MANNER OF CALLING THE COUNCIL AND THE PREPARATIONS.
It had occupied from twelve to fifteen days, after the arrival of the
Commissioners at Green Bay, to convene the public Council ordered and
contemplated. The day fixed for organizing its sessions was the 24th
of August. In the mean time _runners_ they are called among Indians,
and as in fact they are, (couriers) were despatched to all the tribes
interested in the public deliberations about to be opened, to notify
them of the time, place, and object of the Convention. They were
formally served with copies of letters from their great Father, the
President of the United States, assuring them of his good wishes,
and of his desire to bring all their disputes to an amicable and
satisfactory adjustment; and that for this purpose he had sent Erastus
Root, John T. Mason, and James M’Call, good and true men, to hold a
_talk_[13] with his children in the North-West, who had quarrelled
among themselves, and asked their great Father’s mediations;--to hear
all they might have to say on either side;--to recommend peace and a
just settlement of their disputes;--to remove all occasions of the
improper interference of their great Father’s white children;--and then
to come back to the Council-house of the great nation at Washington,
and say: “All the sores are healed.” And this would give their great
Father much happiness.
Such was the _substance_ of the notices sent to the chiefs of the
tribes, as in a plural number of instances I heard them delivered
and interpreted;--kind enough certainly, and very promising. And
these notices were accompanied by a certified copy of the particular
instructions, given to the Commissioners, and investing them with their
powers;--setting forth the understanding of the case in that department
of Government at Washington, whose duty it is to superintend this sort
of business;--prescribing the course of procedure, and controlling the
result.
As a question afterwards arose, whether it was proper thus to have
made these instructions public, and some regret was manifested by the
Commissioners, that they had done so, instead of keeping them in their
own power, I shall take no advantage of an official inadvertence, which
was afterwards regretted by the board of Commissioners. I have already
recognized the bearings of these instructions in another place. As
I have sufficient reasons to believe, that notwithstanding they had
the formal sanction of the Government, the construction of them was
yet resigned to a private discretion, which was previously inclined
to what I esteem to be the wrong side, I am not ambitious to expose
them. This supposed history of the instructions may, perhaps, save
the conscience of the highest authorities, in this particular item.
They did not understand the case; and it was _convenient_ to leave the
matter in hands, where it ought not to have been left. But, whatever
results might come, the President of the United States would of course
be compromitted, and must sanction them.
Nor would I insinuate, that there was any thing in these instructions,
more or less, than, that, in the first place:--they were based
upon incorrect information, and assumed facts, which had had no
existence;--and _next_, that they left no power with the Commissioners
to do right, and obliged them to do wrong, if they did any thing.
Even if the Commissioners had been left to their own unrestricted
discretion, it was no easy matter for them to come at the right of
the case. There were moral obstacles in their way: they were in the
confidence of an administration, the general policy of which, in
regard to the Indians, was known to be:--to throw them all west of the
Mississippi. They must have some respect, therefore, to the trust,
which had been reposed in them by supreme authority. And next:--the
influence of the North-West, in support of the administration, to
which the Commissioners were devoted, was worth something. _They_
must not be _astounded_ by the manifestation of a determination in
the Commissioners to restore the original rights of the Indians;--or
to assume, as a basis of their deliberations, the first covenants
between the New York Indians and the wild tribes of the North-West
Territory. That would never do. The Green Bay settlement of whites had
already been commenced. Men, too important to the party in power, to
be despised, were already planted there; and had a great interest at
stake in the organization of the North-West Territory into a separate
government. To think, therefore, of throwing a _bar_ in their way, and
circumventing their designs, would be running a risk, which could not
conveniently be hazarded. It was prudent, therefore, to _assume_, that
this territory _must_ become a separate State;--and that nothing must
be done by this Commission, that would interfere with such a purpose.
Besides:--the confusion and contradiction of testimony, while opening
their ears to all parties, would naturally afford abundant materials
of an apology for pursuing a middle course--and of swerving even
towards that side, which it might be deemed most important to please.
And although their decisions, controlled by such considerations,
might not be a final settlement of the dispute; yet they would afford
some plausibility of defence against the complaints of either party,
and leave open the door for the consummation of the designs of _only
one_;--and which that _one_ might be, it is unnecessary to say.
