AUTHENTICANDCOMPREHENSIVE

H STORY OF BUFFALO ,

W IT H S O ME ACCO U N T O F

IT S EA RL Y INH AB ITANTS BO TH SAVAGE A ND C IVIL I Z ED .

C O MPR I S IN G

H ISTOR IC NOTICES OF THE S IX NATIONS OR IROQU O IS INDIANS , INCLUDING A SKETCH OF THEL IFEOF S IR WIL L IAM JOH NSON AND

OF OTHER PROMINENT WH ITEMEN , L ONGRES IDENTAMONG THESENECAS.

ARRANGED I N CH RON O L OGICAL ORDER,

I N T W O V O L U M ES .

B Y W I L L I A M KET C H U M .

V O L . I .

B U F F A L O,N . Y .

RO CKWEL L , BAKER H IL L,PRINTERSa

2

EN T ERED according to A ct of Congress of the United S tates of America, in the

year 1864, by W I L L I A M KET C H U M , in the O nice of the Clerk ofthe District Court, for the Northern D istrict of N ew York .

‘TO T HE

H O N . M I L L A R D F I L L M O R E,

PRESIDEN T O F T H E

B U P .IE‘A L O H I S T O R I C A ZL S O C I E T Y,

TH ESE VO L U MES A R E RESPEC T FU L L Y DEDICATED,

B Y T HE

AU TH O R .

B U F FAL O , December, 1864.

C O NTENT s

CHAPT ER I .H istory of Buffalo incomplete , wi thout some account o f its aboriginal imbabi

tants - T he early maps represen t almost the entire State of N ew York as tho coun o

try of the Iroquois Great change wrough t in Wes tern N ew York in le ss than one

hundred years—First visits of Europeans to this localitv— T heNeutre Nation resideupon bo th s ides of the R iver—Lake o f the Erigh or Cat Nation— Kaw -Kwas not theErics— F i re -arm s furnished the Iroquois—F ort Cadaraqui built as a defence againstthe Iroquo i s—Wars o f the Iroquois against other Nations— Their traditions con

fi rmed by hi story—Wars of the Iroquo is with the Erie or Cat Nation Page 1.

CHAPTER II.Indian tradition—M essage from the E ries to the Iroquois , or Five N ations—Challenge to a friendly contest in a game of hall at T eosahw aa —T h e Iroquois successful— T he Erie s di ssatisfi ed propose a contest in a foot race—T he Iroquois ag ain

s uccess ful ; also in wrestlin o - Iroquois ’

m agnan imity Sanguinary act of a ( ‘

hief ofthe Eries . T he Iroquois sufidenly return to their own country—T he E r ies m editatean attack up on the Iroquois—Their determ ination secretly communicated to themby a Seneca woman—T he Iroquois summon their warriors, and me et the Eries in a

terr ible battle—T he Iroquois 7.

CHAPTER II I .

Great change wrought in the face of the country by the permanent settlement ofEuropeans on this continent—Extensive prair ies caused b y periodical burningsdone to entice the g raminivo rous animals to visit the prairies for food— O ak Openings formerly rairies—Presiden t Dwight ‘

s remarks on the subj ect—Subsidence of

the waters of ake Erie and Ontario— H em arks o f Weld. an Engl ish traveler—F ather L a M oine

‘

s remarks— M u l titude of animals— R ev. M r. Harris ’remarks thereon

-Wanton destruction of Page 16.

CHAPTER IV.

Date of the Iro uois con federacy— Champlain ’s fi rst arrival in the S t. Lawrence—7

T he Franciscans t e fi rst to visit the Hurons—Champlain j oin s i n several expeditions of the Hurons against the Iroquois—Repulsed at Onondaga—H is own accounto f one of his expedi tions— T he Iro nois invade Canada , and defeat the Hurons nearQuebec—Garacontie , a chief of the roquois. visits Queb ec—H is eloquence— Governor Dewitt Cl in ton ’

s remarks on the Iroquo is—Champlain found them at w ar W i ththe A lgonkins o f Canada— They had subdued many nations— Their conquests ex

tended to the M ississippi- Father L e M oine‘

s speech at Onondaga—Speech of an

Iroquois ch ief at Onondaga—Greenhalgh ‘

s visi t to the Senecas—T he plunder ofFrench trading canoes by the Senecas—D c Nonvil l c ‘

s expedition against the Sene

vi HISTORY OF B U F FAL O .

CHAPTER V.

L a Salle leaves Quebec for M ack inaw- H is party visit the Falls ofNiagara—Firstwr itten description of the Falls—Description o f thei r voyage across lake ( 'n'

tan o

Ar rive at the mouth of the Niagara—Proceed up the river—R eturn to

o Lew i stonSends an Embassy to the Senecas—Encoun terw arn of the i ce , by wh i ch the ir boat'

w as in reat peril of being lo st—Went tw o lea ues above the Fal .s , and bui lt a dockfor builEing a vessel—L a Salle retires to Q ue cc—Hennepi n

’

s accounto

of bui ldi ngthe fi rst vessel—Entrance of the vessel into LakeErie—Voyage of the Grifi in throughthe Lakes—H er arrival at M ackinaw—H er return and loss Page

CHA PTER VI .History of the Senecas resumed—Correspondence between Gov . Dongan of N ewYork, and M ons . D e Nonville, Gov. of Page 69.

CHAPTER VI I .T he Five Nations make a descent u on the French settlements on the Island of

M ontreal—T he F rench abandon Fort adaraqui , and they are threatened w ith famine—M ons . D e Nonv ille recalled , and the Count de Frontenac reinstated—Indi anpri soners brough t back from France—T he French endeavor to concil iate a peacewith the Iroquois—Speech of a Seneca Sachem— Coun t de Frontenac adopts vigorous measures against the English co lonies , and the S ix Nations—Schenectady de~

stroyed— < peceh of Condolence of the M o hawk sachem s on the occasion—T he FiveN ati ons pro secute the warwith great vigor against the French , but are disappo intedi n their expecta tion of aid from the En g lish—Gov . S lau c hter of N ew York , holds acouncil wi th the F ive Nations—Count (Te Frontenac confiemns tw o Iroquo i s i isoners to b e burn t alive—Expedition of the French a ainst the M ohawks—Col . letcher , Governor of N ew York , ho lds a council with t e Five Nations at A lbany—Theygive an equivocal answer— They nego tiate terms of peace w ith the French— A l lpri soners to b e given up

— T he negotiations tail—Count de F rontenac resolves toforce them to term s— H e attacks and des troys Onondaga—T he peace of B eswickDeath of Coun t de Frontenac—A n exchange of prisoners made at Onondaga—Prisoners refuse to be - a c n o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o oPage 83 .

CH APTER VIII .H istory of the Senecas resumed—Efforts of the French to alienate the F ive N a

tions—They are influenced to peremptori ly decline the offer of a French missionaryto reside amon them—T he English attempt to establish traders in the Seneca ’

s

country—T he '

ve Nations weakened by their long and constant wars W i th the109.

CHAPTER 1X.

Indian relations left in the hands of a cute and traders—French keep possessionof al l the principal trading posts—Wm ohnson ; notice of his character and firstsettlem ent in the valley of the M ohawk—H is daugh ter marries (‘o l . Guy JohnsonSends Joseph Brant to the M oors Charity School in Lebanon , with sev t ral other Indian boys—T he sister of Bran t rece ived into his family—Johnson receives the appointment of Co lonel—Indian estimate of him—Comm issioned as a M aj or General

- Organi z es a force to attack Crown Point—fl eappo in ted G eneral Superintendentof the S ixNations - Defeats the French under Baron D ieskeau, who is woundedand taken prisoner—Gen . Johnson wounded severely—H endrick

, the great M ohawkw ar chi ef k i lled—T heKing confers the title of a Baron of Great Britain u on Gen .

Johnson—T he French under M ontcalm capture Oswego. age 1 2 0 .

CHAPTER X .

French agents and emm issaries among the S enecas—They are reatly demoraliz edbk, the introduction o f rum

, am ong them—Deplored by C 0 1. ohnson—Speech ofS anyonyade , or Half King of the S enecas—Expedition against Niagara organiz edun der Gen. Prideaux—Joined by one thousand warriors of the S ix Nations under

CON TEN TS . vi i

S ir William Johnson—Gen . Pri deaux killed , and the command devolved upon S irWm. Johnson, to whom the Fort surrendered—A tragical event—Diffi cu lties in re

gard to the purchase of Indian lands—Conspiracy of Pon tiac— T he Senecas and theCarrying Place at N ia ara—Attack upon the wagon train—S teadm an

‘

s account or

the attack—John M an an English traveler, i i sits the Falls . .

CHAPTER XI.T he land at the Carrying Place ceded to the English—T he Senecas are addressedby the Four Nations , and admonished to peace—They are also addressed by S irWm .

Johnson—Troubles on the Susquehanna, Delaware and Oh ioRivers—A reat treatyat Fort Stanwix, to settle the boundar line—Indian mu rders instigate by Creasapand o thers , on the borders of M ary lant and Virgi nia—Letter of S ir Wi lliam Johnson relative to Chabert J onciare—Hostili ties be tween the frontier settlers and theIndians upon the Ohio River—S irWm . Johns on visits England . Page 152 .

CHAPTER XII .Events on the Oh io. nearWheel ing and Pittsburgh—C reasap ‘

s War—Address o f aSeneca Chief—T he father of Logan—M ichael Creasap—Logan '

s character—Battle atthe mouth of the Kanhawa— C ornstock and others W i th Logan— Co rnstock ’

s address—Logan ’

s speech - Col . Gibson ’s affi davit—Attempt to deprive Logan of the credit

of making the Speech attributed to him—Logan ’s death . .Page

CHAPTER XIII.Council at Johnson Hall , in relation to the troubles on the Oh io—Seneca prison

ers released—Speech of condolence of a Seneca ch i ef—S i rWm . Johnson ‘

s last speechto the Indians—Death of S ir Wm . J ohnson— C o l . Guy Johnson assumes his offi ceH is address to the Indi ans—Funeral of S ir

.

Wm Johnson—Speech of condolenceof an Oneida chief—Speech of a M ohawk ch i ef—Co l . Guy Johnson ’

s address to theS ix Nations—M essage of the S ix Nations to the S hawnese. 184 .

CHAPTER XIV.

T he death of S ir Wm . Johnson a great calam ity to the Indians—Other versions ofhis death—T he Johnson ’

s and their adheren ts active in counteract ing the revolationary spirit

—A m eeting interrupted by them in Johnstown— R ev . Samuel Ki rkland ’s letter—N otice of him—H is j ournal Page 2 04.

CHAPTER XV .

Councils held with the S ix Nations by both the colonists and tories—A ch ief ofthe U neidas speaks of M r Kirkland- Co l . Gay Johnson removes to Fort StanwixExtracts from the records of Indian Transactions—Taking of Col . Ethan A llenprisoner. Page 2 40 .

CHAPTER XVI .

C o l . Guy Johnson goes to En land , accompanied by Brant, and a M ohawk warch ief—Return to S taten Island, . Y .

—D eclaration of Gum ersal l— Gen Schuyler ’

s

letter to S ir John Johnson— Interview between Gen Schuyler and S ir John—M o

hawk sachem s and warriors visit Gen . Schuyler— S ir John surrenders to Gen . S chuyl er—Ve tc o f thanks to Gen . Schuyler by Congress—S ir John Johnson departs w itha body of h is followers to Canada— H is family Bible— Lady Johnson removed toAlbany as a hostage - Gov . Tryon ’

s letter—Earl Dartmou th ’s letter to Guy Johnson—C o l Johnson to Lord Germain—Oneida’

s letter to Gen . Schuyler— Gen . S t Leger ’sexpedi tion against Fo rt S tanwix—Action near Fort Stanwix—M ohawks plunderthe Oneidas—M olly Brant flees to the Onondagas Page 2 54 .

CHAPTER XVII.Information given to S t. Leger through M olly Brant—Speech of a sachem ofOnei

da—Thos . Spencer‘

s letter—Gen . Herk imer advances to the relie f o f Fort StanwixThey fall into an ambush—Severe ii ht—Herkimer severely w ounded— H is coolnessand courage—Severe loss on both si es—Senecas deceived and drawn into the confi ict—Indian loss— S tory of Capt. Gregg and his dog—Co l. Claus ‘ letter to SecretaryKnox—Co l Guy Johnson to Lord Germain—T he M ohawks plunder the O ncidas ,

who retaliate . Page 2 74.

vi i i H ISTORY OF B U F FAL O .

CHAPTER XVIII.Exp edition of Gen . Burgoyn e against T icondero a—M elancholy fate o f M iss M e

Oren—D isasters to the l toyal ist arniy Severe batt e—T he A mericans victoriousGen . Burgoyne surrenders to Gen . Gates—T he magnanimity of Gen . Gates , s e

knowledged by Gen. Burgoyne and his othcers .Page 2 02 .

CHAPT E R XIX .

A n eventful year for the S enecas—Letter of Co l . Guy Johnson to Lord Geo . Germain—Expedition against Wyoming—Battle at Wyom ing—M r Dean '

s le tter—Capt.

Walter Butler—h xped i tion against Cherry Va lley—Attack and m assacre at C herryValley—M urder of M iss JaneWells—M rs . Campbell and o thers taken prisone rsBrant ‘

s humanity. . 300 .

CHAPT ER XX .

Captives taken at Cherry Valley released , except M rs . Campbell and M rs M oore

and their ch ildren—Letter of Capt . Walter Butler to Gen . Schuyler— Captivity ofM rs. Campbel l—Geri . C l inton ‘

s answer to Capt Bu t ler‘

s letter—Butler s reply—N egot iations for the exchange of captives— S ayenqnaraghta 5 address to M rs Campbell—T he exchange effected—O ne o f the captive girls marries a British officer atFort Niagara—Catharine M ontour Indian leader at Wyom ing—Scalp certificateBrant not the principal war ch ief of the S ix Nations . . l’ age 314 .

CHAPTER XX I.Deputation of Indians to Quebec— Gen H aldimand

’

s answer to them—Col GuyJohnson ’

s letter to Lord

CHAPTER XXII .Catharine M ontour—Historical notice of M ontour—R owland M ontour—Capture

of the G i lbert fam ily— Carried to the Seneca’s coun t ry— Some o f them taken to N i

agara— C ap t . Powell interes ts himself in their behalf— T he settlemen t of the Senecas upon the N iagara river only temporary—T he Chenessio Senecas claimed theCarrying Place- sullivan '

s army destroyed the settlement at Genesee , w ith al l theircattle, horses. corn , and 341 .

CHAPTER XXIII .Campaign of Gen Sullivan a terrible blow to the Senecas— Great num bers per

ished from want and exposure—They fled to N iagara for pro tection and suppo rtLetter of Co l Guy Johnson to Lord G eo Germain—N anrative of the fi rst settlementof B uff alo Creek—T he ch ild of one of the captives taken from her— Cap t. Powell ’swife exerts herself to procure i ts res toration—S he s ucceeds—Keeps the m o ther andchild by various artifi ces, at her o wn house. until thei r fi na l release—No tice orT hos .

Gum ersal l—Capt. Powel l and o thers visit B ufi alo Creek—C ol . Guy Johnson ‘

s letterto Lord Germain, written from 355 .

CHA PTER XXIV.

M ost o f the m em bers of the G ilbert fam ily brough t to Niagara and its vicinityF irst settlem en t of the Senecas at Buffalo Creek under the care "if the Britis h government—William Johnson accompanies the Indians a gran t 0 1 and at themou th o f Buffa lo Creek from them rant and a party of tories invade Il arpersfi e ld—Capture o f Capt Alexander Harper—Taken to N iagara— M eets his niece , JaneM oo re—Capt Powell ’s artifi ce - Jane M oo re , now M rs Capt. Powell , her character

- Release o f R ebecca and Benj . O i bert , J r —Description of F o rtNiagara— C o l GuyJoh nson and Joseph Brant—Settlemen t o f the Ind ians at B ufi ‘

alo Creek . Cattarangus Creek , Alleghany, "t o—Children of M olly B rant—J ournal of William SaveryC o rnplan ter

‘

s speech—In diffi cu lty—Brant and C ornplunter war ch iefs only—L etters of Brant G ov . Clinton ’

s answer 371 .

CHAP T ER XXV.

S ir John Joh nson invades Johnstown—Cornplante r with the ex edition—H istorical no tice o f Corn lanter, al ias Abeel, alias O ‘

B eel , al ias O‘

B ai l— I is le tter—S peechp f Cornp lantcr an o thers to Gen .Washington 391 .

PR EF A C E.

T he h istorical notice of the S ix Nations of Indians. the last remnant ofwhom now linger among us, which w as at fi rst expected to form only an

introduction to the H istory of Buffa lo,has unavoidably grown upon the

hands of the author , until its dimensions are suffi cient to fi l l a volume,

almost the S i ze originally contemplated for the Whole work . This hasnecessarily compel led a division of the work

,into two parts . T he fir st

volume, embracing the period from the fir st au thentic records ofEuropean intercourse with the Iroquois or Five Nations

,down to the fi nal over

throw of their confederacy during our own revolu tion .

T o do justice to this part of our History,has requ ired a much greater

amount of research,than was anticipated

,for the reason ,

that the Indianhistory has never been written— at least their own version of it. In the

fable of the l ion and the man, the lion said,if l ions h ad been scu lptors

,

the man wou l d have been represented in a very different attitude. H ad

the Indians been historians, many of the events of their history, wou l dhave presented a very d ifferent aspect. They have been rep resented as

destitute of al l the feel ings of humanity,and the barbarous treatment of

their prisoners ofwar has been cited as evidence of this. B u t it shou ldbe remembered that thisbarbarity had a differen t origin than in any wantof the natural feelings of humanity in their nature ; and this inhumanitywas exerc ised from a far different motive , than has general ly been sup

posed. T he Iroquois considered themselves superior to al l other men .

A nd they took great pains not onl y to impress th is idea upon al l withwhom they came in contact

,bu t they taught it to their ch ildren. Their

cruel ties were practiced only against their enem ies, or prisoners taken inwar. They recognized cou rage, as the highest trait of character. In the

practice of the cr uel ties they infl icted upon their prisoners, they made an

exhibition not only of their own superiority over them,bu t they pu t the

cou rage and fortitude of those who had essayed to O ope w ith them in battle

,to the test, by compel ling them to quail under the inflic tion of these

X HISTORY O F BUF FALO .

tortures. They gloried in submitting to the same trial of their own courage and fortitude, if cap tured in war, and their old men have voluntarilysubmitted to, nay, even courted, the infl iction of these barbarous cruelties upon themsel ves. I t was a part of their education

,a part of their

system of war. Col den in his history of the Five Nations written earlyin the eighteenth century, says :

“ O ur Indians have refused to die meanly, or with but little pain, whenthey thought their country ’

s honor wou ld be at stake by it ; bu t have given their bodies wil lingly to the most cruel torments of their enemies

,to

show, as they said, that the Five Nations consisted ofmen, whose courage and resolution cou ld not be shaken .

”

T he torture of Father J ogues and others by the Mohawks,in 1643

,has

been referred to by some Writers as evidence of their cruelty,he being a

Jesu it Priest, or Missionary. B ut it shou l d be remembered that he w astaken in battle. H e was found with weapons ofwar in his hands, fi gh tingby the side of the Hurons, the sworn enemies of the Iroquois.

” H e had

taken the sword,and cou ld expect nothing else bu t to “ perish by the

sword. H e had undertaken to act the warrior ’ s part,cou l d he expect

to escape the warrior’ s fate ?

A t the same time when Father Jogues was a prisoner in the hands of

the Mohawks,the Dutch Domine of the Col legiate Reformed Protestant

church in N ew York. writes thus of the Iroquois “ though they are so

very cruel to their enemies, they are very friendly to us. and we have no

dread of them . We go w ith them into the woods,we meet with each

other sometimes at an hour or two’s walk from any houses, and think no

morezabout it than if wemetw ith christians. They sleep by u s too,in our

chambers before our beds. I have had eigh t at once,who laid . and slept

upon the floor near my bed.

It has been represented that in the conduct of their wars. the Iroquoiswere actuated by a spirit of revenge. B ut it may be doubted whetherthey were influenced by any baser motives in th is respect, than those civiliz ed nations who do the same th ings under the more spec ious name of

“retaliation .

”A t the fi rst introdu ction of fi re- arms among the I roquois

,

they did not readily adept their use in war. They did not consider itbrave

,or honorable

,to shoot an adversary wh ile at a distance ; bu t, chose

to meet him at close quarters,with the tomahawk and scalping knife ; and

when they fi rst began to use fi re- arms,they usual ly threw them away af

ter the fi rst fi re, and rushed in,with tomahawk in hand ; they cou ld not

*S ee a short sketch of the M ohawks by Johannes M egapolensis J r.

,N ew York

Historical Society’s collections , 2 d series , vol . 3, page 150.

PREFACE . X1

wait to reload. F igh ting by shooting at each other at a distance,to them

was no fi ghting at al l,and the best armed and best d isciplined soldiers,

were no match for them at close quarters.

The ir social habits and moral character have been equal ly misrepresented

,and misunderstood. Before they had became contaminated by their

intercourse w ith Europeans,they m ight in many respects have served as

patterns for our imitation .

“ T he hosp ital ity of these Indians,

”

(saysGolden) is no less remarkable

,than their virtue ; as soon as any stran

ger comes, they are sure to offer him victuals. If there be severa l in company

,and come from afar

,one of their best houses is c leaned, and given

up for their entertainment. Their complaisance on these occasions, goeseven farther than christian civility al lows of

,as they have no other

r ule for it,than the furnishing their guest with everything they think

w il l be agreeable to him.

”

A nd if the person be one of distinction,every inducement was offered

to prolong his visit or to make his permanent abode with them ; and itwas esteemed an honor for the young women to become the chosen partners of su ch , and “ perform al l the duties of a fond wife

,during the stran

gers stay,”and this was from no base

,or sordid motive. These associa

tions often became lasting,and as in the case of the J onciares and the

Montours,among the French

,the Johnsons

,A beels

,and others among

the English,became permanent, and of mu tual obligation. Indeed there

were weightier objects underlying these associations. T he intermarriagewi th other nations or individuals

,was encouraged

,and practiced from

motives of state policy,as mu ch as in European governments. T he union

thus formed,though wanting in the formality required by our customs

and laws,w as the most solemn and binding known to them . I t was not

coercive, bu t entirel y op tional on both sides.

Greenhalgh,who visited the S enecas as earl y or earlier than any other

white man of whom we have any account,says : they invited him and

his party to choose from their maidens, not su ch as we liked , bu t“such

as liked us.

” That these al liances were often of great political conse

quence to the S ix Nations, there is abundant proof in the instances, whichhave been already mentioned.

T he Iroquois w ere equal ly remarkable in regard to their civil pol ity ; andit is u tterly impossible to account for their superiority in this respect,over al l the other Indian Nations

,upon any other hypothesis, than that

they must have obtained their ideas on this subject, from Europeans.

T he Five Nations, (says Col den) have such absolute notions of liber

ty, that they al low of no kind of superiority one, over an other ; and ban

0 0

X11 HI STORY O F BUFFALO .

ish al l serv itude from their territories. They never make any prisoner aslave, bu t, it is customary among them ,

to make a compliment of naturaliz ation into the Five Nations ; and considering how h ighly they valuethemse lves above al l others

,th is must be no smal l compliment.”

A nd al though there was no power to punish for crimes, they were lessfrequent than in civ ilized society. T hey had also a high sense of honor.“ After their prisoners were secu red (we again quote from Golden ) theynever offered them the least mal - treatment bu t on the contrary wil l rather starve themselves

,than to suffer them to want ; and I have been al

ways assured,that there is not one instance of their offering the least v io

lence to female chastity.

” T he fol lowing is the testimony of M rs. Rebecca Gilbert

,who with her family was a prisoner two years among the S en

ecas,in 1781—2

“T he Indians were remarkable on al l occasions for their modesty,their

chaste reserve, and their deference and respect for their female cap tives.Insomuch

,that no forwardness, no insu l t, no curiosity, or impropriety of

conduct, or expression, was ever manifested, towards any of the femaleprisoners

,during the time of their captivity among

T his has been the uniform testimony of al l female prisoners on this sub

ject, and speaks volumes in praise of the Indians. T he Iroquois havebeen distinguished for their orators, and it has been a subject of remark ,as wel l as surprise

,how they shou ld be able to attain such profi ciency in

this art, withou t apparent means for studying, and perfecting themselvesin so high an accomplishment. In no age of their history, as it has comedown to us

,have they been destitu te ofmen possessing very h igh qual ifi

cations as public speakers. In al l their public business,they use great de

l iberation,and it wou ld be considered a breach of decor um , to reply to a

speech,.on the same day ; and when the reply is made, it is done wi th the

strictest observance of order,and del iberation. Every sentence or tepic

under discussion,is fi rst repeated

,almost verbatim

,in the words of the

fi rst speaker; and then answered in their regu lar order,with a directness,

and precision, that m igh t be imitated with great propriety by orators,

who boast of a higher cu l tivation,and training in the schools. S o re

markable is this trait in the character of the Iroquois,as to lead to the

conjecture that this too,must have been learned from intercourse w ith

cu l tivated Europeans ; how. or at what period of their h istory,even tra

d ition does not inform u s.

I t is to be considered that most of the Indian speeches wh ich have come

*Narrative of the captivity of the Gilbert family, p 2 13

PREFACE. x i i i

down to us,were interpreted by il literate, or uneducated persons ; and

their force,and beau ty have not been preserved ; so that it is not fair to

judge,in al l cases

,by these imperfect specimens. That the Iroquois pos

sessed intel lectual qualities of a superior order, there is abundance of cv

idence,and under favorable circumstances, that they migh t have attained

high distinction in literature, art, and science, there is no doubt. B ut we

have known them only in their degredation ; after their contact with the

whiteman had transformed al l the h igh , ennobling qual ities ofhis originalcharacter

,into those of the lowest, and vilest of the race he strove to im

itate ; ithas been true of the history of the intercourse of the Indians withthe whites

,that they readily learned to practice the vices of the whites,

bu t rarely to imitate their virtues. T he introdu ction of Sp iritous liquorsamong them

,was probably the most prolifi c sour ce of evil . A s early as

1641, it was said of the Mohawks, (and it was measurably true of al l the

other Five Nations .)There is one vice

,which the Indians have al l fal len into, since their

acquaintance with the Christians, and of which they cou ld not be gu ilty,before that time ; that is drunkenness.

I t is strange how al l the Indian nations,and almost every person

among them,male and female

,are infatuatedw ith the love of strong drink ,

they know no bounds to their desire. They have never been taughtto conquer any passion, bu t by some contrary passion ; and the traderswith whom they chiefly converse

,are so far from giving them an abhor

rence of this vice,that they encourage it all they can

,not only for the

profi t of the l iquor they sel l,but that they may have an opportunity to im

pose upon them ; and this,as they chiefly dr ink spirits

,has destroyed

greater numbers,than al l their wars

,and disease pu t together.

”

T he most fruitful source of diflicul ty between the whites and the In

dians,has been their lands. T his began almost with the fi rst settlement

at New York by the Dutch,and has continued with occasional intermis

sion, down almost to our own times. N o impartial observer can fail to

discover, that in these controversies the Indians were almost always, theaggrieved party. N or can the means resorted to, even by those acting inan otfi eial capacity to accomplish their purposes, be always justifi ed . S ir

Wil liam Johnson himselfdid not escape censure in th is respect. T he history of these transactions is in general a history of wrongs d one to the

Indians,by which they were made to suffer in other ways besides being

dispossessed of their lands,without adequate compensation.

There is another respect in which great injustice has been done to theIndians. T he avidity with which the public mind has received every

xiv HI S TORY or BUFFALO .

story of Indian barbarity, come from what quarter it might, without ihvestigation as to its tru th , or probability, has caused some of the most extravagant and absurd fi c tions

,to be copied in to h istories, as veritable

facts. T he ce lebrated scalp letter,ingeniously written in 1781

,by Dr.

Frank lin for political purposes no doubt,has been repeatedly copied into

books,as veritable history. T he scalp certifi cate pretended to have been

found on the person of the celebrated S eneca Ghief, S ayenquaraghta, as itis pronounced in the Mohawk

,or Gui- yah

- gwash - doh as it is in the Son

eca,or

“smoke - bearer, as it is l iteral ly in Engl ish

,or

“old smoke . or

“ ol d K ing,” as he was familiarly cal led by the whites. Th is certifi cate,wh ich bears on its face evidence of its spurious character

,has passed into

h istory as genuine when the least investigation,or the slightest knowl~

edge of contemporaneous history, wou ld have proved its absurdity .

T he imposition prac ticed upon the poor Indians, early attracted theattention of philanthrO pists, particularly the Q uakers. A l though effortsto christaniz e them

,had been made by the disciples of S t. Francis, the

Jesu its,and the Moravians

,at an early period

,protestant missionaries

met with very little su ccess among the S ix Nations,until the time of the

celebrated missionarj r Kirk land, who established himself permanentlyw ith the O neidas, over whom he gained great influence, wh ich w as fel tmore or less through al l the other Nations of the confederacy.

Notwithstanding these efforts to avert,or mitigate the ev ils to which

they were exposed,and under wh ich they suffered , very little was aecom

pl ished to arrest their downfal l . I t is true,there were individual cases

of conversion to the christian faith among them,and in the judgment of

charity,there were many examples of real christian piety . exhibited in the

l ife,and death, of these sons of the forest bu t nothing coul d avert the

doom of the great mass.

During the latter years of the French supremacy over the S ix Nations.it had been their settled policy to scatter them ; and induce them to settle upon the line of the frontier posts the French had established from

Q uebec to N ew O rleans. Through the exertions and influence of theJonciares, father and son

,and others

,the French were able to accompl ish

their purpose to some extent, and considerable numbers of the S ixNationswere settled upon the frontiers of Maryland , and Virginia, where they became al lied to the S hawnese, and other nations residing there, by marriage

and other wise,forming what were denominated the M ingoes ; it is said

th is was the name by wh ich the S ix Nations cal led themselves .

After the surrender ofCanada by the French , to the Engl ish , they endeavored to persuade the S ix Nations to withdraw their people from the

PREFACE. XV

O hio and its tributaries, and to concentrate them upon their own lands,within the boundaries of N ew York. S ir Wil liam Johnson had directedhis efforts and influence to accompl ish this object, for several years beforehis death , in which he was seconded by many of the leading chiefs of al l

the S ix Nations, with perhaps the exception of the S enecas, who , by theirproximity to these settlements, had become more intimatel y connectedwith them .

T he encroachments of the English from Maryland and Virginia, uponthe Indian settlements on the O hio river

,soon involved the Indi ans in

diffi cu l ty with the settlers, in wh ich the Five Nations, particu larly theS enecas, became involved. S ir Wil l iam Johnson had the sagacity to foresee these troubles

,but neither be

,nor his su ccessors. although they made

strenuous efi orts to this end, were able to avert the im pending storm,and

by the most natural process in the world,the S enecas became engaged

with their al lies, and dependents, in the wars, which , with varying suc

cess,desolated that region.

T here is little doubt that had the colonists,on the breaking ou t of the

Revolu tion,had the means of furnishing the Indians with the suppl ies

they had been for a long time accustomed to receive,fi rst

,from the

French , and then from the English,the friendship , or at least the neu tral

ity of the S ix Nations, with perhaps the exception of theMohawks,m ight

have been secured. T he influence of the Johnsons and Brant,secured the

adherence of the Mohawks to the cause of the Crown , and the S enecasliving so remote from A lbany

,were almost inaccessible to the colonists

,

whi le they were easil y reached by the British , Who were established at

For t Niagara ; and from this period we may date the disruption of theconfederacy of the S ix Nations, which hitherto had withstood every effortto break the golden chain which bound it together. A lthough some ef

forts were made to preserve their national existence after the war of theRevolu tion

,these efforts were feeble , and only showed how they had fa l len

from their once proud position.

T he Mohawks removed permanently to Canada the other nations,or

the smal l remnant of them, remained within the territory of the UnitedS tates but were scattered far and wide. T he O neidas a lone had re

mained true to the cause of the colonists,or at least observed a strict neu

trality , for which , they suffered at the hands of their own brethren, theMohawks, and from the British tories, during the progress of the war.

Af ter the peace, the S enecas, disheartened, dispirited, driven from theirhomes, without the means of subsistence, sued for peace and protection

,

which was granted, and the smal l remnant of them. are now enjoying the

HISTORY OF BU FFAL O

fruit of that protection, upon lands assigned them upon the Tonawanda,

Cattaraug us and A l legheny Reservations, wheremany of them have attained to a measure of civilization, which secures to them all the comforts oflife

,by means of agricul ture

,which is successful ly pursued by them

,and it

shou l d be mentioned to the credit of their patriotism,that they have fur

h ished several whundred warriors to our present army,inferior to none in

the fi eld.I shou ld do injustice to my own feelings

,and to the l iberality and kind

ness of the gent lemen who have given me free access to,and use of, their

libraries,in aid of the execution of this work. From the extensive l ibra

ry of the H on. Geo. R . Babcock,rich in al l that relates to early American

history,I have derived much that is valuable in this department. T he

choice col lection of early French publications in regard to the h istory ofthis country, in Canada andupon the lakes, in the library of O . H. Marshall .Esq .

,have furnished valuable aid in regard to the early history of our In

dians, and I am also indebted to L . K. Haddock,Esq.

,for several rare pub

l ications in regard to the history of the same period . Much the largestportion of the facts connected with the history of the S ix Nations, fromabout the middle of the eighteenth century

,has been derived from the

Johnson manuscripts, or the Colonial Documents, published by the government of the S tate ofN ew York

,edited by M r. O ’

Gal laghan. These documents are a mine of wealth to the h isto rian, and the diffi cu l ty has beento abridge the extracts so as to bring them with in reasonable limits. T o

the Buffalo Historical S ociety,I am indebted for the use of this work

,as

we l l as that of other valuable books,papers, and manuscripts, relating to

the history of our city and its vicinity— deposited in their fi re proof vau lts.

If these pages shal l contribute, in any degree, to throw l igh t upon thetrue character of the S ix Nations, and serve to correct some of the errors

into which the public mind has fal len,in respect to them, one of the prin

cipal objects of the author wil l be accomplished .

Buffalo, December, 1864.

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‘

2 nrsronr or BUFFALO .

Beginn ing w ith the earl i est authenti c accounts of th i s

c ountry , and of its i nhabi tants , the h i story of events w i l l

be given in thei r regular chronological order,w ith such

noti ce of prominen t ind ividual s who w ere connected wi th

contemporaneous events , as historv or recol l ection shal l

furni sh .

This wi l l involve the necess ity o i'

resorting to the I ii\d i:an traditi ons for information in reg ard to events which

o ccurred pri or to the advent of Eu ropean s ettl ement on

‘

thi s continent. B ut these wi l l be used only so far as

t hey are confirmed by the ev idence and observati on of

the earl iest vis i tors to th is local itv and from sources of

unques ti onable au then tic itv .

The firs t vi s its of Eu ropeans to th i s local itv , the re

cords of wh ich have come down to u s,w ere made early

in the 17th century .

In a report made to Father L ’A l lemant

,dated 1 640

,it

i s sai d “Jean B rebeuf and Joseph Mari e Chaumonot,tw o

Fathers of our company whi ch have charge of the m is

s i on to the Neutre N at ion,set out on . the 2 d dav ofNo

v ember,A . D . 1 61 0 , to vi s it that peopl e ;

”after speaking

'of the superi or qual ifi cations of these m en for such an

embassy,he says “

al th o ’ many of our French traders'have vi s ited that peopl e for pu rposes of trade

,we have

'

no knowledge of any w ho have been th ere to preach the

g ospel , except Father De L a Roche D ail lon,a Recol lect

,

who pas sed the winter there in the year He then

p roceeds to describe verv minutely the route and d istan

ces to reach the place of thei r res idence , and fixes it “at

the foot of the lake of the Erigh or Ca t N ation”-“most

of thei r v il lages being on the west s id e of the r i ver,our

F rench who first d is covered th is people,named them the

T H E NEUTRE NATION 3

Neutre Nation,thei r country being the ord inary passage

by land between some of the Iroquois and the Hurons,

who were sworn enemies,wh il e thev remained at peace

wi th both . The peopl e of both nations rema ined in peace

and safety in the wigwams of the villages of that nation .

”

I t i s not improbable that the Kaw -

quaws— ah al i en tr ibe

res id ing among the Senecas,were a remnant of the N eu

tre Nation,a l tho ’ M r. Schoolcraft th inks the Kaw -

quaw s

are a remnant of the Eri es . B u t the whol e current of

h is tory,both wri tten and trad i ti onal

,i s against thi s theory.

In the endeavor to maintain a s tri ct neu tral ity between

the Iroqu ois on one s ide , and the western nations w ith

whom they were constantly at war on the other, the

Neutre Nati on were alternately the prey of both,until

they were themsel ves ul timately nearly destroyed . A t

the peri od of the vis i t of the first French m i s s i onari es,

soon after A . D . 1 600,they were settl ed in s everal v i lla

ges about the foot of lake Eri e,u pon both s ides of the

Niagara R i ver, or rather the lake , asat that peri od it

was not thei r custom to make thei r permanent res idence

upon any navigable water. I t i s not l ikely that these

v i llages occupied the s ite of our pres ent c i ty , but w ere

some m i l es away from the water,in order that they

might not be exposed to surpri se,or the sudden attacks

of thei r enemi es “ Accord ing to the estimate of the

Fath ers who have been there,the Neutre Nati on at the

per iod of thei r fi rs t v is i t compu ted about 1 2 000 s o uls , in

all thei r v il lages upon both s ides of the r iver , or rather

the lake .The early maps place thei r v i llages upon both s ides ,

at some distance from the lake,and ri v er ; none , so far

as i s remembered , place them upon the immed iate shore

o f e i ther the lake or ri ver.

4 HISTORY or BUFFALO .

A t the period of whi ch we now speak , the Iroquois orFive Nations

,w ere engaged in a war wi th the Huron s

,

who res ided in the v i cin i ty of the lake of that name . Th e

Iroquoi s were the terror of all the surround ing nati ons .

Father Hennepin , who v i s ited thei r five vi l lages or can

tons,as he cal l s them ,

in 1 678, says of them “ The Iro

quois , whom the S weedes,then the Dutch

,the Engl ish

,

and French , have furni shed w i th fi re - arms,are reckoned

at present, the most warl ike of al l the savages yet known .

They have sla in the best warriors among the Hurons,

and forced the rest of the nations to j oin w i th them to

make war together against all thei r enemies s ituated fi v e

or s i x hundred leagues d istant from thei r five cantons .

They have al ready destroyed above two mill ions ofm en,

(Martin D .Val iries,one of the fi rst of the order of S t. Fran

ci s to v i s i t North Ameri ca , says : Fort Cataraqui, (Kings

ton,) w as built for a defence against the incurs i ons of the

Iroquois . The Iroquoi s are a barbarous and insol ent na

tion,that has sh ed the blood of more than two mill i ons of

souls,and are now actual ly at war wi th the inhabi tants

of Canada ;” p . 17 al l accounts agree in representing

the Iroquois or Five nati ons as the most powerful and

formidable of al l the known Indian Nati ons upon thisContinent at the period of the first permanent s ettl ement

of Eu ropeans— at the period of w hich we are now speak

ing , say 1 658—9 , they had driven away or destroyed al l

the nati ons who cla imed any j urisdicti on over the terri tory

now embraced in the states of N ew York,Pennsyl van ia

,

a great part of Ohio,and Canada ; and the terror of their

name had extended westward,and southward

,bey ond

the Miss i ss i ppi .

From thei r own trad iti ons , confirmed by the earl i est

records of h i s tory , thei r most powerfu l enemies and

THE ERIES OR CAT NATION . 5

r i val s were the Elves,or the Ca t N a tion , l iving upon the

s outh s id e of the lake which bears thei r nam e . I t i s notl ikely that the permanent habitations of the Eries were

upon or near the shore of the lake for reasons al readystated . The terrible confl i cts between the Eries and theIroquois occurred for the m ost part before the settlementO f Europeans . B ut the fact i s menti oned by al l the early

writers,and the peri od of the final overthrow of the Eries

,

i s pretty defini tely fixed at about 1 654—5 . Father LeMoine went on an embassy to the Iroquois v il lages in

1654,and a l though h e des cribes h is j ourney very minute

ly , it does not appear that it extended furth er west than

Onondaga,where a great counci l was held

,at whi ch al l

the Iroquois Nation s were ful ly represented .

In a l engthy and formal speech whi ch he m ade to

them,h e sa id h e had “ presents to be given to the five

Iroquois,a hatchet each for the new w ar wag ing aga inst

the Cat Nation ; al so , a presen t to wipe away the tears of

a l l the young warriors for the death of thei r great Chief

A nnencraos,a short time prisoner wi th the Cat Nati on .

”

In some Observati ons made upon a j ourney Of tw o Jesui t

Miss i onari es,Fathers Chaumont and D ablon

,to the coun

try of the Iroqu oi s,they say

— “so soon as they become

masters of thei r enemi es— having crushed al l the nations

who attacked them— they glory of triumphiug over Euro

peans,as w el l as Ameri cans

,so that the very moment

they saw the dreaded O at N ation subj ected by their arms ,and by the pow er of the S enecas

,thei r al l ies

,they would

have m assacred al l the French at O nontague , w ere it not

that they pretended to attract the H’urons,and to massa

c re them as they had done before.

Subsequent e vents wh ich are minu tely recorded in the

6 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

reports made by d ifferen t Offi cers of the French govern

m ent,show that the fears enterta ined of the bad fa ith of

the Iroquoi s , w ere not groundless .

The fol lowing Indian Trad ition w as w ri tten out by the

author and fu rn i shed to the Buffalo Commercial Adverti

s er,and publ ished in that paper July

,1 845 . I t i s the In~

d ian account of some of the last great battles of the Iro

quois w i th the Eri es , the last of whi ch was fough t near thi s

c ity,probably not far from the peri od O f Father L eM oine’s

v i s it or embassy in 1654— 40 whi ch al lus ion has al ready

been made . Thi s trad i tion was current among the Ind ian s

when the French miss ionari es first vi s ited them ,and has

been ever s ince . The main features of it are corroborated

by facts and h is tory . After the period named the Eries

are not menti oned in historv except as having been ex

term inated by the Iroquoi s . O ne of the French mission

aries relates it in substance,and sav s that the account of

it had only a paral lel in the account : II . Samuel,chap .

IL,verses 14

,1 5

,1 6

,1 4 &c .

“ A nd Abner sa i d to Joab

L et the voung m en now aris e and play before u s . A nd

Joab answered L et them ari s e . Then there aros e and

went over by number twelve of Benjamin,which per

tained to Ishbosheth the son of Saul,and twelve of the ser

vants ofDavi d . A nd thev caugh t every one h i s fel low

by the head,and thrust hi s sword in h i s fel low ’ s s i de

,so

they fel l down together wh erefore that place was cal led

H elkathha z z urrim,wh i ch i s in Gibeon . A nd there was

a very sore battle that day , and Abner was beaten before

the servants Of Davi d .

”

CHAPTER II .

I N D I A N T R A D I T I O N

The Eries were among the most powerful and warl ike

of al l the Indian tr ibes . They res ided on the south s ide

of the great Lake whi ch bears thei r name,at the foot of

wh ich now stands the city Of Buffal o . The Indian name

for which was Te - c sab - wa .

When the Eri es heard of the confederation whi ch had

been formed between the Mohawks, (who subs equently

res i ded in the val ley of the r i ver of that name ,) the Onei

das,the Onondagas

,the Cayugas

,and the Senecas , who

a ls o res ided for the most part upon the shores and

outl ets of the Lakes bearing thei r names respecti vely ,

(cal led by the French the Iroquoi s Nati on ,) they im

agined it mu st be for some mischi evous purpose . A l tho ’

confident of thei r superi ority over any one of the tribes

inhab i ting the countri es with in the bounds of thei r knowl

edge,they dreaded the power O f such combined forces .

In order to sati sfy themsel ves in regard to the character

d i spos iti on,and power Of those they cons idered thei r nat

ura l en emies,the Eries resorted to the fol lowing mean s

They sent a friendly message to the Senecas,who were

th ei r nearest neighbors,inviting them to s elect one hun

dred of thei r most acti ve,athleti c young m en

,to play a.

S HIS TORY O F BUFFALO .

game of bal l agains t the same number to be s elected by

the Erics , for a w ager that shoul d be cons i dered worthy

the occas i on,and the character of the great nati on in

whos e behalf the Offer w as made .

T he messag e was recei ved and enterta ined in the mostb

respectfu l manner . A counci l of the “ Five Nati ons ”

w as cal led , and the propos i ti on fu l ly d iscussed , and a m es

senger in due time despatched wi th the decis ion of the

counci l respectfully decl in ing the chal l enge .

Thi s emboldened the Eries,and the next year the Offer

w as renewed,and after being again cons i dered

,again

formal ly decl ined .

Th is w as far from satis fying the proud l ords Of the

Great Lake,

”and the chal l enge w as renewed the th i rd

time . The blood of the voung Iroquois coul d no l onger

be res tra ined. They i mpor tuned the old m en to al l ow

them to accept the chal lenge,and the wise counsel s that

had hitherto prevai l ed at last gave w ay , and the chal lenge

w as accepted . Nothing cou ld exceed the enthus iasm

with wh i ch each tribe sen t forward its chosen champions

for the contes t. The onlv d iffi culty seemed to be,to

make a selecti on where all w ere so worthy . After much

delay,one hundred O f the flower of al l the “ Five N a

tions were finally designated,and the day for thei r de

parture fixed . A n experi enced ch ief w as chosen as the

l eader of the party,whose orders the young men were

stri ctly enj oined to Obey . A grand counci l w as cal led ,and in the presence of the assembled mul ti tude the par tv

w as charged in the mos t sol emn m anner to observe a.

pacific course O f conduct tow ards thei r competitors , and

the nation w hose guests the v were to become , and to

al low no provocati on,however great

,to be resented by

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10 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

of the Eries , address ing h imsel f to the l eader sa id , thei r

young m en,though fai rly beaten in the game of ball ,

would not be sati sfied unl es s they could have a foot race ,and proposed to m atch ten Of their number agains t an

equa l number of the Iroquoi s party , which w as ass ented

to,and the Iroquoi s w ere aga in victorious .

The Kaw -Kaws,who res ided on or near the Eighteen

Mile Creek,being presen t as the fri end s of the Eries

,

invited the Iroquoi s to vi s it thei r vi llage before they re

turned home,and th ither the whole company repa i red .

The ch ief of the Eries,evid ently d issati sfied w i th the

resu l t of the s everal contests al ready dec ided,as a last

and final trial of the courage and prowess of h i s guests,

preposed to select ten m en,to be matched bv the same

number to be sel ected from the Iroquoi s partv to wrestl e ,and that the vi ctor should d i spatch his adversarv on the

S pot by bra in ing him wi th a tomahawk,and bear ing off

h i s scalp as a trophy .

Thi s sanguinary propos ition w as not at al l pleas ing to

the Iroquois . They however concluded to accept the

chal lenge with'

a determinati on— should they be v ictor i

ous— not to execute the bloody part of the proposi ti on .

The champion s w ere accord ingly chosen . A Seneca was

the fi rst to step into the ring,and threw h is adversary

amidst the shouts of the mu l ti tude . IIe s tepped back

and decl ined to execute h i s vi ctim who lay pass ive at hi s

feet. A s qui ck as thought,the ch ief of the Eries seized

the tomahawk and w i th a s ingl e blow scattered the bra ins

of h is vanqu i shed w arrior over the ground . H is body

w as d ragged ou t of the w ay and another champion of the

Eries presented h imsel f. He w as as quickly thrown by

h i s m ore powerful antagon i st of the Iroquoi s party,and

INDIAN TRADITION . 1 1

as quickly d ispatched by the infuriated ch i ef of the Eri es .

A third m et the same ’ fate . The ch i ef Of the Iroquoi s

party seeing the terribl e exci tement wh i ch agitated the

multi tude,gave a s ignal to retreat. Every man obeyed

,

and in a m oment th ey were out of sight .

In two hours they arri ved at Te - osah-w a,gathered up

the troph ies of their vi ctories,and w ere on th ei r way

home .

The v i s i t Of the hundred warriors of the Five Nati ons .and its resu lts

,only served to increase the j eal ousy of the

Eries,and to convince them that they had powerful ri val s

to contend wi th . It w as no part of thei r pol i cy to culti~

vate fri endsh ip and strengthen thei r own power by culti

y ating peace and fri endly al l iance wi th other tribes .

They knew of no mode of secu ring peace to themselves

bu t by exterminating all who Opposed them . B ut the

combinati on of s evera l powerfu l nations,any one of

whi ch migh t be almost an equal match for them,and

of whose personal prowess they had witnessed such an.

exh ibi ti on,inspi red the Eries with the most anxious fore

bodings . To cepe with them coll ecti vely,they saw was

imposs ible . Thei r only hope therefore was in being able,

by a vigorous and sudden movement,to destroy them in

detai l . With th is v i ew a powerfu l war party was imme

diately organi zed to attack the Senecas,whose principal

res idence w as at the foot of S eneca lake,near the present

cite of the v illage of Geneva . It happened that at th i s

period there res ided am ong the Erie s a Seneca woman,

who in early l ife had been taken pri soner,and had m ar

r i ed a husband of the Eries . He d ied and l eft her a .

W i dow without chi ld ren,a s tranger among strangers .

Seeing the terribl e note O f preparati on for a bl oody ou

1 2 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

slaught upon her kind red and friends , she formed the

resolution of appri s ing them of thei r danger .

A s soon as n igh t set in ,taking the course of the Niag

ara r iver,she travel ed al l n ight, and early next morn ing

r eached the shore of lake Ontario . She j umped into a

canoe she found fastened to a tree and boldly pushed out

in to the Open lake . Coasting down the south shore of

the lake,she arri ved at O swego r iver in the n ight

,near

w h i ch a large se ttl ement O f her nati on res ided . She d i

rected her steps to the house of the head ch ief and d is

closed to h im the Obj ect O f her v is i t . She w as secreted

bv the ch i ef,and runners w ere d ispa tched to all the tribes ,

summ <ming them immediately to meet in council . IVhen

a ll were convened,the ch ief arose and in the most solemn

manner rehearsed a vi s ion , in w h ic h he sai d a beauti ful

b i rd had appeared to h im and tol d him that a great w ar

party O f the Eries w as preparing to make a s ecret and

s udden descent upon them to destroy them ,that noth ing

could save th em but an i mmediate rallv O f al l the w arri ors

of the Fi ve Nati ons to meet the enemy before they had

t ime to strike the meditated blow . These solemn an

nouncem ents were heard in breathless s ilence ."

Whenthe ch ief had fin i sh ed and sat down

,there w as one ter

rifi c yel l O f menacing madness,and the earth fai rly shook

when the frenzied mass stamped the ground with fury,

and brandish ing high in the air the war clubs,demanded

to be l ed aga inst the invaders . N O time was to be lost,

delay migh t be fatal . A body Of five thousand warriorsw as formed

,w i th a corps of reserve Of one thou sand

y oung m en who had never been in battl e . The bravest

ch iefs from all the tri bes were put in command , and spies

immed iately sent out in search Of the enemy the whole

INDIAN TRAD ITION . 1 3

body taking up a l ine of march in the d irection from

whence they expected an attack .

The advance Of the w ar party was continued for several

days , pass ing through success i vely the s ettl ements of

thei r fri ends,the Onondagas

,the Cayugas

,and the S en

ecas . B ut they had s carcely passed the last W igwam

near the foot of C an - an- da -

gua lake , when thei r s couts

brought in intel l igence of the advance of the Eries,who

had al ready crossed the Chin - i s se - O (Genesee) r iver in

large force .

The Eri es had not the sl ightest S II S picion of the ap

proach of thei r enemies . They rel i ed upon the s ecrecy

and celerity of thei r movements to surpris e and subdue

the Senecas almost without res i stance .

The two parti es m et about midway between Canandai

gua lake and the Genesee river,and near the outlet of

two smal l lakes,near the foot of one of whi ch (the H on

eyoye ,) the battl e was fough t. When the two parti es .

came in s ight of each other,the outl et of the lake on ly

intervened between them . The enti re force of the Iro~

que i s w as not in vi ew of the Eries . The reserve corps of

one thousand young m en had not been al l owed to ad

vance in sight of the enemy . Noth ing could exceed the

impetuos ity of the Eries at the first s igh t of an O pposin O‘

force on the oppos i te si de of the stream . They rushed

through it and fel l upon th em wi th tremendou s fury .

Notwithstand ing the undaunted courage and deter

mined bravery of the Iroquois warriors , they coul d not

wi thstand such a terribl e on slaught, and th ey were com

pelled to yi el d the ground on the bank of the stream .

The whole force of the Iroquoi s , except the corps of re

serve,now became engaged they fought hand to hand ,

1 4 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

and foot to foot ; the battl e raged horribly , no quarter

w as asked o r given on ei ther s ide . As the figh t thi ck

ened and became more and more desperate,the Eries

,

for the fi rst time became sens ibl e of thei r true s i tuati on .

IVhat they had l ong anti cipated had become a fearful

real i ty . T /z eir enem ies had combinedfor their desira etion ,

and they now found themselves engaged suddenly

a nd unexpectedly in a fearful s truggle,whi ch involved

not onlv the gl ory , bu t the very existence Of thei r nat ion .

They w ere proud,and had been h itherto vi ctorious over

al l thei r enemies . Thei r power w as fel t,and thei r supe

riority acknowledged bv al l the surrounding tribes . Theyfknew how to conqu er , but not how to yield. A ll these

cons i derati ons fi ashed upon the minds of the bol d F ries,

a nd nerved every arm wi th almost superhuman power.

O n the other hand , the un ited forces of the w eaker

tribes,now made s trong by un i on , fired by a spi ri t of

emulation , excited to the h ighest pitch among the war

r iors of the d ifferent tribes , brough t for the fi rst time toact in concer t insp i red w i th zeal and confidence bv the

"c ounsel s of the w i sest ch i efs , and l ed on by the most ex

p erienced w arri ors Of al l the tribes , the Iroquoi s were

invincible.

Though staggered at the firs t desperate onslaught O f

the Eries , the Iroquois soon ral l i ed and made a stand,

and now the din of battl e ri ses h ighe r and h igher ; the

w ar cl ub , the tomahawk and the s cal ping kni fe,w i elded

'

by hercul ean arms,do terribl e deeds of death .

‘During the hottest of the'

battle,wh i ch w as fierce and

l ong,the corps Of reserve cons i sting of one thousand

young m en , w ere by a skill ful movement under thei r ex

perienced ch ief and l eader , placed in rear of the Eries on

the Oppos ite s ide of the stream in ambush .

INDIAN TRADITION . 1 5

Th e Eries had been driven s even t imes across the

stream and had as Often regained thei r ground , but the

eighth time , at a given s ignal from thei r leader,the corps

of reserve in ambush rush ed upon the almos t exhausted

Eri es with a tremendous yel l , and at once decided the

fortunes of the day . Hundred s d isdain ing to fly, were

struck down by the w ar cl ubs of the vigorous young war

ri ors,w hose th i rst for the blood of the enemy knew no

bounds . A few of the vanqu i sh ed Eries escaped to carry

the news of the terr ibl e over throw to thei r w i ves and

ch i ldren,and thei r old m en who rema ined at home . B ut

the vi ctors d id not all ow th em a moment’s repose,but

pursued them in thei r flight,kil l ing without d is crimina

ti on all who fel l into thei r hands . The pursuit w as con

tinned for m any weeks , and it w as five months before thevi ctori ous war party of the Five Nations returned to thei r

fri ends in celebrating thei r v i ctory over thei r last and

mos t powerfu l enemy, the Eri es .

Traditi on adds that m any years after,a powerful w ar

party of the decendents Of the Eries came from beyond

the Miss i ss ippi,as cended the O h io ri ver

,crossed the

country, and attacked the Senecas . A great battl e w asfought near thi s c i ty , in whi ch the Eries were aga in de

feated and sla in to a m an,and thei r bod ies were burned

and the ash es buri ed in a mound wh ich i s s til l vi s ible

near the old Ind ian Miss i on Church,a monumen t at once

of the indomi tabl e courage of the terrible F ries,and thei r

brave conquerors,the Senecas .

CHAPTER III.

The arr ival and permanent settl em ent of Europeans on

thi s continent,seriously affected not only the aboriginal

inhabitants,thei r hab its

,modes Of thought

,and of acti on

,

but; al so wrought a great change in the face of the coun

try , parti cularly in our own State . The earl iest records

and observati on s of those who vis ited the coasts of N ew

England,before any permanent settl ement of European s

was made,represent the country for the most part as an

Open pra i r i e— produced bv the peri od ical burn ing over,

of immense tracts of country by the nati ve inhabi tants

and thi s was a custom pers i sted in from time immemorial .

The reason ass igned for thi s by Thos . Morton,in 1 636

,

w as,that it w as for the purpose of keeping down the

growth of trees,sh rubs

,vines

,and vegetation

,which

would otherwise grow so rank as to become impenetrabl e

and obstruct the vi s ion,as wel l as the passag e through

it. B ut subsequent observati on ass igned a better and

more probable reason for these peri odi cal bu rnings . The

inhab itants subs isted almost enti rely by the chase agri

cul ture as a mean s of subs istence was enti rely unknown

to them . They l ived almost enti rely upon fish,and the

flesh of the an imal s th ey were able to kill by the m eans

they then employed,whi ch would now be cons i dered very

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1 8 I I IS T O B Y OF BUFFALO .

Pres id ent Theodore Dw igh t,who vi s ited Buffal o (or as

it w as th en cal led B uffalo Creek,) in 1 803 , has the fol low

ing Observations :“ From Batavia there are two roads to

Buffalo Creek,and a th i rd wh ich passes d i rectly to Queens

to wn,seven miles bel ow the Fal l s of Niagara . The last i s

the nearest rou te to the Fal l s , bu t being lately and imper

fectly made , and pass ing through a country s carcely at

all inhabi ted , presen ts to a travell er a d i s agreeable path,

and wretched accopim odations . The new road to Buffal o

Creek,i s five mil es shorter than the Old

,but i s of recent

date,and s tretches ou t in no l ess than th irteen miles of

mud . before it becomes reun i ted . The Old road,which I

suppose to have been the ancient mili tary rou te,contains

from e igh t to n ine m il es of mud out of twenty - th ree .

I 'Ve chose this , by advice Of a gentl eman acquain ted w ith

both,and soon entered u pon the first of three In irey ex

pan s ions,ly ing in this part of our j ourney . Here

,how

ever,w e had the advan tage O f dayl igh t

,and the mire

w as less deep , than on the preced ing even ing, yet it w as

suffici entl y tedi ous . We dined at Dunham ’s,five m il es

from Batavia . After l eaving Dunham ’s,and pass ing

through another mapl e swamp , w e entered upon the sec

ond of the p lains , above menti oned .

From the appel lation of plains , u sual ly given to these

tracts , you wil l natu ral ly think as I d id,that they are

l evel grounds . Thi s however,i s a mis take . They are

general ly elevated , and every w here present a su rface

rol l ing easi ly , wi thou t any sudden decl i vi ty except on

the borders of s treams or swamps . The variati ons of the

surface are however continual , and some of the eminences

ris e cons iderably above the common l evel . These grounds ,are al s o termed op en ings, as being in a great degree des

OAK OPENINGS— THEIR OR IGIN . 19

titu te of forests . The vegetation with whi ch they are

covered cons i sts of grass , weeds and sh rubs,of various

kinds . The grass,resembles a speci es sometimes seen on

the interval es O f Connecti cu t, and named perhaps local ly ,tlintcli . The stalk i s s ingle , from three to five feet in

heigh t,tinted in vari ous parts w ith a brown hue, and

topped with a spreading ear,general ly resembl ing that

Of spear grass . Bes ides the sh rubs , whi ch have nothing

remarkable in them,there are

,on al l these pla ins some

,

and on some of them many , young trees,parti cu larly

near the Genesee . A The soil of these plains i s

loam of a l ight brown hue,mingled with gravel

,and

covered by a very th in vegetable mould,the residum

c h iefly of sh rubs and herbage . The origin of

the pecul iar appearance of these grounds i s probably thi s

the Indians annual ly and sometimes Oftener, burned such

parts of the North Ameri can forests , as they found suffi

c iently dry . In every su ch cas e the fuel c ons i s ts ch i eflyO f the fal len l eaves

,which are rarely dry enough for an

extens i ve combusti on except on uplands,and on these

only,when covered wi th a dry soil . it The obj ect

O f these conflagrations was to produce fresh and sweet

pasture for the pu rpose of al lu ring the deer to the spots

on whi ch they had been kindled . Immediately after the

fi re,a speci es of gras s S prings up, sometimes cal led fire

gras s,becau se it usu al ly succeeds a conflagrati on. IVheth

e r it i s a pecul iar speci es of grass,I am unable to say ,

not having seen it s ince the days Of childhood . Ei ther

from its nature or the effi cacy of the fire,it is remarkably

sweet,and eagerly sought by deer . A l l the underwood

i s at the same time consumed,so that these an imal s are

eas i ly d is covered at cons id erabl e d istances,a th ing im

2 0 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

practi cabl e w here the forests have not been bu rned .

Thu s in t ime these pla ins were deforested to the degree

in wh ich we now see them,and were gradual ly converted

into pasture grounds . It ought to be observed that they

were in al l probabil i ty burnt over for ages after they were

defores ted,I presume down to a very late peri od . In a

dry season the gras s would furn ish ample fuel for thi s

purpose .

I t is not l ikely that a tree upon the w hol e trac t cou l d

be found , giving evidence of an age beyond that peri od

say two hundred and fifty years,wi th the excepti on per

haps,of l ocal i ti es protected from the annual conflag ra

t ions bv water. The evidences that large tracts of coun

try , parti cularly in wes tern New York , were formerlv

covered b y water,are abundant. The h igh ground upon

which a large porti on of ou r own city i s bu i lt,gives evi

dence of the gradual subsidence of the waters of Lake

Eri e . T he same appearances are equal ly v is ibl e upon

the shores of Lake Ontari o,that the waters of that lake

formerly s tood mu ch above thei r present l evel,a fact

whi ch has attracted the noti ce of al l observant travellers

as wel l as res idents .

The following i s an extract from the j ournal of an Engl i sh travel ler (Weld , ) who vi s ited thi s l ocal i ty in 1 796

and employed an Indian gu ide to conduct h im through

the unbroken w i ldernes s,from the Ind ian settlement on

Buffal o Creek to the Genesee river. at or n ear Mount

Morris “T

e found the country as w e pass ed along, in

terspersed wi th open pla in s of great magn i tude . Some

of them ,I should suppose

,not less than fifteen or twenty

miles in ci rcumference . T he trees on the borders of thes e

’T ravc ls in N ew End land and N ew York

,bv T imothy Dwigh t , in 1804 .

