Chapter XV (1)

Domestic relations of Brant--Account of his family--Bad character of his
eldest son--his death by the hand of his father--Condolence of the
Chiefs--Grief of the father at the event--Anxiety for the education of
his sons--Proposed memorial to the Duke of Portland--Letter of Brant to
Colonel Smith--Correspondence with the Wheelock family--Letter from
Brant to James Wheelock--Two of his sons sent to school at
Plymouth--Various letters from and to the Wheelocks--Correspondence upon
other subjects--Reply to the question, whether the Indians have
beards--Letter from Bishop Peters--Views of Brant on imprisonment for
debt--Tumuli--Opinion of Brant touching their origin--Indian tradition
of white settlements cut off in a single night--Investigations of Samuel
Woodruff---Brant's inquiries in Paris--The discoveries of the
Northmen--Review of the life and character of Brant--His death.

The life and character of the Mohawk Chief in his domestic relations, remain to be considered. These have never been accurately illustrated or understood; or rather, they have been greatly misrepresented and misunderstood, from the circumstance of a severe family affliction, the particulars of which have never been truly set before the public. Those even partially acquainted with the domestic history of Brant will readily perceive that reference is here made to the death of one of his sons by his own hands. Several accounts of this unfortunate transaction have been published by travelers, missionaries, and others, but most of them darkly shaded, and reflecting in a greater or less degree upon the father. In the preparation of material for the present work, great efforts have been made to arrive at the truth in regard to this painful incident.

Captain Brant, it will be recollected, was thrice married. By his first wife, the daughter of an Oneida Chief, he had two children, Isaac and Christiana. His great solicitude for the well bringing up of those children has been noted in the early history of his life. By his second wife, the sister of his first, he had no children. By his third he had seven, [FN] the eldest of whom, Joseph, was born in 1783.

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[FN] Joseph, Jacob, John, Margaret, Catharine, Mary, and Elizabeth, (the present Mrs. Kerr.) Joseph, John, and Mary, are dead.

Isaac, the eldest of the children, was partly educated at a school in the Valley of the Mohawk, and his education was completed at Niagara. His disposition, bad, from his youth, grew worse as he increased in years, and was not improved by his associations at the military post of Niagara, after the war of the Revolution. Many of the officers on that station were free, sometimes to excess, in their living; and in the progress of his intercourse with them he became addicted to strong drink. When in his cups, he was always quarrelsome, even toward his parents--forgetting the honor due from a son to a father, and particularly disrespectful to his step-mother. As the younger family grew up, he became jealous of them, imagining that they received a larger share of parental favor than his sister and himself. Nothing could have been more groundless than were his suspicions, since from the concurrent testimony of the survivors of the family, and the aged contemporaries of the old Chief yet living at Grand River, no parent was ever more scrupulous in the impartial bestowment of his affection among all his children than Captain Brant. As an evidence of this fact, it may be mentioned, that when in England, in 1786, he sat for his likeness in miniature, which he transmitted in a golden locket to Christiana, the sister of Isaac. Isaac himself, moreover, notwithstanding his untoward conduct, received the most indubitable evidence of parental affection. With a view of keeping him more immediately under his own eye, and if possible reclaiming him, his father had caused him to be married to a beautiful girl, the daughter of a chief of the Turtle tribe, and installed him in the capacity of his own secretary. [FN] But all to no purpose. The demon of jealousy had gained possession of his bosom; and during his drunken frolics, among his Indian associates, he often threatened to take the life of his father. Still, he was treated with kindness, and his step-mother invariably kept silent during his paroxysms of insult and abuse.

* * * * *

[FN] MS. notes of conversations with Brant, by Samuel Woodruff.

His career, however, in addition to his intemperance, without the circle of his own family, was marked by outrage and blood. On one occasion, long before the catastrophe fatal to himself, soon to be recorded, he grievously assaulted a young man, who was riding on horseback on the King's highway--killed the horse, and sadly maimed the young man himself. His father was obliged to pay a large sum of money by way of compensation for the outrage.

Subsequently to this brutal affair, and not long before the painful incident with his father soon to be noted, he killed a white man at the Mohawk (Grand River) village, outright, and in cold blood. The name of his victim was Lowell, a harness-maker by trade. He was busily engaged in his shop at work, when Isaac Brant entered, and said--"Lowell, I am going to kill you." The man, supposing him to be jesting, at first laughed at the threat; and then remarked--"Why should you kill me? I have never injured you, neither have we ever quarreled." The savage then deliberately drew a pistol and shot him.

