AUTHOR.
PREFACE.
The "Life and Times of Red Jacket" by Colonel William L. Stone, has been
before the public for many years. The industry and ability of the author
have made it a work of great value, and his extensive researches have left
but little room for anything new to be said, by one coming after him. Yet
the fact need not be concealed that many, who were intimately acquainted
with Red Jacket, were disappointed when they came to read his biography.
If it had been prepared under the direct influence and superintendence of
Thayendanegea, or Brant, it could not have reflected more truly the animus
of that distinguished character. Red Jacket in his day was the subject, at
different times of much angry feeling, and jealousy. The author has not
taken pains to embalm it, in these memorials of the great orator of the
Senecas. Much that was the subject of criticism during his life, admits of
a more charitable construction, and the grave should become the receptacle
of all human resentments.
The author acknowledges his indebtedness to the labors of Col. Stone, and
by an honorable arrangement, liberty was obtained for the use made of
them, in the following pages. Acknowledgments are due also to others,
whose names will appear in the course of this work.
TRACY, CAL., _April 12th_, 1885.
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I.
Red Jacket--Name widely known--Interest connected with his history--His
origin--Development of his genius--Opinion of Capt. Horatio Jones--Customs
of his people--Their councils--Love of eloquence--Distinguished names--
Eloquence an art among them--Peculiarity of their language--Field opened
for his genius.
CHAPTER II.
Glance at the early history of the Iroquois--Territory they occupied--
Location of the different tribes--Strength of their Confederacy--
Tuscaroras--Traditions--Probable course of their migrations--Senecas--
Story of their origin--Singular romance.
CHAPTER III.
Name Red Jacket, how acquired--Indian name--Name conferred--Singular
superstition--Red Jacket during the war of the Revolution--Neutrality of
the Indians proposed--Services sought by Great Britain--Sketch of Sir Wm.
Johnson--Red Jacket's position--Taunt of cowardice--Testimony of Little
Beard--Charge made by Brant--Red Jacket's indifference--Anecdote--Early
love of eloquence--Interesting reminiscences.
CHAPTER IV.
Early struggles--Red Jacket's opportunity for trial--Council at Fort
Stanwix--Office of Sachem--His opposition to the treaty--Excitement
produced by his speech--Part taken by Cornplanter--His influence in
deciding the treaty--How it affected him.
CHAPTER V.
United States claim to Indian lands--Conflicting claims between states--
Manner of adjustment--Attempt to acquire by a lease--Attempt defeated--
Lands acquired by New York--From Onondagas, Oneidas, Cayugas--Indian
destitution--Indications of trouble--Design of severing western New York
from the rest of the state--How defeated--Phelps and Gorham purchase.
CHAPTER VI.
Union of the western Indians--Hostile influence of the British Indian
department in Canada--Ambitious project of Thayendanegea or Brant--Visits
England, desiring British aid in the event of war with the United States--
Council at Tioga Point--Indian ceremonies--Visit of Cornplanter and others
at the seat of government--Fresh occasion of trouble.
CHAPTER VII.
Expedition under General Harmar--Its failure--High expectations of the
Indians--Colonel Proctor visits the Indians at Buffalo creek--Red Jacket's
speech--Indian deputation refused--Interference of the matrons--Council at
Painted Post--Chiefs invited to Philadelphia.
CHAPTER VIII.
Expedition to the Indian country under General St. Clair--Washington's
charge--Approach to Indian villages--Sudden surprise--Disastrous battle--
Indian victory--Retreat of American force to Fort Jefferson--Boldness of
the Indians--Friendly Indian deputation--Welcome of the governor of
Pennsylvania--Red Jacket's speech in reply--Address of President
Washington--Red Jacket's reply--Cause of Indian hostilities.
CHAPTER IX.
Indian appropriation--Deputation to the west promised--Instructions--
Silver medal given to Red Jacket by the president--Military suits--
Washington's address at parting--Thayendanegea's visit--Council at Au
Glaize--Another Indian council--Delegation--British control--Washington's
letter--Army under General Wayne--Successful campaign--Treaty concluded.
CHAPTER X.
Canandaigua at an early day--Facts in the early settlement of Bloomfield--
Indian council--Its object--Indian parade--Indian dress--Opening of the
council--Speeches--Liberal offers of the government--Mr. Savary's journal
--Conclusion of treaty--Account of Red Jacket by Thomas Morris.
CHAPTER XI.
Valley of the Genesee--Indian misgivings--Mill yard--Effort to obtain
their land--Council at Big Tree--Coming of the Wadsworths--Indian
villages--Refusal to sell--Discussion between Red Jacket and Thomas
Morris--Breaking up of the council.
CHAPTER XII.
Interview between Farmer's Brother and Thomas Morris--Mr. Morris addresses
the women--Distributes presents--Negotiations continued--Treaty concluded
with the women and warriors--Manner of payment--Inquiries about a bank--
Their reservations--White women--Young King's dissent--Final settlement--
Charge of insincerity.
CHAPTER XIII.
Council at Canawangus--Interesting reminiscence of Red Jacket--Address of
Farmer's Brother--Jasper Parish--Horatio Jones--Red Jacket's visit at
Hartford, Conn.
CHAPTER XIV.
Cornplanter in disrepute--Effort to regain his standing--Red Jacket
charged with witchcraft--His defense--Further notice of Cornplanter--Early
recollections--With the Indians who defeated Gen. Braddock in 1755--With
the English in the war of the Revolution--Takes his father a prisoner--His
address--Release of his father--Address to the governor of Pennsylvania--
Visit of President Alden--Close of his life.
CHAPTER XV.
Change in Red Jacket's views--Causes producing it--Unfavorable to any
change in the habits of his people--Opposes the introduction of
Christianity among them--Visit of a missionary--Missionary's speech--Red
Jacket's reply--Unpleasant termination of the council.
CHAPTER XVI.
Tecumseh and Indian confederation--Aid given by Elskawata--Doings at the
Prophet's town--Great Indian council at the West--Red Jacket's claim for
precedence to be given the Senecas--His adherence to the United States--
Hostilities encouraged by British agents--Warriors gathered at the
Prophet's town--Visited by General Harrison at the head of his troops--
Hostilities disclaimed--Surprised by a sudden attack--Indians defeated--
War proclaimed against England--Indians take sides--Unfavorable
commencement--Different successes--Part taken by Red Jacket.
CHAPTER XVII.
Taking of Fort Erie--Battle of Chippewa--Service rendered by the Indians--
General Porter's account of the campaign--Red Jacket commended--Withdrawal
of Indian forces--Other successes--Conclusion of peace.
CHAPTER XVIII.
Pre-emptive right to the Indian reservations, sold to the Ogden Company--
Council to obtain an extinguishment of the Indian title--Red Jacket's
reply to Mr. Ogden's speech--Indians refuse to sell--Another council
called--Account given by Hon. Albert Tracy--Various utterances of the
orator on that occasion--Indians appeal to the governments of the United
States and New York--Noble response of Governor De Witt Clinton of New
York--Final success of the Ogden Company.
CHAPTER XIX.
Witchcraft--Case of Tom. Jemmy--Testimony of Red Jacket--Red Jacket's
philippic--Finding of the court--Remarkable interview of Dr. Breckenridge
with Red Jacket--Further expression of views.
CHAPTER XX.
Personal characteristics--Interview with General Lafayette--Visit of a
French nobleman--Col. Pickering reproved--Address on launching a schooner
bearing his name--Anecdote of Red Jacket and Capt. Jones--His humor--
Strong memory--Its cultivation--Contempt for pretension without merit--
Love of the sublime--Portraits--Acute perception--Refined sense of
propriety--First bridge at Niagara Falls--Loss of his children--Care for
his people.
CHAPTER XXI.
Views at the close of life--Incident--His lifework--Unfavorable influences
--Advance of Christian party--Conversion of Red Jacket's wife--Leaves her
--His return--Red Jacket deposed--Journey to Washington--His restoration--
Rapid decline--Regards his end as near--Talks with the people--Endeavors
to unite them--Sickness and death.
PLATES.
Portrait of Red Jacket
Portrait of King Hendrick
View of Johnson Hall
Portrait of Sir John Johnson
Portrait of Barry St. Leger
Portrait of Joseph Brant
Facsimile of Washington's Medal
View of Seneca Mission Church
View of Red Jacket's House
CHAPTER I.
Name widely known--Interest naturally awakened in his history--His origin
--Development of his genius--Opinion of Capt. Horatio Jones--Customs of
his people--Their love of eloquence--Distinguished orators among them--The
inviting field opened.
Among the aborigines of this country, few names have excited a deeper
interest, or have been more widely and familiarly known than that of RED
JACKET. The occasion of this notoriety was the rare fact that, though a
rude and unlettered son of the forest, he was distinguished for the arts
and accomplishments of the orator. His life marks an era in the history of
his nation and his name like that of Demosthenes, is forever associated
with eloquence.
Other circumstances however, impart interest to his history. His was the
last great name of a nation, and he is entitled to remembrance, on the
soil which was once the home of his fathers. And though linked with a
melancholy association, as connected with the waning history of a people
that once laid a claim to greatness, but are now fast passing into
obscurity, it is not on this account the less attractive, but presents
another reason for our regard.
Such was the name of SA-GO-YE-WAT-HA, or, as he has more commonly been
called, Red Jacket. Having risen, by the force of his eloquence, from an
obscure station to the highest rank among his people, he became
conspicuous in all of those great transactions, in which they gradually
relinquished a title to their old hunting grounds, and gave place to the
intrusive white man. And he lived to see his nation pass from the pride of
their ancient dominion, to so humble an inheritance, that his last days
were embittered with the thought, that the _red men_ were destined to
become extinct. With him has ceased the glory of their council fire, and
of their name.
His origin, as we have intimated, was obscure. He must be introduced, as
he has come down to us, without rank or pedigree. His pedigree nature
acknowledged, and gave him a right to become great among her sons. His
birth is a matter of fact, its time and place, circumstances of
conjecture. Some affirm that he was born at the Old Seneca Castle, near
the foot of Seneca lake, not far from 1750. [Footnote: Hist. of North
American tribes by Thos. L. McKenney.]
Another tradition awards the honor of his birth to a place at, or near
Canoga, on the banks of the Cayuga lake. [Footnote: Schoolcraft's Report.]
Who were his parents? and what, his early history? As the wave casts upon
the shore some treasured fragment, and then recedes to mingle with its
parent waters, so their names, and much of his early history have been
lost in the oblivion of the past.
So likewise it is uncertain, as to the time when the wonderful powers of
his genius began to be developed, or as to the steps by which he arrived
at the high distinction of orator among his people.
Whether by dint of study he gained the requisite discipline of mind, and
acquired that elegance of diction for which he was distinguished; whether
by repeated trial and failure, accompanied by a proud ambition, and an
unyielding purpose, he reached, like Demosthenes, the summit of his
aspirations; or, assisted more by nature than by art, emerged, like
Patrick Henry at once, into the grand arena of mind, and by a single
effort attained distinction and fame, is to be gathered more from
circumstances than from facts.
It is generally conceded, however, that the powers of his intellect were
of the highest order. Captain Horatio Jones, the well known interpreter
and agent among the Indians, and than whom no one was more intimately
acquainted with this orator of the Seneca nation, was accustomed to speak
of him as the greatest man that ever lived. "For," said he, "the great men
of our own and of other times, have become so by education; but RED JACKET
WAS AS NATURE MADE HIM. Had he enjoyed their advantages, he would have
surpassed them, since it can hardly be supposed that they, without these,
would have equalled him." [Footnote: Conversation of the author with Col.
Wm. Jones, of Geneseo, Livingston Co., N. Y., son of Capt. Horatio Jones.]
Some allowance should be made for this statement, perhaps, on the ground
that Mr. Jones was a warm admirer of the orator's genius; yet his
admiration sprang from an intimate knowledge of him, seen under
circumstances, that afforded the best opportunity of forming a just
opinion of his talents; and these, he maintained, "_were among the noblest
that nature ever conferred upon man_."
But genius, while it may have smoothed the way, may not have spared him
the pains, by which ordinary minds ascend to greatness. For since it is so
universally the fact, that the path to eminence, is rugged and steep, and
the gifts of fame seldom bestowed but in answer to repeated toil;
curiosity would inquire by what means one, who was reputed a barbarian,
gained the highest distinction ever awarded to civilized man. It is not
enough to reply simply, "_that nature made him so_," or to receive,
without qualification, his own proud assertion, "I AM AN ORATOR, I WAS
BORN AN ORATOR." The laws of mind are the same for peasants, and princes
in intellect; great minds as well as small, must take measures to compass
their object, or leave it unattained.
It does not appear that his genius was sudden, or precocious in its
development. It is said that his mind, naturally active and brilliant,
gradually opened, until it reached its meridian splendor. Nor did his
powers grow without any means to mature and perfect them. As the young oak
is strengthened by warring with the storm, so the faculties of his mind
gained force by entering freely into conflicts of opinion. Accustomed to
canvass in private the questions which agitated the councils of his
nation, he began to ascertain the reality of his own power, and by
measuring his own with other minds, he gained the confidence that flows
from superior wisdom. [Footnote: Conversation with Col. Wm. Jones.]
The tastes and regulations of his own people favored very much, the
promptings of his genius. They were lovers of eloquence, and their form of
government fostered its cultivation. This though differing but little from
the simplicity found in rude states of society, presented a feature
peculiar among a people not far advanced in civilization, which served
greatly to promote elevation of mind, and advance them far above a
condition of barbarism. They were in the habit of meeting in public
assemblies, to discuss those questions that pertained to the interests, or
destiny of their nation. Around their council fires their chiefs and
warriors gathered, and entered freely, so far as their dignity,
consideration, or power of debate admitted, into a deliberation on public
affairs. And here were manifested an ability and decorum which civilized
nations even, have viewed with admiration and surprise. For though we
might suppose their eloquence must have partaken of rant and rhapsody,
presenting a mass of incoherent ideas, depending for their interest on the
animation of gesture and voice, with which they were uttered, yet we would
do injustice to their memory, if we did not give their orators the credit
of speaking as much to the purpose, and of exhibiting as great a force of
intellect, as many who would claim a higher place than they in the scale
of intelligence and refinement.
Many of their orators were distinguished for strength of mind, and in
native power of genius, might compare favorably, with the men of any age
or clime. The names of Garangula, Adario, Hendrick, Skenandoah, Logan and
others, might be mentioned with pride by any people.
[Illustration: KING HENDRICK]
GARANGULA, has been styled the very Nestor of his nation, whose powers of
mind would not suffer in comparison with a Roman, or more modern Senator.
[Footnote: Drake.]
ADARIO is said to have been a man of "great mind, the bravest of the
brave," and possessing altogether the best qualities of any Indian known
to the French in Canada. [Footnote: Charlevoix.]
It has been remarked of HENDRICK, that for capacity, bravery, vigor of
mind, and immovable integrity united, he excelled all the aboriginal
inhabitants of the United States, of whom any knowledge has come down to
the present time. [Footnote: Dr. Dwight.]
SKENANDOAH in his youth was a brave and intrepid warrior, and in his riper
years one of the best of counsellors among the North American tribes. He
possessed a most vigorous mind, and was alike active, sagacious, and
persevering. He will long be remembered for a saying of his to one who
visited him toward the close of life; "I am," said he, "an aged hemlock,
the winds of an hundred winters have whistled through my branches. I am
dead at the top. The generation to which I belonged has run away and left
me." He was a sincere believer in the Christian religion, and added to the
above "why I live the Great and Good Spirit only knows. Pray to my Jesus,
that I may have patience to wait for my appointed time to die." [Footnote:
Annals of Tryon County.]
And Mr. Jefferson regarded the appeal of LOGAN to the white men, after the
extirpation of his family, as without a parallel in the history of
eloquence.
These were men who have been revered by the civilized world, as worthy of
a place with the distinguished and great among mankind.
"Oratory was not alone a natural gift, but an art among the Iroquois. It
enjoined painful study, unremitting practice, and sedulous observation of
the style, and methods of the best masters. Red Jacket did not rely upon
his native powers alone, but cultivated the art with the same assiduity
that characterized the great Athenian orator. The Iroquois, as their
earliest English historian observed, cultivated an Attic or classic
elegance of speech, which entranced every ear, among their red auditory."
[Footnote: Mr. Bryant's speech.]
Those public games, entertainments, religious ceremonies and dances,
common among the Indian tribes, added interest to their council
gatherings, and made them a scene of attraction for the entire nation.
Thither the young and old of both sexes were accustomed to resort, and,
assembled at their national forum, listened with profound attention and
silence to each word spoken by their orators. "The unvarying courtesy,
sobriety and dignity of their convocations led one of their learned Jesuit
historians to liken them to the Roman Senate." [Footnote: W. C. Bryant's
speech before the Buffalo Historical Society on the occasion of the re-
interment of Red Jacket's remains.]
"Their language was flexible and sonorous, the sense largely depending
upon inflection, copious in vowel sounds, abounding in metaphor; affording
constant opportunity for the ingenious combination and construction of
words to image delicate, and varying shades of thought, and to express
vehement manifestations of passion; admitting of greater and more sudden
variations in pitch, than is permissable in English oratory, and
encouraging pantomimic gesture, for greater force and effect. In other
words it was not a cold, artificial, mechanical medium for the expression
of thought or emotion, or the concealment of either, but was constructed,
as we may fancy, much as was the tuneful tongue spoken by our first
parents, who stood in even closer relations to nature." [Footnote: Ib.]
Hence, though the Iroquois were a warlike people, and delighted in deeds
of bravery, there was an inviting field opened to one, who could chain
their attention by his eloquence, and sway their emotions at will.
Such advantages being presented for the exercise of the powers of oratory,
it can hardly be supposed that a mind endowed as richly, as was Red
Jacket's, by the gifts of nature, would fail to perceive the path in which
lay the true road to eminence among his people. And his subsequent career
indicates but too clearly, the choice he made of the field in which to
exercise his noble powers.
CHAPTER II.
Glance at the early history of the Iroquois--The territory occupied--
Tuscaroras--Original strength--Traditions--Probable course of migration--
The Senecas--Story of their origin--Singular romance.
Rising up from the obscurity of the past, we find a people, singular in
their habits and character, whose history has been strangely, and in some
respects sadly interwoven with our own. They were the original occupants
of the soil, claiming to have lived here always, and to have grown out of
the soil like the trees of the forest. Scattered over this continent were
various Indian tribes, resembling each other in their general features and
habits, but in some instances exhibiting stronger and more interesting
traits of character than the others. Among these were the Iroquois, and if
Red Jacket was distinguished among his own people, his own people were not
less conspicuous among the North American Indians.
He sprang from the Senecas, and was accustomed to speak of his origin with
feelings of conscious pride. For the Senecas were the most numerous and
powerful of the six nations, of whom they were a part. Such was the title
given to that celebrated Indian confederacy which, for a length of time
unknown to us, inhabited the territory embraced by the State of New York.
Here they lived in a line of settlements extending from one end to the
other, through the middle of the State, and their domain as thus occupied,
they were accustomed to style their _Long House_. It was a shadowy
dome, of generous amplitude, covered by the azure expanse above, garnished
with hills, lakes, and laughing streams, and well stored with provisions,
in the elk and deer that bounded freely through its forest halls, the
moose that was mirrored in its waters, and the trout, those luscious
speckled beauties, that nestled cosily in its crystal chambers.
The eastern door was guarded by the Mohawks, who resided at one, and its
western by the Senecas, who dwelt at the other extremity of this abode.
When ever a messenger from another nation came to them on business, or
knocked, as it was termed, at the eastern or western door of their _long
house_, it was the duty of the nation to which he came, to give him
entertainment, and examine into the nature of his embassy. If it was of
small importance, it was decided by their own council; but if it was such
as to demand the united wisdom of the tribes, a runner was sent with a
belt of wampum to the nearest nation, which would take the belt and send a
runner with it to the next, and so on, and thus with but little delay, a
general meeting was summoned of all the tribes.
