Chapter XV (2)

"Various have been the conjectures for what use these mounds were raised. Some have supposed they were made as depositories of the dead; others, for places in which to store provisions in winter; and others, for watch-towers, on which sentinels were posted to guard the garrisons from approaching danger. While in Ohio, I felt an anxiety to satisfy myself, if possible, for which of these uses, or for what other, these Tumuli were designed. I employed a party of young men to dig down through one of them, beginning at the centre of the apex. When they had descended through to the natural surface of the ground, it appeared by the mould, or soil, that the earth had not there been broken. All we found there, were a few oaken chips, nearly sound, and bearing the mark of the axe. These circumstances, in my judgment, served greatly to strengthen the probability that the mounds had been designed and used only for watch-towers. Mr. Quimby, the owner of the land, shewed me a tinner's anvil, a pair of shears, and an adze, which he had found on the area within the lines of the entrenchment. All these were evidently of French origin. Many other tools and vessels, as I was well informed, had been found at other of these stations, in different parts of the western country, all of the same character.

"In farther conversation with Captain Brant, he informed me that he had ever entertained a strong desire to know something more decisive concerning those white people--their former neighbors--and that while in England, he made a visit to the French capital for the purpose of pushing his inquiries upon the subject. Letters of introduction were furnished by his friends in London, to some literary gentlemen in Paris, by whom he was received with great politeness and respect, and kindly assisted in making researches in the public libraries. Nothing, however, could be found in any of their histories, respecting the object of his inquiries, excepting, that about the year 1520, (if I rightly remember,) several ships were fitted out and sailed from L'Orient, bound to North America, freighted with goods suitable for that market, and carrying out a number of traders, and other enterprising individuals, with their families, to plant a colony in that part of the world. But nothing farther was recorded concerning the enterprize. Hence Captain Brant was induced to give additional credit to the tradition before mentioned." [FN]

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[FN] John Norton, the intelligent Mohawk Chief, heretofore repeatedly mentioned, gave a different version of the tradition upon this subject. Being at Albany, upon the business of the St. Regis Reservation, during the administration of Governor Jay, the Governor took occasion to ask Norton if he knew any thing concerning the origin of the Indian fortifications, as they were called, found in such numbers in many parts of the United States. He answered, that there was a tradition in his tribe that they were constructed by a people who in ancient times occupied a great extent of country, but who had been extirpated; that there had been long and bloody wars between this people and the Five Nations, in which the latter had been finally victorious. He added, that one of the last of the fortifications which was taken, had been obstinately defended; that the warriors of the other four nations of the Confederacy had assaulted it without waiting for the Mohawks, and had been repulsed with great loss, but that the latter coming to their assistance the attack was renewed, the place taken, and all who were in it destroyed.--_Letter to the author from the Hon. Peter Augustus Jay, who was present during the conversation._

There seem to be many strong reasons for believing, that at some remote period of time, a race of men, different from the Indians found in occupancy by the English, farther advanced in civilization, and possessed of arts of which they were ignorant, must have been in possession of portions of this country. The Indians have various traditions upon the subject of such a lost race of men, differing, however, among different tribes, and often among individuals of the same tribes. Mary Jemison, who was raised among the Senecas, and spent a long life with them, states that the Indians held that the flats of the Genesee were cleared, and had been cultivated, by another people, before the Indians came into possession. They were a people of whom they could give no account, because "their fathers had never seen them." By the sliding of a bank of Mary's farm into the river, a burial-place was discovered, of which the Indians had no knowledge, and they held that the bones were not those of Indians. [FN-1] But of what race, nation, or complexion, were this ancient people, will probably never be known. That the continent of North America was discovered by the Normans, during the patriarchal government of the Colony of Greenland, by Erik the Red, five centuries before the voyages of Columbus, is no longer a matter of doubt. The shores of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and the coast of New England, were visited by Lief and Thorwald, the sons of Erik, and colonies planted, as far back as the tenth century. These colonies, however, were soon lost or extirpated; and from the Icelandic records, and the histories of the Northmen, [FN-2] there is but faint reason for supposing that the few colonists of Vinland, as the new country was named, or their descendants, could have extended themselves from the estuary of the St Lawrence across into the valley of the Mississippi. [FN-3]

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[FN-1] See Appendix, No. XVIII.

