The Honourable _G E O R G E T H O M A S_, Esq; Lieutenant-Governor.
_James Logan_, }
_Thomas Lawrence_, }
_Robert Strettell_, } Esqrs;
_Clement Plumsted_, }
_Abraham Taylor_, }
Mr. _Richard Peters_.
_C A N A S S A T E G O_, } And sundry Chiefs of the _Six Nations_.
_S H I C K C A L A M Y_, }
_S A S S O O N A N_, and the _Delawares_.
_N U T T I M U S_, and the _Fork-Indians_.
_C O N R A D W E I S E R_, Interpreter.
_Pisquetoman_, }
_Cornelius Spring_, } Interpreters to the _Fork-Indians_.
_Nicholas Scull_, }
_C A N A S S A T E G O_ said:
'_B R E T H R E N, the Governor and Council_,
'The other Day you informed us of the Misbehaviour of our
Cousins the _Delawares_, with respect to their continuing to
claim, and refusing to remove from some Land on the River
_Delaware_, notwithstanding their Ancestors had sold it by a
Deed under their Hands and Seals to the Proprietaries, for a
valuable Consideration, upwards of _fifty_ Years ago; and
notwithstanding that, they themselves had also not many Years
ago, after a long and full Examination, ratified that Deed of
their Ancestors, and given a fresh one under their Hands and
Seals; and then you requested us to remove them, inforcing your
Request with a String of Wampum.--Afterwards we laid on the
Table our own Letters by _Conrad Weiser_; some of our Cousins
Letters, and the several Writings to prove the Charge against
our Cousins, with a Draught of the Land in Dispute.--We now tell
you, we have perused all these several Papers: We see with our
own Eyes, that they have been a very unruly People, and are
altogether in the Wrong in their Dealings with you.--We have
concluded to remove them, and oblige them to go over the River
_Delaware_, and quit all Claim to any Lands on this Side for the
future, since they have received Pay for them, and it is gone
thro' their Guts long ago.--To confirm to you that we will see
your Request executed, we lay down this String of Wampum in
return for yours.'
Then turning to the _Delawares_, holding a Belt of Wampum in his Hand,
he spoke to them as follows:
'_C O U S I N S_,
'Let this Belt of Wampum serve to chastise you. You ought to be
taken by the Hair of the Head and shaked severely, till you
recover your Senses and become sober. You don't know what Ground
you stand on, nor what you are doing. Our Brother _Onas_'s Cause
is very just and plain, and his Intentions are to preserve
Friendship. On the other Hand, your Cause is bad; your Heart far
from being upright; and you are maliciously bent to break the
Chain of Friendship with our Brother _Onas_, and his People. We
have seen with our Eyes a Deed sign'd by nine of your Ancestors
above _fifty_ Years ago for this very Land, and a Release
sign'd, not many Years since, by some of yourselves and Chiefs
now living, to the Number of fifteen or upwards.--But how came
you to take upon you to sell Land at all? We conquered you; we
made Women of you; you know you are Women, and can no more sell
Land than Women; nor is it fit you should have the Power of
selling Lands, since you would abuse it. This Land that you
claim is gone thro' your Guts; you have been furnished with
Cloaths, Meat, and Drink, by the Goods paid you for it, and now
you want it again, like Children as you are.--But what makes you
sell Land in the Dark? Did you ever tell us that you had sold
this Land? Did we ever receive any Part, even the Value of a
Pipe-Shank, from you for it? You have told us a blind Story,
that you sent a Messenger to us to inform us of the Sale, but he
never came amongst us, nor we never heard any thing about
it.--This is acting in the Dark, and very different from the
Conduct our _Six_ Nations observe in the Sales of Land; on such
Occasions they give publick Notice, and invite all the _Indians_
of their united Nations, and give them all a Share of the
Present they receive for their Lands.--This is the Behaviour of
the wise united Nations.--But we find you are none of our Blood:
You act a dishonest Part, not only in this, but in other
Matters: Your Ears are ever open to slanderous Reports about our
Brethren; you receive them with as much Greediness as lewd Women
receive the Embraces of bad Men. And for all these Reasons we
charge you to remove instantly; we don't give you the Liberty to
think about it. You are Women. Take the Advice of a wise Man,
and remove immediately. You may return to the other Side of
_Delaware_ where you came from: But we do not know whether,
considering how you have demean'd yourselves, you will be
permitted to live there; or whether you have not swallowed that
Land down your Throats as well as the Land on this Side. We
therefore assign you two Places to go, either to _Wyomen_ or
_Shamokin_. You may go to either of these Places, and then we
shall have you more under our Eye, and shall see how you behave.