This confederacy at one time consisted of five nations, but afterward
embraced six, by the addition of the Tuscaroras, a tribe that once
occupied the territory of North Carolina.
This tribe is said to have belonged at an early day to the Iroquois
family, and to have inherited the enterprising and warlike character of
the parent stock. They fought successfully with the Catawbas, Cowetas, and
the Cherokees, and thought to exterminate by one decisive blow, all of the
white inhabitants within their borders. Unsuccessful in the attempt,
pressed sorely by the whites, who resisted the attack, and unwilling
themselves to submit, they removed to the north, and through sympathy,
similarity of taste, manners, or language, or from the stronger motives of
consanguinity, became incorporated with the confederated tribes of the
Iroquois. [Footnote: Schoolcraft's Report. Mr. Schoolcraft prefers, and
quite justly the name Iroquois, as descriptive of this confederacy,
instead of Six Nations, since the term is well known, and applicable to
them in every part of their history. Whereas the other is appropriate only
during the time when they were numerically six.]
Thus constituted they presented the most formidable power, of which we
have any knowledge in the annals of the Indian race. By their united
strength they were able to repel invasion, from any of the surrounding
nations, and by the force of their arms and their prowess in war, gained
control over an extent of territory much greater than they occupied.
They sent their war parties in every direction. The tribes north, east,
south, and west of them were made to feel the power of their arms, and
yield successively to their dexterity and valor. Now they were launching
their war-canoes upon the lakes and rivers of the west, now engaged in
bloody conflicts with the Catawbas and Cherokees of the south, now
traversing regions of snow in pursuit of the Algonquins of the north, and
anon spreading consternation and dread among the tribes at the remotest
east. Their energy and warlike prowess made them a terror to their foes,
and distant nations pronounced their name with awe.
By what means these several tribes had been brought to unite themselves
under one government, how long they had existed in this relation, and what
was the origin of each one, or of all, are questions which will never
perhaps be fully determined. There being no written records among them,
all that can be ascertained of their history previous to their becoming
known to the whites, must be gathered from the dim light of tradition,
from their symbolic representations, from antique remains of their art,
and from their legends and myths. These present in an obscure and shadowy
form, a few materials of history, whose value is to be measured by the
consideration, that they are all we have to tell the story of a noble and
interesting race of men.
Their traditions speak of the creation of the world, the formation of man,
and the destruction of the world by a deluge. They suppose the existence
originally of two worlds, an upper and lower. The upper completed and
filled with an intelligent order of beings, the lower unformed and
chaotic, whose surface was covered with water, in which huge monsters
careered, uncontrolled and wild. From the upper there descended to the
lower a creating spirit, in the form of a beautiful woman. She alighted on
the back of a huge tortoise, gave birth to a pair of male twins and
expired. Thereupon the shell of the tortoise began to enlarge, and grew
until it became a "_big island_" and formed this continent.
These two infant sons became, one the author of _good_, the other of
_evil_. The creator of _good_ formed whatever was praiseworthy and useful.
From the head of his deceased mother he made the sun, from the remaining
parts of her body, the moon and stars. When these were created the water-
monsters were terrified by the light, and fled and hid themselves in the
depths of the ocean. He diversified the earth by making rivers, seas
and plains, covered it with animals, and filled it with productions
beneficial to mankind. He then formed man and woman, put life into them,
and called them Ong-we Hon-we _a real people_. [Footnote: This term is
significant of true manhood. It implies that there was nothing of sham in
their make up.]
The creator of _evil_ was active in making mountains, precipices,
waterfalls, reptiles, morasses, apes, and whatever was injurious to, or in
mockery of mankind. He put the works of the _good_ out of order, hid
his animals in the earth, and destroyed things necessary for the
sustenance of man. His conduct so awakened the displeasure of the _good_,
as to bring them into personal conflict. Their time of combat, and arms
were chosen, one selecting flag-roots, the other the horns of a deer. Two
whole days they were engaged in unearthly combat; but finally the _Maker
of Good_, who had chosen the horns of a deer, prevailed, and retired to
the world above. The _Maker of Evil_ sank below to a region of darkness,
and became the _Evil Spirit_, or Kluneolux of the world of despair.
[Footnote: Schoolcraft's Indian Cosmogony.]
Many of their accounts appear to be purely fabulous, but not more so
perhaps than similar traditions, to be found in the history of almost
every nation.
The Iroquois refer their origin to a point near Oswego Falls. They boldly
affirm that their people were here taken from a subterranean vault, by the
Divine Being, and conducted eastward along the river Ye-no-na-nat-che,
_going around a mountain_, now the Mohawk, until they came to where it
discharges into a great river running toward the mid-day sun, the Hudson,
and went down this river and touched the bank of a _great water_, while
the main body returned by the way they came, and as they proceeded
westward, originated the different tribes composing their nation; and to
each tribe was assigned the territory they occupied, when first discovered
by the whites. [Footnote: Account by David Cusick, as contained in
Schoolcraft's report. Mr. S. regards this account correct as indicating
the probable course of their migrations.]
The Senecas, the fifth tribe of the Iroquois, were directed in their
original location, to occupy a hill near the head of Canandaigua lake.
This hill, called Ge-nun-de-wa, is venerated as the birth place of their
nation. It was surrounded anciently by a rude fortification which formed
their dwelling in time of peace, and served for a shelter from any sudden
attack of a hostile tribe. Tradition hallows this spot on account of the
following very remarkable occurrence.
Far back in the past, the inhabitants of the hill Genundewa, were
surprised on awaking one morning, to behold themselves surrounded by an
immense serpent. His dimensions were so vast as to enable him to coil
himself completely around the fort. His head and tail came together at its
gate. There he lay writhing and hissing, presenting a most menacing and
hideous aspect. His jaws were widely extended, and he hissed so terribly
no one ventured to approach near.
The inhabitants were thus effectually blockaded. Some endeavored, but in
vain, to kill this savage monster. Others tried to escape, but his
watchful eyes prevented their endeavors. Others again sought to climb over
his body, but were unable; while others still attempted to pass by his
head, but fell into his extended jaws. Their confinement grew every day
more and more painful, and was rendered doubly annoying by the serpent's
breath, which was very offensive.
Their situation drove them at length to an extremity not to be endured.
They armed themselves with hatchets, and clubs, and whatever implements of
war they could find, and made a vigorous sally upon their dreadful foe,
but, alas! were all engulfed in his terrific jaws.
It so happened that two orphan children remained, after the destruction
which befell the rest. They were directed by an oracle to make a bow of a
certain kind of willow, and an arrow of the same, the point of which they
were to dip in poison, and then shoot the monster, aiming so as to hit him
under his scales.
In doing this, they encountered their adversary with entire success. For
no sooner had the arrow penetrated his skin, than he presently began to
grow sick, exhibiting signs of the deepest distress. He threw himself into
every imaginable shape, and with wonderful contortions and agonizing
pains, rolled his ponderous body down along the declivity of the mountain,
uttering horrid noises as he went, prostrating trees in his course, and
falling finally into the lake below.
Here he slaked his thirst, and showed signs of great distress, by dashing
about furiously in the water. Soon he vomited up the heads of those whom
he had swallowed, and immediately after expired and sank to rise no more.
[Footnote: As related to the author by Col. Wm. Jones.]
From these two children, as thus preserved, the Seneca nation are said to
have sprung.
So implicitly has this tradition been received by the Senecas, that it has
been incorporated into the solemnities of their worship, and its
remembrance continued from one generation to another by the aid of
religious rites. Here they were formerly in the habit of assembling in
council, and here their prayers and thanksgivings were offered to the
Great Spirit, for having given them birth, and for rescuing their nation
from entire destruction.
In speaking of this to the whites, they point to the barren hillside, as
evincing the truth of the story, affirming that one day the forest trees
stood thick upon it, but was stripped of them by the great serpent as he
rolled down its declivity. The round stones found there in great
abundance, resembling in size and shape the human head, are taken as
additional proof, for they affirm that these are the heads disgorged by
the serpent, and have been petrified by the waters of the lake. [Footnote:
The author remembers well that in conversation with a Seneca Indian on
this point, he seemed to take it as quite an affront that doubts should be
expressed by the white people as to the reality of this occurrence.]
If nearness of locality will justify a glance of the eye for a moment, to
an object not directly in the line of our pursuit, we might survey in
passing a bold projecting height, not far from the hill Genundewa, marked
by a legend which draws a tear from the eye of the dusky warrior, or sends
him away in a thoughtful mood, with a shade of sadness upon his usually
placid brow. The story is not of the same character and is of a more
recent date than that of the serpent, but is said to be of great
antiquity. It has been written with great beauty by Col. Stone, and as we
are authorized, we present it in his own language.
"During the wars of the Senecas and Algonquins of the north, a chief of
the latter was captured and carried to Genundewa, whereon a fortification,
consisting of a square without bastions, and surrounded by palisades, was
situated. The captive though young in years, was famed for his prowess in
the forest conflict, and nature had been bountiful to his person in those
gifts of strength and symmetry, which awaken savage admiration. After a
short debate he was condemned to die on the following day, by the slow
torture of empalement. While he was thus lying in the cabin of death, a
lodge devoted to condemned prisoners, the daughter of the sachem brought
him food, and struck with his manly form and heroic bearing, resolved to
save him or share his fate. Her bold enterprise was favored by the
uncertain light of the gray dawn, while the solitary sentinel, weary of
his night-watch, and forgetful of his duty, was slumbering. Stealing with
noiseless tread to the side of the young captive, she cut the thongs
wherewith his limbs were bound, and besought him in breathless accents to
follow her.
"The fugitives descended the hill by a wooded path conducting to the lake;
but ere they reached the water, an alarm whoop, wild and shrill, was heard
issuing from the waking guard. They tarried not, though thorny vines and
fallen timber obstructed their way. At length they reached the smooth
beach, and leaping into a canoe previously provided by the considerate
damsel, they plied the paddle vigorously, steering for the opposite shore.
Vain were their efforts. On the wind came cries of rage, and the quick
tramp of savage warriors, bounding over rock and glen in fierce pursuit.
The Algonquin with the reckless daring of a young brave, sent back a yell
of defiance, and soon after the splash of oars was heard, and a dozen war
canoes were cutting the billows in their rear. The unfortunate lovers on
landing, took a trail leading in a western direction over the hills. The
Algonquin, weakened by unhealed wounds, followed his active guide up the
aclivity, with panting heart and flagging pace; while his enemies, with
the grim old sachem at their head, drew nearer and nearer. At length
finding further attempts at flight useless, she diverged from the trail,
and conducted her lover to a table-crested rock that projected over a
ravine or gulf, one hundred and fifty feet in depth, the bottom of which
was strewed with misshapen rocks, scattered in rude confusion. With hearts
nerved to a high resolve, the hapless pair awaited the arrival of their
yelling pursuers. Conspicuous by his eagle plume, towering form and
scowling brow, the daughter soon descried her inexorable sire, leaping
from crag to crag below her. He paused abruptly when his fiery eye rested
on the objects of his pursuit. Notching an arrow on the string of his
tried and unerring bow, he raised his sinewy arms--but ere the missile was
sent, Wun-nut-hay, _the Beautiful_, interposed her form between her father
and his victim. In wild appealing tones she entreated her sire to spare
the young chieftain, assuring him that they would leap together from the
precipice rather than be separated. The stern old man, deaf to her
supplication, and disregarding her menace, ordered his followers to seize
the fugitive. Warrior after warrior darted up the rock, but on reaching
the platform, at the moment when they were grasping to clutch the young
brave, the lovers, locked in fond embrace, flung themselves
'From the steep rock, and perished.'
"The mangled bodies were buried in the bottom of the glen, beneath the
shade of everlasting rocks; and two small hollows, resembling sunken
graves, are to this day pointed out to the curious traveler, as the burial
place of the lovers." It is a sweet, wild haunt, the sunbeams fall there
with softened radiance, and a brook near by gives out a complaining
murmur, as if mourning for the dead. [Footnote: Mr. Stone adds in a note--
"This interesting legend was derived many years ago from a Seneca chief of
some note, named Chequered Cap, and was communicated to me by W. H. C.
Hosmer, Esq., of Avon. On the top of Genundewa the remains of an Indian
orchard are visible, a few moss-grown and wind-bowed apple trees still
linger, sad, but fitting emblems of the wasted race by whom they were
planted."]
Let us return to the inquiry we were pursuing. Of the origin of the
Iroquois confederacy, some traditionary accounts have been given, which
represent the different tribes as dwelling for a time, in the separate
locations assigned them, independent of each other. Here they increased in
valor, skill and knowledge, suited to their forest home. At length
becoming numerous, rival interests arose among them, which did not exist
when they were small and feeble. They fell into contention, and wasted and
destroyed each other. Each tribe fortified his own position, and dwelt in
constant fear of being surprised and overcome by his neighboring foe.
At length one of their sachems, distinguished for his wisdom and address,
proposed that they should cease from a strife, which was only destroying
themselves, and unite their energies against the Alleghans, the
Adirondacks, the Eries, and other ancient and warlike tribes, who were
their superiors in their isolated and divided condition. Already weary of
their unprofitable conflicts, the proposal was received with favor, and
Ato-tar-ho, an Onandaga chieftain, unequalled in valor, and the fame of
whose skill and daring was known among all the tribes, became the leading
spirit of this confederacy, and by common consent was placed at its head.
So fully did experience demonstrate the wisdom of this arrangement, that
they used every means to strengthen the bands of their union, and by the
most solemn engagements of fidelity to each other, they became the Ko-nos-
hi-o-ni, or United people. [Footnote: Schoolcraft's Report.]
How long this confederacy had existed before their discovery by the
whites, is unknown. There is a tradition which places it one age, or the
length of a man's life, before the white people came to this country.
[Footnote: Pyrlaus, a missionary at the ancient site of Dionderoga, or
Fort Hunter, writing between 1742 and 1748, gives this as the best
conjecture he could form, from information derived from the Mohawks. It is
thought however that this time is too short, to account for the degree of
development attained by the Iroquois, in their united capacity, at the
time of their first discovery by the whites.]
The union of these several tribes was the means of securing their pre-
eminence over the other Indians in this country. Their individual traits
are thus very fittingly represented;--"in their firm physical type, and in
their energy of character, and love of independence, no people among the
aboriginal race have ever exceeded, if any has equalled the Iroquois."
[Footnote: Schoolcraft.] They occupied a region surpassed by no other on
the continent, for grandeur and beauty united, and inherited from this or
some other source, a mental constitution of noble structure, which placed
them in the fore-front of their race, and when united, no tribe on this
continent could stand before them. This has served to render their
history, a matter of earnest and interesting inquiry.
CHAPTER III
Name Red Jacket, how acquired--Indian name--Conferred name--Singular
tradition--Red Jacket during the war of the Revolution--Neutrality of the
Indians--Services sought by Great Britain--Sketch of Sir William Johnson--
Position of Red Jacket--Taunt of cowardice--Testimony of Little Beard--
Charge made by Brant--Red Jacket's indifference--Anecdote--Early love of
eloquence--Interesting reminiscences.
The name Red Jacket, so familiar to the whites, was acquired during the
war of the Revolution. He was distinguished at this time as well as
afterward, for his fleetness on foot, his intelligence and activity.
Having attracted the attention of a British officer by the vivacity of his
manners, and the speedy execution of those errands with which he was
intrusted, he received either in token of admiration, or for services
rendered, or both, a beautifully ornamented jacket of a scarlet color.
This he took pride in wearing, and when worn out, he was presented with
another, and continued to wear this peculiar dress until it became a mark
of distinction, and gave him the name by which he was afterward best
known. At a treaty held at Canandaigua in 1794, Captain Parrish, who was
for many years agent of the United States for the Indians, presented him
with another _red jacket_ to perpetuate a name of which he was
particularly fond. [Footnote: McKenney's Indian Biography Politely favored
by Alfred B. Street, Esq., and assistant Mr. J. H. Hickox, of the State
Library, Albany, N. Y.]
His original name was Oti-ti-ani, _always ready_. Sa-go-ye-wat-ha, the
title conferred upon him at his election to the dignity of Sachem, has
been rendered, "_The keeper awake, he keeps them awake, and the author, or
cause of a wakeful spirit_." [Footnote: This latter translation was
given to the author by the late Wm. Jones, a half-blood, son-in-law of Red
Jacket and a chief of some note. This interpretation was given to some
gentlemen from Buffalo who proposed to erect a monument at Red Jacket's
grave. It was given in a full council of the chiefs of his tribe.]
The name is connected with a curious superstition among his people, and
will best be understood, by an acquaintance with the circumstances under
which it is used.
If during the still hours of night, an Indian's mind is taken up with
thoughts that cause sleep to pass from him, preventing every effort of
Morpheus to lock him in fond embrace, he ascribes it to a spirit, which he
calls Sa-go-ye-wat-ha.
The impressions made are regarded as ominous of some important event,
joyful or otherwise, according to the feelings awakened. If his thoughts
are of a pleasing nature, he is led to anticipate the occurrence of some
joyful event. If they are of a melancholy turn, he regards it as
foreboding evil.
He may be led to dwell with interest on some absent friend; that friend he
will expect to see the next day, or soon after. Yet should his thoughts be
troubled or anxious, he would expect to hear soon of that friend's death,
or that something evil had befallen him. [Footnote: Conversation with Wm.
Jones, Seneca chief.]
Such was the spirit they called Sa-go-ye-wat-ha. He could arrest the
current of their thought, bring before them visions of delight, or send
upon them melancholy reflections, and fill their minds with anxiety and
gloom.
This title conferred on Red Jacket, while it indicated the cause of his
elevation, presented the highest compliment that could be paid to his
powers of oratory. By the magic spell of his words, he could control their
minds, make their hearts beat quick with emotions of joy, or send over
them at will the deep pulsations of grief.
The incident referred to as giving rise to the name, Red Jacket,
introduces him in connection with the war of the Revolution. As his
conduct during this period has been the subject of frequent remark,
severely criticised by some, and not very favorably viewed by others,
justice to the orator's memory requires a brief statement of his reasons
for the course he pursued.
While thoughts of this contest were pending, the colonists took measures
to secure the favorable disposition of the Iroquois, and these efforts at
the time were successful.
The general government advised them to remain neutral, during the
anticipated conflict. This course met the approval of their most
considerate sachems. For though inured to war, and apt to enter with
avidity into the excitement of a conflict, their forces had been reduced
by recent encounters with the Indians at the west, and south, and also
with the French; and the few intervening years of peace served to convince
them of its value, and caused them to receive with favor this proposition
from our government.
At a council held with the Iroquois at German Flats, in June, 1776, by
Gen. Schuyler, who had been appointed for this purpose, these assurances
of neutrality were renewed.
Great Britain also was not indifferent about the course these Indian
tribes would pursue. Wishing to prevent an alliance of the Indians with
the colonists, willing to secure forces already on the ground, and with a
view possibly, of striking terror into the minds of her rebellious
subjects, her agents in this country spared no pains to enlist the
sympathies of the Iroquois on her side.
In this they were but too successful. Through their agents, Britain had
been in correspondence with these tribes for more than a hundred years,
had supplied them with implements of war, articles of clothing, and with
many of the comforts and conveniences of life. The Indians had learned to
be dependent upon her, and they called her king their "_great father_
over the water." Her agents spent their lives among them. Through them
their communications were made to the crown, and they regarded them as
essential to their happiness. Hence they exerted a very great influence
over them.
This was especially true of Sir William Johnson, who died at Johnson Hall
in the month of June, 1774.
Mr. Johnson was a native of Ireland, of a good family and fitted by nature
and education, to adorn the walks of civilized life. He came to this
country not far from 1738, as land agent of his uncle, Sir Peter Warren,
an admiral in the English navy, who had acquired a considerable tract of
land upon the Mohawk, in the present county of Montgomery.
