Diary in America Volume II Part 30

But this was not the case with the celebrated five nations, or Mohawks, who, like the Romans of former days, spread their conquests until their name was a terror wherever it was mentioned. Philip, Pontiac and Tec.u.mseh were great men, but the Mohawks' confederacy was a nation of great men. When the French settled in Canada in 1603, the Mohawks, or Iroquois as they called them, were living near to where Montreal now stands. They were at war with the Adirondacks, a very numerous and powerful nation, and were beaten down towards the Lakes; but they recovered themselves, and their opponents were in their turn beaten down to Quebec. The war between the Adirondacks and the Iroquois is full of the most interesting details of courage on both sides. The Iroquois having subdued, and, indeed, exterminated the Adirondacks, turned their arms against several other tribes, whom they vanquished; they then attacked the Ottawas and Hurons, and drove them to the other side of the Mississippi. The Illinois were next subdued, then the Miamies and Shawnees were driven back for the time. Finally, they conquered the Virginian tribes, and warred against the Cherokees, Catawbas, and other nations of the South. Although it was impossible for them to hold the vast extent of country which they had overrun, still it is certain that their very name was so terrible that, from New England to the Mississippi, every town and village would be deserted at their approach.

The chief portion of the Mohawks, under their celebrated leader Brandt, served on the British side in the war of Independence, and at the close of the war, they settled in lands given them by the English, on the banks of Grand river in Canada in the year 1783. At the time they took possession of their land, their numbers amounted to nearly 8,000; but, as is every where the case where the Indians are settled and confined on reserved lands, they have now decreased to about 2,500. A portion of the tribe of Senecas, one of the Mohawk confederacy, joined the Americans; the remnants of them are still located a few miles from Buffalo, in the State of New York. Their chief, Red-jacket, died lately; he was a great warrior and still greater orator.

The most formidable opponents to the five nations were the Delawares, or Lenni Lenape, who lived in Pennsylvania. The Delawares joined the British in the war of Independence.

In the succeeding chapter, I shall give the reader a census of the American Indian tribes which still remain. It will be perceived that they are chiefly comprised of tribes which inhabited the Far-West, and were until lately, almost unknown. Of the New England and Virginian confederacies, once so powerful, not a vestige remains; of the Delawares, 826 still exist west of the Mississippi; of the Shawanees, or Shawnees, once so terrible on the banks of the Ohio, 1,272. In fact, all those Indians whose territory bounded the coast first taken possession of by the white men, have been annihilated. I have often heard it argued, when I was in the United States, that the Indians could not be considered as having any claim to the land, as they did not settle or cultivate it, and it is a general opinion that they lived almost entirely by the proceeds of the chase: but this is not a fact; indeed it is disproved by the early settlers themselves, who acknowledge that if they had not been supplied with corn by the Indians they must have starved. That the Indians did not grow more than was sufficient for their own consumption is very probable, but that they did cultivate the land is most certain; indeed, when the country and soil were favourable, they appear to have cultivated to a great extent. When General Wayne destroyed the settlements of the Miamies and Wyandots, on the Miami river, in 1794, he says in his despatch, "never have I beheld such immense fields of corn in any part of America as possessed by these Indians." The chase was considered by the Indians as a preparatory school for warriors, and was followed accordingly; indeed, a hunting party and a war party were often one and the same thing, as the hunting grounds were common, and when tribes who were at variance fell in with each other, a conflict invariably ensued. My limits will not permit me to enter into the subject more fully; my object has been, in as few pages as possible, to a.s.sist the map in giving the reader some idea of the location of the Aborigines of America. If he would know more of this interesting people, there are many very excellent works concerning them written by Americans, which, were they collected together, would form a most valuable and important history.

VOLUME THREE, CHAPTER EIGHT.

INDIANS.

I will now enter into a short examination of the present position of the remaining Indian tribes. The plan of the American Government has been to compel them to sell their lands and remove west of the Mississippi, to lands of which I doubt that the Americans have any right to claim an acre. That the removal of them is expedient I grant, and that is all that can be said on the subject. That the Indians were fated to melt away before the white men, like snow before the sun, is true; still, it is painful to consider what has taken place from the period of our first landing, when we were received hospitably--saved from starvation by the generous sacrifice of their small stores of grain--permitted to settle upon a small tract of land humbly solicited--and that from the time that the white men once gained a footing on their sh.o.r.es, the Indians have been hunted like wild beasts from hill to hill, from river to river, and from country to country, until nearly the whole of the vast continent may be said to have been wrested from them. This system is still continued, one tribe being forced back westward upon another, till they come into conflict with, and destroy, each other; but the buffalo and other animals, upon which they depend for food, recede with them and gradually disappear. As Christians, we must lament that the track for the advance of Christianity is cleared away by a series of rapine, cruelty, and injustice, at which every one must shudder.