But his reckless and cruel career was soon arrested, by a death wound, received, under the highest degree of provocation, at the hand of his father. The circumstances were these: At the time of the occurrence there was an assemblage of the Six Nations at Burlington Heights, near to the residence of Colonel Beasley, for the purpose of receiving the annual bounty of the government, consisting of presents of clothing and other articles. On this occasion Isaac, with some of his young Indian companions, again drank to intoxication, and renewed his threats against the life of his father, declaring his intention to kill him that night. The Chief had that evening taken tea with Colonel and Mrs. Beasley, (who then lived near the margin of Burlington Bay,) and afterward walked up to a small inn upon the hill, at a short distance from the Colonel's residence, to lodge for the night. Isaac followed his father to the inn, entered an adjoining room, and began abusing him to the people about, in language perfectly audible to his parent, the two apartments being divided only by a board partition. Becoming quite violent in his conduct, his father entered his son's apartment, but had no sooner done so, than the latter sprang toward him for the purpose of assault--armed, as it was asserted by some, though the fact was denied by others, with a sharp-pointed knife. Be that as it may, the Captain was badly wounded by a cut across the back of his hand. Young Brant had been seized around the waist by some of the Indians, at the instant he was leaping upon his father; while the latter, irritated by the wound, had also been seized in like manner by some white men, to prevent farther injury. The affray was the work of an instant, during which Captain Brant had drawn a large dirk, which he always carried upon his thigh, and with which he struck at his son. In the descent of the blow, the point of the dirk fell upon the head of Isaac, and, cutting through his hat, inflicted a wound which would have been more severe had the position of the parties been that of closer proximity. The wound was by no means considered dangerous at the time it was inflicted, although, from excitement and intoxication, it bled profusely. But such were the rage and violence of the young man, that he resisted all attempts to dress the wound--tearing off the bandages as fast as they could be applied, until, ultimately, they were compelled to bind him fast for the return of sobriety. He then allowed his head to be dressed properly; but the next day he resumed his drinking, and tearing the dressings from his wound, caused it of course to bleed afresh. His perverse conduct continued several days; a severe fever of the brain ensued, and the result was a speedy termination of his life. [FN]

* * * * *

[FN] Such were the real facts of this unhappy affair, as collected, recently, for the use of the author, from the statements of the witnesses of the transaction, and the surviving contemporaries of Captain Brant. And yet Dr. Morse and Dr. Belknap, who in the year following the event were sent forth by the Board of Commissioners of the society established in Scotland for the propagation of Christian Knowledge, to visit the Oneida and Mohokunuh, or Stockbridge Indians, recorded the incident in their report as a murder:--"Last Summer, Joseph Brant, a Mohawk Chief, and a captain in the British service, formerly one of Doctor Wheelock's scholars, murdered his own son, who was, indeed, a bad fellow, and had attempted the life of his father."

This painful transaction took place in the year 1795. The afflicted father immediately surrendered himself to the civil authorities, and resigned the commission which he yet retained in the British service, and upon which he drew half pay. Lord Dorchester, however, would not accept the resignation; and the death of Isaac was universally regarded as in the main accidental, and in any aspect of the case justifiable homicide. [FN] The Chief called a council of his elderly sachems and warriors on the occasion, to whom, when assembled, he related the circumstances of the melancholy catastrophe. After great deliberation--for the Indians never decide hastily upon questions of moment--the council delivered an opinion nearly in the following words:--

* * * * *

[FN] Morse and Belknap's Report to the Scot's Society.

"Brother: We have heard and considered your case. We sympathise with you. You are bereaved of a beloved son. But that son raised his parricidal hand against the kindest of fathers. His death was occasioned by his own crime. With one voice we acquit you of all blame. We tender you our hearty condolence. And may the Great Spirit above, bestow upon you consolation and comfort under your affliction." [FN]

* * * * *

[FN] "The account of this proceeding I received from the Secretary of the Upper Province, at Newark, while at his office to obtain the copy of an Indian deed."--_Note by Samuel Woodruff._

But the affliction was a very severe one to the old Chief, notwithstanding the condolence of his people, the convictions of his own conscience that he had not done intentional wrong, and the acquittal of all. Doctor Allen, President of Bowdoin College, has stated, upon the authority of Joseph Brant, jun., that as his father lay upon his bed and looked at the dirk with which the wound was inflicted, and which hung up in his room, he was accustomed to cry in the sorrow of his heart. [FN]

* * * * *

[FN] Allen's Biographical Dictionary. Isaac Brant left a widow and two children. Judge Woodruff, in his notes, says--"The widow and two lovely children which he left, I saw in Brant's family." The eldest of these "lovely children," was Isaac, to whom his grandfather, the old Chief, left a just proportion of his real estate. He also devised an equal proportion of his real estate to his eldest daughter, Christiana. The younger Isaac, however, grew up with the same disposition, and walked in the footsteps of his father. He was nevertheless a brave fellow in the field, and exhibited his prowess during the late war between the United Slates and Great Britain, 1812--15. He was afterward killed in a drunken frolic, at Brantford, by a blow with a gun-barrel, inflicted, as was supposed, by a white man. But so bad had his character become, that his poor mother, then living, seemed rather relieved than otherwise by the occurrence, being in constant fear that he would commit some dreadful act which would bring him to an ignominious end.

Taking all the circumstances of this trying event into consideration, notwithstanding the unfavorable impressions, arising from prejudice and an imperfect knowledge of the facts, that may have prevailed, no just conclusion can be drawn to the disadvantage of the Chief as a parent. While, on the other hand, all the evidence that can be obtained, goes to establish the fact that both in husband and father, his own family circle was most happy. Certainly nothing could have been stronger than his desire for the education and moral culture of his children. Knowing his solicitude upon this subject, and appreciating the disadvantages of his position in that respect, several gentlemen, in the year 1800, suggested to him the expediency of an appeal to the parent government for the education of his sons at the expense of the crown. A memorial for that object, addressed to the Duke of Portland, was drawn up by one of his friends in the Upper Canadian administration, and submitted for his consideration. In this document a strong case was made, arising from the peculiar services which the Captain had rendered to the Crown, and the policy of having his sons educated in sound principles of loyalty. But the Chief peremptorily declined making such an overture. The following is an extract from his letter announcing his determination:--

"Captain Brant to Colonel Smith.