OPENINGS OR PLAINS . 2 1

having ample room to spread , were l uxuriant beyond de

scription,and sho t forth thei r branches wi th all the gran

deu r and vari ety which characteri se the Engl i sh timber,

parti cularly the oak. The woods around the pla ins were

indented in every d irection wi th bays and promontori es,

as Mr . Gilpin terms it,whilst ri ch clumps of trees inter

s persed h er e and there,appeared l ike so many clus ters of

beauti ful i slands . These plains are covered

wi th long coars e grass,w h i ch a t a future day w i l l proba

bly afford feeding to numerous herds of cattl e ; at present

they are total ly unfrequented . Throughout the North

WVestern territory of the Un ited S tates,and even beyond

the head waters of the Miss i ss ippi,the country i s inter

spersed with s imilar pla ins,and the further you proceed

to the westward,the more exten s i ve and general are

they . Amidst thos e to the westward are found numerous

herds of buffalos,elks

,and oth er wi l d gramin i vorous

an imal s ; and formerly animal s of the same descri ption

were found on the plains of the S tate of N ew York,but

they have al l di sappeared long s ince,owing to thei r

having been so constantly pursued both bv the Indian s

and the whi te people .”

This s tate of comparati ve quiet and peace w as inter

rupted by the introducti on of a new element ; we cal l it

christian c iv i l i zati on .

” M an in hi s normal cond ition i s

the same every where . He was found here exh ibi ting

the usual tra i ts O f hi s character,warring upon h i s own

species . B ut the harmless peaceful an imal s,who had

not yet l earned that m an was his enemy,w ere destined

to be dri ven from these peacefu l haunts . The pastures

that had been for long ages prepared and kept for hi s use,no l onger received the periodi cal ferti l i s ing preparati on

2 2 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

necessary to the producti on of thei r coveted food . M an,

h i therto his friend,w as not on ly d i verted from th i s work

to other pursu i ts, bu t w as tran sformed into an enemy .

Father L a Moine,who vi s ited the Onondagas in 1634

,

say s :“ Travel ing through vast prai ri es we saw in d i vers

quarters immens e herds of wild bu l l s and cows , th ei r

horns resembl e in some respects the antlers of a stag .

Our game does not l eave us ; it s eems that ven i son and

game fol low u s every where . Droves of twenty cows

plunge into the water as i f to meet us . Some were k ill ed

for sake of amu sement by blows of an axe .

” Again he

says : “ I never saw so many deer,butgwe had no incli

nation to hunt. My compan i on ki l led three as i f against

his wi ll . What a pity,for we l eft all the ven i son there ,

reserving the h ides and some of the most del i cate mor

s els .” We can have but very inadequate concept i on O f

the rapid ity with which an imal s w il l increas e when al l

the circumstances are favorable ne i ther have we proba

bly any conception of the multitude of an imal s that ex

isted in the region we have des ignated,before they were

d isturbed by advancing ci vi l i zati on . A l l the prai ri e

region,extending westward and southward

,almost indefi

nitely , abounded wi th vast multi tudes of herbaceous ani

mal s wh il e the h illy,mountainous

,tirnbered region s

extending through several of the S tates known as the

Al leghany or A palachian R idge , swarmed with multitudes

O f carni vorous an imal s . These , dri ven by hunger to seek .

for prey,sometimes descended to the plains

,but retu rned

to thei r nati ve haunts as soon as their

'

hunger was ap

peased .

Al l the descripti ons we have of the great numbers of

wolves,bears

, p anthers , wild cats , &c . , &c .,which the

THE M ULTITUDE OF ANIM ALS . 2 8

early settlers encoun tered,a re comparati vely o f recent

date,extend ing back only eigh ty

,o r at most one hundred

years ; s ti l l thes e accounts seem almost fabulous . L a

Sal le and h i s party in their j ourney through the region

lying sou th Of Lake Erie , in the win ter of 1680 , encoun

tered the wol ves in such numbers, as to be in danger of

being overpowered and devoured by them,notw ithstand

ing that the party w as well armed w i th guns , and had

abundance of ammun ition . The extraord inary mu l ti tude

of game of all kinds upon the south shore of Lake Eric,

i s S poken of by several of the early travellers from 1 6 80

to 172 4 ; and i s by some , attempted to be accounted for ,by the fac t

,that s ince the terrible w ar between the Eri es

and the Iroquoi s,no one res ided there . It w as not con

sidered safe to even pas s through the country . I t i s

stated as a wel l au then ti cated fact, that over four hundred

bears w ere killed in a s ingle s eason upon Point Pelee,on

the north shore of Lake Erie where it appeared th ese an

imals crossed the lake a t certa in s easons of the year in

great numbers ; passing from i sland to i sland , thu s m a

king th e cross ing easy upon the i ce in winter , and by

swimming in summer .

A s late as 1 804,it i s s tated by a travell e r

, (Rev . Mr .

Harri s , ) that it w as not safe to l eave a hors e h i tched

al one,parti cularly after dark

,in North Eas tern Ohio

,as

he w oul d be in danger of being devou red by w olves,who

infes ted that region of countrv at that time in great mun

bers . Deer,and the buffalo

,were found in great numbers

upon the prai ri es and bottom lands in Ohio,by the earlv

settl ers in what w as then the North Western Terri tory .

The use of fi re arms in huntin g,infused a terror among

the an imal s thev n ever experienced before . The mode

2 4 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

of kill ing an imal s before the introducti on of fire arms,

di d not exci te in them bu t l ittl e fear of m an. Bears were

usual lv ki ll ed by a kind of deadfal l or trap,ingeni ously

formed of logs . The deer were sometimes kill ed with the

bow and arrow, bu t this w as w i thout noi s e or any thing

to frigh ten or alarm,l ike the noise

,fi re

,and smoke Of a

gun . Indeed,the an imal s were not kil led for any other

purpose except to furni sh food from thei r flesh,or clothing

fro m thei r skins . B utwhen both h ide and flesh,became

arti cl es Of sal e in great quantiti es to Europeans,they

began to be hunted for a far d ifferen t moti ve,and to a

much greater extent. A nd w i th the new weapons fur

n ished by the traders,who early became eager to obtain

the skins of al l the fu rred an imal s,the destru cti on of the

an imal s became greatly increas ed,w hil e thei r propaga

ti on from the same cau ses w as proportional ly d imin i shed .

A n early Engl i sh traveller speaks of the perfectly wanton

manner in which the deer w ere destroy ed at the time he

w rote,1 806 . He sai d it w as suffi ci ent excuse for a man

to l eave h i s bus iness , however urgent, i f a deer came in

s ight,and a whole neighborhood has been known to be

aroused and j oin in the pursu it,regardless of everything

else and i f during the w inter season a deep snow shoul d

become crus ted over by a freezing rain upon its surface ,it would be a s ignal for m ultitudes to sally out w i th dogs ,and murder the poor h elples s creatures by scores , at a

s eason of year too,when nei ther the flesh or skins w ere

Of any , or l i ttl e value .

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2 6 H ISTORY OF BUFFA LO .

into the hand s of the savages . His army w as d ispersed,

h i s own m en making thei r w ay as best they cou l d to

Quebec,where they reported that he was kil led . He

w as,however

,carri ed O ff by h i s Huron warr iors , in a

rude wicker basket into thei r own country,where h e re

mained through the winter . The next S pring he w as ableto return to Quebec

,where he w as recei ved w ith great

j oy and surpri s e by the inhabitants,who had given him

up as dead .

The follow ing brief h istory of thi s transaction is from

Champlain ’ s own account,translated by O . H . Marshal l ,

Esq .

,and furn i shed the New York Historical S oci ety ,

in 1 849 . See proceedings,page 1 00

,&c .

O n the l 0 th of October we arrived before the

fort of the enemy . Some skirrnishing ensued among the

Indians . whi ch frustrated our des ign of not d is covering

ourselves unti l the next morn ing . The impatien ce of our

savages,and the des i re they had of w i tness ing the effects

Of our fire arms on the enemy,d id not suffer them to

wa it. When I approached wi th my l ittl e detachment ,we showed them what they had never before seen or

heard . A s soon as they saw us,and heard the bal l s

whi stl ing abou t thei r ears,th ey reti red quicklv into the

fort,carrying with them thei r kill ed and w ounded . IVO

also fel l back upon the m ain body , having five or s i xwounded

,one of whom died . The Indians now reti red

out Of sigh t of the fort,and refused to l i sten to the advi ce

of Champlain as to the best mode of conducting the

s i ege .

He continued to aid them wi th h is m en,and in imita

t i on of the anci ent mode of attack,plann ed a kind Of

m oveabl e tower,suffici ently high when advanced to the

C IIA M F L A IN’S ATTACK . 2 7

fort to overl ook the pal i sades . It w as constructed of

pi eces ofwood placed one upon another,and was fini shed

in a n ight. The vil lage (says Champla in ,) w as enclosed

by four rows of interlaced pal i sades th irty feet high , near

a body of unfa i l ing water . Al ong these pal i sades the

Iroquo i s had placed conductors to convey w ater to the

outs i de to extingu i sh fire . Gall eri es were constru cted on

the ins ide of the pal i sades,protected by a bal l p roof par

apet of wood,garni shed wi th doubl e pieces of wood .

When the tower w as fin i shed,two hundred of the strong

est m en advan ced it n ear to the pal i sades . I stationed

foru ' marksmen on its top , who were well prote cted from

the stones and arrows wh i ch were d is charged by the

enemy .

“ The French soon drove the Iroquoi s from the gal leries .

but the undis cipl ined Hurons,instead of setting fire to

the pal i sades as d irected by Champla in,con sumed the

time in shouting at the enemy,and di s charging harmles s

S howers Of arrows into the fort. Wi thout discipl ine,and

impati ent of restra int,each one acted as h i s fancy pleas ed

h im . They placed the fire on the wrong s ide of the fort,so that it had no effect.

“When the fire had gon e out,they began to pile w ood

against the pal i sades,but in such smal l quantities that it

m ade no impress i on . The confus i on w as s o great that

nothing could be heard . I cal led ou t to them and point

ed ou t as wel l as I could the danger they incurred by

thei r imprudent m anagement,bu t they heard nothing by

reason of the great noi s e that they made .

Perceiv ing that I should break mv head in cal l ingthat my remonstrances were in vain— and that there wereno mean s O f remedy ing the disorder

,I resol ved to effect

2 S HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

wi th my own peopl e what could be done,and to fire upon

those we could di scover .“ In the mean time the enemy profited by our di sorder.

They brough t and threw w ater in such abundance,that

it poured in streams from the condu ctors,and extin

gu ished the fi re in a very Short time . They continued

withou t cessati on to d ischarge fl ights Of arrows,which

fel l on us l ike ha i l . Those who were on the tower kil led

and wounded a great number . The battl e lasted about

three hours . Two of our chi efs,some head m en

,and

abou t fifteen others were wounded . The unsuccessful

i ssue of the assault indu ced the bes iegers to th ink of re

ti ring unti l they should be j oined by a reinforcement of

five hund red m en that w as da i ly expected . Champlain

was twice severely wounded by arrows the first time in

the leg,the second in h i s knee .

“.T hey rema ined before the Onondaga fort unti l the l 6th

day of O ctober,when

,in Oppos iti on to the remonstrances

of Champlain and thei r ch i efs,they ra i s ed the s iege and

began thei r horn ew ard m arch . Champlain being unable

to walk, was placed in a basket of wicker work

,and so

doubled up and fastened with cords that he was unabl e

to move . Thus bound and confined,he was carri ed by

the Indian s on thei r hacks for several days . The Iroquoi s

pursued them for hal f a league,in hopes of cutting off

some s tragglers,bu t thei r arrangements for the retreat

were su ch,that they suffered no loss . The wounded were

placed in the centre,and the front and rear and wings

were protected by chosen warriors . When they arrived

on the borders of lake Ontari o,they were rej oi ced to fi nd

their'

canoes had not been di scovered and broken up by

t he enemy .

IROQUOIS IN CANADA . 2 9

Champla in w as now des i rou s of return ing to Quebec

by way Of the S t. Law rence— a rou te yet untrave rsed by

the white m an— but the Indians refus ed h im a canoe or

guides . He w as thus compel led to accompany th em

home and pass a l ong and dreary win ter in the Hu ron

country . He did not reach Q uebec unti l the fol l owing

June,w hen he w as recei ved as one r isen’ from the grave

,

the Indians having reported hi s death a long time pre

v ions .”

Soon after , the Iroquoi s invaded Canada , and defeated

the Hurons in a great battl e,almost in s ight of Quebec

,

having previ ously bound the French to a s tri ct neutral ity

by a treaty,which they d id not dare to violate by an

Open interference . The Iroqu oi s were not only brave in

battl e,bu t w i s e and pol iti c in counci l . O ne of the early

French writers speaking of the vis i t of a depu tati on wh i ch

came to Quebec from the upper Iroquoi s, (the Senecas ,)

says “ The first of thes e embassadors who came from

the upper Iroquois,w ere presented to M . de Tracy

,in

the month of December , 1 665 , and the most influen tial

among them w as a famous Capta in cal led Garacontie ;who always s ignal i zed h i s zeal for the French , and em

ployed the cred i t wh ich he has among all these tribes,in

extri cating our pri soners from th ei r hands,as he hasl i b

crated very recently Scur Le Moine,an inhabi tant of

Montreal,who had been captured three months ago by

thes e barbarian s . M . de Tracy having notified him by

the usual presents that he would give h im fri endly aud i

ance,h e pronounced a harangue fu l l of good sen se

,and

an eloquence , ev incing no trace of the barbarous . It con

tained noth ing bu t courtes ies , and Offers of friendsh ip,and

s ervi ce,on the part of h i s tri be , wishe s for a new Jesuit

30 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

M i ss i on , and express ions of condol ence on the d eath of

the late Father Le M oine , the intell igence of wh i ch he

had j ust recei ved .

”

Pres ident Dwight, who possessed greater means both

for Observation and information than others,whose h ighly

c u l ti vated , v igorous mind , w as exerci sed in investigating

every thing that related to thei r h i story .

O f the Iroquoi s or S ix Nations (as they were call ed ,after the incorporati on of the Tuscaroras , who fled from

North Carol ina to them for protecti on in 1712 accord ing

to h i storical record he says

The Iroquoi s have certa inly been a most extraordina

ry peopl e . H ad they enj oyed the advantages possessed

by the ancient Greeks and Romans , there i s no reason to

bel ie ve they wou l d be at al l inferior . to those c elebrated

N ati ons . Thei r minds appear to have been equal to anyefforts with in the reach of m an . Thei r conquests

,i f we

cons ider thei r numbers,and thei r ci rcumstances

,were

l i ttl e inferior to those of Rome i tself. In thei r harmony,

the unity of thei r Operations,the energy of thei r charac

ter,the vastness

,vigor and success of thei r enterpri ses

,

and the strength and subl im i ty Of thei r el oqu ence,they

m ay be fai rly compared wi th the Greeks . Both the

Greeks and the Romans before they began to ri se into

d i stin ction had al ready reached the s tate of society in

which m en are abl e to i mprove,the Iroquois had not.

T he Greeks and Romans had ample means for improve

men t, the Iroquoi s had none . ’

Gov . Dewi tt Cl inton in a Dis course on the History oft he Si x Nations del i vered in 1 811

,says

“ There i s a striking s imilari ty between the Romans

a nd the Confederates,not only in thei r martial spi ri t

,and

a rrr CLINTON ON T HE IROQUOIS . 31

rage for conquest,but in thei r treatment of the conqu ered .

L ike the Romans,they not only adopted ind ividual s

,but

incorporated the remnant of the i r vanqu ished enemies into their nati on by whi ch they continual ly recru ited the ir

population , exhau sted by endless and was ting wars , andwere able to continue thei r career of vi ctory

,and desola

tion . If thei r unhappy victims hes i tated or refused,they

were compelled to accept the honors of adep tion .

”

Speaking Of the manner in wh ich they condu cted thei r

publ i c affai rs,he observes

Thei r exterior relati ons,general interests

,and na

tion al affai rs,were conducted and superintended by a

great counci l,assembled annual ly in Onondaga

,the cen

tral canton,composed Of the ch iefs of each republ i c

,and

e ighty Sachems were frequently convened at thi s nation

al assembly . I t took cogni san ce of the great questi ons

of war and peace,of affai rs of tribu tary nations

,and thei r

negociations with the French and Engl ish colon i es al l

thei r proceedings were condu cted wi th great del iberation,

and were distingui shed for order,decorum

,and solemn ity .

In eloquence,in digni ty

,and in all the characteristi cs of

personal pol i cy,they surpassed an assemblage Of feudal

Barons,and were perhaps not far inferior to the great

A mphyctionic Counci l of Greece .”

military powers and ski ll,he says “Whatever superior

In regard to their

ity Of force the Iroquois might have , they never negl ected

the use of stratagern s ; they employed al l the crafty ideas

O f the Carthagenians ; the cunn ing O f the fox , the fero

c ity O f the tiger,and the power of the l i on

,were un ited

in thei r conduct . They prefered to vanqui sh th ei r enemyby taking h im GIT his guard

,by involv int im in an am

ha seade , by fal l ing upon h im in the hour of sl eep but

32 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

where emergencies rendered it necessary for them to face

h im in the Open field of battl e , they exh ibited a courage and

contempt O f death,whi ch have never been surpassed .

it

The conqu ests and mil i tary achievements of the Iroquoi s

were commensurate wi th thei r martial ardor,thei r th irst

for glory,thei r great courage

,thei r inv incibl e persever

ance , and thei r pol iti cal talents . Their mil i tary excur

s ions were extended as far north as the Hudson B ay .

T he Missi ss ipp i d id not form thei r western l imi ts,thei r

power w as felt in the most southern and eastern extrem

i ti es of the Un ited States . T o describe the mil itary

enterprises of this peopl e would be to del ineate the pro

gress of a tornado or earthquake . Destruction fol lowed

their footsteps,and whole nation s exterrn inated

,rendered

tributa ry,exiled from thei r country

,or merged in thei r

conquerors,declare the superi ori ty and terror of thei r

arms .”

When Champlain arri ved in Canada in 1603,he found

th em at war wi th the Hurons or Algonkins . He took

part,and headed three expedi tion s aga inst them

,in two

of which he was su ccessful , but in the last he was re

pulsed . This unju st and impol iti c interference la id thefoundation of continual wars between the French and theConfederates . it “3‘ The conquests of the Iroquoi s pre

vions to the di scovery of Ameri ca,are on ly known to us

through the imperfect channels of traditi on ; but it i s wel l

authenti cated that s ince that memorable era they exter

m inated the nation of the Eries or Erighs on the south

S id e of Lake Erie , wh ich has given a name to that Lake .

They nearly exti rpated the A ndastez,and the Chaua

nons . They conquered the Hurons and drove them and

thei r al l ies , the Ottawas , among the Sioux on the head

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34 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

al l the Southern Indians . The two former sent deputies

to A lbany where they effected a peace thro ugh the medi

a tion of the Engl i sh . In a word,the confederates were

w ith few excepti ons the conquerors of all the Ind ian na

ti on s east of the Missi s s ippi . Such w as the terror O f the

nati ons that when a s ingle Mohawk appeared on the h il l s

ofNew England , the fearful Spectacl e spread pain and

terror , and fl ight w as the only refuge from death . Char

levoix mentions a s ingular instance O f‘at lps terriflic aseendancy. T en or twelve O ttawas being pursued by a party

of Iroquois , endeavored to pass over to Goat Is land on

the Niagara R iver in a canoe,and were swept down the

cata ract, and what it appeared , th ey preferred it to the

tender mercies of thei r enemies .

T he vast immeasurab le AbysO u trageous as a S ea, dark , w astful . w ild

,

Up from the bottom tu rned .

“In consequence of thei r sovereignty over the other na

tions the confederates exercised a propri etary "right in

thei r lands . In 1742 they granted to the province of

Pennsyl van ia certain lands on the west s i de O f the S us ~

quehannah, having formerly done so on the east S i de .

In 1744 they released to Maryland and V i rginia certa in

lands claimed by them in those Colon i es,and they de

clared at thi s treaty that they had conqu ered the severa l

nation s l iving on the S usqu ehannah and Potomac R i vers

and on the back of the great Mountains in V i rgin ia . In

1754 a number of the inhabi tants of Connecti cut pur

chased O f them a large tract ef land west of the Delaware

R i ver,and from thence spread ing over the east and west

b ranches of the S usquehannah R i ver . In 1768 they gave

Mil ton ’s Paradise Lost.

ELOQUENCE O F THE IROQUO IS . 35

a deed to Will iam Trent and others for land between the

Oh i o and Monongahela R i vers . They claimed and sold

the land on the north s id e of the Kentucky river . In

1768 at a treaty held at Fort S tanwix,with Sir Wil l iam

Johnson,

‘l ine of property ’ as it was commonly denom

inated was s ettled,marking out the boundary between

the Engli sh Coloni es and the territories of the confeder

ates . The vi cin i ty of the confederates was fortunate for

the colony ofNew York . They served as an effectualsh iel d against the hosti le incursi ons of the French and

their savage al l ies . Thei r w ar with the French began

with Champlain and continued *with few interval s,ti l l

the treaty ofUtrecht,whi ch confirmed the surrender of

Canada , Nova Scotia, and Acadia to Great Bri tain . F or

n ear a century and a hal f theyma inta ined a w ar against

the French possess ions in Loui s iana and Canada ; some

t imes alone and sometimes in conj unction with the Eng_l i sh colon i es . Du ring thi s even tful period they often

mainta ined a proud superi ority,a lways an honorabl e re

S istance and no vicisitude of fortune or v is itation of ca

lam ity , cou l d ever compel them to descend from the ele

v ated ground whi ch they occupied in thei r own estima

ti on,and in the Opin ion of the nati ons . it it

“The confederates were as celebrated for thei r eloquence

as for their m il i tary Skil l and pol i ti cal wisdom . Popular

or free governments have in all ages been the congen ial

s oi l Of oratory,and it i s indeed all important in institu

t ion s merely advisor y,w here persuas ion must supply the

place of coerc ion ,when there is no magistrate to execute

,

no m i l itary to compel , and wh ere the only sanction of

law i s ‘

the control ing power O f publ i c Opin i on eloquence

being therefore conceded so essential , must always be a

36 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

great standard of personal merit, a certain road to popu

lar favor, and a un i versal passport to publi c honors

These combined inducements operated with powerful

force on the mind of the Indian , and there i s l ittl e doubt

but that oratory was studied with as much care , and appl i cati on , among the confederates as it was in the stormy

democracies of the eastern hemisphere . I do not pretend

to as sert,that there were as at Athens

,and Rome

,estab

lished s chool s and profess ional teachers for the pu pose ,but I say it was an attainment

,to whi ch they devoted

themselves,and to which they bent the whole force of

thei r faculti es . Their model s of eloquence were to be

found in no books,but in the l iv ing orators of thei r l ocal

and national assemblies .‘

Their chi ldren,at an early pe

riod of l ife attended thei r council fires,in order to observe

the pass ing scenes,and receive the l essons of wisdom .

Their r i ch,and v ivi d imagery was drawn from the sub

l ime s cenery of nature,and their i deas were obtained

from the laborious operations of thei r own minds,and

from the experience and wisdom of their angust sages .

The most remarkable difference exis ted between the con

federates and the surrounding nations,with respect to

eloqu ence . Y ou may search in vain in the records and

wri tings of the past,or in the events of the present times

,

for a s ingl e model of eloquence among the Algonkins , the

A benaquis, the Delawares , the Shawnees , or any other

nati on except the Iroquois . The few scinti l lati ons of in

tellectual light, the fa int gl immerings of gen i us which

are sometimes found in their speeches,are evi dently de

rived and borrowed from the confederates . Cons idering

the interpreters who have undertaken to give the .mean

ing of Ind ian speeches,it i s not a l ittl e surprising that

ELOQUENCE OF THE IROQUO IS . 37

s ome of them should approach so near perfection . The

maj o r part of the interpreters were i ll iterate persons .

I except from these§remarks the Speech of the Onondaga

ch ief C arangula, to M .De L a Barre,del ivered on the oc

c as ion which I have before menti oned th is was inter

preted by Mons i eur Le Moine , a French Jesuit, and re

corded on the spot by Baron L a B ontan,m en of enl ight

ened and culti vated minds,from whom it has been bor

rowed by Colden,Smith

,Herri ott

,Trumbal l

,and Wil

l iams . I bel i eve it to be imposs ible to fi nd in al l the ef

fus ions of ancient or modern oratory,a speech more ap

prO priate and more convincing ; under the vei l of re

Spectful profess i on , it conveys the most biting i rony , and

whil e it abounds with rich and splendid imagery,it con

tains the most sol i d reasoning ; I place it in the same

rank with the speech of Logan . O n the 4th of February,

1690,as we are informed by the tradition of the imbabi

tants, (although h istory has fixed it on the 8th

,) the town

of Schenectady which then consi sted of a church and for

ty- three houses

, was surprised by a party of French and

Indians from Canada ; a dreadful scene of conflagration

and massacre ensued the greatest part of the inhabi

tants were ki lled or made pri soners thos e who escaped,

fled naked towards Albany in a deep snow whi ch fell that

very n ight,and providential ly m et sl eighs from that place ,

whi ch returned immediately with them . Thi s proceed

ing struck terror into the inhabitants of Albany , who

were about to abandon the country in despa i r and con

sternation on th is occas ion several of the Mohawk ch iefs

went to Albany to make the customary speech of condo

lence,and to an imate to honorable exerti on . Their speech

i s preserved in the first volume of Colden’s historv of the

38 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

Five Nati ons,

’and even at thi s period it i s imposs ible

to read it without s ens ibi l ity,w ithout respecting its afi ec~

tionate sympathy,and admiring its magnan imous Spir it,

and without ranking it among the most respectabl e mod

el s of eloquence whi ch hi story affords .” I have copiedthis extended extract from Mr . Cl inton’ s address , becauseit embodies a greater amount of authenti c information in

regard to the h istory of the nation of the Iroquois , of

whi ch nati on , the Senecas , our immediate predecessors ,constituted an integral part

, and al so,because I wish to

preserve the record of such a d istingu i shed mind,and cul

tivated intel lect,of the h igh appreciati on in whi ch h e

hel d the character of thi s most remarkable peopl e there

can be no higher,j uster

,truer

,or m ore honorable tribute

pai d to thei r m emory . Father L a Moine,a Jesuit Miss

ionary of learning and tal ent,vi s ited the confeder

ates in 1654,as an embassador of the French government

in Canada the fol lowing is an extract from his j ournal

The coun ci l was hel d at Onondaga,and all the Five N a

tions were represented .

O n the 10th day of August the deputi es of the threeneighboring nations having arrived

,after the usual sum

mons of the chiefs that al l should assembl e in O ndissonks

cabin,I opened the proceedings (says the Father , contin

uing his j ournal) by publ i c prayer , on my knees , and in

a l oud voice,all in the Huron tongue . I invoked the

great maker ofHeaven,and of earth , to inspi re us with

what should be for His glory,and our good I cursed al l

the demons of hell,who are the spi rts of d ivi s ion

_

I

prayed the tutelar angel s of the whole country , to touch

the hearts of those who heard me , when my w ords S hould

strike their ear I greatly aston i shed them , when th ey

LE M OINE AM ONG THE IROQUOIS . 39

heard me naming al l,by nations

,by tribes

,by famil ies

,

and each parti cu lar ind ivi dual of any note,and all by aid

of my manus cript,which w as as w onderful

,as it was new .

I told them I w as the bearer of n ineteen words to them .

“The first,that itwas O nnonthio

,M . De Lauzon , Gover

nor ofNew France that spoke to them by my mouth,and

then the Hurons and Algonkins,as well as the French ,

for al l these three nations had O nnonthio for thei r great

ch i ef.

A large belt of wampum,one hundred l ittl e tubes or

pipes of red glass,the diamonds of the country, and a

caribou ’ s h ide , being pass ed , these three presents made

but one word .

My second word was,to cu t the bonds of the e ight

S eneca prisoners taken by our al l ies and brought to M on

treal,as al ready stated .

“ The th ird was to break the bonds of thos e of the

Woolf tribe al s o captured about the same time .

“ The fourth,to thank those of O ntonagu for having

brought our prisoner back .

The fifth present,was to thank the Senecas for having

saved h im from the s caffol d .

The s ixth,for the Cayuga Iroquoi s , for having al s o

contr ibuted .

The seventh,for the Oneidas , for having broken the

bonds,whi ch kept h im a prisoner .

The eighth,n inth

,tenth

,and eleventh presents to be

given to the four Iroquoi s nati ons, a hatchet each , forthe new war they were waging against the Cat Nation .

The twelfth present, w as to heal the l ost head of the

Seneca Interpreter by the Cat Nation .

The thi rteenth , to strengthen h i s pal i sades , to w it

40 HI STORY OF BUFFALO .

that he might be in a state of defence against the enemy.

The fourteenth,to ornament hi s face

,for it i s the cus

tom of warriors here,never to go to battl e

,un less w ith

the face painted some black,some red

,.others with va

ri ons other colors,each having herein

,as i f parti cular

l i veries,to whi ch they cl ing

,even unto death .

“ The fifteenth to concentrate al l thei r thoughts I madethree presents for th i s occas ion

, one wampum belt, l ittl e

glass beads,and an elk hide .

“ The sixteenth,I opened A nnonchiasse

’s door to the

nations that i s,they would be wel come among us .

The seventeenth,I exhorted them to become ao

quainted with our fai th , and made them presents for th i s

obj ect.

The eighteenth,I asked them not to prepare hence

forward,any ambushes for the Algonkin

,and Huron na

t i ons,who would come to vi s i t us in ou r French settl e

ment. I made them presents for thi s purpose .“ Final ly

,by the n ineteenth present

,I wiped away the

tears of al l the young warriors for the death of thei r great

ch i ef A nnencraos a short time prisoner with the Cat N a

ti on .

A t each present they heaved a powerful ejaculation

from the bottom of the chest,in testimony of thei r j oy .

I was ful l two hours making my whole speech,talk

ing l ike a ch i ef, and walking about l ike an actor on a

stage,as i s their custom .

After they grouped together apart in nations,and

tribes,call ing to them a Mohawk

,who by good luck w as

there,they consulted together for the space of two hours

longer .

Finally they cal l ed me among them ,and seated me

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42 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

Li sten,O ndessonk, sai d he to m e

,five enti re nations

speak to thee through'

my mouth . My breast contains

the sentiments of the Iroquoi s nati ons , and my tongue

responds fa i thfully to my breast. Thou wilt tel l O nnon

tio four th ings,the sum of all our council s .

“ First,we are will ing to acknowledge Him ofwhom

thou hast spoken,who i s the m aster of our l i ves

,who i s

unknown to us .“ Second

,our counci l tree is planted thi s day at Onon

tagu— mean ing that that,would be henceforth the place

of thei r meetings,and of thei r negotiations for peace .

“Third,we conj ure you to s el ect on the banks of our

great lake,an advantageous s ite for a French s ettlement;

fix yourself in the heart of the country , s ince you ought

to possess our hearts’

. There we shal l go for instruction,

and from that point, you will be able to spread yourself

abroad in every d i recti on . Be unto us carefu l as fathers,

and we will be unto you , submi ss i ve as chi ldren .

“ Fourth,we are engaged in new wars . O nnontio en

couraged us . We shal l entertain no other thought to

ward s him than those of peace .

”

The foregoing extract is valuabl e in s everal respects .

It furn i shes us with a favorabl e specimen of the Iroquois

manner of conducting thei r publ i c counci l s , In thei r prim

itive state,and of thei r internal pol i cy and statesni anship ,

and powers of oratory , uninfi u enced by thei r association

with Europeans , or modern civi l ization . It al so enables

us to fix,with a good degree of accuracy ,

not only the sub

stantial truth,of the tradi ti on al ready related , but the

date,of the final overthrow of the Eries , as therein

"

stated

at about 1 655 .

I am not aware of any record of the vi sit of any Euro

SENECA TOWNS . 43

pean to the country of the Senecas at as early a period

as this,and it i s not likely thei r mostwestern vi l lages ex

tended at this time,mu ch beyond the lake which bears

their name . It i s said the name Iroquoi s s ignifies “ long

house .

” The confederate tribes or the territory occu

pied by them w as so denominated by themsel ves . TheM O

hawks were charged to keep the eastern door, towards the

sun ’ s ris ing,and the Senecas the western or towards the

sun’s setting . A nd it i s to be observed,that during al l

the vi ciss itudes to which they have been exposed,and the

changes through which they have passed,these tribes

have vi rtual ly occupied the same relati ve pos iti on . In

general,thei r conquests have been pushed from the east,

towards the west. The location of the Senecas , i s thus

bri efly al luded to in the French relations under date of

1664—5

“ Towards the termination of the great lake cal led O n

tario i s l ocated the.most numerous of the fi ve Iroquoi s

nati ons,named the Senecas

,which contains ful l twelve

hundred m en in two or three v i llages , of wh ich it i s com

posed .

” Thi s i s undoubtedly a very imperfect piece of

information but we have in the j ournal of Greenhalgh

probably a dutch Indian trader— a more accurate description of the principal vi llages of the Senecas , which he

vi sited in 1667. He says “ The S eneques have four

towns v iz : Canagora, T iotohatton , Canoenada and Kent

he . Canagora and T iotohatton lye within th irty mi les of

ye lake Frontenac and ye other two lye about four or fi ve

miles a peace,to ye southward of those .

“ They have abundance of com e , none of thei r towns .

are stockaded . Canagora lyes on the top of a great h i ll,

and in that,as wel l as the bignesse , much l ike O nonda

44 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

go , contayning one hundred and fifty houses,northwest

ward of Ca iongo (Cayuga, ) seventy- two miles .“ T iotohatton , lyes on the brinck or edge of a h ill

has not much cleared ground,i s near the r iver T iotohat

ton w’ch s ignifies bending . It lyes westward of Cana

gora about thi rty m i les,contain ing about one hundred

and thi rty houses , being ye largest of all ye houses weesaw

, ye ordinary , being fifty and s ixty foot long,with

twelve or thi rteen fires in one house . They have good

store of com e , growing about a mil e to the northward ofthe towne .

Canoenada lyes about four mil es to ye southwest ofCanagora conta ins about th irty hou ses well furn i shed

with corne . Kent-he lyes aboutt four or five miles to ye

southward of T iotohatton contains about twenty- four

houses well furni sh ed with com e . The S eneques are

counted to be in al l,about one thousand fighting men .

”

The exti rpation of the Eri e or Cat Nation,upon the

s outh shore of lake Erie having been accompl ished,the

Senecas who guarded the western door of the “ l ong

house ,” pushed thei r enterprises farther west

,subduing

or driving before them al l who Opposed thei r progress .In one of thei r incursi ons into the country of the Ill inois ,a war party of the Senecas

,captured

,and pillaged , s even

canoes , loaded with merchandise , belonging to theFrench ;and actual ly attacked fort S t. Loui s

,erected by Mons . L a

Sal l e on the Ill inoi s ri ver,designing to capture it al so ,

but were defeated in thei r purpose,by the vigorous de

fense of the Cheval ier De Bangy.

The capture and pi llage of these canoes , was made a

subj ect of compla int bv the French government in Cana

da,and a purpos e was formed to puni sh the Senecas . by

LA BAR RE’S EXPEDITION . 45

a mil itary exped ition , into their country. With thi s v i ew

an effort was made to negociate a permanent peace with

the four eastern nati ons , of the confederacy , and induce

them to rema in neutral , while the French vi s ited deserved

retributi on upon the Senecas .

Preparations were made , and an expedition under

Mons . De L a Barre was sent into the territory of the Iro

quois in 1684 , landing upon the shores of Lake Ontari o ,near Onondaga . B ut partly from si ckness

,and partly

from want of energy, and perseveran ce , on the part of thecommander

,it returned to Quebec

,after negociating a

treaty of peace with the Onondagas , contain ing promises

of sati sfaction for the robbery committed by the Senecas .

The fai lure of the exped iti on of Mons . L a Barre occa

sioned d is sati sfaction with the French , and in 1685 the

Marqui s De Nonvi lle w as appointed to succeed h im in

the government of Canada . A new expediti on into theSeneca’ s country

,w as determined upon , under h is com

mand,but w as not fully organ i zed unti l July 1687.

De Nonvil le’s offi cia l report of h is expedition has been

translated by O . H . Marshal l,Esq.

,and publ ished by the

New York Historical Society,and in the Colon ial Docu

ments . According to thi s report the French are repre

sented as vi ctorious,but accord ing to the accounts of

other and less interested parti es,the French were nearly

defeated,in a battl e wh ich was fought very near the S pot

where the rai l road from Roches ter to Cananda igua crosses

the turnpike road leading from the v i l lage of Vi ctor

south , to what i s known as Boughton Hill,

” in the town

of V i ctor,Ontari o county.

The French landed at the mouth of the Irondequoit

B ay on Lake Ontario,where they stockaded thei r boats

,

4 6 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

and m arched across the country,whi ch was mostly what

is cal l ed “oak Open ings .” The largest vi llage of the

Senecas at that time,was upon Boughton Hill

,l ess than

a mile south of the rai l road crossing spoken of. The

Seneca warriors about four or five hundred strong,having

noti ce of the approach of the French through thei r sp ies

sent ou t,formed an ambuscade in a thi ck cedar swamp

upon a smal l stream runn ing through a val l ey betweenh igh h i ll s . The French were entirely unaware of the

presence of the enemy,unti l they rushed out of thei r con

cealm ent with tremendous yells . Abou t two hundred of

the Senecas were armed with guns,and all

,wi th toma

hawks and s calp ing kn i ves . The two hundred guns were

fired at the first onset ; w ithout wai ting to rel oad,the

whole body ru shed upon the French,wi th their accus

tom ed ferocity,and had it not been for the Ind ian al l ies

,

who accompan i ed the French, thei r destruction would

have been inev itable .

The brief check given to the fierce onslaught of the

S enecas,by that porti on of the French force accustomed

to th i s mode of warfare enabled them to recover from

what would otherwise have been a total rou t. As it was.

they were content to encamp for the n ight upon the field,

and when the next day they advanced upon the town

they found it deserted and destroyed .

The account given of thi s battl e bv some of the Indians

to the Engl i sh Governor at Albany , d iffers somewhat

from the report of Mons . De Nonvi ll e . It i s as follows

When they (the French ,) came in s igh t of the Senecas ,the Fren ch not s eeing them . sat down to rest themselves ,and thei r Ind ians l ikew i se

'

the Senecas seeing th i s,

a dvanced upon the l eft w ing , being Indians , the French

DE N O NV IL L B’s EXPEDITION . 47

s eeing them stood to their arms , and gave the first vol ley

and then the Indians that were on the l eft wing . Where

upon the Senecas answered them with another,which

occas ioned so much smoke,that they could s carce see one

another,wherefore they immediately ran in

,and came to

hardy blows,and put the l eft wing to fl igh t. Some went

quite away,and some fled to the rear of the French ;

when that wing was broke,they (the Senecas ,) charged ,

and fired upon the French,and other Indians . The

French reti red about one hundred and fifty paces,and

stood sti l l .“ The Senecas continued the fi ght wi th their hatchets

,

but perceiv ing at last that the French were too numer~

ous,and would not give ground

,some of the Senecas

began to retreat,whereupon

,the French Indian s cri ed

out ‘the Senecas run,

’and the rest hearing that

,fol

l owed the first party that gave w ay , and so got off from

another, and in thei r retreat, were followed about hal f an

Engl i sh mil e and i f the enemy had fol lowed them fur

ther,the Senecas would have lost abundance of people

,

because th ey carried ofl’

thei r wounded m en,and were

resol ved to s ti ck to them,and not l eave them . The young

Indian that was in the engagement,relates

,that after it

was over,when the S enecas had got upon a b ill

,they

saw a party of fresh French,come up

,the French cal l ed

to them to stand and figh t,but the Senecas repl i ed

,

‘come out four h undred to our fou r hundred,and we

have but one hundred m en , and three hund red boys , andwe wil l figh t you hand to fi st.

’ The sa i d boy being

a sked , i f h e saw any of the French with any gorges aboutthei r necks

,it w as too hot

,they were too numerous .

“ There were amongst the fou r hundred and fifty S en

48 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

ecas,five women

,who engaged (fough t) as well as the

men,and were resolved not to leave thei r husbands

,but

to l i ve,or di e , wi th them .

” Another account says“ The French al l acknowledge the Senecas fought very

well,and i f their number had been greater

,it would have

gone hard with the French , for the new m en were not

used to the Seneca’ s whoop,and hollow

,all the officers

fal l ing down,close upon the ground

,for they j eered one

another about it at Mont Royal l .”

Another account of th i s battl e says : (See Colden’ s

History of the Five Nati ons,page 80

,v ol . The army

marched four leagues the first day (after leaving Ironde

quoit landing,) without d is covering anyth ing. The next

day the s couts advanced before the army,as far as the

corn,of the v illages

,without seeing anybody

,though

they passed within pistol shot of five hundred Senecas,

that lay on thei r bel l i es and let them pass,and repass

,

without disturbing them . O n the report whi ch they

made,the French hastened thei r march , in hopes to over

take the women,ch ildren

,and old men

,for they no l onger

doubted of al l being fled . B ut as soon as the French

reached the foot of the h i ll,about a quarter of a league

from the village,the Senecas sudden ly rai s ed the w ar

shout,with a dis charge of thei r fire arms . This put the

regular troops,as wel l as the mil itia

,into such a fright

,as

they marched through the woods that the battal lions im

mediately divided and run to the right,and l eft

,and in

thei r confus ion,fired upon one another. When the S en

ecas perceived thei r d isorder, they fel l in among them

pell -mell,ti l l the French Indians , more used to such way

of fighting,gathered together

,and repulsed the Senecas .

‘There were (accord ing to the French accounts ,) a hun

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50 HI STORY OF BUFFALO .

for forty years afterwards , although at every annual turn

ing up of the soi l by the plough , found great qu an titi es of

Indian trinkets , with an occas i ona l rel i c of c ivi l izati on,

l ike the part of a gun - lock,and an occas i ona l French

metal button,or a copper coin ; no know l edge by whom

or at what period , these evidences of a former occupation

we re left,u nti l in 1 847, Mr . Marshal l w i th De N onv ille

’

s

Town report in hi s h and,ai d ed by a m ap, traced bv the

h and of an aged ch ief of the S ix Nati ons,then l ivmg ,

w ent upon the spot, and w i th the as s i stan ce of in tel l igent

gentl emen l iv ing in the vi cin ity , i dentified the location of

every prin cipal obj ect, minu tely described in that report,and brough t to l ight facts , whi ch had faded from m emo

ry , or been obscured in darkness for a century . As nomention is m ade of Kanesadaga , whi ch w as for a long

peri od'

the principal res idence of the Senecas near thefoot of Seneca lake , it i s probable that before the time of

De N onv ille’s expedi ti on

,it w as not permanently ocen

pied by them,but they m ay , after that event, have chosen

it as thei r ch ief town ,and rema ined there up to the time

of Su l l i van ’ s exped i ti on in 1779— whi ch w i l l be consid

e red in the chronologi cal order of events .

C HAP T E R V

We must now l eave the Senecas for the purpose of

bringing up the h is tory of other contemporaneou s events

relating to thi s parti cu lar l ocal i ty . In the fal l of 1 679, M .

D e L a Sal le wi th a party of abou t th irty persons left

Q uebec,for Mackinaw by w ay of the lake . The party ar~

r i ved in the Niagara r i ver late in N ovember . They sai l ed

up as far as thecurrent wou l d permi t, made fast thei r

smal l craft to the shore,and landed . None of the party

'had ever v i s ited the spot before . They had heard the

most extravagant accounts from the nati ves of the Fal l s of

the O neagara”

(Niagara ) B u t so imperfectw as thei r

knowledge of the Indian language , that they had formed

very imperfect i d eas of thei r magnitude,as well as many

other th ings,concern ing them

,related by the Indians

and it i s not surpris ing that in attempting to describe

what no one had ever attempted to d o before in writing,

that gross errors shoul d have crept into the des cripti on .

When however,proper al lowances are made

,for th is first

'

a ttempt at a descripti on of the Fal l s of Niagara , made un

der pecul iar ci rcumstances , in the middle of winter , with

.no means at hand of ver ify ing any statements , by actual

measurements , it will be admi tted the descripti on i s graph‘

ic,and conv eys to the mind a truer , and j uster , i dea of

59 HISTORY OF B U FFALO .

thei r rea l magn itude and grandeur,than can be obtained

from many,more modern descripti ons

,wri tten under the

most favorable circums tances . I t i s to be observed,that

the description which we copy,w as original ly written in

French,and translated into the old quaint Engl i sh

,of

nearly two hundred years ago . The translation was pub

l ished in L ondon in 1698 .

Betwixt the Lake Ontari o and Eri e there i s vast and

prodigious cadence of water,which fal l s down after a

surpris ing and aston i sh ing manner,insomuch that the

un i verse does not afford its paral lel .

It i s true,Italy and Swedeland

,boast of som e s uch

things,bu t we m ay wel l say , they are but sorry patterns ,

when compared to thi s,of whi ch we now speak .

“A t the foot of thi s horribl e precipi ce,we meet with the

r i ver'

Niagara,which i s not above hal f a quarter of a

l eagu e broad,but i s wonderfully deep in some places .

It i s so rapid above the descent, that it violently hu rri e s

down the wild beasts,while endeavoring to pas s it

,to feed

on the other s ide,they not being abl e to wi thstand the

force of its current,whi ch inevitably casts them down

headlong above s i x hundred foot .

“ This wonderful downfal l i s composed of two great

cross streams of water,and two fall s. with an Isl e mping

along the middle of it. The waters whi ch fall from th is

vast height do foam,and boil , after the most hideous m an

ner imaginable,making an outrageous noi se

,more terr i

ble than that. of thunder, for when the wind blows from

the south,thei r di smal roaring m ay be heard above fifteen

leauges off.

Pl ‘ohab l v meaning the fal l and rap ids bo th above and below .

LA SAL LE ’ S EXPEDITION . 53

The ri ver Niagara havmg thrown i tself down thi s in

c red ible precip ice continues its impetuous cou rse,for two

l eagues together,to the great rock

,above mentioned

,with

an inexpress ible rapid ity,but having passed that

,

its impetuos i ty relents,gl id ing al ong more gently, for two

l eagues,ti l l it arri ves at the lake Ontari o, or Frontenac ;

any barque or vessel may pass from the fort,to the foot

of the large rock,above mentioned .

Thi s rock,l i es to the westward and i s cut off from the

land by the ri ver Niagara,about two l eagues further

d own than the great fal l,for which two l eagues

,the peopl e

a re obliged to carry th ei r goods overland ; bu t the w ay

i s very good, and the trees are but few , and they ch iefly

fi rrs,and oaks . From the great fall unto th is rock

,whi ch

i s to the west of the r iver, (on the west s ide

,) the two

brinks of it, are so prodigious h igh,that it would make

one tremble , to look stead ily upon the water, roll ing along

with a rapid ity not to be imagined . Were it not for thi s

vast cataract,whi ch interrupts navigation

,they might

sai l wi th barque , or greater vessels , above four hundredand fifty leagues further

,cross the lake of H uron

,and up

to the further end of the lake Ill inois, (M i ch igan ) which

two lakes,we m ay wel l say , are two l ittl e s eas of fresh

water.”

The following i s Father Hennepin ’ s d escription of a

voyage across lake Ontario , to the Niagara river in 1678 :

The very same year,on the 1 8th of November, I took

l eave of our monks at Fort Frontenac,and after mutual

embraces,and express ion s of brotherly and christian

charity,I embarked in a brigantine of abou t ten tons .

The winds and the col d of autumn were then very violent,

insomuch that our crew were afra i d to go , in so l ittle'

a

4 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

vessel . Thi s obl iged us,and the S eur De L a Motte

,our

commander , to keep our course on the north s ide of thelake

,to shelter oursel ves under the coast

,against the n orth

west wind , which would have otherwise, forced us uponthe sou thern coas t of the lake . This v oyage proved very

d iffi cul t, and dangerous , because of the unseasonable tim e

of the year,winter being near at hand .

“O n the 2 6th we were in great danger,about two large

leagues off the land,where we were obl iged to l ie at an

chor , all that n ight, at s ixty fathoms of water, and above ,but at length the wind coming at the north east

,we sai led

on,and arrived safely at the other end of the lake Onta

rio, cal led by the Iroquoi s , S kannandario .

“We came pretty near one of thei r v i l lages,cal led Taja

jagon , ly ing about seventy leagues from Fort Frontenac, .

or Catarokouy , (Kingston )“We bartered some indian corn with the Iroquois

,who

could not suffi ci ently admire us,and came frequently to

see us,in our brigantine

,which for our greater security

,

we had brought to an an ch or into a r iver,though before

we could get in , we ran aground three times,w h i ch

obl iged u s to put fourteen m en into canoes,and cast the

bal last of our sh ip overboard,to get her off again. That

r i ver fal l s into the lake,but for fear of being frozen up

therein,we were forced to cut the i ce

,wi th axes

,an d

other instruments . The wind turning then contrary , we

were obl iged to tarry there. til l the 5th ofDecember, 1678

when we sai l ed from the 'northern,to the southern s ide

,

where the ri ver Niagara run s into the lake,but could not

reach it that day , though it i s but fifteen or sixteen l eagu es

d i stant,and therefore cast anchor with in five l eagu es o f

the shore , where we had very bad weather al l the n ight

FIRS T VES S EL IN NIAGARA RIVER . 55

l ong . O n the 6th being S t. Nicholas day , we got into the

fi ne r i ver Niagara,into whi ch never any such ship as ours

entered before .

IVe sang there the Te -Deum,and other prayers , to

return our thanks to God Almighty , for ou r prosperous

voyage . The Iroquoi s T sonnontouans (Senecas) inhabi ting

the l ittl e vi l lage,s i tuated at the mouth of the ri ver

,took

above three hundred wh itings, (white fi sh) which are

bigger than carps,and the best rel i sh ed

,as wel l as the

wholsom est fish in the world which they presented al l

to us,imputing thei r good luck

,to our arrival .

They w ere much surpri sed at our sh i p,wh ich they

cal led the great wooden canoe .

O n the 7th we went in a canoe, two l eagues up the

ri ver,to l ook for a conven i ent place for bui ld ing

,but not

being able to get the canoe further up, because the cur

rent w as too rapid for us to mas ter,we went over - land

about three l eagues higher,though we found no land fi t

for culture .

We lay that n igh t near a r iver that runs from the

westward, (Chippewa ) wi thin a l eague above the fal l of

theNiagara,which as we h ave al ready sai d i s the great

est in the world .

“ The snow w as then a foo t deep,and we were obl iged

to dig it up to make room for our fire . The next day , w e

returned the same w ay we went, and saw great numbers

of wild goats, (deer ) and turkey cocks , (wi ld tu rkeys ) and

on the 11 th we sa i d thefirs t m as s,that w as ever sai d in

that country . The carpen ters and the rest of the crew

were set to work,but M onseur De L a Motte who had the

d i recti on of th em,being not abl e to endure the fatigues

of so labori ous a l i fe,gave over h i s design and returned

56 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

to Canada,having abou t two hundred leagu es to travel .

The 1 2 th,13th and 14th the wind w as not favorable

enough to sai l up the r iver,as far as the rapid current

above mentioned,where we had re sol ved to bui ld some

houses .

VVhosoev er cons iders our m ap , will eas ily see that

th i s new enterprise of bu i ld ing a fort,and some hou ses

on the r iver Niagara,bes i des the fort ofFrontenac (Kings

ton ) was l ike to gi ve j ealousy to the Iroquoi s , and even to

the Engli sh who l ive in thi s neighborhood (at Albany)and have a great commerce wi th them .

Therefore,to prevent the i l l consequences of it, it

w as though t fi t to send an Em bassie to the Iroqu ois , as it

wil l be mentioned in the next chapter. The 1 5th I w as

desi red to sit at the helm of our brigantine,while three of

our m en hau l ed the same from the shore wi th a rop, e and

at last we brought her up,and moored her to the shore

with a haw ser near a rock of prodigious heigh t, lying up

on the rapid currents we have al ready menti oned .

The 17th , 18th and 1 9th we were busy making a

cabin,with pal isadoes to serve for a magazine but the

ground was so frozen,that we were forced several times

,

to throw boil ing water upon it,to faci l i tate the beating

in,and dri ving down

,the stake

“The 2 0th,2 1st

,2 2 d and 2 3d our shi p w as in 0

‘reat dan

ger to be dash ed to pieces,by the vast p ieces of i ce , that

were hurled down the river , to prevent h i ch,our car

penter made a capstane . to haul her ashore,bu t our great

cable broke in three pieces,whereupon one of the carpen

ters su rround e d the vessel wi th a cable,and ti ed it to sev

eral ropes,w hereby we got h er ashore , though wi th much

(l iflficul ty , and saved her from the danger of being broke

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58 HISTORY OF BUFFA LO .

M . De L a Sal le told us that before he l ost the barqu e

he had been w i th the Iroqu is T sonnontouans , and had s o

dexterously gained thei r affection that they had talked

to h im of an embas sy wi th applause,and had gi ven h im

thei r consent to the execution of our undertaking . Thi s

good intell igence , las ted bu t a l ittl e wh ile , for certain per

sons who made it thei r busines s to cross our design,in

spi red the Iroquoi s,with many su spi cions abou t the fort

,

we were bu i ld ing at Niagara,whi ch w as in great for

wardness,and these suspicions grew so high

,that we were

obl iged to give over our bu i ld ing for sometime,content

ing ourselves , wi th a habi tati on ,bu i lt w i th pal i sadoes .

O n the 2 2 d of the sa i d month,we went two l eagues

above the great fal l ofN iagara , where we made a deck ,for bui lding the Sh ip , we wanted for our voyage .

This w as the mos t conven ient place w e coul d pitch

upon,being upon a ri ver

,wh ich fal l s into the streigh t

between lake Eri e and the great fal l of Niagara .

The 2 6th,the keel of the S h ip

,and some other pi eces

being ready,M . De L a Sal l e sent the m aster carpenter

,

to desi re me to dri ve the fi rst pin . B ut my profess i on

obl iging me,to d ecl ine that honor

,h e did it himsel f

,and

promised ten l oui sd ’ors to encourage the carpenters , and

further the work . The winter not be ing hal f so hard in

that country as in Canada,we empl oyed one of the two

savages of the nati on cal led the IVoolf,whom we kep t

for huntin gg ,in bui ld ing some cabins made of the rind of

trees and I had one made on pu rpose to perform Divine

servi ce therein on Sundays,and other occas ions . M . De

L a Sal l e having some u rgent bu s iness of his own,re

turned to fort Frontenac,leaving for our commander one

Tonti , an Ital ian by birth , who had been forced to reti re

LA S ALLE ’S RETURN T o FORT F R O N TEN A O . 59

into France after the revol ution of Naples,in which his

father w as concerned .

I conducted M . De L a Sall e as far as the lake Onta

r i o , at the mouth of the r iver Niagara, where he ordered

a hou s e to be bu i lt for the (black) sm i th we had promised

to the Iroquois,but th is was only to amuse them

,and

therefore I cannot but own that the savages are not to be

blamed for not having bel i eved every thing they were

tol d by M . L a Motte,in h is embassy al ready related .

“He undertook his j ou rney a foot,over the snow, hav

ing no other provis i ons but a l ittl e sack of indian corn

roasted,which fa i l ed him two days before h e came to the

fort,wh ich i s above four s core l eagues d istant from the

place where he l eft us . However,he got in safely , w ith

two m en and a dog,who dragged h i s baggage over the

i ce,or frozen snow . When I returned to our dock, I nu

derstood that most of the Iroquoi s were gone to wage a

war with a nation on the other s ide of the lake Erie . In

the mean time, our m en continued with great appl i cati on

to build our sh ip,for the Iroquois

,who were left beh ind

being but a smal l number,were not so insolent as before

though they came now and then,to our dock

,and ex

pressed some d is content at what we were doing .

O ne of them in parti cular,feign ing h imsel f drunk ,

attempted to kil l our smith,but was vigorou sly repulsed

by h im,wi th a red - hot i ron bar

,which

,together with

the reprimand he received from me,obl iged himto be

gone . Some few days after,a savage woman gave us

noti ce that the T sonnontouans had resol ved to burn our

sh ip on the do ck,and had certa inly done it, had we not

been always upon our guard .

These frequent alarms from the nati ves,together with

60 HISTORY OF BUF FALO .

the fears we were in,of wanting provis i ons

,having los t

the great barque from fort Frontenac,whi ch should have

rel i eved us,and the T sonnontouans

,at the same time, re

fus ing to gi ve us of thei r corn for money,were a great

discouragement to our carpen ters,whom on the other

hand,a Villa in amongst us endeavored to seduce .

“ That piti ful fell ow , had severa l times attempted to

run awav from u s into N ew York,and wou l d have been

l ikely to pervert our carpenters , had I not confirmedthem in thei r good resol utions

,by the exhortations I u sed

to make every Holy day , after Divine servi ce,in wh ich

I represented to them,that the gl o rv of God , was con

cerned in our undertaking,bes ides the good

,and advan

tage of our christian colon i es, and therefore exhorted them

to redouble thei r dilligence, in order to free ourselves from

all those inconven i ences,and apprehens ions

,we then lay

The two savages we had taken into our servi ce , wereal l thi s whi l e hunting

, and suppl ied us with wild goats ,and other beasts

,for our subs istence

,whi ch encouraged

our workmen to go on wi th thei r work , more bri skly than

before , insomu ch , that in a Short time,our sh ip w as in

read iness to be laun ched,whi ch we d id after having

blessed the same,after the use of the Roman Church .

“

We made al l the haste w e cou ld,to get it afloat, though

not altogether fin i shed,to prevent the des igns of the na

tives, who had r esolved to burn it.

The ship was call ed the Griffin,al luding to the arms

Of Count Frontenac , whi ch have two griflins for support

ers,and bes ides

,M . L a S all e u sed to say of th is S h ip ,

wh il e yet upon the stocks , that he would make the G rif

‘fi n fly above the Raven .

LAUNCH O F THE FIRS T VESS EL . 61

We fired three guns,and sung Te Deum

,w h i ch w as

attended wi th loud acclamations of j oy,of which those

of the Iroquois who were present, were partakers , for we

gave them some brandy to drink , as wel l as to our m en,

who immediately qu i tted thei r cabins of rinds Of trees

and hanged thei r hammocks under the deck of the sh ip,

there to l i e wi th more security than ashore . We did the

l ike,insomuch that the very same day , we were all on

board,and thereby out of the reach of the insults of the

savages .“ The Iroquoi s being returned from hunting beavers

,

were mighti ly su rprised to see our sh ip afloat,and cal led

us Otkon,

’that i s in thei r language

,

‘most penetrating

wi ts,

’ for they could not apprehend how,in so short a

t ime,we had been able to bu i ld s o great a sh ip

,though

it was but s ixty tons . It migh t indeed have been cal led

a moving fortress,for al l the savages inhabi ting the

banks of those lakes and r ivers I have menti oned,for five

hund red leagues together,were fi ll ed with fear

,as wel l as

admiration,when they saw it.

“ The best designs are Often crossed by some unex~

pected accidents,whi ch God permi ts to happen

,to trv

men ’ s constancy,as I experienced at that time . O ne of

our crew gave me noti ce,that the S eur De Tonti

,our

commander,en terta ined some jealousie towards me

,be

cau s e I kept a j ournal of all the cons i derabl e th ings that

were tran sacted,and that he

,designed to take the same

from me . This advise,obl iged me to s tand upon my

guard,and take al l other precauti ons to secure my obsen

vations,and remove the jealousie that gentl eman had of

me . For I had no other design than to keep our m en to

thei r duty,and to exercis es of piety

,and devoti on

,for pre

62 HISTORY OF BUFF ALO .

venting d isorders , and for the furtherance of our commonundertaking .

In the meantime,our enemies spread very disadvan

tageous reports O f us in Canada , where we were repre

sented as rash and incons iderate persons,for venturing

upon so dangerous a voyage,from whi ch

,in thei r opin

ion,none of us wou ld ever return .

Thi s,together w ith the difli cnlties we labored under

for transporting the rigging of our sh ip,and the other in

conven i en ces,necessarily attend ing a voyage through an

unknown country , lakes , and ri vers , where no European

had travel l ed before and the oppos ition from the Iro

quois , wrought in me an unparallel ed vexati on . B ut these

reports,were more prej ud i cial to M . L a Sal le

,whose cred

itors, withou t inqu i ring into the truth of the matter,or

expecting h i s retu rn from fort Frontenac, seized al l hi s

effects in Canada,though that very fort al one

,the prop

erty whereof belonged to him ,w as w orth twice more than

al l h e owed .

“However,it being imposs ibl e to s top the mouth of

ou r enemies,who had no other design than to obl ige us

to give over our enterp ri se , notwithstand ing t he great

c harge we had been at for our preparati ons,we resolved

to wait with pati ence the opportun i ti es Divine Providence

would present us with,and to pu rsue with vigor

,and con

.stancy our design .

Being thus prepared against all di scouragements , I

w ent up in a canoe with one of our savages , to the mouth

c f the lake Eri e , notwithstanding the strong cu rrent,which I mastered wi th great d iffi cul ty . I sounded the

m outh of the lake,and found , contrary to the relations

that had been made unto me. that a sh ip w i th a bri sk

THE GRIFFIN IVA IT IN G IN NIAGAR A R IVER .

gal e,migh t sai l up to the lake

,and surmount the rapid ity

of the current ; and that therefore , wi th a strong north or

n ortheast wind,we might bring our ship into lake Eri e .

“I took al s o a View of the banks of the stre ight

,and

found,that in case of need

,we might put some of our

m en ashore to hau l the sh ip , i f the wind w as not strong

enough .

” Before we coul d go on wi th ou r in

tended d iscoverv , I was obl iged to return to fort Fronte

nae,to bring al ong with m e two monks

,of my ow n ord er

,

to help me,in the func ti on of my min i stry . I left our sh ip

rid ing upon two ancho w i th in a l eague and a hal f of

the lake Erie— in the s treigh t between the sa i d lake and

the great fal l of Niagara .

” The party retu rned to the

sh ip,the beginn in g of August

,1 679

,and we resume our

quotations from the j ournal of Father Hennepin .