[FN-2] Vide, History of the Northmen, by Henry Wheaton; Voyages of Sebastian Cabot, &c. &c.

[FN-3] See Appendix, No. XIX.

The tradition recited by Brant, however, tends, especially in its details, to corroborate the well-known legend of the Welsh, concerning Prince Madog, or Madoc, which has occasioned so many stories of White and Welsh Indians, rather than any other tale of discovery and colonization with which the public is acquainted. According to the Welsh tradition, Madoc--if indeed there was such a veritable personage--in consequence of some domestic dissensions, went to sea, with ten ships and three hundred men, in the twelfth century, and discovered land far to the west. He made several voyages to and from this unknown land, but finally, with all his followers, was lost to the knowledge of his countrymen. The tradition of Brant, that the white strangers made annual voyages to and from their own country for several years, corresponds with the story as related in the Welsh Triads, and by Hakluyt, who has given an account of the supposed voyages of the Prince. The cutting off of the colonists at one fell stroke, as related by Brant, also shows very satisfactorily why his fate was never known. OEdipus solved the riddle of the Sphinx; but unless he was able to solve still greater mysteries, the origin and uses of the American Tumuli present questions that would have baffled the wisdom even of the accomplished though unfortunate son and husband of Jocasta.

In bringing the life and actions of Joseph Brant--Thayendanegea, to a close, something in the form of a summary review of his character will doubtless be expected at the hands of the biographer. This task can be readily and expeditiously executed, from the method adopted in the composition of the work itself. Nor, after the record already given of his public life and conduct, and the occasional anecdotes and illustrations of character introduced in the regular progress of the narrative, will the reader be surprised to find the author disposed, not only to set aside, but to reverse the popular estimate, and all previous decisions of history, in relation to the character of that remarkable man.

His fine personal appearance in the full maturity of manhood has already been described from the notes of Mr. Woodruff and General Porter. His early advantages of education were limited, but of these he evidently made the best use. Probably, being connected by the alliance of his sister with Sir William Johnson, he may have attended some of the missionary schools in the Mohawk Valley previous to his being sent by the Baronet to the Moor charity school, under the care of the elder Doctor Wheelock. But as he had already, though at so early an age, been upon the war-path in two campaigns, his opportunities of study could not have been great,--to say nothing of the reluctance with which an ardent youth, looking with delight upon the pride, pomp and circumstance of glorious war, and inpatient of military renown, might be expected to confine himself to the dull and quiet pursuits of the school-room. Still, he acknowledged in after-life that he had derived great and lasting advantages from the instructions of Doctor Wheelock. The wars of Pontiac a third time called him to the field; but the campaign was no sooner ended, than he was again engaged in literary pursuits under the direction of the missionaries. The influence of his sister in the administration of the Indian department, called him more directly into active public life on the death of Sir William Johnson, although he had been much employed in the transaction of business with the Indians previous to that event. These avocations had of course deprived him of much time which might otherwise have been devoted to study; and when upon him had devolved the chieftainship of the whole confederacy of the Six Nations, it may well be imagined that the official claims upon his attention were in themselves sufficient to occupy, unremittingly, the most active mind. Then followed the protracted conflict of the American Revolution, requiring, from his position, and the side he espoused, the exercise of all his energies, physical and intellectual. But his return to his books, the moment that the great contest was ended; the progressive improvement in the style of his letters; and the fruits of his labors in the translations he produced, are circumstances proving his perseverance amidst the most harassing cares and perplexities of his after-life, and that he had a natural taste for literature, and was zealous in the acquisition of knowledge. His solicitude was great for the thorough education of his children; and he had himself not only projected writing a history of his own people, but had it in contemplation himself to acquire the knowledge of the Greek language, that he might be enabled to read the New Testament in the original, and thus make a more perfect translation of the Greek Scriptures in the Mohawk tongue.