Possessing a romantic disposition, he readily adapted himself to the rude
customs that prevailed in the wilds of America.
The _Gentleman's Magazine_ of London said of him in 1755,--"Besides
his skill and experience as an officer, he is particularly happy in making
himself beloved by all sorts of people, and can conform to all companies
and to all conversations. He is very much of a gentleman in genteel
company, but as the inhabitants next to him are mostly Dutch, he sits down
with them and smokes his tobacco, drinks flip, and talks of improvements,
bear and beaver skins. Being surrounded with Indians, he speaks several of
their languages well, and has always some of them with him. He takes care
of their wives, and old Indians, when they go out on parties; and even
wears their dress. In short, by his honest dealings with them in trade,
and his courage, which has often been successfully tried with them, he has
so endeared himself to them, that they chose him as one of their chief
sachems, or princes, and esteem him as their father."
Not far from the year 1755, while the French and English were at war, he
was made general of the colonial militia, and by virtue of a leadership
that had been created by the Iroquois, he was head warrior of all the
Indian tribes, who favored the English.
[Illustration: JOHNSON HALL]
The gifts of his sovereign, and the opportunity he had of purchasing
Indian lands, were the means of his securing great wealth. The ease with
which he secured land of the Indians is illustrated by an amusing
occurrence between him and a noted chief, Hendrick. Soon after entering
upon his duties as Superintendent of Indian Affairs in this country, he
received from England some richly embroidered suits of clothes.
Hendrick, a Mohawk chief, was present, when the package containing them
was opened, and could not refrain from expressing his admiration of them.
He went away very thoughtful, but soon after returned and said to Sir
William, that he had dreamed a dream.
"Ah! And what did you dream?" said Sir William.
"I dreamed," said Hendrick, "that you gave me one of those new suits of
uniform."
Sir William could not refuse it, and one of the elegant suits was
presented to Hendrick, who went away to show his gift to his countrymen
and left Sir William to tell the joke to his friends. A while after the
general met Hendrick and said--"Hendrick, _I have dreamed a dream_."
Whether the Sachem mistrusted he was now to be taken in his own net or
not, is not certain, but he also inquired,--"And what did you dream?"
The general said he dreamed that Hendrick presented him with a certain
piece of land which he described. It consisted of about five hundred
acres, of the most valuable land in the Mohawk valley.
Hendrick replied,--"It is yours;" but, shaking his head, said, "Sir
William I will never dream with you again." [Footnote: Drake's Book of the
Indians.]
Sir William's large estate, the partiality of his countrymen, together
with his military honors, and his great influence with the Indians,
rendered him "as near a prince as anything the back-woods of America has
witnessed." [Footnote: The expression of an English lady.--Turner.]
He built two spacious and convenient residences on the Mohawk river, known
as Johnson Castle and Johnson Hall. The Hall was his summer residence.
Here he lived something like a sovereign, kept an excellent table for
strangers and officers, whom the course of duty led into these wilds, and
by confiding entirely in the Indians, and treating them with truth and
justice, never yielding to solicitations once refused, they were taught to
repose in him the utmost confidence.
His personal popularity with the Indians, gave him an influence over them
greater it is supposed, than any one of our own race has ever possessed.
He was the first Englishman that contended successfully with French Indian
diplomacy, as exercised by their governors, missionaries and traders.
[Footnote: Turner's Phelps and Gorham Purchase.]
Had he lived until the war of the Revolution, it is supposed by some he
might have remained neutral, and have kept the Indians from engaging in
the conflict, though this is altogether uncertain. He lived to see the
gathering of the storm that swept away most of his great possessions.
On the death of Sir William, his son John Johnson succeeded to his titles
and estate. The office of General Superintendent of the Indians, fell into
the hands of Col. Guy Johnson, a son-in-law, who appointed Col. Claus,
another son-in-law, as his deputy.
Into their hands fell the property, and a large share of the influence
over the Indians, possessed by Sir William Johnson. This influence was
exerted in favor of Great Britain.
When the Indians heard of the uprising in Boston, and of the battle of
Lexington, they were told, that these out-breaks were the acts of
disobedient children, against the great king, who had been kind to them,
as he had to the Six Nations. That their "_great father over the water_,"
was rich in money and men; that the colonists were poor, and their numbers
small, and that they could easily be brought into subjection.
At a council of the Iroquois convened at Oswego, by Sir John Johnson and
other officers and friends of the crown, they were informed that the king
desired them to assist him in subduing the rebels, who had taken up arms
against him, and were about to rob him of a part of his great possessions.
But the chiefs one by one assured the British agents that they had the
year before, in a council with General Schuyler, pledged themselves to
neutrality, and could not without violating their promise, take up the
hatchet.
But they were assured that the rebels justly merited all the punishment
that white men and Indians could inflict;--that they would be richly
rewarded for their services, and _that the king's rum was as plenty as
the waters of Lake Ontario_.
This appeal to their appetites, already vitiated, together with the
promise of large rewards, at length prevailed; and a treaty was concluded,
in which the Indians pledged themselves to take up arms against the
rebels, and continue in service during the war. They were then presented
each with a suit of clothes, a brass kettle, a gun, a tomahawk, a scalping
knife, a quantity of powder and lead, and a piece of gold. [Footnote: Life
of Mary Jemison.]
The Senecas were among those who consented to join the royal standard. Of
this action Red Jacket did not approve. He declared plainly and
unhesitatingly to those who had determined to engage in the war,--"_This
quarrel does not belong to us,--and it is test for us to take no part in
it; we need not waste our blood to have it settled. If they fight us, we
will fight them, but if they let us alone, we had better keep still_."
[Footnote: Testimony given to the author by Wm. Jones, Seneca chief, and
confirmed by Col. Wm. Jones, son of the Indian interpreter, who affirms
that prominent Indian chiefs had declared in his hearing that these were
the sentiments of Red Jacket at this time.]
Red Jacket at this time was not far from twenty-six years old. His
forensic abilities had not been called forth, and his influence weighed
but little in comparison with that of older men. But it may be observed
that his conduct ever after this, will be found consistent with the
sentiments he entertained, and was free to express. Though young, his
perceptions were keen, he had a deep and penetrating mind and saw at a
glance that in this contest his people were doomed to suffer, to be ground
between the upper and nether mill stone.
When, in the summer of 1777, his people received an invitation to join the
forces that were preparing to march under the command of Col. St. Leger
upon Fort Stanwix, being assured that they would not be required to endure
the fatigues and dangers of the battle, but might "sit down quietly and
smoke their pipes, and see the sport;" Red Jacket endeavored, but in vain,
to prevent his people from going. He said to them, "_it's a cheat; the
design is to deceive you, and if you go you will find that you have been
deluded_."
They threw back the taunt,--"_You are a coward, you have the mind of a
woman, and are not fit to go to war_."
Red Jacket though not at this time a chief, was a young man of
acknowledged talent and influence, and having a right to express his
opinion, did not hesitate to give it in favor of peace. His opinion was
well known among his people. Little Beard has frequently been seen to bury
his face in his blanket, and give vent to his tears, in view of the havoc
made among the Senecas by the war, at the same time declaring,--"_Red
Jacket was opposed to the war_, HE WAS ALWAYS IN FAVOR OF PEACE, _and how
much better it had been, had we listened to his advice_." [Footnote:
Conversation of the author with Col. Jones.]
[Illustration: BARRY ST. LEGER]
Red Jacket's prediction was too nearly verified. The Senecas suffered most
severely in that campaign. They fell under the command of Thay-en-dan-e-
gea or Brant, who went with a company of Tories, led by Col. Butler, to
intercept General Herkimer, who was reported as coming to the relief of
the garrison. At a certain point on the way, where they expected the
general would pass, they formed an ambuscade, and though they selected
their ground with wisdom, and acquitted themselves with great bravery,
they were unable to stand before the invincible courage of the heroes of
Oriskany.
The Senecas claim to have lost in that engagement thirty-three of their
chiefs, and their feelings in view of it are said to have been sad in the
extreme. [Footnote: "The mourning was excessive, and was expressed by the
most doleful yells, shrieks and howlings and by inimitable
gesticulations."--Mrs. Jemison's Narrative.]
The charge of cowardice applied by the young warriors to Red Jacket, upon
their first starting out on this campaign, was one frequently made during
the war. His views were at different times expressed in opposition to it,
and his arguments as often repelled by the young braves, who could not
endure his invectives. The reply was easily made, and hence in more
frequent demand, than if it had imposed a greater tax upon their
intellects. The epithet has often been applied to him since, and though
his tastes did not lead him to seek the fame of a warrior, still it is
believed he was not so devoid of courage, as has sometimes been
represented.
His views of the war, were not those of a partisan, hence his conduct was
often censured by those who had entered heartily into the contest.
Brant has charged him with being the occasion of trouble to him, in his
efforts to arrest the march of Sullivan, and his army, into the Indian
country. Particularly at Newtown, where considerable preparations had been
made for defense. Says Col. Stone,--"Sa-go-ye-wat-ha was then twenty-nine
years old, and though it does not appear that he had yet been created a
chief, he nevertheless seems to have been already a man of influence. He
was in the practice of holding private consultations with the young
warriors, and some of the younger and less resolute chiefs, for the
purpose of fomenting discontents, and persuading them to sue for what
Brant considered, ignominious terms of peace.
"On one occasion as Brant has alleged, Red Jacket had so far succeeded in
his treachery, as to induce some of the disaffected chiefs to send a
runner into Sullivan's camp, to make known dissensions he himself had
awakened, and invite a flag of truce, _with propositions of peace to the
Indians_."
Though charged with acting criminally, it is here expressly asserted,
_that it was to obtain peace_. Peace he most earnestly desired for his
people, who were doomed to be wasted in a contest not their own.
Nor, in view of his feelings respecting the war, is it surprising he
should have incurred the displeasure of Cornplanter, while endeavoring to
bring his countrymen to make a stand against a portion of the invading
army, on the beach of Canandaigua lake, where was an Indian village of
some size. Not finding in Red Jacket an ardor for the undertaking which
corresponded in any degree with his own, he turned to the young wife of
the orator and exclaimed,--"_Leave that man, he is a coward; your children
will disgrace you, they will all be cowards_." [Footnote: Col. Wm. Jones.]
The epithet thus applied occasioned uneasiness to none less than to the
orator himself. Whenever he chose to notice it, he would make a good
return for what he had received.--In a war of words, he was on his own
chosen ground. He was a match for their greatest champion, and in cross-
firing, it could easily be seen that his missiles were directed by one who
was perfect master of the art. He could handle at will the most cutting
sarcasm, and while maintaining a good natured, playful mood, deal his
blows with such power and effect, as to make the victim of his irony
resort to some other means of defense, than the tongue. It is said that
frequently by his cool, good natured railery, he has caused the victim of
his sport to turn upon and strike him. He would answer it by a hearty
laugh, unless the blow was of such a nature as to demand of him a
different reception. [Footnote: Wm. Jones, Seneca chief.] He seemed to be
armed at every point, as with a coat of mail, against the arrows of his
assailants. Their most powerful weapons would be turned aside by his
presence of mind, and matchless skill, and leave him apparently unharmed.
A circumstance illustrating this point, once occurred between him and
Little Billy, a chief of some note among the Senecas, who was frequently
in the orator's company. This chief, with Red Jacket and one or two
others, were once passing from their settlement on Canandaigua lake, to
the old Seneca Castle, near the foot of Seneca lake. On their way they
encountered a large grizzly bear. Little Billy and the others in the
company, were frightened and began to run. Red Jacket who was
distinguished as a hunter, and an excellent marksman, drew up his rifle,
and brought the monster to the ground.
It so happened, on one occasion sometime afterward, that Little Billy was
very pertinacious in calling Red Jacket a coward. The orator did not
appear to notice him at first; but finding that he persisted in the
charge, he turned to him and coolly and sarcastically said,--"_Well, if I
am coward I never run unless it's for something bigger than a bear_."
[Footnote: Conversation with Seneca chief, Wm. Jones.]
It is hardly necessary to add, that nothing more was heard from Little
Billy concerning his cowardice on that day.
This charge of cowardice was owing in a great degree to the orator's
position. He was not on the popular side. The majority of his people were
against him. Had he acted in accordance with their wishes, it is a
question whether anything would ever have been said about his deficiency
in courage. And this supposition is strengthened by the fact, that at a
subsequent period in his history, a little display of courage, when acting
in accordance with the wishes of his people, gained for him a marked
degree of approbation, and gave rise to the affirmation, "_the stain fixed
upon his character, was thus wiped away by his good conduct in the
field_." [Footnote: McKenney's Indian Biography.]
In opposing the wishes of his people, when bent on a war of which he did
not approve, he gained the epithet of _coward_. With less intelligence,
and less moral courage, he might have seconded the views of his nation,
and been ranked a brave.
Hence, though we do not claim for Red Jacket the possession of qualities,
adapted to make him conspicuous as a military chieftain, we are disposed
to attribute to him the higher courage of acting in accordance with his
own convictions of propriety and duty. "He was born an orator, and while
morally brave, lacked the stolid insensibility to suffering and slaughter,
which characterized the war-captains of his nation." [Footnote: Bryant's
address.]
We readily concede that Red Jacket was fitted by nature to excel in
councils of peace, rather than in enterprises of war; to gain victories in
a conflict of mind with mind rather than in physical strife, on the field
of battle.
And it may be questioned whether the qualities adapted to the highest
achievements of oratory, would be congenial to the rough encounters of
war. Especially when the mind is already preoccupied with inward
thirstings after the glory of the rostrum; it will not be apt to sigh for
the camp, or the noise and tinsel of mere military fame.
It is related of him that when a boy, he was present at a great council
held on the Shenandoah. Many nations were there represented by their wise
men and orators. The greatest among them was Logan, who had removed from
the territory of his tribe to Shamokin. He was the son of Shikellemus, a
celebrated chief of the Cayuga nation, who, before the Revolution was a
warm friend of the whites.
On the occasion referred to, Red Jacket was so charmed with Logan's style,
and manner of delivery, that he resolved to attain if possible the same
high standard of eloquence; though he almost despaired of equalling his
distinguished model.
On his return to Cunadesaga, near the Seneca lake, which was at that time
his home, he sometimes incurred the displeasure and reproof of his mother,
by long absence from her cabin, without any ostensible cause. When hard
pressed for an answer, he informed his mother, that "_he had been playing
Logan_."
"Thus in his mighty soul the fire of a generous emulation had been
kindled, not to go out until his oratorical fame threw a refulgent glory
on the declining fortunes of the once formidable Iroquois. In the deep and
silent forest he practiced elocution, or to use his own expressive
language, _played Logan_, until he caught the manner and tone of his great
master. Unconsciously the forest orator, was an imitator of the eloquent
Greek, who tuned his voice on the wild sea beach, to the thunders of the
surge, and caught from nature's altar his loftiest inspiration.
"Not without previous preparation, and the severest discipline, did Red
Jacket acquire his power of moving and melting his hearers. His graceful
attitudes, significant gestures, perfect intonation, and impressive
pauses, when the lifted finger, and flashing eye told more than utterance,
were the result of sleepless toil; while his high acquirement was the
product of stern habitual thought, study of man, and keen observation."
"He did not trust to the occasion alone for his finest periods, and
noblest metaphors. In the armory of his capacious intellect the weapons of
forensic warfare had been previously polished and stored away. Ever ready
for the unfaltering tongue was the cutting rebuke, or apt illustration. By
labor, persevering labor, he achieved his renown. By exercising his
faculties in playing Logan when a boy, one of the highest standards of
mortal eloquence, either in ancient or modern times, he has left a lesson
to all ambitious aspirants, that there is no royal road to greatness; that
the desired goal is only to be gained by scaling rugged cliffs, and
treading painful paths." [Footnote: This statement, together with the
remarks that follow, is presented almost entire, from a reminiscence of
Red Jacket, given by Mr. Turner in his Pioneer History of the Phelps and
Gorham Purchase, a work that has rescued from oblivion, many interesting
and valuable historical recollections.]
The habit thus acquired in the orator's youth, became characteristic of
him, at a later period of his life. Previous to his making any great
forensic effort, he could be seen walking in the woods alone, apparently
in deep study. [Footnote: Col. Wm. Jones.]
CHAPTER IV.
Early struggles--Red Jacket's opportunity for trial--Council at Fort
Stanwix--Red Jacket's office of Sachem--Red Jacket's opposition to the
proposed treaty--Excitement created by his speech--Allayed by Cornplanter
--His influence in deciding the treaty--How it affected him.
How long and toilsome the way, ere the ambitious aspirant passes from the
low grounds of obscurity, to the dazzling heights of fame! How many hours
of anxious toil, through wearisome days and nights, protracted through
months and years, are passed, before the arena even is entered, where the
race commences in earnest! How many struggling emotions between hope and
fear, encouragement and doubt, promise and despair, mark the experience,
and clothe it with the sublimity and interest that belong to action in its
highest forms!
Did this child of nature cherishing the bright dream from early life,
never suffer from these contending emotions, ere he awoke finally to the
consciousness of the reality, where he could exclaim, I am an orator, yes,
I AM AN ORATOR!
This idea Red Jacket began now to cherish. He had practiced in his native
wilds, the forest depths had echoed back those strains of eloquence, that
had struggled for utterance in his impassioned bosom, and their force
being expended here, served but to awaken a still stronger desire to try
his powers, where he could have the answering sympathy of human hearts.
His fame and greatness were yet to be achieved. With the inward
consciousness of strength that would secure for him the eminence he
desired, he awaited eagerly the opportunity for its exercise. This
opportunity came.
When the storm of war had rolled by, the hour came for deliberation, and
council. England and America had concluded peace, and the jurisdiction of
the country of the Iroquois had been surrendered to the United States.
Still no provision had been made by the crown for those tribes that had
freely fought in her defence. They were left to make their own peace, or
prosecute the war on their own account. Their attitude was yet hostile. No
expedition of importance was undertaken, but the border men were
constantly annoyed by Indians, who drove away their horses and cattle, and
committed other acts of depredation. And the inhabitants of the frontier
had suffered so severely from the Indian tribes during the war, that these
acts served to awaken still deeper feelings of hostility toward them, and
led some openly to recommend that the Indians be driven from their lands,
and that these be forfeited to the State.
These councils were strenuously resisted by the general government. The
humane and considerate Washington thought it wiser to try and conciliate
them, and if possible win their confidence and esteem, claiming that their
lands, when needed, could be obtained at a cheaper rate by negotiation and
purchase, than by war and conquest.
This course, the excellence of which experience has fully demonstrated,
was finally adopted, and in pursuance of this design, a general council of
the Iroquois was convened at Fort Stanwix, in the fall of 1784. It was
attended by Oliver Wolcott, Richard Butler, and Arthur Lee, who were
appointed commissioners on the part of the United States. The different
tribes of the Iroquois were represented, and Red Jacket was present, and
took an active part in its deliberations. He had now been elected to the
office of Sachem; at what time precisely, is not known, but probably not
far from the close of the war of the Revolution.
The manner in which he gained this office has been ascribed by some to
artifice as well as the force of his eloquence. Col. Stone says, that
"aspiring to the rank of chief, he not only wrought upon the minds of his
people, by the exertion of that faculty which was ever with them a high
standard of merit, but he succeeded in availing himself of the
superstitious constitution of his race, to effect his purpose. His first
essay was to dream that he was, or should be a chief, and that the Great
Spirit was angry that his nation had not advanced him to that dignity.
This dream, with the necessary variations, he repeated until, fortunately
for him, the small pox broke out among the Senecas. He then proclaimed the
loathsome infliction a judgment sent by the Great Spirit, to punish them
for their ingratitude to him. The consequence ultimately was, that by
administering flattery to some, working upon the superstitious fears of
others, and by awakening the admiration of all by his eloquence, he
reached the goal of his ambition." [Footnote: Col. Stone's Life and Times
of Thayendanegea and Life and Times of Red Jacket. This statement has been
denied by some, who affirm that his eloquence was the sole cause of his
elevation. If this representation came from Brant, it may be recollected
that between Red Jacket and Brant there did not exist a very strong
attachment, and statements made by one concerning the other, would not be
likely to bear the coloring of a very warm friendship.]
