Chapter IX: The West, (20)

[1272] The enlisted Indians are occasionally heard from during the war, although their services were not conspicuous. Their fondness for liquor soon brought them into trouble, and we find that a petition signed by seventeen of them was presented to the Provincial Congress, asking that liquor might be kept out of their way. This petition was duly granted. (_Am. Arch._, 4th ser., ii. pp. 1049 and 1083.) During the siege of Boston they occasionally killed a sentry (_The Boston Gazette and Country Journal_, Aug. 7, 1775; Frothingham's _Siege of Boston_, pp. 212, 213). In _Mass. Archives_, vol. lvi. (special title, "Coat Rolls, 8 Months' Service, 1775—vol. i. Rolls"), no. 173, is a copy of what purports to be an order for bounty money, etc., signed by thirty-two persons. Appended is the following: "Camp at Charlestown, March 12, 1776. This may certify that the within named persons were soldiers in my Regiment, and served as such in the service of this province last summer, until they were discharged by his Excellency Gen. Washington. Attest, John Paterson, Col. These Indians belonged to Capt. William Goodrich's Company. Attest, John Sargent." Some of them, under the command of Captain Ezra Whittlesey, were "posted at the saw-mills", Sept. 13, 1776 (_Amer. Arch._, 5th series, ii. p. 476). If Guy Johnson is to be believed, there were enlisted Indians in the battle of Long island, and some of them were taken prisoners (_N. Y. Coll. Doc._, viii. p. 740). Washington applied for them for scouting service, Oct. 18, 1776 (_Amer. Arch._, 5th series, ii. p. 1120); Jones (_Annals of Oneida County_, p. 854) says that a considerable party of Oneidas participated in the battle of White Plains, and that a full company of Stockbridge Indians, under Captain Daniel Ninham, went to White Plains (_Ibid._ p. 888). A capture by Indians of six prisoners is reported in Moore's _Diary_, etc., i. p. 476. The Stockbridge Indians were ambuscaded at King's Bridge with severe loss, Aug. 31, 1778. (_Mag. Am. Hist._, v. p. 187.) In 1819, the survivors of this tribe, petitioning the President of the United States for the protection of their rights in certain lands in Indiana, said: "When your parent disowned you as her children, and sent over to this great island many strong warriors to burn your towns, destroy your families, and bring you into captivity, we, of the Muhheakunuks, defended your fathers on the west against the warriors which your parent had sent against you on that side; and we also sent our warriors to join your great chief, Washington, to aid him in driving back into the sea the unnatural monsters who had come up from thence to devour you, and ravage the land which we a long time before granted to your fathers to live upon." (_American State Papers—Public Lands_, vol. iii., Washington, 1834).

[1273] Kidder's _Mil. Operations in Eastern Maine_, p. 51.—ED.

[1274] In Kidder's _Expeditions of Captain John Lovewell_, it is stated that the petition for guns, blankets, etc., of thirteen Pequakets, who were willing to enlist, was granted by the Provincial Congress of Massachusetts Bay. The date of the petition is not given. For the treaty of July 10, 1776, see _Amer. Arch._, 5th, i. 835; and the reply of the Micmacs to Washington, _Ibid._ iii. 800.—ED.

[1275] On the 24th of May, Ethan Allen addressed a letter to several tribes of the Canadian Indians, asking their warriors to join with his warriors "like brothers, and ambush the regulars." This proceeding he reported to the General Assembly of Connecticut two days afterward. On the 2nd of June, Allen proposed to the Provincial Congress of New York an invasion of Canada, urging as one of the reasons therefor that there would be "this unspeakable advantage: that instead of turning the Canadians and Indians against us, as is wrongly suggested by many, it would unavoidably attach and connect them to our interest." From Newbury, Colonel Bayley, on the 23d of June, addressed the Northern Indians as follows: "If you have a mind to join us, I will go with any number you shall bring to our army, and you shall each have a good coat and blanket, etc., and forty shillings per month, be the time longer or shorter."

In the autumn of 1775, Arnold on his Kennebec march was joined at Sartigan by a number of Indians, to whom he offered "one Portuguese per month, two dollars bounty, their provisions, and the liberty to choose their own officers." Under this inducement they took their canoes and proceeded with the invading column.

[1276] Governor Trumbull, of Connecticut, was in correspondence with Major Brown. Fifteen days after the fall of Ticonderoga the governor wrote to the Provincial Congress of Massachusetts Bay, and, without mentioning his authority, spoke of the "iterated intelligence we receive of the plans framed by our enemies to distress us, by inroads of Canadians and savages from the Province of Quebec upon the adjacent settlements." (Stuart's _Trumbull_, p. 185.) In a note (_Ibid._ p. 186) an extract from a letter of Arnold, of the 19th, is given, in which Arnold says that there are "400 regulars at St. Johns, making all possible preparation to cross the lake, and expecting to be joined by a body of Indians, with a design of retaking Crown Point and Ticonderoga." (Cf. also, Arnold, May 23d, from Crown Point, in _Jour. Cong._, i. 111.) The New Hampshire Provincial Congress, on the 3d of June, 1775, had "undoubted intelligence of the attempts of the British ministry to engage the Canadians and savages in their interest, in the present controversy with America, and by actual movements in Canada." (_Sparks's MSS._) On the 6th of July, 1775, Governor Trumbull wrote to General Schuyler, enclosing a statement of a person who had been in Canada, containing the assertion that Governor Carleton "directly solicited the Indians for their assistance, but on their refusal declared he would dispossess them, and give their lands to those who would." July 21, 1775, Schuyler gave Major John Brown a general letter for use in Canada, in which he said: "Reports prevail that General Carleton intends an excursion into these parts; that for that purpose he is raising a body of Canadians and Indians." (Lossing's _Schuyler_, i. 366.) On Aug. 15th, Brown reported that "Sir John Johnson was at Montreal with a body of about 300 Tories and some Indians, trying to persuade the Caughnawagas to take up the hatchet", etc. (_Ibid._ p. 380). From the foregoing we can see that Congress had some reason to believe that the English authorities were at work among the Indians. Washington was evidently not convinced of the fact until Schuyler received information of a positive character concerning the Guy Johnson conference at Montreal. On the 24th of December, 1775, he wrote to Schuyler: "The proofs you have of the ministry's intention to engage the savages are incontrovertible. We have other confirmation of it by some despatches from John Stuart, the superintendent for the southern district, which luckily fell into my hands" (Sparks's _Washington_, iii. p. 209). Congress had not made public its previous sources of information, but it authorized the publication of "the second paragraph in General Schuyler's letter relative to the measures taken by the ministerial agents to engage the Indians in a war with the colonies." Montgomery, at St. John's, had, in September, already met with proofs of the most convincing character, but the presence of the Mohawks there, and their opposition to the American force, does not seem to have made the impression to which it was entitled.