Don't deliberate; but remove away, and take this Belt of
Wampum.'
This being interpreted by _Conrad Weiser_ into _English_, and by
_Cornelius Spring_ into the _Delaware_ Language, _Canassatego_ taking a
String of Wampum, added further.
'After our just Reproof, and absolute Order to depart from the
Land, you are now to take Notice of what we have further to say
to you. This String of Wampum serves to forbid you, your
Children and Grand-Children, to the latest Posterity for ever,
meddling in Land-Affairs; neither you, nor any who shall descend
from you, are ever hereafter to presume to sell any Land: For
which purpose, you are to preserve this String, in Memory of
what your Uncles have this Day given you in Charge.--We have
some other Business to transact with our Brethren, and therefore
depart the Council, and consider what has been said to you.'
_Canassatego_ then spoke to the Governor and Council:
'_B R E T H R E N_,
'We called at our old Friend _James Logan_'s, in our Way to this
City, and to our Grief we found him hid in the Bushes, and
retired, thro' Infirmities, from publick Business. We press'd
him to leave his Retirement, and prevailed with him to assist
once more on our Account at your Councils. We hope,
notwithstanding his Age, and the Effects of a Fit of Sickness,
which we understand has hurt his Constitution, that he may yet
continue a long Time to assist this Province with his Counsels.
He is a wise Man, and a fast Friend to the _Indians_. And we
desire, when his Soul goes to G O D, you may chuse in his Room
just such another Person, of the same Prudence and Ability in
counselling, and of the same tender Disposition and Affection
for the _Indians_. In Testimony of our Gratitude for all his
Services, and because he was so good as to leave his
Country-House, and follow us to Town, and be at the Trouble, in
this his advanced Age, to attend the Council, we present him
with this Bundle of Skins.'
'_B R E T H R E N_,
'It is always our Way, at the Conclusion of a Treaty, to desire
you will use your Endeavours with the Traders, that they may
sell their Goods cheaper, and give us a better Price for our
Deer-Skins. Whenever any particular Sort of _Indian_ Goods is
scarce, they constantly make us pay the dearer on that Account.
We must now use the same Argument with them: Our Deer are killed
in such Quantities, and our Hunting-Countries grown less every
Day by the Settlement of white People, that Game is now
difficult to find, and we must go a great Way in quest of it;
they therefore ought to give us a better Price for our Skins;
and we desire you would speak to them to do so. We have been
stinted in the Article of Rum in Town. We desire you will open
the Rum-Bottle, and give it to us in greater Abundance on the
Road.'
_To inforce our Request, about the_ Indian _Traders_, _we present you
with this Bundle of Skins_.
'_B R E T H R E N_,
'When we first came to your Houses, we found them clean and in
Order; but we have staid so long as to dirty them; which is to
be imputed to our different Way of Living from the white People:
And therefore, as we cannot but have been disagreeable to you on
this Account, we present you with some Skins to make your Houses
clean, and put them into the same Condition they were in when we
came amongst you.'
'_B R E T H R E N_,
'The Business the _Five_ Nations transact with you is of great
Consequence, and requires a skilful and honest Person to go
between us; one in whom both you and we can place a
Confidence.--We esteem our present Interpreter to be such a
Person, equally faithful in the Interpretation of whatever is
said to him by either of us, equally allied to both; he is of
our Nation, and a Member of our Council, as well as of yours.