We end eavored several times to sai l up the lake,

but the wind being no t s trong enough,we were forced to

wai t for it. In the mean time M . L a Sal l e cau s ed our

m en to grub up some land,and sow severa l sorts of pot

herbs and pul se,for the conveni en cy of those who should

s ettl e themselves there,to mainta in our corr espondence

with fort Frontenac . “T e found there a great quantity of

wild ch erri es,and ‘

rocambol,

’a s ort of garl i c

,whi ch grow

natural ly on that ground .

‘vVe l eft Father M el ithon

,

with some workmen at our habi tati on above the Fal l s of

Niagara,and most of our m en

,w ent ashore to l igh ten our

sh ip , the better to sa i l up the lake .“ The wind veering to the n orth east

,and the shi p be

ing wel l provi ded , we made all the sa i l we could , and with

the help of twelve m en who hauled from the shore,over

came the rapid ity of the current, and got up into the lake .

The s tream is so viol ent that our pi lot h imself despa i red-of success .

64 IIIS T O R Y OF BUFFALO .

IVhen it w as done,we sang Te -Den in

,and d is charged

our cannon and other fi re- arms,in presence of a great

many Iroquois,who came from a warl ike exped ition

aga inst the savages of T intomha,that i s to say the nati on

of the meadows , who l i ve above fou r hundred leagues

from that place .

The Iroqu o is and thei r prisoners , were mu ch su rpri sed

to see IIS in the lake,and d id not th ink before

,that we

should be able to overcome the rapidi ty of the current.

T hev cri ed several t imes ‘

gannoron ,’to show th ei r admi

ration . Some of the Iroquoi s had taken the measure of

our sh ip,and immediatel y went for New York to give

noti ce to the Engl i sh and Dutch of ou r sai l ing into the

lake . For thos e nati on s affording thei r commodi ti es

cheaper than the Fren ch,are a l so more beloved by the

nati ves .

O n the 7th ofAugust 1679 we went on board being

in al l four and th irty m en including two Recoll ets who

came to us,and sai l ed from the mouth of the lake Erie

,

steering our cou rse west,southwest

,with a favorable

wind .

A nd though the enemi es of our d is covery had given

ou t on purpos e to deter us from our enterprise , that the

lake Eri e was ful l of rocks and sands , which rendered the

nav igation impracti cable,we run above twenty leagues

during the n ight; though we sounded all the while . Thenext day the wind being more favorable , we made above

five and forty leagues,keeping at an equal d i stance from

the banks of the lake,and doubled a cape to the west

ward,which we cal l ed

,cape Fran cis . The next day , we

doubled two other capes,and m et wi th no manner of

rocks or sands .” They made the “ mouth of the streigh t

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66 HI STORY O F BUFFALO .

main yard and tO prnast, and let the Ship drive at the

mer cy of the wind,knowing no place to run into to she"

ter oursel ves . M . L a Sal l e,notwi thstand ing he w as a

courageous m an began to fear,and told u s we were un

done,and therefore everybody fel l upon h i s knees to say

h i s prayers and prepare himself for death,except our pi

lot,whom we coul d never obl ige to pray , and he d id noth

ing all that whil e but curse and swear aga instM . L a Sal l ewho as he sai d had brought him th ither to make h im per

ish in a nasty lake,and l ose the glory he had acquired;

by hi s long and happy navigati ons on the ocean .

”

The storm however abated,and they were able to re

sume thei r voyage,having susta ined l ittl e or no dam age

,

and on the 2 7th they arr ived at M issilim akinak,and an

chored in a bay ,“at six fathoms water

,upon a sl imy

wh ite bottom .

” Thi s being the ultimate destination of

the sh ip,we shal l fol low the j ournal of the Father no

further .

The constructi on and equ ipment of the Griffin,

”the

pioneer vessel oflake Eri e,and indeed of these inland s eas

,

exh ib its a degree of enterpris e and perseverance under

d ifficul ties,never surpassed

,and seldom equal ed . When

it i s cons i dered that al l the material for the rigging and

equipment of su ch a craft had to be transported round the

fal l s,up the s teep mountain , and a d i stance of about n ine

mi les,0 11 the backs of m en

,four of whom were requi red

,

it i s sa id,to l i ft a S ingle anchor, of w hi ch they had two,

it wil l be admitted that these m en w ere the fitting repre‘

sentatives of a class of enterpri s ingm en who have,fol low

ing the example set, bui lt up a commerce upon th ese

lakes that has been the admirati on,and aston i shmen t of

the world .

Loss OF THE GRIFFIN . 67

So far as Mons . L a Sal l e h imself, was concerned , th i s

e xpediti on , of whi ch we have given the hi story somewhat

in detai l,appears to have been of a twofold character .

He had,at great expens e the year before

,fitted ou t a

large party of traders , with goods to trade with the Indi

ans for furs . Thi s party had been sent to Mackinaw by

way of the Ottawa ri ver,and lake Huron

,wh ich was then

the usual route from Quebec . He designed the vessel to

take on board a return cargo of furs,the principal of

wh ich at that period,w as beaver

,for the purpos e of di s

charging the debts he had incurred,both for good s fur

n i s hed hi s traders,and the expense incurred in bui ld ing

h i s vessel after accompli shing th is part ofhis enterpri se,

h e des igned to devote h imself to the accompl i shment of

the second obj ect in vi ew , to prosecute h i s di s coveri es on

the great ri ver Miss iss i ppi .

N othw ithstanding the perfi dy on the part of s ome

of h i s trade rs who had been s ent forward , the sea

son before,who had deserted h is servi ce

,and squandered

the goods intrusted to them ,he was abl e to procure a

val uable cargo of furs and skins,and on the 1 8th of Sep

tember,the vessel sai l ed with a fai r wind on her return

voyage . Her crew cons isted of the ol d pilot,and five

m en ; she w as never heard from afterward s .

There were vagu e reports hav ing thei r origin wi th thenati ves

,that sh e w as lost in a gal e which occurred very

soon after sh e sa i l ed . Some attempts have been m ade to

prove that she w as l ost on lake Eri e , and not many miles

from th i s city ; bu t th i s i s rendered improbabl e from the

fact that M . L a Sal l e deci ded h imself to go to Quebec,in

the middle of the winter of 1 679—80 “ because, (says M

De Tonti in h i s memoi r,) h e had h eard nothing of the

boat w hi ch he had sent to Niagara .

”

68 I IIS T O R Y OF BUFFALO .

He gave m e the comman d of th i s place (Fort Creave

coner 0 11 the Ill inoi s r i ver,) and left us the 2 2 d ofMarch ,

w i th five m en on h is road he m et with two m en whom

he had sent in the autumn to M ichilimackinac,to obtain

news of his boat. They assured h im that it had not come

down,and he therefore determined to continue h i s j our

n ey .

” It i s most probable,therefore

,that the Griffin .

w as l ost soon after she started on her return voyage , as

reported by the Ind ians , who saw her at anchor to the

north of the lake Il l in oi s, (Mich igan ) B ut the

sh ip w as hardly a l eagu e from the coast,when it was

tos sed up by a violent storm in such a manner that our

m en were never heard of since .

” H ad sh e pass ed down

through the s treigh ts and ri ver,into lake Eri e

,she would

have been s een by some of the numerous tribeswho in

hab ited the shores of those s treights and r ivers . B ut

d i l igent inqui ry,II ever brough t any furth er information.

C H A P T E R V I .

It wi ll be readily percei ved by what has been related ,that the h istory of the Senecas

,and indeed

,of the Five

Nati ons , now becomes involved with that of the two great

European powers,who were contending for the suprema

cy over the aboriginal tribes who inhabited thi s continent.

History relates,pretty fully

,the transactions that occur

red about th i s peri od,between the English government

at New York,and the Fren ch government at Quebec

,in

Canada, whi ch ultirnatel v led to a war between those twonations .

Perhaps no better idea of the true pos iti on of affai rs

between the parti es,in whi ch the whole S ix Nati on s be

came deeply invol ved,can be gi ven

,than by O opying

two letters,written about thi s time, being part of a very

wordy correspondence between M . De Nonvi l le,the Gov

ernor of Canada,and Gov . Dongan

,the Governor of

New York :

M . DE NONV ILLE T o Gov . DONGAN .

August 2 2,1 687.

S IR : The respect I entertain for the King,you r master

,

and the orders I have from the King to l i ve in harm ony

with h i s Britann i c Maj esty ’ s subj ects induce me s ir,to

70 IIIS T O R Y OF BU FFALO .

address you this letter, on the present state of affa i rs,so

as to have noth ing to reproach myself wi th . O n seeing

the letter you were at the troubl e to write to me , on my

a rri va l in thi s government,I persuaded myself by your

d is course,that we shou l d l iv e in the greatest harmony

,

and best understanding in the world,but the event has

well proved that your intentions d id not at al l accordwith your fi ne words .

Y ou recollect,s i r

,that you pos iti vely asked me in that

same letter,to refer the d ifference about our boundar i es ,

to the decis ion of our masters . Letters more recently re

ceived from you , ful ly convinced me that you recei ved

that which I wrote in reply to your first, to show you that

I wil l ingly left that decis ion to our masters .

Nevertheless,s ir

,whi lst you were express ing these ci

v i l iti es to me,you were giving orders

,and sending pas ses

to despatch canoes to trade at M issilirn aquina , where an

Engl ishman had never set foot,and where we

,the French ,

had been establ i shed more than s ixty years .

I S hall say noth ing of the tri cks and intrigues res orted

to by your people,and by your orders

,to induce al l the

savage tribes domi ci l ed with the French,to revolt against

us . I tel l you nothing,either

,of all your intrigues to en

gage the Iroquois to declare w ar aga inst us .

Your traders at Orange (Albany , ) have made noise

enough about it,and you r presents of mun itions of war

,

made with this v iew last year, and thi s , are con vict ions

sufliciently conclus i ve , not to entertain a doubt of it,even

were there not proofs at hand of your wicked designs

aga inst the subj ects of the King,whose bread you have

eaten l ong enough,and by whom you have been suffi

c iently well enterta ined , to cause you to have more regard

DE NONVILLE T O GO V . DONGAN .

rto h i s Maj esty,though you had not all the orders from

his Britanni c Maj esty,that you have to l i ve wel l with all

the subj ects of the King , h i s ancient friend .

What have you not done,sir

,to prevent the Senecas

s urrendering to me the O utow as,and Huron pri soners of

M issilimaqu ina , whom they treacherou sly captured last

y ear, and how many goings and c omings have there not

been to the Senecas on you r part, and that ofyour traders ,who do nothing bu t by your orders

,to permit the restitu

tion of the sa i d prisoners , by the sai d S enecas , who were

sol i ci ted at the village of the O ntonagues, (Onondagas ,)to gi ve me sati sfacti on . I avow to you , s i r, that I should

never have expected such proceedings on your part,

which,without doubt

,will not please the King

,your mas

ter,who wil l never approve your strenuously oppos ing

,

by threats of chasti sement,the

'Iroquois,com ing to me

when I invited them to Vis it me,to arrange wi th them

the causes of d is content that I had. on account of thei r

vi olences .

Three years ago, sir , you made use of them to wage

w ar aga inst the French,and thei r all ies . Y ou took great

pains for that purpose to give them more lead,powder and

arms than they asked . You did more si r,for you prom

i s ed them reinforcements of m en to sustain them aga inst‘

the King’ s subj ects . Qu ite recently,S ir

, you woul d

again have pushed your i l l -will,by sending two parti es ,

by m isscarrying your orders to M issil irnaqu ina , and ex

pel us from there,and put you into possess i on , contrary

to the word you have given,not to undertake anyth ing

“before the arrangement of our M ajesties, our masters .

Y ou have s i r,sti l l surpassed all that ; for after the

pa ins you had taken to prevent the I roquoi s assembling

72 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

at Cataroqu i, (Kingston ,) where I expected to meet them

to s ettl e all our d ifficul ti es,and recei ve from them the

sati s faction they should have afforded me,as well in re

gard to the Huron and O utow a prisoners they would

have given up to m e,had you not Opposed it as well as

for the pil lagings, and robberies , that they have commit

ted on us,and all the insu l ts they dai ly offer our miss ion

aries,as wel l those th ey m ay have actual ly among th em

,

as those they have expel led,after an infinite amoun t of

i l l - treatment,during twenty years they l ived in thei r v il

lages . After you S ir,having I say , so l i ttle regard for

the interest of the King ’ s subj ects , and the good of rel i

gion,whose progress you thus prevent

,you have

,S ir

,

quite recently contravened the las t treaty entered into

between our m asters : a O opy of which you have received ,with orders to obey it ; a O opy of which you al so sent me .

Read it wel l s i r,i f you please , and you wil l then re

mark how strongly their Maj esti es have it at heart to

preserve thei r subj ects in good harmony and understand

ing, so that thei r Maj esti es understand that the enemies

of one are the enemies of the other . If the avari ce of

your merchants,influ ence you less than the desi re to exe

cute the orders of the King,you r master

,doubtl ess s i r

,I

shoul d al ready had proofs of you r good d ispos ition , to

execute the sai d treaty,according to whi ch

,you ought

not to afford ei th er refuge or protection to the savage en

emies to the French col ony,mu ch less ass i st them with

ammun ition to wage w ar against it. Nevertheles s,I as

sert positi vely,that you have

,s ince the publ i cati on of

sai d treaty of neutral ity,contravened it in thi s parti cular

,

s ince noth ing i s done in your government, save by your

orders . After that,judge sir

,what j ust grounds I have

to complain of,and be on my guard aga inst you .

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74 HIS TORY OF BUFFAL O .

pretext that I wished to declare w ar against the villag e

of the O nontagues. (Onondagas ) IVhat certainty had

y ou O f it,s i r

,i f it w ere not your charge and proh ibiti ons

you had given them,against giving up the prisoners I

demanded of them,and thev surrendered to me ?

You foresaw the w ar I wou ld make,because you wished

me to make it aga inst them,and because you obl iged me

to wage that against the Senecas . In thi s way , s i r, it i s

v ery easy to foresee what occu rs .

I admire,s i r

,the passage of y ou r last l etter Of the 1 1th

of June,of thi s year

,in which you state that the King Of

England,your master

,has j uster t i tle than the King to

the pos ts we occupy,and the foundation of your reason

ing is, that they are s ituate to the south of you,j ust on

the border of one portion O f your domin i on . (dominati on )In refutati on of your sorry reason ings , sir , it i s only ne

c essary to tel l you , that you are very badly acquainted

with the map of the country, and know less of the points

o f the compass,where those posts are relati ve to the s itu

a ti on ofManate. (New York.)It i s only necessary to ask you again

,what l ength of

t ime we "have"occupied those posts , and who discovered

them,you or we ? Again

,who i s in possess ion of them ?

After that,read the fifth arti cle of the treaty of neutral i

ty , and you wil l see i f you are ju stified in giving orders

to establ ish your trade by force O f arms,at M issilima

quina.

As I send you a copy Of your letter,with the answer

to each arti cl e , I need not repeat here what i s embraced

in that answer. Suffice it to say this in conclus ion , that

I retain your Officer,M cGregory , here , and al l your orders

for your pretended expediti on,who were taken w ith in the

DE NONV ILLE TO GOV . DONGAN . 75

posts occupied by theKing. My first design was to send

them back to you , but as I know that you entertain , and

give aid and comfort to the Iroquoi s savages,contrary to

the treaty of neutral ity, of November l 6th, 1 686 , agreed

to by our m asters,caus ing them to be suppl i ed with al l

mun iti ons necessary to enable them to wage w ar aga inst

us,I have determined

,in S pi te O f myself

,to retain al l

your people,unti l you have compl i ed wi th the intenti ons

Of the King,your master

,and executed sa id treaty , being

obliged to regard you as the King ’ s enem y,whi lst you

ente rtain his enemies,and contravene the treati es

,enter

e d into between the King of England,and the King, my

master .

Al l that I can tel l you for certain i s , that your conduct

will be the rul e of mine,and that it wil l rema in with

yourself, that the sa i d treaty be thoroughly executed . I

must O bey my master , and I have much respect and ven

cration for one of the greatest Kings in the world,the

protector of the Church .

Y ou pretend that the Iroquoi s are under your domin

ion . T O thi s I in no wise agree,but it i s a questi on on

which our masters wil l determine . B ut whether th ey be

or not,from the moment they are Our enemies

,you ought

to be Opposed to them,and be their enemi es

,and i f you

comfort them directly or ind irectly,I must regard you as

an enemy Of the colony,and I shal l be ju stified in sub

jecting the pri s oners I have,belonging to you r govern

m ent,to the same treatment that the enemies Of the col

ony wil l Observe towards u s . Hereupon,sir

,I wi l l ex

peet news from you,as well as the fitting assurances vou

wil l give me,that I may be certain you do not employ

the Iroquois to wage w ar on us , by giving them protec'

t i on.

76 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

Rely on me . s i r. L et us attach ou rselves closely to

the execution of our master’ s intentions . L et us seek

after thei r example to promote rel igion and serve it. L et

u s l ive in good understand ing,accord ing to thei r des i res .

I repeat,and protest s i r

,it remains only with you . B ut

do not imagine that I am a m an to suffer others to play

tri cks .

I send you back Anton i o L eispinard , bearer of your

passport and l etter. I shal l awa i t you r final res oluti on,

on the restituti on O f you r pri soners,whom I wish much

to give up to you , on condition that you execute the treaty

Of neutral ity *ln al l its extent , and that you furni sh m e

with prO per guarantees therefor .

You r very H umbfe and

Very Obedient Servan t.

T H E M . DE N O NVIL L

Gov . DONGAN TO M . DE NONV ILLE .

8th September,168 r.

S ta : Yours of the 2 1st August last,I have recei ved

,

and am sorry that Mons . De Nonville has so soon forget

ten the orders h e had received from h is master,to l i ve

well wi th the subj ects of the King of England .

B ut I fi nd the air of Canada has s trange effects on all

the Governor ’ s boddyes , for I no sooner came into thi s

province,than Mons . De L a Barre des ired my ass istance

to warr against the S innekes, upon which'I went to Alba

ny , and sent for the Five Nations to come to me , and

when they came,was very angry with them for offering

to do anyth ing to the French,that might d isturb them

hunting or otherwise . O n which they answered me that

they had not done anything to the French , bu t what

GOV . DONGAN TO DE NONVILLE . 77

Mons . de la Barre orderd them,which was

,that i f they

m et with any French , hunting without his pass , to take

what they had from them,notwithstand ing i f any O f thei r

people whi ch were abroad,had done any inj ury they

knew not of,they assured me they would give sati s faction .

I send h im word Of al l thi s,and assured h im satisfac

tion,but notwithstanding

,h e comes in a hosti l e manner

on th i s s ide Of the lake,to a place cal led Kayonhaga, and

there , by the means of the O nnondages , m ade a peace

with the S innekes, so i f they have committed any fault

before that,it w as all con cl uded there . B ut I appeal to

any rati onal m an whatever,whether it was fi t for any

Governor Of Canada,to treat or make any peace wi th h is

Maj esty ’ s subj ects,wi thout the advi ce and knowledge of

the Governor of the province they l ived under. B ut I

fi nd fthe design to ruin these F i ve Nations, (s ince you

cannot,with bribes or other means

,ga in them to b e of

you r party, ) i s Of a longer date than three or four years .

S ince Mons . De Nonville follow s the same steps h i s pre

decessors trod in,th’

o h e proposed to h imself so fa i r a

beginn ing.

I am sure he wi l l not make so good an end. For no

s ooner was Mon s . De Nonvi l l e in possess ion O f h i s gov

e rnm ent, b ut he begun to bui l d a great m any boats and

canoes,and put a great deal Of provis i ons and stores in

the Cataraqu e (Kingston ,) at whi ch our Indians on th i s

S ide of the lake,were much alarmed

,and came to me to

know the mean ing of it ; upon whi ch , I sent to you by

w ay Of Mons . Lambervi l le to know What you intended by

al l these preparati ons your answer w as,as Mons . De

Nonv il le may remember, that the winters being long , and

y ou resolving to have a good number of men at Cataraque

78 HIS TORY OF BUFFALO .

you accord ingly made provis ion for them and i f I had

not really bel ieved what you writ to be true,I

'

m ight hav e

been in as much readiness to have gone on the other s i de

of the lake,as Mons . De Nonville was to come on th i s .

N ew,s i r I wil l not answer your hasty w ay O f express ions

in your own style,bu t wil l plainly let you know the ma t

ter Of fact as it i s . If sir,you wil l pleas e to peruse those

letters,I from t ime to time sent you

,you wil l fi nd that I

sti l l coveted nothing more than to preserve the friendsh ip

that i s between our masters,and ought to be between

thei r subj ects h ere,and as you wel l remark, i s accord ing

to thei r commands , and I pray s i r , whi ch i s it O f us both ,that hath taken the way to un ti e that knot of fri endsh ip .

Mons . De Nonvi ll e invading the King O f England ’ s ter

ritories,in a hosti l e manner

, (though h i s recepti on has

not been accord ing to h i s expectation,) i s so plain a mat

ter of fact,that it i s unden iabl e whether you d id it de

signedly to make a misunderstanding or no. I cannottel l . If you d id

,I hope it will take no effect but that

our masters at home,no twithstanding all your traine d

soldiers and great Officers come from Europe,will suffer

u s poor planters and farmers,h i s Maj esty ’ s subj ects in

these parts of Ameri ca to do ourselves j usti ce O n you , for

the inj uri es and spoi l you have committed on them , and I

assure you,s i r

,that i f my master gives l eave

,I wi l l be

as soon at Quebec,as you shal l be at Albany as for

Maj or M cGregororie and those others you took pris oners ,they had no pas s from me to go to ItI issil im aqu iue , but a

pass to go to the O ttawawas, where I though t it m igh t. be

as free for us to trade as for you and as fo r gi v ing them

any commi ss i on or instructions to d is turb your peopl e , I

as sure you do me wrong , and if you pleas e to read h i s

GOV. DONGAN TO DE NONVILLE . 79

instructions, you wil l fi nd there , I gave express orders to

the contrary and for your pretenti on to s i xty years pos

sess ion,

’tis imposs ibl e ; for they and the Ind ians who

wear p ipes through thei r noses , traded with A lbany long

before the French s ettled at Montreal but in cas e it

were as you al ledge,whi ch I have not the l east reas on to

bel i eve,you could on ly have proh ibited thei r trading in

that place,and let them go to some other nation . It i s

very true,I Offered to leave the decis i on to our m asters

at home , in case of any differen ce , and pray , s i r , let m e

know in what I have in the least acted to the contrary“

Y ou tel l me,I h indered the Five Nati ons on th i s s id e

the lake,who

,have subj ected themselves

,th ei r countr i es

and conquests , under the King Of England , to go to you

at Cataraqu e . It i s very true,I did s o

,and thought it'

very unj ust in you to des i re thei r coming to you . F or

the King O f England d i d not send me here to suffer you

to give laws to h i s subj ects O f th is government. Y ou al so

al ledge that I have given orders to those Indian s to pil lage

and war upon your people . Su re sir, you forget what .

you desired of me . If you will please to reflect on one :

of your own letters,in whi ch you acquainted me that

m any of your people ran away into thi s government,and .

des i red that I would take and s end back,any that shou ld

be found upon th i s s ide Of the lake,without your pass

upon whi ch,I ordered those O fA lbany

,and al so

,the In

dians to s eize and secure all persons whatever,as wel l

French as Engl ish,they should fi nd on th i s s ide Of the

lake , wi thout your pas s or mine . Truly, sir,I ought to

be rebuked for th is,it having been the h indrance of

many thousands Of beavers coming to A lbany . Further

you blame me for h indering the S inakees del i vering up then

80 HIS TORY OF B U F F A L O .

O ttawawa pri soners to you . This I di d wi th good r ea

son . For what pretense could you have to make y our

appl i cations to them ,and not to me . Nevertheless

,I or

dered Maj or M cGregory to carry them to the O ttawawa,and i f vour cla im be only to M issil imaquina , what cause

had you to h inder M cGregory to go to the O ttawawa ?

What you al lege concern ing m y ass isting the S inakees,

with arms and amunition,to w ar against you

,w as never

given by me unti l the 6th of August last,when under

standing of your unj ust proceedings in invading theKing

my m aster ’ s territori es , in a hosti l e manner,I then gave

them powder,l ead and arms

,and uni ted the Fi ve Nations

together,to defend that part of ourK ing

’

s domin ion,from

your Inj uri ous invas i on . A nd,as for Offering them m en ,

in that you do me wrong ; our m en being busy al l at

thei r harvest, and I leave it to your j udgment, whether

there w as any occas ion , when only fou r hundred of them

engaged wi th your w hol e army . You tel l me in cas e I

ass i st the Indians , you wil l esteem me an enemy to your

c olony . S ir,give m e l eave to let you know you are a

’far greater enemy to your colony than I am it hav ing1a lways been my endeav or to keep those I nd ians from

warring wi th you , who in you r protecting thei r enemies. that have kil led and robbed them in thei r hunting and

-o therwi se,and that not once

,but several times

,have giv

\ en them great provocati ons . B u t you have taken a way

t o S pil l a great deal of christian blood , wi thout gain ing

the point you aim at,and for you , who have taken the

King ’ s subj ects prisoners in time O f peace,and taken

‘

thei r goods from them without any j ust grounds for so

d oing,how can I expect but that you wil l use them as

”

you threaten . Y ou al s o say , in. your letter that the King

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82 HIS TORY OF BU FFA LO .

before any , except my own,and have a great deal Of

spect for all the peopl e O f qual i ty Of you r nati on which

engages m e to advis e Mons . De Nonvil le to send home al l

the christians and Indian pri soners the King OfEngland ’ s

subj ects,you unj us tly do deta in.

This I though t fi t to answer to your refi ecting and pro

v oking l etter .

C H A P T E R V I I .

The next year Ju ly,1688

,an expedition favored by

the Engl ish Governor ofNew York,cons isting of twelve

hundred warriors of the S ix Nations,made a sudden de

s cent,upon the French settl ements on the Island O fM O Il ‘

treal .

They landed on the south s ide of the Island at L a

Chine, on the 2 6th O f July , where they burned , and sacked

all the plantations and made a terrible massacre,O fmen

,

women,and ch ildren .

There were above a thousand of the French killed at

thi s time , and twenty - six,carri ed away capti ves . The

greatest part of wh i ch,were burnt al i ve. The Fi ve N a

t i ons on ly lost three m en,in thi s expedition

,that got

drunk and were left behind . Thi s however d id not sa

tiate thei r thi rst for blood,for in the fol lowing O ctober

they destroyed l ikewi se,all the l ower part Of the Island

,

and carried away many prisoners .*

The French became so weakened , and alarmed , at thesereverses

,that they were compelled to abandon thei r posts

at Niagara , and Fort C ataraqu i (Kingston ) The match

wh i ch had been placed to blow up the magazine in Fort

*S ee Golden

’s H istory of the Five Nations.

84 HI STORY OF BU FFAL O .

C ataraqu i, fai l ing to ign i te , the Iroquoi s on taking pos

sessi on O f the fort. found a large quantity Of m i l i tary

stores,provi s ions

,&c .

,among w h ich

,were twenty - eight

barrel s of powder . This success of the F ive Nati on s,

over the French,created great consternati on

,extending

to the western nation s O f Indians,many of whom

,had

sought the protecti on of the French,against the Iroquoi s

,

who were the dread Of al l the su rrounding nati ons . Many

of them now sought to form al l iances ofpeace,and friend

ship,wi th the Five Nati ons . The Fren ch interests in

Canada,recei ved a terrible bl ow . a large proportion of

the able bodi ed m en , had for some time , been employed

in the exped iti on against the Five Nations and in tra

d ing with the Indians O i'

the far west. Agri cul ture had

been almost enti rely negl ected . They had l ost a large

number O f inhab i tants by the continual incurs ion s Of

smal l parti es O f th ei r savage foes,unti l it became unsafe

to l i ve,ou ts ide of fortified town s . A t last, the whole set

tled portion of the country , being lai d waste , famine be

gan to threaten the enti re destru cti on Of th e colony .

H ad the Indian s understood the method of attacking

forts,at thi s time

, (says Colden , ) nothing could have saved

the French from enti re destructi on Showing that not

withstand ing the intrigu es O f the French , to d ivide , and

weaken,the influence and power of the Five Nati ons

,and

thei r partial success,in accompl i sh ing thei r Obj ect

,by

l eaving the Senecas , to meet almost s ingle handed,the

w hol e mi litary power Of the French,hurled against them ,

under De Nonvill e,we see them w ithin a year

,again

un ited,invading the territory of thei r enemy

,and w i th

he resi stl ess fu ry of a tornado , sweeping th em to destruc

t ion,almost without resi stance .

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86 HISTORY OF BUFFA L O .

Immediately on the arr ival of th is deputati on,word

was sent to Albany,by the Six Nations

,of the fact

,and

that a counci l Of the Sach ems,w as appointed to meet at

Onondaga,inviting the Mayor ofAlbany, (Peter S chuy

l er ) and some others , to be present, tO advi se with them ,

in an affai r of such great importance,as they

, (the In

dians) were resolved to do nothing without thei r knowl

edge,and cons ent. Notwithstanding thi s request, it does

not appear that any person Of note , or influence , with the

Indians,was s ent. O n the 4th of January

,1690 , at the

sol i c itation of one of the principal Sachem s of the M O

hawks,the m agistrates of A lbany sent the publ i c inter

preter, and another person,to ass i st at the general meet

ing , with written instruction s . When they arr ived at

Onondaga,they had a private intervi ew

,with one of the

returned pri soners,

and found that he had no l ove for

the Fren ch but complained Of the i l l- usage, they had

received,at the hands of the Fren ch . He related all the

c i rcumstances of thei r captiv ity,of the grandeur exh ibit

ed by the French Court,and the power d i splayed , in the

m i l itary exh ibitions,whi ch they had witnessed .

The counci l was Opened on the 2 2 d of January , 1690 ,and was conducted with great formal ity . A sachem of

the Onondagas (as w as the custom ,that being the place

O f the coun ci l of the S i x Nations,) w as the first to speak .

H is address,was a mere Open ing of the council . He was

followed,by A darakta

,the ch i ef Sachem of the French

deputation,wh o del i vered the m essage of Y onondio

,

the Governor Of Canada . Next,the Mohawk messenger ,

s ent from A lbany,del i vered h i s message

,word for word

,

Colden.

GREAT CROWD AT ONONDAGA . 87

as it had been given h im ,the interpreter , having a writ

ten Copy,before h im

,l es t anyth ing S hou l d be forgotten .

After th is,Cannehootlga Seneca Sachem ,

stood up, and

del ivered the message of h i s people .

After some prel im inarv remarks of a general character

he went on to give a parti cu lar account of the treaty made

the last year,between the Senecas

,and s everal of the

western nations,who had voluntari ly

,come to treat for

peace,

and friendsh ip and that thei r bretheren in

New York, (the Engl i sh ) were to be included in that

treaty. After the ceremon i es were all over,S adekanah~

tie,an Onondaga Sachem stood up

,and sa id

“ Brethren we must sti ck to our brother Qu ider, (Pe

ter Schuyler ) and look on Y onondio (the Governor Of

Canada) as our enemy , for h e i s a cheat .

”

The interpreter from A lbany,w as then desi red

'

to in

form the coun cil,what he had to say

,from thei r breth

ren at Albany .

He tol d them,that a new Governor had arrived in N ew

York,wi th a great many soldi ers from England that

the King ofEngland had declared w ar,against the French

,

and that the peopl e O f New England,were fitting out

sh ips,against Canada . He advi s ed them

,not to harken

to the French , for said he , when they talk of peace , w ar

i s in thei r heart; and advi sed them to enter into no treaty,

except it were made at A lbany,for sai d he

,the French

wil l Observe no agreement,made anywhere els e .”

After consul tation,the foll owing answer w as given the

messenger from Albany

Brethren,our fire burns at Albany

,w e wil l not

s end D ekanasora to Cadaraqu i, (Kingston ) We adhere

to our O ld chain,with Corlear

, (Governor Of New York .)

88 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

We will prosecu te the w ar, with Y ohondio , (the Gov . Of

Canada) and w i l l fol low your advice , in draw ing O ff our

m en from C adaraqu i, (mean ing some O f their p eople , who

had been induced to settl e there,through the influence O f

the j esuit m i ss ionari es . )Brethren

,we a re glad to hear the new s vou tell u s ;

you tel l us no l i es .”

Brother Kinshon,w e hear you design to s end so l

diers,to the eastward

,aga inst the Indians there bu t we

advis e you,now so many are un ited against the French

to fal l on them immediate"y ; strike at the root , when the

trunk fal l s,the branches fal l O f cours e . Corl ear and

Kinshon , courage courage I In the spring to Quebec,

take that place,and you have you r foot on the necks Of

the French,and al l thei r friends in Ameri ca.

”

The counci l al s o prepared a message to be returned to

the Governor O f Canada,an imadverting

,in the strongest

terms,upon the bad fai th of the French the cruel de

ceptions they had practi ced , parti cularly toward the S en

ecas that they were glad to hear,that the thi rteen pr i s

oners taken to Fran ce,were retu rned

,that it would be

time enough,to talk about peace

,when thei r prisoners

were restored that,in the m eantime

,they should retain

al l the prisoners in thei r hands , ti l l that time . As soon

as the counci l broke up , thei r resoluti ons were publ i shed

to al l the s everal Nati ons,by the return of the S achems

,

who attended the council . A deputation was s ent Alba

ny , to assure the brethren,that the Six Nati ons , were re

solved,to prosecute the war

,against the French

,in token

whereof,a belt in whi ch , three axes w ere represented ,

was presented toQuider.

*Meaning the Gov . of N ew York .

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90 H ISTORY OF BUFFALO .

the address,so much prai sed by Gov . Clinton

,was dcl iv

ered . It i s worthy of preservation,and we shal l make no

apology for inserting it here . It i s dated the 2 5th Of

November,1690 .

“ BRETHREN The murder of our brethren at Sche~

nectady , by the French , grieves u s as much , as i f it had

been done to oursel ves ; for we are in the same chain ,and no doubt our brethren Of New England

,will be l ike

wise sadly affected,with th is cruel action O f the French .

The French on thi s occas ion,have not acted l ike brave

m en,but l ike thieves

,and robbers . Be not th erefore

d is couraged we give thi s bel t,to wipe away your tears .

Brethren,we lament the death of so many of our

brethren,whose blood has been shed at Schenectady .

We don ’t think that what the French have done

,can be

cal led a v i ctory . It is on ly a further proof of thei r cruel

deceit .

The Gov . of Canada sends to Onondaga,and talks to

us of peace with our whol e h ou se,but w ar w as in hi s

heart as you now see,by wofu l experi ence .

He d id the same formerly,at C adaraqui and in the

S enacas country . Thi s i s the th i rd time he has acted so de

c eitful lv . He has broken open our hous e a t both ends , for

merly,In th e Senecas countrv

,and now

,here . IVe hope

however,to be revenged of them . O ne hundred of our

bravest young m en,are in pursuit O f them

,they are bri sk

fel lows,and they wil l fol low the French

,to thei r own

doors . We wil l beset them,S O closely

,that not a m an in

Canada,shal l dare to step out O fdoors to cut a s ti ck of

wood . B u t now we gather up our dead,to bury them

,

by this second belt.

Brethren,we came from our castl es with tears in our

ADDRES S OF THE M OHAWK DEPUTIES . 91”

eyes,to bemoan the blood shed at Schenectady

,by the

perfi dious French . While we bu ry our dead,murdered

at Schenectady , we know not,what m ay have befal l en .

our own people , that are in pursuit of the enemy. They

m ay be dead . What has befal len you , m ay happen to .

us,and therefore we come to bury our brethren at Sche

nectady , with th i s belt.

Great,and sudden

,i s the mis ch ief

,as i f it had fal len

from Heaven , upon us. Our forefathers taugh t us to go,

with all speed,to bemoan , and lament, with our brethren

when any di saster, or mi sfortunes happen to any in ou r

chain . Take th i s belt of vigilance,that you m ay be more

watchful,for the future .

We give our brethren,eye -water

,to make them sharp

sighted ; giving a fourth belt.

We are com e now,to the hous e where we usual ly re

new the cha in,bu t alas I we fi nd the hous e pol luted with

blood .

Al l the Five Nations,have heard of thi s

,and we are

come to wipe away the blood,and clean the hous e .

We come,to invite Corlear

,and every one of you

,and

Quider, (cal l ing to every one of the principal m en pr es

ent,by thei r names ,) to be revenged on the enemy , by

thi s bel t.

Brethren,be not d is couraged ; we are strong enough ;

thi s i s the beginn ing of your w ar,and the whol e hous e

have th ei r eyes fixed on you , at th i s time,to Observe

your behavi or .

They wait vour motion , and are ready to j oin you , in ,

any resol ute measures .

Our chain i s a strong chain ; it i s a S i l ve r chain . It‘

can neither rust,or be broken .

92 HISTORY O F BUFFALO .

'

We,as to our part

,are resolute to continue the war .

We wil l never des i s t,so long as a man O f us remains

take heart,do not pack up , and go aw ay thi s w i l l give

heart to a dastardly enemv . We are of the race of the

bear,and a hear , you know ,

never yi elds,w h il e one

drop of blood i s l eft ; w e must al l be bears ; giving a

s ixth bel t.

Brethren,be pati en t . Thi s d isaster i s a great atflic

tion,w h i ch has fal len from Heaven upon us ; the sun

which hath been cloudy,and s ent thi s d isaster, wil l Shin e

aga in,with its pleasant beams ; take courage , sa id h e ,

cou rage, (repeating the word several times ) as they gave

a s even th belt .

There was a Special add ress al s o to the Engl ish res i

dents O f A lbanv,at the same time ful l of sympathy and

encouragement, but notwi thstand ing thi s wise counsel

and profers of ass istance and support, many Of the Engl i sh res idents , were so alarmed

,and d isheartened , that

they packed up, and returned to New York .

The Fi ve Nati ons fulfi lled all,and even more

,than

they promi sed . The one hundred young warriors , they

sent out to pursue the French in thei r retreat,back to

Canada,fel l upon thei r rear, and kil led

,and captured ,

twenty - fi ve of them,wi thout loss to themselves they or

ganiz ed bands , to invade the territory,and harass the

French settlements,in Canada , and l iteral ly accompl ish ed

what they threatened,m aking it dangerous for them ,

to

go abroad,to procure food or fuel . Under these circum

stances , the Count De Frontenac, acted with h i s accus

tomed energy,and skill . He sent a smal l party , under

Capt . L ouriqu i, to rel ie ve the garri son at M ashilimacki

nak,and prevent a treaty Of peace

,which w as on the

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94 HISTORY OF BUFFAL O .

neares t the Engl i sh . I t w as not very surp ri s ing that

under these ci rcumstances they should be ready to l i sten

to p roposal s of peace, wh i ch the Count De Frontenac los t

no Opportun ity to proffer,through the smal l s ettl ement

Of thei r countrymen,the praying Indians

,who stil l re

m a ined true to the interests of the French .

I t w as at th is time,

and under these circumstan

ces,that the Mohawks

,sent one O f thei r sachems to

thei r brethren,the praying Indians

,who introduced him

to the Count De Frontenac, who made h im wel come ,treated him in the kindest manner, and gave h im assu

ran ces of h is des i re for peace, and gave h im a belt, with

proposal s Of peace to h is nati on .

Col . Slaughter then Gov . ofNew York,being informed

O f the cond i tion Of affai rs , appointed a meeting with the

F i ve Nati ons . Only four,Of the Five Nati ons , were rep

resented in th i s council . The Mohawks d i d not attend,

t o j oin in the answer. The O fteidas, Onondagas , Cayu

g as, and Senecas , al l answered the Governor , that they

were resolved to prosecute the w ar against the French

they did not approve Of enterta ining any overtures for

peace .

O n the fourth day , the Mohawks spoke to the Governor

in presen ce of all the other nations . They admitted hav

ing recei ved overtures of peace , through th e i r breth ren ,'

the praying Indians they desi red advi ce,as to what

answer they should return to the Governor Of Canada.

The Four Nati on s repl i ed to th i s request,as fol lows :

Mohawks,ou r Brethren , in answer to your propo

s al s from the Governor of Canada,we must put you in

m ind of hi s deceit and treachery .

We .need on ly give one recent instance,how he late

T H E INDIANS CONTINUE T H EWAR . 95

fly s ent to the Senecas to treat O f peace , and at the same

time fel l upon Schenectady , and cut that place off.

We tel l you , that the belt s ent by the French Gov

c ruor,i s poison

,we Spew it out of our m onths

, we abso

l utely rej ect it,and are resol ved to prosecute the w ar

,as

long as we l i ve.” Then they left the belt ly ing on the

ground .

The Five Nati ons continued thei r incursi ons al l winter

(1690 in Canada. Forty of the M ohawks,attacked

Fort Vercheres,and carri ed off twenty of the inhabi tants .

The Count De Frontenac being informed that a large

party of S enecas were hunting beaver , on the pen insu lar

between lake Ontari o and lake Erie sent three hundred

m en,under the command O fMons . B el lacour

,to surpri s e

and capture them some O f the “ praying Indian s” were

of the party . After en countering incred ibl e hardsh ip s ,travel ing on snow shoes

,carrying thei r provi s ions on

thei r backs,they surpris ed the hunting party numbering

a bout eigh ty persons of both sexes,who

,says the nara

tor, di d not run before they had lost most of thei r m en,

dead on the spot. Three women were m ade prisoners,

wi th whom the French immediately returned back to

Montreal .”

S O vigilant,and acti ve

,were the Five Nations

,that all

commun i cation between M ontreal and Mackinac was en

tirely cut O ff,and s everal attempts were made in the

spring and summer Of 1692,to Open it

,but were in every

instance frustrated by the vigi lance of the Fi ve Nati ons .

A cons iderabl e party Of the Five N ati ons under the

c ommand of a famous w ar- ch ief named Black Kettl e con

t inned a l ong time on the S t. Lawrence ri ver, m hopes O f

m eeting wi th other French parti es , on thei r passage to

96 HISTORY OF BUF FALO .

wards Mackinac , bu t find ing no further attempts that

w ay , made an i rruption into the country round Montreal ,over- runn ing the whole country

,burn ing and ravaging

wherever they went ; some accounts say , Black Kettl e

had six hundred m en wi th h im,others place the number

at only two hundred .

M . De Vaudrieu l at the head of four h undred m en,fi

nal ly surpri sed thi s party, and after a desperate encoun

ter,they broke through the French

,and made their es

cape wi th the loss of twenty kil led . The F rench lost fou r

Officers,and many m en . They took five m en

,n ine wo

m en,and fi ve ch i ldren pri soners . The Five Nations in

a few days after,attacked a party of French soldiers re

turn ing from guard ing some vessel s from Montreal to

Quebec,kill ing the Capta in

, and d ispers ing the whol e

party . During al l the s ummer O f 1 692 the French were

obl iged to act enti rely on the defens i ve , keeping with in

their fortificati ons .

These continued incurs ions O f the F iv e'

N ations which

the French seemed to have no power to prevent. or pun

i sh,exasperated the Count De Frontenac to such a de

gree,that he w as l eft to perpetrate a piece of savage bar

barity , which wil l forever stamp his adm in i s tration wi th

di sgrace it w as no l es s than condemn ing tw o pri sone rs

Of the Five Nations,to be publ icly burnt al i ve . Although

the influence of the miss ionaries,w as interp osed to pre

vent the execution of this terribl e senten ce,and even the

entreati es Of hi s wife , nothing would divert him from hi s

purpose . He ins isted that it was necessary to make an

example . That h is clemency h itherto had encouraged

them in thei r boldness . N ot that these men had been

gui lty of any parti cu lar act Of atrocity,but

,the Fi ve

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98 HISTORY OF BUFFAL O .

m ander O f one O f the compan i es O f foot sol diers , took uponh imsel f the government of the province , without authori

tv. He had l ittl e experience in s tatesmansh ip,and was

obnoxiou s,to a cons iderabl e porti on of the peopl e

,and

w as powerles s for good . He m et the Five Nati ons at

A lbany the 6th Of June,1692

,which resulted in l i ttl e

el se,than a renewal O f promises on the part O f the Eng

l i sh,to prosecute the w ar with vigor

,cal l ing u pon the

Five Nati ons to do the same .

Notwi thstanding the severe measu res pursued by theCount de Frontenac against the Five Nations

,he stil l

hoped to negotiate a peace with them . Th is h e hoped to

be able to do,through the influence of h is agents

,the

Jesuit miss ionaries,who resided among them

,and the

praying Ind ians , who were Mohawks , and sti l l adhered

in th eir al legiance,to the French . B u t thes e efforts pro

ving ineffectual,the Governor of Canada found it neces

sary to adept other means , in order to pacify the French

peopl e,who were growing despondent. I II thi s emergen

cy , the Count de Frontenac resorted to h i s old method , Of

proj ecting some bold enterpri se,that should encou rage

his own peopl e , and at the same time,Show the Fi v e N a

tions that they had to contend w i th an enemy,sti l l abl e

to act on the Offen s i ve .

A n expedition,in the middle of the winter O f 1692 —3

,

w as determined upon,against the Mohawks . It con

s i sted O f about S i x or seven hundred m en , a part regular

sol d iers,mil itia of the country

,and Indians

,commanded

by three capta ins of the regu lar troops , and th irty subal

terns . They w ere wel l suppl ied wi th everyth ing neces

sary for the expedi tion,even to snow shoes

,and Sl eds

drawn by dogs,upon the snow . T hev left. Laprari e on

FRENCH EXPEDITION AGAINST T H E M OHAWKS . 99

the 1 5th of January , 1693 , and after encountering what

might be cons i dered Obstacles almost insurmountable,

reached the first Mohawk castle , in the val l ey O f the

Mohawk river, above Schenectady,on the 8th F ebrua

ry at n igh t. The Fi ve Nations , not having the l east sus

picion ,of an enemy , were repos ing in perfect secu ri ty ,

only five men and some women and chi ldren,were found

there . The next castl e not far from it, was in l ike m an

ner surprised,and taken

,withou t Oppos iti on . These cas

tl es,being in the vi cin ity of the Engl ish settlement, at

S chenectady,most of the Indians were th ere .

The French went to the n ext fort,which w as the lar

ges t,and coming to that in the n igh t

,heard some noi se

,

and su spected they were d i scovered . They approached

cauti ously,and found the noise

,occas i oned by a w ar

dance,and entered before they w ere d i scovered

,bu t m et

a bl oody recepti on,having lost thi rty m en

,before the In

d ians submi tted . They took three hundred prisoners,O f

whom one hundred were fighting m en .

When the news reached A lbany,Peter Schuyler

,a

m aj or ofmil i tia,Offered to head a force

,to go to the re

l i ef of the Mohawks , about two hundred m en were col

lected,he left Schenectady on the 1 2 th

,in pursuit of the

enemy . O n the 15th,be

,was j oined by about two hun

dred and n inety Indians,m en

,and boys . He came up

wi th the enemy on the 17th , bu t after some ineffectual

ski rmish ing,gave over the pursu i t on the 2 0th, having

l ost eigh t ki ll ed,and fourteen wounded ; and recovered

between forty,and fifty prisoners . Several gentl emen of

Al bany,went ou t under M aj . Schuyler , as volunteers

parti cularly Mr. Van R enselear a gen ’t of large estate

there .

100 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

The Count de Frontenac anti cipating that th i s d isaster

to the Mohawks , w ou ld so crippl e the Fi ve Nations ,that they w ould have no farther trouble in Open ing a pas

sage to Mackinac,to enabl e the French to bring down a

great quanti ty of furs,they had accumu lated there . He

sent a l i eutenant with eighteen Canadians,and twenty

praying Indians,to open the passage ; but th is party , fel l

in wi th a party Of the Five Nations,who entirely routed

them,so that few escaped . A t l ength two hundred ca

noes,l oaded with furs

,arrived at Montreal from Miss il i

makinak,to the great j oy of the French .

Early in 1 693 the Five Nati ons,were informed

,through

“

the fri ends of the French , that the Governor of Canada

had received from France,large reinforcements O f troops ,

a nd ample suppl ies of mil itary s tores , provis ions , &c .

This , taken in connection with thei r recent s evere l ossesand the l ittl e ass istance they had recei ved from the Engl i sh

,influenced the Oneidas to l i sten to the sol i citati ons Of

the Jesuit miss ionary Mi let,to s end a message to the

Governor Of Canada for peace . Col . Fletcher,who was

now Governor Of New York, being informed O f th is move

:ment cal l ed a coun ci l Of the Five Nati ons at Albany , in

July O f that year ; after informing them of what he had

heard,he told them plainly

,that they had been influ

enced in their action ,by the Jesuit Milet

,who they had

suffered to l i ve too l ong among them,and advi sed them

,

to expel h im from among them . He made them a pres

ent Of n inety guns,eight hundred pounds Of powder

,eight

hundred bars O f l ead,one thousand flints

,eighty- seven

hatchets,four gross of kn i ves

,bes ides a quant ity Of cloth

ing , and provi s ions . ' This present he told them, was

sfrom thei r King and Queen,to renew the covenant for all

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102 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

e sora, ) I cannot promise ; I am now the representati ve

o f the general council , and cannot di spose O f myself, ex

cept by thei r d i rections . If they order me,I shal l will

ingly return .

” M aj or S chuyler again asked,whether

they promi sed to stop all correspondence with the French,

ei ther by the Jesu i t,or otherwise

,for seventy days

,and

,

unti l they should have the Governor’ s answer . T O which

D ecanesora answered : “ I have no authori ty to answer

th is questi on. I shal l lay the belt (whi ch had been given

them,) down in every one of the castl es

,and tel l them

,

that by it,all correspondence with the French i s des ired

to he stepped ' but I cannot promise that th i s will be

c ompl ied with .

Early in the spring of 1694,D ecanesora

,with other

deputies,went to Canada

,and in M ay another del egation

m et Gov. Fletcher at Albany ; but not being abl e to give

the Five Nati on s any assurance Of a vigorou s ass i stance,

he cal led the principal sachems to a private conference,

and asked them w hether they had made peace with the

Governor of Canada. They answered that it only wanted

h i s approbation ; and added that they were unable,any

l onger,to carry on the war

,wi thout ass i stance. We

submit the whole matter to your prudence .

” He then

gave his consent, provi ded they kept inviolate,thei r

cha in,wi th the Engl i sh ; but told them ,

that he could

make no peace with the French .

Upon submitting the proposal s O f the Governor of Can

ada to a ful l counci l Of the Five Nations at Onondaga,

there was a di vi s i on Of Opini on among themselves,a large

maj ori ty obj ected to the re buil d ing,Of the fort at Cada

racku i. (Kingston ) The party most in favor Of peace ,proposed to s end a deputation

,to procure a m odificati on

S URRENDER OF PRIS ONERS TO THE FRENCH . 103

Of the terms of the treaty,which was granted

,and to make

themselves more acceptable to the French , took th irteen

pri soners with them,to del i ver up . Among these was

the Jesui t Milet,who had been with the Oneidas S ince

1 689,and Mons . Jonscaire, who had been long a pri soner

among the Senecas . He had been adopted by a family

Of the Senecas . He Obtained such a reputation among

them,that the nation advanced h im to the rank Of a sa

chem . He preserved thei r esteem to the day’

O f h is death

and was very useful to the French , in all thei r negotia

t ions w ith the Fi ve Nations , after the general peace .

The embassy however,resulted in nothing

,as the

French Governor ins isted upon re - building fort Cadara

kui,and incl uding h i s al l i es

, (the western Ind ians , ) in'

the peace . He therefore,d ismissed them

,with presents

,

promis ing them further benefits,if they chose to comply

with h i s proposal s,but threatened them with destructi on

,

in case they refused .

The Five Nati ons refusing to comply with the terms

p roposed by the Governor ofCanada , he resol ved to force‘

them to a compl iance . He sent a party of three hundred

m en to examine the old French fort at Cadarakui,and to

the neck Of land between lake Ontari o and lake Erie,the

usual hunting ground of the Fi ve Nati ons . This party,

m et with three or four m en whom they attacked,but

could not compel to surrender ; they defended themselves

with such obstinacy,that they

'

were all killed , on the spot.

They surp ri sed a cabin, where they took some m en and

women prisoners,fou r O f the m en were publ icly burned

a l ive,at Montreal . The fort at C adaracku i w as found in

better condition than w as expected : and in the summerrof 1695

,the Count de Frontenac

,s ent a party cons i sting

104 HISTORY OF BUF FAL O .

of both French and Indians,to repai r the fortifications ,

and to protect those engaged at work . The Fi ve Nati onsimmediately gave noti ce to the Engl ish at Albany

,that

the French again occupi ed fort Cadaracku i,and demand

ed the ass i stance promised by Gov . Fletcher,to dislodge

them . He m et them atAlbany in September,complained

of thei r al lowing the French to possess themsel ves of the

fort. He advised them to invest the place,and cut off

thei r suppl ies,as it would be imposs ible to transport

cannon from Albany, which would be indi spens ible to

attack the fort . He gave them one thousand pounds of

powder,two thousand pounds O f l ead , fi fty- s even guns ,

one hundred hatchets,three hundred and forty kni ves ,

and two thousand flints,bes ides cloth ing

,&c .

The Count de Frontenac having secured , and repai red ,fort Cadarackui

, (it was afterwards cal led by hi s name ,fort Frontenac ,) he resolved to m ake the F i ve Nati ons ,feel the weight of hi s d i spleasure

,at thei r refusal of the

terms O f peace Offered them . F or thi s purpose b e deter

mined tO use al l the m i l itary force,that could be made

avai lable in Canada . His forces were assembled at M on

treal in June,1696, but did not leave unti l Ju ly . They

reached Cadarackui in twel ve days , they crossed the lake

to Onondaga river, (O swego ,) passed up the r iver in ca

noes,with scouts on each s ide the r iver, unti l they reached

the l ittl e lake . (Onondaga ) As soon as they had land

ed thev erected a stockade,or breast work , for thei r pro

tection . A Seneca,who had been some time a pri soner,

w as sent out as a spy . He gave intell igence to the Onon

dagas,who he found wa iting to receive the French , deter

mined to defend their castl e to the last, for whi ch pur

p ose they had sent away thei r women and ch ildren . B ut:

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1 06 H ISTORY O F BUFFAL O .

was received in New York,an express w as d ispatched to

C anada,to inform the Governor Of Canada that hos til ities

migh t cease .

The Five Nations havrng early news of the peace , took

advantage of it,to renew the beaver hunting

,in the

neighborhood of fort Cadaracku i. The Governor of C an

ada being informed of it,dispatched a cons iderable bodv

Of Adirondacks to attack and surprise them,whi ch they

d id,ki ll ing several

,among whom was a d istingu ished

war ch ief,who after being m ortally wounded

,most pi te

ously lamented hi s fate . That after .all h i s great exploits

in war,he S hould ignobly lose his l ife , at the hands Of the

despised Adirondacks,who were l ooked upon by the Five

Nations as chi ld ren . A d ispu te arose about this time,

between the Government ofNew York and that of Can

ada,respecting certa in French pri soners in the hands of

the Fi ve Nations . The Earl Of B el lomont,who had been

appointed Governor of New York,ins isted that the

French should recei ve them from him,at Albany ; where

as,the Governor of Canada

,refused to recogn i s e the sov

reignty Of the Engl i sh government, over the F i ve N a

tions,and threatened to continue the war against them ,

unless they brought thei r prisoners tO Montreal , to dcl i v

er them up there,and that al l the all ies Of the French ,

should be included in the peace . Upon being informed

that these terms would not be submitted to,by the Fi ve

Nations,the Count de Frontenac threatened to renew the

war,and began preparation s for attacking the F i ve N a

t i ons,with the whol e force of Canada . The firmness Of

the Earl O f Bel lemont however,averted the threatened

storm,and the matter w as referred to thei r respecti ve

g overnments at home , to be determined by commission

PEACE DEPUTATION TO ONONDAGA . 107

e rs appointed under the treaty O f B eswi ck. The Count

de Frontenac dying before these d isputes were settl ed

by his successor Mons . de C al lieres s tipulating to make

the exchange Of pri soners at Onondaga . These commis

sioners on the part of the Fren ch,were three

,one of

whom w as M . J onciare , who had so long res ided among

the Senecas,and by w hom he had been adopted

,and

m ade a sachem . They entered the castl e at Onondaga,

with great pomp and ceremony,d isplaying the French

flag , under which they marched in process i on . Theywere m et wi th equal ceremony

,by the representatives O f

the Five Nati ons,without the gate

,headed by thei r great

o rator, D ecanesora,with an address

,accompan i ed with

the usual compl iments,and assu rances of welcome

,en

forcing hi s words by the presentation Of a belt of wam

pum,at the close Of each part of hi s speech . When they

entered the fort or castl e,they were sal uted wi th a sal vo

Of all the fire arms,conducted to the larges t cabin , and

there entertained with a feast .

The next day the general counci l of the Five Nations

was addressed in reply by the French deputation, aecom

panied with the usual compl imen t O f giving a belt, at the

cl ose of e very sentence , or head of the speech .

The French commiss ioners had full l iberty to take homethei r pri soners

,in the hands of the Five Nati ons , b ut few

Of them could be persuaded to return,preferring to re

ma in where they had experi enced more real l iberty , than

among thei r own people . Severa l of the sachems O f the

Five Nati ons returned with the French commiss ioners to

Montreal,and were recei ved

,and treated

,with every

demonstrati on of respect,and cons ideration . The Eng

l i sh,had nearly as much diflicul ty to persuade thei r pri s

108 HI STORY OF BUFFALO .

oners in the hands O f the French Indians to l eave the In

d ian manner O f l ife,and in many cases no arguments no

entreati es,or even the tears O fnear relatives

,could ir

fduce

them to l eave thei r new friends,and thei r mode of l i fe

,to

retu rn to the society of thei r friends and relati ves,and

the hab its Of c ivil izati on . A nd in cases where they have

been persuaded to retu rn,they soon grew weary of the

restraint,and embraced the first Opportun ity to return to

savage l ife,to spend th ei r days . The ch ildren O f the

nati ves,taken in ch ildhood

,and educated w ith all the

care and ass i duity bestowed upon the chi ldren of most

favored parents in civ il ized l ife,invariably choose , when

l eft to thei r own choi ce , to return to the Indian mode Of

l i fe .

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1 10 H ISTORY OF BUF FALO .

sant wi th the facts w hi ch we have been at some pa ins togroup together

,in the order O f thei r occurrence.

The efforts of the French to al ienate the Five Nati on s

from the Engl ish , and attach them to the government of

Canada,d id not cease wi th the termination Of the w ar .

F or we fi nd that early in 1700,the Earl O f B el lomont

,

who was then Governor O f N ew York,s ent a commissi on

(Of which Peter Li vingston w as the head , ) to vi s it Onondaga to meet the Fi ve Nations , then in counci l , in regard

to some comnrunication they had received from the French

government in Canada,and to ascerta in the feel ings of

“

the Five Nations towards the Engl ish . In thei r report

to the Earl B el lomont, the commiss ioners represent that

the French are more acti ve than ever , to acqu i re influ

ence and control over the Ind ians . That thei r intrigues

are carri ed on through the influence of the “ praying In

dian s” settl ed in Canada, and through the j esu i t miss i on

ar ies,who had gained cons iderable influence over the

Oneidas and Mohawks,in parti cular. They say , that the

Engl ish ought to furni sh the Five Nations wi th min i sters

or m i s si onaries,not only to instru ct them in the christia n

fa ith,bu t to pu t a stop to the diabol i cal practi ce of poi

son ing,by w h i ch means those attached to the Engl i sh

,

are despatched ou t O f the w ay .

”

Early in 1701 the Earl Of B el lom ont di ed . This cir~

cum stance Operated unfavorably upon the negotiati ons

going on to get the Five Nations into a more s ettled and

secu re state,and gave the French a great advantage in

affording them an Opportunity to press thei r plans and pu r

poses,the more su ccessful ly. A nd in J une , 1701 , the

French sent an embassy to the Five Nati ons,at O n onda

ga, whi ch w as recei ved with every demonstrati on of re

LORD CORNBU RY APPO INTED GO V . OF NEw YORK . 1 1 1'

s pect,but care had been taken by the governmen t O f

’

N ew York,then under Li eut . Gov . John Nasan

,to be

represented at thi s intervi ew , and to influence the Five

Nations to perernptor ily decl ine the Offer of a missi ona

ry to res ide among them ,and the Five Nation s soon after

m et the L i eutenant Governor ofNew York,in counci l at

A lbany .

Lord C ornburv w as appointed to fil l the place Of the

Earl B ellomont, as Governor of New Yo rk . It w as in

this year that the Five Nati ons by a formal d eed,con

v eyed to the government of New York,thei r beaver ~

hunting grounds ,” bounded by the lakes on the north and

west,and the h igh lands upon the south

,to hol d for the

u se and benefit of the Fi ve Nati ons , whi ch w as after

wards confirmed O n the part of the S enecas , by thei r sa~

chems,in a s eparate ins trument. The questi on of j uri s

d icti on or sovereignty between the French and Engli sh,

remained for many years unsettled,and w as sti l l a sub

j cet of controversy in 172 0 , when the French began to

erect more permanen t stru ctures at Niagara . The Engl i sh al so began to assert thei r right O f sovreignty in 172 1 ,

by sending out from A lbany,a party under comm and of

Peter Schuy ler , Jr .

,to establ i sh themsel ves at the mouth

Of the Irondequoi t,on lake Ontario

,and at Some point on

the Niagara r i ver,above the Fal l s . or upon lake Erie , in

the S ennekes country .

”

Thi s was done for the purpose of d iverting the tradewi th the western Indians from Montreal to Albany

,and

appears to have m et wi th a degree of su ccess,accord ing

to a report made by Go v . Burnett,then Governor ofNew

York, to th e Board of Trade in London , in that year .

The questi on as to the right Of the French to possess the

HISTORY O F BUFFALO .

post ofNiagara, became one of nrore serious consequence ,a nd led to a protracted and Sharp correspondence

,first

between the Governor ofNew York and the Governor of

Canada,and afterwards betw een the two governments at

h ome . In 172 6, Gov . Burnett held a counci l wi th the

now S ix Nations, (by the incorporati on into the confeder

acy of the Tuscaroras, ) at wh i ch the subj ect Of the occu

pancy O fNiagara was ful ly d iscussed . The French had

claimed that they had Obtained consent to the occupancy

from the S ix N ati on s . B ut it appeared that the Senecas,

who cla imed the land upon the shore O f the r iver,as well

-as the lake,had never given thei r consent. The consent

c laimed by the French,appeared to have been only that

of the Onondaga sachems,Obtained in rather a surrepti

t ions manner through the agency Of the French mission

ary res ident among them ,and had never been confirmed

o r assented to,by the Senecas

,or any o f the other Four

Nations,but had been obj ected to by the Senecas especi

al ly . Indeed,the Five Nati ons

,from the beginn ing Of

the controversy about j uri sdi ction,cla imed not only the

t erri tory on the south S i de of the lakes Eri e and Ontario ,b ut upon the north s ide al so. They not only cla imed by

possess ion,bu t by right O f conquest

,and it is certain that

at a very early period Of the controversy , they had set

tlements or vil lages upon the north s ide of lake Ontario .