[1277] _Secret Journals of Congress_, p. 44. Sparks, in his review of the subject, says "After the sanguinary affair at the Cedars ... Congress openly changed their system" (_Washington_, iii. p. 497). The resolution passed May 25th. Washington was then in Philadelphia. As late as June 9th, he wrote from New York: "I have been much surprised at not receiving a more explicit account of the defeat of Colonel Bedell and his party at the Cedars. I should have thought some of the officers in command would and ought to have transmitted it immediately, but as they have not, it is probable that I should have long remained in doubt as to the event, had not the commissioners called on me to-day." The coincidence of Washington's presence in Philadelphia at the time of the passage of the resolve is more significant than the fact that a battle had been fought of which the general of the army had only just heard two weeks after that date.

[1278] The address to the people of Ireland is dated May 10, 1775, the date of the assembling of Congress. The address was agreed to July 28th. It would be hard to justify the language used, if we accept the nominal date of the instrument as the actual date of its composition. When it was issued, the atrocities committed at the Cedars were still fresh in the minds of the members.

[1279] A note on the opinions of leading men, respecting the employment of Indians, is on a later page. The index (under _Indians_) to B. P. Poore's _Descriptive Catalogue_ will point to the government publications.—ED.

[1280] _Speeches_; also in Niles's _Principles_ (1876), p. 459. Cf. also Burke's _Speeches_, and the reference in Walpole's _Last Journals_, ii. 193.—ED.

[1281] This letter of Dunmore is quoted by Dartmouth. (_Am. Arch._, 4th, iii. 6.) On the 23d of April, 1779, William Livingston forwarded copy to Congress. It was ordered to be printed (Almon's _Remembrancer_, viii. p. 278). According to Bancroft, Gage in 1774 asked Carleton his opinion about raising "a body of Canadians and Indians, and for them to form a junction with the king's forces in this province." Carleton, in reply, apparently discouraged the project, saying, "You know what sort of people they [the Indians] are" (Bancroft, vii. pp. 117, 119).

[1282] Guy Johnson was the son-in-law of Sir William Johnson, as well as his successor in office, and the Mohawks said: "The love we have for Sir William Johnson, and the obligations the whole Six Nations are under to him, must make us regard and protect every branch of his family."

[1283] From the best evidence that I can get, I conclude that Ontario and Oswego are one. Stone and Lossing state that there were two conferences. Guy Johnson, in "a brief sketch of his past transactions", refers to but one (_N. Y. Col. Doc._, viii. 636).

[1284] At a conference between Captain John, in behalf of the Six Nations, and Colonel Butler, of the colony of Connecticut, in 1776, Captain John said: "We come to make you a visit, and let you know we were at the treaty at Oswego with Col. Guy Johnson." "We do now assure you that so long as the waters run, so long you may depend on our friendship. We are all of one mind and are all for peace." (Miner's _Wyoming_, p. 183.) Under date of Nov. 21, 1774, the following is entered in the records of Harvard College: "As the corporation with pleasure have received information of Mr. Zebulon Butler to engage in a mission to the Tuscarora Indians, they cheerfully signify their readiness to give him all suitable encouragement, as far as may be in their power, if he should proceed according to his intention in so laudable an undertaking." This extract will perhaps explain Col. Butler's influence among the Indians.

[1285] An unsuccessful attempt was made to detach Cameron, Stuart's deputy, from the king's service. He was offered a salary and compensation for losses if he would join the American cause. "He refused to resign his commission or accept of any employment in the colony service." Hearing later that he was to be seized, he fled to the Cherokee country. This alarmed the colonists, but they were quieted when they heard that he had written "that Captain Stewart had never given him orders to induce the Indians to fall upon Carolina, but to keep them firmly attached to his majesty" (Moultrie's _Memoirs_, i. p. 76). It appears from Stuart's correspondence that he received almost simultaneously, in the first part of October, satisfactory replies from the Indians and orders from General Gage to make use of the natives (_Amer. Arch._, 4th ser., iv. p. 317). The Catawbas, a relatively insignificant tribe, were said to be friendly to the rebels. The Cherokees were ready for attack (Almon's _Remembrancer_, Part iii., 1776, p. 180).

[1286] The reasons for believing that both these statements were true have already been given.

[1287] Bancroft's _United States_, viii. p. 88.

[1288] _Parl. Reg._, x. p. 48. Flavored as follows in a communication quoted in Almon's _Remembrancer_, viii. p. 328: "God and nature hath put into our hands the scalping-knife and tomahawk, to torture them into unconditional submission." Burgoyne's opinions at this time became important; they are in his speeches (_Parl. Reg._), his letter to the secretary of state (Ryerson's _Loyalists_), his address to the Indians (Anburey's _Travels_), and elsewhere (_Hadden's Journal and Orderly-Book_, etc.). Cf. also _Gent. Mag._, March, 1778; McKnight's _Burke_, ii. 213; _Walpole and Mason Corresp._, i. 335; Fonblanque's _Burgoyne_.—ED.

[1289] Vol. iii., App.

[1290] At the same time that some of them were engaged in hostilities in Canada, others were at Philadelphia having peace-talks with Congress (_Journals of Congress_, ii. pp. 192, 206, 207).