His character has been represented as savage and cruel; and in the meagre sketches of his life hitherto published, although an occasional redeeming virtue has been allowed by some, anecdotes of treachery and blood have been introduced, to sustain the imputed disposition of relentless ferocity. [FN-1] The causes of this general libel upon the native character of the Indians, and upon that of Brant in particular, have been indicated in the commencement of the present work. Such, however, was not the fact. On the contrary, making the necessary allowances for his position, his own blood, and the description of warriors he commanded, after the most diligent and laborious investigation, the author is free to declare his belief that Brant was no less humane than he is on all hands admitted to have been brave. He was an Indian, and led Indians to the fight, upon their own principles and usages of war. Bold and daring, sagacious and wily, he often struck when least expected; but the author has in vain sought for an instance of wanton cruelty--of treachery--or of the murder of prisoners, or others, by his own hand, or by his permission, in cold blood. At the first outbreak of the American revolution, he interposed and saved the life of the Rev. Mr. Kirkland when on the point of becoming a victim to Indian fury, although not at that time on the very best terms with that gentleman. The first battle of the revolutionary war in which Brant was engaged, was that of the Cedars, on the banks of the St. Lawrence. Immediately after the fate of the day was decided, he interposed to save the prisoners, and actually, at his own private expense, appeased the Indians, and prevented the sacrifice of the brave Captain McKinstry. This gentleman was well known to the author, and he ever entertained a high regard for Captain Brant, by whom he was afterward visited on the manor of Livingston. The Chieftain's efforts at the massacre of Cherry Valley, to stay the effusion of innocent blood, have been mentioned in the account of that tragic irruption. In addition to the circumstances there narrated, Doctor Dwight, who was as careful as he was diligent in the collection of his facts, relates, that on entering one of the houses in Cherry Valley, Walter Butler ordered a woman and child, who were in bed, to be killed; but the Mohawk Chief interposed, and said--"What! kill a woman and child! No! That child is not an enemy to the King, nor a friend to the Congress. Long before he will be big enough to do any mischief, the dispute will be settled." At the affair of Wyoming, for which he has always received the severest condemnation, he was not present. His conduct to Captain Harper and his fellow-prisoners was anything but cruel, in the Indian acceptation of the term, although the execution of the aged and weary prisoner, if done with his knowledge or by his direction, was indefensible. But at Minisink, according to his own relation of the circumstances, (and his veracity has never been questioned,) his conduct has been grossly misrepresented. He exerted himself in the first instance to avert the effusion of blood, and was fired upon while in the act of making pacific overtures. True, Colonel Wisner was finally killed by his own hand; but the very blow was prompted by humanity, according to the reasoning of an Indian. The soldier was wounded past cure or removal; and after reflection upon the painful case, to prevent his dying agonies from being aggravated by beasts of prey, the Chief put an end to his sufferings through an honest dictate of compassion. A thoroughly civilized warrior would neither have reasoned nor acted as he did under the circumstances. Still, the act was prompted by feelings of humanity, and was doubtless such in reality. Lieutenant Wormwood was killed at Cherry Valley by mistake, and after refusing to stand when hailed. Lieutenant Boyd and his companion were treated with humanity by Brant after the capture in the Genesee country, and the dreadful tragedy which ended their lives was not enacted until Brant had departed for Niagara. The reader cannot well have forgotten the touching and beautiful incident of the restoration of the infant to its mother, at Fort Hunter, as related to the author by Governor Lewis, an eye-witness of the transaction. To all which may be added, that his last act of the last battle he fought was the rescuing of an American prisoner from a savage Irish ally of his own Indians, who was about to murder him. [FN-2]