"_Grand River, September_ 20, 1800.

"Dear Sir,

"I have very seriously considered the petition to his Grace the Duke of Portland, for the education of my sons, which your friendship for me prompted you to advise me to make, and must acknowledge the particular satisfaction I feel at this further instance of your inclination to serve me with your friendly advice. I am confident it must have been suggested to your mind from the most friendly motives, of which I have had sufficient proofs since our acquaintance. But I am sorry I cannot altogether comply with your opinion on this point; for, considering the many oppositions I have met with since the establishment of the government of this province, in obtaining what I only considered as our rights, and which indeed seems yet to be in some measure undetermined, I cannot flatter myself with any prospect of succeeding in asking such a particular favor. I therefore decline, purely from the apprehensions of having my feelings farther hurt by a refusal. Notwithstanding, I think such a thing being granted would be extremely for the good of my family, and give me heartfelt satisfaction, could it be obtained for me by my friends, without my running the risk of meeting with farther rebuffs."

The Chieftain's papers afford evidence that an occasional correspondence must have been maintained between Captain Brant and the family of his old preceptor, President Wheelock, for many years. The venerable founder of Moor's Charity School, and subsequently of Dartmouth College, had slept with his fathers, before the close of the Revolutionary war, being succeeded in the presidentship of the college by his eldest son, John Wheelock, Esq., who was recalled from active service in the army, to assume the duties of that station. James Wheelock, another son, had resided near the Chief in Upper Canada, after the conclusion of the Indian wars, and there was a renewal of ancient acquaintance and friendship. During this period, Mr. Wheelock had proposed taking charge of the eldest surviving son, Joseph; and having relinquished the project of applying to the government for assistance in the premises, the Captain once more turned his attention to the land in which, and the friends with whom, forty years before, he had acquired the rudiments of his imperfect education. With this view a correspondence was opened with James Wheelock, and his brother, the president, which was attended by the desired results. Extracts from this correspondence will not be found uninteresting, affording, as they will, farther and very gratifying illustrations of the Chieftain's domestic character:--

"Captain Brant to James Wheelock, Esq.

"_Niagara,_ 3_d October,_ 1800.

"Dear Sir,

"Although it is long since I have had the pleasure of seeing or corresponding with you, still I have not forgot there is such a person in being, and now embrace the kind offer you once made me, in offering to take charge of my son Joseph, whom I certainly should at that time have sent out, had it not been that there was apparently a jealousy subsisting between the British and Americans; however, I hope it is not yet too late. I send both my sons, Joseph and Jacob, who, I doubt not, will be particularly attended to by my friends. I could wish them to be studiously attended to, not only as to their education, but likewise as to their morals in particular; this no doubt is needless mentioning, as I know of old, and from personal experience at your seminary, that these things are paid strict attention to. Let my sons be at what schools soever, your overseeing them will be highly flattering to me. I should by this opportunity have wrote Mr. John Wheelock on the same subject, but a hurry of business at this time prevents me. I shall hereafter take the first opportunity of dropping him a few lines; until when, please make my best respects to him, and I earnestly solicit his friendship and attention to my boys, which be assured of, I shall ever gratefully acknowledge. I am, dear Sir, wishing you and your family health and happiness,

"Your friend and well wisher,
Jos. Brant.

"_Mr. James Wheelock._"

The lads were sent to Dartmouth in charge of Colonel Benjamin Sumner, of Claremont, (N. H.) a gentleman who had resided fifteen months among the Canadian Indians. Colonel Sumner gave Dr. Wheelock a very gratifying account of the surprising progress the Mohawks had made in the art of husbandry, and the conveniences of living, in consequence of the influence exercised over them by Captain Brant. He also repeated to the Doctor the anxious charge which he had received from the Chief, that his sons should be educated not only in letters, but in piety and virtue. [FN] The lads arrived at Hanover safely, were well received by President Wheelock and his brother James, and domesticated in the family of the latter. Both the President and James Wheelock wrote to the Captain on the 3d of November, announcing the fact, and informing him of the arrangements that had been made. These were highly satisfactory to the parent, as will appear from the subjoined letters:--

* * * * *

[FN] McClure's Life of Wheelock.

"Captain Brant to President John Wheelock.

"_Grand River, Feb._ 9, 1801.

"Dear Sir,

"I have received your favor of the 3d of November last. I have delayed answering it until the return of Captain Brigham.

"I receive an inexpressible satisfaction in hearing from you, that you have taken my sons under your protection, and also to find that you yet retain a strong remembrance of our ancient friendship. For my part, nothing can ever efface from my memory the persevering attention your revered father paid to my education, when I was in the place my sons now are. Though I was an unprofitable pupil in some respects, yet my worldly affairs have been much benefited by the instruction I there received. I hope my children may reap greater advantages under your care, both with respect to their future as well as their worldly welfare.