* * * * *
It was curious, and in no small degree interesting, to observe the
arrangements making among the Indians for the public Convocation of the
24th of August. Some several days beforehand, Indian canoes were seen
floating and gliding along on the placid bosom of Fox River, part of
them coming down the current from the south and west, and part coming
up from the shores of the Bay, towards the place of rendezvous, near
Fort Howard, on the north bank and some four or five miles from the
mouth of the river, in the heart of what is called the settlement of
Green Bay:--all filled with men, women, and children, and with tackle,
not for war, but to build _lodges_. In other words, they brought their
families, their houses, and all their furniture of life, with them. For
the last two or three days previous, the number flocking in greatly
augmented;--and the very last day before the 24th was a time of great
bustle and activity. The river literally swarmed with canoes. And all
along its banks on either side, within a mile of the point fixed upon
to hold the Council, lodges of Indians might be seen, single or in
clusters, teeming with their peculiar and various population of men,
women, children, dogs, pet bears, pet foxes, &c. &c. It is understood,
of course, that I am now speaking of _wild_ Indians. Those belonging to
the same tribe manifested a disposition to concentrate at one point,
and maintain the exclusive occupancy of the position.
The Menomenians took up their position on the plain behind the fort, on
the north bank of the river;--and there in the course of two or three
days built a town. For so it seemed--and so it was--a town of Indian
lodges, grouped and thrown together without any order, every new comer
setting up his tent, as near to those already established, as possible;
until many acres of the plain were completely covered, and exhibited
a rare spectacle to the eye. An Indian lodge is neither larger, nor
higher, than a soldier’s tent--it is itself properly a tent; and is as
soon taken down and as soon set up. The fashion and show of it are as
unsightly as can well be imagined--covered with large sheets of birch
bark, and encircled by a wall composed perhaps of a yard-wide matting,
woven from some coarse vegetable substance, not unlike the bulrush.
Some of the lodges are entirely open to the weather. The ground is
their floor and their bed, except as some of them can afford a piece
of matting;--a blanket the ordinary and principal article of clothing,
except as parts of the person are concealed by some slight and loose
articles of undress. Females, that can afford it, are fond of gaudy and
glaring calicoes, for a short gown; and will tie around them a yard
square of blue woollen, for a petticoat, without a stitch bestowed upon
it; the list, or border, running around the bottom, being regarded
as ornamental. The addition of a pair of scarlet gaiters, buck-skin
moccasins, a string of beads, and beaver hat, would make a perfect
lady. But few are seen making such an extravagant show. Displays of
this sort belong to the privileged orders.
But I was speaking of this town of the Menomenies, which so suddenly,
and so much like enchantment sprung into being before our eyes, on the
north bank of Fox River. I rose one morning a little after the sun,
having lodged on the opposite bank; and as the clouds of fog, resting
upon the river, began to break and float away, my eye caught, through
the shifting openings of the mist, a glance or two of what seemed a
great city, reflecting the rays of the morning sun; and of the lazy
columns of smoke, issuing from countless chimnies:--all for the moment
a perfect illusion. The fog was soon gone--and lo! it was the Menomenie
city of lodges! To visit them, and go among them, and see how they
live, does not present their condition as at all enviable. Wild Indians
are generally an indolent, sordid, and filthy race--sunk into some of
the lowest conditions of barbarism.
The Winnebagoes, for the most part, made their encampment on the
south side of the river, not differing materially from those of the
Menomenies, except in not being so extensive. The whole number of
Indians collected on this occasion was perhaps a little less than
_three thousand_;--it being intended only as a convocation of the
chiefs. But curiosity, and the hope of participating in the gratuitous
distributions of some food, and whiskey, and trifling articles, which
are commonly made by the Government on such occasions, had brought
them together. It is humiliating and painful to be obliged to witness
the sordid passion of the wild Indian, which not only allows him to
receive a gift from the hand of a white man; but which, like the hungry
spaniel, causes him to jump at the veriest and vilest crumb, which the
white man throws at his feet. It shows but too well, how much and how
altogether the Indian is in the white man’s power.
I have been painfully struck and often deeply affected, at the proofs
I had at Green Bay, of the extreme and unguarded susceptibility of
the Indians, of being injured in morals and manners, and of being
precipitated to irretrievable ruin, by intercourse with vicious and
unprincipled white men. To make a gain of their simplicity, is by no
means the greatest offence. The dishonour sometimes done to the fairest
of their women, is frightful. If the Government had any suitable
parental care over the Indians, whom it calls children; and calls them
so, I think, more in mockery, than in propriety; and whose filial
confidence it inspires only to gain advantage over their credulity;
(I declare it as a _consequence_, rather than an _intent_) it would
certainly never authorise these public occasions. They are demoralising
beyond all estimation--fearfully so. It is not simply a season of
dissipation--it is a time of absolute and uninterrupted riot--a riot of
drunkenness and debauchery.