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[FN-1] As a specimen of these bloody anecdotes, take the following, related many years since by a traveler named Weld, from whom it has been universally copied since. And yet there is not a syllable of truth in its composition:--"With a considerable body of his troops, he joined the forces under the command of Sir John Johnson. A skirmish took place with a body of American troops; the action was warm, and Brant was shot by a musket ball in his heel; but the Americans in the end were defeated and an officer and eighty men were taken prisoners. The officer, after having delivered up his sword, had entered into conversation with Sir John Johnson, who commanded the British troops, and they were talking to either in the most friendly manner, when Brant, having stolen slyly behind them, laid the American officer low with a blow of his tomahawk. The indignation of Sir John Johnson, as may be readily supposed, was roused by such an act of treachery, and he resented it in the warmest terms. Brant listened to him unconcernedly, and when he had finished, told him that he was sorry for his displeasure, but that indeed his heel was extremely painful at the moment, and he could not help revenging himself on the only chief of the party that he saw taken. Since he had killed the officer, he added, his heel was much less painful to him than it had been before."

[FN-2] This incident was mentioned to me by Colonel Kerr, his son-in-law. The occurrence was at the defeat of St. Clair.

In the course of his conversations with Major James Cochran and General Porter, long after the war, in regard to the alleged cruelty of his career, Brant assured those gentlemen that he had always spared in battle whenever it could be done without bringing upon himself the censure of his own people. In more instances than one, he said, he had been instrumental in preserving life when exposed to the fury of his warriors, and that he had winked at the escape of white prisoners, whose sufferings would not permit them to proceed on their march. He related one instance in particular, in which a young female prisoner had lagged behind, and whom he himself hid in the bushes that she might escape and return to her home. This account of himself was subsequently confirmed by Captain Philip Frey, son of Colonel Hendrick Frey, of Tryon county, of most respectable character and connexions, and an officer in the British army, who had served with Brant on several military expeditions, and shared with him the dangers of several battles. [FN]

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[FN] Letter of Major Cochran to the author. In farther illustration of Brant's general desire to prevent the shedding of blood unnecessarily, the following incident has been communicated to the author while these sheets were passing through the press:--"The late Jonathan Maynard, Esq. of Framingham, (near Boston,) Massachusetts, formerly a member of the Senate of that State, was actively engaged in the war of the Revolution, and, as he was in the habit of relating to his friends, was taken prisoner at one time in the western part of New-York by a party of the enemy, composed chiefly of Indians, under the command of Brant. The savages were disposed to put him to death according to the exterminating mode of warfare practised in that section of the country by the combined Indians and Tories; and preparations were making to that effect, when, having been partially stripped, Brant discovered the symbols of Freemasonry marked upon the prisoner's arms, which led him to interpose and save his life. Mr. Maynard was then sent a prisoner to Canada, where, after remaining several months, he was finally exchanged, and returned home. He lived to an advanced age, universally respected in the town where he resided, as an upright man and faithful magistrate; and was favorably known throughout the county of Middlesex, which he represented in the Senate of the commonwealth."--_Letter to the author by George Folsom, Esq._

Having thus disposed of the principal events in his career during the war of the Revolution, in respect to which his conduct was certainly the opposite of savage and blood-thirsty, this point of his vindication may be appropriately closed by the following extract from a letter addressed to him in February, 1792, by the Rev. Mr. Kirkland, than whom none was more intimately acquainted with his general character and disposition:--

"Rev. Mr. Kirkland to Captain Brant.--(Extract.)

"_Genesee, February_ 17_th,_ 1792.