"Their situation at your brother's meets my highest approbation. Your goodness, in having provided for them out of the funds, far exceeds my expectations, and merits my warmest thanks. The reason that induced me to send them, to be instructed under your care, is the assurance I had that their morals and education would be there more strictly attended to than at any other place I know of.

"I am much pleased at the kindness you show in pressing them to be familiar at your house. I beg you will be constant in exhorting them to conduct themselves with propriety. The character you give me of the worthy gentleman, their preceptor, is extremely pleasing. From the whole, I feel perfectly easy with respect to their situation, and the care taken of their education, and am fully convinced that all now depends on their own exertions. The steady friendship you do me the honor to assure me of, is what, from numberless obligations, I doubly owe your family on my part; and I beg leave to assure you, that until death, I remain your sincere friend.

"Should there be any thing you might wish from these parts, curiosities or the like, I shall be happy to send them to you.

"Dear Sir, I am
Your very humble serv't.
Jos. Brant.

"_Hon. John Wheelock._"

"From same, to James Wheelock, Esq.

"_Grand River, Feb._ 9, 1801.

"Dear Sir,

"It is now some time since I had the pleasure of receiving your kind letter of the 3d of November, 1800. It gives me unspeakable satisfaction to find that my boys are with you, as I am fully confident they could not have a better or more agreeable situation. I am assured, from the known reputation of the President, that if they do not make a progress in their studies, it will be owing to themselves. I therefore hope you will shew me the kindness to make free, and be particular in exhorting them to exert themselves, and to behave in a becoming manner.

"I am happy to find you yet retain the same sentiments of friendship for me that you have ever testified. I was apprehensive the manner in which I disappointed you respecting my son, when you was here, would have too much affected you. The occasion of it then was, the too great jealousy showed by our government here.

"I yet add, that I should wish them to be learned that it is their duty to be subject to the customs of the place they are in, even with respect to dress, and the cutting of their hair.

"The reason I did not answer you sooner, is that I have expected Captain Brigham back this way, and thought him the safest opportunity to send by. Any thing you might want from this quarter, I should be happy to assist you in.

"Dear Sir, I am,
With respect and esteem,
Your friend and humble servant.
Jos. Brant.

"_James Wheelock, Esq._"

"James Wheelock to Captain Brant.

"_Hanover May_ 1, 1801.

"Very Dear Sir,

"I received your polite and very agreeable letter of February 9th some days ago, for which please to accept my sincere and cordial thanks.

"I am very happy in again gratifying your parental feelings, with the information that your very worthy sons conduct themselves still in a most agreeable manner; are quite attentive to their school, and make, I believe, very laudable progress in learning. By their amiable dispositions and manly behavior they are continually growing in our esteem; and I sincerely hope and trust that _your_ and our _expectations_ concerning their future _usefulness_ and _respectability_ in life, will be highly gratified. You may depend on my friendly freedom in advising and exhorting them whenever I may see occasion. But, Sir, (without flattery,) such occasions will be very rare.

"What has become of my old friend, Mr. Phelps? I want to hear from him; but I have written so often without return, that I have done. Please when you see him to remember and mention me to him with cordial affection, and ask him to think of our former friendly days.

"I wish we could have the pleasure of seeing you here--perhaps, some time or other, we may be indulged in this wish. Please to remember me, with Mrs. Wheelock, affectionately to your lady, and believe that I continue to be, with attachment and respect, very dear Sir,

"Your sincere friend,
And humble servant,
Jas. Wheelock.

"_Captain Joseph Brant._"

"President Wheelock to Captain Brant.

"_Dartmouth College, May_ 6, 1801.

"Dear Sir,

"Though I have but a moment now allowed me to write, yet I cannot omit embracing it to express my thanks for your kind favor of February 9th ult.

"I rejoice to hear of your good health; and great also is my happiness to be able to inform you of the regular conduct, and steady application, and laudable improvements of your dear sons with me. I will do all I can for their good, and future usefulness; and may God grant that they shall be, and long continue, great sources of comfort and assistance to you in the sublime business of enlightening and meliorating your nations. I will write longer when I may have a good opportunity, and can now only ask the favor that you will accept this as a token of my cordial respect, and perfect friendship; I am,

"Dear Sir,
Your most ob'dt serv't,
John Wheelock.

"_Capt. J. Brant, &c. &c._"

"Captain Brant to President Wheelock.

"_Buffalo Creek, July_ 23, 1801.

"Dear Sir,

"It gives me great satisfaction to hear that my sons have so conducted themselves as to merit your approbation. The hope you form of them, is pleasing beyond expression. When my sons went away, I promised they should remain only one year; but as they seem to make progress, I hope you will begin by times to convince them it is their interest to remain another winter, and exert themselves in their studies. I intend going to England this Fall, and should I return safe in the Spring, I will see them, and they might then come out on a visit home.

"I am, Dear Sir,
Your friend sincerely,
Jos. Brant.

"_Hon. John Wheelock._"

"The same to James Wheelock, Esq.

"_Buffalo Creek, July_ 23, 1801.