In thei r correspondence wi th the Engl i sh government at

A lbany,they make it a subj ect O f complaint repeatedly,

t hat the French had been permitted to bui ld a fort at

C adarakui (Kingston , ) upon thei r lands , and when, by

thei r energy and perseverance the French had been

o bl iged to abandon that fort, and all the country around'

it,the Five Nation s took possess ion .O f

,and hel d it until

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1 14 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

ber . It i s not l ikely. the princi pal town or v i llage Of theS enecas had been removed s ince the abandonment anddestructi on of C anagora , at the time Of De N onville ’s ex

pedition (at Boughton Hill ,) into their country , in 1687.

They never returned to that l oca l i ty to res ide, (that being

thei r un i form custom,) bu t removed further interi or , prob

ably to Kanesedaga , at the foot of Kanesedaga lake ,where they remained unti l Sul l i van ’ s exped ition into theS eneca’ s country in 1779.

This lake had previous ly borne the name Of the Kane ~

sadaga lake,and when the T sonnontoucns (Senecas , ) made

thei r p rincipal res idence there,they cal led thei r town

Kanesadaga , and the lake received the name O f Seneca,

from the fact of the S ennekas (as they were cal l ed by theEngl ish

, ) res id ing there . The same may be sai d in re

gard to the origin of the names O f the other lakes,Cayu

ga , Oneida , Onondaga , &c ., and the Mohawk river .

The names by whi ch the s everal nations were cal l ed

by the French,were entirely d ifferent from those of the

Engl i sh,having l ittl e s imilarity either in sound or signifi

cati on,and there i s a very great d ivers ity in the mode O f

spel l ing all these names,both in the Engl i sh and French

authors,and documents . Sometimes thi s d is crepancy i s .

so great,that an ord inary reader would not recogni ze thei r

i den tity .

A S has been Observed , the question of j urisd i cti on over

the Ind ian terri tory,w as soon transferred from the S i x

N ations to the French and Engl i sh . The French deter

mined to occupy Niagara,where L a Sal le , fifty years be

fore,had taken possess i on in the name of the French

government. In order to have some col or of authori ty

for thi s proceeding,they dispatched M . de J onciare on :

J O N CIA R E BUILDS A HOUS E AT NIAGARA. 1 15

an embassv to the Senecas , to procure thei r consent to

erect a permanent trading hous e , in fact to build a s tone

fort. It w i l l be remembered that M . de J onciare had

been given up to the French,after a l ong res idence wi th

the Senecas , as al ready related . Charlevoi x , who v i s ited

Niagara in 1 72 1,relates as foll ows M . de J onciare re

ceived h is orders for the executi on of the proj ect Of a set

tlem ent at Niagara. He went to the T sonnonthouans,

(Senecas ,) and assembled the ch ief'

s,and after having as

sured them that h e had no greater pleasure in the world

than to l i ve among h is brethren ; he added al so,that he

w ould vi s i t them m uch Oftener,i f h e had a cab in among

them,where he might reti re when h e wanted hi s l iberty .

They repl ied that they had never ceased to l ook upon h im

as one of thei r chi ldren . That he migh t l i ve in any place ,and that h e might choose the place that he judged the

most conven i ent . H e requ ired no more,he came d irect

ly here , fixed upon a spot bes ide of the river , that termi

nates the canton of the T sonnon thouans,and bu i lt a cabin

upon it. The news w as soon carri ed to New York,and

caused there so much the more j eal ousy , as the Engl i sh

had never been able to Obtain,in any one of the Iroquoi s

cantons,what was now granted to Scur J onciare .

”

He adds that “alth ough they used every means to di s

lodge' M . J onc iare from Niagara

,they never could aecom

pl ish it. It i s (sa id they ,) of no consequence that M . d e

J onciare dwel l s there,he i s a ch ild of the nati on

,be en

j oys h i s right, and we have no righ t to deprive h im O f it.

’

It woul d be interesting to know more of the personal

h i story of thi s m an,than can be gathered from the mere

al lus ions which are made to h im,in the publ i c docu

ments relating to the transacti ons in which he w as en

gaged .

1 16 HISTORY OF BUFFAL O .

Chabert J onciare (or Jean Coeur, as it was sometimes

wri tten by the Engl i sh ) l iterally John Hart, appears toh ave been a young French soldier

,captured by the Sene

cas, in some Of thei r foravs against the French in Canadasome time prior to 1700 . .A S was thei r custom whenyoung persons of e ither sex fell into thei r hands

,he w as

adopted by the Senecas,and rel ishing their mode of l ife

he took a Seneca wi fe,and rai s ed a family of ch ildren .

After many years res idence,having acqu ired their lan

guage , and being elevated to the dign i ty of sachem . he

seems to have acqu i red great influence,parti cularly wi th

the Senecas,wh i ch h e exerted in favor of the French . He

appears to hav e had two sons at the time he w as l ibera

ted,and probably took his family w i th h im to Montreal .

He w as immediately employed by the government,and given a subordinate m i l itary commission in 1700, and

continued in acti ve servi ce during the remainder of h i s

l ife,sometimes in one capacity

,and sometimes in anoth

er,bu t general ly to advance the French interest and in

fluence among the Si x Nati ons , through h i s brethren , the

Senecas . H e .w as bold,acti ve

,and unscrupu lous . In

172 1 he was charged by the Engl ish wi th the murder of

Mon s . Montour,a Fren ch gentlem an who l ike h imsel f

,

had taken a native wife,of whom w e shal l have occas i on

to speak . He w as however,v indi cated in the act, by M .

Vadrieul then Governor Of Canada , who sai d

I t was by my orders h e kill ed the Frenchman , named

Montour,who w ould have been hanged , had it been pos

s ible to take h im al ive and bring him to thi s colony .

In 1730 J onciare appeared in the S inakees country ,w ith severa l French soldi ers w ith him . He told the S en

.ecas that having di sobl iged h i s governor, h e had been

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1 18 HIS TORY OF BUFFALO .

I t is to J onc iare belongs the cred i t of early noti cing

the O i l Springs w h ich are now attrac ting so much attention . In 172 1 h e informed Charlevoix who w as then On

hi s j ourney to the w est,of whi ch he has left a j ournal “of

the ex istence at a place cal led Ganos,at the portage be

tween the Genesee and the Bell e (Ohio) r iver , a fountain

the water of w hi ch is l ike O i l and a l ittl e further on

there is another exactlv l ike it.“The Ind ians use it to al lay al l kinds Of pain .

” He had

been s ent there to locate the Shawnees on the Oh i o r iver ,and w as a v erv acti ve agent of the French government

,

up to the time of his death at Niagara,in 1740 . The

Senecas appl ied to the French for h i s son to come and

res ide wi th them,on the death of the father

,w h i ch w as

di ly granted . The son w as cal l ed a French Ind ian”

by the Engl i sh . He spoke the language fluently,as wel l as

the -French and soon became as acti ve and useful to the

French,as ever hisfather had been . In 1741 .he asked

to be released from h is agency in the Senecas country,on

a ccount Of i l l h ealth . and his younger brother , C lau z onne

J onciare,w as appointed in h i s place . He Chabert ap

pears however,to have stil l remained in the employ O f

the French government,for h is name i s s igned w ith that

of h is brother,to the capitu lati on of FortNiagara to S i r

WVill iam Johnson in 1 759. The brother w hi ch succeeded

him among the Senecas,must have been qu i te y oung at

the time O f the l i berati on of the father,as we find in 1742

he was sent by the Marqui s Beauharnois , who w as then

Gov . of Canada,“to the Senecas , to learn tl1eir language .

”

In the French account of the surrender of FortN iagara ,

i s the fol l owing noti ce of Chabert J onciare,Jr

“ The other Ind ian w as an Iroqu oi s that Mr . Chabert

C I—IA B ER T J O N C IA R E. 1 19

u J onc iare had sent w ith a l etter,announcing that he wou ld

come next day . He had removed to the r iver Chenondac

(Chi ppewa) al l the property he could,twenty horses

w h i ch belonged to h im,and some oxen he had brought

down on h is own account from Detroi t. He burned the

fort of the carrying place (Schlosser as it w as not tenable .

His brother, J onciare (O lauz onne) had arri ved on the

prev ious evening,having been brought down bv the Iro

quois, the bearer O f the l etter . M . Pouchot made h im

(the messenger) a present.

”

I n a Note it i s sa i d “ M . Chabert J onciare held a

con tract for transporting stores across the portage,and

poss es sed mu ch greater influence over the Indians of

western New York,that Si r Will iam Johnson .

The fol l owing noti ce of the brothers Jonciare,i s taken

from the Maryland Gazette Of Augus t 30,1 759, and i s

dated at Albany .

“There are ten other Officers one of which i s the famous

Mon s i eu r Jonciare,a very noted m an among the Sene ca

Indians ; and whose father w as the first that hoisted

French colors in that country . His brother,al s o a pri s

oner,i s now here

,and has been very humane to many

Engl i s hmen having' purchased several of them from the

. S enecas .

C H A P T E R I X .

The frequent change of Governors of the col ony O fN eW'

York,and the -high party S pirit whi ch characterized th is

period of its h i story,left l ittl e time for those in power , to

pay proper attenti on to thei r Ind ian relati ons . They

were for the m ost par t,l eft in the hands of the traders

and others who des i red to possess thei r lands .B ut the French were by no m eans i dle . The Mohawks ;

by reason of thei r proximity to the Engl i sh settl ements

had been kept in partial correspondence with them , but

the other nation s had been ‘ l eft al most enti rely under

Fren ch influence . The French had kept possess ion of

al l the important trading posts upon the lakes,and had

extended a l ine of posts,from Quebec to New O rl eans .

Every important carrying place,between the lakes , and

the Oh io r iver, w as in thei r possess ion ; and for nearly

forty years very l ittl e w as done by the Engl i sh,to as sert

ju ri sdi ction over the terri tory cla imed under the treaty of

Utrech t.

The Senecas,who were remote from the settl ements of

the Engli sh,were more access ible to the French . The

principal town or castle , (Kanedasaga) being only t en

leagues from T ierondequatt (Irondequot,) a conven i ent

landing - place upon the south shore Of the lake F rontenae a

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1 2 2 H ISTO R Y OF BUFFALO .

There i s no doubt that the Senecas and some of the

other Five Nations w ere in regular and intimate corre

Spondence wi th the French at th is peri od for in July,

1742 , we have in the Pari s documents” a ful l account

of a conference,h el d by the Marqui s Beauharnois

,then

Governor of Canada,wi th a deputation of Senecas

,and

Onondagas,who vis ited h im . The destruction Of the for

tifi cati ons bu ilt by the Engl i sh at Chouaghen (Oswego , )began to be threatened

,about thi s peri od

,by the French ;

and upon the news of a d eclaration of w ar,in 1744 , there

w as a general stampede O f Engl i sh and Du tch traders,

from that post,where a pretty lucrati ve trade had grown

up,w i th the western Indians , who had been indu ced to

come,w i th thei r canoes laden w ith furs , to that place

,

instead of stepping at Niagara,where the French had a

trad ing hou se,as the Ind ians gave a preference to Eng

l i sh goods , over the French . As l ong as the trade at Os

w ego,w as successful

,the Engli sh at Albany and New

York were sati sfied bu t thi s sudden interrupti on,w as

con s i dered a great publ i c calami ty,and the Governor O f

N ew York in a communi cati on to the Assembly in Aug

u st 1 744 , says

The Province has suffered cons iderabl e damage,this

summer, by the precipi tate retreat of our Ind ian traders,

from Oswego . Upon noti ce of the French w ar,m ost Of

them left the place,i mmediately upon the alarm

,sold

what they could,of thei r goods

,to those few of thei r

breth ren,that had s ense

,cou rage

,and resoluti on , to

s tay behind,and brough t the rema inder back with them .

Y ou wil l j udge , what a baulk , and dis couragement. thi s

instance of pusil lan imity,has occas ioned , to those numberO f Indians Of the far nati ons

,who have rarelv come to

M . DE BEAUHARNOIS LETTER . 2 3

trade with us,but perhaps , find ing the French had no

goods to supply them at Niagara,resolved to proceed to

Oswego,whence some Of them found the place w as basely

"deserted,by mos t Of the peopl e

,and nogoods to exchange

for their furs upon information whereof, many other

Indian canoes were turned back,before they reached the

place . H ow mean an Opin ion,must these savages enter

ta in of u s,when they fi nd our people s o eas i ly frightened

as it were,wi th a shadow , and that the great gains whi ch

are con stantly reaped by th i s advantageous trafi c, are

not suffi cient,to exci te a resolu tion in our traders to stand

to the defens e of th i s fortress,the loss of whi ch

,woul d

determine that trade , and it is to be feared the Ind ians

too,in favor of our natural enemies , the French . How

fatal such an event would prove to thi s colony in parti e

u lar,and the Briti sh interest upon the continent in gen

eral , m ay be eas i ly forseen .

”

The war between France and England,embarassed the

French Operation s among the Ind ians by cutting O ff the

regu lar supply of goods for the trad ing posts . The fol

l owing extract from a commun i cati on ofM . de B eauhar

noi s,Governor of Canada to Count d e Maurepas

,sh ows

the cond ition Of the French interests at thi s t ime (1745 )among the F i ve Nations

M . DE BEAUHARNO IS TO COUNT DE M AUREPAS .

I have al ready acqua inted you ,my l ord , wi th the di s

position O f the Fi ve Nation s as respects Choueguen (O S

wego .) The advantages w e have gained in the interior

Of the colony might poss ibly have created alarm ,had we

been in a cond i tion to fol low them up by being suppl ied

1 2 4 HI STORY OF BUFFALO .

wi th goods and effects necessary to fi t out new parti es,.

and to meet the wants Of the trade of the posts . The c i r

cumstances in which we are placed by the want of the s e

suppl ies,must make u s des i re more than ever, that the

Five Nations should observe the neutral ity they promi sed

Nevertheless,I shal l neglect no means poss ible

,to induce

th em to cO - Operate in what his maj esty appears to re“

qui re of me in thi s regard . Sieu r de Jonciare i s al ready

n otified to give that matter all h is attention h is acti v ity

and vigilance may be rel ied on , i f there be any prospect

of success . M . de Longue i l might have suited for that

n egotiation,but that officer i s very corpul ent

,and i l ly

adapted to make thes e sort of journevs . Those nati ons

who adopted hi s Oldest son,in the counci l I h eld wi th

them last summer,appear alwav s much attached to the

family . I expect to s end h im to assi st B eur de Jonciare :

should circumstances become more favorable .”

The Engl i sh government was no less embarassed , by the

want t arm ony , between the d ifferent Governors , and

the colon ial Assembly,whi ch characterized its proceed

ings,for many years at th is peri od of its h i story . The

refusal to grant appropriati ons of money,by the Assem

bly,w as the principal .

We have now arri ved at a point in our historv, whi ch

makes it proper to take some noti ce of one who was prom

inent in al l the publ i c affai rs of thi s period,but parti en

larly so , in relation to the affai rs of the S ix Nations .

Hitherto there seemed to be,no one representing the

interests of the Engli sh government,that coul d exert an

influence over the Indians equal to the French .

Wm . Johnson afterwards S ir Wm . Johnson, w as born .

in Ireland , about the v ear 1714 . He came to th i s coun

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1 2 6 II IS T O R Y OF BUFFALO .

cupied the house he bui lt at Johnstown ; he al so built a

hous e upon the bank of the river,but that w as occupied

by h i s son,John . A daughter of h i s

,married Col . Guy

Johnson,a nephew

,and another C O ". Claus . Joseph

Brant,the celebrated Mohawk chief, of whom we shal l

have occas ion to speak hereafter , was sent to the“ Moors

Charity School,

”at Lebanon

,Connecti cut

,establ i shed by

the Rev . D oct. Wheelock,wi th several other Ind ian boys

,

where th ey received an Engl i sh education at Col . John

son ’ s expens e .

Brant,was a parti cu lar favorite , and w as employed by

Col . Johnson in the publ i c bus iness , after h e returned

from school,parti cu larly in that relating to the Indians .

After the death of Lady Johnson,who was of Dutch or

German descent,a s i ster of Brant was recei ved into the

fam ilv of Col . Johnson,and was treated wi th the respect

,

and occupied the pos ition Of a wife,wi thout the l egal pre

l im inaries necessary to constitute that relation .

*

The encroachments Of the French,both upon the trad e

and territory,of the Engli sh

,had now become su ch

,as to

attract the attenti on of all the col on i es ; and one Obj ect

Of the “ plan of un i on,

was to un ite the force of a l l the

colon ies,to resi st it. C ol . Johnson had received the ap

pointment Of Colonel of the warri ors O f the S i x Nati on s ,in 1745. The following extract of a reply of the Ind ians

to a speech made to them by the Governor ofNew York,

shows the estimate in whi ch Col . Johnson was held“ BROTHER —As to your des iring us to l i sten to our

good friend,Col . Johnson

,we are very much obliged to

you for it. and in answer thereto must tel l you , that for

*I t is said he was married to Mol ly Brant, a short time before his death,accord ing to the rites of the Protestant Episcopal Church , in order to legitimatiz e his children by her.

EXPEDITION AGAINST CR O \VN PO INT . 1 2 7

these twelve months pas t, and better , we have minded

nor l i stened to nobody else,nei ther do we intend it ; and

Brother, you m ay depend upon it, that whatever news we

have among u s,shal l be immediately brought to him ;

and in return,we expect you to do the same that you

have done thi s year past, and then the world shal l be

convinced that we are one body,and inseparable .

”

The capture Of the posts occupied by the French , upon

terri tory claimed by the Engl i sh,w as among the fi rst

th ings proposed by Gen . Braddock . A nd the ass i stance

O f the S ix Nati ons , and thei r al l i es,being consi dered of

the h ighest importance,Col . Johnson w as recommended

as a proper person to command , in ch ief, the sa i d s er

vi ce .” He recei ved accordingly, a commiss ion as Maj or

General,and imm ediately entered upon the organ i zati on

of a force,to attack Crown Point ; and

‘to engage the

warriors O f the S ix Nati ons,in the enterpri s e

,and as a

necessary prel im inarv to provide for thei r securi ty, by

promis ing them forts,or castl es

,in thei r s everal towns

,

or territory . Col . Johnson set upon the performance Of

the respon s ibl e duti es devolving upon h im in h i s new ap

pointment with great vigor,in whi ch he w as seconded

by the Governors of al l the d ifferent col oni es,and al so by

Gen . Braddock,who was then in Vi rgin ia . He was re

appointed S ol e superintendent of the Si x Nati ons , an Offi ce

he had resigned sometime previous .

In August, 1755 , with a force of abou t two thousand

eight hund red m en of al l arms , he commenced his march

for Crown Point,and arrived at the “ great carrying

place ” on the 14th. There w as al ready some dissatisfac‘

t ion exhibited by some Of the provincial troops , requiringgreat care , and d iscreti on , on the part Of the General in

’

1 2 8 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

command,who of cours e was a s tranger to most of them .

A general counci l of w ar was held at th is place,attended

by al l the p rincipal Offi cers , at wh i ch Gen . Johnson sub

m itted some qu es tions as to the dispos i ti on of the forces,

parti cu larly'

in regard to the reserves,wh ich had been

promi sed , and provi ded,by several of the col on i es

,in

a ddi ti on to the force then present. The deci s i on w as,

that these reserves,Shoul d be sent to j oin the army

,w ith

al l poss ibl e disp’

atch . A l ittl e acquaintance wi th their

chi ef,s eemed to inspi re the m en w ith n ew confi dence

,

and the army having received some reinforcements of

warriors from the S ix Nati ons,proceeded on to lake S t.

Sac ramen t,which he named “ lake George

, in honor of

His effecti ve force,was now inh i s Maj es ty

,the King .

”

creased to over three thou sand m en . He proceeded to

erect a fortificati on at thi s place,

“w here no hous e was

ever bu i lt,or a rod of land cleared .

” Before thi s work“

w as completed,some Ind ian s couts brough t intel l igence

of the advance of a large party of French,upon the camp

i they had left at the great carrying place . About two

hundred and fifty New Hampsh i re troops,had been l eft

‘

at this place,and fi ve compan i es of a New York regi

»ment. O n receiving this intel ligence,G en . Johnson s ent

off an express,wi th orders to Col . Blanchard in com

; mand,to withdraw al l the troops wi thin the fortifications

there , and defend themsel ves as best they could , unti l re

l ieved by reinforcements . which he wou l d s end . O ne

thou sand m en,under command O f

'

C O l . Will iams,of one

Of the Boston regiments,wi th about two hundred Indians ,

were detached for the rel ief of Col . Blanchard. Before

thi s detachment had reached the point of its destination,

i t w as m et by an overwhelming force,and after a brave

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1 30 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

Among the wounded and prisoners,w as the Baroi

D ieskeau,the aged French General

,commanding the ex

pedition , lately arrived from France . He w as broughtinto the tent of Gen . Johnson , and treated wi th al l theconsi deration and care

,that his high pos i tion

,and unfor

tunate cond ition required being shot through the l egs,

and both h i s h ips . In h i s own bri ef report of the battle,

he says I know not at present my fate . From Mr. d e

Johnson,the General of the Engl i sh army

,I am receiving

al l the attention possibl e to be expected from a brave

m an,ful l Of honor

,and feel ihg .

” His wounds were considered mortal

,bu t he recovered

,but never rega ined h i s

l ost reputati on .

Gen . Johnson received a severe w ound from a musk et

ball , lodged in h is thigh , whi ch was never extracted . F or

hi s valuabl e servi ces rendered the Engl i sh cau se,and his

good conduct on thi s occas ion , he was created a Baronet ,by the King

,and the House of Commons voted h im a

gratuity O f five thousand pounds sterl ing,bes ides h i s sal

ary as general superintendent Of Ind ian affai rs . Baron

D ieskeau attributed h is defeat to the refusal Of h i s Cana

da Iroquoi s to figh t thei r brethren,in his report to hi s

government.

The Indians suffered severely on thi s occas ion, partic

ularly the two hundred that accompan i ed Col . Will iams

in the morning to rel i eve the camp at the great carry

ing place several Of thei r principal sachems were

kill ed among -them the celebrated Mohawk chief,H en

drick . Mounted on one of Col . Johnson ’ s h orses , he led

the assaul t by the Indians , himsel f fi ring the first shot.

His horse W?killed under him . Hendri ck becoming en

tangled , being unwieldy , and somewhat d i sabled by age

KING HENDRICK KILLED . 131

could not extri cate h imself, to escape , and w as ki ll ed by

a bayonet

They were indulged in thei r own mode Of warfare so

far as to permit them to take the s cal ps of the S la in ene

my . In h i s O ffi cial report of thi s battl e,Gen. Johnson

says old Hendri ck,the great Mohawk sachem

,we fear

is killed .

” We have the foll owing noti ce of thi s ' cel ebra'ted ch ief

,in a note to the append ix of the annal s of Tryon

county

O ld King Hendri ck, (or as he was sometimes cal led

the great Hendri ck,) l i ved in the town of M inden , in Her

kimer county,and near the upper Mohawk cas tle . The

s i te of h is house , says Dr . Dwight, i s a handsom e el eva

t i on,command ing a cons iderable prospect of the n eigh

boring country . It wil l be sufficient to Observe here,

that for capacity,bravery , vigor Of mind , and immovabl e

integri ty,un i ted

,he ex cel l ed al l the aboriginal inhabi

tants of the Uni ted S tates , of whom any knowledge has

come down to the present ti me . A gentl eman of very re

S pectable character , who was present at a counci l h el d

wi th the S ix Nations by the Governor of New York,and

s evera l agents Of d istinction from New England,informed

m e,that his figure

,and countenance

,were s ingularl y

impress i ve,and command ing. That h i s eloquence

,w as of

the same s uperi or character,and that h e appeared as i f

born to control other m en,and possessed an air of maj es

ty unrival ed wi th in his knowledge .

”

“In all the wars w ith the French,he led forth h i s M O

hawk warri ors,and fought s ide by S ide wi th S i r Will iam

Johnson . Through al l the intrigues O f the French,he re

m ained fa i thful to his al liance .“He. w as al so highly esteemed by thewhite inhabitants .

132 HISTORY OF BUFFAL O . 0

During some Of the negotiati ons with the Indians Of

Pennsylvan ia,and the inhabitants of thatjstate , Hendri ck

was present at Philadel ph ia . His l ikeness w as taken,

and a w ax figure afterward made,which was a very good

imitati on . After the death of Hendrick,an Old friend , a

whi te man,vi s i ted Ph iladelph ia

,and am O ng other th ings ,

w as shown this w ax figure . It occupied a n i che,and

w as not Observed by h im,unti l he had approached within

a few feet. The fri endsh ip O fformer days,came fresh over

h is memory,and forgetting for the moment, Hendri ck

’ s

death,be rushed forward and clasped in h i s arms the

frail i cy image of the ol d Ch iefta in .

”

The following anecdote i s related as a wel l authentica

: ted fact

Hendri ck w as at the hou se Of S ir Wil liam Johnson ,

“when he received tw o or three su its Of ri ch mil itary

clothes . The O ld King a short time afterward s came to

S ir Will iam and said,

‘I dream . I 'Vell,what d id you

dream 2 I dream you give me one su it Of clothes . Well ,I suppos e you m ust have it,

’

and accord ingly he gave

h im one . Some time after,Si r Will iam m et Hendri ck

,

and sa i d I dreamed last n igh t. Did you What you

dream ? I dreamed you gave me a tract of land ,’ descri

b ing it. After a pause,I suppose you mu st have it

, but

and he rai sed h i s finger sign ificantly , you must not dream

aga in .

’

This tract of land , extended from the east to the west

of Canada Creek, in the now county of Herkimer,and

w as about twel ve miles s quare . The ti tl e was afterward

confirmed by the King of England , and it was j ustly cal l

ed the “royal

*See Annals of T ryon County.

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134 I IIS T O R Y OF BUFFALO .

were ra is ed,i s greatly to be commended

,and there is

reason to hope,that this wil l enable you to pursue the

advantages you ,have al ready gained .

The colon i es which have so readily and vigorously ex

erted themselves on this great occas ion,will always fi nd

favor and protecti on ,from his maj esty .

A nd,I have parti cular sati sfaction

,of having it in

charge , to acquaint you , that the King has been graci ous

ly pleased to confer upon you , as a distinguishing mark

of h i s royal favor, and approbation Of your conduct,the

digni ty Of a Baron of Great Brita in,and the Patent will

be transmitted to you,by the first conven i ent Opportun i

ty .

” S ir,etc . ,

T. ROBINSON .

It i s not l ikely that few,i f any O f the warriors Of the

S ixNations,except the Mohawks

,were present

,or partie

ipated in the engagem ent at lake Mohawks

the day after the battle,took formal l eave of the General

,

and returned home al leging,as a reason

,that they had

susta ined a great l oss in the death O f a large number of

thei r principal sachems , and as w as thei r custom , they

wished to return home,to condole wi th their peopl e for

the l oss .They al s o expressed fears

,that during thei r absence

,

thei r own homes were exposed to be attacked . and de

stroyed,by the enemy

,and none to defend thei r wives

and ch ildren,but their O ld feeble men .

Early in 1756 , the French organ i zed an exped iti on

aga in st O swego,w ith a view to reduce the fort built there

by the Engl i sh . The expediti on was under the command

Of the Marquis de Montcalm,and cons isted of about three

OSWEGO TAKEN BY M ONTCALM . 5

thousand m en . He invested the place on the 1 1 th of

August,and after a brief seige

,captured the fort on the

M14 th,taking mos t of the garri son prisoners of war

,among

wwhom (says the French account) were one hundred and

twenty women . The Engl ish fleet O f six vessels w as al so

c aptured,with but l ittl e fighting

,either on land , or water .

The French found a'

large quantity of military stores and

provis ions,which were destroyed

,and d id not restra in

thei r savage al l ies,from many cruel acts of barbarity .

Col . Mercer,who commanded the Engl ish forces

,was

killed early in the engagement,the command devol ved

on L i eut. Col . L ittlehales,who got l ittl e credit, for either

courage,or military ski ll .

It does not appear that any of the S ix Nations engaged

in the defense Of Oswego . The French did not expect

thei r ass i stance,but expected them to remain neutral

,

which expectati on seems to have been real i zed . This

apathy on the part of the S ix Nati ons,m ay be attr ibuted

at least in part,to the iufluence of M . de Jonciare, who

vis i ted the Senecas,and in success ion

,all the other Fi ve

Nati ons,prior to the attack Of the French upon Oswego .

He w as accompani ed by Mons . Longuevil le .\ Mons . Durant who m et them at the mouth of the

Choueguan (Oswego) ri ver , on thei r return,asked Jou

ciare what he had accompl ish ed in thei r j ourney . He

repli ed I have beat the bush Mons . Longuevill e wil l

take the birds ou r voyage will do h im honor at the court

of France .”

C H A P T E R X .

When al l the circumstances are taken into cons idera

tion,it i s not surprising that the S ix Nations , parti cularly

the Senecas,were at a great los s how to act. The want

O f harm on ious action in the Engl i sh colon ial government,which had characterized its proceedings for many years ,tothe almost enti re neglect of thei r relations with the S i x

Nations the land grants in Pennsyl vania and Maryland,

by which they cla imed they had been defrauded of th ei r

hunting grounds by the Engl ish,and the unrestrained

rapacity of the Engl ish traders,by whi ch the price of

goods sold to the Indians,had been greatly increased ;

while that of beaver had been greatly d imini shed,whil e

their moral s had been"; greatly corrupted

,by the unre

strained introduction O f rum among them ; while on the

other hand,the French had made the most O f thei r O p

portunity , by send ing thei r emissaries among them , par

ticularly the Senecas,furni shing them with goods at all

thei r trading posts,extend ing from Quebec to Mackinaw

in the northwest,through the lakes to the Oh io and Mis

sissippi rivers . Through the influence of these miss i ona

ries,and agents

,who in many cases became closely al l i ed

to the Indians,adopting thei r mode of l ife

,frequent em

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'

1 38 HISTORY OF B U F F A L O .

whose industry in th is arti cl e , has been O f infin ite service

to them .

”

The loss of Oswego,and other d isasters wh ich imme

diately followed , darkened the prospects of the Engl ish

cause,and d iscouraged all efforts at conci l iating the In

dians to the Engl ish interest. The tard iness of the Engl ish

,in performing what they had promised , created di s

trust in the minds O f the Indians,Of thei r abil i ty to res ist

m uch less to expel,the French

,from the terri tory cla imed

by the Engl i sh . S ir Will iam J ohnson w as however, ind efatigable in h is efforts

,and h eld frequent consul tati ons

wi th the S ix Nations . The feel ings Of the Senecas at

t his time,m ay be better understood by the fol lowing ex

t ract of a S peech,del i vered at one of these councils in

1756 , by S kanonyade , or the hal f king of the Senecas .“ We were tol d (sa i d he, ) last year, that large canoes

wereto be bui lt to keep provi s ions from being carri ed to

s upply the French at Niagara: We see the vessel s have

been bu i lt a long time,and yet we see provis ions , &c .

,

da i ly come to Niagara,wi thout any more interruption ,

than when you had no canoes .” A t another counci l the

same year,Kagswoughtaneyonde , a great sachem and

warrior, of the Seneca-s, al ias Belt, stood up and addressed

h imself to the whole body of Indians , in the following

speech

B R ET IIR EN I IER E PRESENT : I have seri ous ly cons idered

a l l that our brother'

Warraghiyagey (Sir Will iam JO hn

son,) sa id to us two days ago , and for my part, I am clear

in it,that what he proposes i s right, whereupon I am de

term ined to comp with it,and Shal l as soon as I get

home,let al l m y nati on know what our brother sai d , and

m y Opin i on and resolu ti on , in w hi ch i f they should differ

CA N A O R Q U LES O N‘

S S PEECH . 139

with me,I am determined to leave the country , and l i ve

with my brothers,the Engl i sh .

”

In November , 1757, a descent was made by a party O f

F rench and Indians , upon the settl ement at German

Flatts,on the Mohawk river

,enti rely destroying the set

tlement, taking about one hundred and fifty m en,women

and ch i ldren prisoners , destroying a large amount of

stock,and other valuable property

,bes ides carrying away

a cons iderable amount of plunder . In regard to thi s .af=

fai r,much compla int was made of the condu ct of some Of

the Oneida nation,l iving in the vicin ity . That although

they were apprised of the approach of the French,they

gave no information to the inhabitants,in time to enable

them to escape,and that some Of the Oneidas

,a i ded the

French,in thei r murderou s enterpris e . This however

,

w as den i ed by Canaghquieson, the ch i ef Oneida sachem ,

who sai d“ BROTHER (addressing Mr. Croghan ,) I can

’t h elp

tel l ing you,that we are very much surpri sed

,to hear that

our brethren the Engl ish,suspect and charge us

,with not

giving them timely noti ce Of the des igns of the French

as it i s wel l known that we have not neglected to give

them every piece of intell igence.

that came to our knowl

edge . Brother,about fifteen days before the affa i r hap

pened , we sent the Germans word , that some S wegatchie

(O swegachie, ) Indians told us , the French were deter

mined to destroy the German Flatts,and des i red them

to be on thei r guard . About s i x days after that,we had

a further account from S wegatchie , that the French were

preparing to march . I came down to the German Flatts ,and in a meeting with the Germans

,told them what we

had heard,and desi red them to col lect themselves in a

140 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

bodv at thei r fort,and secure thei r women

,ch i ldren and

effects , and make the best defense they coul d ; and tol dthem at the same time

,to write to brother Warraghiya

gey , (Si r Will iam JO hnson , ) bu t they pai d not the l east

regard to what I tol d them, and laughed at me

,slapping

thei r hands on thei r buttocks,saying

,they did not val ue

the enem v . Upon which,I returned home

,and sent one

of our people to the lake, (mean ing the Oneida lake ,) to

fi nd ou t whether the enemy were coming or not. After

h e had stai d there two days,the enemy arri ved at the

carrying place, and s ent word to the castl e at the lake,

that th ey were there , and tol d them what they were goingto do ; but charged them not to let us at the upper castl e

know anyth ing Of thei r d esign . As soon as the m an s entthere , heard th i s , he came on to us with the accoun t thatn ight, and as soon as we received it

,we sent a bel t of

wampum to confirm the truth thereof,to the Flatts

,which

came ‘ here the day before the enemy made thei r attack .

B ut the peopl e would not give cred it to the account,even

then . This i s the truth , and those Germans here present

know it to be S O . The aforesai d Germans , d id acknow l

edge it to be so,and that th ey heard such intel l igence .

”

I t w as during th i s year,1756 , that Sir Wi ll iam John

son,by di rection of the Engli sh colonial government

,had

erected forts,or castles , in al l the principal towns of the

S ix Nations . The following are extracts from the John

son manuscripts,records some interesting parti culars

Kendaruntie,the great Seneca warri or

,with eight

more m en Of h i s nati on,came down to guard the m en

h i the r,whom Sir Will iam Johnson had s ent up to build

their fort.” I t i s al s o stated under the same date , that

S i x Seneca warriors,who came down wi th one Abeel , an

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142 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

near Niagara ,) are , as you r Lordsh ips wi l l s ee,by the

proceed ings I now s end you , very des i rous Of driving the

French from Niagara ; and equal ly press ing that we

should undertake it . If an attempt

upon Niagara, through lake Ontario , shoul d be mad e a

part Of the plan O f Operati ons for thi s year, I am persua

ded I cou ld j oin His Maj es ty ’ s troops that w ay , with the

ma in bodv of the warriors of the Five Nations,together

wi th others of thei r al l i es and dependents .”

The exped iti on aga inst Niagara w as organi zed under

the command of Gen . Prideaux,cons i sting O f l ittl e Over

two thousand men,and l eft Oswego for Niagara

,on the

l st O f S eptem ber , 1759. I t was j oined by Sir Wil l iam

Johnson wi th about S ix hundred warriors of the Five N a

ti ons,and thi s number was increased to one thou sand ,

l“f: ’

A‘

when the exped iti on arr ived at Niagara,in the vi cin i ty

Of the fort . Gen . Prideaux immediately commenced a

a s eige . Early in the progress of it,he w as kil led by the

premature d is charge O f one O f'

his own guns (acohornqTh e command devolved on S ir Wil l iam Johnson . The

seige w as conducted upon stri ctly sc ientific princ ipl es,by

regular During these operati ons the Ind ian

scouts brought information,of the approach of a body of

French and Ind ians,from the west

,to reinforce , or rel i eve

the beseiged fortress . A force was immed iately detached

to intercept their advance . A consi derable porti on or

th i s force,cons i sted O fIndians

,the fri ends

,or a ll ies Of the

F i ve Nations . A parl ey between the Ind ians was held .

The western Ind ians declared thev d id not come to fight

thei r brothers,the Five Nations

,but the Engl i sh . Th e

result was,they separated themselves

,and j oined th ei r

brethren . The French were attacked,defeated

,and all

A T R A GIO A L EVENT . 143

kill ed,wounded

,taken pri soners , or put to fl igh t. Upon

l earn ing the fate O f h i s reinforcements , the French Com

mandant surrendered the fort and al l h i s forces pris oners

O f w ar .

O n th is occas ion a tragical event occurred . Cadet

Moncourt of the Col onial s , had formed an attachment

with an Ind ian , to whom he became bound in fri endsh ip“

This Indian,who belonged to the Engl is h a rmy

,seeing

h i s friend a prisoner,expressed a great deal Of sorrow at

h i s s ituation, and sa id to h im : Brother,I am in des

pai r at seeing you dead , bu t take heart, I’ l l prevent thei r

torturing you , and killed him wi th a bl ow of h i s toma

hawk th inking therebv , to save h im from the tortures to ,

which prisoners among themsel ves are subj ected .

The capture ofNiagara wh ich had l ong been ,and sti l l

was,cons i dered the key to the Senecas country

,

”al

though it gave the Engl ish possess i on O f the fort,and con

sequently of the Carry ing place ,”it did not i mmediate

ly transfer the al legiance of the S enecas from the French

to the Engl i sh . The J on ciares,father and sons , who were

thoroughly in the interests of the French,had for nearlv

fifty years,exerted that influence

,not in va in ; and it was

soon dis covered by the Engl i sh,that they not on ly had an

enemy in the Senecas,bu t that thei r influence with the

other nati ons of the confederacy and the i r all ies,the Del

aw ares,the Shawnees

,&c .

,was working secret misch i ef

,

and soon culminated in Open hosti l i ty , on the part Of some

O f these tribes , res iding upon the southern and sou th -wes

tern border Of what w as admi tted to be the terri tory of

the S i x Nati ons . The causes of the d ifficul ti es , so far as ,

they appeared on the surface,seemed to be in relati on to

thei r lands . Thi s had been a subj ect of complaint on the

144 HISTORY OF BUFFA LO .

p art of the Indians , for many years but instead of O h

ta ining any redress , or sati sfacti on ,they had been pu t Off

with the promise,that thei r compla ints had to be referred

to thei r great father over the w ater,whi ch requi red time

,

and indeed the whole question became so compl i cated,

by the interference of parties interested,that the true

merits of the cas e cou ld not be understood,by the gov

ernment at home . The controversy invol ved the Govern

ors of severa l of the coloni es,parti cularly the Propri e

taries ofPennsylvania .

” Dr . Franklin,as the accredited

agent Of the government of Penn syl vania,and the “prop

rietaries”as they were cal l ed

,addressed a memorial to

the King,s etting forth the grounds Of these complaints

,

and d ifficu l ti es,asking for h i s interpos ition

,and as s tated

in the memorial to take the premises into your royal

cons ideration,and do therein , as to you r M aj esty in your

great wisdom,shal l see meet.”

This peti tion with a vast amount Of correspondence upon the subj ect, w as referred to h i s Maj esty ’ s privy

counci l for plantati on affa i rs,

” who made an elaborate re

port thereon . The complaint O f the Ind ian s w as that in

some cases,the pu rchases had been made of parti es not

authorized to sell . In other cases,large tracts had been

taken up, and surveyed , when but a smal l tract w as sold ,and conveyed by deed. The report of the counci l wh i ch

ev inced a desi re to protect the Ind ians,and procu re for

‘

them justi ce,admit that the troubles are mainly owing to

the negl ect of the government, to define the boundaries

of thei r own territory , and to assert the j uri sd i ction ,which

the treaty Of Utrecht clearly award ed to the Engl ish gov

ernm ent, in 1701 . D uring th i s l ong period O f negl ect,

parti es in nearly l

al l the colon i es,had instituted independ

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146 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

ada, and many others .” He undoubtedly al ludes to the

Senecas as the one Of the S ix Nations,which at thi s time

1763 , he cons idered as in hosti l ity , against the English,

notwithstanding peace had been declared between England and France .

It w as at this period 1763 , that Pontiac , the great O t

toway ch ief, attempted to un ite the western Ind ians ,against the Engl i sh , and to dispossess them of the country

a bou t the lakes , recently conqu ered from the French,and

it i s sa i d that he exerted a wider influence than any other

man w as ever able to do among these nations . The h os

tility to the Engli sh was undoubtedly excited by the

F rench,who sti l l held possess i on O f

'

L onisiana,"and al l the

enti re val ley Of the Miss i ss i ppi,wi th the streams tri buta

ry to that r i ver. The Senecas had at thi s time settled

some small vi llages on the head waters of the Belle r i ver

(Ohio ,) and cons idering the influences brought to bear upon them

,through the untiring zeal and acti v ity

,Of the

Jonciares, father and two sons , for more than fifty years

it i s not su rpris ing that they Shou l d have been brought tosympath ize wi th th is great movement of Pontiac . This

feel ing exh ibited itsel f in an Open attack upon the B ug

l i sh at the carrying place upon the N iagara ri ver .

Before the surrender offort Niagara to the Engl i sh Cha

bert Jonc iare Jr. (hi s father being dead ) was in command" O f the carrying place around the Fal l s of Niagara . This

profi table pri vi lege had been granted h im ,by the French

,

as a reward for h is servi ces , and had been assented to by

the Senecas,who shared in the profits

,as they cons idered

him one Of thei r chi ldren,h is mother being a Seneca w o

m an . J onciare had a cons i derable amount of property

Tinvested in th i s bus iness,whi ch of course w as destroyed

CARRYING PLACE AT NIAGARA . 147

by the overthrow of the French Jonciare h imself being

taken pri soner,together with hi s brother C lanz onne Jou

ciare,at the surrender of the fort.

The carrying place of course came into the possess ion

of the Engl ish,and w as put in charge of one John S tead

man,

an Engl i shman . This greatly exasperated the

Senecas . They cons i dered the carrying place as thei r

own it had l ong been in possess ion of one of thei r ch i l

dren . The feel ings of the Senecas,in respect to thi s sub

j cet,as wel l as many others

,which had al i enated them

from the Engli sh,were wel l understood by Si r Will iam

Johnson,and the train of wagons from the land ing (Lew

iston) to l i ttl e Niagara (Schlosser ,) was always furn i shed

wi th a guard of sold i ers . .A S thi s was the only practi ca

ble rou te from east to west,at that time

,for the Engl ish

,

th i s and other carry ing places were of the utmost impor

tance to them,as they had been to the French .

The necess i ty of furn i sh ing the different western posts

at Detroit,Mackinac , etc .

,whi ch had been surrendered

by the French,made the safety O f these carrying places ,

O f great importance to the Engl i sh , and no pa ins were

spared,not on ly to s ecure safety to these suppl ies

,but

to insure d ispatch in thei r trans i t, over this l ong l ine Of

commun i cati on . The teams were composed ch iefly of

oxen : each team having one dri ver, the master , or over

s eer . accompanying the train on horseback . The train

on thi s occas ion,must have been large, as it appears that

with one Officer,and twenty - fou r soldiers

,the party con

s i sted of n inety - S ix persons . In thei r progress up ther i ver

,the train

,with its escort

,had arrived Oppos ite

what i s cal led the devi l ’ s hole,when owing to the

shape of the ground , the road ran near the edge of the

148 HISTORY OF BUFFAL O .

precipice . It was at thi s point the Ind ians formed an

ambush , entirely out of v iew of thei r unsu specting v ic

tims,who

,as they approached thi s narrow defile

,were

fired upon by thei r conceal ed foe nearly al l were kil led

or wounded,at the first fire the Indians rose from thei r

concealment, with a tremendous yel l , rushed upon thei r

helpless vi ctims , and the tomahawk and s cal ping kn i fe

soon fini shed the bloody work . The fol lowing account i s

from the manuscripts Of S i r Wi ll iam John son,under date

ofSeptember,1763

I have thi s moment received an express,informing

me that an Offi cer and twenty - four m en who were escort

ing s everal wagons and ox- teams,over the carrying place

at Niagara,had been attacked and enti rely defeated

,to

gether with two compan ies Of Col . Wilmot’ s Regiment,

who marched to sustain them ; our l oss on th i s occas ion

cons i sts Of L ieu ts. Campbell,Frazer

,and Roscoe

,of the

Regulars,Capt. Johnson and Li ent. Dayton

,of the Pro

vincials, and s ixty privates , kil led , with about eight or

n ine wounded .

“ The enemy who are supposed to be Senecas , of Che

nussio,s calped all the dead

,took all thei r clothes

,arms

and amunition,and threw several of thei r bod ies down a

pr cipice .

“ I am greatly apprehens i ve of the fate of the Detroit,

they being in much want I fear,at the garri son ; and as al l

our cattl e etc .

,which were at Niagara

,are either kil l ed

or taken, it wil l be imposs ibl e to get any necessari es

transported over the carrying place for the remainder of

the season . I shal l i mmed iately send belts to all the

fri endly nation s,and use every effectual measure for pre

venting the destruc ti on of our settlements from the enemy

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150 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

ate and fai r shots at h im ,and that had he been a deer. he

could not have escaped thei r rifles .”

The S teadman family with sl ight exceptions , kept pos

sess ion of the farm at Fort Schlosser andEprobabl v the

carrying place,m any y ears a ided by influential friends ,

appl ication was m ade to the Legis lature of the S tate of

New York,after the Revolution

,for a confirmation of the

Indian grant,to at least, what Steadman had enclosed

and improved,being about fifteen hundred acres ; but

l ike a multitude of s imilar cla ims in other parts Of the

State , the Legislature refused to recogni ze them ,and who

ever wi ll take the trouble to examine the record ofLegisla

t ive proceedings,wil l fi nd frequent menti on m ade of the

Steadman farm upon the Niagara river .

The carry ing place round the fal l s w as original ly upon

the Canada or west S i de Of the river,but it had been

changed to the eastern or American s ide,the distance be

ing found to be much shorter , upon the American s ide

We at thi s peri od have very l ittl e i dea of the amount of

transportati on over thi s carrying place . It i s probable

that the train attacked and plundered by the Senecas,in

1763,cons i sted of from forty to fi ftv teams . In 1800 Mr.

Maud,from whose j ournal we have alreadv quoted , in

passing down on the Canada s ide in August O f that year ,says

“ There i s a portage at th is place,which employs nu

merous teams,ch i efly of oxen

,each cart (wagon) being

drawn by two yoke Of oxen or two horses . I passed great

numbers on the road taking up bal es and boxes,and

bringing down packs Of peltries . Fou rteen teams wereat the wharf wa i ting to be loaded .

’31‘ O n the opposite s ide of the river to Queenstown

,the governm ent of

CARRY ING PLACE AT NIAGAR A . 151

the Un ited S tates des ign to establ ish a land ing , or rather

renew the Old portage to Fort Schlosser .”

“ Another s cheme Of the Anglo -Ameri cans i s to do

away with the necess ity of a portage,by substituting a

canal in its place th is obj ect,can be best explained by a

quotation from Capt. Will iamson ’ s account of the Genesee .“The fal l was found to be three hundred and twenty

feet from S teadman’s Landing (Fort Schlosser) above the

fal l s , to Queenstown Landing below . The distance to be

cut for the preposed canal,di d not exceed four miles

,

nearly three ofwhi ch i s on a l evel with the navigable

part of the ri ver,above the fal l s .”

C I I A PT ER X I .

In Apri l 1764 a treaty Of peace was concluded , by Si r

William Johnson with the Senecas at Johnson ’ s Hal l ; in

w hich they agree to ste p all hosti l iti es aga inst the Engl ish

,give up all pri soners

,deserters

,and negroes among

them,cede the carrying place on the Niagara

,includ ing

all the land from about four miles below Fort Niagara,to

the creek above Fort Schlosser,or l ittl e Niagara, on both

s ides of the r iver,being about fourteen miles l ong

,and

four miles wide,and agree never to obstruct the carrying

place,or the free u se by the Engli sh of sai d tract. The

s ignatures to the treaty are :

S ayenqueraghta , Wanughissue , T aganrondie, T aanja

qua, T agaanadie . Kaanyes, Chonedagau , A ughnanaw is .

The Senecas were to have a ful l pardon for all past O f

fenses,and to remain in perpetual peace . A t thi s treaty

,

asappears from subsequent proceedings and the s igna

tures of the chiefs or sachems attached to it,a portion of

the Senecas were not represented . Those res iding at Che

n i s s io, and upon the head waters of the Belle (Oh io) ri ver

had to some extent been drawn to sympathize w i th if not

to co - Operate in the great movement headed by Pontiac .

They had attacked and destroyed the train and its escort

at the carrying place on the Niagara , and were impl ica

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154 HISTORY OF BUFF ALO .

and continual ly tol d us that they were never the authors

o f bloodshed and death . For th is reason,we are Over

j oyed, that you are now come

,after having been so l ong

cal l ed upon .

Yon very wel l know,the promise made b y you at

Niagara, to S ir Will iam Johnson . Your engagement

w as then reasonable,and d id not requ i re too much of you

Y ou had therefore best to blot out all the past,and act

better for the future,than you have h itherto done and

th is i s most strongly recommended to you,in the name of

the Onondagas,Cayugas

,Oneidas

,andMohawks .” Gave

a belt.

Then Gaustrax,the Seneca Chief

,stood up and sa id

“BRETHREN OF T HE FIVE NATIONS — I have attended to

what you have sai d 0 11 this belt to us . You m ay be as

sured that we th ink of noth ing but peace , and to that endwil l del iver up al l the Engl ish peopl e

,as i s recommended

to us ; and we wil l s end messengers to col lect them im

mediately and as the Delawares have agreed to l eave

h ostages for the performance of thei r promise,I agree to

stay here,as an hostage O II behal f of my nation

,for the

l ike purpose . B ut should the messengers not be abl e to

succeed in getting the prisoners,I shal l then beg S ir Wil

l iam Johnson ’ s permiss ion,to go mysel f

,accompan i ed bv

Mr . Perthias the Interpreter,when I doubt not of Obtain

ing them all .”

He returned the bel t given him b y the four Nati ons .

Si r Will iam Johnson addressed the Senecas in reply ,as fol lows

" BRETHREN OF THE SENECA S —Y ou must be sens ible,that the greatest part Of your nation

,have been our most

inveterate enem i es,du ring the late hosti l iti es . I wil l not

S IR WILL IAM JOHNS ON ’ S S PEECH . 1 55

now enlarge on that head,as it was the subj ect of our

treaty at N iagara last summer. Al l I have to say upon

it now is , that I expect you wil l consul t your own inter

est,and happiness , and to that end, careful ly avoi d a

breach with your brethren the Engltsh, for the time to

come . O n thi s , all you r happiness enti rely depends , and

if you repent O f vou r late conduct, and are come rightly

to your senses, you will fi nd the necessi ty of stri ctly abi

d ing by all you r engagements .

Your not bringing down the rest Of the pri soners , im

mediately after the del i very of those last year to me ,agreeable to your engagement, has had a very bad ap

pearance , and you cannot excuse yoursel ves . Y ou have

therefore,nothing left to convince the Engl i sh of your

s incerity,but by you r future actions words wi l l not be

suffi ci ent ; and therefore , I expect, that with in forty n ights

from hence, you . will bring down every prisoner yet

amongst you,and every deserter

,in whi ch you cannot

deceive m e,for I know thei r numbers ; and until you

perform this punctually , I expect you wi l l leave another

of your ch iefs ofKarathyaradaris wi th Gaustrax, as hos

tages for the dis charge of your engagement .

”

Thi s engagement w as fulfill ed on the part of the Sene

cas and Delawares of the Susquehanna,by del i vering up

twenty - fi ve persons of both sexes,h el d as prisoners by

them .

In September Of th is year,in an offi cial letter

,Si r Wi l

l iam Johnson says“Having thi s moment heard Of the death of the Chi ef

of al l the Senecas,who w as for some y ears past s incerely

attached to our interests,I am apprehens ive that the dis

content among,

these j eal ous and troublesome people,wil l

156 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

be cons i derabl y augmented on which account, but particularly from some informati on I dai ly recei ve , I pur

pose immediately under a pretens e of a tour for health,

to vis it the Onondaga country,which being the place

where the great confederacy meets , I hope to profit something from the d iscovery I make .

”

The result Of this v i s it was anyth ing bu t sati sfactory toSi r Will iam Johnson

,bu t confi rmatory of the fears he

had expressed , as appears bv the report he m ade,in

which he says

The Indians wi th whom I held a congress,were very

desi rous to know whether I had recei ved any sati sfactoryaccoun ts from Court

,respecting the intended boundary

l ine, the summary process for j usti ce , the gri evances con

cern ing lands,murders

,and intrus ions of the fronti er in

habitants . and other matters,on wh ich they had been

promised rel ief. In answer to which I gave them manyassurances that these matters were under consideratiom

and orders actual ly sent,to the Governor of the province

on the subj ect O f lands .

They answered that they had no . expectation fromthat quarter

,and that the appl i cation to h is Maj es ty was

founded on a certa inty that they could expect no redress

elsewhere .

“ That on thi s and every other subj ect of grievancethey had pati ently wa ited for redress

,S everal years

,that

they w ere now quite ti red , and began to despai r of it, thatal l the nations were becoming impati ent and dissati sfied ,and cou l d not restrain thei r warriors .”

The principal causes Of the d i saffection of the Senecas ,whi ch extended more or l ess to all the S ix Nations , with

the ex ception,perhaps Of the Mohawks , grew out of the

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1 58 HI STORY OF BUFFALO .

sylvania,by a number of riotous persons

,who w i thout

a ny cause , surprised and ki lled , s i x O f thes e peaceable

people,occas ioned Mr. Penn to i s sue a proclamati on

,for

discovery of the authors thereof,and to place the rest Of

that peopl e in Lancaster,where they were lodged in the

workhouse,for better secu rity . B ut the rioters

,not

alarmed at the proclamati on,came

,in a body

,armed

broke Open the workhouse,and barbarously murdered

fourteen m ore of these Indians,and even threatened to

c ome down to the city of Philadelphia,and kil l a number

ofpeaceable and wel l di sposed Indians,taken into the

protecti on of that city .

In October,1768 , a great treaty was held by S ir Wi ll

ram Johnson at Fort Stanwix,wi th the S ix Nations

,the

Shawnees,Delawares

,and Senecas

,of Ohio . at which

more than two thousand Ind ians were present. S everal

weeks were occupi ed,in completing the bus iness trans

acted , the principal O f which w as, the s ettlement of the

question Of a boundary l ine between the wh ites and the

Indians . The Governors Of several of the colon i es were

present at this treaty . G O V . Penn of Pennsylvania,

after wa iting several days for the arr i val of the delegates

from some of the more distant nati ons,who were slow in

coming,w as obl iged to leave , and placed his affai rs in

the hands O f two commiss ioners , to represent that colony.

After much d is cuss i on and negotiati on,conducted enti rely

by Si r Will iam Johnson , on the part of the Engl ish,

assi sted by hi s two sons - in - law,Col . Guy Johnson , and

Col . Claus,the boundary was agreed upon ,

‘

and the treaty

S igned by the ch iefs of all the S ix Nations,and their de

pendents the Delawares , Shawnees , &c . Thi s l ine ex

t ended from near l ake Ontari o,at the j uncti on of Canada

THE BOUNDARY L INE . 159

and Wood creeks , to Owego on the Susquehanna , thence

through Pennsylvan ia , Maryland,&c .

,to the mouth of

the Cherokee or Tennessee river. The settl ement of the

boundary l ine question, although it removed an occas ion

of complaint,d id not remove the cause

,of the dissatisfac

ti on of the Ind ians . This lay deeper, and was of more

d iffi cult cure . It i s more than once al l uded to by S i r

Will iam Johnson ,in h is correspondence wi th the govern

ment at thi s peri od . It w as the alarming increase of the

number,and growing power, of the Engl ish .

The reason ass igned by S ir Will iam Johnson,for not

fi xing or clos ing the boundary l ine to lake Ontari o on the

north,w as, that the property to the north of the present

point of termination,belonged to the Oneidas and M o

hawks,and coul d at any time thereafter

“ be closed at a

very moderate expens e,shoul d h i s Maj esty require it.”

O ne of the stipulations conta ined in the treaty fixing the

boundary l ine w as,that no s ettl ements of the whites

should be permitted west of that l ine . The d iffi culty of

fulfi llingior enforcing thi s stipulation, seems to have been

foreseen bv S ir Will iam Johnson,and feared by the Ind i

ans . The neglect of thei r compla ints,and fai lures to

fulfil l thei r promises to the Ind ian s by the Engl ish,had

educated them to expect disappointment,notwithstanding

they had unwavering confidence in the integrity,and

good intenti ons,of thei r friend

,S i r Will iam . B ut upon

the fron ti e r,parti cularly at i

‘

the s outhwest,upon the Sus

quehanna , and the Oh io rivers,a degree of hosti l ity on

the part of the s ettl ers,against the Ind ians , ex isted , and

was strengthened,and m ade aggress i ve, by the success of

the Briti sh arms,and the rapidly augmenting numbers

of settl ers . A nd it was s oon found that the boundary

1 60 m s'

roa y OF BUFFALO .

l ine,was no restra int upon the rapacity of the land specu

lators and squatters , and from negotiati ons between the

Indians and the government, there w as a sudden trans i

tion to a state of hosti l iti es between the Indians and the

fronti er s ettlers,many Of whom had al ready pu shed thei r

cla ims beyond the l imi ts of the boundary l ine ,

The fol lowing letters of S ir I 'Vill iam Johnson to Gen .

Gage,w ri tten at thi s time

,show s

'

the s tate of Ind ian

affai rs about thi s peri od , and the influences that were Ope

rating to produce di saffection among them

S IR XVIL L IA M JOHNSON T O GEN . GAGE .

Apri l 1 8th, 1767 .

I have had a parti cular informati on of the murder of

the Delaware Indian at Redstone creek . It appears from

the informati on of several white m en,that the quarrel

arose through the instigation of C ol . Creasap,of Mary

land , who trades on that fronti er , and (probably from in

terested moti ves ,) had actual ly tol d the deceased that if

he m et with any traders in the country, or going to it, he

shoul d take thei r l i quor from them,and cause the kegs

to be staved . Thi s i s one of the consequences of sufi‘er

ing the traders to ramble where ever great profits m ay

s educe them,and I cons ider it as only a prel ude of what

i s to fol low ,unl ess they are timely and effectual ly re

strained .

S IR “’IL L IA M JOHNS ON TO GEN . GA GE .

Apri l 2 4th 1767.

I am wel l informed that Chabert Jonciare , i s prepar

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162 H ISTO RY O F B I'

F F A I .O .

recei ved a severe hurt , whi ch nearl y rendered him inca

pable of proceed ing , bu t after a l i ttl e delay,he pursued

his j ou rney to Seneca, (Kanesadaga , ) where he had sum

m oned the ch iefs of that nation,l iving near the head of

the Oh io ri ver,to mee t h im . The Indians assembl ed to

the number of more than two thousand . A S piri t of gen

e ral d i s content w as soon man ifested . The Senecas began-

'

by a long deta i l of the ir grievances,complain ing of a

:general neglect on the part of the Engl i sh to observe theprovi s ions of the late treatv . That thei r trading posts

were neglected,that frauds upon them were practiced

more than ever that the ag ents , interpreters , and black

smiths,whi ch they had been accu stomed to have among

them,had been w i thd rawn

,and that they were informe d

that a war between the Engli sh,and the Span i sh and

French,w as i mminent , and they were invited and en

couraged by the emissaries of the French sti ll among

them,to engage in it w h ich notwi thstand ing the advi ce

Of the chi efs to the contrary , w as a great temptati on to

the i r warr iors . That the French had pred i cted all thes e

ev i l s,and experience had pro v ed it too true , and

“they

were ful l‘

O f resentment through d isappointment.

In h is report to the Earl Of Hillsborough , S ir IVilliam

Johnson says O n m y w ay home I w as overtaken wi th

the news of a mu rder of a young Seneca lad , who w as

fired upon on the r i v er Susquehanna , by some of the

fronti er inhab itants , without the least provocati on given

(of wh ich I have s ince recei ved an account fromPennsyhvania

,) as the father Of thi s lad, has general ly l i ved wi th

in the settlements , and wi th the whole family demonstra

ted the mos t zeal ous attachm en t to the Engl i sh , and were

much respected by the Ind ians , the m u rder i s a v ery un

TROUBLES ON THE 0 1110 . 163

l ucky accident at th is time,but it i s not alone ; several

others have been lately committed , by the infatuated and

lawless inhabitants on the fronti ers of Vi rgin ia, &c .

,who ,

as they have h itherto acted with impun ity , are encour

aged to go on . A nd though the effects of all this , have

not been s ens ibly felt for sometime , they begin at l ength

to make thei r appearance,parti cularly about the Il l inoi s ,

and Ohio,of which your Lordsh ip wi l l doubtless receive

informati on,from the commander in chi ef the Ind ian s

having kil led severa l people,attacked and plundered

several trader ’s boats , and in short blocked up the com

munication of the Oh io , so that it i s no longer practi ca

bl e for trading ; whil st at the same time they are

endeavoring to form a more stri ct al l iance (among them

selves,) than ever

,for purposes that are bu t too obvious ,

seeming on ly to wa it the s ucces s of th ei r negotiati ons,for

the fommencement of hosti l ities .” "t

In the mean time no provis ion was made by the colo

n i es for defraying the expenses of the department of Ind i

an afi'

airs . The government of New York voted on ly one

hundred and fifty pounds for that purpose thi s year . In

stances were not unfrequent,when for some act of a sin

gle indivi dual,e ither real or pretended

,the Indians were

pursued by the inhab itants,and whole famili es

,and

s ometim es whole vi l lages cut off. S ir Wil l iam Johnson

deplores the state of feeling existing between the frontier

settl ers and the Ind ians , and mentions the case of one

Cal lender,a trader

,on h i s w ay to fort Pi tt, wi th twenty

fi ve horses loaded with Ind ian goods,who w as attacked

near Bedford,by th irty white m en d isguised and pa inted

l ike Ind ians,who destroyed and carr ied away the great

est part of h i s goods,declar ing “they would suffer none to

164 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

pas s on to the Indians . T he pol iti cal troubles

wh ich began to agitate the publi c mind,both in Massa

chu setts and New York , about thi s peri od , caused serious

embarrassment to the management of Indian affai rs . In

1770 , a combinati on against the importati on of foreign .

goods,was formed in New York

,and it w as wi th the

greatest difficul ty that Si r Will iam Johnson w as able to

get“out of the hands of the committee of non - importers

,

”

a cargo of Indian goods wh i ch were of the greatest im

portance to enable h im to keep h i s promises to them .