However this may have been, it is certain this course was not necessary to
establish Red Jacket's position among his people. The circumstances of
their history created a necessity for his transcendent abilities, and the
light of his genius, though it may have been obscured for a time, must
eventually have shone forth, in its original beauty and splendor.
Red Jacket was now called upon to assist in the deliberations of his
people, and from this time to the day of his death, we find him connected
with, and bearing an important part in all of their public transactions.
The council at Fort Stanwix was the first occasion in which he appeared
before the public. It was a meeting of no small moment. With an anxious
heart the Indian left his home and wended his way, through his native
forests, to the place where he was to meet in council, the chiefs of the
thirteen fires. His own tribes had been wasted, by a long and bloody war.
The nation they had so long clung to, and by whose artifice they had been
led to engage in the strife, stood confessedly vanquished. A new power had
arisen in the land, what bearing would it have on their future fortunes?
With the importance of this gathering none were more deeply impressed than
Red Jacket.--Yonder he stands, alone;--his knit brow, and searching glance
indicate a process of thought, which stirs deeply the emotions of the
inner man.--Tread lightly, lest you disturb the silent evolutions of that
airy battalion, that is wheeling into rank and file, thoughts that
discharged in words, reach the mark and do execution.--Now he wears a look
of indignation, which presently turns to one of proud defiance, as he
contemplates the encroaching disposition of the white race.--Now you may
detect an air of scorn, and his eye flashes fire, as he regards them at
first a feeble colony, which might easily have been crushed by the strong
arm of the Iroquois.--A feeling of deep concern directly overspreads his
features, as he thinks of their advancing power, and of the prospect of
their surpassing even the glory of his own ancestry.--A still deeper shade
steals over him as he thinks of the waning fortunes of his people.--
Presently his countenance is lighted up;--his feelings are all aglow,--a
bright thought, has entered his mind.--He conceives the idea of the union
of the entire race of red men, to resist the encroachments of the whites.
--Are they not yet strong? And united, would they not yet be, a
formidable power?
With anxious and matured thoughts, Red Jacket comes to this council
gathering. Its bearing on his nation and race, he deeply scans, and
treasures up those burning thoughts, with which he is to electrify, and
set on fire the bosoms of his countrymen.
Of the proceedings of this council, little is known aside from the bare
treaty itself. By this treaty perpetual peace and amity were agreed upon
between the United States, and the Iroquois, and the latter ceded to the
United States, all their lands lying west of a line commencing at the
mouth of a creek four miles east of Niagara, at a place on Lake Ontario
called Johnson's Landing; thence south, in a direction always four miles
east of the portage, or carrying-path, between Lakes Erie and Ontario, to
the mouth of Buffalo creek, on Lake Erie; thence due south to the north
boundary of the state of Pennsylvania; thence west to the end of said
boundary; thence south along the west boundary of the state of
Pennsylvania to the Ohio river.
In consideration of this surrender to the United States of their claim to
western lands, the Iroquois were to be secure in the peaceful possession
of the lands they inhabited in the state of New York.
This treaty Red Jacket strenuously resisted. He regarded the proposed
cession of lands as exorbitant and unjust, and summoned all the resources
of his eloquence to defend his position. The course of his argument and
the various means he took to enforce it, we have no means of adequately
presenting. A few hints respecting it, and the testimony of those present
as to the effect produced, is all we have to guide us in forming any
estimate of its merits.
After giving a vivid representation of the encroachments already made upon
them by the whites, and of the advances they were making in numbers and
power, as well as extent of territory, he reminded his hearers of the
ancient glory of the Iroquois, and contrasted it with their present wasted
and feeble condition. They had been passing through a mighty convulsion,
the hurricane had swept over their dwellings, their homes were laid waste,
their country made desolate.
He directed them to the extensive dominion they had exercised. Their
empire was wide, on the north, and east, and south, and west, there were
none to stay their hand, or limit their power. A broad continent was open
to them on every side, and their seats were large. But now they were met
by a people to whom they had surrendered a large portion of their lands,
and "they are driving us on toward the setting sun. They would shut us in,
they would close up the path to our brethren at the west. We demand an
open way."
They had no right, he affirmed, to part with their western lands. Their
laws, their ancient usages forbade it. They ought never to decide a
question so momentous as this, without giving all the parties a hearing,
who have any interest in its decision. They should be present and join in
their deliberations. Their brethren at the west had a right to be
consulted in this matter.--It would be unworthy of the name, and exalted
fame of the Iroquois, to decide the question without reference to them.--
It was a question that affected deeply the interests of the entire race of
red men on this continent. He declared finally that rather than yield to
the exorbitant demands of the treaty, they should take up their arms, and
prosecute the war on their own account.
Such is the scanty outline of a speech that made a wonderful impression on
the minds of all his people who were present. During the progress of his
speech, their emotions were wrought up to a pitch, that seemed to betoken
a rising storm, and at times it seemed as though it needed but a spark to
set on fire a flame that was ready to burst out with consuming force.
Those present, who did not understand the language of the orator, were
deeply interested in his voice, his manner of elocution, and his perfect
and inimitable action. They caught fire from his eye, and felt the
inspiration, which was kindled in the minds of all who listened to him
understandingly. When he sat down his work was accomplished. There was but
one heart among his people. From this time on, he was the peerless orator
of his nation.
A very interesting sketch of Red Jacket as an orator, refers, for the
existence of the facts which form the basis of its statements, to a treaty
held at Canandaigua in 1794. It has been copied by Drake, and published in
almost every sketch of the orator's life. Mr. Stone questions its
truthfulness on the ground that there is no notice of it in any notes of
this council taken at the time, and because also there was evidently an
absence of the peculiar circumstances, which the speech referred to, seems
to demand. Still he introduces it under the supposition that if delivered
there at all, it might have been during the excitement produced among the
Indians, by the rejection from the council, by Col. Pickering, of one
Johnson, a messenger from Brant, who had been invited to be present at
that council. Yet this is by no means probable, as Red Jacket would have
been far from rising into eloquence on an occasion, which from his known
relations to the proud Mohawk, he would naturally view with satisfaction,
instead of resentment. The more probable supposition is, that the writer
caught up this as a traditionary statement, which, owing to the lapse of
time and the uncertainty of memory, had been changed in one or two of its
items, and receiving it as correct, penned it in good faith, as having
transpired at that treaty. It is a correct presentation of some of the
points in the orator's speech on this occasion, and is as follows:
[Footnote: Mr. Stone justly supposes this speech might have been made at
the treaty of Fort Stanwix in 1784.]
"... The witnesses of the scene will never forget the powers of native
oratory. Two days had passed away in negotiation with the Indians for a
cession of their lands. The contract was supposed to be nearly completed,
when Red Jacket arose. With the grace and dignity of a Roman Senator, he
drew his blanket around him, and with a piercing eye surveyed the
multitude. All was hushed. Nothing interposed to break the silence, but
the rustling of the leaves. After a long and solemn, but not unmeaning
pause, he commenced in a low voice, and sententious style. Rising
gradually with the subject, he depicted the primitive simplicity and
happiness of his nation, and the wrongs they had sustained from the
usurpations of white men, with such a bold and faithful pencil, that every
auditor was soon roused to vengeance, or melted to tears. The effect was
inexpressible. But ere the emotions of admiration and sympathy had
subsided, the white men became alarmed. They were in the heart of an
Indian country, surrounded by ten times their number, who were inflamed by
a remembrance of their injuries, and excited to indignation by the
eloquence of a favorite chief. Appalled and terrified, the white men cast
a cheerless gaze on the hordes around them. A nod from the chiefs might be
the onset of destruction. At this portentious moment, Farmer's Brother
interposed. He replied not to his brother chief, but with a sagacity truly
aboriginal, he caused the cessation of the council, introduced good cheer,
commended the eloquence of Red Jacket, and before the meeting had
reassembled, with the aid of other prudent chiefs, he had moderated the
fury of his nation to a more salutary view of the question before them."
The commissioners replied, but without making much headway on account of
the agitation and excitement, produced by the orator's speech; that by the
common usages of war they might lay claim to a much larger extent of
territory; that their demand was characterized by great moderation, and
insisted on their yielding to the terms proposed.
There was little disposition among them to yield the point, yet the treaty
was finally brought to a successful issue, by the influence of
Cornplanter.
Cornplanter was a noble specimen of the Indian race. He had all the
sagacity for which his people were distinguished, and was equally active,
eloquent and brave. He was well qualified by his talents to engage in the
legislative councils of his nation, and was unsurpassed by any, for
prowess and daring in the bloody field of strife. No chief, Thayendanegea
not excepted, had gained higher laurels for personal valor, and none
commanded more fully the confidence and esteem of his nation. His people
looked up to him as a tower of strength, and when he spake, his words fell
upon them with the weight of great authority. Better acquainted than his
junior associate with the details of war, and understanding likewise the
wasted and feeble condition of his people, and having learned in the late
conflict something of the power of the enemy they would have to encounter,
he regarded the idea of their resistance as wholly impracticable, and
advised a compliance with the terms of the treaty. Though he regretted the
loss of any more territory, he wisely concluded it was better to lose a
part, than to be deprived of all. And by throwing his influence decidedly
in favor, he succeeded finally in quieting the minds of his people, and in
persuading them to accede to the proposals made.
It is a matter of regret that so few traces are left, of Red Jacket's
speech on this occasion. Yet had his speech been reported, we might have
been as much at a loss as at present, to derive from it a just estimation
of his talents. His speeches as reported are tame when compared with the
effect produced.
The Indian was an unwritten language. The most distinguished orators of
the Iroquois confederacy, matured their thoughts in solitude without the
aid of the pen, and when uttered in the hearing of the people, they passed
forever into oblivion, only as a striking passage may hare been retained
in memory. And with them the want of a written language was thus in a
measure compensated. They made an increased effort to treasure up their
thoughts. Yet how much must necessarily have been lost! and how liable to
waste away, that which remained.
Trusting to them how imperfect must have been a reported speech! And
relying on those who transferred their speeches to a different language,
we have little assurance of any thing better than mutilated transcripts of
the original. Need we be surprised then, to find in Red Jacket's published
speeches, a tameness unworthy of his fame? Red Jacket was esteemed by the
men of his time as an orator, surpassingly eloquent.
In his speeches as reported, this does not appear. Hence, his reported
speeches fail to do him justice, or the men of his time very much
overrated his talents.
Taking the latter horn of the dilemma we impeach the judgment and good
sense of those who have gone before us. Assuming the former, we present an
admitted and proclaimed fact. His contemporaries, while they conceded to
him the highest attributes and accomplishments of eloquence, unite in
affirming that his reported speeches come far short of the original.
_Captain Horatio Jones_, a favorite interpreter, has frequently
declared,--"_it is impossible to do Red Jacket justice_." The peculiar
shade given to the idea, its beauty in its own native idiom, was often
entirely lost in the transfer. In much the same way, Captain Jasper
Parrish, of Canandaigua, has frequently been heard to speak, when
referring to the forensic efforts of the orator.
And besides, those passages that were most deeply fraught with eloquence,
were often lost entirely, from the fact that the way having been prepared
by a recital of those details that are reported, the reporter himself has
been carried away by the very flood that surrounded, uplifted, and carried
away the mass of those who heard him speak. So that the only note that
would be made, of a passage of considerable length, is given in one or two
short sentences. [Footnote: Conversation of the author with Col. Wm.
Jones.]
By the generality of the Iroquois, the terms of the treaty at Fort Stanwix
were regarded as severe; and though the services of the renowned
Cornplanter were engaged by the commissioners, in an effort to persuade
the disaffected into a reconciliation with it, the attempt was but
partially successful, and was made at the expense of his own high standing
among his people. They were not easily reconciled, and were so much
displeased with his conduct on this, and one or two subsequent occasions,
that they even threatened his life. A circumstance he touchingly refers to
in a speech addressed to General Washington.
"Father," said he, "we will not conceal from you that the great God and
not man, has preserved Cornplanter, from the hands of his own nation. For
they ask continually--where is the land which our children, and their
children after them are to lie down upon? When the Sun goes down he opens
his heart before God, and earlier than the sun appears upon the hills, he
gives thanks for his protection during the night; for he feels that among
men become desperate by their danger, it is God only that can preserve
him."
CHAPTER V.
Claim of the United States to Indian lands--Conflicting claims of
different States--Difficulty settled--Attempt to acquire the land by a
lease--Purchase by Phelps and Gorham--Further purchase by Robert Morris.
At the close of the war of the Revolution, the territory ceded by Great
Britain to the United States, included large tracts of country occupied by
the Indians. In ceding these lands, she ceded only the right claimed by
herself, on the ground of original discovery, which was simply a priority
of right to purchase of the original occupants of the soil. The Indians
were allowed to dwell upon these lands, and were considered in a certain
sense the owners, but were required in case of a sale, to dispose of them
to the government. [Footnote: Kent's Commentary.]
As each State claimed to be sovereign in every interest not ceded to the
general government, each State claimed the territory covered by its
original charter. These charters, owing to great ignorance of geographical
limits, created claims that conflicted with each other. From this source
originated difficult questions about land titles and jurisdiction, between
the States of Connecticut and Pennsylvania,--Massachusetts and New York.
These difficulties which existed before, the greater question of the
Revolutionary war suspended for a time, but when peace was concluded, they
came up again for a consideration and settlement.
The way was in a measure prepared for this, by the relinquishment to the
general government, on the part of New York in 1781, and of Massachusetts
in 1785, of all their right to territory west of a meridian line drawn
south, from the western end of Lake Ontario.
In the adjustment of these difficulties, Connecticut relinquished her
claim to a tract of land on the Susquehanna in Pennsylvania, called the
Gore, and acquired that part of the State of Ohio called New Connecticut,
or Western Reserve. And Pennsylvania obtained a tract of land lying
immediately beyond the western boundary of the State of New York, and
north-east of her own, embracing the harbor of Presque Isle, on Lake Erie,
familiarly known as the Triangle, thus giving her access to the waters of
this Lake.
The question in controversy between the States of New York and
Massachusetts was more serious, owing to the large amount of territory
claimed by the latter in western New York. It was brought to an amicable
settlement, by Massachusetts surrendering to New York the right of
jurisdiction, over all the land west of the present eastern boundary of
the State; and by New York giving to Massachusetts the pre-emptive right,
or right of purchasing of the Indians, all of the lands lying west of a
meridian line drawn through Seneca Lake, from a certain point on the
northern boundary of Pennsylvania, reserving however, a strip of land one
mile in width, along the eastern shore of the Niagara river. Thus New
York, while she retained the sovereignty, lost the fee of about six
millions of acres of land, in one of the finest regions of country in the
new world. [Footnote: For a more full account, see "Turner's History of
the Phelps and Gorham Purchase."]
While these difficulties were being adjusted, a magnificent speculation
was in progress, which bid fair to meet the expectations of its earnest
projectors. A company was organized, called the New York and Genesee Land
Company, with a view to obtain the entire tract of Indian lands within the
State. To evade the law forbidding the sale of these lands to any party
not authorized by the State, it was proposed to obtain them by a lease,
that should extend nine hundred and ninety-nine years. A lease extending
so long, was regarded as equivalent to a sale.
With a view to further its designs another company, the Niagara Genesee
Company, was also formed in Canada, of those who were most in
correspondence with the Indians, and who would be influential in securing
from them a decision in favor of their object.
These organizations, especially the New York Land Company, were large, and
included men of wealth and prominence, both in New York and Canada. With
such appliances as they were enabled to bring to bear upon the Indians,
they secured, in November, 1787, a _lease for nine hundred and ninety-
nine years_, of all the lands of the Iroquois in the State of New York,
except some small reservations, and the privilege of hunting and fishing,
for an annual rent of two thousand dollars, and a promised gift of twenty
thousand dollars.
The formidable character of these associations created a just alarm, and
measures were immediately undertaken to circumvent their influence. An act
was passed by the Legislature of New York, in March, 1788, authorizing the
governor to disregard all contracts made with the Indians, and not
sanctioned by the State; and to cause those who had entered upon Indian
lands under such contracts, to be driven off, and their houses destroyed.
The sheriff of the county was directed to dispossess intruders and burn
their dwellings, and a military force was called out, that strictly
enforced these orders.
Thus by the energetic action of Governor Clinton of New York, the designs
of these organizations were overruled.
As early as 1784, the Legislature of New York had passed an act,
appointing the governor, and a Board of Commissioners, the Superintendents
of Indian affairs, and as there were other Indian lands within the State,
not covered by the pre-emptive right of Massachusetts, these commissioners
with the governor at their head, entered upon negotiations with a view of
purchasing them, and securing a title to them for the State. [Footnote:
The commissioners designated were: Abraham Cuyler, Peter Schuyler and
Henry Glen, who associated with them Philip Schuyler, Robert Yates,
Abraham Ten Broeck, A. Yates, Jr., P. W. Yates, John J. Beekman, Mathew
Vischer, and Gen. Gansevoort.]
A council of the Iroquois was appointed for this purpose, at Fort
Schuyler, on the first of September, 1788.
The Leasees disappointed and angered by the bold and decisive measures
taken against them, exerted their influence to prevent the Indians from
assembling. But by measures equally energetic in its favor, a
representation of the different tribes was obtained, and a treaty was
concluded on the 12th, in which was conveyed to the State the land of the
Onondagas; some reservations excepted, in consideration of one thousand
dollars, in hand paid and an annuity of five hundred dollars forever.
Then followed negotiations with the Oneidas. Speeches were interchanged,
propositions made and rejected, until finally an agreement was made, and a
deed of cession executed by the chiefs, conveying all their lands,
excepting certain reservations, in consideration of two thousand dollars
in money, two thousand dollars in clothing and other goods, one thousand
dollars in provisions, five hundred dollars for the erection of a saw and
grist mill on their reservation, and an annuity of six hundred dollars
forever.
The commissioners next appointed a council to be held at Albany, December
15, 1788. Great difficulty was experienced in getting the Indians
together, the Leasees it is said, "kept the Indians so continually
intoxicated, it was impossible to do anything with them." [Footnote:
Turner's History.]
It was not until the eleventh of the February following, that a sufficient
number were brought together, to proceed with the negotiations; and on the
twenty-fifth, the preliminaries having been settled, the Cayugas ceded to
the State all of their lands, excepting a large reservation of one hundred
square miles. It was in consideration of five hundred dollars in hand,
sixteen hundred and twenty-eight dollars in June following, and an annuity
of five hundred dollars forever.
Mr. Turner in alluding to these negotiations very properly observes, "it
was only after a hard struggle of much perplexity and embarrassment, that
the object was accomplished. For the honor of our country, it could be
wished that all Indian negotiations and treaties, had been attended with
as little wrong, had been conducted as fairly as were those under the
auspices and general direction of George Clinton. No where has the veteran
warrior and statesman left a better proof of his sterling integrity and
ability, than is furnished by the records of these treaties. In no case
did he allow the Indians to be deceived, but stated to them from time to
time, with unwearied patience, the true conditions of the bargains they
were consummating."
He says further, "the treaties for lands found the Six Nations in a
miserable condition. They had warred on the side of a losing party; for
long years the field and the chase had been neglected; they were suffering
for food and raiment. Half-famished they flocked to the treaties and were
fed and clothed. One item of expense charged in the accounts of the treaty
at Albany in 1789, was for horses paid for, that the Indians had killed
and eaten on their way down. For several years in addition to the amount
of provisions distributed to them at the treaties, boatloads of corn were
distributed among them by the State."