"Very Dear Sir,

"Your kind letter gives me an extreme pleasure to find that you and family are well, and that my sons grow in your esteem. I hope sincerely they may continue to behave in such a manner as to deserve a continuance of it. I have not seen Mr. Phelps since I received your favor, but expect I shortly shall, and I will then mention what you desire. We are likely to succeed in getting him ordained for a minister.

"It is a long time since I sent any pocket money to the boys. I shall in a few days send by Mr. Gideon Tiffany, a note for a hundred pounds, N. Y. C. I would do it sooner, but have not had the opportunity of conveyance. My best respects to Mrs. Wheelock and family.

"I am, Dear Sir, sincerely,
Your friend and
Humble servant,
Jos. Brant.

"P. S. I send a letter of Captain Elliott's son, their cousin, who is much younger than they, to shew them how he improves. [FN]

"_James Wheelock, Esq._"

* * * * *

[FN] The name of Captain Elliott has repeatedly occurred before, in connexion with the British-Indian affairs at Detroit and the Miamis. Captain Brant, in one of his letters to Sir John Johnson, complained that Elliott was dismissed from the public service, for some reason not stated, and without trial.

"James Wheelock to Captain Brant.

"_Marcellus, Sept._ 19th, 1801.

"Very Dear and Respected Sir,

"I am almost overjoyed at meeting your worthy son, Joseph, this morning, on his way homeward. By him I have only a moment to write to express my respect for you, and my attachment and regard for your dear and promising sons. They have been so long in my family, that to see Joseph seems like meeting one of my own children; indeed they are both, by their pleasing conduct, which has been uniform, highly esteemed by all their acquaintance with us. I sincerely hope that your expectations concerning them will be answered, and that they will both be _good, useful,_ and _honorable_ in the world.

"It is some weeks since I left home. I want much to see you, and Joseph mentions that by a letter from you since I left home, we may expect that pleasure next Spring, on your return from your intended European tour. I hope we shall not be disappointed. I wish I could have the pleasure of my friend Joseph's company on my return home, as I have mentioned to him. May every blessing and happiness constantly attend you and yours, is the sincere wish of,

"Dear Sir, your very
Sincere friend, and
Humble servant,
Jas. Wheelock.

"_Capt. Joseph Brant._"

"Captain Brant to Mr. Wheelock.

"_Grand River,_ 22_d Oct._ 1801.

"My Dear Sir,

"I received your kind letter favored by my son Joseph, and am extremely happy to find they both give such great satisfaction to their friends, of their good conduct, as well as to me. I cannot express myself the great pleasure you give me by the great attention to my children. I would really wish you to take the opportunity to continue them as your own children, and give them every good advice, so they may be useful and honorable in the world. As for my European route, it is uncertain.

"I remain, Dear Sir,
Your sincere friend,
And very humble serv't,
Jos. Brant.

"_Jas. Wheelock, Esq._"

Unfortunately, while thus happily situated, pursuing their studies with diligence, and so demeaning themselves toward their friends as to win golden opinions from all, some difficulty arose between the brothers themselves, which produced a separation; Joseph, the eldest, leaving the school and returning home. Jacob followed in the course of the Spring, on a visit only, returning to the school again in the Autumn. Two or three letters more will close all that can be found of this interesting correspondence.

"Captain Brant to Mr. James Wheelock.

"_Grand River, March_ 20, 1802.

"My Dear Sir,

"I received your favor of the 25th January, and I am sorry to learn by it that your friendly arguments had not the desired effect of dissuading Joseph from his determination of coming this way. I regret very much his leaving, so unreasonably, the advantageous situation he was in, for improvement; for I am fully confident he could not have been in a better place, and I shall ever remain thankful for your kind attention and that of the President, although the imprudence of youth has rendered it ineffectual. At the same time I must assure you that Joseph has a grateful remembrance of the civilities he received from you and family, and acknowledges to have been as happy and comfortable as he could wish to be; and perfectly at home in your house.

"After the great care and attention the worthy President has been pleased to show to my sons, it doubly grieves me that any part of their conduct should have the least appearance of neglect, or disrespect to a character that it was their duty to revere, and to which they were so much indebted.

"The only reason Joseph can allege for his coming away, is the perpetual disagreement between him and his brother Jacob. Mrs. Brant joins me in thanks and best respects to you and Mrs. Wheelock, and be assured we think equally well of your kind endeavors as if they had had the desired effect.

"My best respects to the President, and in a short time I shall write him in answer to the letter I received.

"My Dear Sir,
I remain, affectionately,
Your friend and
Humble servant,
Jos. Brant.

"_James Wheelock, Esq'r._"

"James Wheelock to Captain Brant.

"_Hanover, April_ 19, 1802.

"Very Dear Sir,

"It is with much pleasure I acknowledge the receipt of your friendly and obliging letter of March 20th,--am glad to learn that Joseph arrived at home; for I assure you, I felt not a little anxious for him, on his setting out, horseback, at such a season of the year, so long a journey. I hope he, as well as Jacob, will somewhere complete his education, and that they both will have a disposition and abilities, to follow the example of their worthy parent, in promoting eminently the happiness, prosperity and advantage of their fellow men, _while you and I shall be asleep with our fathers._

"My brother, the President has mentioned particularly concerning the conduct, &c. of Jacob, which renders any thing from me in his praise unnecessary; however, I must just say, that from what I have seen and understood since he left our house, (not from our desire, but his own,) his conduct has been quite unexceptionable, amicable, and pleasing; and I shall always rejoice in an opportunity to shew him any mark of friendship, by advice, or otherwise, that may be in my power.