[1291] For the treaty at Albany in August, see _Mass. Hist. Soc. Coll._, xxv. 75, and _N. Y. Col. Doc._, viii. 605. A report of the commissioner of Indian affairs in the Northern Department, addressed to President Hancock from Albany, Dec. 14, 1775, is in _Letters and Papers, 1761-1776_ (MSS. in Mass. Hist. Soc.).—ED.

[1292] Numerous other conferences and communications between different persons and bodies and the several tribes attracted attention this season. In May, 1775, the Mohawks declared to the committee of Albany and Schenectady that it was their intention to remain neutral, but they had heard that their superintendent was threatened, and they would protect him (_Am. Arch._, 4th ser., ii. p. 842). They also addressed a letter to the Oneidas, calling on them to prevent the Bostonians from capturing him (_Ibid._ pp. 664, 665). For accounts of the conferences, see _Am. Arch._, 4th ser., iii.; also Stone's _Brant_, i. ch. v. Cf. letter from Albany in _Am. Arch._, 4th ser., iii. p. 625.

[1293] When Fort Stanwix was occupied without causing an Indian outbreak, Washington congratulated Schuyler (Sparks's _Washington_, iv. p. 24). We have but little information of the conference at Montreal which Col. Guy Johnson held in July; but in Almon's _Remembrancer_, i. p. 241, the statement is made that a considerable number of the chiefs and warriors of the Six Nations were present, and that there were also present 1,700 Caughnawagas. In the presence of Governor Carleton, "they unanimously resolved to support their engagements with his majesty, and remove all intruders on the several communications." This gives a hint of the jealousy with which they regarded the occupation of the posts at the carrying-places between the Mohawk Valley and the lakes. See also Guy Carleton's letter to Dartmouth (_N. Y. Col. Doc._, viii. 635), in which he says that at Ontario they agreed to defend the communications.

[1294] An intended conference of the Six Nations with the Canadian Indians was announced to Congress by Schuyler in January, 1776 (_Am. Arch._, 4th ser., iv. p. 898). In March the Oneidas, by their friendly interference, again prevented the taking up of the hatchet which had been surrendered at Albany. (Dean to Schuyler, _Am. Arch._, 4th ser., v. p. 768.) The Caughnawagas went to Oneida, but would not go to the Onondaga council in March (_Ibid._ p. 769). Dean went to the Onondaga council. While on the way there his life was threatened, and the Oneidas declined to go on until they received assurances of Dean's safety (_Ibid._ pp. 1100-1103). The Caughnawagas, returning from Onondaga[?], surrendered the sharp hatchet which Col. Guy Johnson had given them. ("The Commissioners in Canada to the President of Congress, Montreal, May 6, 1776", in _Ibid._ p. 1214.)

[1295] The loyalists termed this Schuyler's "Peacock Expedition", because the men decorated themselves with feathers from the peacocks at Johnson Hall. Cf. Jones's _New York_, i. 71, and note xxx.; De Peyster's _Life and Misfortunes of Sir John Johnson_ (New York, 1882), which was first issued as a part of the _Orderly-Book of Sir John Johnson_ (Albany, 1882). This contains a portrait of Sir John, which will also be found in Hubbard's _Red Jacket_.—ED.

[1296] Tuesday, March 5, 1776. Two Indian chiefs, who lately arrived in town from Canada, were introduced to his majesty at St. James's by Col. Johnson, and graciously received (_Gentleman's Magazine_, xlvi. p. 138).

[1297] See _ante_, chap. ii.

[1298] The site is at present covered by the town of Rome. Its name was changed, when occupied by the Americans, to Fort Schuyler, and for a time the new name conquered a place in the despatches, but the fort is more generally known and spoken of by its original title. There had been another Fort Schuyler at the spot where Utica now stands, and this fact has caused some confusion. See a paper on Forts Stanwix and Bull and other forts near Rome, by D. E. Wager, in the _Oneida. Hist. Soc. Trans._, 1885-86, p. 65.—ED.

[1299] The "large force at Oswego" was probably suggested by a grand Indian council held at Niagara in September, 1776, between Col. John Butler and others representing the English and fifteen Indian tribes, including representatives of the Six Nations. The Indians declared their intention to embark in the war and abide the result of the contest (MSS. of Gen. Gansevoort, quoted by Stone in his _Brant_, ii. p. 4, note).

[1300] In March the Oneidas sent a delegation, accompanied by the Rev. Mr. Kirkland, to the army, to see how matters were going. An offer made by them to act as scouts, probably a result of this tour of inspection, was on the 29th of April accepted by Congress.

[1301] Stone, in his _Brant_, i. p. 185, attributes to Herkimer an act of intended treachery utterly inconsistent with Herkimer's character as it is portrayed to us. Simms, in his _Frontiersmen_, etc. (ii. p. 19), gives a more natural version of the story.

[1302] This tragical incident, which attained great currency at the time, is followed in D. Wilson's _Life of Jane McCrea_ (New York, 1853); Mrs. Ellet's _Women of the Rev._ (ii. 221); Lossing's _Schuyler_ (ii. 250) and _Field-Book_ (vol. i.); the elder Stone's _Brant_ (i. 203), and the younger Stone's papers in _Hist. Mag._ (April, 1867) and _Galaxy_ (Jan., 1867, also in Beach's _Indian Miscellany_), and App. to his _Burgoyne's Campaign_; Asa Fitch in _N. J. Hist. Soc. Proc._, also in Stephen Dodd's _Revolutionary Memorials_; Epaphras Hoyt in _N. Y. Hist. Soc. Proc._ (1847, p. 77); _Mag. of Amer. Hist._, viii. 202; also Moore's _Diary_ (475), and Ruttenber's _Hudson River Indians_ (p. 273). The subsequent fate of Lieut. Jones, her lover, is told in the _Catholic World_, Dec., 1882.—ED.