It does not appear that Red Jacket, Cornplanter, Brant, or other of the
more noted chiefs among the Iroquois, were present to take a part in these
negotiations. Hence exception was taken to these proceedings. When the
time drew near for paying the first annuity, the Onondagas sent an agent
to Governor Clinton, saying they had received four strings of wampum from
the Senecas, forbidding them to go to Fort Stanwix to receive the money,
and declaring also "that the governor of Quebec wanted their lands; that
Sir John wanted them; Col. Butler wants the Cayugas' lands; and the
commanding officer of Fort Niagara wants the Senecas' lands."
They were assured in reply that they might "make their minds easy," the
governor would protect them; that the Leasees were the cause of their
trouble.
The Cayugas also sent a message to the governor, saying they were
"threatened with destruction, even total extermination. The voice comes
from the west; _its sound is terrible, our brothers the Cayugas and
Onondagas are to share the same fate_."
The complaint was, they had sold their lands without consulting the
_western tribes_.
The decided position of the Executive in giving them assurance of
protection, was the means of dissipating their alarm.
Historical evidence renders it apparent, that at this early period, the
design was entertained by those in Canada, whose control over the Indians
was well nigh supreme, to gain through them possession of Western New
York, and without compromising the government of Great Britain, sever it
from the United States, connect it with the territory of the North-west,
and hold it by Indian possession, in a sort of quasi allegiance, to the
crown of England.
Their design with respect to Western New York was defeated by the
energetic measures of its chief executive, but further on we will see they
did not relinquish the idea of holding from the United States, the
territory of the North-west.
Next in the race of competition for the broad and fertile lands of the
Genesee, appear the names of Oliver Phelps and Nathaniel Gorham. They were
the acknowledged representatives of a considerable body of men, who were
ambitious of securing an interest in what was regarded as the most
desirable region in this country.
From the advent of Gen. Sullivan's army into the Indian country in 1779,
their route being through the very finest portion of Western New York, and
at a season of the year when vegetation was in its highest perfection; the
beauty and fertility of these lands became the theme of praise, on the
part of every soldier that beheld them. Their fame was thus carried to
almost every village and hamlet in Pennsylvania and New England. Hence
great eagerness was manifested in regard to the title, and settlement of
these lands.
The company of which Messrs. Phelps and Gorham were the leading spirits,
having purchased the pre-emptive right of Massachusetts, in the spring of
1788, Mr. Phelps went on to the ground, and was successful in convening a
council of the Indians for the sale of their lands, at Buffalo creek,
during the month of July of the same year. [Footnote: His success in
obtaining this council, and securing a sale, was owing in a large degree,
to his policy in paying court to the powerful faction of the Leasees
residing in Canada, and giving them an interest in the purchase.]
The Indians at this treaty strenuously resisted the sale of any of their
land west of the Genesee river; yet with a view of furnishing "_a piece
of ground for a mill yard_" at the Genesee Falls, were finally persuaded
to give their assent to a boundary line, that included a tract twelve
miles square, west of that river. The eastern boundary of the lands sold,
was the Massachusetts pre-emptive line; the western, was a line "beginning
in the northern line of Pennsylvania, due south of the corner or point of
land made by the confluence of the Genesee river, and the Canaseraga
creek, thence north on said meridian line to the corner or point, at the
confluence aforesaid; thence northwardly along the waters of the Genesee
river, to a point two miles north of Canawangus village, thence running
due west 12 miles; thence running northwardly so as to be twelve miles
distant from the western bounds of said river, to the shores of Lake
Ontario." The lands thus ceded, are what has been called "_The Phelps and
Gorham Purchase_." It contained by estimation two million and six hundred
thousand acres, for which they agreed to pay the Indians five thousand
dollars, and an annuity of five hundred dollars forever.
Robert Morris, the distinguished financier of the Revolution, afterward
became owner of the greater part of this purchase, as well as of the pre-
emptive right of Massachusetts to the remaining part of Western New York.
Through his agent in London, Wm. Temple Franklin, grandson of Doctor
Franklin, these lands were again sold to an association of gentlemen,
consisting of Sir William Pultney, John Hornby, and Patrick Colquhoun, and
the farther settlement of this region, auspiciously commenced under its
original proprietors, was conducted principally under their
administration.
An intelligent and enterprising young Scotchman, Charles Williamson, who
had previously devoted his time while detained as a prisoner in this
country, during the war of the Revolution, to investigations respecting
its geographical resources and limits, and who from his disposition and
business capacity, was well qualified for the station, was appointed their
agent, and emigrating hither with his family, and two other young
Scotchmen as his assistants, John Johnstone, and Charles Cameron, he
became identified with the early history and progress of the extensive and
important part of the Indian territory, that as we have seen, had just
been opened, and was inviting a new race, to take possession of its virgin
soil.
CHAPTER VI.
Union of the Western Indian Tribes contemplated--Hostile influence of the
agents of Great Britain in Canada--Ambitious project of Thayendanegea or
Brant--Council at Tioga Point--Indian Ceremonies--Visit of Cornplanter and
others at the seat of government--Kindly feeling of Washington--Fresh
occasion of trouble.
When Red Jacket, at the treaty of Fort Stanwix, in 1784, projected the
bold idea of the union of all the Indian tribes on the continent, to
resist the aggressions of the whites, he may not have thought it would
soon come near having a practical fulfillment. This thought grew out of
the circumstances and necessities of the times, and was the natural
forecast of a great mind. His words sank deep into the hearts of his
people,--they were carried beyond the bounds of that council-fire,--they
went gliding along with the light canoe that plied the Lakes,--and were
wafted onward by the waters of the Ohio and Mississippi. Several causes
contributed to give direction and force to this movement.
Prominent among them was the fact, that the treaty of peace with Great
Britain in 1783, though it put an end to the war, did not secure friendly
relations between the two countries. Hostile feelings had been engendered
and were still cherished, particularly by those who had taken refuge in
Canada, in the early part of the Revolutionary struggle. Some of them were
very active in stirring up Indian hostilities among the tribes at the
west.
But prominent above all others were the exertions of Thayendanegea, or
Brant, the famous war-chief, from whose leadership the inhabitants of our
frontier settlements had suffered so severely, during the war of the
Revolution. Very soon after the treaty at Fort Stanwix in 1784, from the
dissatisfaction growing out of that treaty, and other indications among
the Indians, he began to entertain the ambitious project of forming a
grand Indian confederacy, of which he would be chief, embracing not only
the Iroquois, but all of the Indian nations of the great North-west. He
had given the entire summer of 1785, to the business of visiting these
nations, and holding councils among them, with a view to the furtherance
of this object. [Footnote: See Stone's Life and Times of Brant, Vol. 2, p.
248.]
He visited England at the close of this year, "ostensibly for the purpose
of adjusting the claims of the loyal Mohawks upon the crown, for
indemnification of their losses and sacrifices in the contest, from which
they had recently emerged." [Footnote: See Stone's Life and Times of
Brant, Vol. 2, p. 248.]
... "Coupled with the special business of the Indian claims, was the
design of _sounding the British government, touching the degree of
countenance or the amount of assistance which he might expect from that
quarter, in the event of a general Indian war against the United
States_." [Footnote: Ibid.]
His arrival at Salisbury was thus noted in a letter from that place, dated
December 12, 1785, and published in London. "Monday last, Colonel Joseph
Brant, the celebrated King of the Mohawks, arrived in this city from
America, and after dining with Colonel De Peister, at the head-quarters
here, proceeded on his journey to London. This extraordinary personage is
said to have presided at the late Grand Congress of Confederate chiefs, of
the Indian nations in America, and to be by them appointed to the conduct
and chief command in the war, _which they now meditate against the United
States of America_. He took his departure for England immediately as
that assembly broke up; and it is conjectured that his embassy to the
British Court is of great importance." [Footnote: Life of Brant, Vol. 2,
p. 249.]
No public, decisive answer, for obvious reasons, was given to this
application for countenance and aid in the contemplated war, for this part
of the errand of the Mohawk chief, was "_unknown to the public at that
day_." [Footnote: Life of Brant, Vol. 2, p. 249.]
Captain Brant on his return to America in 1786, entered once more upon the
work of combining the Indian forces, and assembled a grand confederate
council, which was held at Huron village, near the mouth of Detroit River.
[Footnote: It was attended by the Six Nations, the Hurons, Ottawas,
Miamis, Shawanese, Chippewas, Cherokees, Delawares, Pottowattamies, and
Wabash, confederates.]
An address to the Congress of the United States was agreed upon at this
council, pacific in its tone, provided no encroachments were made upon
their lands west of the Ohio river. This was their ultimatum previous to
the war, in which they were afterwards united.
At the treaty of peace between Great Britain and the United States in
1783, it was stipulated that the military posts south of the great lakes
should be surrendered. This surrender was refused, on the plea that the
United States had not fulfilled an agreement on her part, to see the just
claims, due the subjects of Great Britain, cancelled.
From certain correspondence at this time it appears that there were other
reasons also, for the witholding of these forts. Their surrender was
earnestly desired on the part of the United States, as it was well
understood, they gave encouragement to the hostile combinations, that at
this time were going on.
In a letter to Captain Brant by Sir John Johnson dated Quebec, March 22d,
1787, he says, "Do not suffer an idea to hold a place in your mind, that
it will be for your interest to sit still and see the Americans attempt
the posts. [Footnote: Oswegatchie, Oswego, Niagara, Detroit and Mackinaw.]
_It is for your sakes chiefly, if not entirely, that we hold them._ If
you become indifferent about them, they may perhaps be given up; what
security would you then have? You would be at the mercy of a people whose
blood calls aloud for revenge; whereas, by supporting them, you encourage
us to hold them, and encourage new settlements, already considerable, and
every day increasing by numbers coming in, who find they can't live in the
States. Many thousands are preparing to come in. This increase of his
Majesty's subjects will serve as a protection to you, should the subjects
of the States, by endeavoring to make further encroachments on you,
disturb your quiet." [Footnote: Stone's Life and Times of Brant.]
Another letter soon after, by Major Mathews seems to confirm the above
statements. "His Lordship [Footnote: Lord Dorchester, Governor General of
Canada, formerly Sir Guy Carlton.] wishes them (the Indians), to act as is
best for their interest; he cannot begin a war with the Americans, because
some of their people encroach and make depredations upon parts of the
Indian country; but they must see it is his Lordship's _intention to
defend the posts_; and that while these are preserved, the Indians must
find great security therefrom, and consequently the Americans greater
difficulty in taking their lands; but should they once become masters of
the posts, they will surround the Indians, and accomplish their purpose
with little trouble." [Footnote: Life of Brant, Vol. 2, p. 271.]
Thus it is seen that those at the head of British affairs in Canada, while
they studiously avoided coming into open collision with the United States,
were viewing with satisfaction the gathering war-cloud, and were lending
their influence to extend and intensify its threatening character.
The only course left for the United States was to prepare for the
conflict; and while forces were being summoned to take the field, they
were preceded by efforts of a pacific character.
A treaty was held with the Six Nations at Fort Harmar, on the Muskingum,
in January, 1789, by Gen. St. Clair, in behalf of the United States, with
a view to renew and confirm all the engagements, made at the treaty of
Fort Stanwix in 1784. Goods amounting to three thousand dollars were
distributed among the Indians, after the satisfactory conclusion and
signing of the treaty. [Footnote: Indian treaties.]
At the same time a treaty was concluded with the Wyandot, Delaware,
Ottawa, Chippewa, Pottowattamie and Sac nations, and goods distributed
among them amounting to six thousand dollars, for a relinquishment of
their claim to western lands.
These negotiations were doubtless attended with a beneficial influence,
but they could not arrest the tide of warlike feeling that had been
created. Hostilities were continued throughout the long line of our
frontier settlements, and two of the Senecas having been killed by some
bordermen of Pennsylvania, a great excitement was awakened among them.
Our government, anxious to remove the new occasion of disaffection,
immediately disavowed the act, sought to bring the perpetrators of the
crime to justice, and invited a friendly conference of the Iroquois at
Tioga Point.
This council was convened on the sixteenth and remained in session until
the twenty-third of November, 1790.
The chiefs in attendance at this council, and who took an active part in
its deliberations, were Fish Carrier, Farmer's Brother, Hendrick, Little
Billy and Red Jacket.
Colonel Pickering, as commissioner on the part of the United States, was
present.
Red Jacket, their principal speaker, portrayed in a vivid and strong
light, the sorrow they experienced, the injustice they had suffered, and
the unpleasant feelings aroused among them. A large number of Indians were
present, and were powerfully moved, and deeply affected by his speech.
Colonel Pickering, on the other hand, gave a very clear view of the facts
in the case, showing conclusively the innocence of the government in the
murder committed, and after a time succeeded in allaying the excitement,
drying up their tears, and wiping out the blood that had been shed.
This council was enlivened by good cheer, and the observance of ceremonies
common among the Indians.
Thomas Morris, who was present, was at this time adopted into one of their
tribes. His father, Robert Morris of Philadelphia, having purchased of
Massachusetts, in 1790, the pre-emptive right to that part of Western New
York, not sold to Phelps and Gorham, sent his son, as preparatory to the
negotiations he desired to make with the Indians, and for the general
management of his business connected with the undertaking, to reside in
Canandaigua. While here he was diligent in cultivating an acquaintance
with the principal chiefs of the Iroquois confederacy, who resided in that
region. In this he was successful, and soon became a general favorite
among them. He was in attendance with Colonel Pickering at Tioga Point,
where the Indians determined to adopt him into the Seneca nation, and Red
Jacket bestowed upon him the name himself had borne, previous to his
elevation to the dignity of Sachem; O-ti-ti-ani, "_Always Ready_." It is
beautifully described by Colonel Stone, and is given in his language.
"The occasion of which they availed themselves to perform the cermony of
conferring upon young Morris his new name, was a religious observance,
when the whole sixteen hundred Indians present at the treaty, united in an
offering to the moon, then being at her full. It was a clear night, and
the moon shone with uncommon brilliancy. The host of Indians, and their
neophite, were all seated upon the ground in an extended circle, on one
side of which a large fire was kept burning. The aged Cayuga chieftain,
Fish Carrier, who was held in exalted veneration for his wisdom, and who
had been greatly distinguished for his bravery from his youth up,
officiated as the high priest of the occasion;--making a long speech to
the luminary, occasionally throwing tobacco into the fire, as incense. On
the conclusion of the address, the whole company prostrated themselves
upon the bosom of their parent earth, and a grunting sound of approbation
was uttered from mouth to mouth, around the entire circle.
"At a short distance from the fire a post had been planted in the earth,
intended to represent the stake of torture, to which captives are bound
for execution. After the ceremonies in favor of Madam Luna had been ended,
they commenced a war-dance around the post, and the spectacle must have
been as picturesque as it was animating and wild. The young braves engaged
in the dance were naked, excepting a breech-cloth about their loins. They
were painted frightfully, their backs being chalked white, with irregular
streaks of red, denoting the streaming of blood. Frequently would they
cease from dancing, while one of their number ran to the fire, snatching
thence a blazing stick, placed there for that purpose, which he would
thrust at the post, as though inflicting torture upon a prisoner. In the
course of the dance they sung their songs, and made the forests ring with
their wild screams and shouts, as they boasted of their deeds of war, and
told the number of scalps they had respectively taken, or which had been
taken by their nation. During the dance those engaged in it, as did others
also, partook freely of unmixed rum, and by consequence of the natural
excitement of the occasion, and the artificial excitement of the liquor
the festival had well nigh turned out a tragedy. It happened that among
the dancers was an Oneida warrior, who in striking the post, boasted of
the number of scalps taken by his nation during the war of the Revolution.
Now the Oneidas, it will be recollected, had sustained the cause of the
colonies in that contest, while the rest of the Iroquois confederacy, had
espoused that of the crown. The boasting of the Oneida warrior therefore,
was like striking a spark into a keg of powder. The ire of the Senecas was
kindled in an instant, and they in turn boasted of the number of scalps
taken from the Oneidas in that contest. They moreover taunted the Oneidas
as cowards. Quick as lightning the hands of the latter were upon their
weapons, and in turn the knives and tomahawks of the Senecas began to
glitter in the moon-beams, as they were hastily drawn forth. For an
instant it was a scene of anxious, almost breathless suspense, a death-
struggle seeming inevitable, when the storm was hushed by the
interposition of Old Fish Carrier, who rushed forward, and striking the
post with violence, exclaimed '_You are all a parcel of boys. When you
have attained my age, and performed the warlike deeds that I have
performed, you may boast of what you have done; but not till then._'
"Saying which he threw down the post, put an end to the dance, and caused
the assembly to retire. This scene in its reality must have been one of
absorbing and peculiar interest. An assembly of nearly two thousand
inhabitants of the forest, grotesquely clad in skins and strouds, with
shining ornaments of silver, and their coarse raven hair falling over
their shoulders, and playing wildly in the wind as it swept past, sighing
mournfully among the giant branches of the trees above, such a group
gathered in a broad circle of an opening in the wilderness, the starry
canopy of heaven glittering above them, the moon casting her silver mantle
around their dusky forms, and a large fire blazing in the midst of them,
before which they were working their spells, and performing their savage
rites, must have presented a spectacle of long and vivid remembrance."
[Footnote: Stone's Life and Times of Sa-go-ye-wat-ha.]
This meeting conducted with evident good feeling, served much to allay the
excitement and anger of the Senecas, and other tribes there represented,
but the question concerning their lands, was still agitated and created
dissatisfaction.
With a view to obtain some concession in their favor, Cornplanter, Half
Town and Big Tree visited Philadelphia, which was at that time the seat of
the general government, very soon after the council at Tioga Point. They
were especially anxious to obtain the restoration of a portion of land
south of Lake Erie, and bordering upon Pennsylvania, which was occupied by
Half Town and his clan. They represented it as the land on which Half Town
and all his people live, with other chiefs who always have been, and still
are dissatisfied with the treaty at Fort Stanwix. "They grew out of this
land, and their fathers grew out of it, and they cannot be persuaded to
part with it. _We therefore entreat you to restore to us this little
piece._"
This appeal, so simple and touching, was responded to by President
Washington with great kindness. He reminded them that the treaty at Fort
Stanwix had been fully confirmed at Fort Harmar in 1789, that it was not
within his province to annul the provisions of a treaty, especially one
that had been concluded before his administration commenced, yet he
assured them that Half Town and his people, should not be disturbed, in
the peaceful occupancy of the land in question.
From the friendly manner in which they were received and treated by the
President, and the generous gifts bestowed, they returned home feeling
satisfied that the ruler of the thirteen fires would do them no injustice,
and they were hence better reconciled to the people he governed. Before
leaving, however, they were engaged to go in company with Colonel Proctor,
of the Indian Department, on an embassy of peace to the hostile tribes at
the West, which was undertaken in the following spring.
On reaching their own country it was found that another outrage had been
committed by a party of border-men, upon the Senecas at Beaver Creek, in
the neighborhood of Pittsburg, in which three men and one woman were
killed.
Cornplanter immediately sent runners with a dispatch to the government,
informing them of the event, and with the earnest inquiry, "Our father,
and ruler over all mankind, _speak now and tell us, did you order those
men to be killed_?"
The secretary of war utterly disclaimed and denounced the transaction,
promised them restitution, and that the offenders should be brought to
justice. These times were so fruitful in difficulties, that ere one was
healed another was created; yet our government by wise and prompt measures
were after this successful, in securing peace with all of the Iroquois
family within its borders.
CHAPTER VII.
Expedition under Gen. Harmar--Its failure--High hopes of the Indians--Col.
Proctor's visit to the Indians at Buffalo Creek--Red Jacket's speech--
Indian deputation refused--Interference of the matrons--Council at Painted
Post--Chiefs invited to Philadelphia.