It has been said, that the Indian is constitutionally adapted to
drunkenness, when he can get the means, and to its consequent vices
and ruin; and that there is no use in trying to save him. They are a
race devoted to the doom of annihilation. In other words:--the sooner
there is an end of them, the better;--as they occupy ground, which
can be more usefully appropriated. I would not ascribe this shocking
morality--this inhumanity--this sentiment, which proves the man, who
utters it, more a savage and ruthless barbarian, than the race which he
proscribes;--no, I would not ascribe it to any considerable portion of
a community. But yet--it has been said. And more: it is a leaven of no
inconsiderable influence. I would be glad to believe, that it has no
influence with men, who are to be found in high places.
Is it necessary to say, that this charge is as egregiously
unphilosophical, as it is atrociously cruel and libellous? I have
called it inhuman; it is all that; it is barbarous. The Indian, in his
wild condition, is an uncultivated and simple child of nature; and in
addition to this, and to account for the whole, it is only necessary
to say:--that the Indian is a _man_. It is not essential to bring in
a doctrine of the Christian religion;--common experience is enough,
to prove, that human nature, unprotected, will catch vice. The Indian
loves excitement, without regard to consequence;--because he is too
simple to reckon upon consequences. Ardent spirits produce at once
that delightful and romantic delirium, in which he likes to revel; and
having once tasted the sweets of the intoxicating draught, and being
without education and without the influences of a cultivated society
to protect him, and without character to lose, (for intemperance among
Indians is not dishonourable) is it strange, that he should seek that
exemption, which it affords, from a sense of the hardships, and from
the cares of his destitute condition? Is it strange, that he should fly
to the arms of that delicious enjoyment, which it yields to the grosser
affections of his uncultivated nature? If, with all the protections
of a refined education, and under all the checks and remonstrances
of civilized society, with the loss of character impending, and the
foresight of certain ruin, temporal and eternal, so many thousands of
the best and the highest are daily falling victims to this insinuating
foe of human happiness--shall it be said, that the untutored Indian
alone is constitutionally disposed;--that he is born a drunkard;--and
that there is no salvation for him?--It is disgraceful--it is
abominable--it is as cruel as it is unchristian.
I protest, therefore, on the ground of humanity--and if it were
possible, I would make the notes of my remonstrance ring in the
conscience-chamber of the highest authorities, at the city of
Washington, until they might blush, and be made afraid of the wrath
of heaven, so long as they are accustomed to appoint and hold these
public negotiations with the Indian tribes, under circumstances so
demoralizing and so ruinous. The Indian comes to such a place with his
family, comparatively uncorrupt. They come from their remote and quiet
abodes, and from an even tenor of life. Neither he, nor they can resist
temptation. They receive presents; and what is worst of all, whisky is
dealt out to them, at the order of the Commissioners; they buy it at
the shops of the white man; and then all is wildness and tumult. The
Indian is no longer himself. They riot together in intemperance, and
the worst of vices. They lie drunk in heaps. You cannot walk abroad,
but you must dodge to keep out of the way of the staggering and
furious Indian. The grey-headed chief and the well-formed and athletic
youth reel along the way together. The mother and her daughter and her
little child are often seen in the same condition.
As we dropped anchor in the river on our first arrival, attracted by
curiosity, several Indian canoes came along-side, in which I observed
a number of the natives of a more respectable condition,--and for
them, well-dressed. Some of them displayed silver ornaments of no
inconsiderable value, (for which they are very partial) lying upon
their shoulders and neck, and suspended from their ears and nose. Among
the rest I saw a beautiful young woman, richly dressed, full of smiles,
and really charming. She stood, and moved, and shone in all her maiden
pride and loveliness. The next day, as I was walking along the banks of
the river, with company, I met this same young woman, but thoroughly
transformed. Her beaver-hat was laid aside--her hair dishevelled--her
costly dress and ornaments, if still retained, were all hidden by a
blanket, thrown over her shoulders, and covering the whole person--and
with a countenance dejected and disconsolate, and her eye fixed upon
the ground, she moaned piteously along the way, regarding none, and
with a voice, which though sweetly musical, yet fell upon the ear in
such plaintive and thrilling intonations, as to reveal at once all her
conscious wretchedness, and challenge the deepest sympathy. “What is
the matter with that girl?” I asked. “She has, doubtless, been tempted
to drink, and then dishonoured, and is now deserted by a white man;
and she sees and feels her irretrievable ruin, and is too simple a
child of nature not to betray it!” “But may it not be supposed, that
she has been injured by one of her own tribe?” “Never--never.” The
second person of this brief dialogue was a man, whose opinion, in such
a matter, may be respected.