The delay in obtaining the ordinary suppli es for the In

d ian trade,had been used by the French emissari es with

great effect against the Engl ish , and had shaken the con

fi dence of the Indians in them .

Great dissati sfacti on had been given the Shawnees and

Senecas res iding on the Oh io r i ver,by fixing the boun

dary l ine on that r iver . They cla imed the land between

that ri ver and the lake , and th i s d i ssati sfaction w as felt

by the Senecas res id ing at Chenissio (Genesee,) and re

ports came to S i r Wi ll iam Johnson “ that the Six N a

t ions were concerned in exciting the Shawnees , and the

Delawares and m any others to make war upon the Engl i sh .

”

The following circular l etter from Lord Hill sborough to

the Governors of Quebec, New York, New Jersey, Vi r

ginia,North Carol ina

,Maryland , and Pennsylvan ia , da

ted Whitehal l , November 15th, 17‘

70 , sh ows the l ight in .

whi ch the Engl i sh government v iewed the state of af

fai rs at th i s time

S IR — The encl osed extract from a letter I have late

l v received from S ir Will iam Johnson,will fully inform

you of the complaints made by the S ix Nations O f Indians .

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1G6 HISTORY OF BUF F AL O .

one of the survi vors rather confirmed previous reports ,and to some extent impl i cated the great Seneca ch ief

,

A gastarax (orGastrax) who was recently deceased ; anoth

er general counci l had already been appointed at Sciota ,

at whi ch Si r Will iam John son informs Lord H illsbo

rough he should take care that the S ix Nati ons should be

represented by those whose fideli ty could be rel i ed on .

As his own impa ired health would not admit O fhi s taking

the j ourney h imself,hi s deputy would be present to watch

the proceed ings . In 1773 Si r Wil l iam Johnson vis ited

England,and it i s probably from this fact

,there i s l ittle

or no record of events occurring thi s year,relating to the

Indian affai rs,found among hi s manuscripts .

In a report to Governor Tryon, O ct. 2 2 d , 1773 , the

Mohawks numbered only four hundred and six soul s , the

Oneidas,

fifteen hundred,the whole S i x Nations abou t

two thousand figh ting m en ; making at l east ten thousand

soul s in al l . The Senecas alone are one -hal f that num

ber .”

C H A P T E R X I I .

It w as during thi s year (17 that events occu rred on

the Oh io,which undoubtedly influenced subsequent trans

actions,if indeed they d id not produce the Indian war

,

which resulted so disastrous"y to the S ix Nati ons . In a

report to Earl Dartmouth , Si r”

Wi l l iam Johnson says“My negotiati ons with the Senecas w as interrupted by

intel l igen ce that a certain Mr . C ress0p , an inhabitan t of

V i rgin ia had murdered forty Ind ians on the Oh io,for the

most part of the S ix Nations ;

The agent of Sir Will iam Johnson on the Ohio,report

ed that h “ recei ved informati on from Capt . Crawfordand one Mr . Nevi lle from Vi rgin ia

,that on the w ay to

th i s place they m et a number of inhabi tants settl ed bel ow

thi s (Wheel ing ) moving O ff ; among whom was a party

who had s e veral Ind ian s calps,and related thei r having

taken them,as follows

1‘That a number of Ind ians having encamped at the

month of the Yellow Creek,they

,with one Greathouse

,

had coll ected themsel ves at the house of one Baker,O p

posite to the sai d Indians , and decoyed tw o Indian men

and two women,over to thei r s ide of the ri ver

,to d rink

with them who,upon finding them intoxi cated

,fel l up

168 HISTORY OF BUFFAL O .

on them,and knock ed them in the head , and scalped

them . That soon after,two other Ind ians came over

,to

see what deta ined thei r friends,and were s erved in the

same manner. After th i s , the Indians appeared uneasy ,and s i x of their m en were coming across the r iver to l ook

after thei r people,who approached near the shore , oh

s erved them,the sa i d wh ite people

,where they were ly

ing in ambush for them,and attempting to return to thei r

camp,were fi red upon

,and two of them were kil led

,who

dropped into the ri ver ; and two others they observed fal l

dead in the canoe ; and the fifth,upon their land ing

,they

c ould di s cover,to be very badly wounded

,so that he

c ould scarce get up the bank , and that they heard the

w omen and the children at the camp,rai s e a very m elan

choly cry .

Among those who were kil led,was an Indian woman

,

the wife of one ofour traders,who had a young chi ld upon

her back,whi ch she had bore to h im ; and after some al

ptercation between those mu rderers , whether they should

put the ch i ld to death , they agreed to take it al ong with

them .

“ The sa i d Mr . Nevi lle asked the person in whose cus

tody the ch ild was , i f he w as not near enough to have

taken its mother prisoner , wi thout putting her to death

in that inhuman manner he answered,that he w as

about s i x feet d istant, and that he had shot he r in the

forehead , and cut. the strap,by wh ich the ch ild ’s cradle

hung at her back and that h e intended to have dashed

its bra ins out but that he was struck with some remorse

at s ee ing the child fal l,with its mother . That one of his

c ompani ons recommended their taking it al ong wi th them ,

that they might have an Opportun ity of send ing it to its

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170 HIS TORY OF BUFFALO .

the above murder w as done by some of sa id C resS O p’

s as

sociates . Stevens l ikewise informed me,that whil e he

w as in company wi th sai d C ress0p, he heard him make

use of threaten ing language aga inst the Indians , saying“He would pu t every Indian to death he m et on the

river and that i f he could raise m en suffi cient to cross

the ri ver, he would attack a smal l vi l lage of Ind ians l iv

ing on Yellow Creek .

The same even ing one M aj . M cD aniel of V i rgin ia , whohad been down the ri ver as l ow as Kanhaway, returned to

th i s place,with an account that a skirmi sh had happened

between a party Of Vi rg in ians and the Indian s , near the

big Kanhaway,that a number w ere kil led on both s i des ,

which had occas i oned the surveyors and land—hunters ,from that colony

,to return

,and that on hi s w ay h i ther ;

on the 5th inst.,he w as at Michael C ressop

‘

s hou se , at

or near Wheeling ,C ressop,

by one M cM ahon,that fi ve Indian canoes had

stopped at h is house, on thei r w ay down the river , con

w hen an account w as broug ht to sa i d

ta ining fourteen Indians,who asked him

,the sai d M cM a

hon for some provis ions,which he refused to give them ,

and told them that two of th ei r brethren had been kil l ed

by the white people,the day before the Ind ians repl i ed

that i f it w as so,they knew nothing of it

,and then pro

ceeded down the ri ver . That u pon th is information ,the

sa i d C ressop procu red fifteen m en ,pu rsued them ,

and

overtook them near Grave Creek,w here they had stopped

and drawn up thei r canoes,in the mouth of a creek that

w as hardly perceivable , on accoun t of the bushes ; where

they had prepared themselves to receive the whi te people

suspecting that they wou l d be fol low ed,after what M e

Mahon had told them ; and that upon the sai d C ressop

CRESAP S \VA B .

observing the Indians,he fired upon them

,upon whi ch

a ski rmish ensued between them but the Indians reti red

after l os ing one m an,and one man w as ki lled on the

white people ’ s s ide . CreS S O p and h is party found s i xteen

kegs of rum,and two old saddles

,and some bri dles in the

deserted canoes . This dastardly ransaction w as soon fol

l owed by another outrage , which though of les s magn i

tu de,w as not less atroci ous in its spi rit

,wh ile it was even

more harrowing to the feel ings of the Indians . The event

referred to w as the murder by a white man, of an aged and

inoffens i ve Delaw are ch ief,named the “ Bal d Eagle . ’

He had for v ears associated with the wh ites more than

with h i s own peopl e , vis iting those mos t frequently , who

ente rta ined h im and treated h im w i th the greatest kindness .

IVhile paddl ing h is canoe alone,on h i s return from a

vi s i t to the fort at the mouth of the Kanhaw a,h e w as

shot dead by a m an who it w as sai d had s uffered at the

hands of the Inc ians,but had never been inj ured by the

Obj ect upon whom he wreaked h is vengean ce ; after tear

ing the s cal p frow head,the whi te savage placed the

body in a s i tting postu re in the canoe,and sent it adrift

down the stream . The voyage of the d ead chi ef w as oh

served by m an v w ho suppo sed him l iv ing and upon one

of his ort inary ex'

ursions .

Equal ly exasperated,at about th is same tim e were the

Shawnees aga inst the whites by the murder Of' ou e of

thei r favori te ch iefs,

‘ S i lver Heels,

”who had in the

kindest manner , undertaken to escort a party of white

traders across the woods from the Ohio , to Albany , a.

di stance of nearly five hundred m iles . )L

M cC lung. as cited by Drake .

i H eckewelder .

172 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

M ay 2 3d, 1774 , (at Pittsburgh .)I cal led a mee ting (of Indians ) with Kayashota the

w h ite mingo,and some other S ix Nation Chiefs

,at Col .

Croghan‘s house ; where was pres ent the command ing

Officer of the mil itia, (Capt. Connoly) and s everal other

gentlemen,when I informed them (the Indians) of the

melancholy murders of the i r people as before m entioned,

which they had not before heard,and assured them at

the same time,of its being done by a few incons iderate

white peopl e,and not by the intention, or knowledge

,of

any of our wise peopl e ; that I made no doubt but the

Governor ofVi rgin ia when he was made acquainted with

the unhappy loss they had sustained bv h is peopl e,would

fal l upon every measure,to make th em ample satisfac

ti on,as it w as not done by the intention of government.

That in the meantime,I enj oined them

,to afford all the

ass is tance in their power in accomm odating the unfortu

nate breach of friendship,that had happened between

our people and them: as a general d ifference coul d not be

attended with anyth ing but the utmost di stress on thei r

s ide .

” They returned for an swer :“ That they had cons idered what we had sa i d to them .

'

and as the chiefs of the Delawares were expected in to

n ight, or to morrow , they would consult wi th them and

know what reply to make . That we might be assured

that th ey wou l d do evervthing in thei r power to keep

matters qu i et,whi ch they made no doubt m ight be done ,

“

from the general d ispos iti on of thei r own people,provided

we would be strong, on our parts in preventing our rash

people from committing any further outrages against the

Indians .”

The following i s the answer of the S hawnese to Capt .

Connoly and others

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1 74 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

and d i scontent among many of the Indian tribes , and the

add ition O f rum ,will serve greatly to increase thei r disor

derly conduct. I spoke to the traders last fal l,on thi s

subj ect,and des ired they would des i s t for their own sakes

,

as wel l as for ours,from taking such quantiti es of rum

,

wi th them , a trad ing,but I rece ived no answer

,from

them,and it seems since

,they pay no regard to what I

recommend to them,but have continued th is pe rn i ci ous

practi ce . This i s the reason I would therefore request

you to use your influence in preventing them ,unti l th ings

appear more settled . Gave a s tring of Wampum .

The e vents upon the fronti er o fV i rgin ia , which occur

red about thi s time,have additional interest imparted to

them by the celebrity whi ch historv has gi ven to some of

the principal actors in them . Logan,whose name is im

mortal i zed in the celebrated address he del i vered to Lord

Dunmore,Governor of V i rginia

,w as a ch ief of the S ix

Nati ons . His father,S hikel im o

,or S hikellimus

,or

S hickalamy , (the name being spel led in all these various

ways, ) w as a d istinguished ch ief of the One ida Nation ,

*

(and not of the Cayugas as has been stated , ) who l ived

in 1743 at Shamokin,in Penns y lvania . He w as the

ii' iend of James Logan , l ong the Secretary of the Propri

s tore,as they were cal led

,hence the name of his son .

Logan,had wi th others of hi s family

,removed to the

c ountry of the S hawnese, on the Ohio , where he res ided

in 1773—4 , and had become a l eading sachem ,or chief.

Michael Cresap, at th i s time , appears to have been an

Ind ian trader , as h is cabin or trad ing house,upon the

' Colden. S ee. names of ch i efs of the seve ra l Na tions present at a coun11 at Ph iladel ph ia , Ju ly, 1749 .

CR ES AP’S WA R . 175

bank of the r i ver , near Wheel ing , i s spoken Of in connec

ti on wi th current events . His knowledge Of the country ,his Indian experience , and mil itary reputation

,pointed

him ou t as the most su i table person to command the or

gani z ed body Of settl ers , traders , and land j obbers,who

combined to make aggress i ve demonstrations against the

Ind ians , to redress real or pretended grievances , charged

against them by the whites . Many murders were un

doubtedly commi tted by thi s party, under Cresap , but

whether he ough t to be held respons ibl e for al l that was

suffered by the Indians,i s not so cl ear ; and perhaps h i s

tory,has lai d upon his shoulders a weight Of reSponsibil

ity , whi ch in part, at least, ought to be borne by others .

He being chosen the l eader,the w ar which fol lowed , was

cal led C resap’s war .

” That the cruelti e s against the

Indians,some Of which we have al ready related

,were

perpetrated,there i s not a shadow Of doubt. A nd the

effort to mitigate,Or to throw the respons ibi l ity Of them

,

upon the Ind ians themsel ves,must fa il , when the facts ,

as they are recorded in the correspondence Of S i r Will iam

Johnson , (now made publ i c , ) are vi ewed in the l ight Of

impartial h is tory,and cannot fai l to place the respons i

bil ity Of the cruel s cenes enacted on the Ohio, in 1773—4 ,upon the parti es where it rightful ly belongs .

It w as in one Of these massacres (for thev can be cal led

n oth ing else,) that Logan

’ s family relati ves were ki ll ed .

Fired wi th ind ignati on and revenge,it i s not su rpri s ing

that he,wi th others Of hi s people

,became ea perated to

the h ighest pitch O f desperati on . Being thei r acknow l

edged chi ef, h e soon , and almost as a matter Of cours e,

became the recogni zed leader Of h i s peopl e . A nd h e un

doubtedlv headed several parti es in thei r murderous at

176 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

tacks upon , and indis criminate slaughter Of the whites .

He headed a party of on ly eight warriors,who m ade a

descent upon a white settl ement in the M uskingum ,in

1774 , wi th fatal success . B ut in all these warl ike forays,

the humanity Of Logan was conspi cuous . In one ia

stance,he so instructed a pri soner , doomed to almost cer

tain death by runn ing the gauntlet, that h e w as enabled

to escape almost without inj ury . In another case , he cut

with h i s own hands,the cords which bound a prisoner to

the stake , and by hi s influence , not only saved hi s l ife ,but procured hi s adopti on into the family Of an Indian

friend . S O pers i stent w as h e,in this l ine Of conduct

,as

to bring upon h imself the reproach of some O f h i s own

people,who call ed h im “

the wh ite man ’ s fri end .

” The

war which w as begun,and at first carri ed on in thi s de

sultory manner , soon assumed more giganti c proporti ons,

and an army Of two or three thousand m en,was organ

iz ed by Lord Dunmore , Governor Of V i rgin ia .

This army w as d ivided into two wings . The left w ing ,composed principal ly O f the ch ival ry O f Vi rg in ia , mostl y

armed with rifles , was entrusted to the command of Col .

Andrew L ewrs , wi th instructions to proceed d irectly to

the mouth Of the great Kanhawa r iver,while h i s Lord

ship with the righ t wing , was to cross the Ohio at a high er

point, and fal l upon the Indian towns , on that s ide Of the

r iver . Col . Lewi s arri ved at the j uncti on Of the Kan

hawa wi th the Oh io,early in October

,1774. In the

m orn ing hi s p i ckets were fi red upon by a body O f Ind i

ans . Immediately upon the alarm (although it was before sunri se ,) he put h is forces in order to advance and

attack the Indians , bu t they had scarcely l eft thei r en

campment,before they were m et by from Zeight to fifteen

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178 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

protect,bu t deep wrongs to revenge . The voice Of the

mighty Cornstook , w as Often heard during the day ,

above the din O f battle,call ing ou t to hi s warriors

,be

s trong " be strong " and when by the repeated charge Of

the V i rginians , some Of h is m en began to waver,he is.

said to have s truck h is tomahawk into the head of onewho w as attempting to fly .

”

Towards n ight,

finding that each success i v e attackupon the l ine of the Indians weakened hi s own force

,

wi thou t making any sens ibl e impress ion upon the In di

ans,a final attempt was made by throwing a body O f

'

troops into the rear . Three compan i es,l ed by Capt.

Shelby,taking advantage Of the bed of a smal l creek

, .

covered by tal l weeds and gras s U pon its banks,enabled .

them to accomplish the movement,unobserved by the

Indians and fal l ing v igorously upon thei r rear,compel led

them to abandon the i r rude works,with precipitati on .

The Indians fled across the Ohio,and continued thei r re

treat to the Scioto .

This battl e,cons idering the numbers engaged

,has been

ranked one of the m ost bloody, on record . The loss Of‘

the Indians was never known,but must have been se

vere ; it i s said that in addition to the ki lled and wounded ,borne away

,numbers Of the sla in were thrown into the

r i ver,and thi rty - three of thei r Warriors were found dead .

upon the field,the fol lowing day . The loss Of the Vi r

g inians was al s o s evere . Two of thei r colonel s were

killed,four captains , m any subord inates

,and between

fifty and s i xty privates , bes ides a much larger number

woundedfi l It i s sai d Cornstook was opposed to gi ving

’ Drake . O ffi cial report

eO R N S T O O K’s ADDRESS . 179

battle at the mouth of Kanhawa,bu t being overruled in

council,resolved to do h is best.

Upon thei r arr ival at Chi l i cothe , a counci l of Indians

was held to decide what w as next to be done . C ornstock

addressed the coun ci l . He sa id : “ The long kn i ves are

upon us,from by tw o routes . Shal l we turn and figh t

them ?” N O respons e being made to the question,he

continued : “ Shal l w e kil l our squaws and children,

'

and

then fight unti l weare kil led oursel ves 2” A s before,al l

were s i lent,whereupon Cornstook struck his tomahawk

into the w ar post, s tand ing in the midst of the coun ci l ,and remarked with emphas i s : “ S ince you are not in

clined to fight,I wi l l gO and make peace .”

which,he repa i red to the camp Of Lord Dunmore

,who

having crossed the Oh io,w as now approaching S cioto .

Cornstook was accompan i ed by several oth er ch ie fs,O n

thi s m iss ion Of peace,but Logan refused to go with them .

He w as in favor of peace,but s corned to ask it. The

chief speaker on thi s occas ion was Corns took,who d id

not fail to charge the whites w ith being the sole caus e ofthe war

,enumerating the provocatio

gwhi ch the Ind ians

had received,and dwel l ing wi th pecul iar force upon the

murders committed in the family Of Logan . A peace

was concluded,and so important w as it cons i dered by

Lord Dunmore to have the name of Logan to the treaty

that he d ispatched a special messenger,Col . John Gib

son,to the cabin of the great “Mingo Chief.” His as

sent to the treaty w as obtained,but with an eloquent re

hearsal of h i s own,and h i s peopl e ’ s grievances . Th is

conference with Col . Gibson,was al one

,in a sol itary

wood,and at its clos e Logan uttered the speech or mes

sage to Lord Dunmore,whi ch has given h is name a place

among the greatest orators .

S ay l ng

180 HISTORY OF BUFFA LO .

L oGA N’s S PEECH .

I appeal (says he ,) to any w h i te m an,to say i f he

ever entered Logan ’ s cabin hungry,and he gave h im not

meat. If ever he came cold and naked,and h e warmed

him not. During the course of the last long bloody war,

Logan remained i dle in h i s cabin, an advocate for peace .

Such was my love for the whites,that my countrymen

pointed as they passed,and sai d Logan i s the friend of

the white m an . I had thought to l i ve wi th you,but for

the inj uries Of one m an,C O ". Cresap

,the last spring in

cold blood,and unprovoked

,murdered al l the relati ves O f

Logan not even sparing my women,and ch i l d ren .

There runs not a drop of my blood in the veins Of anyl i v ing creature . Thi s called

'

O u me for revenge I have

sough t it I have kil led many,I have ful ly glutted my

revenge . For my country,I rej oice at the beams Of peace

,

but do not harbor a thought, that mine i s the j oy of fear.

Logan never felt fear . He wil l not turn on h i s heel to

save his l ife . Who i s there to mourn for Logan,not one "

”

The fol lowing isea copy of the pretended speech of

“ Lonan ,” by wh ich the attempt is made to inval idate

the claim Of Logan to its original i ty .

“ Speech pronounced by the savage Lonan , in a gen

e ral assembly , as it was sent to the Governor OfV i rginia ,Anno

,1754 '

Lonan wil l no longer Oppose making the proposed

peace with the wh ite ma n. Y ou are s ens ible that he

never knew what fear i s , that he never turned h i s back

in the day of battle. N O one has more love for the whi te

m an than I have. The war we have had wi th them , was

l ong, and bloody , on both s ides . R i vers O f blood have

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189. HISTOR Y OF BUFFALO .

ch i efs Of the S hawnese,and asked h im to walk ou t wi th

h im . That they went into a copse of w ood,where they

sat down,when Logan

,after abundance of tears

,dcl iv

ered him the speech nearlv as related bv Mr . Jefferson .

in h i s notes on Vi rginia .

JOHN GIBSON .

”

Th is affidavi t,ough t to be conclus i ve in regard to the

authenti c ity of Logan ’ s speech , as given by Mr. Jefi erson .

H eckewelder, says

“there i s no doubt that the speech

was del ivered by Logan,as given b y Mr. Jefferson

,ex

cept, that it had a force and beauty in the original Ind ian

,th at cannot be given in a translation .

”

The attempt that has been made to throw doubt,Or

su spicion upon the au thenti c ity of Logan ’ s speech,which

has been admired wherever read,while it i s not credita

ble to the moti ves O f those who are the authors O f it,

must as s ignal ly fa i l of its w i cked purpose . The trea

t i es,and indeed all the negotiations with the Indians in

Vi rginia and elsewhere,at the period named , have been

pretty ful ly recorded . H ad there been any such speech

m ade as that attributed to “ Lonan,

” prior to Logan ’ s

day , it i s not l ikely we shoul d have been left to search

for it,in some Obscure book, O f s ome equally Obscure

French au thor .

Logan,l ike thou sands of h is race

,fel l a sacri fi ce to the

wh ite man ’ s fi re water Does it become tln “ white

m an”to reproach the memory , or d isparage the charac

ter of the vi ctim Of h i s own crime ?

After the peace of Chill icothe,Logan

,it i s said , sank

into a state Of deep mental d epress ion declaring that

l i fe was a burden to h im . He became in some measu re

DEATH O F LOGAN . 183

deranged ; he went to Detro it, and there yi elded to habits

of intoxi cation , and at last became a v i ctim to the same

ferocious cruelty , which had al ready made h is heart deso

late . He was murdered by a party Of wh ites whi le re

turning from Detroit to h i s own country .

O ther accounts say he was ki lled by his own nephew,

whi le in a d runken brawl .

Thatcher.

C H A P T E R X I I I .

In July , 1774 , S ir Will iam Johnson held hi s last coun

ci l with the Si x Nati ons,at Johnson ’

s Hall . He had

summoned the ch ief sachems of al l the S ix Nations to

gether with theirgdependents .

The principal Obj ect 0 1 the counci l related to the late

troubles on the Oh io . Sir Will iam ev idently foreseeing

the troubles wh ich portended,had for some time

‘

exerted

all the means in hi s power,to induce the S ix Nations to

withdraw their people from thei r settlements there,and

to bring them together,in thei r vi llages with in the boun

darics O fN ew York . A very strenuous effort was made

by the principal chi efs of the S ix Nat i ons,to accomplis h

thi s and had thei r great friend l ived,it might have been

accomplished .

“Proceedings at a Congress wi th al l the ch iefs and

warriors Of the Six Nations , at Johnson’ s Hall

,in June

and July,1774 .

PRESENT— The H on . S ir Will iam Johnson , Bar’t,S up

’

n

Guy Johnson , Esq . S i r Will iam ’ s D ep’ty , As s

’t,Dan i el

Claus,Esq. , Dep

’

ty A g’t for Canada .

O n the 19th Of June,a large party O f Onondagas &c .

arrived at Johnson ’ s Hal l and acquainted Sir Wil l iam

Johnson,that the ch i efs

,&c.

,of all the Si x Nations were

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‘1 86 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

Conaghquieson , an Oneida chi ef, Opened the meeting

with the ceremony of condolence w i th the Ind ians,on

the death of the young Ind ian prisoner,who d ied the day

before,to which the Indians returned thanks in the usual

manner . Giving six strings,and two black strouds .

Then S erihowane,a Seneca ch ief

,proceeded upon

t he business they assembled for,and addressed Si r Wi l

l iam Johnson as fol lows

BROTHER WA R R A GH I Y A GEY .— Y 0 u told us last fal l to

remember and keep up stri ctly,to the Old engagements

entered into wi th the Engl ish,whi ch was in general

,ih

tended for our interest,and welfare

,and that you was ap

prehens iv e that the s inceri ty O f the Senecas,was not as

perfect as you cou l d wish . IVe can assure you Brother,

o f the contrary on our s ide,and shal l be happy if the

Engl ish on thei r part are as s incere towards us,and we

beg you will not give ear, to every .report that i s made to

our prej udi ce .“ Brother

,to convince you that we keep fresh

'

ia our

memory the engagements entered into wi th you,we now

produce to you the cha in belt of al l iance, and fri endship ,you del ivered to us at Niagara, in 1764 , after the Senecas

had got bewildered and acted an unbecoming part to

wards you .

We can assure you Brother , ever s ince , w e have en

A deavored to our utmost to keep that chain bright, and the

path of peace unobstructed , notwithstanding which , we-have Observed w ith concern that many of our people

were sti l l suspected O finsincerity , whi ch we cannot think

w e deserved,from the Engl ish . S howed the bel t.

“ Brother,you l ikewise recommended to u s

,to col lect

. al l our straggl ing peopl e,about the Ohio aud i ts branches ,

SPEECH OF A SENECA CHIEF . 1 87

and convinced u s that it was for the good of the publ ic,

that they Shou ld be brought under our eyes to preven t

them from being led astrav by bad people . This , Brother ,we have end eavored and are sti l l endeavoring to do . B ut

h itherto , withou t success , which i s in a great measure

owing to the conduct of the Engl i sh,the neglect Of the

Provinces,and the behavior of the traders . t en you

convened us at Niagara, and after settl ing every matter

for our mutual welfare, vou told us we S hou l d enj oy a

plenti fu l trade,and menti oned to us the different marts ,

where we cou ld have our necessaries,and trade wi th the

Engl i sh,which we real ly accord ingly enj oyed

,and trade

was carri ed on for some years to our mutual sati sfaction .

B ut to our sorrow,that regulati on by some means or

other,did not continue long ; and as you informed us soon

after,the m anagement of trade was l eft to the regulation

of the respecti ve Provinces . B ut the Provinces have

done nothing,and the trade has been thrown into utter

confus ion by the traders being left to thei r own w ill and

pleasure,and pursu it of gain

,fol lowing our peopl e to

thei r hunting grounds,with goods and l iquor, where they

not on ly impose on us at pleasure,but bv the m eans of

carrying these arti cles to our s cattered peopl e,obstruct

our endeavors to'

coll ect them,whi ch we might have

eas i ly effected,i f the traders had been obl iged to bring

thei r goods to Niagara,or other markets

,as before .

“Brother, you cannot imagine the many i l l consequen

ces thi s change in the regulati on of trade,has occasi oned .

B ut we shal l sti l l persevere,and hope you will give or

ders to your res ident at fort Pi tt,to ass i st us in removing

o ur people l i ving at Conawago, and els ewhere .

“Brother , we are sorry to observ e to you that y our

1 88 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

people are as ungovernable , and rather more so than ours ;

you must remember that it w as most solemnly , and pub

l icly , settled at Fort S tanwix , in 1768 , on behalf of the

great King of England,our father

,and the Governors ,

and the Commiss ioners,of the s everal Province s , then as

sembled there that the l ine pointed out, and fixed,be

tween the whites and Indians,shou ld forever after be

l ooked upon as a barri er between us and that the white

people,were not to go beyond it.

“ It seems Brother,that your people entirely disregard

and despis e the settlement agreed upon,between thei r

superiors,and us ; for w e fi nd that they , notwithstand ing

that s ettl ement,have come up in vast numbers to the

Oh io,and gave our people to understand

.

they woul d

settle where they pleased . If thi s i s the cas e,we must

l ook upon every engagement vou made with us,as void

,

and of no effect ; but we hope it i s not so ; and that you

wil l restrain your peopl e,over whom you say you have

authority ; and make them lay as ide thei r il l d esigns,

and en croachments,as it has al ready occas ioned j ealous

ice and ill blood , and may be producti ve of infini te m is

chi ef,and trouble ; and we must beg, that i f you ins i st

upon vour people settl ing so near ours,they may be sub

j cet to some authority,that can keep them in order. We

entreat you will make known thi s our request to hi s M aj

,esty

,and the Governors of these unruly peopl e ; unti l

wh i ch time,and unti l the return of Kayaghshota, from

his embassy to the nations on the Oh io,we promise our

selves,as wel l as Ou behalf of our head women , who have

much influence with our young m en , to keep them quiet,they being much affected and exasperated at the cruel

murders,committed by these lawless people, on their

fri ends and relati ons . Gave a belt.

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190 HISTORY O F BUFFALO .

respecting the late murders,wi th the steps taken by hi s

deputy on the occas ion ; after whi ch,be en larged on the

many i rregu lari ti es committed by the Ind ians , abou t the

branches of the Oh io,and Miss i ss ippi

,and some late

murders charged against them,as the caus e of the late i ll.

behavior of Cressup and h is associates and after us ing

many arguments to convince them they shou l d exert

more authority over their al l ies,and keep them in better

order,he lastly

,gave them a parti cular account of the

difi erent schemes of the S hawnese , and thei r friends , for

s everal years past,to cast an odium on the Six N ations

,

with a vi ew that the latter m ight l ose our friendsh ip, and

then be induced to j oin in thei r evi l designs,adding that

it was now h igh time to step thes e doings , and that char

ity for thes e weak people , indu ced h im to wish , that the

S ix Nations woul d save the Eng l i sh the di sagreeable

trouble,of compell ing these troublesome people

,to alter

their behavior . He l ikewise ful ly explained to them the

consequences,shoul d the S hawnese

,&c . , continue to pros

cente thei r revenge on the provinces of Pennsy lvania and

Vi rgin ia,without waiting to obtain regular j usti ce

,when

ever they appeared to be inj ured .

“ Monday,July 11

,1774 , S i r Wi l l iam addressed the

Indians as fol lows

BROTHERS I have cons idered your speeches,and am

always glad to hear , that you preserve in remembrance ,

you r engagements , which I trust you wil l be equal ly

careful to fulfil l . Y ou now all see that through my repre

sentations, and the tenderness of the Engl i sh government,

you have the prisoner restored to you . I hope you wil l

m ake good use of this , and every other act of kindness .you recei ve

,and then you need not apprehend that you

S IR WILL IAM JOHNS ON ’S LAST S PEECH . 191

are in any wise suspected , or fear evi l reports , to whi ch I

am by no means incl ined to give ear.

“ Brothers , I am glad you have preserved the great

bel t I del i vered to you at Niagara and I hope you wil l

keep the contents of it, and al l others I have given,in re

membranes for i f you do , you cannot neglect endeavoring, to the utmost , to keep your peO ple

'

in good order ;and prevent those who l ive at a di stance

,from fol lowing

evi l counsel s,which draw reflections on your confeder

acy . Brothers,I tol d you long s ince

,the reasons Why

the affai rs regard ing trade,were l eft to the d irecti on of

the colon i es . Who,it was imagined

,would best restrain

their own peopl e and I al s o showed you,the d ifficulty

,

and time , it must take , to make regu lati ons , adapted to

the i r respecti ve ci rcumstances , and yours . I am persua

ded the colon i es have it sti l l at heart, but I cannot th ink

it any material obstructi on to the W ithdrawing your peo

pl e from about the Oh io. A nd I apprehend,it i s in your

power to redres s yoursel ves , in the parti cular you com

plain of,without giving offense . For Wherever vou fi nd

traders,obtruding themsel ves upon you , with l i quor , or

fol low ing your parti es to their hunting grounds , you m ay

eas i ly tel l them to retire to more conven i ent places "

; as

you wil l not al low them to go about in the way you m en

t ion . In which case,I have great reason to th ink

,that

such traders wil l withdraw , and give you no troubl e .“ Brothers

,I am sorry to hear of the encroachments of

some of our people, (the Engl i sh ,) of which you so Often

complained . This you m ay be assu red,i s without the

consent or knowledge, of the government and the King

w i ll take measures to prevent intrus ion . B ut,it does not

so material ly affect you , as it affects some of your south.

1 92 HISTORY OF BUFFA LO .

ern dependents ; several of whom ,have acted such a part

of late,as to encou rage some of our ignorant fronti er in

habitants,to commit i rregulari ties , of wh i ch otherwise, I

hardly th ink they would be gu iltv .

- These m en will be

sought after,and pun i shed .

“ It i s your bus iness to enqu i re into the conduct of

these your dependents , and to puni sh those , who by their

m isconduct,afford encou ragem ent to others . Y ou m ay

eas ily bel ieve,that in so extens i ve a country

,and among

such a number O f people,it is a matter of difficul ty

,to

fi nd out, and pun i sh , the authors of misch ief ; although

we have good,and suffici ent laws for that purpose .

“ B ut none of our princi pal m en are concerned in these

a cts,whilst many ch iefs of the nations to the southward

,

are the real authors of the misch iefs done by the Indians .

I wou ld therefore advis e you,to put a stop to such evi ls

in time ; and you m ay rest assured , that I wi ll lay these

matters you compla in of,before h i s maj esty

,and the gov

cruors concerned , that everything shal l be done on our

part, to restore peace , and . afford you sati sfaction , Where

you have a cla im to it. A t the same time I must greatly

approve of the steps of my deputy , on the late unfortu

n ate affa i r,as wel l as Kayaghshota , and the Delawares

I expect you wil l strengthen thei r hands on th is occas ion,

and that I Shal l soon rece ive favorable accounts from that

q uarter.“ Brothers of the Cayugas

,I have heard the complaint

you have made of the traders among you , and I apprehend

i fyou pursue the advi ce I j ust now gave to the rest ofyour

confederacy,it will have the des i red effect. However, I

' shal l will ingly do everyth ing in my power, for preventingthei r giving you any trouble and I expect you wil l be

sati sfied with my endeavors for that purpose .

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194 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

should be in h i s stead . His Maj esty ’ s answer i s not yet

arrived but there i s no doubt, that from h is esteem for

all good and fai thful Indians , of h is doing what he shoul d

think best and in the mean time,you may acquaint all

the nations , that though I feel myself at present, unequalto the load , when I reflect on the conduct and character .of the great and good m an

,who l eft us yesterday yet

as I have long l ived under h is d irecti on,and transacted

for many years h i s correspondences respecting you , I

trust the Great Spirit will give me strength,and wisdom

,

to condu ct these important matters , in some measure ,Corresponding with hi s great example . It remains foryou Brethren

,to be strong

,and steady

,in you r engage

ments,all which , I am wel l a cquainted with

,and to

S how your fri endship to the Engli sh , and your respect

and reverence for the memory of your great and good ad

v iser,by supporting me , under th is arduous undertaking ,

which i f you do v ou m ay always be assured of my sin

cere regard .

“ Send these words through the nations ; assuring them

that the fire sti l l burns , and the road i s stil l open to thi s

place ; and let it be told Kayagshota , (who w as s ent to

the Ohio,on a missi on of peace) that he m ay be strong ,

and continue hi s good endeavors,for the preservation of

peace,and the securi ty of yoursel ves and your posteri ty

,

Whose interest I shal l be ever desi rou s to promote A

bel t.

After whi ch the Indians returned thanks,promi sing to

forward the belt as directed,and to cons i der on the cer

emony of condolence to be performed after S i r IVilliam ’s

interment, request ing l ikewise , to be permitted to attend.

hi s funeral .

FUNERAL OF S IR WILLIAM JOHNS ON . 195

The corpse of Si r lVilliam Johnson was carri ed from

Johnson Hal l,to J olm stown

,and deposi ted in the family

vault,in the chu rch which he erected

,a ttended by up

wards of two thousand persons,from the neighboring

county,with the Indians

,who behaved wi th the greatest

decorum,and exh ibi ted the most l i vely marks of sorrow.

The pal l w as supported by h is excellency,the Governor

of New Jersey,the Judges of the Supreme Court OfN ew

York,and other persons of note

,who happened to be at

Jolm stown at that time and on their return from the fu

nera l to Johnson Hal l,the Ind ians acquainted Col . John

son that they would perform the ceremony of condolence

the next day .

Thursday,July i 4th

,1774 .

The ch i efs of the S ix Nati ons,assembled early in the

morn ing,to perform the ceremony of condolence for the

death of S ir Wil l iam Johnson .

PRES ENT— Guy Johnson,Esq .

,D ep

’ty . Agent

,Dan i el

Claus , Esq .

,D ep

’ty . for Canada

,James Duane

,Esq.

,G .

W . Bayard,Esq .

, S t. John D eL ancy , Esq .

,Col . Dan i el

Campbell,Mr . Jessup, Joseph Chew ,

Esq . , and John

Duncan,Esq .

Conoghqu ieson , Chief of Oneida , wi th three strings

cleared the s ight,85 0 .

Then with a doubl e belt,covered the body .

Then wi th a belt of six rows,covered the grave , and

addressed Col . Johnson , as fol lows , vi z

BROTHER z—It yields us vast pleasu re,to fi nd that the

fire,which was in danger of being enti rely extingu i shed

by the great l oss we have sustained,i s for the present

rendered bright by you . The good words wh ich you

have S poken to us yesterday,having revi ved us

,and kept ,

1 96 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

our young m en within reasonable bounds,who would

otherwi se lost thei r senses we rej oice at it,and accord

ingly with this bel t, we cause the fire to burn clear asusual at th i s place

,and at Onondaga whi ch are our

prO per fire places,and w e hO pe the great King wil l ap

prove and confirm it. A bel t of 7 rows .

B rother,wi th thi s belt

,we sweep the fire place clean .

Remove from it al l impu re and d isagreeabl e obj ects,so

that we m ay set round it, and consult together , for thepubli c good as usual . A bel t of 7 rows .

“ Brother,wi th thi s belt

,that when our ceremon i es are

performed, you wil l apply your attention to our affa irs

,

and continue to give good advi ce to the young m en, as

your father did . A bunch of strings .

Brother,we know that you mu st be loaded with gri ef

on thi s melancholy occas ion,we therefore cleanse your

body,and wash your ins ide

,wi th clear water, so that

you may once more attend to, and proceed upon business .“ Brother

,the heavy cloud wh ich hung over you and

us,has prevented us from s eeing the sun . It i s therefore

our bus iness with this string,to clear the Sky whi ch was

overcast,and we l ikewise with th is s tring

, put the sun in

its proper course , that it m ay perform the same as before,

so that you may be abl e to see what i s doing, and pur

sue the good works of peace . A belt of 6 rows .

Then added “ B rother,s ince it hath pleased the

Great Spirit to take from us our great B rother Warragh

igegy, who has l ong des i red at our request, to pu t you in

hi s place,we very much rej oi ce to fi nd you ready to take

thi s charge upon you , without which we should be in

darkness,and great confus ion . We are now once more

happy,and with thi s belt we expect you to take care of

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1 98 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

parti cularly the mu rders and robberies that your people

commit, have kindled a flame , whi ch i s y et smal l, but

unless quenched in time,wil l ov erspread the country

,so

that w e can ’t stop it we therefore hO pe for y our vigor

ous endeavors to put it ou t.

”

Then Conoghquieson stood up and w i th a large black

belt,sai d

“ BROTH ER -We now speak in the name of our w hol e

confederacy,and dependents expressing our thanks

,

that agreeable to our former request to Sir l Villiam JClin

son,we now see you taking care of our affai rs . We earn

estly expect you to take care of them as that great man

d id,who promised v ou to ns ; and we desi re , that you

wil l send these our words to the great King,who we hO pe

will regard our desire s,and approve you

,as the only

person that knows us, and our affai rs that business may

go on as formerly otherwi se in thi s alarming time of

troubl e,without your care and attenti on

,our affai rs wi l l

fal l into great confus ion,and all our good works wi l l be

destroyed . We beg therefore,that you will accept our

good w i shes,and that you will continue to take care of

the great business in which we are all concerned .

” A

black bel t of 9 rows .

A nd then added that they would reti re for the present

and wa it for Col . Johnson ’s answer

,whi ch h e tol d them

they S hou ld have in the afternoon .

P . M . Assembled as before

PRESENT. His Excel l ency,Gov . Frankl in , of New

Jersey,Capt. Chapman

,Mr . Bayard , Mr . Duane .

Col . Johnson addressed them as follows

I am extremely happy,that by you r condolence , and

our mutual performance of these ceremoni es , occas ioned

COL . JOHNS ON ’S ADDRES S . 199

by the death of your late worthy superintendent, I am

now able to l ift up my head , and proceed upon bus iness

of publ i c concern ; and am parti cularly glad that you

jo in me,so hearti ly in making up the fire

,which was

very n igh being extinguished . Be as sured that nothing

shall be wanting on my part to preserve it. Brothers,

I am very happy to fi nd that my acting for the present

in consequence of“

your former des i res,proves so agreea

ble to vou ,and you m ay be assured , that however une

qual I am,to fol low the steps of S O great and experienced

a m an,I shal l endeavor

,so l ong as I am authorized

,to

do everyth ing in my power,for the interest of the publ i c

and you r own . B ut I expect at the same time,that your

good behavior wi ll continue as an encouragement to me,

to follow hi s example .” Col . Johnson then answered

T yorhansera as fol lows

Brother, I wel l remember the wise m axirn s that gov

e rned your late worthy adviser,in the business on which

you came here last and you m ay be assu red , that I shal l ,to the utmost, str i ve to put h is last words and promises

into execution,by a faithful representation of your griev

ances,to those person s in authority

,whose duty it i s to

correct the abuses of whi ch you complain . B ut I can

not help thinking,that it i s in your power to bring your

people from among those tribes,who

,by thei r dai ly prae

ti ces,endeavor to bring a general reflection on your con

federacy,and I trust that you wil l j o in h eartily with

Kayagshota in th is good work,w hereby you wil l pay a

kind tribute to the memory of your deceased faithful

friend , and Show your influence over these your own peo

Brothers,of the S ix Nations dependent

,I have heard

2 00 HISTORY OF BUFFAL O .

your words,and kindly thank you for the regard you ex

press for me,and the desi re you S how for my conducting

your affairs . Thi s matter has al ready been lai d before

His Maj esty,who regards all faithful Ind ians

,and wil l

act therein as he sees most fi tting,with which determina

tion it i s your business to acquiesce . I shall,howeve r

,

comply with your request ; at the same time it i s my

duty to commun i cate your transacti ons to the General of

the army,who i s newly returned to thi s country

,and has

long known and regarded you and whose authority w i l l

enable me to do whatlis necessary at present, and I earn

estly desi re that you shal l act such a part as shal l entitl e

you to the attenti on of government, by that fast hol d of

the cha in,and giving all your ass istance towards restor

ing peace in the country , and security to yoursel ves,as

the only means of conv incing His Maj esty of your fi deli

ty ; and I desire that these my words , m ay go to thesetting sun .

” A belt.“ Brothers

,the purport of the intell igence that came

from the Governor of Pennsylvan ia , in regard to the

ravages committed by the S hawnees and others , in h i s

Province, are of such a nature,that I expect that you

wi l l enable me to assure h im,that you wil l immediately

dis countenance,and pu t an end to al l such cruelti es

otherwise,your reputati on as a powerful confedera cy ,

will greatly suffer in the eyes of the Engli sh , and the

resentment of that Province m ay fal l h eavy on that de

luded people, who have done so much misch ief, without

waiting for that j usti ce Whi ch government w as wil l ing to

afford to your complaints .”

Conoghquieson then rose and sai d Brother , you al l

know that Kayagshota, with three of our peopl e of the

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2 0 2 HIS TORY OF BUFFALO .

communi cate your gri evances respecting the affa i rs at the

Southward,to the Governors interested

,who wil l do their

utmost to restore order and tranqui l ity.

”

The Indians returned thanks for this Speech , and shook

hands,pu rpos ing to retu rn home the day fol low ing , and

in the afternoon the Colonel had a private interview with

S ayenquaraghta ,ifand some other principal m en to whom

he pointed out the danger to wh i ch the Oh io S enecas

would be exposed,unl ess the present disturbances were

accommodated ; and concl uded w ith advi s ing them,by

all means,to wi thd raw thei r peopl e from the rest

,who

were endeavoring to al i enate them from thei r own con

federacv .

Satu rday,Ju ly 16.

Col . Johnson gave a handsome present to the chiefs ,and to those who were instrumental in apprehending the

murderers , as wel l as to thos e who had acted a good part

on receiving the news of the late mu rders on the Oh io ,after which

,they took thei r l eave

,wi th many express ions

of sati s facti on,having first presented the chiefs , who

were‘

to go to the Southward,and explain the purport of

thei r embassy .

November,1774 .

L itera l translation of the message of the S ix Nati ons to

the S hawneese, etc

YOUNGER BR OTHERS z— IVe are come runn ing to you

from the great fire place . Take noti ce of what I have to

say , as I am the older brother. It happened that you

came lately to the middle of the counci l house to our

fire place of peace,for the S ix Nation Confederacy. Y ou

*O ld K ing, the grand father of Young King , who subsequently resided

a t Buffalo C reek .

M ESSAGE OF T H E S Ix NATIONS . 2 03

there S poke to us on a subj ect we d id not understand .

We would not give ear to,or agree to it

,as ou r fi re place

is for peace and we tel l you,we wil l only l isten to af

fai rs O f pea ce there .

Younger Brothers,we are now here

,and we tel l you

before all the Nations,who observe you ,

and see all your

bad works , we have been twi ce here to advise you to

peace ; but you have not attended,and in compliance

with our ancient customs,w e are come the thi rd time , to

tel l you, you must be at peace . This i s the thi rd time,

and the last,that you shal l hear from us , i f you do not

hearken to us . We charge you to cons ider the case of

your warriors,your women

,and your chi ldren . A nd we

des ire you sachems , to use your authority over your

people,that they m ay mind what we sav . Leave the

bu siness of war . Repent,and mind peace alone , and

then you wil l be preserved . Quarrelsome peopl e are

dangerou s ; we advise you for you r good , for we pity

you , and we know from our superintendent,that the

King is incl ined to des i re that you S hould be at peace ,and has s ent orders to Vi rgin ia to promote it. Mind

our words,th ey are strong. They are the words of the

S ix Nati ons ; who are the heads of the confederacy . A l l

the northern nations have left thei r belts in our hands ,and referred themselves to our government

,and deter

mination . They have j oined their words to us,who are

the head of the whole ; and you now see themall in us,

here present ; who are now s ent with authori ty to charge

you to foll ow our advi ce .

” A very large bel t i s then

given .

C H A P T E R X IV

The death of S ir Will iam Johnson , was a great calam

ity to the Indians . They had for nearly forty years

looked up to h im,as to a father . They had enti re confi

dence,not only in h i s wisdom

,bu t in hi s fri endship .

Hence hi s unbounded influence over them . They had

observed for years,h i s increas ing infi rm ities

,and d id not

conceal from him thei r own anxiety in regard to it and

it had been in vi ew of these often expressed fears,of h i s

sudden d issoluti on,that he had recommended the ap

pointment of his son - in - law,Col . Guy Johnson

,to be h i s

successor as general superintendent of Indian affai rs .

Col . Guy Johnson accord ingly succeeded to h i s office,

but not to h i s influence over the Indians .

Having long been deputy superintendent under h is fath

sr- in - law,hewas entirely famil iar with the du ti es of the

Office,whi ch he w as cal led to fi ll ; bu t he does not s eem

to have possessed that wisdom and dis creti on,whi ch so

eminently characterized hi s i l lustrious predecessor .The pol iti cal troubles which for some time , had agita

ted the publi c mind,among the whites

,grew more v io

l ent,and soon culminated in open rebel l ion against the

King.

There are other vers ions of the death of S ir Wi ll iam

J ohnson,d iffering somewhat in thei r detai l s , but lacking .

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2 06 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

occas ion,he al luded to the dispatches he had rece ived .

and s tated to them,that troubles were brewing between

the Americans and thei r King,advis ing them not to

abandon the cause of the latter,who had always been be

nevolen t,and kind to them . Whatever may happen ,

said the Baronet,you must not be shaken out of your

Shoes .

In the afternoon of that day he was taken with a fit

Col . Johnson his son ,was absent at the old Fort

,d istant

n ine miles an express was sent for him ,and mounting

a fleet Engli sh blood horse,he rode for the Hal l

,in al l

poss ibl e haste ; hi s horse fel l dead when with in threequarters of a mile of the house , having run upwards of

eight m i l es in fifteen minutes . The Colonel h ired the

horse Of some one standing by,and pushed forward to

the Hal l on entering the room,he found hi s father in

the arms of a faithfu l domesti c,who attended upon his

person . He S poke to his parent,but received no answer

,

and in a few minutes afterward the Baronet expired,o f

apoplexy,beyond a doubt . This w as early in the eve

n ing,whil e the Judges of the Court were at supper in the

vi llage,one mile d i stant. A young Mohawk Indian en

tered thei r apartment,and announced the event.

The h i story of the private l ife of Si r Will iam Johnson

remains somewhat in obscurity . It has been said that

hi s wife who bore the title of Lady Johnson, w as a Ger

man Emigrant,who with her family were s old for thei r

passage, (as w as cu stomary then , in al l the colon i es

, ) S he

was purchased by S i r Will iam,and became his lawful

wife,el se h i s son by her could not have inherited his

father ’ s titl e and estate,whi ch it i s admitted he d id . A f

ter the death of Lady J Molly Brant (as she

H OLL Y BRANT . 2 07.

was called ) was recei ved into h i s family, as has been al

ready stated . She seems to have borne herself wi th pro

priety , and it i s sai d w as greatly beloved and respecteddu ring the l ife of S ir Will iam ,

for her many amiable

qual iti es . She was undoubtedly a woman of superior

abil iti es,as She seems to have exerted a wide influence

parti cularly over her own peopl e,whi ch was of great ser

vi ce to S ir l ’Villiam . He must have had seven half

breed chi ldren ; three sons and four daughters , as it ap‘

pears from the publ i c records that be partiti oned the tract

of land cal led the Royal grant,” equal ly among them .

The rebel l i on which broke out in Boston , soon began

to S how i tsel f in the val l ey of the Mohawk . The cel e

brated “ Boston Port Bil l” had gone into Operati on only

a month before S i r Wi ll iam Johnson ’ s d eath very soon

after,a public meeting w as held in the Palatine Distri ct,

at which strong resolutions were passed,s econding the

propos iti on for a general Congress,for mutual con sulta

t ion in regard to the existing state of pol iti cal affai rs in

all the colon i es .

The Congress m et in September 1774 , and adopted a

declarati on of rights and agreed upon an address to the

King. The papers put forth by that assembly, were char

acterised by marked abi l ity,and had a powerful effect

upon the publ i c mind . The Provincial Assembly of

New York,w as the only l egislature in the coloni es that

withheld its approbati on from the proceed ings of the con

gress . The J'ohnsons,and thei r adherents in the val ley

of the Mohawk,were parti cularly acti ve in counteracting

the revolutionary S pi rit,whi ch began to man i fest itself.

A t thi s juncture,the influential loyal i sts of Tryon county

,

made a demonstration ag ainst the proceed ings of the con~

p

. 2 08 HI STORY OF B U FFALO .

gress of the preceding autumn . A declaration in Oppo

s iti ou to thos e proceedings , probably drawn up by the

Johnsons , received the signature of a m ajority of the

grand j urors , and a great porti on of the magistrates of

the county . This created great excitement among the

Whigs,who were in attendance at the court in Johnstown ,

and l ed to publ i c meetings , and the appointment of comm ittees

,in almost every distri ct of the county . O ne of

these meetings was interrup ted by the Johnsons,Col .

C laus,Col . John Butler

,and a large number of thei r re

tainers, armed with swords and pistols . Guy Johnson

m ounted a high stoop,and harangued the people at l ength ,

and with great vehemence at l ength,becoming so abu

s i ve that he was interrupted in hi s S peech,by a Wh ig of

the name of Sammons , who pronounced h im a l iar. John

son s ei zed Sammons by the throat, a scuffle ensued,in

which others became engaged,and clubs

,whips

,swords

,

and pistol s were used,but no one seriously hurt.

This proceed ing on the part of the Johnsons, greatly

exasperated the Whigs of Tryon county,and a meeting

was held at Cherry Val ley,and strong counter declara

t ions were passed , condemn ing the proceedings of the

l oyal i sts at Johnstown,and approving in the most une

quivocal terms , of the proceed ings of the congress .

Strong susp i cions began to be entertained that the John

sons , Butlers , (father and son,) and Col . Claus , were en

deavoring to al i enate the Indians from the colon i sts, and

prepare thei r minds in the event of Open hosti l iti es,to

take up the hatchet against them . This led to the necos

sity, on the part of the coloni sts , to use correspond ing

m easures to counteract these influences,and culti vate a

rfriendly interest among the Indians of the Six Nati ons ; ora

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2 10 HI STORY OF BUFFALO .

The Indians found out that I had received the abstracts

of sai d congress , and ins i sted upon knowing the contents .

I could not deny them ,notwi thstanding my cloth , though

in all other respects I have been extremely cautiou s not

to meddle in matters of a pol iti cal nature . I apprehend

that my interpreting the doings of the congress to a num

ber of the i r Sachems,has done more real good to the

cause of the country,or to the cause of truth and j usti ce

,

than; five hundred pounds in presents would have ef

fected.

”

Mr . Kirkland undoubtedly spoke the honest truth in

th is letter . His influence,parti cularly among the Onei

das,was great, and deservedly so .

“ H ad he (says Col

S tone, ) undertaken the task, he might, beyond al l doubt

and eas ily,have persuaded the Indians to espouse the

cause of the Colon ies . B ut he did no such th ing ; or at

least he avoided the exerti on Of h is influence any further

than to persuade them to the adopti on of a mutual course

of pol i cy. Thi s determ ination w as an act of thei r own

v ol ition,after l isten ing to the interpretati on of the pro

c eedings of the Congress .”

The following noti ce of th i s eminent m an i s from a

.n ote by the ed itor of the Col onial Documentary History .

.A Copy of h i s manuscript j ournal,of hi s first vis it to the

S enecas in 1764—5 , has been preserved , and i s depos ited

w ith the Buffal o Historica l S ociety , and exh ibits a degree

of s el f- sacrifi cing devotion to the work he had underta

cken, very rare in one s o young,and which his whole l ife

was a most striking i l lustration. This j ournal i s inter

e sting on several accounts , and serves not only to exhibit

the character of the miss ionary , but it al so exh ibits the

Indian character, and the social and pol iti cal cond ition

"of the Senecas , at the time he first vis ited them .

R EV . S AM UEL KIRKL AND . 2 11

Rev. Samuel Kirkland , a distinguished miss ionary

among the N ew York Indians,was born at Norwich

,

Connecti cut, in 1742 ; was sent to the Mohawk Indians

to learn thei r language . He entered Princeton College

in 1762 . In 1764 he returned to the Mohawk country to

teach school,and perfect h imself in that language

, and

recei ved his col legiate degree in 1765 . He was employed

among the Senecas in 1765 and 1766 . O n the 1 9th of

J une of the latter year, he w as ordained at Lebanon , as a

miss ionary to the Indians,and in July following

,took up

h i s res idence at Oneida castl e . He continued to labor

among that tribe for forty years . During the revoluti on

ary war, he was in the pay of the Un ited S tates , and in

1779, was brigade chaplain in Gen . Sul l i van ’ s campaign

aga inst the Indians of western New York . After the

peace,he remained among the Oneidas

,and in 1788 , as

s isted at the great Indian counci l for the extinction Of

thei r titl e to the Genesee country . So sens ible w as the

S tate government of the value of h i s services,that in the

year 1789, it granted him a tract O f land two miles square,“

in the present town ofKirkland,wh ither he immediately

removed . In 1792 , h e mad e a l iberal endowment of

land,for the purpose of found ing a s chool

,whi ch was

orig inal ly cal led the ‘Hamilton Oneida Academy,

’and

has s ince been incorporated under the name O f ‘Hamil

ton College .

’ After a l ife of much publ i c usefulness,he

d ie d on the 2 8th of February,1 808 . His remains w ere

carried to . the church,in Cl inton

,Onei da county

,and in

terred near h i s house . A noble man ,the fri end of h i s

race,both red and white ; a long l ine of good deeds pro

claim hi s zeal and l iberal ity,in promoting the interests

of rel igion and l earning.

”

2 12 HIS TORY OF BUFF ALO .

1764 . JOURNAL OF R EV . SA MUEL KIRKLAN D .

N ov . l 6th. Arri ved at Johnson Hal l ; kindly and pos

l itely received by S ir Wi ll iam ,who expressed hi s appro

bation of my des ign,and wished me success when I re

turned from O nohaghkwage , would have me come to‘b i s

house and make it my home,ti l l I proceeded to the

westward.

2 4th. S et out from Johnson Hal l,accompan i ed by

Joseph Wooll ey,whom I was to introduce to O nohaghk

wage,in the capacity of a s chool master

,to instruct thei r

chi ldren,and learn thei r language . The second n ight

,

lodged at Cherry Val l ey ; treated very kindly by Capt .

Wells . The next day engaged Col . Harper , who had

cons iderabl e knowledge (as I w as informed , ) of the Indi

an language , to go with m e as a pil ot and interpreter.

2 7th. Reached a smal l vi l lage a few miles on thi s s ide

O nohaghkwage , the res idence of Good Peter , (commonly

so cal led from hi s rel igi ous character were obl iged to

wa it for nearly an hour on the 'banks of the r i ver,and

late in the ev en ing,before we could make the Indians

hear and come wi th a canoe to carry us,over the r i ver .

2 8th . My arrival was welcomed by Good Peter, with

great cord ial ity,and they were glad I had brought a per

son to teach thei r ch i ldren,and learn thei r language

,ao~

qui ring the knowledge of w hi ch,would render him of

great servi ce to thei r nation,and they would adopt h im

into thei r tribe . They promi sed to take the best care of

him they could . Joseph Woolley expressed h is thanks

to them . Good Peter then made some remarks upon mv

miss i on to the Senecas . He apprehended it w as too soon ,that the i r m inds were not yet calmed after the tum ul ts

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2 14 HISTORY OF BUF FALO .

in a few days he would make the necessary preparati ons ,i f I chose it

,and would venture to set ou t in such severe

weather , with such a body Of snow upon the ground . I

returned my thanks to him,for h i s extraord inary atten

tions to me,and told h im I chose to undertake the j our

ney at all hazards,as I trusted I was in a good cause ,

and hoped I w as s incere in undertaking it. He advi sed

me at the same time , to culti vate an acqua intance wi th

these two Indians,whom he had chosen for my convoy .

I deri ved great advantage , both for my j ourn ey

and miss ion,while at Johnson Hal l

,from the description

S ir Wi ll iam gave me of thei r s ituation,thei r manner s

and customs , thei r orderly and decent behavior in thei r

publ i c counci ls , and the general character of almost every

chief m an in the Six Nati ons thei r talents,and prevai l

ing’

dispositions. He gave me a very good account of

S agwayeangwlaghton, with whom he expected I sh oul d

take U p my res idence ; al s o , the v enerable Old ch ief of

Onondaga,called by the white people Bunt

,

” in Indian

T sinryoyota , i . e . the s in ew . Si r Will iam cons i dered h im

as one of the first sachem s in the S ix Nati ons,for good

sense,human ity

,and integrity and he had a grave and

dignified appearance ; a very large and wel l built m an,

incl in ing to be very gross,and corpul ent. He was treated

with very great respect,and veneration

,by all the Five

Nati ons,a few Senecas excepted . Si r Wil l iam li kewise

tol d me that i f I was cord ial ly received by the Senecas,I

should,in a week or two, he adopted into some one O f

thei r principal famil ies,and that I must pay parti cular

attenti on to my new relations,and it would give m e the.

l iberty of applying to them for anything I wanted . Prob

ably I might receive th i s adoption into the h ead sach em ’ s .

Q

xI R xL A N D’s JOURNAL . $ 2 15

family . It i s usual ly performed with some ceremony , a

short speech made on the occas ion . He further advises

me not to ri di cu le any of the traditi ons of thei r fathers ,ti l l I w as master of thei r language , and then I might take

them up gently and on nati onal grounds .

Jan ’y 16. He call ed these two Ind ians into the sit

ting room,and del i vered to th em a speech , of cons ider

abl e length and then handed them a large belt of w am

pum,in confirmation of what he had spoken on the oc~

casion,and told them to del iver it to the Seneca ch iefs in

ful l counci l,and the purport of h is speech which they

had heard from h is own mouth . They repl ied that he

might keep hi s mind quiet, they shou l d be fa ithful to

thei r trust,and they bel i eved he never knew them other

wise,although

,there are many bad Indians in thei r na~

tion and i f any ev il should befal l thiszyoung wh ite broth

er by the way , they would share with h im ,or both fal l

by h is s id e . B ut they apprehended no danger from any

quarter . He then told them that he had made up a

smal l bundle for each of them,and wi th such arti cles Of

’

cloth ing as they would fi nd very comfortable at thi s col d

season . He al so tol d them,that I w as very anxious to

see thei r country , and l earn their language , and by and

by be able tell to them s ome good news . They must have

thei r packs ready to swing up in the morn ing.