The efforts of our government to secure peace with the Indians, were but
partially successful. As our settlements extended westward in
Pennsylvania, and along the Ohio and Kentucky borders, Indian hostilities
and depredations continued to multiply. From the year 1783 when peace was
concluded with Great Britain, until October, 1790, when the United States
commenced offensive operations against them, the Indians killed, wounded
and took prisoners on the Ohio and the frontiers, about fifteen hundred
men, women and children; besides taking away two thousand horses, and a
large amount of other property.
The Shawanese, Miamis and Wabash Indians were chiefly concerned in these
bloody transactions; and our government finding protection for her
citizens could not be secured by pacific means, resolved to proceed with
vigorous offensive measures.
General Harmar, a veteran of the Revolution, with a force of fourteen
hundred and fifty men, three hundred and twenty from the regular army, and
the balance made up of recruits from Kentucky and Pennsylvania, advanced
toward the Indian country.
The expedition left Fort Washington, the present site of Cincinnati, on
the 30th of September, 1790.
The Indians, who kept watch of his movements, burned before his coming,
their principal village and retired. Seizing a favorable opportunity, they
fell suddenly upon a detachment of the main army commanded by Colonel
Harding, consisting of two hundred and ten men, thirty of whom were
regulars.
At the first onset the militia, the main part of the force, fled. The
regulars stood their ground bravely for a time, but at a fearful odds;
seven only escaped.
Colonel Harding, desirous of retrieving the disgrace, the next day with
three hundred militia and sixty regulars, gave battle to the Indians. They
fought near the junction of St. Joseph and St. Mary rivers, and the
struggle, though severe and bloody, ended with the defeat of the
Americans.
Success elated and emboldened the Indians, and rendered hopeless the
negotiations for peace. Nevertheless the mission of Colonel Proctor, with
a deputation from the Iroquois was not given up, and when spring opened he
repaired to their country, to be joined by Cornplanter, Red Jacket and
others, and proceed on his visit to the hostile tribes of the West.
Anticipating his arrival, a council of the Iroquois had been called at
Buffalo Creek. Already messengers had been sent, earnestly soliciting them
to join the warriors that were rising everywhere, from toward the setting
sun. They had defeated the Americans, and nothing was wanting but the
united action of all the Indian tribes, to secure the broad lands of the
North-west, where they could spread their blankets in peace, and dwell
securely forever. The Senecas, particularly, were urged to join in a war,
that opened so many hopeful and glorious anticipations. The distinguished
warrior Brant was very solicitous on this point, and being encouraged by
those at the head of British affairs in Canada, was sanguine of ultimate
success.
Colonel Proctor, accompanied by Cornplanter, arrived at the council fire
kindled at Buffalo Creek, on the 27th of April, 1791.
Among the Indian chiefs present were Young King, Farmer's Brother and Red
Jacket. The latter had now an acknowledged pre-eminence among his people,
and took a leading part in the deliberations of this council. It was
opened by a speech from Red Jacket, as follows:
"Brother: Listen. As is our custom we now address you, and we speak to you
as to a brother that has been long absent. We all address you, and our
chief warrior, Cornplanter; and we thank the Great Spirit for his and your
safe arrival, coming as you do hand in hand from Honandaganius [Footnote:
Name given to General Washington.] on important business.
"You have traveled long with tearful eyes, from the roughness of the way,
and the inclemency of the season. Besides the difficulties between the bad
Indians and our brothers the white people, everything has been conspiring
to prevent your coming, thwart your business, and cause you to lose your
way. The great waters might have prevented your coming; the wars might
have stopped you; sickness and death might have overtaken you, for we know
not what is to happen till it comes upon us. Therefore we thank the Great
Spirit, who has preserved you from dangers, that would have prevented our
hearing the good news you have come to bring us. And when filled with good
news, how is it possible that disasters should befall you on the way?
"Wipe therefore from your eyes, the tears that have been occasioned by the
dangers through which you have come. We now place you upon a seat where
you can sit erect, a seat where you will be secure from the fear of your
enemies, where you can look around upon all as your friends and brothers
in peace.
"You have come with your heart and lips firmly closed, lest you should
lose anything you had to say. With a brotherly hand we now open your
hearts, and we remove the seal from your lips, that you may open them and
speak freely without obstruction. Your ears too have been closed, that
they might hear nothing until saluted by our voice. Open your ears to hear
our counsels when we shall have had messages from you.
"We present therefore the compliments of the chiefs and head men of
Buffalo Creek, to you and to our great warrior, the Cornplanter, hoping
that you may each proceed safely with your business."
To this Cornplanter replied briefly, in behalf of himself and Col.
Procter, reciprocating the kindness manifested, in the welcome that had
been given them.
After which Col. Proctor explained fully the object of their coming, which
was to obtain from them a deputation of peace, to visit with him the
hostile Indian tribes at the West; and assured them of the liberal views,
and friendly feelings of the chief of the thirteen fires toward them.
Several days were thereupon consumed in devising expedients and raising
objections, which terminated finally in the declaration that nothing could
be done without consulting their _British friends at Fort Niagara_.
They desired the colonel to go with them there. His business not being
with the British, but with them, he declined going. They then insisted
upon having one of the officers of the fort to sit with them in council.
This being allowed, Col. Butler afterward appeared among them, and after a
little private consultation with him, they seemed to be utterly averse to
sending the proposed delegation.
Captain Brant, just before starting on a visit to western tribes, had been
holding a consultation with these chiefs, and had no doubt been
influential in causing them to be averse to joining this embassy.
Col. Proctor, finding further negotiation hopeless, declared his purpose
to return, and expressed his regret in having to carry back an unfavorable
report to the government, on whose kind and pacific errand he had been
sent forth.
This announcement made a deep impression on their minds, and immediately a
change took place in their proceedings, which revealed a peculiar feature
of Indian diplomacy.
The women, who had been carefully watching the proceedings of this
council, began to express their unwillingness to send to General
Washington an unfavorable reply. To them was conceded the right, in things
pertaining to the safety of their homes, of reversing, if they thought
proper, the decision of the men. They did so on this occasion, and
employed Red Jacket to present their views on the following day.
It was decided by them, in view of the threatening aspect of affairs, that
Cornplanter, their most experienced warrior, should not leave them; but
that a sufficient deputation, for which they had obtained volunteers,
should accompany Col. Proctor, at the same time advising him of the
danger, admonishing him to proceed with caution; "_to reach his neck over
the land, and take in all the light he could, that would show him his
danger_."
The journey being regarded as too hazardous by land, and the Indians
unwilling to perform it with their canoes, the case was decided by the
British officers, who refused them a vessel for the undertaking.
So great was the excitement among the Indians at this time, that before
the result of Col. Proctor's mission was generally known, another council
of the Iroquois was invited to meet at Painted Post, and was held during
the month of June following. The British officers at Niagara, and runners
from the western tribes, exerted their influence to prevent the Iroquois
from coming into alliances of peace with the United States. But through
the exertions of Col. Proctor, assisted by Cornplanter and the elderly
matrons, the minds of the leading chiefs were turned from the proposed
western alliance to Colonel Pickering and the treaty ground at Painted
Post.
Red Jacket, together with other leading chiefs was present, and took an
active part in the deliberations of this council. It was well attended by
the Indians, as also by several American gentlemen, and a number of
speeches were interchanged, whose general drift was in the direction of
peace.
The result of this gathering was satisfactory to all parties. It served to
bind more closely the friendship of the leading chiefs to the United
States, and it served also to interest the minds of the young warriors,
who had else from a love of adventure followed the war path, with the
tribes at the West.
At the close of this council, a large entertainment was prepared purely
after the civilized style, and when it was about concluded, Colonel
Pickering took occasion to place before them the blessings and advantages
of a cultivated state of society; and the happy influences that would
arise from the introduction among them of the arts of civilized life. He
assured them of the kind interest felt by General Washington and others in
their welfare, and promised to aid them in any efforts they were disposed
to make, for the advancement of their people. Presents were then liberally
distributed among them, and they were invited at a convenient time to
visit General Washington, and confer with him more fully on the subject.
The Indians were pleased with these suggestions, and promised to accept of
the proffered invitation. Thus happily closed this council, gathered amid
distracting influences, the Indians returning home better satisfied with
their friendly attitude toward the government, and their feelings in
striking contrast with those of their brethren at the West.
CHAPTER VIII.
Expedition to the Indian Country--Washington's charge to Gen. St. Clair--
Approach to the Indian villages--Sudden surprise--Disasterous battle--
Indian victory--Retreat of the Americans--Boldness of the Indians--
Friendly Indian deputation--Welcome of the governor of Pennsylvania--Red
Jacket's reply--Address of President Washington--Reply of Red Jacket--
Cause of Indian hostilities.
Indian hostilities still continued to destroy the peace and safety of our
frontier settlements. And Congress with a view to provide relief, resolved
to increase our military force, and place in the hands of the Executive,
more ample means for their defense. A new expedition was therefore
projected. General St. Clair, governor of the territory west of the Ohio,
was appointed commander-in-chief of the forces to be employed.
President Washington had been deeply pained by the disasters of General
Harmar's expedition to the Wabash, resulting from Indian ambushes. In
taking leave of his old military comrade, St. Clair, he wished him success
and honor; at the same time to put him on his guard, said,--"You have your
instructions from the secretary of war. I had a strict eye to them, and
will add but one word--Beware of a surprise! You know how the Indians
fight. I repeat it--_Beware of a surprise_!" With these warning words
sounding in his ear, St. Clair departed. [Footnote: Irving's life of
Washington.]
On the seventh of September, 1791, General St. Clair set out for the
Indian country. The American banner was unfurled and waved proudly over
two thousand of her soldiers, as with sanguine hopes and bright
anticipations, they took up their line of march for the Miami, designing
to destroy the Indian villages on that river, expel the savages from the
region, and by establishing a line of posts to the Ohio river, prevent the
Indians from returning to a point, where they had been the occasion of
great mischief. On their way they constructed two forts, Hamilton and
Jefferson, and advanced but slowly, having to open for themselves a way
through the forest. Too many of those composing this little army were
deficient in soldier-like qualities. They had been recruited from the off-
scourings of large towns and cities, enervated by idleness, debauchery,
and every species of vice, which unfitted them for the arduous service of
Indian warfare. Hence insubordination, and frequent desertion, were among
the difficulties encountered.
Not until the third of November, did they come near the Indian villages on
the Miami. On the evening of that day they selected a position on the bank
of a creek, which favored their purpose, and bivouacked for the night.
Their number, from desertion, and those left to garrison the forts,
amounted to but fourteen hundred. The place of their encampment was
surrounded by close woods, dense thickets, and the trunks of fallen trees,
affording a fine cover for stealthy Indian warfare.
It was the intention of St. Clair to throw up a slight work on the
following day, and then move on to attack the Indian villages. The plan of
this work he concerted in the evening with Major Ferguson, of the
artillery. In the mean time, Colonel Oldham, an officer commanding the
militia, was directed to send out that evening, two detachments, to
explore the country and gain what knowledge they could of the enemy. The
militia showed signs of insubordination, complained of being too much
fatigued, and the order apparently could not be enforced. The militia were
encamped beyond the stream, about a quarter of a mile in advance, on a
high flat, a position much more favorable than was occupied by the main
body. The placing of sentinels, about fifty paces from each other, formed
their principal security against surprise.
At an early hour the next morning, the woods about the camp of the
militia, swarmed with Indians, and a terrific yell, followed by sharp
reports of the deadly rifle, were startling sounds, in the ear of the
newly recruited soldier. The militia returned a feeble fire, and
immediately fled toward the main body of the army. They came rushing in,
pell-mell and threw into disorder the front rank, drawn up in the order of
battle. The Indians, still keeping up their frightful yell, followed hard
after the militia, and would have entered the camp with them, but the
sight of troops drawn up with fixed bayonets to receive them, checked
their ardor, and stopping short they threw themselves behind logs and
bushes, and poured in a deadly fire upon the first line, which was soon
extended to the second. Our soldiers were mown down at a fearful rate.
The Indians fought with great desperation. They charged upon the center of
the two main divisions commanded by General Butler, and Colonel Darke with
unexampled intrepidity. They aimed a destructive fire upon the
artillerists from every direction, and swept them down by scores. The
artillery if not very effective, was bravely served. A quantity of
canister and some round shot were thrown in the direction whence the
Indians fired; but concealed as they were, and seen only occasionally, as
they sprang from one covert to another, it was impossible to direct the
pieces to advantage; and so effective was the fire upon them, that every
artillery officer, and more than two-thirds of the men, were killed or
wounded.
St. Clair, unable to mount his horse, was borne about on a litter, and in
the midst of peril and disaster, gave his orders with coolness and
judgment. Seeing to what disadvantage his troops fought with a concealed
enemy, he ordered Colonel Darke, with his regiment of regulars, to rouse
the Indians from their covert with the bayonet, and turn their left flank.
This was executed with great spirit; the enemy were driven three or four
hundred yards; but for want of cavalry or riflemen, the pursuit slackened,
and the troops were forced to give back in turn, and the Indians came on
with a deadlier aim, the moment pursuit was relinquished. Strenuous
efforts were made by the officers, early in the engagement, to restore
order, which resulted in making themselves a mark, and they were cut down
by the quick-sighted enemy.
All the officers of the Second regiment were cut off except three. The
contest disastrous from the first, had now continued for more than two
hours and a half. The loss of so many officers, and the hopeless condition
of the army, the half of them killed, and the situation of the remainder
desperate, brought discouragement to many a brave heart. It was useless to
make further effort, which promised only a more fatal result. A retreat
therefore was ordered, Colonel Darke being directed to charge the Indians
that intercepted the way toward Fort Jefferson, and Major Clark with his
battalion to cover the rear; these movements were successfully made, and
the most of the troops that remained collected in a body, with such of the
wounded as could possibly hobble along with them; thus they departed,
leaving their artillery and baggage.
The retreat, though disorderly, was accomplished without difficulty, as
the Indians did not pursue them far, from a desire to return for plunder.
Yet the entire way, for near thirty miles, the distance to Fort Jefferson,
bore the marks of a trepidation that seemed to characterize the entire
engagement. The soldiers continued to throw away their guns, knapsacks, or
whatever else impeded their flight, even when at a wide remove from all
danger.
The army reduced by killed, wounded and desertion to about one-half its
original number, fell back upon Fort Washington, the point of starting,
and thus unfortunately closed a campaign, concerning which the highest
expectations had been entertained. It was a heavy blow upon our infant
republic, and spread over our country a gloom, which was greatly deepened
by a sorrow for the loss of many worthy and brave men, who though they
freely sacrificed their lives, could not avert these disasters.
The Indians, on account of this further victory, were elated beyond
endurance, and conducted more haughtily than ever before. Their incursions
were more frequent, their depredations more extensive, and their cruelties
more excessive. The frontier inhabitants, especially of Pennsylvania, and
Kentucky, never felt more insecure, and were never more exposed to loss of
life, plunder and burning. In some instances whole settlements were broken
up, by those who left their homes and sought, in the more densely peopled
sections of the east, places of greater security.
These circumstances served to impart a deeper interest to the visit of a
friendly deputation, consisting of about fifty chiefs of the Iroquois, who
came to Philadelphia early in the spring of 1792, in compliance with the
request of Colonel Pickering made at Painted Post the preceding year. Red
Jacket was a prominent member of this delegation.
Their presence had been solicited, with the view of calling the attention
of the leading chiefs, to thoughts and efforts for the improvement of
their race; as well as by kind and generous treatment, to bring them into
firmer alliance with the United States. And it is a pleasing thought that
amid the wrongs done to the Indian, we are able to point to earnest and
well intended endeavors, on the part of our government, to promote his
welfare.
The governor of Pennsylvania cordially welcomed this deputation,
representing the happiness their coming had created, and assuring them
that every provision had been made, to render their stay agreeable,
closing his remarks in these words:
"Brothers: I know the kindness with which you treat strangers that visit
your country; and it is my sincere wish, that when you return to your
families, you may be able to assure them, that the virtues of friendship
and hospitality, are also practiced by the citizens of Pennsylvania."
To this welcome Red Jacket, a few days afterward replied, apologizing for
not answering it sooner, and expressing the pleasure it afforded them, of
meeting in a place where their forefathers in times past, had been wont to
greet each other in peace and friendship, and declaring it as his wish,
that the same happy relations might be established, and exist between the
United States and all of the Indian tribes.
His remarks on peace were introduced by a beautiful reference to a picture
of Penn's treaty with the Indians, and an enconium on the governors of
Pennsylvania for their uniformly peaceable disposition.
It has been said of him as having occurred at a subsequent visit to the
seat of our government, that when shown in the rotunda of the capitol, a
panel representing, in sculpture, the first landing of the Pilgrims, with
an Indian chief presenting them an ear of corn, in token of a friendly
welcome, he exclaimed,--"_That was good.--The Indian knew they came from
the Great Spirit, and he was willing to share the soil with his
brothers._"
When another panel was pointed out to him representing Penn's treaty,--he
exclaimed sadly,--"_Ah! all's gone now._" [Footnote: Drake's Book of
the Indians.]
The Indians were again addressed by President Washington, who gave them a
hearty welcome to the seat of government, declaring that they had been
invited by his special request, to remove all causes of discontent, devise
plans for their welfare, and cement a firm peace. He wished them to
partake of all the comforts of the earth to be derived from civilized
life, to be enriched by industry, virtue and knowledge, and transmit these
invaluable blessings to their children.
The western Indians had charged the United States with an unjust
possession of their lands. They desired no lands, he said, but such as had
been fairly obtained by treaty, and he hoped the error might be corrected.
For the further explanation of his views and wishes, he commended them to
General Knox, the secretary of war, and Colonel Pickering; concluding his
address with these words:--
"As an evidence of the sincerity of the desire of the United States for
perfect peace, and friendship with you, I deliver you this white belt of
wampum, which I request you will safely keep."
The president having thus appointed Colonel Pickering and General Knox, to
attend to the further conferences with the Indians, Red Jacket's reply to
the president's address, was made to them. His address was directed mainly
to Colonel Pickering.
Taking in his hand the belt presented by President Washington, he spoke
very much as follows:
"Your attention is now called to the words of the American Chief, when,
the other day he welcomed us to the great council fire of the thirteen
United States. He said it was from his very heart; and that it gave him
pleasure to look around and see so large a representation of the Five
Nations of Indians. That it was at his special request we had been invited
to the seat of the general government, with a view to promote the
happiness of our nation, in a friendly connection with the United States.
He said also that his love of peace did not terminate with the Five
Nations, but extended to all the nations at the setting sun, and it was
his desire that universal peace might prevail in this land.
"What can we, your brothers of the Five Nations, say in reply to this part
of his speech, other than to thank him, and say it has given a spring to
every passion of our souls.
"The sentiment of your chief, who wishes our minds might all be disposed
to peace,--a happy peace, so firm that nothing shall move it,--that it may
be founded on a rock,--this comparison of the peace to a _rock, which is
immovable_, has given joy to our hearts.
"The president observed also, that by our continuing in the path of peace,
and listening to his counsel, we might share with you all the blessings of
civilized life; this meets with our approbation, and he has the thanks of
all your brothers of the Five Nations.
"And further, that if we attended to his counsel in this matter, our
children and children's children, might partake of all the blessings which
should rise out of this earth.
"The president observed again, that what he had spoken was in the
sincerity of his heart, and that time and opportunity would give evidence
that what he said was true. And we believe it because the words came from
his own lips, and they are lodged deep in our minds.
"He said also that it had come to his ears that the cause of the
hostilities of the western Indians, was their persuasion that the United
States had unjustly taken their lands. But he assured us this was not the
case; that none of his chiefs desired to take any of their land, without
agreeing for it; and that the land, given up at the treaty at Muskingum,
he concluded had been fairly obtained.
"He said to us that in his opinion the hostile Indians were in error, that
whatever evil spirit, or lies had turned them aside, he wished could be
discovered, that they might be removed. He had a strong wish that any
obstacles to the extension of peace westward, might be discovered, so that
they might be removed.