The following is the Report to the American Government, of the various tribes of Indians remaining in the year 1837. It is divided into three parts.

Statement showing the number of Indians now east of the Mississippi; of those that have emigrated from the east to the west of that river; and those within striking distance of the Western frontier.

_1.--Name and number of the tribes now east of the Mississippi_.

1.--Under treaty stipulations to remove west of the Mississippi.

+==================================================+======+ Winnehagoes 4,500 +--------------------------------------------------+------+ Ottawas of Ohio 100 +--------------------------------------------------+------+ Pottawatamies of Indiana 2,950 +--------------------------------------------------+------+ Chippewas, Ottawas, and Pottawatamies 1,500 +--------------------------------------------------+------+ Cherokees 14,000 +--------------------------------------------------+------+ Creeks 1,000 +--------------------------------------------------+------+ Chickasaws 1,000 +--------------------------------------------------+------+ Seminoles 5,000 +--------------------------------------------------+------+ Appalachicolas 400 +--------------------------------------------------+------+ Ottawas and Chippewas in the Peninsula of Michigan 6,500 +--------------------------------------------------+------+ -36,950 +==================================================+======+

2.--_Not under treaty stipulations to remove_.

+==================================+======+ New York Indians 4,176 +----------------------------------+------+ Wyandots 575 +----------------------------------+------+ Miamies 1,100 +----------------------------------+------+ Menomonies 4,000 +----------------------------------+------+ Ottawas and Chippewas of the lakes 2,564 +----------------------------------+------+ -12,415 +----------------------------------+------+ -49,365 +==================================+======+

2.--_Number of Indians who have emigrated from the east to the west of the Mississippi_.

+======================================+======+ Chickasaws 549 +--------------------------------------+------+ Chippewas, Ottawas, and Pottawatamies, 2,191 +--------------------------------------+------+ Choctaws 15,000 +--------------------------------------+------+ Quapaws 476 +--------------------------------------+------+ Creeks 20,437 +--------------------------------------+------+ Seminoles 407 +--------------------------------------+------+ Appalachicolas 265 +--------------------------------------+------+ Cherokees 7,911 +--------------------------------------+------+ Kickapoos 588 +--------------------------------------+------+ Delawares 826 +--------------------------------------+------+ Shawnees 1,272 +--------------------------------------+------+ Ottawas 374 +--------------------------------------+------+ Weas 222 +--------------------------------------+------+ Piankeshaws 162 +--------------------------------------+------+ Peorias and Kaskaskias 132 +--------------------------------------+------+ Pottawatamies of Indians 53 +--------------------------------------+------+ Senecas 251 +--------------------------------------+------+ Senecas and Shawnees 211 +--------------------------------------+------+ Total 51,327 +======================================+======+

_3.--Number of the Indigenous Tribes within striking distance of the Western frontier_.

+=====================+=======+ Sioux 21,600 +---------------------+-------+ Iowas 1,500 +---------------------+-------+ Sacs 4,800 +---------------------+-------+ Foxes 1,600 +---------------------+-------+ Sacs of the Missouri 500 +---------------------+-------+ Osages 5,120 +---------------------+-------+ Kansas 1,606 +---------------------+-------+ Omahas 1,600 +---------------------+-------+ Ottoes and Missourias 1,000 +---------------------+-------+ p.a.w.nees 12,500 +---------------------+-------+ Comanches 19,200 +---------------------+-------+ Kioways 1,800 +---------------------+-------+ Mandans 3,200 +---------------------+-------+ Quapaws 450 +---------------------+-------+ Minatarees 2,000 +---------------------+-------+ Pagans 30,000 +---------------------+-------+ a.s.sinaboins 15,000 +---------------------+-------+ Appaches 20,280 +---------------------+-------+ Crees 3,000 +---------------------+-------+ Arrepahas 3,000 +---------------------+-------+ Gros-Ventres 16,800 +---------------------+-------+ Eutaws 19,200 +---------------------+-------+ Crows 7,200 +---------------------+-------+ Caddoes 2,000 +---------------------+-------+ Poncas 900 +---------------------+-------+ Arickarees 2,750 +---------------------+-------+ Cheyennes 3,200 +---------------------+-------+ Blackfeet 30,000 +---------------------+-------+ Total 231,806 +=====================+=======+

RECAPITULATION.

