The Honourable the Commissioners of _Virginia_.
The Deputies of the _Six Nations_.
_Conrad Weiser_, Interpreter.
Gachradodow, _Speaker for the_ Indians, _in answer to the Commissioners
Speech at the last Meeting_, _with a strong Voice, and proper Action,
spoke as follows_:
_Brother_ Assaragoa,
The World at the first was made on the other Side of the Great Water
different from what it is on this Side, as may be known from the
different Colours of our Skin, and of our Flesh, and that which you call
Justice may not be so amongst us; you have your Laws and Customs, and so
have we. The Great King might send you over to conquer the _Indians_,
but it looks to us that God did not approve of it; if he had, he would
not have placed the Sea where it is, as the Limits between us and you.
_Brother_ Assaragoa,
Tho' great Things are well remembered among us, yet we don't remember
that we were ever conquered by the Great King, or that we have been
employed by that Great King to conquer others; if it was so, it is
beyond our Memory. We do remember we were employed by _Maryland_ to
conquer the _Conestogoes_, and that the second time we were at War with
them, we carried them all off.
_Brother_ Assaragoa,
You charge us with not acting agreeable to our Peace with the
_Catawbas_, we will repeat to you truly what was done. The Governor of
_New-York_, at _Albany_, in Behalf of _Assaragoa_, gave us several Belts
of Wampum from the _Cherikees_ and _Catawbas_, and we agreed to a Peace,
if those Nations would send some of their great Men to us to confirm it
Face to Face, and that they would trade with us; and desired that they
would appoint a Time to meet at _Albany_ for that Purpose, but they
never came.
_Brother_ Assaragoa,
We then desired a Letter might be sent to the _Catawbas_ and
_Cherikees_, to desire them to come and confirm the Peace. It was long
before an Answer came; but we met the _Cherikees_, and confirmed the
Peace, and sent some of our People to take care of them, until they
returned to their own Country.
The _Catawbas_ refused to come, and sent us word, That we were but
Women, that they were Men, and double Men, that they could make Women of
us, and would be always at War with us. They are a deceitful People. Our
Brother _Assaragoa_ is deceived by them; we don't blame him for it, but
are sorry he is so deceived.
_Brother_ Assaragoa,
We have confirmed the Peace with the _Cherikees_, but not with the
_Catawbas_. They have been treacherous, and know it; so that the War
must continue till one of us is destroyed. This we think proper to tell
you, that you may not be troubled at what we do to the _Catawbas_.
_Brother_ Assaragoa,
We will now speak to the Point between us. You say you will agree with
us as to the Road; we desire that may be the Road which was last made
(the Waggon-Road.) It is always, a Custom among Brethren or Strangers to
use each other kindly; you have some very ill-natured People living up
there; so that we desire the Persons in Power may know that we are to
have reasonable Victuals when we are in want.
You know very well, when the white People came first here they were
poor; but now they have got our Lands, and are by them become rich, and
we are now poor; what little we have had for the Land goes soon away,
but the Land lasts for ever. You told us you had brought with you a
Chest of Goods, and that you have the Key in your Pockets; but we have
never seen the Chest, nor the Goods that are said to be in it; it may be
small, and the Goods few; we want to see them, and are desirous to come
to some Conclusion. We have been sleeping here these ten Days past, and
have not done any thing to the Purpose.
The Commissioners told them they should see the Goods on _Monday_.
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