Sir Will iam then gave me j us t a sketch of what he had

commun i cated to them,and said it was unnecessary to

give a minute deta i l . as he had some days ago given me ;

the purport of what h i s address to the Seneca ch i efs would

be,and h e was very much hurri ed in answering some

l etters of importance lately come to hand,and that he

w ould have as much bean bread and hard buiscuit, put

:2 16 HISTORY OF BUFF ALO .

up, as I though t I could carry , my convoy would not car

ry much for me , as he had l oaded them pretty wel l h im

s elf,bu t he should tel l them if any store fa i led before our

a rri val,I must share wi th them .

Jan ’

y 17 . This morn ing after breakfast,took qui te an

affec ti onate l eave of S ir Will iam ,and set out for the S en

ecas country . The snow was very deep,and dry

,sup

pos ed to be four feet. After we had passed the German

F latts , was obl iged to put on my snow shoes . I carri ed

my pack of provis ions , with a few arti cl es Of cloth ing,

and a few books,the whole not weighing more than forty

pounds . My convoy was so kind as to carry my tw o

blankets . The first n ight,we lodged in a log but on the

north s ide of the Mohawk river . The next n ight,we en

c amped in the woods,about twenty miles from Oneida .

M y convoy unslung thei r packs , and were very acti ve in

m aking the necessary preparations for a comfortable

n ight ’ s repose . O ne of them went with hi s . l ittl e axe to

cutting wood for a fire,the other shoveling away the

snow,and then gath ering an armful of boughs Of hem

lock for my bed . I was forbi d to do anything but set on

a l og that was near by , and rest myself. He went now

to the ass i stance of h i s comrade in packing wood ; after

the fire was kindled , he ran and brought another armfull

o f hemlock boughs .

By half an hour after sunset,we had a fi ne fi re

,which

'

s oon dried and warmed the hemlock boughs , thei r aro

mati c flavor seemed to perfume the air,and made it ex

ceedingly agreeable,and pleasant. The one who went

to cut fi re wood and back (it) to the but, came in the last

time all O f a dripping sweat. By th is time,we were wel l

pleased to rel ish a good supper. After they had rested

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2 18 HISTORY OF BUFFAL O .

year,and then vi s it the Senecas . I thanked them

,but

'

told them that I could not rel inquish my des ign, til l prov

i dence stopped up my path , or hedged up my way . We

proceeded on our j ourney next morn ing,and it to ok us

two days pretty dil igent and smart travel ing on snow

shoes,to reach Onondaga

,some t ime in the evening .

S everal of thei r sachems were convened at the great coun

ci l house,whi ch was nearly eighty feet long

,and con

tained four fires . They proposed my going to rest,as I

appeared to them to be much fatigued,and Observed to

me,that it was not thei r custom to recei ve a message of

peace in the darkness Of the n ight,but in the light of day .

T o-morrow morn ing (sai d they ,) we wil l assemble , and

hear what you have to say . I acknowledged I was pretty

much fatigued with the last two days march,my ankles

were swelled,not being mu ch accustomed to travel on

snow shoes . My convoy were very kind to help me

along , by going before , and making a track for me . Thi s

was O f cons iderab l e rel i ef to me but i f I made a misstep

or blundered over a log and fell , three or four rods in therear

,they would look back and stop ti l l I cam e up . I

commonly kept with in two yards of the hindmost . I

presently observed that the second,took the place of the

first,every three or four miles . I offered to take my tu rn .

N O,no,

” sai d they,

“ we are to make a path for you ,and not you to make a path for us . S ir Will iam Johnson

would be very angry if h e knew we let you do so .

”

The next m orn ing about ten O ’cl ock,they assembled in

crowds at th i s great counci l house,the mans ion of their

chief sachem . When they were all seated , and thei r pipes

l ighted,the chi ef sachem made declaration

,wi th an aud i

bl e voi ce , that they were ready to hear whatever m essage

xI R xL A ND’

s JOURNAL . 2 19

I had to del iver. Si r W i l l iam had di rected the one who

had charge of the belt,to commun i cate h i s speech

,or

message,to the Senecas , at Onondaga , as they were the

central counci l fire , of al l the S ix Nati ons,and it w as a

pie ce of respect, they claimed as due to them ,from time

immemorial . With th is h e introduced the subj ect of his

message . O ne of my convoy arose,taking the belt of

wampum in h i s left hand,that h is right hand migh t be

at l iberty for action,when necessary to give emphas i s .

He del ivered the purport of Si r Will iam ’s speech,wi th a

good grace,and by additions

,and explanations

,S poke

nearly three quarters of an hour . A t the end of every

sentence,they express thei r assent

,i f pleas ing to th em

,

by crying out one after another,or twenty

,al l at once

,

at-hoetogus-ke

, (nat-hootogus- keh

, ) i . e .

,it i s so

,very true .

When my convoy had fin i shed his address,the venerabl e

old ch ief repl i ed,and S poke l ike a D emonsthenes

,for

more than hal f an hour. B ut I lost al l the good of it, for

want of an interpreter . I found one who unders tood the

Onondaga language pretty well,but S poke Engli sh very

poorly . So soon as the S peech making w as over , th is

venerable old chi ef rose and w as coming towards me . I

instantly rose and m et h im hal f way . He took me bythe hand

,and embraced me

,kiss ed one cheek, and then

the other. I supposed I must return the compl iment ; I

accord ingly kiss ed h is red cheeks , not d isgusted at al l

with the remains of the pa int,and grease

,with wh i ch

they had lately been besmeared . He gave me manv

bless ings,whil e he hel d me by the hand . Then came

one after another,to Shake hands with me

,perhaps nearly

one hundred . The board of sachems al l gave me their

benedi cti on,in different ways ; or the m odes of express

"

2 2 0 HIS TORY OF BUFFALO .

ion vari ed,by almost every one. The young men sai d

l ittle,only gave me th ei r hands ; some of the chiefs con

gratulated me als o .

After the counci l had broke up,I found I could get a

great deal more out of h im who spoke poor Engl i sh, in

the w av of famil iar conversation . He tri ed to gi ve me

some account of the old ch ief ’ s reply,to the Seneca who

produ ced the belt of wampum from S ir Wil l iam,but it

was del ivered in such high language,he could not h im

self understand it all . He thought it w as the most ex

traordinary speech he ever heard .

In the afternoon we took leave,and proceeded on our

j ourney encamped about eight miles beyond the town .

We rose early and took some refreshment, (but it w as not

equal to our supper the first n ight we encamped in the

woods, ) and the next n ight we encamped near the outlet

O f the Nascon lake,a very severe days ’ march .

We then went on as we could hol d it,my fellow travel

ers or convoy,were very kind and attentive to me

,and

woul d have m e walk fast or S low , and ri se'

early,and en

ncamp early , j ust as I pleased . The next n ight after we

had encamped,and I had pulled O ff my Indian l eggins

,

or stockings,one of them Observed that my ankles were

very much swel led . He sai d I must go with h im to a

small run of water,j ust at hand

,and he would bathe and

rub them , and if they were not better by the next n ight,

he S hould scarify them . This,sai d he

,i s our Indian prac

t i ce,and it always gives rel i ef. The n ext day we rose

early,to ok some refreshment

,and proceeded on our j our

ney . I found my ankles much more l imber and pl iable,

than they were yesterday,whi ch I th ink I must as cribe

.to the bath ing.

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2 2 2 HIS TORY OF BUFFALO .

agara,who had a tolerable understanding of their lan

guage,especial ly for common conversati on . He spoke

Engl ish intell igibly,though very incorrectly. Sir Will iam

Johnson ’ s address to them was del ivered . It was received

wi th great applause,except by a smal l minority

,whom

I Observed were s i l ent on the occas ion,and I d i d not

quite l ike their appearance . The h ead sachem ,Sakay

engwalaghton , (ol d king,) made a very handsome, and

animated reply. Thanked S ir Will iam for his introducing th is young white brother ; thanked the min i ster from

T eyorhens, that i s , from the east,for sending thi s young

brother to teach them good things , and thanked me , that‘I had so much l ove for Indians

,as to undertake th is long

j ourney,and at such a season of the year

,with an unu

sual d epth of snow on the ground . He saluted my con

voy , and thanked them for thei r care of me , through thel ong and ted ious j ourney then handed the belt O f wam

pum to the sachem who sat next to h im,and it passed

round the whole circle ; some would strike it up and

down with the hand , and perhaps make some remarks ;o thers would look upon it

,apparently with the intenseness

of thought,and not open thei r l ips

,and then pass it to

the next. This ceremony took up more than twenty

minutes by my watch,as I was determined to noti ce al l

thei r movements on the occas ion . I was invited to con

tinne with the head sachem ,unti l s ome more conven i ent

place could be provided for me . In the cours e of a week,whi le thi s Dutchman tarri ed with me , I had frequent O p

portunities of convers ing with them ,though by a poor

interpreter,and they were continual ly v i s iting me, and

s ome O f them woul d ask me who put it into my mind ,and influenced me to l eave my father

’ s house , and my

xIR xL A Nn’S JOURNAL . 2 2 3

c ountry , to come so m any hundred miles,to see Ind ians

,

and l i ve among them . I answered them in general,I

bel i eve to thei r sati sfaction.

The beginn ing of the second week,after my arrival

,

the head S achem convened a number of the ch iefs , and

requested me to walk into the counci l house,and I soon

Observed that most of h is family were present,and were

s itting by themsel ves . In a sh ort time one of thei r ch iefs,

who was a good speaker, cal l ed for thei r attention . He

had a few words to say to them .

BROTHERS —Open your ears,and your eyes , you see

here our white brother,who has come from a great d i s

tance,and (i s ) recommended to us by our great chief, S i r

Wi ll iam Johnson,who has enj oined it upon us

,to be

kind to him,and make him comfortable

,and protect him

to the utmost Of our power . He comes to do us good .

“ Brothers -Thi s young brother of ours has l eft h is

father ’ s house,h is mother, and all h i s relati ons we must

now provide for h im a home . I am appointed to make

th i s declarati on to you , that our head Sachem adopts him

into h is family. He will be a father to him and h is wife,

a mother,and h is sons and daughter

,h is brothers and

s i sters,and conduct towards him agreeabl e to that rela

tion .

”

I then rose and took the head Sachem by the hand

and thanked him,and sa i d

,I wished the Great Spi rit

would make me a blessing to his family . I then shook

hands with his wife and ch i ldren,and with the whole

who were convened on the occas ion,both ch iefs and head

warriors,and some of the head women were present. A

Smile Of cheerfulness sat on every countenance,and I

.could not refrain from dropping a tear of j oy and grati

2 2 4 HIS TORY OF BUFFALO .

tude,for the kind prov idence

,which had protected m e

through my long j ourney ; brought me to the place of

my desi re,and given me so kind a recepti on

,among

these poor savage Indians . After some days,my newly

adopted father, S akayenqwalaghton , took me to a smal l

council,cons isting O f his ch ief men (and) a few warriors .

They informed me that S i r Will iam Johnson had given

them a stri ct charge to treat me kindly,and to prov ide

the best hous e in the vi llage for my stated res idence,and

make me comfortable as they poss ibly could,in thei r

present ci rcumstances . We have concluded (sa i d they ,)that neither the counci l h ouse , nor your father ’ s house

,

would be agreeable,as they are continual ly exposed to

company . Here is a smal l house , j ust at hand in ful l

vi ew of both the former,occupi ed by a smal l fami ly

,the

man wi th h i s wife,with a n i ece of thei rs

,and the m an i s

one of the best in all the town . He is what we cal l a

good man,a sober

,and temperate m an

,and honest ; h e

tel ls no l ies ; he i s l ikewise very industrious , always at

work,doing something

,and a m an of few words . We

have agreed with h im to take you into h i s house . T O

morrow you wil l move,and change your present unset.

tled cond iti on,for a stated res idence

,and (one) mu ch

more conveni ent.

I thanked them hearti l y,and most s incerely ; and I

endeavored to tel l them , in my broken style , that I

always had hoped in God, the Great Spiri t, that he would

protect and preserve me , and i f I might do any good to

the poor Senecas , he would give me a kind recepti on

among them ,and give them a d ispos iti on to hear God ’ s

Word,from the Holy Book

,so soon as I m ight acqu i re a

knowledge of thei r language . That th ei r kind treatment

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2 2 6 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

expected death of the m an wi th whom I had so lately

come to res ide , for my comfort, and usefulness . Thy

ways are a mighty deep " Thy j udgments past finding

out, I cannot fathom them . B ut I know thou art holy,

and wise . Oh my God,dost thou not approve of my

mission . Hast thou not prospered,and comforted me

through al l my journey to the place of my des ire ? and

can it be that thou hast brought me here to S lay me by

the hands of savages . That my l ife must atone,in thei r

view,for the l i fe of th i s man

,who hath di ed so suddenly ,

and mysteriously . Oh my God,it cannot be ; thou art

holy,and th ine infini te wisdom ,

knoweth not to err. Oh

most merciful and graci ou s God , give me a heart to sub

m it to thy decrees , to adore thy providence , and forever

prai s e thee for redeeming love . Oh most gracious God

comfort and support th i s afli icted family . How long I

prayed , I could not tel l . I several times thought the

s obbing and crying ceased,whil e I spoke with an aud i

ble voi ce . What ardent des i re I had Of understanding

thei r language , or having a good interpreter, on th i s truly

affli cting and m elanchol ly occas ion .

In the morn ing my father came in , and addressed thebereaved widow . Then turned to me and said

,it was a

dark morn ing ; wished me to compose my mind , and

posses s mysel f in peace , and it m ay be we shal l see goodby and by . Y ou must know ,

my son,as you understand

the word of God , that God in very deed , must do as He

pleases . I told h im that s ince the morning,God had

given me great composure of mind,and I could rej oi ce in

God,and I mysel f, as wel l as others , were in h i s hands ,

and that He would do what was right.

When the Indians came in to lay ou t the body , I

KI RKLAND ’S JOURNAL .

thought it proper for me to withdraw,and vi s it my fa

ther,the head sachem

,and try to have a l ittle conversa—

e

tion wi th h im . I was presently gi ven to understand thatrunners w ere d ispatched to announce the sorrowful tidings to s i x or seven v il lages

,and that the funeral would

not be attended ti l l the c lan , or tribe , , of the deceased ,should have noti ce

,and give thei r attendance ; perhaps

they would generally be here by to -morrow noon,and

some at a greater d istance , by next day morn ing . I

cal led in at the affl i cted hous e , s ever-

algtimes during theday , but d id not tarry long the house was full of mourners . I took a l ook at the corpse

,whenever I went in ; I

percei ved that, attracted thei r attenti on , and they seemed

pleased with it ; and I bel i eve they cons i dered me a

hearty mourner . I tri ed to get in the woods pri vately ,for a l ittl e reti rement, bu t soon rel inqui shed my purpose

from the depth of the snow ,and the Ind ians were contin

ually travel ing backward s and forwards in the beaten

paths .

The next day by noon , there was a cons i derable collee

t ion of the friends of the deceased,and they began to

couns el . I soon found by prudent inquiry , that the ci r

cumstances of thi s man’ s death

,had gi ven a general

a larm ; and that there was a partv rather unfri endly tome

,who intended to charge it upon me . I went into the

counci l house,and sat down at one end for some time

,

but the countenances of many of them ,were very forbid

d ing. I soon determined that was no place for me . My

adopted father came out before n igh t, and observed to me

that it was good that I went into the counci l h ouse, and

it was good that I d id not stay l ong before I came out.

He aga in w i shed me to possess my mind in peace , that

2 2 8 HISTORY OF BUF FALO .

he should not quit the counci l house , ti l l al l was settled ,and done well . He smiled , and appeared cheerful

,or at

least tried to, bu t I plainly saw he had a weight upon hi s

m ind . The next day by noon,the counci l house w as

crowded,though nearly e ighty feet long . I once peeped

in,to take a vi ew O f them ,

about sun an hou r h igh ; the

corpse was interred . Perhaps a hundred and fifty women

and gi rl s attended ; no mal e , bes ides myself, except the

grave digger,accompani ed the corpse to the grave . I

saw the corpse j ust before the l i d was fastened,or even

pu t on . H e was neatly dressed with a clean wh ite S h irt,

black S hroud blanket,s carl et leggins

,a pai r of new m oc

casins,and curi ously painted ; hi s p ipe , tomah awk , to

bacco pouch,

fl int steel,and punk

,were put into the

coflin,and placed on both S ides of hi s h ead . I was care

ful at the time to make no remarks,nor ask any ques

ti ons .

When they left the house,and w ere carrying the corpse

to the grave,they sung the most mournfu l d itty I ever

heard a smal l number Of them seemed to keep the time

and ri se and fal l pretty much together others fol low ed,

and some s creamed and yelled l ike dogs . Such a s cene

I never beheld before. It produced a vari ety of feel ings

in my breast ; final ly,a feel ing of tender pi ty and com

pass i on toward them prevai led,cons i dering thei r ignor

ance,and superstiti on . I w as ad vi sed to sl eep thi s even

ing at the house of my elder brother . They accord ingly

brought over my bedding and a knapsack,con ta in ing my

books and clothes . Thi s brother,cal led T ekanadie

,l i ved

in an O ld block house,bu ilt by the directi on of S ir Wil

l iam Johnson,in the year 1754—5

,wi th a view to prevent

the French influence among them . H e intended to have

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2 30 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

brother,very pleasantly

,and wi th apparent affection

,

proposed we should take our guns,and go out a mile or

two into the woods and ki l l partridges or squi rrel s . I

readi ly compl ied . We traveled first one w ay , and then

another,a kind of circuitous route ; a l i ttl e before sun

s etting,we came to a commodious sugar but. Here he

proposed kindl ing a fire,and resting ourselves . I S hould

suppos e thi s cabin,or but

,mig ht be about two miles

northwest of the vi llage . After we had sit down to rest,and lit our pipes

,my younger brother tell s me , that h i s

father sa id,it would be good for me to sleep in the woods

th i s n ight,as they expected rum would soon be brought

into town, and some might drink too much ,

’

and then be

looking after m e . I thanked him for the good wil l he

had expressed for me,and that I thought the great S pirit

had pu t it into hi s heart to be kind to me . He repl ied ,Kangoendou , i . e .

,it may be taken for granted . About

ten O ’clock in the evening,my sister came to our lonely

cabin,accompan i ed by her l ittl e nephew , a l ittle lad, and

brought with her my blankets , tucked into a large basket,S O as not to be d i scovered a kettle of corn soup , a l ittle

salt in a bark . I made as good a supper as exi sting cir

cumstances woul d admit. My sister would try to encour

age me , and tel l me not to be afra id , my father was con

stantly in the counci l h ouse , and they would take care of

me . After supper,I proposed S inging a psalm , or words

out of the Holy Book,i f they had no Obj ection . Oh no

,

sai d they, we heard you S ing a great many times,and

love to hear it,we only wis h you would not s ing so loud ,

as to make a great noi se,we dont want any one should

know where we are to night. I sang wi th a soft voi ce,

perhaps ten or a dozen hymns and psalms,having no

KIRKLAND ’ S JOURNAL . 31

incl ination to sleep . My sister and the boy left us abou t

day l ight in the morn ing.

“it Spent the day in our

cabin,excep t walking once

,about an hour

,with my

younger brother,to shoot a squi rrel or two. In the dusk

of the evening,my elder s i ster came again

,wi th a kettle

of soup ; told me her heart began to be glad . She be

l ieved the counci l would break up, and be di spersed by

to-morrow morning,or before noon ; said she heard it

went hard in the council . They S poke strong words .

They had examined the widow of her late deceased hus

band ; She S poke wel l of me,sai d I never d id anyth ing

bad while I l ived there, but was cheerful , and agreeabl e

and (my) h er husband began to love h im much ; again

(was) asked i f I never came to hi s bed -

S id e , and whispered

in h is ear,or puffed in hi s face . N O

,never

,he always

sat,or lay down on hi s own bed

,and in the e vening after

we were in bed,I could see him get down on h i s knees

,

and talk with a low voice I suppose he was praying to

the Great Spi ri t. They inquired for my knapsack,

pec ting to fi nd some magic powder . I suspect that they

robbed me of some of my papers at that time .

The n ext day about noon,returned to the town , and I

took up my l odgings with my elder brother,in the O l d

block house . The whole family showed marks of j oy

upon my peaceable retu rn,and a number of my friends

came in to se e me before n ight,and tol d me “

all i s now

only peace .” The remain ing part of th i s week noth ingm a

terial took place . I was pretty dil igent in my endeavors to

learn their language , and cord ial ly receivedm v friendly vi sitors others kept themsel ves at a distance . When it was

not very cold , I would reti re into the upper loft, and S pend

my time in writing. I d i d not yet begin to v i s it much,

2 32 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

nei ther dare to make many inquiries of my father, or el

dcr brother, or urge them to d ivulge what took place in

the late counci ls . I though t it best some of the rest

S hou ld be the first movers . I endeavored to appear be

fore them wi th a degree of cheerfulness , yet sedate . F or

a number of days,I felt a sol i c itude

,and almost an un

conquerabl e d esi re to fi nd out what passed in their sever

al days ’ consul ting . I suspected they had enj oined se

cresy , lest I might make such commun i cations to Sir Wil

l iam,as to produce a remonstrance or reprimand .

My father told me one day , that some of the Indians

were afra id O f w ri ting,or l etters , which woul d speak for

a great many years afterwards . It would therefore be

good for me,whenever I wrote to S ir Will iam

,or to the

min i sters,T egorkunskie , toward s the ri s ing of the sun

,

to cal l several of thei r ch iefs together, and interpret thei r

contents (l etters , ) to them . It would pl ease them very

much,and make thei r hearts glad . I repl ied that I

should fol low h is advi ce very cheerfully,and with great

punctual ity . He again observed that I might write a

great book,i f I pleased

,in l earn ing thei r language

,be

cause I frequently read them some parts Of it over,for

their correcti on,and that they were sometimes so d ivert

ed to hear me give the true Indian pronunciation to some

words in thei r language , wh ich were diflicult for a white

m an to pronounce,that they could not help expressing

t hei r admirati on with a hearty laugh , and some O f them

would say , that our white Engl ish broth er wou ld become

a true Indian, in the course of a year or two.

We now l i ved in great harmony,fri endsh ip, and socia

b ility . I suppressed my sol i citud e of prying into thei r

s ecret councils . I thought i f I pressed on inqu i ring be

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2 34 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

few days to rest himsel f. I may have mentioned thi s

man before. He was in years past employed as a black

smith for the Indians in thi s principal town of the Sene

cas, "cal led Kanadasigea , and sometimes traded among

them . He understands thei r language pretty well,for

common conversation,but .can but poorly comprehend a

publi c speech,del i vered in an oratori cal style

,and dress .

Being of Dutch extraction,he speaks rather broken and

incorrect Engl ish,and in general

,a bad pronunciati on of

the Seneca. B ut being a humane,peaceable

,and honest

m an,I fi nd the Indians set a great d ea l by h im . I shal l

endeavor to detain h im when h e arrives,as l ong as will

be cons i stent with h is bus iness , and we fi nd anyth ing for

h im to eat.

March 2 0th. I th i s day recei ved a l etter from Si rW il

l iam,which I wi l l here trans cribe .

JOHNS ON HALL , March 3d,1765 .

S IR : I received yours,wrote on the way going up .

I hO pe gthis will fi nd you safe arri ved at the Senecas,

where I shal l be glad to hear you meet with a kind re

ception , and everyth ing agreeable to you . The enclosed

came here under cover to me,w ith another for Wool ley

,

which I send to h im . Peter,O f O ghquage, and wife , are

gone to Mr Whelocks,about ten days ago ,

’ by whom I

wrote .

it The Delaware deputi es from C h igo

are here,thes e eight days past

,waiting for Squash Cutte r

and Long Coat,without whom and al l the prisoners in

your parts,I wi l l not treat with them

,though they seem

very wel l incl ined . When you have a good opportun itywrite me— byWemp wi ll be a good Opportunity . I wish».

you hearti ly well , and am

Your Humble Servan t,

M R . K IRKLAND . WILLIAM JOHNSON .

”

KIRKLAN D ’S JOURNAL . 2 35

This letter I interpreted to the ch iefs , for wh ich they

appeared much pleased,and to be very thankful . Th e

Squash Cutter menti oned in the foregoing letter, i s a no

ted head warrior O f the Delaware nation . He has done

a deal of misch ief in the back parts of New Jersey and

the Susquehanna s calped many,and taken many pri s

oners . He had common ly no more than twenty or thi rty

men under hi s command,including h is petty Oflicers

His exploits depend much upon stratagem,and surpris e .

He was acknowledged by the Indians to be bold , and en

terprising , bu t very cruel . He was about s i x feet two“

inches h igh,lean and raw - boned

,but al l nerve

,and a

most piercing eye,rather of a serpentine cast. He has

been harbored here in th i s town for some months , being

afrai d to return to his nation,l est some of th eir ch i efs

who are great fri ends to the whi te people , S hould seize

him , and carry him a pri soner to Si r Will iam ; upon my

first acquaintance with him,he appeared to be j ealous of

me after some time he became quite familiar,and w as

very fond of convers ing with me . He w as very sens ibl e,and would speak broken Engl ish pretty well

,and under

stood the Seneca.

There are no wh ite prisoners in th i s v i llage , but there

are two chi ldren twins in a vi llage about s even miles

south of this,on the west s ide of S eneca lake , cal l ed Gagh

conghwa i . e .

,in Engli sh

,the l imb has fal len . O ne of

these ch i ldren I went to see a few days S ince , but the l it

tle girl perhaps S ix or s even years old,w ould nei ther

come to me,nor speak to me

,but clung fast around the

neck of her adopted grandmother . She had been l ost in

the woods fourteen days,strayed from a hunting cabin

,

but found her way back to it, after some days , and there

2 36 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

found some deers l egs which had been flung out ; the

gnawing and sucking of these, with white oak acorns andwinter greens

,kept her al ive til l found

,by whi ch time

she was nearly exhausted . There were perhaps eight or

ten prisoners at Genesee and its vi cin ity .

Apri l 2 d. I am frequently vi s ited by several Of their

young m en who I am tol d by my elder brother are some

Of the best characters in the town . They are disposed to

be very sociable , and appear to be fri endly . Thi s I can

not but cons ider as a favorable circumstance,and enables

me to make greater progress in learning thei r language,

and I request them whenever they hear me give a bad

pronunciati on to any word to correct me , and to repeat

the correction or amendment ti ll I give the true Indian

pronunciati on . When I have been“

alone,or walked

with but one of them at a time,he would d isclose some

of the secret counci l,and parti cularly of Capt. O nongwa

dekha and some Of h is violent speeches,and would al

ways enj oin secrecy,and not d ivulge a word to any ofthe

sachems . I begin to th ink I have d iscovered all the prin

cipal transactions of thi s two or three days counsel ing

upon the death of my Indian landlord and its attending

circumstances .

Apri l 4th . Mr. Wemp returns from N iagara, made

very welcome,parti cularly by my family and many oth

ers. I expressed my earnest desire,and hoped that he

would tarry a week,or at l east s everal days with us

,to

rest h imself properly . H ad but l ittl e conversati on with

h im th i s even ing,and that principal ly upon common af

fa i rs , and the di stres sed s i tuati on of the town,from the

great s carcity of corn . I al so cons idered that it would beexpected by the chi efs to have the first talk wi th h im ,

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- 2 38 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

it would be enj oined on h im ,to dis close nothing to S ir

Wil l iam,only i f he asked

,to tel l h im al l was peace now .

Mr . Wemp repl i ed that h e would attempt it, and did not.

d oubt but he could bring it about either with my father

or b rother~in - law T ekanade,and was will ing to set up al l

n ight for that purpose . I humbly observed that itmight

frustrate my O bj ect and disappoint my expectations of auv

aid from Mr. I 'Vemp to be too frequently wi th h im , and

express a greater attachment to h im,and fondness for

h is company,than I man ifested to the good Indians , and

most Of thei r chi efs,who had been friendly to me from

my first arrival . I suggested the i dea to Mr.Wemp he

r epl ied it w as the very th ing he had thought of,and said

then when we meet together in the day- time

,let it on ly

be,how do you do , and how do you do, and so pass by .

In the mean t ime,I improved a l ei sure hour or two

when I could be reti red,for writing and makingminutes .

I wrote to S ir Wil liam,informing him of the extreme

s carcity of bread , corn and very l ittl e hunting at th is sea

s on,and that I d id not th ink I could subs ist through the

ensuing summer,unless I coul d procure provi s ions and

s ome more certain and s ubstantial food than can be oh

tained among the Ind ians . I had sold a shi rt for fourl oaves or Indian cakes baked in the ashes at

g

fi rst S ight

I thought I could devour them al l at one meal , but

I immediatelv con cluded on the s core of prudence,to

be sparing,and to save some of them against a greater

t ime of need . I have eaten but O ne,and my stomach

was so d ebi l i tated , it recoi led and emitted the greatest

part of it. I kept some part of the remain ing three unti l

they began to m ould,and gave them to the ch ildren who

“devoured them instantly .

KIRKLAND ’S JOURNAL . 2 39

I had it in contemplati on to go down the latter part of

th i s month, or the beginn ing of next. I supposed by thi s

time Col . Butler might have orders from Mr. Wheelock ,to furn i sh me with such arti cles as I stood in absolute

need of.

Apri l 7th, 1765 . Mr . Wemp tol d me he had an O ppor

tunity of a l ong conversati on with my father and brother

in - law,separately

,upon the subj ect I had so earnestly

requested h i s aid for investigati on . We then lai d a plan

for being together part O f the day and even ing ensuing .

Apri l 8th. Mr. Wemp has given me a long narrationOf the transacti ons in the afore mentioned counci l— some

times connected and sometimes detached sentences , with

curi ous anecdotes,and added that my fath er bore down

everyth ing in hi s last S peech . He S poke but l ittl e for the

first and second days,except hi s introductory address

,at

the Opening of the council .

The whole of thi s m anus cript i s interesting,but as it i s

not stri ctly connected wi th the obj ect of our h istory, must

be omitted .

C H A P T E R X V

Several counci ls were held with the Six Nati ons duringthe year 1775 , both by Col . Johnson in behal f of the

Engl ish,and the Commiss ioners of Indian affa i rs ap

pointed by the Colon i es . Both parti es seemed des iro us

on ly to secure the neutral ity of the Si x Nations,and at

the same t ime,to conci l iate thei r fri endsh ip .

A t a counci l h eld in Albany by the Colonial Commis

s i oners,with thc S ix Nations

,in August

,1775

,one ofthe

Oneida ch i efs spoke thus Of Mr . Kirkland , thei r Mis si on

Our fath er,the min i ster , who stands here , w e love

we love h im exceedingly. Perhaps in a l ittle t ime,he

m ay be wrested from us, carri ed O ff l ike a pri sone r . Our

hearts tremble for him . We tremble greatly . He has

been threatened,and should he be taken , it might over

throw the whole Five Nati ons .

Our brothers,the white people , would perhap s say

that the Oneida Nati on had given up thei r min i ster and

that the S i x Nati ons d i d not regard thei r miss i ona r i es .

B ut truly,we regard our father the min i ster and mi ss i on

ari es . Therefore,we propose for your cons i derati on

whether it be not w i s e,that the miss ionari es reti r e for a

l ittl e wh ile,parti cularly our father

,the mini ster, Mr .

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2 42 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

the Mohawks,and w as sent there by the king. He d oes

not meddl e in c ivi l affa i rs,bu t ins tructs them in the w ay

to heaven . IIe absol utely re fuses to attend to any pol i ti cal

m atters,and says

,they do not bel ong to h im . They beg ,

that he m ay con tinue in peace among them . The M 0

hawks a rc frequen tly ala rmed w i th reports , that the i r“

m ini ste r is to be torn aw ay from them . It woul d occa

s i on grea t d i sturbance,w ere he to be taken aw ay . The

king sent him to them,and th ey W o ul d l ook upon it as

taking away one of thei r own bodv therefo re , they

aga in request that h e m ay continu e to l i ve in peace

among them .

C o l . Guy Johnson had alreadv removed w i th a consid

crabl e body of h i s retain ers,and som e Ind ians , u p the

v al lcv of the Mohawk,to Fort S tanw i x ; w here it w as

rumored,he w as col lecting a force of l oyal i s ts and Ind i

ans,to make a des cent upon the col on is ts in the Pala tine

d i stri ct. B u t the a cti v e m easures o f the co l on ists soon

conv inced Col . Johnson,that he and his a rmed re tinu e

would not be permi tted to remain at Fo rt S tanwix ; he

therefo re pushed further interi or,and made a stand in :

the S enecas ’ country ; but s ti l l apprehe nd ing pursu i t, hem ov ed to Ontari o , bu t bei ng unabl e to pro cu re con v ey

ance across the lake . fo r al l the Ind ians , h e arri v ed w i th

h i s rangers and a few Ind ians . a t M on treal . on the 17th

dav o f S ep tembe r,1775 , w here he ho ld ano the r counc i l

w i th the Ind ians,a t w h i ch he sa id , the v numbe red " 1 700"

or upwa rds .”

In his repo rt, to the Ea rl o f Dartm o u th,dated M om

trea l , Oc tobe r 1 2 , 1775 , C o l . J o l insm i ass igns,as the rea

son o f h i s fl igh t from the v al lc v o f the IsI o haw k that

al l necessari es fo r the Ind ian s,w e re s to pped bv O rd Ir o f

COL . GUY JOHNS ON’

S REPO RT . 12 43

the commi ttee ; and m ysel f,threa tened . w i th an a ttack

from a cons ide rabl e armed force,

“and i n timates

,tha t he

had se cre t orders from G en . Gage,ins truc ting him to

that effe c t.

“ Ex tracts from the re cords of Ind ian transac ti ons , u n

der the superintendanc v O f Col . G uy John son ,du ring the

year

Col . Johnson having ea rly perce i ved tha t the d iffer

ent col o ni es were abo ut to fol l ow the exampl e of Massa~

chusetts B ay , and finding that the va ri ous measu re s

taken by N ew England miss ionari es , and o thers , to a l ien

ate the affections of the Ind ians,and spi ri t them up to

bad pu rposes ; be communi cated the same to Lord

Dartmou th,in Ma rch . and soon afte r sen t messengers to

cal l the S ix Na ti ons to a general con g ress . The 14th of

M ay h e rece i v ed by express , an accmm t that a party of

N ew Englanders were on the i r w ay to make him pri s

oner ; on whi ch h e fortified h i s h ouse , and kept a la rgeguard a t cons iderabl e expense . A few days after

,h e

found that h is express to the Ind ians had been s topped ,and the p urport of h i s m essages al tered ; and tha t the

prov is ions, & c .

,that his agent had provid ed a t N ew

York,had been s topped

,togethe r wi th the am niunition and

goods,he w a s provi d ing for the intended ecmg ress . Find

ing this (to be the cas e .) and that h i s com nm n ication wi th

the Ind ians wou l d be to tal l y obs tructed , he I‘

U S U l ved to

proceed to the w es twa rd, (w i th s uch presents , &c .

. as he

then had, ) and meet them in thei r ow n cou ntry

,w h il e it

rema ined practi cable ; and d u ring h i s p reparation fo r

th i s,he sec re tly rece i ved a d ispatch from Ge n . Gage,

con ta in ing ins tructions . He then ,wi th such o f the M O

h awks as were a t home,and a bodv Of a rmed w h ite m en,

2 44 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

m aking toge ther about 2 50,marched to the upper settle

m en ts , unde r every ci rcums tance of diflicul ty , and l eav

ing a l l h i s p roperty a t the d i screti on of the misguided

populace . From thence h e proceded to Fort S tanwix,

w here he m et 2 60 One idas and O ughquagas, wi th whomshe held a conference

,but w as obl iged to take l eave O f

them,for want of provi s ions ; the whole country being

t hen in arms beh ind h im,and no poss ibi l ity of obta in ing

suppl ies from thence . IIe accord ingly wrote to the com

and ing offi cer a t Niagara , and Oswegatch ie , for vessels ,and provi s ions . and on the 17th of June

,he arri ved at

O ntario,to which place he had d i rected them to be s ent ,

where one smal l S loop shortlv afte r arrived,w i th ninetv

barrel s,which

,though all that cou l d be spared from N ia

gara,w as very unequal to supplying the Indians , who

assembled there,in a few days

,to the number of one

thousand four h undred and fi fty- eight

,wi th about one

hund red wh i te men , incl ud ing the Offi cers of the depart

ment.

From the state of the country and the v i lla inou s sto

ries propagated , it requ ired som e time, wi th great ski l l

and influence, to rem o ve fa ls e reports , and fi x the Ind ians

h earti ly in the interests of the crown . He how ever,had

the good fortune at l ength to bring them to resolve to co

op erate w ith his Maj es ty ’ s troops , in the defens e of the

communi cation and waters empty ing into the S t. L aw

rence ri ver,and in the annoyance of the enemy

,and al s o

to s end the i r band of wa rriors p resent with him ,to M on

treal to inspi re thei r dependen ts there , wi th the same res

olutions . He al so procured the l ike engagement from the

H u ron ch iefs of Detroi t,who attended the Congress

wh ich they very fai thful ly observed , and thereby pre

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HISTO R Y O F BUFFALO .

wi th the Ind ians a t L a Chine , to pre ven t the intemper

anCe to w h ich thev m us t be exposed a t Mon treal,and the

Ind ians w ere so Sens ible of th is,that the y w ere preva i led

on w i th d itlicul ty to c ome into town to obl ige G en . Carl e

ton , w ho w anted to see them there .

“ O n the 2 6th of July , the Ind ians al l as sembl ed , pur

s uant to Col . Johnson s summons,and finished thei r bus i

ness on the las t of thatmonth , when thei r number amount

ed to s i x teen hundred and S i x ty - fou r,w ho read ily agreed

to the same measures engaged by the Six Nations . A f

ter recei ving a val uabl e present, (th ey) w ere d isposed of

,

in d ifferent camps,on the Island of Montreal . A n Ind i

an oflicer,and th i rty m en

,were al s o sent to S t. Johns

,to

rema in there,at the des i re of G en . Carl eton .

“ O n the 5 th ofAugust,the Indian Officer at S t. Johns

,

informed Col . John son o f h i s havi ng d is co vered a large

body of the enemy , near Port Anfe r, (above S t. Johns ,

on lake Champla in , ) w ho fi red on h i s part\,and of the

eagerness man i fes ted b v the Indians to fo rm a large body,

and go agains t them . Col . Johnson in'

nn ediatelv com

m un icated th i s to Brigad i er Pres cott,who commanded

on G en . Carl eton ’ s d eparture for Q uebec He al s o tol d

G en . Prescott, that the w arriors of the several Nations,

were to assembl e that dav,hen he w ou ld give them the

w ar bel ts,as they appeared v erv Spiri ted ; and in conse

qu enco of the rebel s approach,w oul d gladly go and dis

possess them of any post , they had u pon lake Cha mpla in

and that he shoul d be glad to have h i s s entimen ts upon

it. The General an swered that i f any parti es w e re sent

out to ga in inte l l igence,and see w hat the enemy w ere

doing,it migh t be well . B u t at present, he did not in

tend acting ou t of the l ine of the Province . O n Col .

eon. ou r J onN so -N'

s e r on'

r . 947

J ohnson ’s remark ing that Ind ians cou ld not be mana g ed

a s o the r peopl e , it being necessary at tim es to keep up

thei r spi ri ts , and enco u rage them ,and therefore he should

be glad to know ,wha t to say fo r thei r sati s faction on that

subj ect . The Gen era l repl ied that argum ents we re use

l ess ou th is occas ion,h i s orders being such , as not to ac t

o ut of the l ine of the Province . Col . Johnson observed

t hat th is d id not appear to correspond w i th his i ns truo

t ions from Gen . Gage,and that it would be a verv d ith

cul t matter to manage Ind ia ns under s uch c i rcums tan ces,

and l imi tation s,on whi ch the Gene ra l concl ude d wi th

say ing,that al l in the Pro v inces

,must be subj ect to Gen .

Ca rl eton ’ s orders,and Col . Johnson mu st act in the best

manner h e cou l d,without going out of the colony . H ow

ever,the Ind ians being assembled

, Col . Johnson del i vered

e ach Nation a war bel t,to be h el d ready for s ervi ce

,

wh ich the Ind ians cheerful ly accepted,bu t sai d they

we re afra id the ax would cu t th em,i f thev kept it l ong

wi thout us ing it.

Several of the S ix Nati ons, O ughquagus, &c.

,having

wa i ted t i l l the 1 2 th of August,in hopes of s ome opera

t ions,retu rned w i th thei r w ar bel t

,to Onondaga

,after

a ssuring Col . Johnson that they wou ld be ready to re

turn,whenever there w as a prospect of v igorous measu res .

“ Col . John son continued to rel ieve the party at S t.

Johns,by detachments from the d ifferent Ind ian encamp

ments,and endeavored by a ll the means in h is power

,to

render them conten ted w i th the i r s i tu ati on . The party at‘

S t. Johns,continued to s cout on lake Champla in

, (wi th in

t he l im i ts prescribed, ) and on the 2 2 d ofAugust

,four In

d ians,detached from a larger party

,s ei zed a new barge

,

w ith w hi ch th e r ebe l s were reconno i-tering ,whi ch b rough t

2 48 n i s ronr or 13mm L o .

on a ski rmish,wherein Capt. Baker

,a noted rebel

,w as

ki ll ed,whose head

,togethe r wi th h is instructi ons

,plans

,

&c.,they brough t into S t. Johns . In th i s affa i r three In

d ians w ere w ounded .

“ F or some time past,notwi thstand ing al l the cares to

prevent it,some of the inhab itants e tc .

,continued to sel l

l i quor to the Ind ians , and to stri p them of th ei r cl othing,

propagating al s o many dangerous reports among th em,

and tel l ing them that they approved of the rebel s coming,

as it was for the interest of the colony .

“ The Indians compla ined much of al l th i s,and as they

had al ready w a ited,inacti ve

,far beyond w hat they had

ever done before,Col . Johnson wrote to Gen . Carl eton

,

representing thei r urgency to go aga inst the rebel s,or

attack thei r comm un i cati ons,wi th h i s Opini on that it

would answer great purpose,wh i l st restraining m en

,un

accustomed to inacti vi ty,would abate thei r ardor

,and

might occas ion thei r d i saffecti on . T o wh ich,the General

answered that no one th ing had yet happened to m ake

h im alter h i s Opin i on,in regard to the keeping the sava

ges w ithin the l ine ; Col . John son therefore took al l pos

s ibl e pa ins to amu s e them , and sati sfy them on that head .

O n the 3d of September,in consequence of reports

brough t by the Ind ians , that the enemy w ere advancing ,Col . John son augmented the party at S t. Johns

,to four

offi cers,and one hundred and twenty- one Indians ; and

on the afternoon of the 4th,G en . Prescott

,des i red h im to

stop s ending any more parti es , but keep them about the

town,l est the rebels migh t m ake an attempt upon the

city of Montreal , by crossing the country. The next dayan express arri ved from one of Col . Johnson ’ s officers at

S t. Johns , informing that a s couting partv of Ind ian s had

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1250 HISTORY or BUFFALO .

re cru its and vol untee rs , w ere ordered ou t w i th whom Col .Johns on sent tw o offi cers and seven ty Ind ians .

O n the l 0 th of Septembe r,on the report that s ome

Canadians had assured the Cauglm awagas that the rebel s

w ou ld destrov th ei r tow n . Dani el Claus,Esq .

,deputy

agen t,was s en t there to remove any fears on that head

,

to w hom the Ind ians complained that thev had lately

been m uch trad uced bv s ome of the French gen tlemen,

who w ere too apt to b e busv about them . and resented

that the Indians w ou l d not attend to them,observing that

at the redu cti on of Canad a,thev had been assu red that

such pers ons shou l d no l onger interfe re wi th them .

They added that thei r cause w as very hard , as they

w ere th reatened w i th ru in bv the rebel s , assu red by the

Canad ians tha t thev w ou l d not oppose them ,and that

there app ' ared no prospect of rel ief from anv other quar

ter. From al l which,Col . Johnson perce ived that thes e

people were so circumstanced that they could no l onger

be depended on . A nd th is day Maj or Campbe l l arr ived ,being appo inted agent for Ind ian affai rs for the Province

of Quebec .

The next day a party Of Ind ians reconnoi tering,w ere

fired on by a cons iderabl e body of the enemy,and Per

thu s,an interpreter, w i th an Ind ian

,surpri sed and kil l ed

,

at a hous e on lake Champlain . O n the 1 2 th,Col . John s

son held a conference wi th the C auglm aw agas , to remove

thei r apprehens i ons, and on the 18 th

,another w as hel d

in presence of Gen . Carl eton, (then returned from Que

bec, ) in con sequence of intel l igence given Col . J ohnson ,

by the S i x Nations,that the rebel s had empl oyed agents

to negotiate a neutral i ty w i th the Caughnawagas .“ Thi s day Gen. Carl eton gave h i s thanks to the Ind i

a ns ia g eneral ord ers . in the words fol lowing :

COL . GU Y J onnson’s REPORT . 2 51

T he General g ives h is thanks to the Ind ian Chiefs and

w a rr i ors who bahaved so gal lan tlv in the acti on of the

s i x th instant,near S t Johns

,and d es i res that the same

m ay be commun i cated to them and the i r nations,by C 0 1.

Joh nson,the i r sup e rin tendant

,

FRA N ’S L EM A IS T RE,

Muj ’ r Brigade .

Mon treal,S ept. 1 3

,1775 ,

“Col . J ohnson continued his endeavors,n otwi thstand ing

the general d i s couragement among the Ind ians,that they

migh t be in readiness,in cas e the General could ra i s e any

force to go aga inst the enemy . O n the 2 otb,one of Col .

Johnson’ s Officers,wi th his party of Ind ians

,w as obl ige d

to re ti re from the prari e,as d id the Ind ians from S t.

Johns,w h i ch w as now comple tely inves ted

,and accounts

r ece ived,that a certa in C ol . L i v ingston

,wi th the inhabi

tants of Sorel le , had j o ined the rebels ; on whi ch the

General,&c .

, put the ir papers and baggage on board of

vess el s in the r i ver. The rebel s had now overran al l the

country,and w e re in many places j oined by the perfi di

ou s Canad ians . The Ind ians , th us wi thout prospect of

a id,began to provide for thei r own s ecu rity

,a fter com

pla in ing b itterly of the di sappointment of thei r hopes of

s uccors ; and on the 2 5th , Col . Eathen A l len , crossed to

the Island of Mon treal,and wi th a partv Of about one

hundred and forty,partly Canad i ans

,began h i s march

for that c i ty,where he w as opposed by a smal l party of

the 2 6th regiment,some volunteers

,and th i rty officers

,

rangers,and Indians of the Indian department. The

latter of w hom,fortunately fal l ing on the flank where

A l len was,h e del ivered up h is sword

,and su rrendered to

one of Col . Johnson ’ s offi cers , who , w i th h is partv took

952 n i sronv or BUFFALO .

the mos t of those made pri soners . O n the 97th, Col .

John s on renewed his appl i cation to General Carl eton ,for moving a body of m en

,in whi ch cas e he could sti l l

get many of the neighboring Ind ians to co - Operate ; to

wh ich the General answered,verbal ly

, (by the secretary

of Ind ian affai rs»that he hoped affai rs were taking a

more favorabl e turn,and that h e should very soon be

abl e to form a better j udgment .

”

From th i s time to October 1 2 th,eve ry art and means

w as used to ass embl e the Canad ians , and s everal came

in,w ere cl othed and armed

,and afterwards j oined the

enemy . Find ing,therefore

,the season so far advanced

,

the Ind ians almost al l wi thd rew discontended,unwil l ing

to cred it any further promi ses of aid. That thos e that

rema ined,earnes tly s ol i c i ted for troops to be sent ou t, and

that Col . Johnson shou ld p rocu re them the red res s of

s undry gri evances,they had Often represented

,and al so

,

at the same tim e,hav ing recei ved d i spatches from the

s ecretary of state , d irecting that thei r s everal gri evances

shoul d be immed ia tely la i d before the king ; find ing

l ikewise,that Maj or Campbel l ’ s powers , as agent for

Canada,mus t occas i on some d iffi cul ti es , that w ould effect

ual ly obs truct the s e rvi ce,Col . Johnson s ignified h i s

intenti on to go to England,and get thes e points in some

measure adj usted before the Indians,from the i r respecti ve

nati ons could take the fi el d next year . In wh i ch resol u

ti on,he w as confirmed by the Indians

,who deputed a.

fa i thful young ch i ef to accompany himfi“

and having

pos ted h i s Offi cers at su ch places as they migh t be most

usefu l to preserve the fidel i ty of the Ind ian s,wi th proper

Joseph B rant.

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C II A IV ‘ E R X V I

Col . Guy Johnson ,as intimated in his report j u s t

referred to , sai l ed fo r England , where h e arri ved in J an

uary, 776 . I'I O was accompan ied bv Joseph Bran t, and

a Mohawk w ar ch i ef named O teroughyan ento .

' T he ar

r i val of M aj . Campbel l, as agent for Indian affa i rs in

Canada , whose au thori ty seemed to confl i ct w i th that of

C ol . Johnson ,perhaps l ed to thi s determinati on of C ol .

J ohnson,to v i s i t England at th i s time . He had endeavor

ed to empl oy his Ind ian w arri ors,mos tly Mohawks

,who

accompan i ed h im to Canada ; and from the names in ci

dental ly menti oned,a t l eas t tw o sons of Si r Wil l iam

Johnson,Pete r and l Vil liam

,w ere employed as offi cers

in the Ind ian force against the co l on i s ts at th i s time , in

the v i c ini ty of M on tiw al,and took part in the repu l s e

“and capture of C o l . Eathan Al l en

,after h i s detachment

w as rou ted near Mon treal .”

Bran t,during his v i s i t in Engl and , m ade a Speech to

Ijord G eorge Germain ,one of his Maj es ty

’ s principa l

Secre taries o f S ta te ; s etting forth the g rievances of the

Six Nations in general , and of the Mohawks,h is own N a

t i on,in parti cul a r . To w hi ch Lord Ge rma in m ad e a

brief rc l ly ,promising a ttenti on to the subj ect of th e i r

compla ints,w h ich w ere as usual , in relati on to thei r

COL . G U Y J onxson’

s v rsrr TO ENGLAND . 2 55

lands . This speech of Brant, whi ch appea rs to have been

del i vered in London ,March 1 776 , exh ibi ts no th ing re

m ark able,b ut in al l respects shows a med iocre ord er of

talent . I t w as fo l l ow ed by anothe r,in reply

,or as nu

swer from Capt . Brant,as h e i s s tyled , on the 7 th of M ay ,

1776 , in w h i ch he says : IVO are not afrai d Brother,or

have we the l eas t doub t but our bre thren,the S ix N a

t i ons,wil l continue fi rm to th ei r engagements w i th the

King,thei r father .”

The soj ou rn of Col . Johnson w i th h i s Ind ian deputi es

in England,w as bri ef

,as w e find a l etter of h i s add ressed

to Lo rd Germa in,dated S taten Island , August 9th

,1 776 ,

in w h i ch h e acquaints his Lordsh ip that he arri ved in

the harbor of New York,on the 99th nl t.

,after a l ong

passage,and mu ch m ol estation from rebel cru i s ers

, one

of w h i ch attacked us,near Bermudas

,bu t was

,after a

pretty cl ose engagemen t of an hou r and a hal f, heat off,wi th mu ch l os s

,though she damaged our m as ts

,and rig

ging so m uch,that we coul d not pu rsue her .

” 9" He

adds : “ Thi s m oment, an inhabi tant Of the Mohawk river,

has found means to reach ou r camp , and informs that h e

had heard that S i r John Johnson had reached Gen . B ur

goine . That a Col . Dayton,wi th six hundred m en , w as

repa i ring fort S tanw i x,and that Gen . Sch uyl er had

open ed a Congress at the G erman Flatts , but that only

some of the One idas and O ughquagys attended it,and

adds that ‘the rebel s had carried off m y n egro es

,&c .

,and

demol i shed eve ry th ing on my es tate .

’ T he Ind ians that

attended S chuyl er,h av e l ong been under the influence of

N ew England mi ss ionari es,and I fo und some d ifficul ty

wi th them las t vear .”

Thi s al l us i on i s undoubtedly to the Oneidas,and the

m et oa r or BUFFALO .

N ew England miss i onary , Mr . Kirkland , who we havea l ready seen

,had exerted h i s infl uence to induce the Ia

d ians to take no part in the w ar. The person al luded toabove , by Col . Johnson ,

as having arrived from the Mo

hawk river , w as undoubtedly the pers on descri bed in the

fol lowing decla rati on,w h ich w as reduced to wri ting

,in

presence of s evera l persons , one O f w hom it wil l be oh

s erved,s igns h imsel f “ Joseph

,Ind ian Chiefx

DECLARAT ION O F DEPUTY COM M ISS IONER GU MER S A L L .

That he l eft the Mohawk river abou t the beginning

of June of the present year,and been fo r s e veral w eeks

in that country,where he was acquainted . That S i r John

J ohnson , through intel ligence he had received , partly by

means of G umersal l , found it necessary to l eave h i s

home,and w i thdraw to Canada . To effect wh ich , be

procured three Indians from the neighboring v i llage , as

g uides through the woods , and w as accompan i ed by about

one hundred and th irty Highlanders,and near one hun

dr ed and twenty other inhabitants of the country , attached

to government,w i th w hom he proceeded from the house

of Mr . M cD onnel l , cal l ed C ol laghy , on or about the 13th

of M ay las t, for O sw egachy , in Canada . That the sai d

G uinersal l,who was ins trumental to him on th i s occa

s ion,accompan i ed h im a few mil es further on his route ,

a nd then took h i s l eave . After which,and wi th much

d ifficul ty,after s ecreting h imsel f

,and march ing by n igh t,

after about five weeks , h e arri ved at S taten Island .

9“

Mr . Gumersal l further declares that he w as cred ibly in

formed,that John Bu tle r

,Esq.

,who was l eft at Niagara

by Co". Johnson ,superintendent of Ind ian affa i rs , wi th

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2 58 HISTORY OF BUFFAL O .

subj ects in Ameri ca , who are Opposed to the unconstitu

tional measures of h is min i stry, have been formed in a

part of the county of Tryon . I am ordered to march a

body of m en into that county , to carry into execution cer

tain resoluti ons of my superiors,and to contravene thos e

dangerous designs . Influenced s i r,by moti ves of human

ity , I wish to comply wi th my orders,in the manner

most peaceable,that no blood may be shed . I request

therefore,that you be pleased , to meet me to morrow ,

at

an y place on my way to Johnstown ,to whi ch I propose

then to march . F or whi ch purpose,I do hereby give

you my word Of honor,that you

,and such persons as you

m ay choose to attend you , shal l pass safe , and unmolest

ed,to the place where you m ay meet me , and from thence

back to your place of abode. Rutgers Bleecker and H en

ry Glen , Esqs . , are the bearers hereof ; gentl emen who

are entitled to your best attenti on,whi ch I dare say they

wil l experience,and by whom

,I expect

,you wil l favor

me with an answer to th is l etter. You wil l please to as

sure Lady Johnson , that whatever m ay be the resul t of

what i s now in agitati on,sh e m ay rest perfectly satisfied ,

that no indigni ty will be offered her.

I am S i r,Your Humble Servant

,

PH. S O H U Y LER .

T o S IR JOHN JOHNSON , Baronet.

The next morn ing after the d ispatch of the above let

ter,G en . Schuyler resumed his march for JO hnstown.

He was m et,d uring the day , upon the road , by S ir John ,

and a few of hi s fri ends .'

The result of the intervi ew,was

the offer by Gen . Schuyler to S ir John,and others , that

.

~ in cons ideration of thei r del ivering up al l arms , amman i

GEN . S CHUYLER TO S I R JOHN J O H NS O N . 2 59

t i on,and military stores of every kind

,except that S ir

'John was to retain h i s own personal equipments ; that

S i r John shou l d give h i s parol e of honor,not to l eave the

c ounty,or the neighborhood of h i s res idence . That on

the fai thfu l performance of these s tipulations on the partof S i r John and h is adherents

,they shoul d be protected

,

in the quiet enj oyment of thei r property . Gen. Schuyler

required that hostages shoul d be del i vered up,as a pledge

for the fa ithful performance of these stipulations,and

thei r future good conduct. S ir John asked unti l the eve

n ing of the next day , to cons ider the matter, wh ich w asgranted .

O n the next day , the 1 8th, Gen . Schuyler resumed hi s

march to Caughnawaga , where he was j oined by Col .

Herkimer,and the Tryon county mi l itia . S i r John ’s an

swer w as not sati sfactory , as will appear by the fol low

ing l etter ofGen . Schuyler in reply.

GEN . S CHUYLER TO S IR JOHN JOHNSON , BAR’T .

, A ND OTHERS .

Caughnawaga,J an . 18

,1776.

Gam e : Messrs . Adams and M cDonel l have del i vered- me your answer to my proposal s of yesterday ’ s

T he l east attention to the arti cl es I Offered,when com

p ared with yours,must convince you

,that you omi tted

repl i es to several of them ,and cons equently that What

you have sent me i s very imperfect,and unsati sfactory .

I wai ve pointing ou t some O f the incons i stences in your

proposal s,as the whole are exceptionable , except the

l ast. I must therefore obey my orders , and again repeat'

that in the executi on Of them ,I shal l stri ctly abide by

“

she l aws of humanitv . A t the same time assuring you,

2 60 HI STORY OF BUFFALO .

that i f the l east res i stance i s made , I wi ll not answer for

the consequences , which m ay be of a nature the most

dreadful . If Lady Johnson i s at Johnson Hal l,I wish

she woul d retire, (and therefore enclose a passport

,) as I

shal l march my troops to that place,without delay.

Y ou m ay , however, sti l l have time to recons ider thematter

,and for that purpose I gi ve you unti l twelve

o ’ clock thi s n ight, after which , I shal l recei ve no propt»

Sil l s“ ; and I have sent you Mr. Robert Yates,Mr. Glen

,

and Mr. Duer, to recei ve the ul timate proposals you have

to make . This condes cens ion I make from no other mo

t i ve than to prevent the effusion of blood , s o far as it can

be effected wi thout ri sking the safety of the county , or

b eing gu i l ty of a breach of the pos i ti ve ord ers I have re

ceived from the Honorable Continental Congress .I am

,Gentl emen , w i th due respect,

Your Humble Servant,

PH . SCHUYLER.

T O S I R JOHN JOH N S ON A N D M R . ALLA N MCDONELL.

In the intervi ew between Gen . Schuyler and S ir John

Johns on,the latter had informed the General

,that the

Ind ians w ere assembled at h i s house, and woul d defend

him . Gen . Schuyler repl ied that he shoul d execute his

orders,and if Opposed by force

,would not be answerable

for consequences Wh il e the General was wa i ting for

the reply of Si r John , two ch iefs of the Mohawks ar

r ived,and assured the General that the Ind ians would

interfere in no oth er way than as med iators

Soon after the preced ing letter had been d i spatch ed to

J ohnS on Hall, the Mohawk sachems , wi th a ll thei r war

riors , together wi th several from the uppe r Mohawk cas »

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2 62 HISTORY OF BUFFA LO .

by Gen . Schuyler, and in substance agreed to by Si r

John Johnson .

Terms of capitu lation agreed upon between Gen . .

Schuyler and Si r John Johnson, J an . 19,1776

G en . Schuyler ’s feel ings as a gentleman,induce h im

to consent that S i r John Johnson reta in the few favorite

family arms,b e making a l i st of them . The General

wi l l also consent that S ir J ohn Johnson,m ay go as far to

the westward , as to the German Flatts,and Kingsland

di stri cts,in th i s county

,and to every other part of th i s

colony,to the southward and eastward of sa i d di stri cts ,

provi ded he does not go into any sea port town . The

General,however

,bel i eves that i f S i r John ’ s pri vate bus i

ness S hould require h i s going to any other of the ancient

English coloni es,h e wi ll be perm itted the indulgence, by

applying to Congress for l eave .

The General wil l take s i x Scotch inhabitants pri son

ers , S ince they prefer it to going as hostages . It has been

the invariabl e rul e of Congress,and that of al l its offi

cers,to treat prisoners with the greatest human ity, and

to pay all due deference to rank . He cannot ascertain

the places,to whi ch Congress m ay please to send them .

F or the present,they wi l l go to R eading , or Lancaster , in

Penn sylvan ia. N or can h e m ake any promises , with re

spect to the maintenance of the women and ch ildren

His humani ty wil l certain ly induce h im to recommend

to Congress,an attenti on to what has been requested on

that head . Gen . S chuyler expects that al l the Scotch in

habitants,ofwhatever rank

,who are not confined to th eir

beds by i l lness,will attend with thei r arms , and del iver

them on Saturday,at twelve o ’ clock . If thi s cond ition

be not fai thfu lly performed,he wil l cons ider h imsel f as .

O APIT U L A T IO N OF S IR JOHN JOHNS ON . 2 63

d isengaged from any engagements entered into with

them .

“ Gen . Schuyler never refus ed a gentl eman,h i s S ide

arms .“ The pri soners that may be taken , mus t be removed to

Albany immediately,where the General wil l permi t them

to remain a reasonable time to s ettl e thei r family affai rs .“ If the terms G en . Schuyler offered on the 17th inst.,

are accepted,with the above qual ifications

,fai r copies

wi ll b e made ou t,and S igned by the parti es , one of which

wil l be del i vered to Si r John and M r . M cD onell,S igned

by the General . To prevent a waste of time, the Gener

al wishes S i r John and Mr . M cDonel l immed iately to

send an answer .

He remains with due respect,S i r John ’ s and Mr. M cDonel l

’s Humble Serv ’r ,PH . S O HU Y LER .

These terms were acceeded to by S i r John, and on the

same day , Gen . Schuyler marched to Johnstown . Si r

John del i vered upai l the arms and ammun i tion in hi s pos

sess ion,both being

'

m uch l es s than had been represented .

The next day , 2 0th, Gen . Schuyler paraded h i s troops and

recei ved the s urrender Of between two and three hundred

Scotch Highlanders,who marched out in front

,and

grounded thei r arms ; and they were dismissed with an

exhortation to rema in peaceable, with an assurance of

protection i f they did so.

The energy and success wi th wh ich Gen . Schuyler

executed thi s expediton , recei ved the approbati on of the

congress , and a resoluti on of thanks w as passed for h i s

fidel ity,prudence

,and expedition with wh i ch he had

2 64 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

performed such a meritorious servi ce . Pres ident H an

cock,in h is letter transm iting the resolutions of congress ,

says : “ It i s wi th the greates t pleasure I inform you , that

the pru dent zeal and temper,man ifested in your late

exped ition,m et wi th the warmest approbati on of con

gress .”