Number of Indians now east of the Mississippi 49,365

Number of Indians who have emigrated from east to west side 51,327

Number of indigenous tribes 231,806

Aggregate 332,498

_Estimated number of warriors_.

Whole number of Indians 332,498

a.s.suming that every fifth one may be considered a warrior (and this is believed to be a reasonable supposition), the number of warriors will be 66,499

War Department, Office of Indian Affairs, November 22, 1837.

CA Harris, Commissioner.

This force of the Indians, if ever they combined, would be very formidable, and they might certainly sweep away the whole white population west of the Mississippi. That there will hereafter be an attempt of that kind is very probable, as hunger must eventually drive them to it; but any success in their attempt must depend very much upon their leaders, and the possibility of combination. It certainly _appears_ to have been an oversight on the part of the American Government, to concentrate the whole of the Indians upon their frontiers in the way which they have done; still they could not well have acted otherwise. The removal of the Cherokees has been the most hazardous part of their proceeding, as they are very superior people; and should the other tribes put themselves under their directions, they would be formidable enemies. There is another circ.u.mstance which may render the Indians more serious enemies, which is, that they, having been located on the prairie country, have become Horse Indians, instead of what is termed Wood Indians, and they have a vast country behind them to retreat to in case of necessity. I do not think, however, that there is, at present, much fear to be felt relative to the Indians, although the Cherokees, the Sioux, and some other powerful tribes openly declare their hostile intentions as soon as an opportunity offers for carrying them into execution. That opportunity will not offer unless America is plunged into war with France or this country, and then I am pretty confident that there will be a general rising of the Indians; when, whether they act in concert or not, they will give the Americans more occupation than will be agreeable. The American Government have not been insensible to the danger to which they are exposed from this quarter, and, in 1837, the reports of military men were sent into Congress as to the best plan of protecting their frontier. Whether those reports are intended to be acted upon I know not; but if so, the present regular army of the United States will not be sufficient for the purpose, the lowest estimation for the garrisons of the proposed forts being 7,000 rank and file, while at present their rank and file on the army-list only amounts to 5,600.

The American forts opposed to the Indians are, at present:--

Fort Gratiot, River St Clare.

Mackinaw Island Fort.

Fort Brady, St Marie, Lake Superior.

Fort Howard, Green Bay.

Fort Winnebago, Wisconsin.

Fort Crawford. Prairie des Chiens.

Fort Snelling, St Peters.

Fort Leavenworth, Missouri.

Fort Madison, Des Moines River.

Jefferson Barracks, Missouri.

_Advanced Ports_.

Fort Towson, Red River.

Fort Gibson, Arkansas and Grand Junction River.

Fort Adams, Baton Rouge.

There are one or two outposts also on the Arkansas River. If all these forts were properly garrisoned, they would take every disposable musket in the regular army of the United States; whilst at present they have, in consequence of the protracted Florida war, scarcely sufficient men to do the duty.

In the report of the acting quarter-master general, the following garrisons are proposed for the western frontier:--

+=========================================+========+ Fort Snelling 300 men.

+-----------------------------------------+--------+ Fort Crawford 300 +-----------------------------------------+--------+ Upper forks of the Des Moines 400 +-----------------------------------------+--------+ Fort Leavenworth 1,200 +-----------------------------------------+--------+ Fort Gibson 1,500 +-----------------------------------------+--------+ Fort Towson 800 +-----------------------------------------+--------+ The eight posts of refuge proposed 800 +-----------------------------------------+--------+ The protection of the four depots 200 +-----------------------------------------+--------+ Jefferson barracks, as a corps of reserve 1,500 +-----------------------------------------+--------+ Total 7,000 +=========================================+========+

To which must be added, for the garrisons of the five Lakes forts, 1,500 at least, making the force necessary for the protection of the boundaries, to amount to 8,500 men. Colonel Gratiot, in his report, computes the force necessary at 12,910 men.

The letter of Mr Poinsett to Congress will throw much light upon this subject, and I shall therefore insert it.