[1303] The hints as to Burgoyne's opinions of the Indians which are derived from contemporaneous documents are of course more satisfactory than any of his subsequent expressions of opinion. In his speech in the House of Commons, May 26, 1778, his estimate of their value as soldiers was very reasonable: "Sir, I ever esteemed the Indian alliance, at best, a necessary evil. I ever believed their services to be overvalued; sometimes insignificant, often barbarous, always capricious; and that the employment of them in war was only justifiable when, by being united to a regular army, they could be kept under control, and rendered subservient to a general system." (_Parl. Reg._, ix. p. 218).

[1304] The number of Herkimer's force can never be positively ascertained. It has generally been stated at from 800 to 1,000. In the letter of the Council of Safety to John Jay and Gouverneur Morris (_Journals of the Provincial Congress, the Provincial Convention, the Committee of Safety, and the Council of Safety of the State of New York_, vol. i. p. 1039) it is estimated at 700.

[1305] _Narrative of the Mil. Actions of Col. Mariamus Willett_ (N. Y., 1831).

[1306] In Simms's _Frontiersmen_, ii. p.152, and note, there is a description of the Cobleskill affair. Simms says that Stone is in error in making two engagements, one in 1778 and one in 1779, at this spot, and he places the date at May 30, 1778. Campbell describes the event as having occurred in 1779 (_Border Warfare_, etc., p. 175). Thacher, in his _Military Journal_, mentions the event in 1778. The next date preceding the entry is May 20th; the next succeeding, June 1st. Col. Stone actually gives three accounts of this engagement,—two in the summer of 1778 and one in 1779.

[1307] The population of the valley at that time has been estimated by Miner at twenty-five hundred, who rejects the larger number given by Chapman and others as not being based on any enumeration; but John Jenkins, in 1783, represented, in behalf of the inhabitants, to the legislature, that such an enumeration was taken, and yielded six thousand persons.

[1308] From Major John Butler's report to Lieut.-Col. Bolton, dated at Lackwanak, July 8, 1778. This report was apparently withheld from Miner's agent, who wrote against its title "Disallowed at the foreign office." Butler's humanity "in making those only his object who were in arms" was the subject of congratulation of Lord George Germain, in a letter to Sir Henry Clinton. See extract in Miner's _Wyoming_, p. 234. Butler probably understates his losses; but, as is the case with all successful ambuscades, it must have been light. Miner quotes from an American prisoner, who thinks from forty to eighty fell. This seems improbable, when the circumstances of the fight are taken into consideration. The report of Colonel Denison to Governor Trumbull is among the Trumbull MSS. in the Mass. Hist. Soc.

[1309] Eleven dead Indians were left on the field. The American loss was reported by Sullivan as three killed and thirty-three wounded. The number of the enemy engaged was reported by prisoners at eight hundred, although Butler himself stated that his whole force numbered only six hundred men.

[1310] Aug. 20, 1779, General Haldimand had a conference with deputies of the Six Nations. Sullivan was then invading the Indian country. Haldimand told the Indians that he did not "establish" Oswego, because he then "had intelligence that the rebels were preparing boats at Saratoga and Albany to go up the Mohawk River, with an intention to take post at Oswego; but in the course of a few weeks he received a different account, that that was not their intention, but a large rebel army was come up the Connecticut River under the command of the rebel General Haysen, with an intention to invade this province." "As to your apprehensions of the rebels coming to attack your country, I cannot have the least thought of it" (_N. Y. Col. Doc._, viii. p. 776). Sullivan's force was accounted for as "a feint to be made upon the Susquehanna to draw the attention of Colonel Butler and the Six Nations of Indians from going to Detroit."

[1311] Respecting the original maps made by Lieut. Lodge, of Sullivan's army, showing by actual survey the routes of the several divisions of the army, General Clark informs me that they have been discovered, and will be included in a proposed volume on the campaign, to be issued by the State of New York. What seems to be an original map is preserved among the Force maps in the library of Congress. There is in Simms's _Frontiersmen_ (ii. 272) a map of Sullivan's march along Seneca and Cayuga lakes from the Tioga, following a sketch found among the papers of Capt. Machin, who was in the expedition. See note following this chapter.

For the route of Brodhead, see _Mag. of Amer. Hist._, iii. 655. Maps of the Groveland ambuscade and the Newtown fight are in the _Cayuga County Hist. Soc. Coll._, no. 1.—ED.

[1312] There is in the _Penna. Archives_, xii., a list of the forts in Pennsylvania built and maintained during the war.

[1313] It did not need that with the adoption of Indian tactics the barbarous custom of mangling the dead should be included, even for purposes of economy. "On Monday, the 30th, sent out a party for some dead Indians." "Toward morning found them, and skinned two of them from their hips down, for boot-legs: one pair for the major, the other for myself" (_Proc. N. J. Hist. Soc._, ii. p. 31,—Diary of Lieut. William Barton).

[1314] The destruction of grain in Schoharie Valley alarmed Washington. On November 5th he wrote Governor Clinton, saying: "We had the most pleasing prospects of forming considerable magazines of bread from the country which has been laid waste, and which from your Excellency's letter is so extensive that I am apprehensive we shall be obliged to bring flour from the South to support the troops at and near West Point" (Sparks's _Washington_, vii. p. 282).

[1315] The operations of the several columns are reported by Gen. Haldimand in a letter to Lord George Germain, dated Quebec, Oct. 25, 1780. The return of "rebels killed and taken on the expedition to the Mohawk River, in October, 1780", was as follows: On the Mohawk River and at Stone Arabia, the 18th, 19th, and 20th of October, prisoners, 10 privates; killed, 1 colonel and 100 privates. At Canaghsioraga, the 23d of October, prisoners, 2 captains, 1 lieutenant, 4 sergeants, 4 corporals, 45 privates; killed, 1 lieutenant, 3 privates. The returns of October 23d must refer to the capture of the party sent to destroy the boats, an event which is generally said to have been accomplished without firing a shot.

[1316] "It is thought, and perhaps not without foundation, that this incursion was made upon a supposition that Arnold's treachery had succeeded" (Sparks's _Washington_, vii. p. 269).