"My Dear Friend,

"I was honored with your very polite and affectionate letter of the 1st inst. by Dr. Allen, last Saturday. The opportunity which now presents of addressing you, is very unexpected. Yesterday I had the pleasure of a short interview with Captain Williamson, who had lately passed through Philadelphia, where he received a large packet for Colonel _Gordon,_ commanding at Niagara, soliciting his aid in behalf of a disconsolate mother, to inquire after the fate of her son, _Captain Turner_--an unfortunate officer, who is supposed to be a prisoner among the Miamis, and taken in the action of last Fall. I told Mr. Williamson that no person would be more willing and ready on such an occasion to make inquiry, and perhaps no one under equal advantages, to obtain the much-desired information, than your self; and that, _notwithstanding all your martial fire and heroism, you possessed a sensibility of soul that would weep at the tale of woe._ He gave me a most affecting account of the situation of the afflicted mother--probably he was a darling son. Mr. Williamson has accordingly written you on the subject."

One of the distinguishing features of his character was his strong sense of justice. It will be recollected, in the narrative of the captivity of Alexander Harper and others, that during their long and fatiguing march, when his own warriors and himself were suffering almost the extremity of hunger, he saw with his own eyes the most rigid impartiality exercised in the distribution of such scanty supplies of food as they were able casually to procure. Every prisoner was allowed a full share with himself; and at the end of their march, it has been seen how adroitly he averted the torture of the gauntlet-running, which it was so customary with the Indians to inflict upon their prisoners. This same love of justice, moreover, marked his conduct during the Indian wars of 1789--'95, and pervaded his correspondence connected with those wars, and his own subsequent difficulties with the British Government touching the Grand River land title, and in all his negotiations with the State of New-York. He honestly thought the claim of the north-western Indians to the Ohio and Muskingum boundary a just one. Hence his untiring exertions, year after year, to adjust the difficulties between the Indians and the United States upon that basis. When he thought the Indians claimed too much, he opposed them; and so far as he thought them in the right, he was ready to fight for them. In a letter to General Chapin upon this subject, written in December, 1794, he says:

"Your letters from Kanandaigua are now before me. I have to say that our meetings during the whole of last summer, at all of which our thoughts were solely bent on fixing a boundary line, such as we thought would be the means of fixing a peace on a solid basis, for which reason we pointed out the line we did, well knowing the justness of it, and being certain that the whole Indian confederacy would ratify it.

"I must regret, as an individual, to find that this boundary has been abandoned, as I am well convinced a lasting peace would have ensued had it been adopted. I, therefore, ever have, to bring about this desirable end, exerted every nerve, wishing for nothing more than justice between us. This line, you will recollect, was offered to Governor St. Clair at Muskingum. Notwithstanding the two successful campaigns of the Indians, I still adhered to the same line, and still do. This, I hope, will satisfy you that my wish ever was for peace. The offer made was rejected by Mr. St. Clair, and what the consequences have been you well know. . . . You will recollect that I differed even with my friends, respecting the boundary, [FN] and to the two last messages that you then received, my name was to neither, for the reason that I thought them [the Indians] too unreasonable. For this reason I was obliged to take more pains and trouble to bring the Indians and you to an understanding, than I was under any obligation to do, otherwise than having our mutual interests in view. As to politics, I study them not. My principle is founded on justice, and justice is all I wish for. Never shall I exert myself for any nation or nations, let their opinions of me be what they will, unless I plainly see they are sincere and just in what they may aim at, and that nothing more than strict justice is what they want. When I perceive that these are the sentiments of a people, no endeavors ever shall be wanting on my part to bring nations to a good understanding."

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[FN] Captain Brant had proposed a compromise boundary line, of which he was here speaking. But neither the United States nor the Indians would listen to it.

These views are frank, manly, and honorable; and correspond with the whole tenor of his speeches and correspondence, as well upon that as all other questions of controversy in which he was called to participate.