"In conclusion he observed that our professions of friendship and regard,
were commonly witnessed by some token; therefore in the name of the United
States, he presented us with this white belt, which was to be handed down
from one generation to another, in confirmation of his words, and as a
witness of the friendly disposition of the United States, towards the
peace and happiness of the five confederated nations."
Red Jacket here laid down the white belt presented by the president, and
taking up a belt of their own, continued his speech as follows:
"Now let the president of the United States possess his mind in peace. Our
reply to his address to us the other day has been brief, for the belt he
gave us is deposited with us, and we have taken firm hold of it. We return
our united thanks for his address, in welcoming us to the seat of the
great council, and for the advice he has given us.
"We have additional pleasure in knowing that you, Con-neh-sauty [Footnote:
Col. Pickering.] are appointed to assist us, in devising the means to
promote and secure the happiness of the Six Nations.
"Now open your ears, Representatives of the Great Council, Hear the words
we speak. All present of the Great Council, [Footnote: Referring to
members of Congress present.] and our brethren of the Five Nations, hear!
We consider ourselves in the presence of the Great Spirit, the proprietor
of us all.
"The president has in effect told us we are freemen, the sole proprietors
of the soil on which we live. This has gladdened our hearts, and removed a
weight that was upon them. This indeed is to us an occasion of joy, for
how can two brothers speak freely together, unless they feel they are upon
equal ground?
"We now speak freely, as they are free from pressure, and we join with the
president in his wish, that all the evils which have hitherto disturbed
our peace, may be buried in oblivion. This is the sincere wish of our
hearts.
"Now, Brother, continue to hear, let all present open their ears, while
those of the Five Nations here present speak _with one voice_. We wish
to see your words verified to our children, and children's children. You
enjoy all the blessings of this life; to you therefore we look to make
provision, that the same may be enjoyed by our children. This wish comes
from our heart, but we add that our happiness cannot be great if, in the
introduction of your ways, we are put under too much constraint.
"Continue to hear. We, your brothers of the Five Nations, believe that the
Great Spirit let this island [Footnote: The Indians use the term _island_,
in speaking of this continent.] drop down from above. We also believe in
his superintendency over this whole island. He gives peace and prosperity,
he also sends evil. Prosperity has been yours. American brethren, all the
good which can spring out of this island, you enjoy. We wish, therefore,
that we and our children, and our children's children, may partake with
you of that enjoyment.
"I observe that the Great Spirit might smile on one people, and frown on
another. This you have seen, who are of one color, and one blood. The king
of England, and you Americans strove to advance your happiness by
extending your possessions on this island, which produces so many good
things. And while you two great powers were contending for those good
things, by which the whole island was shaken, violently agitated, is it
strange that our peace, the peace of the Five Nations, was shaken and
overthrown?
"But I will say no more of the trembling of this island. All in a measure
is now quiet. Peace is restored. Our peace, the peace of the Five Nations
is beginning to bud forth. But still there is some shaking among our
brethren at the Setting Sun; and you, of the thirteen fires, and the king
of England know what is our situation and the cause of this disturbance.
Here now, you have an ambassador, [Footnote: Referring to the British
envoy to the United States.] as we are informed from the king of England.
Let him in behalf of the king, and the Americans, adjust all their
matters, according to their agreement, at the making of peace--and then
you will soon see all things settled among the Indian nations. Peace will
extend far and near. Let the president and the ambassador use all their
exertions to bring about this settlement, according to the peace, and it
will make us all glad, and we shall consider both as our real friends.
"Brother: Continue to hear! Be assured we have spoken not from our lips
only, but from our very hearts. Allow us then to say: That when you
Americans and the king made peace, he did not mention us, showed us no
compassion, notwithstanding all he said to us, and all we had suffered.
This has been the occasion to us, the Five Nations, of great loss, sorrow
and pain. When you and he settled the peace between you two great nations,
he never asked for a delegation from us, to attend to our interests. Had
this been done, a settlement of peace among all the western nations might
have been effected. But neglecting this, and passing us by unnoticed, has
brought upon us great pain and trouble.
"It is evident that we of the Five Nations have suffered much in
consequence of the strife between you and the king of England, who are of
one color and of one blood. But our chain of peace has been broken. Peace
and friendship have been driven from us. Yet you Americans were determined
not to treat us in the same manner as we have been treated by the king of
England. You therefore desired us at the re-establishment of peace, to sit
down at our ancient fireplaces, and again enjoy our lands. And had the
peace between you and the king of England been completely accomplished, it
would long before this have extended far beyond the Five Nations.
"BROTHER CON-NEH-SAUTY: We have rejoiced in your appointment, for you are
specially appointed with General Knox, to confer with us on our peace and
happiness. We hope the great warrior will remember, that though a
_warrior_, he is to converse with us about _peace_; letting what concerns
war sleep; and the counselling part of his mind, while acting with us, be
of _peace_.
"Have patience, and continue to listen. The president has assured us that
he is not the cause of the hostilities now existing at the westward, but
laments it. Brother, we wish you to point out to us of the Five Nations,
_what you think is the real cause_.
"We now publicly return our thanks to the president, and all the
counsellors of the thirteen United States, for the words he has spoken to
us. They were good, unqualifiedly good. Shall we observe that he wished
that if the errors of the hostile Indians could be discovered, he would
use his utmost exertions to remove them?
"BROTHER! You and the king of England are the two governing powers of this
island. What are we? You both arc important and proud; and you cannot
adjust your own affairs agreeably to your declarations of peace. Therefore
the western Indians are bewildered. One says one thing to them, and
another says another. Were these things adjusted, it would be easy to
diffuse peace everywhere.
"In confirmation of our words, we give this belt, which we wish the
president to hold fast, in remembrance of what we have now spoken."
[Footnote: This speech, given by Col. Stone from a manuscript of J. W.
Moulton, Esq., on account of its importance, is presented almost entire. A
few changes have been made, but the ideas of the orator, and the language
mostly in which they are given, have been strictly maintained, while the
changes are no greater than would have been made, had two reporters taken
the words as they came from the lips of the orator.]
A very touching reference is made in this speech, to the manner in which
the Indians had been treated by Great Britain, when peace was concluded
with the United States. Notwithstanding the promises and high expectations
held out to them, at the commencement of the war, and their sacrifices and
services during its continuance, no notice was taken, no mention made of
them in the treaty of peace. In the expressive language of Red Jacket,
"_the king showed them no compassion_." They had for years fought side
by side with the soldiers of Britain, they had, with stealthy tread, come
down upon our settlements far removed from the seat of war, surprised
peaceful inhabitants, slain defenseless women and children, plundered and
burned their dwellings, and wrought in the hearts of the American people a
sense of wrong, that cried for redress. What could be their position, now
that the armies of Britain are withdrawn? The armies of Britain defeated,
could they, single handed, cope with the American army? These were
questions that weighed deeply on their minds. Did they expect the hand of
friendship to be extended toward them? To be invited to councils of peace,
--to the intimacies, hospitalities, and kindly feeling manifested on this
occasion? The orator was deeply impressed by it, and notes the contrast
apparent in the conduct toward them, of Britain and America. "_You
Americans were determined not to treat us in the same manner, as we had
been treated by the king of England. You desired us at the re-
establishment of peace, to sit down at our ancient fire-places, and again
enjoy our lands_." He further very significantly refers to the occasion of
the hostile feelings among the Indians at the West. It was because the
peace between England and America "_had not been fully accomplished_." In
other words, hostile feelings were still cherished, and their _outward
manifestation_ could be seen, in the plundering and massacres, still
carried on among our frontier settlements. The establishment of a _true
peace_ between the two countries,--the existence and cultivation of
genuine amicable relations between them, would, in his view, end all this
trouble, and "_diffuse peace everywhere_."
We have already had occasion to notice the unfriendly feeling, cherished
by the British Indian Department in Canada, toward the United States; and
evidence will be afforded further on, of their being deeply implicated in
the hostilities endured, coming from the Indians on our western border.
CHAPTER IX.
Indian appropriation--Embassy sent West--Instructions--Medal presented to
Red Jacket--Military suits--Close of conference--Washington's parting
words--Visit of Thayendanegea--Council at Au Glaize--Result--Another
commission--Indian diplomacy--Washington's letter to Mr. Jay--Commission
goes West--Various interviews--Result of council--Re-organization under
General Wayne--Ready for action--Advice of Little Turtle--Wayne's battle
and victory--Treaty of peace.
While these Indian chiefs were at Philadelphia, a bill was passed by
Congress, and ratified by the president, appropriating fifteen hundred
dollars annually, for the benefit of the Iroquois, in purchasing for them
clothing, domestic animals, implements of husbandry, and for encouraging
useful artificers to reside in their villages.
They were engaged also to go on a pacific embassy to the hostile Indians
of the West, and assure them of the friendly disposition of the United
States toward them;--that they want nothing which belongs to the hostile
Indians;--that they appointed commissioners to treat with them for their
lands, and give them a large quantity of goods;--that a number of chiefs
signed the deeds, and from the reports of the commissioners, it was
supposed the lands had been fairly obtained;--that under this supposition
large tracts had been sold, and hence difficult to restore again; but as
the United States desire only what is just, they will attentively hear the
complaints of the western Indians;--they will re-examine the treaties, and
inquire into the manner in which they were conducted;--and if the
complaints of the western Indians, appear to be well founded, the United
States will make them ample compensation for their lands. They will do
more;--so far from desiring to injure, they would do them good; they would
cheerfully impart to them that knowledge, and those arts, by which they
propose to increase the happiness, and promote the welfare of the Six
Nations.
It was during this visit that President Washington, in token of his
friendship and esteem, gave Red Jacket a large silver medal bearing his
likeness, which he ever after preserved with much care, and took great
pride in wearing.
[Illustration: GEORGE WASHINGTON PRESIDENT. 1792.]
General Knox, the secretary of war, directed also that a military suit of
clothes be given to each member of the deputation, including a cocked hat,
as worn by the officers of the United States army. When Red Jacket's suit
was presented to him he eyed it carefully, and rather admiringly, but
requested the bearer to inform General Knox that the suit would hardly
become him, as he was not a war-chief but a sachem, the sachems being
civil, rather than military officers. He desired therefore that another
suit be prepared, which would accord better with the relation he sustained
to his people; at the same time declaring the one sent very good, and
manifesting a disposition to retain it, until the other was prepared. A
plain suit was accordingly prepared and brought to him, and with this he
seemed to be highly pleased. The bearer tarrying a little, and manifesting
a readiness to carry back the other suit, Red Jacket coolly and rather
playfully remarked, that though the present suit was more in keeping with
his character as sachem, it nevertheless, occurred sometimes, in cases of
emergency, that the sachems also went to war, and as it would then be very
becoming and proper for him to wear it, he was happy to have one in case a
circumstance of this kind should occur.
These Indian chiefs were all highly gratified with the attention shown
them, during this visit to the general government. They were especially
pleased with the interest that had been taken in the improvement of their
people, and the pledges they had received of aid in carrying out the
benevolent designs entertained toward them. And they all, Red Jacket with
the rest, were favorably impressed with the views of Washington, in
desiring to introduce among them the improvements of civilized life.
These conferences were brought to a close on the thirtieth of April, and
President Washington in a concluding speech, said to them,--"When you
return to your country, tell your nation that it is my desire to promote
their prosperity, by teaching them the use of domestic animals, and the
manner that the white people plough and raise so much corn, and if upon
consideration, it would be agreeable to the nation at large, to learn
those arts, I will find some means of teaching them at some places within
their country, as shall be agreed upon." [Footnote: Irving's Life of
Washington.]
The government had taken special pains also to secure the attendance of
the celebrated Thayendanegea or Brant, with this deputation of friendly
chiefs. The invitation, though a pressing one, was declined, and not
without reason. For besides the powerful influence exerted over him by the
officers of the British government in Canada, who strenuously opposed his
coming, it has since been ascertained that he was the leading spirit who
directed with so much success to the Indians, the onslaught upon General
St. Clair's army, the preceding fall. Hence his own feelings could not
have been of the most friendly character. He was, nevertheless, induced to
visit the seat of government during the month of June following, and
pledged himself to exert his influence in an effort to secure peace for
the United States, with the Indians at the West.
A very large Indian council, composed of delegates from many and some of
them very distant nations, was held at Au Glaize, on the Miami of Lake
Erie, in the autumn of 1792. A large delegation from the Six Nations,
friendly to the United States, was present and took part in the
deliberations. Red Jacket was the principal speaker, and strenuously
advocated the settlement of their difficulties, by peaceful negotiations
instead of war.
The Shawanese as strenuously advocated the continuance of hostilities.
They taunted the Six Nations with having induced them to form a great
confederacy, a few years before, and of having come to the council now,
"with the voice of the United States folded under their arm;"--referring
to the belt which was significant of their embassy.
The Shawanese, Miamis and Kickapoos were addicted to horse-stealing, and
while hostilities were continued, they reaped from this source, their
greatest harvests.
Captain Brant on account of sickness was unable to be present, and it may
be noticed that from this time on, his efforts to form a North-western
Indian Confederacy, were very sensibly remitted. He no doubt found there
were so many conflicting interests and national jealousies in the way, as
to render the project comparatively hopeless. But more than all, he had
depended upon the following of the entire body, composed of the Six
Nations, and when he saw them coming largely under the influence of the
United States, he could realize that the strength and permanence of his
contemplated position, were so seriously affected, as to render its
attainment extremely doubtful. The addition of the entire Iroquois family,
to the proposed confederation, would have brought into it an element of
intellectual superiority, and their long established polity of acting in
concert, would have been of essential service among forces that were wild
and chaotic. And we are not surprised that the diversion effected among
them, should have changed somewhat the views of the distinguished
Thayendanegea.
No decisive action was reached at this council, but an agreement was made
to suspend hostilities during the winter, provided the United States would
withdraw their troops from the west side of the Ohio; and another council
was appointed to meet at the Miami Rapids during the following spring.
The Iroquois delegation forwarded to our government a report of the
service they had rendered, the action taken by the council, and the
agreement to meet in the spring, and requested that agents might be sent,
"who were men of honesty, not land-jobbers, but men who love and desire
peace. We also desire that they may be accompanied by some Friend, or
Quaker, to attend the council."
On the 19th of February, 1793, General Benjamin Lincoln, Beverly Randolph
and Colonel Pickering were commissioned by the president to attend the
great Indian council at Miami Rapids, in the ensuing spring.
Meanwhile the Indians, dissatisfied with the views of the president, as
transmitted by the Six Nations, held another council at Au Glaize in
February, and framed a very explicit address to the Six Nations, affirming
they would listen to no proposition from the United States, that did not
concede the Ohio river, as the boundary line between them, and the Indian
country. They desired the United States to be fully apprised of this,
before sending their delegation; and they notified the Six Nations of a
private council at Miami Rapids, before meeting the American
commissioners, to adjust their opinions, so as to speak but one language
at the council; they further declared their intention not to meet the
commissioners at all, until assured they had authority to conclude a
treaty on this basis.
In this determination they were encouraged, and sustained by the British
Indian Department of Canada. President Washington, in a letter to Mr. Jay,
our minister in London, writing in 1794, very clearly sets forth the work
thus accomplished.--He says:--"There does not remain a doubt, in the mind
of any well informed person in this country, not shut against conviction,
that all the difficulties we encounter with the Indians, their
hostilities, the murder of helpless women and children, along our
frontiers, result from the conduct of agents of Great Britain in this
country. In vain is it then for its administration in Britain to disavow
having given orders which will warrant such conduct, whilst their agents
go unpunished; while we have a thousand corroborating circumstances, and
indeed as many evidences, some of which cannot be brought forward, to
prove that they are seducing from our alliances, and endeavoring to remove
over the line, tribes that have hitherto been kept in peace and friendship
at great expense, and who have no causes of complaint, except pretended
ones of their creating; whilst they keep in a state of irritation the
tribes that are hostile to us, and are instigating those who know little
of us or we of them, to unite in the war against us; and whilst it is an
undeniable fact, that they are furnishing the _whole with arms,
ammunition, clothing, and even provisions to carry on the war_, I might go
farther, and if they are not much belied, add, _men in disguise_."
[Footnote: Marshall's Washington.]
The commissioners of the United States appointed to confer with the Indian
tribes at the West, proceeded on their way, arriving at Niagara the latter
part of May, 1793. Here they were very kindly entertained by Governor
Simcoe until the council was ready to receive them.
While here they were visited by a large deputation from the council at
Miami Rapids, who desired an explicit answer to the inquiry whether they
were authorized to run and establish a new boundary? Which they answered
in the affirmative, at the same time reminding the Indians that in almost
all disputes there were wrongs on both sides, and that, at the approaching
council, both parties must expect to make some concessions.
This reply was well received and sanguine hopes were entertained of a
favorable termination of their mission.
The Indians returned again to their council at Miami, and the
commissioners supposing they would now be prepared to receive them,
proceeded on their voyage westward. Arriving at the mouth of Detroit river
they were obliged to land, being forbidden by the British authorities to
proceed any farther toward the place of meeting.
They were met here by another Indian deputation, bringing a paper with a
written statement of their determination, to make the Ohio the boundary
line between the Indian country and the United States, and requiring the
latter, if sincere in their desires for peace, to remove their settlements
to the south side of that river. To this the commissioners were desired to
give an explicit written answer.
They replied, referring to the understanding from their conference at
Niagara, that some concessions were to be made on both sides, and giving a
brief history of the treaties by which a title had been acquired to land
north of the Ohio, on the faith of which, settlements had been formed
which could not be removed; hence they answered explicitly.--"_The Ohio
river cannot be designated as the boundary line._"
They expressed the hope that negotiations might proceed on the basis of
these treaties, closing with some concessions, and liberal offers for some
lands still held by the Indians.
The debate at this council, it is said, ran high. Thayendanegea, and
others of the Six Nations were strenuous in their advocacy of peace. The
offer of the commissioners to establish a boundary line that would include
the settlements already made north of the Ohio, they regarded as
reasonable, and that farther concessions ought not to be required. Quite a
number of tribes were influenced to adopt this view, which at one time it
was thought would prevail. But there were certain ruling spirits present
determined to make no concession, and the council broke up without
allowing the commissioners, or any other white person, not in sympathy
with Britain, to be present.
Previous to the holding of this council, the army had been re-organized
under the command of General Anthony Wayne, an officer of untiring energy
and vigilance; a larger number of soldiers had been called into the field,
and as they were placed under a severe discipline, to inure them to the
dangers and hardships of the campaign, it was undertaken with flattering
prospects of success.
Pittsburgh had been made the place of rendezvous; but fearing the
influence of an encampment near a town, and wishing to inspire in his
soldiers a feeling of self reliance, General Wayne, on the 27th of
November, 1792, marched his army to a point twenty-two miles distant on
the Ohio, which he called Legionville, fortifying it and taking up his
quarters there for the winter.
On the 30th of April, 1793, as spring had opened, he broke up his garrison
at Legionville, and led his army down the river, to Fort Washington, its
site being that of the present beautiful and flourishing city of
Cincinnati.
Here he remained while the negotiations were going on with the Indians at
the West. As soon as they were ended and the result known, he took a more
advanced position, marching in October in the direction pursued by,
General St. Clair, to a point on the south-west branch of the Miami, six
miles beyond Fort Jefferson, and eighty from Fort Washington, which he
fortified and called Greenville.
On the 23d of December, a detachment of the army commanded by Major
Burbeck took possession of the ground where the army of General St. Clair,
two years before on the 4th of the preceding November, had sustained a
terrible defeat. Here they gathered up sadly and sacredly the bones that
marked this as a place of human slaughter, put in order the field-pieces
that were still upon the ground, served them with a round of three times
three, over the remains of their fallen comrades, and erected a fortress,
appropriately naming it Fort Recovery.
The army at different points had skirmishes with the enemy that were not
serious, but they served to create confidence and inspire courage in the
minds of the soldiers.