[1317] By a pocket-book found on Butler's person it appears that he had with him 607 men, including 130 Indians. This list is appended to Willett's report in Almon's _Remembrancer_, xiii. 341.

[1318] _Secret Journals_, p. 255.

[1319] Cf. Vol. V. p. 584.

[1320] William Leete Stone was born April 20, 1792. He died August 15, 1844. He was for many years one of the proprietors and editors of the _New York Commercial Advertiser_. In addition to the works enumerated in the text, and besides several miscellaneous works, he also published _Border Wars of the American Revolution_ (two volumes, 1839), _Poetry and History of Wyoming_, (1841), and _Life of Uncas and Miantonamoh_ (1842). He is generally spoken of as Col. Stone, a title which he gained through a staff-office. (Cf. account of Col. S. in _Hist. Mag._, Sept., 1865, and his portrait in Feb., 1866).

[1321] Cf. Vol. III. p. 510.

[1322] See Vol. IV. pp. 409-12.

[1323] _The Journals of the Provincial Congress, The Provincial Convention, The Committee of Safety, and the Council of Safety of the State of New York, 1775-1776-1777_, Albany, 1842, in two volumes, the second volume being devoted to the correspondence of the Provincial Congress. Here we are able to trace the doubts about Brant, the suspicion of Guy Johnson, and we learn what steps were taken to check their influence. Reports of conferences and meetings are given here, including the meeting between Brant and Herkimer at Unadilla.

[1324] Two of these which have been found useful in connection with this chapter are: _Indian Treaties and Laws and Regulations relating to Indian affairs, to which is added an Appendix, containing the proceedings of the Old Congress, and other important State Papers, in relation to Indian Affairs_ (published by the War Department, Washington, 1826); and _Laws, Treaties, and other documents having operation and respect to the Public Lands. Collected and arranged pursuant to an Act of Congress, passed April 27, 1810_ (Washington City, 1811).

See also _Indian Treaties, 1778-1837. Compiled by the Committee on Indian Affairs_ (Washington, 1837).

[1325] See notice in Vol. V. p. 581.

[1326] In this book there is a full account of the organization of a company of rangers, and a description of their mock Indian costume. There is also an account of the seizure and destruction by the settlers of a lot of goods which the authorities had quietly permitted to be forwarded by traders to the frontier for traffic with the Indians at a time when the border inhabitants did not wish it done. The military authorities, who interfered, were brushed away as lightly as the traders had been who complained to them. The bibliography of the book is given in Vol. V. p. 579.

[1327] See Vol. V. p. 580.

[1328] _Upper Mississippi, or historical sketches of the Mound Builders, the Indian Tribes and the progress of civilization in the Northwest, from_ A. D. _1600, to the Present time_, by George Gale (Chicago, 1867).

[1329] _An authentic and comprehensive history of Buffalo, with some account of its early inhabitants, both savage and civilised, comprising historic notions of the Six Nations, or Iroquois Indians, including a sketch of the life of Sir William Johnson, and of other prominent white men long resident among the Senecas. Arranged in chronological order_, by William Ketchum (Buffalo, 1864), 2 vols.

[1330] Mary Jemison, the white woman who lived among the Senecas so many years, is carelessly spoken of several times as Mary Johnson; elsewhere he gives the name correctly.

[1331] _The Book of the Indians and History of the Indians of North America from its first discovery to the year 1841_, by Samuel G. Drake (Boston, 1841). This is the title of the 8th edition.

[1332] _The Memoir and writings of James Handasyd Perkins_, edited by William Henry Channing (Boston, 1851), 2 vols. His chief paper originally appeared in the _N. A. Rev._, Oct., 1839.

[1333] _Annals of the West, embracing a concise account of principal events which have occurred in the Western States and territories, from the discovery of the Mississippi Valley to the year eighteen hundred and fifty-six._ Compiled from the most authentic sources, and published by James R. Albach (Pittsburgh, 1858, 3d edition).

[1334] Cf. Vol. V. p. 581.

[1335] Lack of space prevents the proper development of the influence upon the Indians, of the constant absorption by the colonies of their lands. Besides settlers with their families; besides squatters, and in addition to English companies, like the Ohio Company and the Walpole Company, the attention of individuals was directed towards these lands for the double purposes of colonization and investment. Bancroft (vi. 377) says that Franklin organized "a powerful company to plant a province in that part of the country which lay back of Virginia, between the Alleghanies and a line drawn from Cumberland Gap to the mouth of the Scioto." The correspondence of Washington discloses his eagerness to secure land for investment (see Vol. V. p. 271). He labored to get for the soldiers who had participated with him in the French wars the land bounties offered by Dinwiddie, and in addition he sought to secure land for himself by purchase. "Nothing is more certain", he wrote to his agent, "than that the lands cannot remain long ungranted, when once it is known that rights are to be had" (Sparks's _Washington_, ii. 346). "My plan is to secure a good deal of land" (_Ibid._ 348). He wished the matter kept secret, as he apprehended that others would enter into the same movement if they knew about it (_Ibid._ 349). In 1770 he personally visited the valley of the Ohio, and marked corners for the soldiers' land. While on this trip he was told by Indians that they viewed the settlements of the people on this river with an uneasy and jealous eye, and that they must be compensated for their right if the people settle there, notwithstanding the cession of the Six Nations (_Ibid._ 531).

In Pennsylvania an act was passed Feb. 18, 1769, "to prevent persons from settling on lands within the boundaries of this province not purchased of Indians." The preamble recites that "Whereas, many disorderly persons have presumed to settle upon lands not purchased of the Indians, which has occasioned great uneasiness and dissatisfaction on the part of the said Indians, and have [_sic_] been attended with dangerous consequences to the peace and safety of the province", etc. (_Laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, etc., republished under authority of the Legislature_, by Alexander James Dallas, Philadelphia, 1797).

[1336] See Vol. III. p. 161.