Notwi thstanding the Obl igati ons by which S ir John

had bound h imself to rema in a quas i prisoner of war,

information was received by Geu . Schuyler,that Si r John

was in s ecret correspondence wi th the Indians , instiga

ting them to hosti l ities , and it w as thought advi sable by

Gen . Schuyler to put S i r John under a stri cter survei l

lance .

F or the purpose of S ecuring the person O f S ir John , and

quell ing the ris ing tu rbulent spi ri t of the Highlanders , a

force,under Col . Dayton

,was d ispatched to Johnstown

in M ay 1776. Si r John received noti ce Of thi s intention,

through sympathis ing friends in Albany,in time to anti

cipate Col . Dayton’ s arrival

,and wi th a large body of hi s

tenants who adhered to the cause of the crown,took to

the woods , not daring to take the uSual travelled route ,and after a most fatiguing march Of n ineteen days

,

through the wilderness,having suffered greatly from

want Of provis ions,they arrived at Montreal , cons idera

bly dimini shed in numbers .

In the suddenness of his flight,S i r John l eft all h i s

property and hi s family beh ind . C ol . S tone,in hi s “l i fe

of Brant,” in a note relates the following : “ A fter the

confiscation of the property of S ir John , the furni ture O f

the hal l was sold by auction at Fort Hunter . The late

L i eut. Governor Taylor purchased several arti cles of fur

niture,and among other th ings

,the family b ibl e . Per

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966 HISTORY OF BUFFAL O .

a vari ety of inj uries and insults s ince myd ispatch of the5th of J anuary . The latter end of last month, twelvehunch ed m en from N ew Jersey

,under the command of

0 0 1. Hard,went over to Long Island

,and after ten

'

days

marauding,disarmed upwards of s ix hundred inhabi tants

of Queen s county and took seventeen of the principal

gentl emen prisoners,who have s ince been marched

,un

der guard,to Philadelph ia . The same m anouvre has

been practi s ed by Gen . Schuyler,at the head of near

four thousand armed mob ; h e marched to Johnson’s hal l

,

the 14th of last month,where S i r John had mustered near

s i x hundred m en from his tenants and neighbors,the m a

jority highlanders . After d isarming them ,and taking four

p ieces of artil lery,ammun i tion

,and many prisoners ,

with three hundred and s i xty guineas from Sir John ’ s

desk,they compel led him to enter into a bond in one

thousand six hundred pounds s terl ing , not to aid the

king ’ s s ervi ce , or to r emove with in a l imi ted d istance

from his house . Such , my Lord , i s the degrading s itua

ti on of His Maj esty ’ s fa i thful subj ects in thi s col ony .

The rebels have been acti ve in d isarming other parts of

the col ony,and th i s plan was grounded upon the recom

m endation of the provincial congress here to the centi

nental congress,

. to s end troops from other parts to the

del inquents of th is country , as will be s een by the copy

of thei r l etter among the encl osures .

I am with great respect, my Lord ,Your Lordship ’ s most obediant servant,

l 'VM . TRYON .

EARL DARTM OUTH .

GO V . TRYON TO EARL DARTM OUTH .

EXTRACT GO V . TRYON T O THE EARL DARTM OUTH .

8th February , 1776 .

By late secret intel l igence from the northward,and as

far westward as Detroit,I have the agreeabl e information

that the Indians are firmly attached to the king ’ s interest.

The Indians have chosen Peter Johnson , the natural

son of S i r Wi ll iam Johnson, (by an Indian woman

, ) to

be their ch ief. He i s intrepid and acti ve,and took with

h i s own hand B athan A l len,in a barn

,after h i s detateh

ment was routed before Montreal . The Indian depart

ment demands al l poss ible attention,and a commiss ion

of General , to Peter , would be pol iti c . To fix and retain

the Ind ians by very l iberal p resents and en couragement

wil l be of the highest importan ce to the king’ s s ervi ce at

the present cris i s . Presents s ent to them by way of

Quebec wil l be the most cer tain channel , and an assort

ment sent to thi s post,will al s o be very expedi ent to be

s ent up to Albany as soon as the troops arri ve in th i s

colony.

“ I am assured that the Indian nation s w il l make a

powerfu l d iv ers i on on the borders of the lake,very early

thi s spring,cut off al l parti es going to re inforce the ene

my,and probablv s eize al l the vessel s , batteaus , and row

gal leys before they are l iberated from the i ce and then

j oin G en . Carl eton in Canada , or come down to A l bany ,as occas i on m ay requi re . Thi s my Lord

,i s the plan of

Operations for the Ind ians , and I expect it wil l b e execu

ted and succeed .

The encl osures relati ve to Canada transacti ons,here

w ith transmi tted,will further explain to your Lordsh i p

the happy restorati on of h i s M ajesty’s affa i rs in that gov

ernment.

2 68 HIS TORY OF BUFFALO .

I am w ith al l poss ibl e respect and esteem my Lord,

your Lordship ’ s mo st obed ient humble servant,EARL DART M OUTH . WM. TRYON .

EAR L O F DARTM OUTH '

l’

O C O L . GU Y JOHNS ON .

White Hal l 2 4th July,1775 .

S IR —~ I have al ready in my letter to you on the 5th

inst.,hinted that the time might poss ibly come when the

King relying upon the attachment of his fa ithful al l ies,

the S ix N ati ons of Indians , might be under the necess ity

of cal l ing upon them for thei r aid and ass i stance in the

presen t state of Ameri ca.

“ The unnatural'

rebell ion now raging there,cal l s for

every effort to suppress it ; and the intell igence hi s M ajesty has recei ved of the rebel s having excited the Indiansto take a part

,and of their having actual ly engaged a

body of them in arms to support thei r rebell i on,j ustifies

the resoluti on h i s Maj esty has taken of requi ring the as

sistance of h is fa ithfu l adherents,the S i x Nations . It i s

therefore,h i s Maj esty ’ s pleasure , that you do lose no time

in taking such s teps as wil l induce them to take up the

hatchet against h i s Maj esty ’ s rebel l i ous subj ects in Amer

ica,and to engage them in h i s Maj esty ’ s servi ce upon

such plan as shall be suggested to you , by Gen . Gage, to

whom th is l etter i s sent,accompan i ed with a large as

sortment ofgoods for presents to them,upon thi s impor

tant occas ion . Whether the engaging the S i x Nations to

take up arms in defense of hi s Maj esty’ s government,i s

most l ikely to be effected by separate negotiation with the

chiefs,or in a general counc i l assembled for that purpose

must be l eft to your j udgment. B ut at al l events it i s a

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2 70 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

proper to acquaint you of the result of the meeting atN i

agara with Col . Butl er. This we do at our own Option,

not being des i red by the other parts of the confederacy,

though it has been reported among them,that General

Schu y l er ought to be informed .

We sent two Oneidas to hear what would pas s at Ni

aga . They returned the n igh t before last,and brought

the fol lowing account

The repres entati ves of the S ix Nation s del i vered the

answer to Col . Butl er ’ s Belts,thatwas formed and agreed

upon at Onondaga,in ful l council

,of wh ich we suppose

you have been made acquainted . The purport of our an

swer w as that the S ix N ati ons with the C agnaagas and

the seven tribes in that vi cin i ty, had al l uni ted,and re

solved to maintain peace,both with the King

,and the

Boston ians , and recei ve no ax from ei ther.Col . Claus it seems al so went to England in 1776 be

fore return ing in the spring of ’77, h e drew up a plan for

the management of Indian affai rs , to be adopted upon the

restoration of British authority,whi ch was expected as a

matter of course . In thi s document he speaks of the

T sineesios (Genessee) Indians in a note,representing them

as having been general ly in the French interest,s ince the

French were in possess ion ofNiagara it being by thei r

permiss ion and consent,they were al l owed to estab

l i sh themselves there. That nati on of Indians claiming

the property of the soi l . In cons i derati on of wh i ch priv

i lege they were mu ch caressed and indulged by the

French,and had the l iberty to enj oy the emoluments of

the carrying place ; which were so luc i ative and consid

crable to that nati on,that in a short time they enri ched

themselves thereby,and had bes ides some other advanta

COL . JOHNS ON To LORD GERM AIN . 2 71

ges of trade , and other necessari es of l ife. Indians

not eas ily forgetting inj uries,the T sineesios sti l l harbored

i l l -will aga inst thos e to whom they ascribe thei r m isfor

tunes and loss es,

it ’ i“and could never be pers uaded to

attach themselves cord ial ly to the Engl ish , t i ll after the

unweari ed pains and endeavors of the late S i r Wil l iam

Johnson . they about five years ago , declared th emselves

publ i cly at Johnson Hal l,firm friends and al l i es to the

Crown of Great Brita in , and hav e h itherto behaved as

such ? ’

In a l etter of Col . Johnson to Lord Germain,dated

New York,June 8th, 1777, he says

°

A person whom I employed to carry messages to the

Indians,gave a parti cular account of a large magazine of

mil itary stores and provi s ions coll ected at Danbury,C on

necticut, which I commun i cated to S i r Will iam Howe ,who soon after sent a body of troops there

,and effectual

ly destroyed the whol e and al so that the S ix Nati ons

having cal l ed in and ass embled all thei r people,in order

to make a d ivers ion on the fronti ers of th i s province and

Pennsyl van ia,agreeable to my messages

,s ince which

th ey have had s everal attacks along the back settl ements

from Fort S tanwix to the Ohi o , with such success that the

rebels have been obl iged to detach Gen . Hand w ith some

troops to protect the fronti e rs wh i ch are in much conster

nati on .

ii‘ “if H e al so reports that h is Secretary,Mr .

Chew,was taken prisoner by the rebels , on the eas t end

of Long Island,whi ther h e had gone on business .” 'X’

Joseph Brant having been di spatched to the S ix N a

ti ons,Col . Johnson writes from New York

,July 7, 1777,

that they were in read iness,with the excepti on of the

O neidas,to j oin Gen . Howe ’ s army

,and act as ‘

one m an ;’

2 72 HISTORY OF BUFFALO.

and that they had cut off a Sergeant and twelve men at

Fort Stanwix, and sent several parti es to the back ofPennsylvan ia

,to the great terror of the inhabitants

,and had

cut off a party with fifty head of cattl e for the rebel gar

r i son on the Mohawk river that their ma in body of

about seven hundred Ind ians was assembled near O wegy(Owego,) on the Susquehanna , which woul d be much increased as soon as auv movement was made to the north

ward ; adding that they would strike a blow ; and ex

presses h i s convi ction that the Indians wi l l j oin the expe

diti on of Gen . S t Leger, by w ay of Ontario,or the main

army under Gen . Burgoyne,before Ti conderoga.

I t woul d seem from the correspondence of Col . Claus

w i th Secretary Knox,dated at Montreal in October

,

1777, that S t. Leger’ s exped iti on was destined against

Fort S tanwix . Col . Claus and S i r John Johnson aecom

panied thi s expediti on,and it was j oined by Joseph

B rant at Oswego,with a party of about three hundred

,

warriors . Brant compla ined that h is party had not been

furnished with necessary suppl ies by Col . Butl er,who

was in command at Niagara .

After mu ch delay, S t. Leger and h i s army arri ved

before Fort Stanwix on the 2 d of August,1777, and in

the words of h is report,“ surpr ised a party of rebels

,

w hi ch had come out to meet them ,defeated them with

great s laughter, but another party coming out of the fort,plundered the Indian encampment of all thei r packs , with

thei r cl o thes , wampum ,and s il ver work , and as the In

dians had gone into the battle nearly naked , th ey found

themsel ves in a desti tute condition , as to clothes or cov

ering for the n ight . The Ind ians lost th irty - two men in

thi s enga g ement, among whom were severa l Seneca

Ch iefs . The fort w as beseiged for nineteen days wi th l it

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C H A P T E R X V I I .

The information given to Gen . S t. Leger of the ap

proach of the reinforcements under Gen . Herkimer,was

through the ins trumental ity of “ Molly Brant,

”and led

to the surpri se , and almost to the defeat,of the enti re

party under Gen . Herkimer. Thomas S pencer,a half

breed sachem,of the Oneidas

,brought early news of the

exped ition under S t. Leger,from Montreal

,whither he

had gone as a s ecret emm issary , to obtain information

and at a meeting held on hi s return,he concluded hi s re

port in the fol low ing speech

B R O T H ER s : N ow i s your time to awake,and: not to

sl eep longer,or on the contrary

,it shal l go with Fort

Schuyler,as it went already

,with Ti conderoga.

Brothers,I therefore des ire you to be spi rited

,and to

encourage one another to march on to the ass i stance of

Fort Schuyler. Come up'

and S how yoursel ves as men,

to defend and save your country,before it i s too late

Dispatch yoursel ves,to clear the brush about the Fort,

and send a party to cut trees in the Wood creek, to stepup the same .

“ Brothers,If you don’

t come soon,without delay, to

ass i st thi s place . we cannot stay much l onger on your

s ide . For i f you leave th is Fort wi thout succor and the

ADDRES S O F T H os. S PENCER . 2 75

enemy shal l get possess ion thereof, we shal l s uffer l ike

you, in your settl ements , and shal l be destroyed wi th you .

We are suspi ciou s that your enemies have engaged theIndians , and endeavor dai ly yet to strike and fight againstyou

,and Gen . S chuyler refus es always

,that we shal l

take up arms in the country ’ s behalf.“Brothers

,I can assure you that as soon as Butler ’ s

speech,at O swego , shal l be over, they intend to march

down the country immediately to A lbany . You may

j udge yoursel ves , that i f you don’t try to resi st, we shal l

be obliged to j oin them ,or fly to our castles

,as we can

not h inder them alone. We , the good friends of the coun

try , are of Opin i on , that if more force appears at FortSchuyler

,the enemy wil l not move from Oswego

, to in

v ade these fronti ers . Y ou m ay depend on it,we are wil

l ing to help you i f you wil l do some efforts too .

”

Notwithstanding th is earnest appeal of the Oneida sa

chem,and a patrioti c proclamation of Gen . Herkimer

,

who it was said,was a better citi zen than soldier

, a spi rit

of apathy seemed to poss ess the people .

John J ay , in a l etter to Governeur Morri s,under date

of July 2 1 , 1777, says“The s ituati on of Tryon county

i s both shameful and alarming. Such abj ect dej ecti on

and despondency , as m ark‘

the l e tters we have received

from thence , d isgrace human nature. God knows what

to do with,or for th em .

”

The Oneida Ind ians , says Stone , in h i s l ife of Bran t,who were s incerely d isposed to favor the cau se of the

col on i sts,but who , pursuant to the hum ane pol i cy, of

Congress,and the advi ce of Gen . Schuyler

,had deter

mined to preserve thei r neutral ity,behel d the approach

ing invas ion from O swego,wi th no smal l degree of ap

2 76 HI STORY OF BUFFAL O .

prehens ion. The course they marked out for themselves ,as they were wel l aware , was vi ewed wi th d ispleasure by

their Mohawk brethren , while the other members of the

confederacy,were obviousl y incl ined to s ide wi th thei r

“ uncl e,

”

(the King .) L i ving,moreover

,in the neighbor

hood of Fort Schuyler, (for that w as the name now given

to Fort S tanwix ,) where S t. Leger’ s first blow must be

struck,they were not a l i ttl e troubled in prospect of what

migh t happen to themsel ves .

The watchful Thomas Spencer d ispatched the fol lowing

letter to the commi ttee,on the 2 9th Ju ly

,which w as re

ceived the 30 th.

“ A t a meeting of the ch i efs,they tel l

me,there i s bu t four days rema i ning , of the time set for

the King ’ s troops to come to Fort Schuyler ; and they

think it l ikely they wil l be here sooner. The ch iefs de

s ire the command ing ofiicer at Fort Schuyler,not to make

a Ticonderoga of it,bu t they hO pe you wil l be courageous .

They des i re Gen . Schuyler m ay have thi s with speed ,and s end a good army here . There i s noth ing to do at

New York we think there i s m en to be spared we ex

peet the road i s stopped to the inhabi tants by ,a party

through the woods , we shal l be surrounded , as soon as

th ey come . This m ay be O ur last advi ce,as these sol ~

d ie rs are part of thos e that are to hol d a treaty . Send

thi s tn the committee , as s oon as they recei ve it,let the

mil itia ri se up and come to Fort Schuyler.

To morrow we are going to the Three R i vers, (the

j unction of the One ida, Seneca and Oswego rivers,) to the

treaty. We expect to meet the warriors ; and when we

come there and declare we are for peace , we expect to be

u sed with ind ifference , and sent away . L et al l the troops

that come to Fort Schuyl er take care , on thei r march , as

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2 78 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

messenger d id not reach the Fort unti l ten or eleven

o ’clock the next day . A n unusual s i lence had prevai led

in the camp of the enemy , and a body of troops were ohs erved by the garri son

,to move along the edge of the

woods down the ri ver,in the direction of the Ori skany

creek .

The concerted S ignal w as immediately fired,and as

Gen . Herkimer w as to force a passage to the Fort, i f it

became necessary,arrangements were immediately made

by Col . Ganesvoort to create a d ivers ion,by a sortie from

the Fort,upon the hosti l e camp of the besi egers . F or

thi s purpose two hundred m en under Col . Willett, were

detai l ed,with one fiel d piece

,an i ron three pounder . It

appears that G en . Herkimer had some misgivings as to

the propriety of advancing,without first receivmg rein

forcements h imself. His ofiicers,however

,were eager to

press forward . A consultation w as h eld,much excite

ment and impati ence was man i fested by some of the of

fi cers. High words ensued,during which Cols . Cox and

Pari s , and others , denounced thei r commander as a tory ,and a coward , to hi s face . The brave old m an calmly re

pl ied that he cons i dered h imself placed over them as a

father, and that°

it was not h i s wish to lead them into anydiffi culty from which he could not extricate them ; andtold them pla inly

,that thei r intemperate zeal

,d id not

augur wel l for thei r courage,in face of the enemy and

that he expected to See them run,at h i s fi rst appearance.

B ut thei r clamor increased,unti l at l ength stung by thei r

imputations of coward ice,and want of fidel ity to the

cause , the General gave orders to advance,and no sooner

than the word forward,w as given

,than the troops gave

a shout,and rather rushed

,than marched . They ad

GEN . HERKI M ER FAL LS INTO AN AM BUSH . 2 79

v anced in fi les of two deep, with scouts in front, and upon

each flank. Having proceeded rapidly forward , a d i s

tance of only about two miles , the guards both front and

flanks,were sudden ly shot down ; the forest rang with

the w ar whoop of a savage foe, and in an instant the

greater part of the d ivi s ion found its elf involved in the

m idst of a formidable ambuscade . S t Leger having

been informed of the advance of Gen . Herkimer, (in the

manner al ready indicated, ) had detached a portion of S i r

John Johnson ’s regiment,under command of Si r John ’ s

brother - in - law,Maj or Watts

,Col . Butl er with h i s R an

gers,and J oseph Brant with a strong body of Ind ians , to

intercept hi s approach .

With true Indian sagacity,a pos ition had been select

ed admirably fitted for the purpose of drawing the Amer

icans into an ambuscade . There was a deep ravine cross

ing the route whi ch Gen. Herkimer and h is undisci

plined army was travers ing.

The bottom of thi s rav ine was marshy , and the road

crossed it by mean s of a log causeway. The ravine swept

round in a s emicircle,at that point

,and the ground eu

closed in that semi ci rcle was somewhat elevated,and

l evel . The ambush lay upon thi s elevated ground , and

was s o d isposed,as to encircl e the ground occup ied

,with

the exception of a narrow segment Open for the entrance

of the provincial s on their appro ach . The stratagem was

successful . The whole army of Gen . Herkimer with theexception of the rear guard

,Col . V ischer ’s regiment

,fel l

into the trap . The baggage and amunition wagons,

whi ch had j ust des cended into the ravine , were al s o cut

off from the main body,by the sudden clos ing up of the

c i rcle . Being thrown into i rretri evable d i sorder by the

2 80 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

suddenness of the surprise , and the destructiveness of the '

fire,whi ch w as close and bri sk , for a time

,it p artook

m ore of the character of a m assacre,than of a battl e at

every Opportun i ty,the savages concealed behind the

trunks of trees,darted forward with kni fe and tomahawk

to ensure the destruction of those who fel l w ounded and

m any, and fierce,were the confl i cts that ensued hand to

hand .

The veteran Herkimer fell wounded , in the early part

of the acti on a musket bal l having passed through , and

ki lled h i s horse, and shattered hi s own l eg, j ust bel ow the

knee . Th e General was placed upon h is saddle against

a tree,for hi s support

,continued to order the battl e . Col .

Cox and Captains Davi s and Van S layck, were several ly

kil led,n ear the commencement of the battl e ; and the

slaughter of thei r broken ranks,from the rifles of the T o

r i es,and the spears and tomahawks of the Indians

, was

dreadful . B ut even in th i s deplorabl e s ituation, (says

Col . Stone) the wounded General , h i s m en fal ln l ike

l eaves around h im,and the forest resounding with the

horrid yells of the savages , r inging high , and wild , above

the din of battle,behaved with the most perfect fi rmness

and composure .

The action had lasted about forty - fi ve minutes,in great

d isorder,before the Provincial s formed th emselves into

ci rcles,in order to repel the attack of the enemy

,who

w ere concentrating and clos ing in upon them from al l

s ides . From thi s moment the resi stan ce of the Prov in~

cials was more effecti ve ; and the enemy attempted to

charge with the bayonet.

The firing ceased for a time,excepting the s cattering

d i scharges from the fire of the Indians,and as .the bayo

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2 82 HISTORY OF BUF FALO .

known to the Provincial s , and as they advanced near toeach other in the confl i ct

,mutual recognitions

, added

fi erceness to the contest, and it became more bitter than

before mutual feel ings of resentment,and revenge

,

raged in their bosoms as th is force advanced upon the

Provincial s,they fired upon them

,and then rushed upon

them,attacked them with their bayonets

,and the butts

of thei r muskets , or both parties in closer contest, throt

tled each other,and drew thei r kn i ves

,stabbing

,and

sometimes l iteral ly dying in each others embrace.

This fierce contestwas continued with increased feroci

ty , for some time , and a remarkable degree of courage,

fortitude,and bravery

,was exh ibited by indi vidual s of

the Colonists,whose names have been recorded

,and wil l

be embalmed in the memory of a grateful country it i s

sa i d that about thirty of the Royal (Johnson’ s ) Greens

were killed in thi s confl i ct,bes ides many Indian warri ors .

Such a confl i ct could not be mainta ined long.

'

The In

dians finding that the brunt of the battl e fel l on them,

and that thei r numbers were sadly d imin i shed , a signal

was given, in Ind ian , to retreat, which was obeyed with

precipitancy. Firing in the d irection of the fort,was

h eard,the Rangers (Butlers ) and the Greens (Johnson

’s )retreated as precip itately as the Indians had done , l eav

ing the Provincial s masters of the field .

Thus ended one of the blood iest battles of the revolu

ti on,cons i dering the numbers engaged . It i s said

,sev

eral of the wounded and prisoners of the provincial s ,were killed by the savages

,after they were brought into

Col . Butl er’ s own quarters . Upon the retreat of the

enemy, the provincial s proceeded to remove thei r wounded ,as best they cou l d ; among these , was thei r brave old

BRAVERY OF GEN . HERKI MER . 2 83

General,who had so nobly v indicated h i s character for

courage,during the day . Though wounded almost in the

first onset,he had borne h imself during the s i x hours of

the confli ct, under the most trying circumstances with

a degree of fortitude and composure,worthy of al l admi

ration . Nor w as h i s example without its influence upon

h is troops , in sustainn them,in the try ing circumstan

c es,by whi ch they were surrounded , and through wh ich

they were cal led to pass . I t i s sai d that at one time dur

ing the battle , while S itting upon h i s saddle , in the pos i

tion which has al ready been des cribed,it was proposed

to remove him,to a l ess exposed s ituation , he repl i ed ,

no, I wi ll face the enemy .

” “ Thus surrounded with a

few m en , he continued to i ssue h i s orders with firmness .In this s ituati on

,and in the heat of the onslaught

,he

del iberately took from h is pocket,h i s tinder- box

,lit h i s

p ipe,and smoked with the greatest composure .”

The loss of the English in th is engagement, says Col .

S tone,was equal ly , if not more severe than that of the

Ameri cans . Johnson’ s Royal Greens ,”and Butl er ’ s

Rangers” must have suffered severely,although no returns

were given in the contemporaneous accounts . “ I beheld,

says an eye witness who crossed the battl e fiel d some

days afterward,

“ the most shocking sight I ever w it

nessed. The Indians and wh ite m en were mingled with

one and another,j ust as they had been l eft when death

had first completed h is work . Many bod i es had been

torn by wil d beasts .

It has been Supposed that the Senecas w ere inveigled

into thi s confl i ct,by the artifi ces of the Johnsons, B ut

“

Frederick S ammons.

2 84 HISTORY OF BUFFA LO .

l ers,and Claus , the agents or emm issaries of the Engl i sh

government,and that they res isted the importunity of

these agents for a length of time,expressing thei r deter

mination to take no part in the war, as appears by the

statement of Mary Johnson,the whi te woman , who

then res ided with the Senecas,

at Geneseo : After

describing the quiet,and peace enj oyed by the Indians ,

after the close of the French w ar , unti l the breaking out

of the revolution , she says ,“ we

,as usual

,were enj oy

ing oursel ves in the employment of peaceable l ife , when

a messenger arrived from the Briti sh commissioners ,requesting al l the Indians of our tribe

,to attend a gen

eral council,whi ch was soon to be held at O swego . The

counci l convened,and being opened

,the Briti sh com

miss ioners inform ed the ch iefs that the obj ect of cal l ing a

coun ci l of the S ix Nati ons was,to engage thei r ass i st

ance in subduing the rebel s,the peopl e of the states , who

had risen up again st the good king,thei r master , and

were about to rob him of a great part of h i s possess ions

and wealth,and added that they would amply reward

them for thei r servi ces . The ch i efs then arose and informed

the commissioners of the nature and extent of the treaty

whi ch they had entered into with the people of the states ,the year before

,and that they would not v iolate it by

taking up the hatchet agains t them .

“ The commiss ioners continued thei r entreati es with

ou t success,ti l l they addressed thei r avari ce

,by tel l ing

our people, that the peopl e of the states were few in num

ber,and eas ily subdued

,and that on account of thei r

d isobedience to the king,they j ustly merited al l the pun

ishm ent that it was possible for white m en and Indian s to

infl i ct on them and added,that the king was

‘

rich,and

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2 86 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

killed and wounded . Our Indians,the"Senecas , al one

had thirty - s i x kil led,and a great number wounded . Our

town exh ibited a s cene of real sorrow and d istress,when

our warriors returned , recounting thei r misfortunes , and

stated the real loss they had sustained in the engagement.The mourning was excess i ve , and was expressed by themost doleful yell s , shri eks , and howlings

,and by inim it

able gesti culati ons . During the revolution my house

was the home of Col . Butler and Brant, whenever they

chanced to come into our neighborhood , (Genesee , ) as

they passed to and from Fort Niagara , whi ch was the

seat of thei r mil itary Operati ons many and many a n ight

I have pounded samp for them ,from sun set til l sun ris e

,

and furn i shed them with the necessary provi s ions and

clean clothing for thei r j ourney.

”

The following incident i s related by D oct. Dwight,in

connection with the’

expedition of S t. Leger,against

Fort S tanwix , as it has been al so connected with the name

of a celebrated ch i ef of the Senecas,it wil l be trans

cribed here“ Inthe autumn when the seige of Fort

.Stanwix was

rai sed , be fol lowing occurrence took place here : Capt.

Greg,one of the Ameri can officers , left in the garri son

,

went out one afternoon with a corporal b elonging to the

same corps , to S hoot pigeons . When the day was far

advanced , Greg knowing that the savages were at times

prowl ing round the Fort, determined to return. A t that

m oment a smal l flock of pigeons al ighted upon a tree in

the vi cin ity . Thelcorporal proposed to try a shot at

them ; and having approached sufficiently near,was in

the act of elevating hi s piece towards the pigeons,when

the report of two rifles,dis charged by unknown hands

,

S TORY OF CAPT . GREG. 2 87

at a smal l d i stance , was heard ; the same instant, Greg

saw h is compan ion fal l , and felt h imself badly wounded

in the s ide . He tri ed to stand , but speedily fell , and in a

moment perceived a huge Ind ian making long stri des

towards h im ,with a tomahawk in hi s hand . The savage

struck h im several blows on the head , drew h i s kn ife . cut

a ci rcle through the skin from h is forehead to the crown,

and then drew off the scalp with h i s teeth . A t the

approach of the savage , Greg had counterfeited beingdead

,with as much address as he could use

,and suc

ceeded so far as to persuade h is butcher that he wasreal ly dead

,otherw i se

,measures sti l l more effectual would

have been employed to dispatch h im . It i s hardly neces

sary to observe , that the pain produced by these wounds ,was intense and dreadful ; those On the head were , how

ever,the most excruciating, although that in h is s i de was

bel i eved by him,to be mortal . The savages having fi n

ished thei r bloody business,w ithdrew . As soon as they

were fai rly gone , Greg, who had s een h i s compan i on fal l ,determined

,if poss ible

,to make h i s w ay to the S pot

where he lay ; from a persuas ion,that i f h e could place

h i s head upon the corporal ’ s body, it would in some de

gree rel i eve h i s excess i ve anguish . Accord ingly he madean effort to ri se

,and with great d ifficulty having succ

ceeded, immediately fel l . He was not only weak and

d istressed , but had been deprived of the power of selfcommand

,by the blows of the tomahawk . S trongly

prompted,however, by th is l ittl e h ope of mitigating hi s

sufferings,he made a second attempt and fel l . After;

s everal unsuccessfu l efforts,he final ly rega ined h i s feet

,

and s taggered sl owly through the forest,h e at l ength

reached the S pot where the corporal lay . The Indian

2 88 HI STORY OF BUFFAL O .

who had marked h im for h is prey, had taken surer aim

than hi s fel low,and kil led him outright. Greg found

h im l ifeless,and scalped . Wi th some d iffi culty he la id

h i s own head u pon the body of h is compan i on,and as he

had hoped,found cons iderabl e rel ief from th is pos ition .

While he w as enj oy ing thi s l ittle comfort, he m et wi thtrouble from a new quarter . A smal l dog which belonged to h im

,and had accompan i ed him in his hunting

,

but to which he had been h i therto inattenti ve,now came

up to him in apparent agony,and leaping around him in

a vari ety of involuntary motions,yelped

,whined and

cried,in an unusual manner

,to the no smal l molestation

of h is master. Greg w as not in a s ituation to bear thedisturbance even of aff e ction . He tri ed in every way ,

wh ich he could th ink of,to force the dog from h im

,but

he tried in va in . A t l ength wearied by hi s cries and agitations, and not knowing how to put an end to them

,he

add ressed the an imal as i f h e had been a rational being.

If you wish so much to h elp me, go and cal l some one to

my rel ief. A t these words , the creature instantly left

him and ran through the forest at ful l speed , to the great

comfort ofhis master , who now hoped to d ie qu ietly. The

dog made h is way d i rectly to three m en belonging to the

garri son,who were fish ing at the d is tance of a mile from

thi s tragedy as soon as he came up to them ,he began

to cry in the same affecting manner, and advancing near

them turned and went sl owly back towards the point

where h is master lay , keeping hi s eye continually on the

am en ; all thi s h e repeated severa l times . A t l ength one

of the m en observed to h is compan ions that there was

something very extraord inary in the actions of the dog ;and that in h i s opini on they ought to fi nd out the cau s e .

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2 90 HISTORY O F Z B U F F A L O .

in their own way , and after their own barbarous manner.

B ut the representations of the agents and officers as the

Johnsons and thei r auxil iari es were cal led,that it woul d

be easy to restra in and control the Ind ians to a more humane and civ i l ized mode of warfare

,finally preva i l ed

,

and the consent of the government was given to the

m easure,against the j udgment and feel ings of at l ea st

some of the ofi icers of the crown .

EXTRACT O F C O L . CLAUS ’ LETTER TO SECRETARY KNOX .

Dated Montreal,Nov. 6th

,1777.

“ It i s the opin i on of s everal that had I not appeared

at the exped ition,and Joseph (Brant) acted so indefatig

ably and cleverly,with h is party

,as to cause an emula

tion,the S ix Nati ons would not have been encouraged to

act, (when the rebels advanced upon us ) by Col. Butl er ,

they having declared publ i cly , that they were not cal l e d

to war,but to a congress to be hel d at O swego, and re

ceive presents .” it it

In November,Col . Guy Johnson writing to Lord

George Germain,makes a general report of hi s proceed

ings as general Superintendent of Ind ian Affa i rs,ofwhi ch

the fol lowing i s an extract

Thi s l etter i s dated N ew York,November 11

,1777.

The greater part of those m en from the S ix Nati ons ,with my offi cers in that country

,j oined Gen . S t Leger’ s

troops , and S i r John Johnson’ s Provincial s

,and were

principal ly concerned in the acti on,near Fort S tanwix ,

when the rebel s lost thei r General,and s everal of thei r

p rincipal oflice rs, and a large number of their men,and

COL . GUY JOHNS ON T o LORD GERM AIN . 2 91

the Indians had about thi rty of thei r principal warriors kil l

ed and undoubtedly had the number ofmen under Brig

adier General S t Leger been adequate to the serv i ce and

the difficulti es , they m et wi th,the Indians would have

rendered more material servi ce .

O n the other communi cati on,Gen . Burgoyne has

testified for them,to whom the Mohawk tribes were

obliged to reti re,after the unlucky affa i r at Bennington

,

whi ch rai sed the drooping spirits of the rebels , who have

s ince burned the Mohaw k v illages , ofwhich I shal l ava i l

myself,as it will strengthen the resentment of the sever

al Nati ons .

The rebels have als o completed the destruction ofmy

property,and parcel l ed out my estate . The S ix Nations

complain much of the One idas the manner in wh ich .

they have been seduced by the N ew England Missi ona

r i es,I long s ince represented . I know they are much

more incl ined to neutral ity,than to war , bu t they are too

incons iderable,to deserve much noti ce , whilst the l oyal ity

of the rest,under so many di sagreeable ci rcumstances , .

merits everything I can say for them .

” it

The Senecas seem H ow to have been enti rely commit»

ted to the interest of the King. They had been led to be

l i eve that the colon i sts were poor, and weak,while the

King was ri ch,and powerful . Guy Johnson had im

p ressed th i s idea strongly upon thei r m inds ; in h i s speech

to them at O swego,in whi ch he was seconded by Brant

,

who had been to England and s een the evidences of the

wealth,and power, of the Br iti sh Nati on . The l iberal

d i str ibuti on of valuablepresents , whi ch the colon i sts were

unable to do,confirmed them more fully in the bel ief that

it was thei r true pol icy to adhere to the cause of their

great father,the King.

2 92 HIS TORY OF B UFF ALO .

In the same month the fol lowing letter was wri tten by

Cols . Bol ton and B utler to G en . Clinton

Niagara,2 3d N ov. 1777.

S IR z— Joseph (B rant) and myself are ready to wait

your orders . We wish to know your s ituation,and when

we can be of use to you,and where . We only wish to

know the time,and place

,as we are confiden t of being

wel l supported .

“ The bearer i s fai thful , and of abil ities , you r excel len

cy m ay confide in h im our friends are determined to be

so in the worst of times . MAS ON BOLTON ,

JOHN BUTLER,

D ep’ty Sup

’t Ind ’

n Affa i rs .

Gen . Clinton or oflicer commanding on the Hudson

r iver,or S ir Wm . Howe .”

It would seem from the correspondence about thi s time

that some obj ection had been made by Lord George Ger

main to employing Indians,and permi tting them to carry

on the w ar in thei r own savage and unrestrained manner.»

B ut Col . Johnson as sured h is Lord ship,that there was

no difli culty in restra ining the Ind ians in th i s respect

that the tomahawk and scalping kn i fe are not to be so

much dreaded,as he has been l ed to suppose . That the

former “ i s seldom used except to smoke through,or to

cut wood with , and that they (the Ind ians ) are very rare

ly gu ilty of anything more than s calping the dead,in

which arti cle they m ay be res trained ,”and says some

o f the Ameri can Coloni es offer a pri ce for s calps .

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2 9 4 HISTORY OF BUFFA LO .

chargeable to the Indian s of the S ix Nations . They , were

employed a t the time , in the expedi ti on ofGen . S t Leger

as a compari son of dates wil l Show. Among the cruel

ti es practi ced by the Ind ians accompanying G eu . Bur

goyne ’ s army,none has excited greater svm pathy than the

fate of Miss M cC rca . Every circumstance connected

with th i s unnatu ral and bloody transacti on (says Col .

S tone ) around wh ich there l ingers a melancholy interest

to th is day , served to heighten al ike its interest and its

enormity . Miss M cCrea bel onged to a family of Loyal

ists wh ich res ided at the vi llage of Fort Edward . She

was engaged to a young Engl i sh Officer in Burgoyne ’ s

army of the name of Jones . It had been agreed between

the parti es that when the Bri ti sh forces should advance

to the place oth er res idence,she wou l d j oin h im

,and

they would consumate the un ion to which they had m u

tual ly pledged themselves . The impati ent lover anxious

to possess h imsel f of hi s bride,sent forward three Indian

ch iefs,to bring her to the Briti sh camp . The reluctance

of her family and friends to her trusting herself to such

an escort,created some delay . B ut her affection tri

umphed over her prudence,and in Spite of the entreaty

of friends and relations,she set forward wi th no other at

tendants than her savage conductors . She w as on hors e

back. They had proceeded but a short d istance,be

fore her conductors stopped to drink at a Spring . In the

mean time her lover impati ent at the delay,d ispatched a

s econd party of Ind ians upon the same errand .-The two

parti es m et at the spring,where it i s sa id they became

engaged in a controversy about the promised compensa

ti on for their servi ces,for bringing her in safety to her

betrothed . Both parti es claimed it, which it was said ,

TRAGICAL DEATH OF M IS S M’CREA . 2 95

was a barrel of rum . In the heat of the controversy,one

of the chiefs,to pu t an end to the controversy

,s truck h er

down with h is hatche t. “ Traditi on reports that the In

d ians d i vided the s calp,and that each party carri ed half

of it to the agoni zed l over.” Before the Ind ians had l eft

the S pring, they were attacked by a purs uing party of

Provm cials,and at the clos e of the ski rmish

,the body of

Miss M cCrea was found among the sla in,tomahawked

,

and s calped,and ti ed to a pine tree

,whi ch i s yet stand

ing , a sad memorial of this terribl e deed of blood .

A correspondence passed between Gen . Gates,and

Gen . Burgoyne. relating to th i s transaction , whi ch,

in j us

t i ce to the parti es concerned,should be copi ed . After

charging the Briti sh Commander with encouraging the

Ind ian s to acts of cruelty,and the murder of defenceless

women and chi ldren by offering a price for s calps , he

thus speaks of the case above related :“ Miss M cCrea

,a young lady lovely to the s ight, of

v irtuous character and amiable d i spos i tion,engaged to

an ofli cer of your army,w as with other women and ch il

d ren taken out of a house n ear Fort Edward,carr i ed into

the woods,and there scalped and mangled in the most

horri d manner . T wo parents with s i x ch il dren were

treated with ' the same inhuman ity,wh ile quietly res ting

in th ei r own peaceful dwell ing . The miserable fate of

Miss M cCrea was parti cularly aggravated,sh e being

dressed to receive her promised husband,but met her

murderer,employed by you . Upward of one hund red

men,women

,and chi ld ren

,have peri shed by the hands

of the rufi ians,to whom it i s asserted you have pa i d the

p ri c e of blood .

”

Gen . Burgoyne repl i ed to th is l etter,repel l ing with in

2 96 HISTORY or BUFFALO .

dignati on,the charge of encouraging the outrages of the

Indians,in any m anner whatever . B ut asserted that

from the firs t,he had refused to promise

,or pay anything

for s calps . The only rewards h e offered were for prison

ers brought in,and hoped by the adopti on of thi s course

,

to encourage a more humane mode of warfare on thei r

part. He sai d “ I would not be guilty of the acts you

presume to impute to m e,for the whol e Continent of

Ameri ca,though the wealth of worlds was in its bowel s

,

and a paradise upon its surface .” In regard to the hap

les s fate ofMiss M cCrea, Gen . Burgoyne remarked

Her fal l wanted not the tragi c d i splay, you have la

bored to give it,to make it as s everely abhorred

,and la

m ented by me, as it can be by the tenderest ofher friends .

The act w as no premeditated barbarity . O n the contra

ry , two ch i efs who had brought her off for securi ty , not

of v iol ence to her person , d isputed whi ch shoul d be her

guard and in a fi t of savage pass i on,in one from whose

hands she was snatched , the unhappy woman became

the vi ctim .

Upon the first intell igence of th i s event,I obl iged the

Ind ians to del iver the murderer into my hands , and

thought to have pun i sh ed h im by our laws , or prin cipl es

of j usti ce,would have been perhaps unprecedented

,he

certainly shoul d have suffered an i gnomini ou s death , had

I not been convinced from my ci rcumstances , and obser

vation,beyond. the possibi l ity of doubt

,that a pardon un

der the terms whi ch I presented,and they accepted

,

would b e more effi catious, than an executi on to prevent

s imilar mischi efs .“ The above instance excepted

,your intel l igence is

fal se .”

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2 98 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

greatly reduced by the l osses he had sustained,h is sup

pl ies getting short,and h is commun i cations w ith h is base

of supplies being threatened,began to feel that hi s s itua

t ion was becom ing cri ti cal . His enti re Ind ian force had

l eft h im . In th is cri ti cal state of affai rs,a counci l ofw ar

was cal led in the camp of Gen. Burgoyne some of h is

officers recommended a retreat,others an attack upon the

Ameri can works . Burgoyne h imsel f expressed s trong

avers i ons to a retreat,and proposed to l ead an assaul t in

person . The attack though made with vigor, and under

d isgui se,was seasonably d iscovered by the Ameri cans ,

and repulsed,wi th great loss on the part of the Briti sh ,

who l ost more than four hundred oflicers and m en,ki l l ed

wounded , and prisoners , including the flower of h is army,while the l oss of the Ameri cans w as incons iderable . Bur

goyne now commenced h i s retreat. G en. Gates lost no

time in dispos ing h is forces s o as to intercept thi s move

ment,by throwing a force in h is rear

,upon al l the routes

by whi ch it was poss ibl e for h im to escape.

Thus surrounded with d ifficulti es,hi s effecti ve force

reduced to les s than th irty - fi ve hundred m en,short of

provi s i on s,the Ameri can army increas ing every moment

,

and now forming almost an enti re c ircl e around h im,no

al ternati ve was l eft Gen . Bu rgoyne but to negotiate the

best terms of surrender he was abl e, whi ch was done with

the unan imous consent of h i s surv iving officers . Terms of

capitulation were soon agreed upon,and on the 17th of

O ctober,1777 the Royal army surrendered pri soners of

w ar. The first meeting of Burgoyne with Gates i s thus de

scribed by G en . Wilkinson :

“Gen . Gates being advi sed of Gen . Burgoyne ’ s approach

,m et h im at the head of his camp . Burgoyne in

S URRENDER OF .GEN . BURGOYNE . 2 99

a ri ch royal un i form,and Gates in a pla in blue frock ;

when they had approached nearly wi th in a sword’

s

length,they reined up and hal ted . I then named the

gentl emen,and Gen . Burgoyne rai s ing hi s hat most

gracefully sa i d : ‘The fortune of war, Gen . Gates,has

made me you r pri soner,

’to wh ich the conqueror return

ing a courtly salute,promptly repl i ed : I shal l always

be ready to bear testimony that it has not been through

any fault of your excellency.

Gen. Burgoyne with all h is general offi cers were treat

ed with the courtesy and cons i deration due to brave , but

unfortunate m en . They were received into Gen . Gate ’ s

quarters,and entertained by him at a d inner

,where the

conversation w as affable and free . The whole conduct of

G en . Gates was highly honorable to h i s generos ity,which

Gen . Burgoyne and h i s offi cers duly appreciated,and

publi cly acknowledged .

C H A P T E R X I X .

The year 1778 was an eventful one for the Senecas ;and in order to a fu l l understand ing of these events

,a few

extracts from the offi cial correspondence of th is peri od

wil l introduce the noti ce of them .

Extract of a letter of Col . Guy Johnson to Lord Ger

ma in,dated New York

,1 2 th March

,1778 .

M Y LORD I have now the pleasure to inform your

Lordsh ip,that notwi thstand ing the events of last cam

paign to the northward , the Indians are as firm as ever,

and eager for s ervi ce a courier having j u st arr i ved here ,wi th messages to me

,and a bi llet to the General

,s igned

by Li eut. Col . Bolton,commanding at Niagara

,and by

my deputy Mr . Butler,of which the enclosed i s a copy

which briefly shows thei r zeal,readiness

,and abil iti es .

O n thi s subj ect,I have by di rection of S ir Henry Clinton

w rote at large to S ir Wm .Howe,whose commands I hope

shortly to receive,that I m ay send back such messages ,

as he approves or such as wil l prepare them (the Ind ians)to meet me

,agreeable to the proposal I submitted to your

Lordsh ip,and to h im

,at such time

,and place

,to the

northward,as should be approved of for the purpos e of

keeping the Indians out of the reach of rebel emis sari es ,and o f employing them in the way most s ervi ceabl e to

the g overnment.

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302 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

erations,as wel l as under what restri cti ons they are to

act,s ince it appears they are s o much misrepresented in

the arti cl e of cruelty . It i s wel l known my Lord,that

the Colon i sts , sol icited the Indians early in 1775 , that

they proposed to make me prisoner,that

'

they carri ed

some Indians then to thei r camp , near Boston , as they did

others s ince,who were taken in the battle on Long Island .

That the tomahawk, that i s so much talk ed of,i s s eldom

used,except to smoke through

,or to cut wood with

,and

that they are very rarely gui lty of cruelty,m ore than

s calping the dead , in which arti cle even , they may be

restrained . It i s al so certain,that no obj ection was m ade

to them formerly, that the king’ s ins tru cti ons of 1854

,to

Gen . Braddock,and many s ince , d irect thei r being em

ployed,whilst some of the Ameri can coloni es went fur

ther,by fixing a pri ce for scalps . Surely , foreign ene

mies have an equa l claim to human ity wi th others . Per

haps some of these hints are not amiss,my moti ves

,I

hOpe, wil l apologi se for them , I am persuaded that I

am by no means desti tute of the feel ings of human ity,

and that I can restrain the Indians , from acts of savage

cruelty ; but as I must be ignorant of the intended oper

ations, I can only humbly propose , as I have al ready

done,to coll ect the Indians in some fitting place

,out of

the reach of the rebel agents,ti l l the arr ival of more

troops,or ti l l some m ov ement can be made

,that wil l

give us the possession of the important commun i cation ,

between thi s and the lakes ; and if, in the mean time , I

can be honored w ith your Lordsh ip ’ s commands , or be

directed to give any further agreeable appearances to the

EXPEDITION AGAIN ST WYOM IN G . 303

Indians,it wil l be h ighly pleas ing to them

,and useful to

h i s Maj esty ’s servi ce .

I have the honor to be,wi th great respect

,

My Lord , your Lordship’ s

Ob ’ t and most hmb ’ l s ervant,

G . JOHNSON .

How well these promises were kept,or these restra ints

upon the savage mode of warfare practi ced by the Indi

ans were real ized,the h istory of the unrestrained Indian

war instigated by the agents and officers of the Briti s h

government, during ;th i s year , furn i sh the melancholy

evi dence . The slaughter of Wyoming,w as perpretated

by a party cons i sting of loyal i sts,or tories

,and Indians

,

under Col . John Butler . The expedition w as organ i zed

at N iagara,and was undoubtedly largely augmented

' in

its march through the country,both by additi ons of

wh ites and Indians . There have been publ ished,s everal

d ifferent vers ions of thi s affai r,most of whi ch assume

that Joseph Brant led the Ind ian s on the occas ion . B ut

the offi cial report of Col . Guy J ohnson,shows that Brant

was not present,but engaged , at the time

,on another

expedition . It i s equal ly certain,that the Indians enga

ged were principal ly Senecas,and were l ed by their own

war ch iefs,to whose skil l and bravery the succes s of the

enterpris e was mainly attributable . The original force,

cons i sted of about three hundred white m en,principal ly

refugee loyal i sts,u

'

nder Butl er,and about five hundred

Indians . The expediti on l eft Niagara the latter end of

June , 1778 , passing by w ay of the Indian settlement, on

the Genesee ri ver,to Tioga point, where the forces were

embarked on floats,and rafts , and descending the S usque

hanna,landed at a place called Three Islands

,whence

304 H ISTORY OF BUF FAL O .

they marched abou t twenty miles,and cross ing a wilder

ness,entered the val ley of the IVyom ing. The inhab i

tants,on being apprised of the advance of the invaders

,

reti red into a fortification,cal led “Fort Forty .

” Col .

Z ebu lon Butl er, who was in command of the colon ial

forces,w as desi rous of waiting wi thin the Fort

,for rein

forcements,which were hourly expected . B ut

,being

overrul ed by h is officers,in th is prudent resolution

,he

marched out, wi th about four hundred m en,to meet the

advancing foe, whose force was greatly under estimated

by the colon ists .

Col . John Butler had encamped wi th hi s forces,at

some miles d istance,from the fort ; and it w as the intsu

ti on of the Ameri cans,by a sudden m ovement

,to sur

prise thei r camp but thei r approach was discovered by

an Ind ian s cout,who immediately gave the alarm . They

however pushed forward rapidly , but found the enemy

formed in l ine of battle,in front of h i s camp

,on a pla in

th inly covered wi th p ine,shrub - oak

,and underbrush

,

and extend ing from the r i ver to a marsh , at the foot of

the mounta in . O n coming in vi ew of the enemy,the

Americans,who had advanced in s ingl e column

,imme

diately deployed into l ine , of equal extent. The right

wing,commanded by Col . Z ebulon Butl er

,the left wing

by Col . Denis on . The left of the enemy rested on “Wit

ermoot’

s Fort,

”al ready in flames , and w as commanded

by Col. John Butler, who , d ivested of hi s un i form ,ap

peared on the ground,with a handkerch i ef ti ed round h i s

head . His d ivis ion w as composed of refugees and l oy

al ists ; a company of Johnson ’ s Royal Greens,under

Capt. Cal dwell , formed on B utler ’ s right,wi th Ind ian

sharp shooters fi l l ing the space between . The main

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HI S TORY O F BUFFALO .

wing was thrown into confus ion,and al l efforts to form a

new l ine at right angles with the first,to meet this new

attack,proved unavai l ing . The rout became general .

O n seeing thi s , the Indians throwing away thei r guns,

rushed in with horri d yells,us ing only thei r tomahawks

,

wi th terribl e executi on . No quarter w as given,and

many are the records of personal bravery exhibited on.

that bloody field that day . So terrible was the slaughter,

that it i s sa i d “that less than s ixty of the Ameri cans

es caped,either the rifle or the tomahawk. Al though

there have been many thri ll ing narrati ves of the “massa

ere” sai d to have ‘ been perpetratad at th i s time at Wyo

m ing, yet the truth of h istory compel s the concl us ion,that these for the most part were mere ficti ons . Stone in

h is l ife of Brant says,

“it does not appear that anything

l ike a massacre fol lowed the capitulation .

” Capt. Wal

ter Butler , in hi s letter to Gen . Clinton states pos iti vely,

that no massacre of pri soners or women and ch il drentook place at Wyoming ; and it does not appear that the

truth of thi s ass ertion was ever questi oned . The attack

upon Wyoming, as well as that upon Cherry Val ley

,

both of whi ch occurred in the same year,m ay be cous i

dered the l egitimate fruit of the measures recommended

by Col . Guy Johnson,and adopted by the Briti sh gov

ernm ent, to subdue the rebell i on . After the affai r at

Wyom ing,Col . J ohn Butl er returned to Niagara

,and the

Senecas to th ei r homes , at Kanesadaga or Genesee .

Early in October,Mr . Dean

,the Indian interpreter and

agent,wrote Maj or Cochran

,commanding at Fort Stan

wix,as fol lows “A Seneca chi ef

,cal led Big Tree

,who

was all the summer past wi th Gen . Wash ington , returned

through Oneida h e gave our fri ends there the most

MR . DEA N’s LETTER . 307

solemn ass urance,that upon arri val in h i s country , he

would exert h is utmost influence to d ispose hi s tribe to

peace and friendship with the Un ited S tates ; and that

should h is attempts prove unsuccessful , he would imme

diately leave h is nation , and j oin the Oneidas with his

fr i ends and adherents . A l ong time having elapsed,

without h earing from Big Tree,the Oneidas

,a few days

since,di spatched a runner to him

,des i ring an account ‘

of h is success . The express returned yesterday with the '

fol lowing intell igence,whi ch the sachems immediately

forwarded to me,by three of thei r warriors

,namely that

upon h i s . arr i val in the Seneca coun try,he found that

people in arms,and the two villages Kanadaseago and

Jennessee,where he was

,crowded with thei r warriors ;

col lected from the remotest settl ements . That upon Big

T ree’s fi rst arri val,appearan ces seemed to promise him

success ; but that a rumor being circulated that the Ameri

cans were about to invade them,th ey had al l flown to

arms . B ig Tree was there,and determ ined to chastis e

the enemy that dared presume to th ink of penetrating

the i r country. That they are to be j oined by all the In

dians as far as Onondaga,a smal l party of whom has

gone tomeet them,and l ikewise by those of the s everal

settl ements upon the branches of the Susquehanna . That“

the Senecas were to march the 8th,and the others the

9th instant. That the whole party were to rendezvous

at Kanakals,a place s ituated on the branch of the Sus

quehanna , cal led Ti oga branch , and from thence were to

proceed against the fronti ers of Pennsylvan ia or the Jer

seys . O ur Oneida friends rely on the authenti city of the

above intel l igence,and beg that it m ay not be neg

lected.

” O n the 6th of November,the follow ing letter

308 HIS TORY OF BUFFALO .

was sent from Fort S tanwix to Col . A lden,who com

m anded at Cherry Val ley,

“ Sir,we are just now in

formed by an Oneida Indian, arr ived at thei r cas tl e,

from one of the branches of the Susquehanna,cal led the

Tioga that he w as present at a great meeting of Ind i

ans and tories,at that place ; and the i r resu l t w as

,to

attack Cherry Val ley, and that young Butler w as to head

the tories . I send you th is information that you m ay be

on your guard . Col . Al den i mmed iately acknowledged

the receipt of the above by the return messenger. Capt.

Wal ter Butler,son of Col . John Butler, had accompa

n i e d Col . Guy . Johnson in hi s flight to Canada. He

vis i ted the Mohawk Vall ey early in the summer of 1778 ,where h e was arrested and s ent to Al bany a

,prisoner

,

and confined in the Albany j ai l . Being si ck, or feign ing

it,he was taken to a private hous e in the ci ty

,and placed

under guard . Through the conn i vance,or co- operation

of the family , the guard w as stupefi ed wi th l iquo r, and

Butler escaped on horseback to Niagara,and j oined h is

father . It i s sa id that he proj ected the exped i tion, aga inst

Cherry Val ley,to avenge the wrongs be supposed h im

sel f to have suffered in h is capture and imprisonment.

For th is purp ose be procured from h i s father who wasthen in c ommand at Niagara , the command of a part of

his regim ent,cal led Butl er ’s Rangers

,together with

authority to empl oy the forces under Brant,who had

spent most of the summer on the Susquehanna,and its vi c i

nity . O n h i s way h e m et Brant,who

,wi th h is forces

,

was return ing to winter quarters at Niagara . B rant was

d i spleas ed at b eing placed under Walter Butler,but was

preva il ed upon to j oin the expediti on. The un i ted force

c ons isted of about two hundred rangers and five hundred

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-310 HI STORY OF BUFFALO .

ting a th ick,hazy atmosph ere, favored thei r approach .

The Rangers,who were approach ing cautiously

,in ad

vance, stopped , to examine thei r pieces,the powder

being exposed to wet by the ra in . This gave the Indians

an Opportun ity to rush by,and commence the assau lt.

The ad vance body was composed principally of Senecas .

Col . Alden had escaped from the house at the moment

the Indians came -up, and ran for the fort. He was pur

sued by an Indian,with tomahawk in hand

,and cha l

l enged to surrender,whi ch he peremptorily refused to do

bu t,drew h is pistol upon h i s pursuer . It missed fire

,

upon which the Indian hurled h is tomahawk,with such

deadly aim , that it struck h im on the head,he fell , and

was scal ped,being one of the first vi ctims ofhis own most

criminal neglect of duty.

O thers of the officers were taken prison ers . The indi s

criminate massacre of the inhabitants immediately com

m enced,in wh ich

,if the accounts are true

,the savages

were exceeded in barbar ity by the tories of Butler ’ s R an

gers . A party of Indians had entered a house and ki l led

and s calped a mother and a large family of ch ildren.

They had j ust completed thei r work of death,when s ome

royal i sts belonging to thei r party came up , and dis cover

ed an infan t al i ve in the cradl e . A nIndian warri or,no

ted for hi s barbari ty,approached the cradle with upl ifted

hatchet. The babe l ooked up into hi s face and smiled ,the feel ings of nature triumphed over the feroc ity of the

savage. The hatchet fel l from hi s hand,and he was in

the act of taking the infant in h i s arms,when one of the

royal i sts,cu rs ing the Indian for h i s hum an i ty

,took it up

on the point of his bayonet,and holding it up , struggl ing

M AS SACRE AT CHERRY VALLEY. 311

in the agon i es of death , exclaimed thi s too i s a

Whole famil ies were indis criminately slaughtered . The

family of Mr. Robert Wells, cons isting of thirteen per

sons,w as barbarously murdered . O ne of the tories

boasted that he kil led Mr .Well s wh ile at prayer? ”e He,

and h i s family, were not acti ve parti sans,but remained

qu ietly , yet always performing mil itary duty when cal led

upon,to defend the country. The father of Mr . Robert

Wells,then deceased

,had been one of the Judges of Try

on county,and in that capacity, had acted with S ir Wil

l iam Johnson,and al so wi th Col . John Butl er, who had

al so been a Judge hence there exi sted an intimacy,and

fri endship,between the famil ies ; and it i s sa i d Col . John

Butl er expressed great sorrow and remorse at thei r m el

ancholy fate. In conversation relati ve to them,be re

marked,

“ I would have gone miles on my hands and

knees,to have saved that family ; and why my son d id

not do it,God only

T he ci rcumstances of the death of Miss Jane Well s,

the S i ster of M r. Robert Wells,were pecul iarly aggrava

ting. During the slaughter of the whol e family to which

she was an unwill ing spectator,she fled from the hou s e

,

and sought shelter beh ind a large pil e of wood , near by .

Here she was pursued by an Indian,who

,as be ap

proached, del iberately wiped hi s bloody kn i fe upon h i s

l eggins,and then placed it in h is sheath then drawing

h i s tomahawk, he Seized her by thearm ; she possess ing

s ome knowledge of the Indian language , remonstrated ,and s uppl i cated

,in vain . Peter Smith

,a tory

,who had

formerly been a domesti c in Mr. Wells ’ family , now in

t erposed , saying , that sh e was h is s i ster, and des iring him

‘ Campbel l ’ s Annals of Tryon County.

312 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

to S pare her l ife . He shook hi s tomahawk at h im,in de

fiance,and then turn ing round

,wi th one blow

,smote her

to the earth .

A Mr. Mitchel l,who was in hi s field

,beheld a party

of Indians approaching ; he could not gain hi s house,

and was obl iged to flee to the woods . Here h e evaded

pursuit, and escaped . A m elanchol ly spectacl e present

ed itsel f on hi s return . It was the corpse of hi s wife, andfour ch i ldren . H is house had been plundered

,and set on

fi re. He extinguished the fire, and by examination ,found

l ife existing in one of hi s ch i ldren,a l ittl e girl of ten or

twel ve years of age. He rai sed her up,and placed her

in the door,and was bending over her

,when h e saw an

other party approaching. He had barely time to h ide

h imself behind a log fence , near by, before they were at

the house. From th i s h iding place he behel d an infa

m ous tory by the name ofNewberry,extinguish

' the l ittl e

S park of l i fe , wh i ch remained in h is ch ild , with a blow of

his hatchet.* Newberry was arrested as a Spy the fol

l owing summer and tried by a court martial,found guilty

and w as executed .

The house of Col . Campbell was surrounded , and Mrs .

Campbell and four ch ildren were taken prisoners . Col

Campbel l w as absent, but hastened home in time on ly to

w itness the destructi on of hi s property , and the l oss of h i s

family without knowing thei r fate . Many others were

k i ll ed,some few escaped to the Mohawk river, and the

remainder were made pri soners . Thi rty - two of the in

habitants,mostly women and ch i ldren ,

and s ixteen con

tinental sold iers , were ki l l ed . Mrs . Clyde , the wife of

'

Annals of Tryon county, p . 113.

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C H A P T E R X X .

Much obloquy has been cast upon Capt. Walter B utl er

,for plann ing

,and the manner in which th i s exped i

ti on w as executed . I t will be remembered that h i s

mother,the w i fe of Col . J ohn Butler

,and her ch i ldren

,

were detained as prisoner s of war,by the committee of

safety ; and the capture of Mrs . Campbel l and her chi l

dren,and that of Mrs . Moore and her ch i ldren , afforded

Capt. Walter Butl er an Opportun ity to procure the re

leas e of h is own relatives,by an exchange

,whi ch w as in

fact subsequently accompli shed .

O n the s econd morn ing after thei r capture,al l the cap

ti ve women,and chl ldren , (except Mrs . Campbel l and

Mrs . Moore and thei r chi ldren ,) were rel eased , and sent

back,wi th the fol lowing letter from Capt. Wa lter Butler,

addressed to Gen . S chuy l er.

CAPT . BUTLER T O GEN . S CHUYLER .

Cherry Vall ey,Nov . 12 th

,1778 .

S IR :

'

I am induced by human ity, to permit the persons

whose names I send herewi th , to return , l est the inclem

ency of the season and thei r naked and helpless s itua

tion,might prove fatal to them ; and expect that you will

LETTER OF CAPT . WALTER N . BUTLER. 315

release,an equal number of our people

,in

‘'

your hands,

among whom I expect you will perm it Mrs . Butler, and

family,to come to Canada . B ut i f you ins ist upon it, I

engage to send you , moreover , an equal number of pris

oners of yours , taken either by the Rangers , or Indians ,and will l eave it to you to name the persons . I have

done every th ing in my pow er to restra in the fu ry of the

Ind ians , from hurting women and ch ildren,or kil l ing the

pri soners that fel l into our hands,and would have more

effectual ly prevented them,but that they w ere much in

censed at the destruction of thei r vi llage at A nguagafii by

your people . I'

look upon it beneath the character of a

sold i er,to wage war with w omen and chi ldren . I am

sure that you are cons c ious,that Col . Butler or myself

,

have no des i re that your women,and chi ldren

,should be

hurt ; but be assured , that i f you pers evere in detain ing

my father’ s family, with you , that we shal l no longer take

the same pains to restra in the Indians from prisoners,

women and chi ldren,that we have heretofore done.