His efforts for the moral and religious improvement of his people were indefatigable. In addition to the details already presented upon this point, the fact is no less interesting than true, that the first Episcopal church erected in Upper Canada was built by Brant, from funds collected by him while in England in 1786. The church was built the same year, and the first "church-going bell" that tolled in Upper Canada, was placed there by him. [FN-1] The Rev. Davenport Phelps, in writing to President John Wheelock, November, 1800, upon the subject of the exertions of Captain Brant, and the progress his people were making in religious knowledge and the arts of civilized life, under his influence, remarks:--"I cannot, sir, but here observe, that strong hopes may be entertained that we may yet see the wilderness bud and blossom like the rose. There is already a degree of civilization among a number of the Indians which would surprise a stranger. And with some of them there is such an appearance of Christianity, that many of the whites who possess it, might well blush at a comparative view. Of this great and important alteration, and of the present pleasing prospect of success in extending the knowledge of the Redeemer among them, I am fully persuaded the labors of your venerable predecessor, under God, have been the cause. Colonel Brant greatly encourages civilization and Christianity. Through his exertions and influential example among the Indians, it is to be hoped their progress toward refinement may yet be considerable." [FN-2] His earnest desire, beyond a doubt, was to render himself a benefactor to his people.

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[FN-1] Letter to the author from Colonel W. J. Kerr.

[FN-2] McClure's Life of Wheelock.

As a warrior, he was cautious, sagacious and brave; watching with sleepless vigilance for opportunities of action, and allowing neither dangers nor difficulties to divert him from his well-settled purposes. His constitution was hardy, his capacity of endurance great; his energy untiring, and his firmness indomitable. His character, in his social and domestic relations, has been delineated at length, and needs no farther illustration. In his dealings and business relations he was prompt, honorable, and expert; and, so far as the author has been able to obtain information from gentlemen who knew him well, he was a pattern of integrity. The purity of his private morals has never been questioned, and his house was the abode of kindness and hospitality.

His manners in refined society have been described by Dr. Miller and General Porter. Without divesting himself altogether of the characteristic reserve of his people, he could, nevertheless, relax as occasion required, and contribute his full share, by sprightly and intelligent conversation, to the pleasures of general society. He was at once affable and dignified, avoiding frivolity on the one hand and stiffness on the other; in one word, unbending himself just to the proper medium of the well-bred gentleman. He has been described by some as eloquent in his conversation. Others, again, deny him the attribute of eloquence, either in public speaking or in the social circle; asserting that his great power lay in his strong, practical good sense, and deep and ready insight into character. Mr. Thomas Morris avers that his sagacity in this respect exceeded that of any other man with whom he has been acquainted. His temperament was decidedly amiable; he had a keen perception of the ludicrous, and was both humorous and witty himself--some times brilliant in this respect; and his conversation was often fascinating, by reason of its playfulness and vivacity. [FN]

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[FN] As an illustration of his shrewdness and sagacity, the following anecdote of Brant has been communicated to the author by Professor Griscom:--"When Jemima Wilkinson, (who professed to be, in her own person, the Saviour of the world in his second appearance on earth,) was residing on her domain in western New-York, surrounded by her deluded and subservient followers, she could not fail to attract the notice of Colonel Brant; while the celebrity of the Chieftain must, in turn, have forcibly commended itself to her attention. This led, of course, to a mutual desire to see each other, and Brant at length presented himself at her mansion, and requested an interview. After some formality he was admitted and she addressed to him a few words in the way of a welcome salutation. He replied to her by a formal speech in his own language, at the conclusion of which she informed him that she did not understand the language in which he spoke. He then addressed her in another Indian dialect, to which, in like manner, she objected. After a pause, he commenced a speech in a third, and still different American language, when she interrupted him by the expression of dissatisfaction at his persisting to speak to her in terms which she could not understand. He arose with dignity, and with a significant motion of the hand, said--'Madam, you are not the person you pretend to be. Jesus Christ can understand one language as well as another,' and abruptly took his leave." Since this striking and characteristic anecdote was received from Dr. Griscom, I have discovered that it has been attributed to Red Jacket. This Chief; however, was a Pagan--a disbeliever in Jesus Christ; and as Brant was the opposite, the anecdote is more characteristic of him than of the Seneca orator.