[1337] If land companies were disposed to avail themselves of the doubt as to what tribe of Indians had a right to sell land, so the British government itself had treated the question of their shadowy allegiance to suit its convenience. Bradstreet, in his abortive attempts at making a treaty with them, called them subjects. Sir William Johnson said the very idea of being "subjects was abhorrent to them." Compare this with the doctrine laid down in Huske's _Present State of North America_, pp. 16, 17.

[1338] Croghan's testimony does not materially alter the boundaries as they were defined by Sir William Johnson in his report to the Lords of Trade, Nov. 13, 1763 (_N. Y. Col. Docs._, vii. p. 573). "Along the ridge of the Blue Mountains to the head of the Kentucky River, and down the same to the Ohio above the rifts, thence northerly to the south end of Lake Michigan", etc. Cf. letters (1767) to Franklin from George Croghan, Joseph Galloway, and Samuel Wharton, in the Shelburne Papers (_Hist. MSS. Com. Rep._, v. 218).

Charles W. E. Chapin contributed an article entitled "The Property Line of 1768", to the _Magazine of American History_, January, 1887. He shows how the boundary line defined in the Fort Stanwix treaty came to be known as the "Property Line", and forcibly points out the powerful influence this treaty had upon the Revolution.

[1339] _The Register of Pennsylvania, devoted to the preservation of facts and documents, and every other kind of useful information respecting the State of Pennsylvania_, 16 vols., 1828-1835, a weekly journal, edited by Samuel Hazard. See Vol. III. p. 510.

[1340] Cf. Vol. III. p. 508.

[1341] _An historical Amount of the Expedition against the Ohio Indians in the year 1764 under the command of Henry Bouquet_, etc., (London, reprinted for T. Jefferies, etc., 1766), App., vol. v. p. 69.

[1342] See also Stone's _Sir William Johnson_, Appendix, ii. no. vii. p. 486.

[1343] This original edition is called _History of the Discovery of America, of the landing of our forefathers at Plymouth, and of their most remarkable engagements with the Indians in New England from their first landing in 1620, until the final subjugation of the natives in 1669_. _To which is annexed the defeat of Generals Braddock, Harmer, and St. Clair by the Indians at the Westward, etc._ By the Rev. James Steward, D. D. (Brooklyn, L. I., no date). Slight changes were made in some of the titles to later editions, to indicate the material added, and the date 1669 was altered to 1679. Pritts, under the impression that it was a rare book, reprinted it in his _Border Life_, etc. Its accuracy was impugned in the _Historical Magazine_ (1857, p. 376; and 1858, p. 29). It was vigorously denounced in Field's _Indian Bibliography_ (no. 1,570, p. 397). "This work under all its Protean forms bears evidence that it was written for a comparatively unlettered public." Col. Peter Force is quoted as having said that he found twenty-two chronological errors on a single page. The notice concludes: "Under all forms there is only a variation of worthlessness." Dr. Trumbull gives a brief bibliographical notice in the _Brinley Catalogue_ (which shows six editions), from which I have extracted some of the information used in the text. The very poor woodcuts with which the book was originally illustrated, the violent colors with which the wretched illustrations of some of the later editions were disfigured, and the errors of dates, have prevented recognition of what there was of value about it.

[1344] It is not worth while to undertake to follow this book through all its editions and changes. It is important, however, for our purposes to note some of them. The estimate to which I have alluded is given in the appendix of the edition referred to above (p. 176), and the statement is made that it was obtained "from a gentleman employed in one of the Indian treaties." There was a second issue of the first edition with the imprint "Norwich", and the authorship attributed to "A Citizen of Connecticut." An edition was published at "Norwich, for the Author, at his Office", in 1810. In this edition "Henry Trumbull" appears as the author. Another edition was issued at Norwich in 1811, and another in 1812. One was also issued at Trenton in 1812. In these various editions slight changes in the arrangement of materials took place, some corrections were made, and from time to time additional matter was inserted. The name of the gentleman who furnished the list of Indians is given on page 115 of the Trenton edition, which I have been able to consult, as Benjamin Hawkins. Editions were published at Boston in 1819, 1828, 1841, and 1846. Dr. Trumbull is of opinion that there must be twenty editions of the book, which is certainly poor enough; but it happens that this list, which was evidently furnished by some one familiar with the subject, is to our purpose. The same list did service in _A Tour in the United States of America_, etc., by J. F. D. Smyth (London, 1784), where it appears (i. p. 347) without recognition of the original source. The arrangement of the order of tribes is changed, and the spelling of many of the Indian names is altered to correspond with the French methods of spelling, thus suggesting the possibility that the list may have been transcribed by Smyth from some French work. The author foots up the total number of warriors, including certain tribes west of the Mississippi and others in Canada, at 58,930. To these he adds one third to represent the old men, and making an error in his calculation, calls the total number of men 88,570. Allowing six souls for each male warrior he arrives at a total of 531,420, which, he says, "I consider as the whole number of souls, namely, men, women, and children of all the Indian nations."

[1345] _Views of Louisiana, together with a Journal of a Voyage up the Missouri River in 1811._ By H. M. Brackenridge, Esq. (Pittsburgh, 1814).

[1346] _Voyage dans les deux Louisianes et chez les Nations Sauvages du Missouri, par les Etats-Unis, l'Ohio et les Provinces qui le bordent, en 1801, 1802, et 1803; Avec un apperçu des mœurs, des usages, du caractère et des coutumes religieuses et civiles des peuples de ces diverses Countrées_, par M. Perrin du Lac (A Lyon, 1805).

[1347] It is also given in Campbell's _Annals of Tryon County_, note L, p. 319.

[1348] Three of the estimates referred to in the text are reprinted by Schoolcraft under the following headings: "Enumeration of M. Chauvignerie's Official Report to the Government of Canada, A. D. 1736;" "Estimate of Colonel Bouquet, 1764;" "Estimate of Captain Thomas Hutchins, 1764." Schoolcraft also gives one more estimate of that period, viz.: "Account of the Indian Nations given in the year 1778 by a Trader who resided many years in the neighborhood of Detroit. (From the MSS. of James Madison.)" (Schoolcraft's _Indian Tribes_, iii. p. 553.)