"My brother has likewise mentioned to him Captain Dunham, [FN] the gentleman who will accompany Jacob. He is a gentleman we highly esteem and respect, and I doubt not but he will meet with your friendly notice and attention."

* * * * *

[FN] Captain Josiah Dunham, an officer in the American service--a gentleman of talents and letters. After the surrender of the Northwestern posts, so long retained by Great Britain, Captain Dunham was stationed at Michillimackinack. Subsequently, during the earlier part of Mr. Madison's administration, Captain D. edited a political paper with signal ability, in Vermont.

"I shall always be happy in an opportunity to render you, or any of yours, any services that may be in my power; but how happy should I be in an opportunity, especially at my own house, to see you, and to manifest that respect to which you are so justly entitled, and to which my own feelings so warmly would prompt me. Mrs. Wheelock joins me in cordial respects to yourself and Mrs. Brant.

"I am, very Dear Sir, &c. &c.
Jas. Wheelock.

"_Capt. Joseph Brant, &c. &c._"

"From Captain Brant to James Wheelock.

"_Niagara,_ 17_th December,_ 1802.

"My Dear Sir,

"I received your very polite and friendly letter by my son Jacob, and am very much obliged to you, your brother, and all friends, for the great attentions that have been paid to both my sons; likewise to Captain Dunham, for the great care he took of Jacob on the journey.

"My son would have returned to you long before this but for a continued sickness in the family for three months, which brought Mrs. Brant very low; my son Jacob and several of the children were very ill.

"My son now returns to be under the care of the President, and I sincerely hope he will pay such attention to his studies, as will do credit to himself, and be a comfort to his parents. The horse that Jacob rides out, I wish to be got in good order after he arrives, and sold, as an attentive scholar has no time to ride about. Mrs. Brant joins me in most affectionate respects to you and Mrs. Wheelock.

"I am, Dear Sir,
With great respect, your sincere friend and
Humble servant,
Jos. Brant.

"_James Wheelock, Esq.,
Hanover._"

The only remaining letter of this branch of Captain Brant's correspondence which has been obtained, was addressed to James Wheelock, in October, 1804. It relates to matters indifferent to the present work, save only the mention that by the bursting of a gun, his son Jacob's left hand had been shattered, and that he was "about marrying one of our Mohawk girls." [FN] The whole of this correspondence, however, speaks the old Chief exceedingly well in his domestic relations. No parent could have been more solicitous for the moral and intellectual training of his offspring. His letters are characterised by an amiable temper, and by good, sound, common sense--breathing a spirit of kindness and affection throughout. And such was his general character in his family.

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[FN] Joseph Brant, Jr. died several years ago. Jacob Brant is yet living, [July, 1837.] A daughter of Captain Brant married a Frenchman, who, in June, 1789, was killed by a party of Indians while peaceably traveling up the Wabash River. He was in company with nine others, four of whom were killed, and three wounded. When the hostile party came up to them, and discovered the son-in-law of the Mohawk Chief, they assisted in drawing the arrows from the wounded, and then went off--_Carey's Museum--quoted by Drake._

In addition to his correspondence upon public affairs, upon the business of his own nation exclusively, and in regard to his private and domestic concerns, which must have been very extensive, Captain Brant wrote many letters upon miscellaneous subjects to which his attention was from time to time invited. His fame was co-extensive with England and the United States, and he must have had acquaintances in France. His personal friends were very numerous, and those to whom he was known, far more numerous still. The consequence of these friendships and this celebrity, was frequent applications analogous to those made by Doctor Miller, for information in regard to the history, condition, and polity of his own people, or for the purpose of eliciting his own views and opinions upon given subjects. Of these miscellaneous letters, but few have been preserved. The annexed is given as an example. It had long been contended by physiologists, both in Europe and America, that the American aboriginals naturally have no beards. Nor is the opinion uncommon at the present day. It was for a solution of this question that a Mr. McCauseland wrote to Brant, soon after the close of the American war. The following was the Chiefs reply:--

"_Niagara, April_ 19, 1783.

"The men of the Six Nations have all beards by nature; as have likewise all other Indian nations of North America, which I have seen. Some Indians allow a part of the beard upon the chin and upper lip to grow, and a few of the Mohawks shave with razors, in the same manner as Europeans; but the generality pluck out the hairs of the beard by the roots, as soon as they begin to appear; and as they continue this practice all their lives, they appear to have no beard, or, at most, only a few straggling hairs, which they have neglected to pluck out. I am however of opinion, that if the Indians were to shave, they would never have beards altogether so thick us the Europeans; and there are some to be met with who have actually very little beard.