It was not until the 20th of August, 1794, that General Wayne had a
regular engagement with the Indians. Yet like a true gladiator he had been
preparing for the struggle, and his wariness, which had gained for him the
title of "_Black Snake_" may be gathered from the speech of Little Turtle,
chief of the Miamis, and one of the most active and brave warriors of his
time. He counselled his countrymen to think favorably of the proposals of
peace offered by General Wayne before giving them battle; saying,--"We
have beaten the enemy twice under separate commanders. We cannot expect
the same good fortune always to attend us. The Americans are now led by a
chief who never sleeps. The night and the day are alike to him; and during
all the time he has been marching on our villages, notwithstanding the
watchfulness of our young men, we have never been able to surprise him.
There is something that whispers to me,--_it would be prudent to listen to
his offers of peace_."
But this counsel was rejected by the Indians, who determined to give
battle to the Americans the next day. They fought in the vicinity of a
British fort, which Governor Simcoe of Canada had caused to be erected at
the foot of the rapids of the Miami emptying into the lakes, far within
the acknowledged territory of the United States.
The ground occupied by the Indians was well chosen, being a thick wood,
where were old fallen trees that marked the track of some ancient
hurricane, where the use of cavalry would be impracticable, a place suited
to afford them shelter and well adapted to their peculiar mode of warfare.
But the order of General Wayne to advance with trailed arms, and rouse the
Indians from their covert at the point of the bayonet, and when up deliver
a close and well directed fire on their backs, followed by a brisk charge,
so as not to give them time to load again; was executed so promptly, and
with so much effect that the Indians were driven in one hour more than two
miles, and soon dispersed in terror and dismay, leaving the ground in full
and quiet possession of the victorious army.
This battle, which terminated within reach of the British guns, decided
the fate of the campaign. The Indians after this were dispirited and
unable to make a general rally. The distrust awakened by the coolness of
their supposed friends, the gates of whose fort remained unopened while
they were fleeing thither for a covert, served not less than the victory
to dishearten them, and incline their thoughts toward peace.
The few days spent by the army on the battle ground after its victory,
were occupied in destroying the property of the Indians in that vicinity,
including also the extensive possessions of Colonel McKee, an officer of
the British Indian Department, whose influence had been exerted in
promoting these hostilities, whose effects were now being experienced. The
fort itself was poised in the General's mind, as was also the torch of the
gunner, who was only restrained by his commanding officer from firing upon
Wayne, who, as he thought came too near, in making his observations on one
of His Majesty's forts. Prudence prevailed. The fighting was confined to a
war of words in a spirited correspondence between General Wayne, and the
officer in command of the fort.
General Wayne after laying waste their principal towns in this region,
continued in the Indian country during the following year, bringing his
campaign to a close by a treaty with the North-western tribes, which was
entirely agreeable to the wishes of the United States.
CHAPTER X.
Canandaigua at an early day--Facts in the early settlement of Bloomfield--
Indian Council--Its object--Indian parade--Indian dress--Opening of
Council--Speeches--Liberal offers of the government--Mr. Savary's Journal
--Treaty concluded--Account of Red Jacket by Thomas Morris.
Canandaigua at an early day was the objective point for all who were
seeking what was called the Genesee country. It was at the head of
navigation. Parties coming from the east could transport their goods by
water from Long Island Sound to Canandaigua, with the exception of one or
two carrying places, where they were taken by land.
We can hardly realize that at that time there was here a widely extended
forest, in all its loneliness and grandeur. Its first trees were cut down
in the fall of 1788, soon after Mr. Phelps had concluded his treaty of
purchase with the Indians. By means of them a log store-house was
constructed, near the outlet of the lake. The family of a Mr. Joseph Smith
took possession of it in the spring of 1789. Judge J. H. Jones, who in the
fall of 1788, was one of a party to open a road between Geneva and
Canandaigua, witnessed, on revisiting the latter place in 1789, a great
change.
"When we left," he says, "in the fall of '88, there was not a solitary
person there;--when I returned fourteen months afterwards, the place was
full of people; residents, surveyors, explorers, adventurers; houses were
going up; it was a thriving, busy place." During the following year quite
a nucleus for a town had gathered here. In 1794, Mrs. Sanborne, an
enterprising landlady, whose eye kindled with the recollection of those
days, served up in a tea saucer the first currants produced in the Genesee
country. [Footnote: Conversation of the author with Mrs. Sanborne.]
Canandaigua at that time and for many years after was head-quarters for
all who were making their way into what at that time was called the Indian
country, and from the respectability and enterprise of its early
inhabitants, it became attractive as a place of residence.
But though considerable improvements had been made here, the entire region
was new, romantic and wild. Such was its condition at the time of the
great Indian council that convened here in the autumn of 1794. Indians and
deer, and wolves, and bear were very abundant and were mingled with the
early associations of those who contributed to make this an abode of
elevation and refinement. The cow-boy, often startled while on his way by
the appearance of a bear, went timidly forth on his evening errand,
inspired with courage by the thought that he might, for his protection,
shoulder a gun. Bear incidents, narrow escapes from fighting with bears,
and bear stories of every description, entered largely into the staple of
their conversation, and many an evening's hour was thus beguiled away,
around the huge and brightly blazing fire of the early pioneer.
"Did you hear," said a Mrs. Chapman to a Mrs. Parks, how neighbor Codding
came near being killed yesterday?
"Mercy! no. How did it happen?
"Mr. Codding was in the woods splitting rails, and just as he was turning
around to take up his axe to cut a sliver, don't you believe he saw a
great bear sitting up on his hind legs, and holding out both fore paws
ready to grab him."
"Mercy on us! What did he do?
"What did he do? He took up his axe, and instead of cutting the sliver,
cut into the old bear's head. But the axe glanced and only cut into the
flesh, without killing the bear, and he ran away with the axe sticking
fast in the wound.
"Awful! Awful! How thick the bears are getting to be! Husband says they
have killed off most all of our hogs.
"Your hogs! Just think once, there was a great bear came the other night
and got hold of a hog in Asahel Sprague's hog-pen, and would have killed
him, if Mr. Sprague hadn't shot the old fellow.
"Yes, and last summer when Mr. Sperry was gone off to training, there was
a bear came in the day time and tackled one of their hogs right in their
own door yard; but Mrs. Sperry and the children screamed so awfully, and
gave him such a tremendous clubbing, he was glad to put off into the woods
again.
"Ha! Ha! She was about up to Jim Parker, who broke a bear's back with a
hand-spike in driving him out of his corn field, just as he was climbing
over the fence." [Footnote: Facts which transpired in the early history of
Bloomfield. See Turner's History.]
Wolves were equally if not more numerous, destroying in some instances
entire flocks of sheep, so that there was not a farmer in the region who
did not suffer more or less from their depredations.
It was something of an off-set to these annoyances that deer were very
abundant, and furnished the inhabitants with an ample supply of their
delicious meat. The Indians while assembled here during the council, often
killed more than a hundred of them in a single day.
The object of convening this council was to settle difficulties of long
standing, and quiet the minds of the Iroquois, who were much disturbed by
the warlike spirit prevailing at this time among the Indians at the West.
The influences from this source were of such a nature as to render many
among these friendly tribes exceedingly bold. In some instances on
entering the houses of settlers they would manifest a very haughty temper,
and rudely demand a supply of their wants as though they were still
proprietors and lords of the soil, and the settlers only their servants or
tenants.
The settlers themselves began to feel unpleasantly about their position.
During the spring of this same year while Thomas Morris was painting his
house, erected the previous summer, and making other improvements around
it, indicating his design of having a permanent and inviting home, it so
happened that a company of settlers in passing by, paused to view with
astonishment what was going on. From a feeling of insecurity they had just
abandoned their new locations in this region, and had come thus far on
their way, having resolved to return to the more safe and quiet homes they
had left at the east. But beholding the enterprise of Mr. Morris, and the
business and thrift that prevailed here on every side, they inferred that
their situation could not be so very precarious, and wisely concluded to
return and carry forward the improvements commenced by themselves.
The Indian council, held during the months of October and November, had
been appointed before the victory of General Wayne, noticed in the
preceding chapter, had transpired. This had much to do in giving a
favorable turn to the proceedings, and of securing those pacific relations
with the Iroquois, that were then established. Before this these tribes
and the Indians generally were stimulated with the idea that they might
form and maintain in the North-west an independent nationality, that would
reflect once more the pride and glory of the ancient dominion of the
Iroquois. But when the news of this signal victory was circulated among
them, their spirits were humbled and broken. They seemed to relinquish
this dream of greatness, and gave themselves up to the stern demands of an
evident necessity. This sad intelligence, however, did not reach them
until the council had been for several days in progress. Its first opening
was darkened by no cloud of evil. There was nothing to hinder the exercise
of that proud bearing with which their past greatness, and a hopeful
future inspired them.
They began to assemble by the arrival of the Oneidas on the eleventh of
October. The Onondagas, Cayugas, and a part of the Senecas, led by
Farmer's Brother, came in on the fourteenth. Cornplanter at the head of
the Allegany clan of Senecas arrived on the sixteenth, and Red Jacket with
his, on the eighteenth.
On assembling, a degree of dignity and decorum was manifested, which
served to indicate their ideas of the forms and proprieties due to the
occasion. Before reaching the council fire the chiefs and warriors halted,
carefully decorated themselves after their manner, and then marched to
meet those appointed to confer with them on the part of the government,
and after passing around and encircling them, with the train, the leader
stepped forth, formally announced their arrival in obedience to the
summons they had received, at the same time delivering the belt brought by
the messenger sent to call them together.
The next tribe that came, halted and prepared themselves as the others,
were received by the tribe or tribes already on the ground, who also
arrayed themselves in their uniform, and having received their welcome,
salutes being fired and returned, they marched all together and formed in
a circle around the commissioners, when the same ceremony was observed, as
before, of delivering the belt. They proceeded thus until all the Indians
had assembled to the number of about sixteen hundred.
It was an occasion for the display of Indian pageantry, and though it may
have been more rude than among nations calling themselves civilized, it
was the same in its essential elements, and this council was ushered in
with as true a military spirit as though banners had been flying, bayonets
gleaming, and soldiers marching to the liveliest, or most heart-stirring
sounds of music.
The uniform of the Indian was not as the dress of the European,
ornamented, epauletted, tinselled; it was a more simple, less expensive,
but not a less time honored mode of adorning his person. Though his
military coat was of paint of different colors with which he was striped
in a distinguishing manner, he regarded it no doubt as gorgeous and gay.
Instead of the gracefully waving plume he was bedecked with the feathers
of the kingly eagle; beads and shells served in the place of military
buttons; and his trophies in the chase, and in war, he regarded as forming
a prouder sash than the richest scarf of scarlet or of blue.
Canandaigua, in years gone by, has often witnessed scenes of proud
military display. But never will there be witnessed so grotesque, and in
many respects so imposing a parade as appeared on this occasion. The
neighboring forest swarmed with life, and resounded with the wild yell and
deafening war-whoop of the Indian. It was his gala day, and highly fitting
that before surrendering these grounds forever to the dominion and usages
of another race, he should come forth once more from his native wilds, and
depart in the fullness of his strength, as the sun passing from under a
cloud, sheds his full glory over the earth before sinking beneath the
western horizon. This was his last day of pride on ground hallowed in the
memories of the past.
The occasion called forth an unusual attendance. It was known that Colonel
Pickering who had been appointed to hold this treaty, would come prepared
to give them a grand feast, and distribute among them a large amount of
money and of clothing. Hence they all came. "For weeks before the treaty,
they were arriving in squads from all their villages, and constructing
their camps in the woods, upon the lake shore, and around the court-house
square. The little village of whites was invested, overrun with the wild
natives. It seemed as if they had deserted all their villages, and
transferred even their old men, women and children to the feast, the
carousal, and the place of gifts. The night scenes were wild and
picturesque; their camp fires lighting up the forest, and their whoops and
yells creating a sensation of novelty not unmingled with fear, with the
far inferior in numbers who composed the citizens of the pioneer village
and the sojourners of their own race." [Footnote: History of the Phelps
and Gorham Purchase.]
The council was formally opened on the eighteenth of October, by a speech
of condolence on the part of the Oneidas and Onondagas, to the Senecas,
Cayugas, Tuscaroras and Delawares, some of whom were present, on account
of the death of a number of their chiefs since the last meeting.--It was
with a view to "_wipe away their tears,--brighten their faces, and clear
their throats_,"--that they might speak freely at the council fire.
Red Jacket in reply made a very sympathetic, and as it was regarded at the
time, beautiful address, presenting belts and strings of wampum to
"_unite each to the other as the heart of one man_."
Next was given a speech of congratulation by Colonel Pickering, who
appointed a council of condolence on the following Monday for the
Delawares, who were mourning for a young brother killed by a white man.
The ceremony of burying the dead,--covering the grave with leaves to
obscure it from sight,--of burying the hatchet taken from the head of the
victim, thus representing his death by violence,--of covering it with
stones and pulling up and planting over it a pine tree, so that in after
years it should never be disturbed; of wiping the blood from the head of
the victim, and tears from the eyes of the mourners,--these things
represented by speech and action having been performed, the council was
opened in earnest on the day following.
In reply to Colonel Pickering's remarks of the preceding day respecting
peace, and upon keeping the chain of friendship bright, Fish Carrier, an
aged and influential chief, in a speech of some length recounted the
history of the whites and of their intercourse with the red men from their
first settlement in this country. He referred to the manner in which they
had been received, to the friendship, that had existed before the
controversy of the United States with Great Britain, and to the
negotiations that had taken place since that time, the grievances they had
suffered, dwelling particularly upon the dissatisfaction still existing
among them about the treaty at Fort Stanwix in 1784. "The commissioners
were too grasping, they demanded of us too much." But as they had taken
hold of the chain of friendship with the fifteen fires they were disposed
to hold fast; but he thought it needed brightening up a little.
Colonel Pickering in reply to them said they ought not to think very hard
of them about that treaty, for they had just come out of a long and bloody
war, and as they had been victorious the Six Nations ought not to blame
them for feeling a little proud; and they ought not to be surprised, in
view of what had taken place during the war, if the commissioners were
somewhat severe.
A deputation from the Quakers was present at this council, and their
address being read and interpreted, was received by the Indians with much
satisfaction.
At the opening of the council the next day, a request was presented by
some of the Indian women, who desired that their views might be heard; and
permission being granted, Red Jacket spake in their behalf.
He represented that the women had taken a deep interest in everything
pertaining to the wellfare of their nation; and he requested the sachems
and warriors, as well as the commissioner, to give an attentive
consideration to the views of those he had been chosen to represent. They
had attended upon the council, had listened to all that had been said, and
they desired it to be understood that their views were in accordance with
those of their sachems and chiefs. They felt that the white people had
caused them a great deal of suffering. The white people had pressed and
squeezed them together until their hearts were greatly pained, and they
thought the white people ought to give back all their lands. A white woman
had told the Indians to repent; [Footnote: Referring to Jemima Wilkinson.]
they wished in turn to call upon the white people to repent; they needed
to repent as much as the Indians; and they hoped the white people would
repent and not wrong the Indians any more.
The commissioner thanked them for their speech, saying he had a high
respect for the women, and would be happy to hear from them whenever they
had anything to say.
After several days had passed without coming to anything decisive in
regard to the main object of the council; Colonel Pickering called their
attention to the fact of their grievances, saying they had been together
sometime and talked them over and had found but two rusty places in the
chain of friendship, one of which they had already brightened. But the
other spot they thought was too deep to be cleared up. It related to their
lands. He then showed them maps which clearly pointed out the limits
agreed upon in their treaties, and by a distinct statement of the
negotiations and treaties that had been made at different times with them,
and afterward confirmed, proving that the claims of the United States were
just, he declared himself ready to stipulate concerning their grievances,
that they should still have the privilege of hunting upon the lands they
had ceded, and that their settlements thereon should remain undisturbed.
He further assured them that the United States would increase their
annuity from fifteen hundred to four thousand five hundred dollars, to say
nothing about the presents he had brought them amounting to ten thousand
dollars. These he would distribute in case of a favorable termination of
their council. He hoped in view of these liberal offers they would dismiss
their complaints, bury the hatchet deep and take hold of the chain of
friendship so firmly as never again to have it torn from their grasp.
The Indians appeared to be pleased with these offers, and promising to
regard them favorably, spent several days in deliberating among
themselves, inviting to their councils the Quakers, a deputation of whom,
as we remarked were present. William Savary, one of their number made the
following interesting note of his observations at the time.--
"Oct. 30. After dinner John Parrish and myself rode to view the Farmer's
Brother's encampment which contained about five hundred Indians. They are
located by the side of a brook in the woods: having built about seventy or
eighty huts, by far the most commodious and ingeniously made of any I have
seen. The principal materials are bark, and boughs of trees, so nicely put
together as to keep the family dry and warm. The women as well as the men
appeared to be mostly employed. In this camp there are a large number of
pretty children, who in all the activity and buoyancy of health, were
diverting themselves according to their fancy. The vast number of deer
they have killed, since coming here, which they cut up and hang round
their huts inside and out to dry, together with the rations of beef, which
they draw daily, give the appearance of plenty to supply the few wants to
which they are subjected. The ease and cheerfulness of every countenance,
and the delightfulness of the afternoon, which the inhabitants of the
woods seemed to enjoy with a relish far superior to those who are pent up
in crowded and populous cities, all combined to make this the most
pleasant visit I have yet made to the Indians; and induced me to believe
that before they became acquainted with the white people, and were
infected with their vices, they must have been as happy a people as any in
the world. In returning to our quarters we passed by the Indian council,
where Red Jacket was displaying his oratory to his brother chiefs on the
subject of Colonel Pickering's proposals."
Mr. Savary again observes:--"Red Jacket visited us with his wife and five
children, whom he had brought to see us. They were exceedingly well clad,
in their manner, and the best behaved and prettiest Indian children I have
ever met with." [Footnote: As quoted by Col. Stone.]
Various councils and deliberations with the Indians, resulted finally in
the conclusion of a treaty, which was quite satisfactory to all the
parties.--By this treaty peace was again declared to be firmly
established, the different tribes were confirmed in their reservations,
and lands that had not been sold, the boundaries of which were accurately
described, and the United States engaged never to claim these lands, or
disturb the Six Nations in the free use and enjoyment of them. The Six
Nations pledged themselves also not to claim any other lands within the
boundaries of the United States, nor disturb the people of the United
States in the free use and enjoyment thereof. It was stipulated also that
the United States should have the right of way for a public road from Fort
Schlosser to Lake Erie, have a free passage through their lands, and the
free use of harbors and rivers adjoining and within their respective
tracts of land, for the passing and securing of vessels and boats, and
liberty to land their cargoes, where necessary for their safety.
In consideration of these engagements the United States were to deliver
the presents, and pay the annuity as already intimated in the promise of
Colonel Pickering.--The money thus pledged was to be expended yearly
forever in purchasing clothing, domestic animals, implements of husbandry,
and other utensils suited to their circumstances, and for compensating
useful artificers who might be employed for their benefit.
It was further agreed that for injuries done by individuals on either
side, private revenge should not take place, but that complaint be made by
the injured party to the nation to which the offender belonged, and that
such measures were then to be pursued as should be necessary for the
preservation of peace and friendship. [Footnote: Indian Treaties. Favored
with a copy by O. Parrish. Esq., of Canandaigua, N. Y.]
The conclusion of this treaty was regarded as a great point gained.
Previous to this time, such of the Iroquois as remained in their ancient
seats, were but partially reconciled to the United States, and were
oscilating in their friendship. But henceforth they were uniformly
steadfast in the allegiance they had promised.
The holding of this council was further useful in withdrawing the
attention of this large body of Indians with their warriors, who had been
earnestly solicited to join their hostile brethren at the West.
During the progress of the council there were several speeches made, but
as they are not of special interest or importance they have not been
given. Colonel Stone mentions an evening when quite a number o
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