[1349] All of the authorities to which he refers have already been cited, and it may fairly be said that there is nothing of special value in his remarks on the subject. In the development of the topic to which the work is devoted the author alludes to the custom of the Indians to refrain from connection with women not only during the time that they were on the war-path, but for some days before starting. The unanimity of testimony as to this custom of the Indians renders special citations unnecessary. Until the natives were debauched in this respect by contact with civilization, no authentic instance can be found of the violation of a woman by a warrior on the war-path. Brantz Mayer, in his defence of Cresap (_Logan and Cresap_, p. 110), quotes from the _Md. Gazette_ (Nov. 30, 1774) a charge of this sort. If there was foundation for it in the minds of those who made it, investigation would probably have traced the outrage to whites disguised as Indians. The superstition which protected women from Indian assault was still in force at that time.

[1350] The editor says he "has given the following memorandum of Indian _fighting men_, inhabiting near the distant parts, in 1762; to indulge the curious in future times, and show also the extent of Dr. Franklin's travels. He believes it likely to have been taken by Dr. Franklin in an expedition which he made as a commander in the Pennsylvania militia, in order to determine measures and situation for the outposts; but is by no means assured of the accuracy of this opinion. The paper, however, is in Dr. Franklin's handwriting: but it must not be mistaken as containing a list of the whole of the natives enumerated, but only as such part of them as lived near the places described."

[1351] In addition to a vast number of reports, extracts from letters, and proceedings of one sort and another, I would call especial attention to the following papers: Carleton's Commission (ii. p. 120); Proceedings connected with Connolly's arrest (ii. pp. 218-221); Schuyler's expedition to Tryon County (iii. p. 135); Stuart's letter to Gage, Oct. 3, 1776 (Part iii., 1776, iv. p. 180); an account of Wyoming massacre from fugitives (vii. p. 51); Col. Wm. Butler's report to General Stark of the destruction of Unadilla, etc. (vii. pp. 253-255); Colonel Van Schaick's report of the destruction of Onondaga (viii. p. 272); the Minisink affair (viii. pp. 275, 276); the letter of the Earl of Dartmouth to Lord Dunmore (viii. p. 278); attack On Indians at Ogeechee, April, 1779 (viii. p. 300); action of the Council at Williamsburgh in Hamilton's case (viii. p. 337); letters from Sullivan's headquarters concerning battle at Newtown (ix. p. 23); Sullivan's proclamation to Oneidas (ix. p. 25); Brodhead's report of his expedition (ix. p. 152); Sullivan's report, Teaoga, Sept. 30, 1779 (ix. p. 158); Joint movements in the valleys of Mohawk, Hudson, and Connecticut (xi. pp. 81-83). The foregoing sufficiently illustrates the wealth of historical material collected in the _Remembrancer_.

[1352] The _Register_ contains nearly all the papers submitted to Parliament which bore upon American affairs, together with other documents which the publishers from time to time added to the volumes. The _Remembrancer_ and the _Register_ together furnish the means of writing a history of the border warfare of the Revolution which would be nearly complete. A large mass of documentary material respecting the relation of General Haldimand in Quebec with the Indians and with British officers operating with the Indians is in the _Haldimand Papers_, in the British Museum, of which the Dominion archivist, Douglas Brymner, is now printing a calendar in his _Annual Reports_ (Ottawa). The correspondence of Haldimand and Guy Johnson, 1778-1783, makes three vols. Many papers on this border warfare are in the Quebec series of MSS. in the Public Record Office, and are also noted by Brymner (_Report_, 1883, p. 79).—ED.

[1353] In the _Secret Journals_, the Articles of Confederation, proposed by Franklin on the 21st of July, 1775, are printed in full. I have had occasion to refer to them because an offensive and defensive alliance with the Six Nations is proposed in them. In the "Advertisement" to the edition of the _Secret Journals_ which is cited, the publishers say that these Articles "have never before been published." In the _Gentleman's Magazine_ (xlv. p. 572) a "Plan of the American Confederacy" is given. This plan is copy of Franklin's proposed Articles of Confederation, with a preamble addressed to the Provincial Congress of North Carolina, and was apparently received from that colony. In connection with this, see Bancroft (viii. p. 97). In the _Scot's Magazine_ (Edinburgh, 1775, xxxvii. p. 665) these Articles were copied from the _Gentleman's Magazine_, with this comment: "The copy from whence this was printed was addressed particularly to the Province of North Carolina; but the same was without doubt submitted to the consideration of every other Provincial Congress, as the preamble clearly shows." The preamble thus referred to reads: "The Provincial Congress of —— are to view the following Articles as a subject which will be proposed to the Continental Congress at their next session." These two magazines publish the Articles as a mere submission of a plan. When the proposed Articles of Confederation reached the _Annual Register_ they became "Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union entered into by the several colonies of New Hampshire, &c., &c., in General Congress met at Philadelphia, May 20, 1775" (_Annual Register_, 1775, p. 253). These Articles were also published as if they had been adopted in _The History of the British Empire, etc._ By a Society of Gentlemen. (Printed for Robert Campbell & Co., Philadelphia, 1798, 2 vols.: i. p. 188, note.) They are also given as Articles of Confederation, etc., entered into, etc., May 20, 1775, in _An Impartial History of the War in America_, etc., Boston, 1781, Appendix to vol. i. p. 410.