The implacable resentments imputed to the American Indians were not characteristic of him. In a speech to a council of Misissaguas--a clan of the Hurons, located on the Bay of Quinte,--on the occasion of certain grievous personal insults, of which some of their people were complaining, he remarked:--"Brothers, I am very glad you suffer these abuses so patiently. I advise you to persevere in your patience and prudence, never allowing yourselves to feel and exercise revenge, until every regular step be taken to remove them." [FN] In the whole course of his correspondence, positive hostility, of a personal character, seems only to have been cherished toward Colonel Claus, the Deputy Superintendent General of the Indian Department. The precise nature of this difficulty the author has not ascertained. It was connected, however, with the pecuniary affairs of the Indians, in regard to which Brant was exonerated from censure at every scrutiny. Still, perfection cannot be predicated of the Mohawk Chief more than other men, and the author has not discovered a particle of evidence, going to inculpate the moral or official conduct of Colonel Claus--save that he appears to have connived at the unsuccessful machinations of Red Jacket and other enemies of Brant, to effect the chieftain's deposition.

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[FN] MS. speech among the Brant papers.

Like other men, Brant doubtless had his faults, but they were redeemed by high qualities and commanding virtues. He was charged with duplicity, and even treachery, in regard to the affairs of the Indians and the United States, in connexion with his first visit to Philadelphia. But the aspersion was grievously unjust. During the years of those wars, his position was trying and peculiar. He had his own ulterior objects to consult in regard to the Indians of the upper lakes. He desired to see justice done to them, and also to the United States. And he likewise desired not to impair his own influence with those Indians. At the same time he had a difficult game to play, with the Colonial and British governments. The doubtful relations between England and the United States induced the former to keep the Indians in a very unpacific mood toward the latter for a series of years; sometimes even pushing them into hostilities, by means and appliances of which policy required the concealment, and the means of diplomatic denial, if necessary. At the same time, while Brant was thoroughly loyal to the King, he was nevertheless resolved upon maintaining the unfettered independence of his own peculiar nation; friendly relations with the Colonial government being also essential to his desire of a perfect title to his new territory.

Such a position must at all times have been full of embarrassment and difficulty, and at some conjunctures could not have been otherwise than deeply perplexing. And yet he sustained himself through the whole--proving himself above the influence of gold at Philadelphia, and passing the ordeal without dishonor. In letters, he was in advance of some of the Generals against whom he fought; and even of still greater military chieftains, who have flourished before his day and since. True, he was ambitious--and so was Caesar. He sought to combine many nations under his own dominion--and so did Napoleon. He ruled over barbarians--and so did Peter the Great.

A few years before his death, Captain Brant built a commodious dwelling-house, two stories high, on a tract of land presented him by the King at the head of Lake Ontario--directly north of the beach which divides the lake from the sheet of water known as Burlington Bay. The situation is noble and commanding, affording a glorious prospect of that beautiful lake, with a fruitful soil and a picturesque country around it. At this place, on the 24th of November, 1807, he closed a life of greater and more uninterrupted activity for the space of half a century, than has fallen to the lot of almost any other man whose name has been inscribed by the muse of history. He was a steadfast believer in the distinguishing doctrines of Christianity, and a member of the Episcopal church at the time of his decease. He bore his illness, which was painful, with patience and resignation. He died in the full possession of his faculties, and, according to the belief of his attendants, in the full faith of the Christian religion. [FN] His age was sixty-four years and eight months. His remains were removed to the Mohawk Village, on the Grand River, and interred by the side of the church which he had built. The interests of his people, as they had been the paramount object of his exertions through life, were uppermost in his thoughts to the end. His last words that have been preserved upon this subject, were contained in a charge to his adopted nephew, Teyoninhokarawen:--"Have pity on the poor Indians: if you can get any influence with the great, endeavor to do them all the good you can." With great justice the surviving Mohawks might have, made a similar exclamation to that of King Joash at the bed of the dying prophet--"My father, my father, the chariot of Israel, and the horsemen thereof!"

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[FN] See Appendix, No. XX.