When we adopted him, we divided him into two equal Parts: One we
kept for ourselves, and one we left for you. He has had a great
deal of trouble with us, wore out his Shoes in our Messages, and
dirty'd his Clothes by being amongst us, so that he is become as
nasty as an _Indian_.
'In Return for these Services, we recommend him to your
Generosity; and on our own Behalf, we give him _Five Skins_ to
buy him Clothes and Shoes with.'
'_B R E T H R E N_,
'We have still one more Favour to ask. Our Treaty, and all we
have to say about publick Business, is now over, and to-morrow
we design to leave you. We hope, as you have given us Plenty of
good Provision whilst in Town, that you will continue your
Goodness so far as to supply us with a little more to serve us
on the Road. And we likewise desire you will provide us with
Waggons, to carry our Goods to the Place where they are to be
conveyed by Water.'
To these several Points the Governor made the following Reply.
'_B R E T H R E N of the Six Nations_,
'The Judgment you have just now pass'd on your Cousins the
_Delawares_, confirms the high Opinion we have ever entertained
of the Justice of the _Six Nations_. This Part of your
Character, for which you are deservedly famed, made us wave
doing ourselves Justice, in order to give you another
Opportunity of convincing the World of your inviolable
Attachment to your Engagements. These unhappy People might have
always liv'd easy, having never receiv'd the least Injury from
us; but we believe some of our own People were bad enough to
impose on their Credulity, and engage them in these wrong
Measures, which we wish, for their Sakes, they had avoided.
'We hoped, from what we have constantly given in Charge to the
_Indian_ Traders, that they would have administred no just Cause
of Complaint: If they do you Wrong, it is against our
Inclinations, and contrary to our express Directions. As you
have exhibited no particular Charge against them, we shall use
our best Endeavours to persuade them to give you as much for
your Skins as they can possibly afford; and to take Care that
their Goods which they give in Exchange for Skins, be of the
best Sort. We will likewise order you some Rum to serve you on
your journey home, since you desire it.
'We wish there had been more Room and better Houses provided for
your Entertainment; but not expecting so many of you, we did the
best we could. 'Tis true, there are a great many Houses in
Town, but as they are the Property of other People, who have
their own Families to take care of, it is difficult to procure
Lodgings for a large Number of People, especially if they come
unexpectedly.
'We entertain the same Sentiments of the Abilities and Probity
of the Interpreter as you have express'd. We were induc'd at
first to make use of him in this important Trust, from his being
known to be agreeable to you, and one who had lived amongst you
for some Years, in good Credit and Esteem with all your Nations;
and have ever found him equally faithful to both. We are pleas'd
with the Notice you have taken of him, and think he richly
deserves it at your Hands. We shall not be wanting to make him a
suitable Gratification, for the many good and faithful Services
he hath done this Government.
'We have already given Orders for Waggons to carry your Goods,
and for a Supply of Provisions to serve you on the Road in your
Return home, where we heartily wish you may arrive in good
Health.'
After the Governor had concluded, Mr. _Logan_ return'd an Answer to that
Part of _Canassatego_'s Speech which related to him, and said, 'That not
only upon the Account of his Lameness, of which the _Indians_ themselves
were Witnesses; but on Account of another Indisposition, which about
three Years since had laid him under an Incapacity of expressing himself
with his former usual Freedom, he had been obliged to live retired in
the Country. But that our first Proprietor, the Honourable _William
Penn_, who had ever been a Father and true Friend to all the _Indians_,
having above forty Years since recommended them to his particular Care,
he had always, from his own Inclination, as well as from that strict
Charge, endeavoured to convince all the _Indians_, that he was their
true Friend; and was now well pleased, that after a Tract of so many
Years, they were not insensible of it. He thanked them kindly for their
Present, and heartily joined with them in their Desires, that this
Government may always be furnished with Persons of equally good
Inclinations, and not only with such, but also with better Abilities to
serve them.'
And then _Canassatego_ said, he had forgot to mention, that
_Shickcalamy_ and _Caxhayn_ had been employ'd on several Messages to
this Government, and desir'd they might be consider'd on that Account.
* * * * *
At a C O U N C I L held the 12th of _July_, P. M. 1742.