"Joseph Brant,
_Thayendanegea._"

Among others, the late eccentric Samuel Peters, LL. D., either opened, or attempted to open, a correspondence with the Chief, a few years before his decease. Dr. Peters was a native of Hebron, (Conn.) He was graduated at Yale College in 1757, and, taking orders in the Episcopal Church, had charge of the churches at Hartford and Hebron, at the commencement of the Revolutionary contest. Being a friend of the crown, he went to England, where he remained many years, and in 1781 published his extraordinary, and in many respects fabulous, history of his native state. In the year 1805, he returned to the United States; and in 1817 or 1818, made a journey into the country of the great northwestern lakes, to the Falls of St Anthony; claiming a large extent of territory in that region, under a grant to the ancient traveler, Captain Carver. [FN]

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[FN] A letter of Dr. Peters to Captain Brant, written in April, 1803, is so characteristic of its author that a place has been assigned to it in the Appendix, (No. XVII,) as a curiosity. Doctor, or Bishop Peters, as he was called, died in the city of New-York, April 19,1826, at the advanced age of 90. His remains were interred at Hebron.

On the subject of imprisonment for debt, his views were those of an enlightened philosopher and philanthropist, as will be manifest from the following interesting letter discovered among the papers of the late Thomas Eddy; a name ever to be revered, as among the most honorable, if not the brightest, adorning the annals of humanity. [FN] Mr. Eddy was at the period mentioned, and for years afterward, directing his attention to the subject of prison discipline, and his mind was much occupied on the question of imprisonment for debt. The views of the Mohawk Chieftain were coincident with his own. Both were more than a quarter of a century in advance of public opinion in the United States, in that important feature of English and American jurisprudence; and how much in advance of England, remains to be seen.

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[FN] This letter was transcribed by Thomas Eddy, into a volume of Indian documents, speeches &c., collected by him while in the discharge of his duties as an Indian commissioner for certain purposes. He had much intercourse with the Oneida, Stockbridge, and some other tribes of Indians, some forty years ago, and was led to inquiries and exertions for their moral and social improvement.

"Letter from Joseph Brant to--

"My Dear Sir,

"Your letter came safe to hand. To give you entire satisfaction I must, I perceive, enter into the discussion of a subject on which I have often thought. My thoughts were my own, and being so different from the ideas entertained among your people, I should certainly have carried them with me to the grave, had I not received your obliging favor.

"You ask me, then, whether in my opinion civilization is favorable to human happiness? In answer to the question, it may be answered, that there are degrees of civilization, from Cannibals to the most polite of European nations. The question is not, then, whether a degree of refinement is not conducive to happiness; but whether you, or the natives of this land, have obtained this happy medium. On this subject we are at present, I presume, of very different opinions. You will, however, allow me in some respects to have had the advantage of you in forming my sentiments. I was, Sir, born of Indian parents, and lived while a child among those whom you are pleased to call savages; I was afterward sent to live among the white people, and educated at one of your schools; since which period I have been honored much beyond my deserts, by an acquaintance with a number of principal characters both in Europe and America. After all this experience, and after every exertion to divest myself of prejudice, I am obliged to give my opinion in favor of my own people. I will now, as much as I am able, collect together, and set before you, some of the reasons that have influenced my judgment on the subject now before us. In the government you call civilized, the happiness of the people is constantly sacrificed to the splendor of empire. Hence your codes of criminal and civil laws have had their origin; hence your dungeons and prisons. I will not enlarge on an idea so singular in civilized life, and perhaps disagreeable to you, and will only observe, that among us we have _no_ prisons; we have no pompous parade of courts; we have no written laws; and yet judges are as highly revered amongst us as they are among you, and their decisions are as much regarded.

"Property, to say the least, is as well guarded, and crimes are as impartially punished. We have among us no splendid villains above the control of our laws. Daring wickedness is here never suffered to triumph over helpless innocence. The estates of widows and orphans are never devoured by enterprising sharpers. In a word, we have no robbery under the color of law. No person among us desires any other reward for performing a brave and worthy action, but the consciousness of having served his nation. Our wise men are called Fathers; they truly sustain that character. They are always accessible, I will not say to the meanest of our people, for we have none mean but such as render themselves so by their vices.

"The palaces and prisons among you form a most dreadful contrast. Go to the former places, and you will see perhaps a _deformed piece of earth_ assuming airs that become none but the Great Spirit above. Go to one of your prisons; here description utterly fails! Kill them, if you please; kill them, too, by tortures; but let the torture last no longer than a day. Those you call savages, relent; the most furious of our tormentors exhausts his rage in a few hours, and dispatches his unhappy victim with a sudden stroke. Perhaps it is eligible that incorrigible offenders should sometimes be cut off. Let it be done in a way that is not degrading to human nature. Let such unhappy men have an opportunity, by their fortitude, of making an atonement in some measure for the crimes they have committed during their lives.

