The History of the Five Indian Nations of Canada Part 13

This Dispute is not between _Virginia_ and you; it is setting up your Right against the Great King, under whose Grants the People you complain of are settled. Nothing but a Command from the Great King can remove them; they are too powerful to be removed by any Force of you, our Brethren; and the Great King, as our common Father, will do equal Justice to all his Children; wherefore we do believe they will be confirmed in their Possessions.

As to the Road you mention, we intended to prevent any Occasion for it, by making a Peace between you and the Southern _Indians_, a few Years since, at a considerable Expence to our Great King, which you confirmed at _Albany_. It seems, by your being at War with the _Catawbas_, that it has not been long kept between you.

However, if you desire a Road, we will agree to one on the Terms of the Treaty you made with Colonel _Spotswood_, and your People, behaving themselves orderly like Friends and Brethren, shall be used in their Pa.s.sage through _Virginia_ with the same Kindness as they are when they pa.s.s through the Lands of your Brother _Onas_. This we hope, will be agreed to by you our Brethren, and we will abide by the Promise made to you Yesterday.

We may proceed to settle what we are to give you for any Right you may have, or have had to all the Lands to the Southward and Westward of the Lands of your Brother the Governor of _Maryland_, and of your Brother Onas; tho' we are informed that the Southern _Indians_ claim these very Lands that you do.

We are desirous to live with you, our Brethren, according to the old Chain of Friends.h.i.+p, to settle all these Matters fairly and honestly; and, as a Pledge of our Sincerity, we give you this Belt of Wampum.

_Which was received with the usual Ceremony_.

In the C o u r t-H o u s e Chamber at _Lancaster_, _June_ 29, 1744, _A. M._

P R E S E N T,

The Honourable the Commissioners of _Maryland_.

The Deputies of the _Six Nations_.

_Conrad Weiser_, Interpreter.

_Mr._ Weiser _informed the honourable Commissioners_, _that the_ Indians _were ready to give their Answer to the Speech made to them here Yesterday Morning by the Commissioners_; _whereupon_ Cana.s.satego _spoke as follows, looking on a Deal-board, where were some black Lines, describing the Courses of_ Potowmack _and_ Sasquahanna:

_Brethren_,

Yesterday you spoke to us concerning the Lands on this Side _Potowmack_ River, and as we have deliberately considered what you said to us on that Matter, we are now very ready to settle the Bounds of such Lands, and release our Right and Claim thereto.

We are willing to renounce all Right to Lord _Baltimore_ of all those Lands lying two Miles above the uppermost Fork of _Potowmack_ or _Cohongoruton_ River, near which _Thomas Cressap_ has a hunting or trading Cabin, by a North-line, to the Bounds of _Pensylvania_. But in case such Limits shall not include every Settlement or Inhabitant of _Maryland_, then such other Lines and Courses, from the said two Miles above the Forks, to the outermost Inhabitants or Settlements, as shall include every Settlement and Inhabitant in _Maryland_, and from thence, by a North-line, to the Bounds of _Pensylvannia_, shall be the Limits.

And further, If any People already have, or shall settle beyond the Lands now described and bounded, they shall enjoy the same free from any Disturbance whatever, and we do, and shall accept these people for our Brethren, and as such always treat them.

We earnestly desire to live with you as Brethren, and hope you will shew us all Brotherly Kindness; in Token whereof, we present you with a Belt of Wampum.

_Which was received with the usual Ceremony_.

Soon after the Commissioners and _Indians_ departed from the Court-House Chamber.

In the C o u r t-H o u s e Chamber at _Lancaster_, _June_ 30, 1744, _A. M._

P R E S E N T,

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_ a.s.saragoa,

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 G.o.d 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_ a.s.saragoa,

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_ a.s.saragoa,

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 _a.s.saragoa_, 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_ a.s.saragoa,

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 _a.s.saragoa_ is deceived by them; we don't blame him for it, but are sorry he is so deceived.

_Brother_ a.s.saragoa,

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_ a.s.saragoa,

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_.

In the C o u r t-H o u s e at _Lancaster, June_ 30, 1744, _P. M._

P R E S E N T,

The Honourable _G E O R G E T H O M A S_, Esq; Governor, &c.

The Honourable Commissioner of _Virginia_.

The Honourable the Commissioners of _Maryland_.

The Deputies of the _Six Nations_.

_Conrad Weiser_, Interpreter.

The three Governments entertained the _Indians_, and all the Gentlemen in Town, with a handsome Dinner. The _Six Nations_, in their Order, having returned Thanks with the usual Solemnity of _Yo-ha-han_, the Interpreter informed the Governor and the Commissioners, that as the Lord Proprietor and Governor of _Maryland_ was not known to the _Indians_ by any particular Name, they had agreed, in Council, to take the first Opportunity of a large Company to present him with one; and as this with them is deemed a Matter of great Consequence, and attended with Abundance of Form, the several Nations had drawn Lots for the Performance of the Ceremony, and the Lot falling on the _Cayogo_ Nation, they had chosen _Gachradodow_, one of their Chiefs, to be their Speaker, and he desired Leave to begin; which being given, he, on an elevated Part of the Court-House, with all the Dignity of a Warrior, the Gesture of an Orator, and in a very graceful Posture, said that:

"As the Governor of _Maryland_ had invited them here to treat about their Lands, and brighten the Chain of Friends.h.i.+p, the united Nations thought themselves so much obliged to them, that they had come to a Resolution in Council to give to the great Man, who is Proprietor of _Maryland_, a particular Name, by which they might hereafter correspond with him; and as it had fallen to the _Cayogoes_ Lot in Council to consider of a proper Name for that chief Man, they had agreed to give him the Name of _Tocarry-hogan_, denoting Precedency, Excellency, or living in the middle or honourable Place betwixt _a.s.saragoa_ and their Brother _Onas_, by whom their Treaties might be better carried on." And then, addressing himself to his Honour the Governor of _Pensylvania_, the honourable the Commissioners of _Virginia_ and _Maryland_, and to the Gentlemen then present, he proceeded:

"As there is a Company of great Men now a.s.sembled, we take this Time and Opportunity to publish this Matter, that it may be known _Tocarry-hogan_ is our Friend, and that we are ready to honour him, and that by such Name he may be always called and known among us. And we hope he will ever act towards us according to the Excellency of the Name we have now given him, and enjoy a long and happy Life."