[1354] The rumors current in the colonies during the progress of events express the hopes and the fears of the colonists, and to a certain extent also indicate their opinions. We should naturally expect to find in an American collection of this sort something to help us in getting at the views of the colonists on the question of employing Indians. In fact, there is but little to be found in the book on this subject, and we are obliged to turn again to Almon's _Remembrancer_, where we find numerous rumors recorded, some of them improbable in their very nature, but serving to indicate the hopes of the people; as for instance, in a letter from Pittsfield, May 18, 1775: "The Mohawks had given permission to the Stockbridge Indians to join us, and also had 500 men of their own in readiness to assist" (i. p. 66). Again, Worcester, May 10: "We hear that the Senecas, one of the Six Nations, are determined to support the colonies" (i. p. 84). [This extract will be found in the _Spy_ of that date.] June 20, 1775: "The Indians from Canada, when applied to by Governor Carleton to distress the settlement, say they have received no offence from the people, so will not make war with them" (i. p. 147). August 3: "The Canadians and Indians cannot be persuaded by Governor Carleton to join his forces, but are determined to remain neuter" (i. p. 169). August 12: "The Indian nations, for a thousand miles westward, are very staunch friends to the colonies, there being but one tribe inclined to join Governor Carleton, of which, however, there is no danger, as the others are able to drive that tribe and all the force Carleton can raise" (i. p. 251). The _Boston Gazette and Country Journal_ for August 21, 1775, contains the statement that "all apprehensions of danger from our fellow-subjects in Canada and the Indians are entirely removed." The arrival of Swashan, with four other Indians of the St. Francois tribe, at Cambridge, with the statement that "they were kindly received and are now in the service", is printed in the columns of the same journal. Cf. Drake's _Book of the Indians_, iii. ch. xii. p. 156; Moore's _Diary of the Rev._, i. p. 127. The _Boston Gazette_, etc. (Dec. 4, 1775) has the following: "Last week his Excellency the Commander-in-Chief received some despatches from the Honorable Continental Congress, by which we have authentic intelligence that several nations of the Western Indians have offered to send 3,000 men to join the American forces whenever wanted." _The New England Chronicle or the Essex Gazette_, from Thursday, July 27, to Thursday, August 3, 1775, published at Stoughton Hall, Harvard College, under date of Aug. 3, says: "We can't learn that a single tribe of savages on this continent have been persuaded to take up the hatchet against the colonies, notwithstanding the great pains made use of by the vile emissaries of a savage ministry for that purpose."

[1355] Also in Campbell's _Border Warfare of New York during the Rev. War_ (a second edition of his _Annals of Tryon County_), App.

[1356] This petition, if in the _Mass. Archives_, as one might infer, cannot now be found there.

[1357] For instance, John Sullivan and John Langdon write from Philadelphia, May 22, 1775, that the Indians tell them Guy Johnson "has really endeavored to persuade the Indians to enter into a war with us" (vii. p. 501); Lewa, a well-known Indian, reports the Canadian Indians friendly to the Americans, and says he "can raise 500 Indians to assist at any time" (vii. p. 525); Governor Trumbull has learned that "the Cognawaga Indians have had a war-dance, being bro't to it by Gen. Carleton" (vii. p. 532); Rev. Dr. Eleazer Wheelock gives Dean's report as to the good-will of the Canadian Indians (vii. p. 547).

[1358] Sparks asserts that Natanis, a Penobscot chief, was in the interest of Carleton (_Washington_, iii. p. 112, note). Judge Henry says he was one of those who joined Arnold at Sartigan. In the _American Archives_ (5th ser., i. pp. 836, 837), James Bowdoin, writing to Washington, says that the Penobscots said "that when General Washington sent his army to Canada, five of their people went with them, and two of them were wounded and three taken prisoners." The small number of Indians who accompanied Arnold cut no figure in the campaign, but the advance of the column under Montgomery excited fears in the minds of the English in Canada that the invaders might use the natives as auxiliaries, precisely as the Americans feared a similar use on the English side. In Almon's _Remembrancer_ (ii. p. 108), a letter from Quebec states: "General Montgomery, who commands the provincial troops, consisting of two regiments of New York militia, a body of Continental troops, and some Indians", etc. On Sept. 16, 1775, General Carleton, writing from Montreal to Gage, in an account of the landing of the Americans near St. John's, says: "Many Indians have gone over to them, and large numbers of Canadians are with them at Chamblée" (Sparks's _Washington_, iii. 110, note). The Canadian Indians, instead of contributing to Montgomery's force, asked for protection,—a plea which apparently seemed, in the excitement of the hour in Canada, to be a declaration of friendship. "The Caghnawagas have desired a 100 men from us. I have complied with their request, and am glad to find they put so much confidence in us, and are so much afraid of Mr. Carleton" (letter from Montgomery, camp before St. John's, Oct. 20, 1775, in Almon's _Remembrancer_, ii. p. 122). The Mohawks, on the contrary, acted on the English side, and some of them were killed by the Americans.

[1359] It was from these reports, as well as from personal interviews, that Washington formed his opinion as to the temper of the Canadian and Northern Indians. A few quotations will illustrate what he had a right to think, _e. g._ (p. 35) report of committee, August 3, 1775, appointed to confer with Lewis, a chief of the Caughnawaga tribe. "_Question._ Has the governor of Canada prevailed on the St. Francois Indians to take up arms against these colonies? _Answer._ The governor sent out Messi'rs St. Luc and Bœpassion to invite the several tribes of Indians to take up arms against you.... They answered nobody had taken up arms against them, and they would not take arms against anybody to trouble them, and they chose to rest in peace." Again (p. 80), the committee appointed to confer with the St. Francois tribe reported, Aug. 18, 1775: "_Q._ If Governor Carleton should know you offered us your assistance, are you not afraid he would destroy you? _A._ We are not afraid of it; he has threatened us, but if he attacks us we have arms to defend ourselves." Once more (p. 81): "_Q._ Do you know whether any tribes have taken up arms against us? _A._ All the tribes have agreed to afford you assistance, if wanted." Also (p. 89), Aug. 21st, £10 was appropriated for the use of five Indians belonging to the St. Francois tribe, "one being a chief of said tribe; the other four, having entered into the Continental army, are to receive eight pounds of said sum as one month's advance wages for each of them;" and (p. 148) Oct. 9, speech of two head sachems of the St. John's tribe. "Penobscot Falls, September 12, 1775. We have talked with the Penobscot tribe, and by them we hear that you are engaged in a war with Great Britain, and that they are engaged to join you in opposing your and our enemies. We heartily join with our brethren in the colony of Massachusetts, and are resolved to stand together, and oppose the people of Old England, that are endeavoring to take your and our lands and liberties from us."