"But for what are many of your prisoners confined?--for debt!--astonishing!--and will you ever again call the Indian nations cruel? Liberty, to a rational creature, as much exceeds property as the light of the sun does that of the most twinkling star. But you put them on a level, to the everlasting disgrace of civilization. I knew, while I lived among the white people, many of the most amiable contract debts, and I dare say with the best intentions. Both parties at the time of the contract expect to find their advantage. The debtor, we will suppose, by a train of unavoidable misfortunes, fails; here is no crime, nor even a fault; and yet your laws put it in the power of the creditor to throw the debtor into prison and confine him there for life! a punishment infinitely worse than death to a brave man! And I seriously declare, I had rather die by the most severe tortures ever inflicted on this continent, than languish in one of your prisons for a single year. Great Spirit of the Universe!--and do you call yourselves Christians? Does then the religion of Him whom you call your Saviour, inspire this spirit, and lead to these practices? Surely no. It is recorded of him, that a bruised reed he never broke. Cease, then, to call yourselves Christians, lest you publish to the world your hypocrisy. Cease, too, to call other nations savage, when you are tenfold more the children of cruelty than they."

Few subjects of greater interest have been presented for the consideration of antiquaries in North America, than those monuments of an age and a people that are lost, found scattered over western New-York, through the state of Ohio, and in great numbers in the valley of the Mississippi, called Tumuli. These mounds, or barrows, as they are usually termed in older countries, have been objects of extensive inquiry and much speculation; but their origin, in America, and the purposes of their erection, are yet among those hidden mysteries which it is probable that even time itself will not unfold. Among the Greeks, on the steppes of Tartary, in the north of Europe, in England, Ireland, and New South Wales, in all which countries, and several others, they abound, it has been well ascertained that these Tumuli were monumental heaps, of greater or less extent, raised over the remains of the dead. But in the United States, and in Mexico, where similar barrows are numerous, appearances, in regard to very many of them, have seemed to warrant a different opinion as to the object of their formation. Their magnitude in this country is much greater than in any other, some of the largest American Tumuli being approached in dimensions only by the celebrated Irish barrow at New Grange, described by Governor Pownall; [FN] while the form of very many of the American has induced at least a plausible conjecture, that they were the military defences of a people long since become extinct.

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[FN] The Irish barrow in New Grange, county Meath, covers two acres at the base, the circumference at the top being three hundred feet, and its height ninety. It consists of small pebbles, and has a gallery within, sixty-two feet long, leading to a cave. There is one near Wheeling, on the Ohio, between thirty and forty rods in circumference at the base, one hundred and eighty at the top, and seventy feet high. Near Cahokia there is a numerous group, stated at about two hundred in all--the largest of which is a parallelogram, about ninety feet high, and eight hundred yards in circuit. [_Ency. Americana._] There are some very large and of evident military formation, in the Wyoming Valley.

While, therefore, every inquiry of the white man concerning these remains in America has ended as it began, leaving the subject of investigation as deep in obscurity as before, the opinion of a man of Brant's information and sagacity, thoroughly conversant, as he was, with the traditions of his own people, may not be unacceptable to the curious reader. That opinion, or rather such information as the Chief had derived from the dim light of Indian tradition, has been supplied in the manuscript notes of Mr. Woodruff, already referred to several times in the preceding pages. A few extracts follow:--

"Among other things relating to the western country," says Mr. Woodruff, "I was curious to learn in the course of my conversations with Captain Brant, what information he could give me respecting the _Tumuli_ which are found on and near the margin of the rivers and lakes, from the St. Lawrence to the Mississippi. He stated, in reply, that the subject had long been agitated, but yet remained in some obscurity. A tradition, he said, prevailed among the different nations of Indians throughout that whole extensive range of country, and had been handed down time immemorial, that in an age long gone by, there came white men from a foreign country, and by consent of the Indians established trading-houses and settlements where these Tumuli are found. A friendly intercourse was continued for several years; many of the white men brought their wives, and had children born to them; and additions to their numbers were made yearly from their own country. These circumstances at length gave rise to jealousies among the Indians, and fears began to be entertained in regard to the increasing numbers, wealth, and ulterior views of the new comers; apprehending that becoming strong, they might one day seize upon the country as their own. A secret council, composed of the chiefs of all the different nations from the St. Lawrence to the Mississippi, was therefore convoked; the result of which, after long deliberation, was a resolution that on a certain night designated for that purpose, all their white neighbors, men, women and children, should be exterminated. The most profound secrecy was essential to the execution of such a purpose; and such was the fidelity with which the fatal determination was kept, that the conspiracy was successful, and the device carried completely into effect. Not a soul was left to tell the tale.

"The Captain expressed no opinion himself as to the truth of the tale, but added, that from the vessels and tools which had been dug up in those mounds, or found in their vicinity, it was evident that the people who had used them were French.

"In the year 1801, having occasion to travel through the States of New-York and Ohio, and a part of Pennsylvania," (continues Judge Woodruff,) "I had frequent opportunities of viewing these artificial mounds, as well as the entrenched plots of land contiguous to them. They are all placed upon small and handsome elevations of ground. The entrenched plots are of various dimensions, from six to ten rods square. The ditches and their banks are yet plainly visible. Their antiquity may be inferred from the size of the trees standing both in the ditches and on the banks--being as large as any of those in their vicinity. Many of these trees I saw which were more than two feet in diameter. Near one corner of each of these areas, is a space of twelve feet in width, where the ground appears never to have been broken. It is evident that these spaces were used for gate-ways. About ten or fifteen yards from these gate-ways, stand the mounds. These are of different dimensions, in different places, from ten to fifteen feet in diameter at the base, and from six to twelve feet elevation, being now much flattened down.