I am your Humble Servant,

WALTER N . BUTLER ,

Capt. Com . of the Rangers .

GEN . SCHUYLER .

Mrs . Campbell and her ch ildren were taken to Kanese

daga , (near Geneva , ) where she was separated from her

ch ildren,and placed in the fami ly of a Seneca ch i ef

,to

fi l l the place l eft vacant by the death of one of its m em

bers . This family was composed of femal es,wi th the ex

ception of one aged warrior,who no longer went forth

e ither to the chas e or to w ar ; thi s ci rcumstance enabled

“O ne of the old names of Unadil la .

316 HI STORY OF BUFFALO .

her to render herself useful to them . The Indians knew

l ittl e of the most common arts of l i fe few of the Indianwomen

,could make an ordinary cal i co garment ; she

m ade garments not only for the family to which she bel onged

, but als o for the neighboring famil ies , who in re

turn,sent corn and veni son

,for thei r support. B y rea

son of these servi ces,sh e was under norestraint

,but was

free to go and come,as she pleas ed .

The Ind ians pa i d no regard to the Sabbath , but pur

sued thei r usual avocations on that day . O n her inform

ing th em that sh e kept that day sacred , they no longer

asked her to do any work , and gave stri ct orders to thei r

ch i ldren to remain s il ent,whil e in her presence .

A n Ind ian came into the house one day , and asked her

why she wore caps , saying,“ Indians do not wear caps .”

She repl i ed that it was the custom of her country women .

Well, (sai d he ,) come to my house and I wil l gi ve you

a cap.

” Her adopted mother told her to follow h im. As

soon as thev entered the house, he pulled from beh ind a

beam,a cap of a smoky color

,and handed it to her

,say

ing in Engl ish,

“ I got that cap in Cherry Val l ey . I

took it from the head of a woman .

”O n examinati on

,

she recogn i zed it as having belonged to the unfortunate

Jane Wells,and was no doubt the one sh e had on w hen

she was barbarously murdered , as it had a cut in the

crown,made by the tomahawk

,and was spotte d with

blood . She could not but d rop a tear to the memory of

one sh e had known from her infancy, as a pattern of vir

tue and l ovel iness . In the Ind ian who stood before her ,sh e saw the murderer of her friend , and turned from him

with

" Annals of Tryon county.

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818 HI STORY OF BUFF ALO .

but al so in what part of the country the unhappy prisoners from thi s S tate have been carried . I therefore send

the bearers A . B .

,and C . D .

,with a flag , to carry th is

l etter,to any place where they m ay l earn you are

,or

any other ofli cer who can accompl ish the exchange in

your absence. Shoul d the'

prisoners be in any of the In

d ian v i llages,and in conditi onto be removed

, you willpleas e to send them to the nearest of our settl ements . O r

if you do not choose to do that, I wi l l send proper per

sons to meet, and recei ve them ,at any place you m ay

appoint. I am not informed if Mrs . Butl er,her family

,

and such others as wil l be gi ven in exchange for those

you have in capti vity , and those you have suffered to re

turn, as m entioned in your letter, would choose to go at

this inclement season . If they do,they shal l b e sent ; if

not,th eymay rema in til l Spring, and then they may go

to O swego,or Canada , at thei r option . Should the pris

oners taken at Cherry Val ley,or any others belonging to

the State ofN ew York,be at Niagara

,it wil l be impossi

ble for them to return unti l Spring ; and then I request

that they may be sent to O swego, or Fort Schuyl er , (Fort

Stanwix , ) and that you will send noti ce of your determi

nati on,that provi s ion may be made accord ingly. Do not

flatter yourself, sir,that your father’s family have been

detained on account of any consequence they were sup

posed to be of ; or that it i s determined they shoul d be

exchanged in cons ideration of the threat contained in

your letter. I should hO pe for the sake of human nature ,and the honor of civi l ized nations

,that the Briti sh offi

cers,had exerted themselves in restrain ing the barbarity

of the savages . B ut it i s d ifficult even for the most di s

interested mind to bel i eve it,as numerous instances of

JAM ES CLINT ON To CAPT . BUTLER . 319

barbarity,have been perpetrated

,where savages were

not present ; or i f they were , the Briti sh force was not

sufficient to restra in them,had there been a real des ire

to do so .

The enormous murders committed at Wyoming and

Cherry Val ley,would clearlv have j ustified retal iati on

,

and that your mother d id not fal l a sacrifice to the res ent

ment of the survi vors of those famil ies,who were s o bar

berously massacred , i s owing to the humane princi ples

whi ch the conduct of thei r enem i es evinces a bel ief they

are utterly strangers to.

The flag will‘

carry thei r arms with them, that they

m ay furn i sh themselves with prov is ions,shoul d

,what

they set out with,be expended before they reach any

places where they can be suppl ied . As Capt. Butl er

m ay be absent,I enclose a copy of thi s l etter to Gen.

Schuyler .

I am,&c.

,

JAMES CLINTON.

To Capt. Walter Butl er,or any officer in the Briti sh ser

v i ce to whom thi s m ay be handed .

*

This letter w as di spatched with a flag of truce,in the

middle of winter,through the Seneca’ s country

,to Niag

ara ; and cal led forth the fol lowing reply

CAPT . BUTLER TO GEN . CLINTON .

Niagara,Feb . 18th

,1779.

S IR : I have received a l etter dated the l st of January

last,s igned by you , in answer to mine of the 12 th No

*S tones Life of Brant.

3 2 0 HI STORY OF BUFFAL O .

vember . Its contents I communi cated to Col . Bolton,the

commanding ofli cer of thi s garrison , &c.

,by whom I am

d irected to acqua int you,that he had no obj ecti on that

an exchange of prisoners , as mentioned in your letter,

shou l d take place ; bu t not being ful ly empowered by his

Excel lency,Gen . H aldimand

,to order the same immedi

ately to be pu t in execution , has thought proper I should

go down to the Commander- in - Chief for h is d i rection in

the matter . In the m ean t ime,Col . Butl er

,as he has

ever done,on every other occas ion

,wil l make every eflort

in his power,to have al l the pri soners

,as wel l those be

longing to your troops,as the women and ch i ldren in

c apti v i ty , among the different Indian nati ons , col lected ,and s ent into this post, to be forwarded to Crown Point,shou ld the exchange take place by way of Canada or at

Oswego,i f settl ed there .

In e ither case Col . Bolton des i res me to inform you ,that the prisoners shal l receive from h im

,what ass i s tance

thei r wants m ay require , whi ch prisoners have at al l

times received at th i s post. The d isagreeabl e S i tuation

of your peopl e in the Ind ian v i llages , as wel l as ours

amongst you , will induce me tom ake al l the exped iti on

in my power to Quebec , in order that the exchange m ay

be s ettl ed as soon as poss ibl e . For the good of both,I

make no doubt that h is excel l ency , Gen . H aldimand will

acquies ce in the proper exchange .

The season of the year renders it imposs ibl e that it

shoul d take place before the l oth or 15th of M ay next.

However I S hal l write you by the way of Crown Point,

Gen . H aldimand’s determination and when

,and where ,

the exchange wil l be most agreeabl e to him to be m ade .

I could wish that Mrs . Butler and her family , including

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32 2 HISTORY O F B UF F AL O .

took to the woods ; and to complete the matter, Col . D en

ni ston and h i s peopl e , appearing aga in in arms,with Col .

Hartl ey,after a solemn capitulation

,and engagement

,

not to bear arms dur ing the war and Col . Denn i ston notperforming a promise to rel ease a number of sol di ers bel onging to Col . Butl er ’ s corps of Rangers

,then prisoners

among you,were the reasons as s igned by the Indians to

me, after the destructi on of Cherry Val ley,for thei r not

acting in the same manner as at Wyoming. They added

that being charged by thei r enemies with what they nev

er had done , and threatened by them ,they had deter

mined to convince you it was not fear , which prevented

them from committing the one,and that they d id not

want spi rit to put your threats aga inst th em,in force

against yourselves .

The pri soners sent back by me,or any now in our or

the Ind ians hands , must declare , I d i d everyth ing in my

power to prevent the Indians kil l ing the prisoners or ta

k ing women and ch i ldren capti ve,or in any wis e in

j ur ing them .

Col . Stacey,and several other Officers of yours , when

exchanged,will acquit me

,and must further declare that

they have received every ass i stance before , and s ince,

thei r arri val at th is post, that could be got to rel i eve their

wants . I must however beg leave by the by , to Observe

that I experienced no human i ty , or even common j usti c e

during my imprisonment among you .

“ I enclose you a l i st of O fiicers and privates , whom I

should be glad were exchanged l ikewise . The l i st Of the

famil ies,we expect for those as wel l sent back as others

in our hands , you have l ikew i se enclosed . Col . S tacey

OLD KING’S ADDRES S T o M R S . CAM PBEL L . 32 3

and s everal Officers and others (of) your people are at th i s

post and have l eave to wri te.

I am your very humble servant,WALTER N . BUTLER,

Capt. Corps of R angers .

Brigad ie r General Clinton of the Continental forces .

Capt. Butler obta ined the assent ofGen. H aldimand to

the proposed exchange,and h is father

,Col . Butler l ost

no time in repai ring to the Seneca castl e at Kanedesaga

to procure the releas e ofMrs . Campbell and her ch i l dren .

Th i s was a matter of some difficulty,as the Indians wer e

v ery reluctant to part with those they have adopted , and

the family which had adopted Mrs . Campbell,interposed

s trong Obj ecti ons to entertaining any propos iti ons for her

release.

Her cause however was warmly espoused by the old

chief sachem,S ayenquaraghta, and as a part of the fami

ly to'

which Mrs . Campbell belonged had removed to Gen

esee,whith er She herself

,was to go in a short time the

aged chi ef made a j ourney from Kanedesaga , at the foot

of Seneca lake,to Genesee

,on foot, and succeeded in oh

tain ing the consent of all the members of the family toher release. O n h is return home

,and before Mrs . Camp

bell was removed to N iagara,the Ol d chi ef came to s ee

her,and bid her an affecti onate farewell

,and wish her

success on her j ourney. Th e following i s h i s address to

her, as repeated to her by an interpreter“ Y ou are now

about to return to your home and friends ; I rej oi ce ;

you l i ve a great w ay , many day ’ s j ourney from here . I

am an old m an,I do not know that I shall l i ve to the end’

of th is war If I do,when the war is over, I w i ll come

and me you .

32 4 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

The fol lowing extraord inary exh ibiti on of the strange

vi ciss itudes of w ar , from the “ L i fe of Mary Jem i son,

”

(the white woman , ) i s inserted here , as connected with

the h istory of the Cherry Val ley massacre “ The same

year at Cherry Val ley , our Ind ians (the Senecas , ) took a

woman and her three daughters ,“ prisoners

,and brought

them on,leaving one at Canandaigua

,one at H oneyoye ,

one at Canawagus, and the other (the woman ,) at Little

Beardstown, where I resided . The woman told me that

she and her daughters , might have escaped , but that they

expected the Briti sh army on ly , and therefore made no

effort. Her husband and sons got away . After some

time they were all taken to Niagara , where they were re

deemed by Col . Butler,well clothed , and s ent home, ex

cept one daughter, who w as marri ed to a Briti sh Offi cer

by the name of Johnson . Johnson w as of the party who

captured her, at whi ch time he very unceremon iously ,

took from her finger , a gold r ing, and appropriated it toh i s own use . When he saw her aga in

.

at Niagara,he

recogn ized her,restored the ring so impol itely borrowed

,

courted , and marri ed her ; and although the marriage

ceremony was celebrated in a wilderness,far from the

rendezvous of civ i l ized soci ety, and destitute of the faci l i

t ies of obtaining the elegancies ,‘ conven i encies

,or even

the necessaries of l ife,they were s ingularly provided with

a wedding ring .

”t

Two of the sons of S i r Will iam Johnson,by Molly

Brant,it will be remembered

,were oflicers under S ir

John Johnson,and the young capti ve maiden

,capti vated

her captor,and under these strange ci rcumstances

,was

Th is must be M rs. Moore and her children —En.

fL ife OfMary Jemison, p . 1 15.

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32 6 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

ing the heaps Of slain , and with her arms covered with

gore,barbarously murdering the wounded

,who in vain

suppl i cated for their l ives .”

Mrs . Campbel l w as transferred from Niagara to M on

treal , hav ing recovered three of her children at the former

post. O n her arr i val at Montreal she m et Mrs . Butler,

who had already been released,who had in charge Mrs .

Campbel l ’ s fourth child,a l ittl e son

,who although he had

not forgotten h is mother,had forgotten h is mother tongue ;

h e coul d speak on ly Indian . He w as dressed in the uni

form O f Butl er ’ s Rangers . From Montreal,M rs . Camp

bell was s ent to A lbany by w ay of lake Champla in ,where

s he joined her husband .

*

The truth of thi s statement in regard to Catharine M on

tour, i s doubted by Col . Stone . He says , from the an

tecedent character of that remarkabl e woman,thestorv

can hardly be credited .

”

tThe question as to who led the Indians at the battl e of

Wyoming,i s one that has been Of rather difficult sol u

‘

tion . Brant,for many years

,w as the r eputed

'

leader,

but this was deni ed by Brant himself,and it i s a matter

of record,that John Brant

,the son of Joseph Brant

,v is

i ted the author of Gertrude,ofWyoming

,and exh ibit

ed to Mr. Campbel l documents,to prove that h is father

was not present at the battl e of Wyoming,whi ch were

e nti rely sati sfactory to Mr . Campbel l,who d id not hes i

tate to correct the error into whi ch he had falh-n,in the

n ext ed ition of hi s work,and in a l etter over h i s own sig

nature,dated London , J an . 2 0 th

,1 82 2 .

Col . Stone,in h is l ife of Brant

, (see note to the 4 th ed i

t ion,p . says : “ The Indians engaged were ch i efly

*Annals of Tryon county .

tS tone’

s L ife of Brant,p. 339 t . l .

INDIAN LEADER AT THE BATTLE OF WYOM ING . 32 7

S enecas . Their l eader was a ch ief named C i- en - gwah

toh.

” This does not at all rel i eve the subj ect of diffi cul

ty . G i- en -gwah - toh,in Seneca

,i s i denti cal with S ay - en

qua- ragh - ta in Mohawk

,and i s the name

,or titl e

,of the

same ind iv idual— and means the bearer of the smoking

brand , from the great counci l fire of the S ix Nati ons,to

kindle that of the Seneca N ati on “ His O fi cial name,

(says Rev . Asher Wright, in a manuscript letter,) was

Gui -yah -

gwaah- doh

,which I understand to mean

,the

smoke has pas sed by,but the i d ea intended to be con

veyed was smoke

x“T he fol lowing is an extract of a letter written in answer to one of ih

quiry, written by the author to R ev. Ashur Wrigh t. M r. Wrigh t hasbeen long a resident among the Senecas, and unquestionably has a betterc ritica l knowledge of the S eneca language, than any white man now l iv

ing. S peaking of “Young King, ” he says : “ That son was a chief ofsome distinction

,and hel d the important offi ce of internuncius between

the grand council of the S ix Nations and the S eneca Nation. H e bore thesmoking brand from the great council fi re to k indle that of the S enecas.H is official name was Gu i- yah~

gwaah- doh

,which I understand to mean

the smoke has passed by,from gwaah, smoke

,and oahdoh

,it is passed

,

or has passed by bu t the idea intended to be conveyed was “smoke bear

Hence the white people fin ding that the idea of smoke was in hisIndian name

,gave him that appel lation

,and cal led his father “ O ld

Smoke,

”not knowing that father and son can never bear the same name

among the Indians,for they belong to different clans or tribes ; and al l

names are clan proper ty,so to Speak. T he parents mu st always be of d if

ferent clans,becau se they must not bear a blood relationsh ip to each oth

er. T he children a lways belong to the clan of the mother,and may bear

the offi ces O f that clan and no other . Chieftiauship w as inherited fromthe mother ’ s brothers

,never from the fathers. H ow the name of“King

came to be applied to the smoke bearer of those days. I have not beenable to learn ; bu t having O b tained it, and the father and the son bothdwe l ling in the same house , he w as cal led Young King

,

”and his father

“ O ld K ing,

”to d istingu ish them from each other. I have not seen the

Johnson manuscripts,bu t the name you give from them for O ld King,

appears to be the Mohawk mode of pronouncing the offi cial title ofYoungK ing, and withou t doubt, belonged to his predecessor in offi ce

, (al l thenames of ch iefs are names of offi ce. and are handed down from generationto generation. ) Probably his maternal uncle or grandfather

,was his im

mediate predecessor. I t cou ld not have been his fa ther ; and if that namewas appl ied to the father by wh ite people , it must have been through ignorance of Indian custom bu t my knowledge of the Indians

,makes

*Some say it is from O yah-

gwaah . smoke , and oh -w ah- doh, it is extinguished , orat has disappeared ; in O ther words , it has gone ou t o f sight. This may b e a betterefi nition.

2 8 HIS TORY OF BUFFALO .

“ Old King,or “ Ol d Smoke

,as he w as familiarly

cal led by the wh ites,w as the chief sachem of the Sene

cas at Kanesadaga , (Geneva ,) from about 1655 to the

t ime O f the destructi on of that town by Gen . Su l l i van,in

1779. I t was in the spring of th is year,that he is m en

tioned in connection wi th the l i beration of M rs . Camp

bel l,as an Ol d m an

,

”and we learn from the narr ati ve

of the Gilbert family,that be

,with h i s family

,were at

Niagara in 1780 , and that he came to Buffal o Creek with.

h i s daughter,the wife of Rowland Montour

,and the r est

Of hi s family,in the spring of 1781 , and subsequently

d ied,and w as buried at “ Smoke’ s Creek .

” Now it i s

impossibl e that he shou l d have been the l eader of the In

d ians at Wyoming in 1778 . T he question then ari se s,

who was the Gui - y ah-

gwaah- doh that l ed the Indian s on

that occas ion ? It coul d not have been “ Young King,

”

who bore that title in 1 82 5,for at the time of the battl e

ofWyoming,he could have been no more than n ine years

of age . Some other ind ividual bearing that name or titl e,

for such it was,must have been the l eader . The Ind ians

say that Old B lack Snake,

”was one of the l eaders on

that occas ion. He died a few years s ince at Al l eghany

,

aged over one hundred years .

It i s very certa in that the s tatement made by “ the in.

i t certain tome, that whoever bore that Mohawk name , was some maternal re lation of Young K ing.

’T he dates w il l help to determ ine whether

he w as his immed iate , or some more distan t p rede cessor in O ffi ce. Veryl ike ly

,if the name occurs th rough a period of many years, several d iffer

ent persons were intended by it, bu t no one of them shou ld have beencal led Head Chief” of the S enecas, for each one of therrr, al l from the

organization of the confederacy downward,was simply in his day , the

messenger of the confederate counc il , to k indle the S eneca council fi re, onb usiness of the confederation . Personal ly, he m ight be aman of great influence , and thus be a head man

,bu t offi c ial ly

,he cou ld only be an inter

nunc ius ; and I suspect it is the nature of his O ffi cial business that giveshim , in the manuscrip ts. the appearance of being a Head Ch ie t‘, to thoserrnacquainted w ith the Ind ian mode of doing business .

”

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330 HIS TORY OF BU FFALO .

I t has been stated that thi s certificate bore evidence on

its face of its spu rious character . The certificate purports

to be given by ‘Col . John Bu tler,and i s s igned by h im as

Superintendent Of the S i x Nati ons , and the al l i es of his

Maj esty .

” Now Col . John Butler had for many years

before,and up to the time of the breaking out of the Rev

O lution,been a magistrate

,and Judge

,in the county of

Tryon . Of course , he w as a man of education . He un

derstood and spoke the Indian language,at least the M o

hawk,as all accounts show . He had often written the

name of the “ principal Seneca ch ief,” named in th is cer

tifi cate , which in the Mohawk i s un i formly written by

Sir Will iam Johnson,and al l h is cotemporari es

,Sayen

quaraghta , whil e in th i s certificate it i s spell ed Kaying

w aurtow which spel l ing it would be absurd to attribute to

C 0 1. Butl e r. So al s o the w ord Sanake.” i s l iable to the

same cri ti ci sm . None of the copi es of th is certificate bear

any date ; bu t inasmuch as the certificate purports (very

absurdly,) to specify the person s to whom these scalps be

.l onged , the all us i on Of course , as i s very pla in , refers to the

case of Capt. Greg and h i s subord inate,who were scalped

near Fort Stanwix,as has been al ready related

,in 1778 .

Col . Butler d id not hold the offi ce of Superintendent of

the S ix Nations at that time . That Office w as h eld by

C o". Guy Johnson , in 1778 , and for several y ears after

wards . Again,there can be no reason assigned why such

a certifi cate should be given at al l . It promi ses “ to pay

at s ight, ten dollars for each scalp.

” If he w as to pay it,why d i d he not pay it ? Moreover , th i s i s not the way mil i

tary O fiicers make di sbursements for the government they

serve ? The absurd ity of the whole thing i s too apparent

.O n the face of it,and m ay be explained by what i s added

BRANT nor WAR ca mp or T HE srx NATIONS . 831

by the “ industrious gleaner of incidents of border warfare

,

” who says : It having been asserted in Congress,

after the war,that there was no evidence of the fact

,that

the Briti sh government authorized the payment of money

for s calps , the certificate of C ol . Butl er to Kayinguarto,

known by one of the N ew York members to be in M a

chin’ s posses s ion,was s ent for and was accord ingly for

warded to the s eat of government ; the evidence it contained w as sati sfactory

,that Brita in d id buy Ameri can

s calps,and thus the controversy ended .

”

The statement made by Col . Stone,

that Brant

had been advanced to the s ituati on of principal war

ch ief of the confederacy,in 1776, i s undoubtedly er

roneous . In the first place,there was no such office

recogn i zed in the confederacy each nati on had its

own warriors and war ch iefs . There was but one office

that was an offi ce conferred by the confederacy,and that

was the ch i ef speaker at Onondaga,where the counci l s of

the S ix Nations were h eld . It w as an office s imi lar to

that of our Speaker in the House of Representatives at

Wash ington, or in our Assembly at A lbany,and confer

red no authori ty beyond that of pres id ing over, or open

ing the great counci l of the confederacy, or the dut i es

c onnected with it .

B ut we have other ev idence that even the Mohawks ,who accompan i ed S i r John Johnson in h i s fl ight to Can

ada,d id not recogni ze Brant as thei r head

,or chi ef war

r ior . For we see that they actual ly chose Peter Johnson ,a natural son of S ir W i l l iam Johnson , to be thei r l eader ,and that Col . Guy Johnson recommended that he should

be commiss ioned as s uch,to give encouragement to the

Indians . In a note,Col . Stone admi ts that it has been

332 HI STORY O F BUF FAL O .

deni ed,that Brant ever received the appointment of

principal ch ief,” but reiterates the statement onithe au

thority of“Davi d Cusick

,

”a very unrel iable authority

for any h i stori cal fact.

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334 ms'ros r O F BUF F ALO .

pan ics ready upon the first noti ce , to s end to your rel ief.

A t the same time, let me tell you , that the great King

your father , i s not spar ing of h is troops , nor lets you fight

his battles by yourselves . If you were to see the numer

ous armies along the sea coast, and their vigorous opera

tions, you woul d stop such reflecti ons , and rather ac

knowledge that your country ’s safety,greatly depends

upon that,for you know very wel l , that the rebels in 1774

attempted to d i spossess you of your country,and i f they

once got the better of the King’ s troops

,they would soon

pursue thei r encroachments upon your country, and dri ve

you a great di stance in the back country .

“ As to your apprehens ions of the rebels coming to at

tack your country I cann ot have the least thought of itif they mean anyth ing

,it i s to secur e thei r fronti ers

again st your incurs ion s and depredations,and in order to

the better enable you to keep them at bay, I shall give

my leave , and encourage the Seven Nati ons of Canada,

to co- Operate with,and j oin you in oppos ing your ene

m i es the rebels .”

In writing from Hal ifax in February,1779, he says

Mr . Butl er,my deputy , (to whom as formerly

menti oned I have transmitted instructions , ) continued

when we heard last from N ew York,to make a very

useful d ivers ion on the fronti er with a good party of

Loyal i sts and Indians and Joseph the Indian has with

a large body of Indian s,struck some capital strokes

,

wh i ch obliged the rebels to detach part of thei r force

that way , and has greatly d i s concerted them ,and by

those who carri ed dispatches to General H aldimand,

I sent instructions for m eeting the Indians , soon after the

waters become Open,hOping to leave

' thi s place so as to

arrive at Quebec about the second week in M ay . I

CO L . GUY J onnson‘

s LETTER . 335

menti oned in my last that many good woodsmen hadbeen lately enl i sted for my servi c e, as the late S i r Wil l

iam Johnson expressed , and I have experienced the uti l ity

of in corporating them with the Indians , I persuade myself it will meet your approbati on .

”

F or various reasons not given , it woul d appear Col .

Johnson ' did not l eave Hal i fax for Quebec unti l Juue1779, and arri ved on the 17th Jul y of that year.

Under date of 5th September,1779, writing from M on

treal,h e says

“When I arr ived in th is Province,I found a deputa

tion of the S ix Nations had newly come down,who w ere

parti cularly sol i c itous about troops and the re - establ i sh

ment of the important post at Ontari o,which the General

had under contemplation,but from the diffi culty that at

tended the transportati on of provis ions,he did not th ink

it practi cable th is s eason.

The Indians were the more urgent on th i s point,as

there were certain accounts that the rebel s were march

ing in a cons iderable body into thei r country,of whi ch

we have s ince had more parti cular information ; and thatmy deputy

,Maj or Butler was advancing to the rel ief of

the Senecas . I herewith enclose a Copy of the proceed

ings with the General,and shal l take another with me to

the Indians,but s ince my arrival in th is city

,the Gener

al has from further accounts,j udged it proper to order up

a body of troops with S ir John Johnson, to support and

encourage the Indians , which I cons i der as a very neces

sary measure ; and I hearti ly wish it could have been un

dertaken sooner, for I may venture to affi rm,that the Six

Nations are now from s ituati on , and ci rcumstances,of

such superi or consequence to the government, that shoul d

’

336 HI STORY OF BUFFALO .

they receive a blow of a capital nature , the rebels mightdo what they pleased on the fronti ers , and we shoul d very

soon l ose the possess ion of the lakes , and communica

t ions,as wel l as the friendship of the other Indian N a

tions,the effects of which I need not point out.

If the rebel s are not able to effect anyth ing material

very soon,I hope to furn i sh a reasonabl e re - inforcement

to oppose them,and I am confident

,if I was armed with

a proper authority to encourage the many white peopl e

who constantly reti re from the rebels to the fronti ers,and

are good woodsmen, I coul d soon have a respectable bodyof men

,fitting to be incorporated with the Indians . S ir

J ohn could do the same,and such bodies might be formed

on the spot, capable of much larger undertakings than

can be expected from the present force in that country.

I am by no means doubtfu l of success (if the present in

road of the rebels fai ls ) so long as I am supported in the

author ity,and field rank, essential to my station and

which always accompan i ed it,and should they even suc~

seed in some measure,I am not without resources .”

C O L . GU Y JOHN S ON TO LORD GERM AIN .

Niagara, 11 th N ov . 1779 .

M Y LORD —Previous to my departure from Montre

al the beginning of last September,I had the honor to ih

form your Lordsh ip of my destinati on at that time,a da

pl icate of whi ch accompan i es th is d ispatch ; a few days

after I went up the r i ver S t Lawrence, with about one

hundred and th irty whites and Indians , who were aug

m ented to two hundred and twenty, on my arri val at

”

C arl eton Island , where accounts had j ust been received

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338 HI STORY OF BUFFALO .

th is place for want of craft to transport them,under the

care of Capt. Brant, and other of my offi cers , for whom

we waited a cons iderable time, during which , it w as

found that the Canadian Indians were, notwithstanding

all the pa ins taken by Capt. Frazer , very l ittle attached

that they had decl ined go ing towards Fort S tanwix,and

that they Opposed any measures against the Oneidas , the

only obj ect then in contemplati on with any prospect.

A t the same time the General ’ s despatches arr ived, w ith

d i stributi on of win ter quarters,and orders to S ir John

J ohnson to return , accompan ied with h is approbation of

the measures that had been pursued , and a letter to me

for the d ivid ing the Ind ians between Niagara,Carleton

Island,etc.

,on account of provis ions . About th is time

an offi cer of my department, with five Indians who were

a dvanced a few miles in front of a body of rangers,cap

tured three Oneida rebels,who had been reconnoitering

,

and another party took a rebel Sergeant,from whom we

learned that the rebel s had reinforced the environs of

Fort Stanwix,with s ix hundred m en

,and had noti ce of

our motions , m ention ing parti cularly my own .

“ S ir John Johnson in consequence of h is orders,as

well as that the party by land had not been able to come

up, accord ingly decamped , and returned to th is place, on

the 2 8th u lt.,where I have been a good deal occupied in

e ndeavoring to prevai l on the Indians to send a large“body of thei r peopl e down to Carl eton Island

,for

,the

w inter, w h i ch they do not much incl ine to, as thei r late"losses induce them to be m ore un ited

,however

,thei r

number is now reduced to two thousand six hundred and

twenty - eight,the m aj ori ty of whom will remain herea o

'

i-bou ts, .and from the s ituati on to which thev have been

COL . GUY J onnsO N’s REPORT . 339

r educed through thei r attachment and servi ces to govern

m ent,I humbly concei ve they are entitl ed to every mark

o f attention , that can be afforded , as well from principles

o f j usti ce , as from pol i cy. I propose to employ them use

ful ly O n the communi cations , through the winter, and to

use every endeavor for keeping up thei r S pirits , and pre

serving thei r attachment to government, whi ch has hith

erto proved to be of s o much use to h is Maj esty ’ s inter

sets,and on which the safety of the country so much de

p ends . I t i s an arduous undertaking, s ince their late los

ses,but I enter on it with confidence, and

’

the expecta

tion of your Lordsh ip ’ s continuance , and I persuade myself if measures can be taken next spring

,for reestabl ish

ing Fort Ontario, (Oswego) which they have much at

heart, and supporting hi s Maj esty ’ s arms with a proper

body of trO O psp they will not a l ittle contribute to their

success .

I cannot concl ude without recommending the good con

duct O f al l my officers to h is Maj esty. Because I am

convinced they have in their respecti ve stations acquitted

themsel ves,with as much zeal and performed as much

as any other subj ects of the King and whilst the good

of the s erv i ce requi res my recomm ending what was m en

tioned in my last respecting myself to h is Royal consid

eration,I cannot avoi d doing that j usti ce to thei r merits

wh ich they have fa ithful ly deserved .

I request to be honored with your Lordsh ip’ s com

m ands,and I am with very true regard , my Lord , your

Lordship ’ s most humble and most obedient s ervant,

G . JOHN SON.

.The fol lowing letters written about th is time,will throw

340 HISTORY OF BUFF ALO .

l igh t upon the transactions of thi s period from a diffe rentstand point than that from which we have been a ccu s

tomed to v iew them . In September,1778 , Col . Guy

Johnson writes from N ew York to Lord Germa in as fol

l ows

Your Lordsh ip wil l have heard before thi s can rea ch

you,of the successful incu rs ions of the Indian s and L oy

al iste fro in the northward . In conformity to the instruc

t ions I conveyed to my officers,they assembled th ei r

force early in M ay , and one d ivi s ion under one of my

deputi es (Mr. Butler) proceeded with great succes s down

the Susquehanna,destroying the posts and s ettlements at

Wyoming,augmenting thei r numbers with many Loya l

iste,and attain ing al l the country

,while another d ivi s i on

under Mr. Brant the Indian ch ief, cut off two hundred

andn inety - four m en near S choharie and destroyed the ad

j acent s ettlemen ts with thei r magazines,from whence the

rebel s have dervied great resources,thereby affording eu

couragem ent and Opportunity to many fr iends of govern

ment to j oin them ”

Col . Johnson soon after the date of th isl etter set outto go by water to Quebec ; but meeting contrary win d s

in the Gulf of S t Lawrence, was compel led to put in to

Hal ifax for safety,where the vesse l was :compelled to re

m ain al l winter.

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342 HISTORY OF BUFFAL O .

a captive,taken into the Senecas country, adopted and

reared as one of thei r own ch ildren . When arri ved at a

su i tabl e age , she w asu

m arried to one of the d istingu i shed

ch iefs of her tribe,who signal ized h imself in the wars of

the Six Nati ons agains t the Catawbas,then a great na

t ion l i ving to the south westward ofV i rgin ia . She had

severa l ch i ldren by th is Ch ieftain,who fel l in battl e about

the year 1730 , after whi ch , she did not aga in marry

She i s sai d to have been a handsome woman when

sh e was young,genteel

,and of pol ite address

,notw ith

standing lher Ind ian associations . It was frequently her

lot to accompany the chiefs of the S i x Nati ons to Philadelphia

,and other places in Pennsyl van ia

,where treati es

were holden ; and from her chara cter and manners , sh ewas greatlyficaressed by the Ameri can ladi es parti en

larly in Philadelphia, where she w as inv i ted by the la

d ies of the best ci rcles , and enterta ined at thei r houses .

Her res idence w as at the head of SenecaThat her father w as one of the early French Governors

s eems to be merely conj ectural . We have better evidence

as to h er parentage,gath ered mostly from the Colon ial

Documents .

The first h istori cal noti ce of the name of Montour i s,

that Mons . Montour w as wounded by the Mohawks in

the neighborhood of lake Champla in , in 1 694 . He w as

undoubtedly an offi cer in m il itary s ervi ce of the French

at that time . In a l etter ofM . d e Vaudrieul to M . de

Pontchartrain,dated Nov . 17th, 1709 , he commends M .

d e J onciare for m aking hi s m en ki ll , not three weeks

before,one Montour

,a Frenchman by bi rth

,but enti re

ly devoted to the Engl i sh , and in the i r pay .

”

* S tone’s Life of B rant, vol . 1 , p . 330—40.

CATHERINE M ONTOUR . 343

In a communi cation of Lord Cornbury to the Board of

Trade,dated about the same time or a l ittl e previ ous to

the foregoing,h e savs

“ There i s come to Albany one Montour,who i s the

son of a French gentleman who came above forty years

ago, to settl e in Canada . He had to do with an Indian

woman, by whom he had a son,and two daughters . The

m an I mention i s the son . He had l ived all al ong l ike

an Indian ; some time ago, he left the French , and had

l i ved with the far Ind ians,and it i s ch iefly by h is means

,

that I have preva i led with those far Nati ons to come to

A lbany .

’

I t i s quite certa in that th is i s the son of the first M on

tour spoken of as being ki l led by order of Mons . Vau

dreuil , as h e d istinctly j ustifies the act,and says M ontour

would have been hanged i f h e could have been taken

al i ve , and brough t to Canada .

” “Mrs . M ontour,

” i s men

tioned as interpreter at a counci l h el d at Albany with theS i x Nations in 1711 . This Mrs . Montour w as probably

one of the two daugh ters of the first mentioned French

gentl emen .

” In the manuscript j ournal of Rev . Samuel

Kirkland,Sal ly Montour

,probably the other daughter, is

spoken of, as res id ing in the vic in i ty of Fort Stanwix in

1764.

Capt. Andrew Montour,appears to have been an in

terpreter at numerous councils and treati es w ith the S ix

Nati ons,from 1756 to 1757, &c .

,and Henry Montour

,

Indian interpreter at Johnson Hal l,on s everal occas i ons

in 1765 . These were all descendan ts of the first named“ French gentleman ,

” who came to s ettl e in Canada morethan forty years prior to 1708 .

M . Vaudrcuil to Gov . Burnett 172 1 .

344 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

It appears to have been the custom to cal l the chi ld ren

of a whi te father,by the name of the father

,as i s the

custom among the wh ites ; hence. the ch ildren of M on

tour were known by that name for several generations .

Catherine Montour d isappears from h is tory about 1780 .

It i s hardly poss ibl e therefore that she could have been

the M rs . Montour mentioned as interpreter at Albany in

1711 ; but perhaps her mother , who may have been call ed

by that nam e . Cathe rine Montour must have been born

about the beginn ing of the eighteenth century , and it i s

more than probabl e that she was the daughter of a Mo'hawk

,or a woman of some other one of the S ix Nations .

It i s stated in the Kirkland manuscript that Lucy M on

t our w as related to the celebrated Oneida chiefS kenando.

Her mother m ay have been a s i ster of that ch ief. It ap

pears that at the time,or pri or to

,the battl e atWyoming

Catherine Montour l i ved at an Indian settlement call ed

Sheshequin,and her house was known as Queen Esth

er ’ s Palace .” She being known by the name of Queen

iEsther among the common peopl e at that time.

She i s charged with having accompan i ed , and by some

w ith having led,the Indian warriors in the attack upon

Fort Forty,and that sh e offi ciated at the torture of the

pri soners , the n ight after the battle in the terribl e s cenes

des cribed as having been enacted at“ Bloody Rock

the truth of which s tatemen ts have been doubted,and

seem too revolting,to have been perpetrated by any hu

man being,much les s by a w oman possess ing the l east

s park ofhunianity . It i s sa id that in October after themassacre ofWyoming

,Col . IIarplev of the Pennsylvania

l ine , j oined Col . Z . Butl er,and they proceeded wi th one

hundred and th i rty m en,to Sheshequin where they m et

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346 HISTORY OF BUFFAL O .

I“

? “ The Ind ians who committed thi s d epredati on,be

l onged to different tribes or nations,but were of those

who abandoned thei r settlements on the approach of S ul

l ivan’s army

,and fled within the command of the Briti sh

forts in Canada . Here thev had settl ed promiscuously ,and accord ing to the Ind ian custom of carrying on war ,

they frequently invaded the fronti er settlements of the

white people,making capti ves of the weak and defence

less,and carry ing off plunder. The names of these Ind i

ans and thei r respecti ve tribes,are as foll ows Rowland

Monteur,first captain ; John Monteur , s econd capta in ;

Samuel Harri s,John Huston

,and h i s son John Huston ,

J r .,Cayugas ; John F ox, of the Delaware Nati on ; the

other five were Senecas .”

After giving the names and ages of the captives , fifteen

in all,the account proceeds : “The m en pri soners . were

bound wi th cords,which the Indians had with them

,and

in th is melancholy condition,a guard was placed over

them,for about hal f an hour, while the rest of the Ind i

ans were plundering the houses,and packing up such

goods as they chose to carry off. When they got suffi

cient loading for three of Benj . Gilbert’ s horses , whi ch

they took,and al s o compelled the d i stress ed prisoners to

carry part of thei r plunder, they began thei r retreat, and

hastened away to a cons iderable d istance in the woods .

Two of the Indians w ere then detached to set fire to the

build ings,as if to aggravate the d i stress of the pri soners

,

for al though they were urged forward by the party,and

not suffered to l ook back, yet they could observe the

flames,and the fal l ing in of the roofs

,from an eminence

cal l ed Summer Hill .

From th i s place the Indians hasti ly pushed forw ard ,

CAPTURE OF TIIE GILBERT FAM ILY 347

expecting to be pursued by the inhabitants . A t thei r

next halting place,they prepared moccas ins for su ch of

the chi ldren as had no shoes,there being S ix ch i ldren

,

one an infant about n ine months old . Cons idering them

selves out of danger of being pursued,they partook of a

hearty meal,from the provi s ions taken from the houses

of the pri soners . They continued thei r fl ight over moun

tains,and through swamps

,choos ing the most unfrequent

ed,and d ifficult routes

,to avoid thei r fancied pu rsuers

lodging the first n ight in a pine swamp . The day ’ s

march was a very fatiguing one,and some of the pri son

ers were nearly exhausted . The manneI of securing

thei r pri soners is thus described ‘They cut down a sap

l ing about five or s i x in ches in diameter,and therein cut

notches,large enough to recei ve the ankles of thei r v ic

t ims . After fixing thei r legs in th ese notches,they place

another pol e Over the first,and thus secure them as in the

stocks . Thi s upper pole,w as then crossed at each end,

by stakes,d ri ven into the gr

,ound and In the crotches of

these stakes,they placed other pol es

,to keep them firm

,

and thus effectuall y confined the prisoners on thei r backs .

Bes ides which,they put a strap or thong (of raw h ide , )

around thei r necks,and fastened it to a tree

,bush

,or

stake . Their beds were hemlock branches,strewed on

the ground,and they were covered with blankets

,th i s

last,an indulgence scarcely to have been expected

,from

those'

who were esteemed unfeel ing,cruel m en . In thi s .

m anner , they pass ed the n ight,bu t it m ay be reasonably

supposed,that in thi s melancholy s i tuati on

,sl eep w as a

stranger to thei r eyel id s . It shoul d be understood that

it w as the adul t males who w ere thus confined every

n ight,for the ch ildren

,and the femal e capti ves

,were suf~

348 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

fered to l ie down to sleep among the others , without being

ti ed,or otherwise restra ined .

”

The second day , the pri soners were separated , and two

being placed under a s ingle guard . pursuing thei r route

by d ifferent paths,the better to avoi d or embarrass

,thei r

pu rsuers . Towards even ing however,the d ifferent par

ties again met, and encamped as on the preceding n ight

but, as they were becoming more accustomed to the tem

per,and treatment Of the Indians

,they both rested and

s lept. O n the morn ing of the th ird day of their captiv i

ty , the prisoners were all painted , accord ing to the Indian

custom . Some wi th red,and some with black

,pa int.

T hose who are pa inted black , are devoted to death , and

although th is cruel purpose m ay not be executed imme

diately , yet it denotes the purpose of thei r destruction .

When th ey had been about ten days out,Andrew Harr i

gar, a young German , who was empl oyed as a laborer by

Benjamin Gilbert,made h i s escape

,j ust after dark

,and

before h e had been secured for the n ight. He w as im

med iately pursued,bu t under cover of the darkness , he

was abl e to elude h i s pursuers,and ul timately returned

in safety to the settlements of the wh ites,giv ing the first

authenti c intel l igence of the fate of the capti ves .

T he party arrived at Kettarinetown ,” wh ich had

been destroyed by S ul l i van ’ s exped ition . They found a

l ittl e further on,a deserted cabin

,covered with bark

,

whi ch they took possess ion of,and rema ined three days .

Here they found potatoes and turni ps,which had re

m a ined undisturbed in the ground,while everyth ing els e ,

had been destroyed . They al so found game plenty

deer,and wild turkeys

,are mentioned as having been

killed,whil e fish

,cal led “ suckers

,

”w ere caught in the

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'

350 HISTORY OF BUF FAL O .

She w as the daughter of S iangorochti, king of the S ene

cas , but her mother being a Cayuga, She was ranked as of

that nation A party accompani ed her,among whom

was John Montour , the brother ,of Rowland

,who had

previously arrived at N iagara. They brought a supplyof provis ions from the fort. Capt. Rowland Montour

,

being at some distance in the rear, when his wife arrived ,a halt was made until he came up ; after saluting her , heinformed her, that Rebecca Gilbert, the daughter of B enj ‘

am in Gilbert, about s i xteen years of age , was now her

d aughter. As the party were in great distress for food,

they d id not advance to the s ettl ement unti l the next

day , remain ing where they were to partake of the food

brought by John Montour, and hi s party. O n the 2 3d,

they proceeded on towards the fort, the Indians whoopingand yell ing in the mos t frightful manner. As they passed

through an encampment near the fort, the capti ves expe

rienced the compl iment of blows , infl i cted by men,women

and ch ildren , with sti cks , cl ubs , and stones ; and taunt

ing them with horri d grimaces , to s how their contempt,

o r to gratify thei r revenge , for the loss of thei r relati ves ,s la in in battl e. O n arri ving at the vi llage

, or encamp

ment,where Capt. Rowland Montour resi ded

,the assaults

of thi s kind , upon the captives , was very severe , many of

them receiv ing serious wounds , and bruises . Two of the

women who were on horseback,were much hurt

,by being

thrown from th ei r horses,w h i ch became frightened at the

u nusual assault. This sanguinary proceeding was kept

up,unti l arrested by the principal ch ief

,who came out

a nd forbi d it. The poor prisoners were in a piteous

c ond ition . Thei r hai r had been cropped close,the blood

*Gilbert Narrative, p . 59.

CAPTU RE OF THE GILBERT FAM ILY. 351

tri ckl ed from thei r heads in streams , and the clothes they

had on,being in rags

,were smeared with

The Indian v il lage or encampment to whi ch these pri s

oners were brought, was s ituated on the bank of the

r iver,between Lewiston and Fort Niagara. Two officers

from the fort (Capt. Dace and Capt. Powel l , ) v i s ited thecamp to s ee the pri soners , and proposed to come next dayand remove them to the fort, in a boat

,as many of them

w ere rendered almost incapabl e of travel ing. T o th isCapt. Rowland Montour obj ected , and ins isted on theirgoing on foot. The next day they set out in charge of

members of the respecti ve famil i es , to whi ch they hadbeen respecti vely ass igned , or by whom they had been

adopted . O n l eaving the Indian settl ement,they were

again assa i l ed,as upon thei r arri val , with sti cks

,and

stones,and pursued to some d istance

,with yells and

screeches,but were in som e measure protected by thos e

who accompan i ed them .

They were soon m et by Capt. Powell,who with some

d iffi culty,persuaded the Indians to get into his boat with

the prisoners , and thus they reached the fort on the 2 4th.

Here they were introduced to Col . Guy Johnson,and

Col . Butl er,who asked the pri soners many questi ons

,in

presence of the Indians . O n the 2 5th,j ust one month

after thei r capture,Benjamin Gilbert

,and Elizabeth h i s

wife,and Jesse Gilbert thei r son ,

about n ineteen years of

age, were given up to C O 1. Johnson . None of the other

capti ves were l iberated at thi s time , but remained with

the Ind ians .” It has been traditi onal ly asserted , that

when the British authoriti es in Canada , understood that

*G ilbert Narrative,p . 64.

352 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

the Gilbert family were Q uakers , they used great exer

tions for thei r release from captivityfi"

The wife of Jesse Gilbert being about h is own age ,

sti l l remain ing in capti vi ty,her l iberation became an oh

j cet of great interest to the Briti sh offi cers at Fort Niagara . It w as ascerta ined that she was among the Delawares

,and unsuccessful efforts were made

,to obtain her

rel ease . Soon however , a party of Delawares came to

the fort, and brought Sarah Gilbert wi th them ; and fur

ther efforts were made to obtain her release . The next

day the officers v is ited the camp of the Indians,which

was about two miles from the fort,but retu rned unsuc

cessful . Early the fol lowing morn ing,Capt. Robeson

generously and kindly undertook to procure her l iberty .

In thi s he persevered with much sol i citude,and close at

tenti on,unti l by the aid of L i eut. Hill iard

,he happi ly

succeeded . To effect the benevolent obj ect,they made

the Indians several smal l presents , and gave them th i rty

pounds,as a ransom .

” There were now

four of the pri soners at Col . Johnson’ s , in the enj oyment

of l iberty . During thei r stay,they were treated with

kindness by Col . Johnson ’ s housekeeper,who procured

cloth ing for them from the King ’ s storesxl' A few days

after thei r arrival at Niagara, a vessel came up fromM on

treal with orders for the capti ves who had been released .

In th is vessel came one Capt. Brant,an In d ian chief of

high rank , among’

them,who promised to use h i s endea

vors to obtain the releas e of the ch ildren of E l i zabeth

Gilbert,who sti ll remained in capti vity .

Several of the members of the Gilbert family were

*G ilbert Narra tive,p . 84.

iGilbert Narrative .

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354 HISTORY OF BUFFAL O .

refer to it as the i rs,and thei r claim to it w as recogni zed .

Sull i van ’ s army swept over thei r country,carrying de

s truction everywhere. Noth ingwas spared . Mary Jem

i son,who then res ided at the Chenisseo v illage

, (L i ttle

Beard ’ s Town ,) says In one or two days after the sk i r

m ish at Conesus lake,Sull i van ’ s army arrived at Genesee

r iver,where they destroyed every arti cl e of the food kind

that they could lay thei r hands on . A part of our corn

they burnt,and threw the remainder into the r iver . They

burnt our houses , killed what few cattl e and horses they

could fi nd,destroyed our fruit trees

,‘

and left noth ing but

the bare soil and the timber . B ut the Indians had

eloped,and were not to be

*L'

rfe ofMary Jem ison, p . 12 3.

C H A P T E R X X I I I .

The campaign of Gen . Sul l i van w as a terribl e blow to

the Senecas,and indeed

,to all the S i x Nations although

the Senecas were by far the greatest sufferers . “ From

thi s blow, (says D oct. Dwight

,) they never recovered

and after thi s d isaster,they never exh ib ited thei r former

lofty independent spi rit. Thei r towns were all destroyed ,together with al l the provis ion s they had provided for ‘

thei r'

winter consumpti on,and they were driven to the

n ecess ity of starving,or fleeing to thei r fri ends , the Brit

i sh,at Niagara . Great numbers of them actual ly per

ished during the winter of 1779—80 , from starvati on and

exposure ; th i s was parti cularly true of women and' chi l~

dren . Add to th i s great numbers of them d ied from dis

eas e induced by exposure and want. They appear to

have been provided for at Niagara,or at l east those of

them who were able to reach that post,so far as the means

provi ded would al l ow ; but, the unexpected add iti on of

the Ind ians to the ord inary number of troops at the Fort,

rendered thei r suppl ies enti rely inadequate to the emer

gency , and it was found necessary to make other provi s

ion for the supply of food for the Ind ians . The fol lowing

356 H ISTORY OF BUFFAL O .

correspondence wil l S how the cond iti on of th ings at N i

agara at th is time .

CO L . GU Y JOH NS ON T O LORD GERM AIN .

Niagara,2 6th July

,1780 .

M Y LORD

In my letter of the 4 th of M ay , I gave a brief account of

the fa ithful and successful s ervi ces of the Ind ians,under

my superintenden cy,aga inst the rebels during the w in

ter,and of the endeavors of the latter

,to draw off the S ix

Nations through the negotiations of four disaffected Indi

ans,sent to th is place for that purpose. I have now the

honor to acquaint your Lordsh ip,that the maj or part of

the disaffected tribes,are come in

,and at l ength restored

to the British interest, and I shal l al s o lay before you the

good conduct, and success,of the Ind ians s ince my last.

Being sens ibl e that those Oneidas and others,who had

,

during the war,remained at the rebel fronti ers

,and under

thei r influence,were rather governed by S ituati on

,and

imposed on by artifice,than l ed by incl ination to espouse

thei r interest,and find ing that thei r continuance in that

quarter,exposed our motions

,and served to cover that

part of the country,our Indians however

,averse to thei r

conduct, not incl in ing to cut O ff a part of thei r own con

federacy,I improved a favorable occas ion last winter

,to

intimate that i f they ever expected to be restored to the

favor and protection of government,they had no time to

l ose . In consequence of whi ch,I recei ved last month

,a

m essage from them informing me, that they had approved

o fmy advi ce,and were preparing to l eave thei r country

a nd jo in m e,w h i ch they di d the beginn ing of thi s month ,

t o the number of about three hundred and th irty soul s

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3 58 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

revenge,in an unusual manner. From princi pl es of hu

man ity,I could wish thei r example had been im itated by

the rebel s , who in many instances , have exhib ited a very

d ifferent conduct.

The n umber of m en of the S ix Nation confederacy ,

(excl us i ve O f thei r peopl e to the southward , ) i s about s i x

teen hundred,above twelve hundred of whom

,are war

riors and of the latter , eight hundred and thi rty - s i x,are

now on s erv i ce against the fronti ers , and more in readi

rn ess to foll ow them,whi ch far exceeds what has ever been

out at one time , without the army ; few or none remain

ing except those necessary to ass ist in planting , and pro

y id ing for thei r families . I hope soon to have favorabl e

accounts from them,as so great a number mu st prove

v ery distress ing to the rebel s,and contribute much to fa

vor the Operati ons of the campaign .

The large body that w as to be provided for at thi s

post,during the last winter

,in consequence of the rebel

invas i on,and the destruction of many Indian town s

,occa

sioned much expense,and great consumption of provi s

i ons,which I have endeavored to restrain as far as con

s i stent with the servi ce,and the Commander- in- Chief af

forded hi s ass i stance for re - establ i sh ing them , and ena

bl ing them to plant,as early as he coul d ; to promote

wh i ch , as wel l as to forward parti es , I have lately vis ited

their new s ettlements one on the Ohi o route,is increas

ing fast, and I have al ready induced above twelve hun

d red of their peopl e to s ettl e and plant at these places,

whi ch wil l l ess en the burd en of expense . A t the same

t ime,I have no doubt that should any material Opera

ti ons be undertaken from hence,that notwi thstanding the

Ind ians have been constantly employed al l the s eason ,they wil l read ily and cheerful ly ass i st.

FIRS T S ETTLEM ENT AT BUFFA LO CREEK. 359

S ince my arrival here last September,I have not omit

c d anyth ing in my power,for promoting His Maj esty’ s

interests wi th the Indians,and rendering thei r s ervi ces

useful to government. I am highly gratified in being

honored wi th the Commander- in - Chief ’ s approbation of

my conduct,and that of those fa ithful peopl e , and I shallstudy, by every poss ible exertion in the discharge of my

duty , to merit you r Lordsh i p’s favorabl e endeavors to

His Maj esty .

I have the honor to be,with much respect, my Lord ,

your Lordsh ip ’ s most humble Servant,

G . JOHNSON .

The princ ipal settl ement on the Ohi o route ,” m en

tioned above, was Buffal o Creek . In the Gilbert narra

t i ve,we have the account of the arri val O f the first settl ers

from Niagara . They first landed at Fort Erie , where the

Briti sh had a garrison ; thence they continued thei rj ourney, about four miles further up Buffalo Creek , and

pitched thei r tent for settlement?”6 Thi s may be . consid

ered the first permanent s ettl ement of the Senecas on

Buffalo Creek . It took place probably late in M ay , or

early in June,1780 , the precise date i s not given . Th is

party cons isted of S iangorochti,”(as it i s spel led in the

narrati ve, ) or O ld King, and h is family ; incl uding hi s

daughter and her husband,Rowland Montour.

They commenced immediately “ to clear the ground,

a nd prepare it for a crop of Ind ian corn . Whil e thew omen were engaged about the corn

,the m en bui lt a l og

hous e or cabin,for the resi dence of the family

,and then

tGilbert Narrative, p . 143.

360 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

w ent out hunting . During the summer,thi s fam

ily raised about one hundred skipples of corn . A skip

ple being equal to three pecks , would make about seven

ty- fi ve bushels . While their corn crop w as grow

ing this summer,they drew thei r provi s ions from the

stores at the forts, (Erie and Niagara ,) which occas i oned

the Indians frequently to vis it them .

i t About the

beginning ofwinter, (1780 some Briti sh officers came

among the Indians , and remained with them ti l l towards

spring,using all thei r endeavors

,for effecting the di s

charge of the two capti ves,Rebecca and Benjamin Gil

be rt,Jr .

,bu t without success . Some time after , another

B r iti sh officer,attended by Thos . Peart

, (one of the cap

tives, ) came among them ,

with provis ions , and hoes , for

the Indians . Thes e officers,we learn from the narrati ve .

of Thomas Peart,were Capt. Powell

,and Li eut. Johnson ,

the former the husband ofMiss Moore, and: the latter one

of the sons of S ir Will iam Johnson , by Molly Brant.

Elizabeth Peart,another of the capti ves of the Gilbert

family,was brought to Buffal o Creek. T he fol lowing ex

tracts from her narrati ve , will further i l lustrate the h i sto

ry of thi s peri od . Elizabeth Peart was the wife of Benj

amin Peart,the son ofMrs . E l izabeth Gilbert

,Sen i or

,by

a former husband . A t the time of thei r capture,Eliza

b eth Peart had a child about n ine months old. She was

separated from her husband soon after thei r arri val in .

the Indian settlem ent,but had been al l owed to re ta in her

ch i ld . She was taken with in about eigh t miles of Niagara, where she was adopted by the usual ceremony, into

one of the families of the Seneca Nation. The family

that had adopted her,recei ved her very kindly

,and she

was given to understand that the m embers of it were to.

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362 H ISTORY O F BUFF AL O .

at the prospect of her ch il d being taken from her,that

she prevai led with her husband to intercede with the In

dians,that it might remain with her . B ut h i s arguments

and appeal s were in va in ; for they took the ch ild from

her, and went with it over the r i ver, in order to have itadopted into the family they had ass igned for it. A S it

was so young however,they returned it to its mother (af

ter it was adopted, ) to be kept with her unti l it should be

conven i ent to s end it to the family,under whose care it

was to be placed . After obtain ing provi s ions and other necessaries,which they came to Niagara to trade for , the In

d ians and thei r pri s oners returned to Fort Slusher on foot.

Thence they embarked in thei r canoes for Buffal o Creek,

thei r new settl ement,and it being near the time of plant

ing , they used much exped iti on in this j ourney .

In the Ind ian famil ies,the labor and drudgery of rai s

ing provi s ions , fal l s to the share of the women , and Eliza

beth had to ass i st the squaws in preparing the ground ,and planting corn . Thei r provi s ion s becoming scant

,

they suffered much from hunger . As thei r dependance

for a supply,suffi ci ent to last unti l the gathering of thei r

crop of corn,w as on what they could recei ve from the

Briti sh fort,they were under the necess ity of mak ing an

other j ourney to Niagara. Thi s they performed in two

day ’ s travel ing. A short d istance before they came to the

fort,they took Elizabeth ’ s

“chi ld from her , and s ent it to

the family that had adopted it,and it w as several months

before she had an Opportun ity of seeing it again .

i f i t

After the Ind ian s had disposed of thei r peltri es , and oh

tained a supply of provis ion s , they returned to thei r wig

wams,by the same rou te they had gone. With a heart

Oppressed with grief, Elizabeth trod back her steps mourn

CHILD OF ELI Z ABETH PEART . 363

ing her lost infant, for thi s i dea , w as continual ly p resent

to her thoughts . B ut as S he had found how fruitl ess , and

even dangerous it w as to apply for redress on behal f of

her ch ild,she endeavored to dry up her tears , and thus

mourned in s ecret.”

Soon after they reached thei r settlement,Elizabeth

Peart w as attacked with S i ckness,which incapacitated

her for labor,and the Ind ian s bui lt a smal l cab in for her

bes ide the corn field,where they placed her to mind the

corn . Here she was v is ited by a white m an,als o a pri s

oner,who informed her that her ch il d w as released

,and

was wi th the white people . This informati on greatly re

l ieved her anxiety,and contributed to her speedy re

cov ery . She rema ined in th is employment unti l the corn

w as ripe,and then ass i sted in the harvest

,when sh e was

permitted to l i ve aga in wi th the family . The rel eas e of

Elizabeth Peart’ s ch ild,was effected through the influ

ence and unremitted exerti on s of the wife of Capt. Pow

ell . Near the close of the winter,their provis ion s again

fai l ing , they were under the necess ity of going to the fort

for a fresh supply ; thei r corn being s o nearly exhausted ,that they had al l been on short al lowance for some time

,

of only one meal a day . Elizabeth accompan i ed the party

to the fort. They were four days making thej ourney ,through snow and s evere frost

,suffering much from the

cold . When they came near the fort they built a tempo

rary wigwam,where a part of the family

,wi th prisoners

,

were to stay unti l the return of the m en from the fort.

A s soon as Capt. Powel l ’s wife heard that the young

ch i ld ’ s mother had come with the Indians,she des i red to

see her,and inasmuch as sh e herself had al s o been a pri s

oner among the Indians,sh e claimed some relati onship

364 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

in thei r way , and her request was granted . When Eliza

beth came to Capt. Powel l ’s , sh e was informed that her

husband was returned to the fort,and that there was

som e expectati on of h i s release . This unexpected intel

l igence was a cordial to her m ind, and her happiness wasincreas ed by a v i s it from her husband the same day .

B ut they were not permitted to be long together, for the

Ind ians ins i sted on her returning with them to their cabin,a few m i l es back.

Elizabeth Peart was not al lowed to leave the cabin for

several days but at length a white family who had

bought her ch il d from the Indians that had adopted it,

offered the party with whom Elizabeth was confined,a

bottl e of rum i f they would bring her across the r i ver to

her chi ld . Thi s offer they accepted,and the fond mother

was delighted with th i s happy meeting ; for she had not

s een her infant for the space of eight m onths , s ince it was

taken from her as aforesaid . She was permitted to re

m ain with the family where her chil d w as, for two days ,and then returned wi th the Indians to thei r cabin .

After some time she obtained a further permiss ion to

go to Niagara fort, where she had some needle work to

do for white people, and th is furni shed her a plea for fre

quent vis its there A t l ength Capt. Powell ’ s wife pre

va i l ed with the Ind ians to let El izabeth continue a few

days at her house and work for the family . A t the ex

piration of the time agreed on , the Indians came for her

in order to return with them to the cabin. B ut she

pleaded indispos iti on,and by thi s means they were sev

eral times d issuaded from taking her away.

“When the s eason for planting approached , Elizabeth

made use of a l ittl e artifice in order to prolong her s tay

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366 HISTORY O F BUF FALO .

Two of the captives,Abner Gilbert

,and Elizabeth Gil

b ert,aged respecti vely

,the former fourteen

, and the lat

ter twelve years,were separated from the rest of the cap

tives,on thei r arr ival in the vi cinity Of Fort Niagara , and

adopted into the family of John Huston,one of the cap

tors . John Huston,h is family

,and the two capti ves , re

moved to a place near the great Fal l s of Niagara , which

i s about eighteen miles from the fort. Here they loi tered

three days more they then crossed the ri ver and settl ed

near its banks . Thei r first bu s iness at thi s new s ettl e

m ent was to clear a piece of land,and prepare it for being

planted with Ind ian corn,and thi s w as done wi th hoes

only so that it was three weeks before the planting was

done . While the crop was growing, they had to depend

principal ly on the fort for a supply of provis ions . After

remain ing here about three weeks,they packed up thei r

m oveables, (whi ch they generally carry wi th them in

thei r rambles, ) and went down the river to B utlersbury ,

a smal l v il lage on the Oppos ite s ide of the river from Ni

agara Fort. They sta i d bu t one n igh t at thi s vi l lage,ta

king great care that none of the white peopl e S hould con

v erse wi th the pri soners . Next day , after transacting

thei r busrness,they returned to thei r s ettl ement

,and con

tinned there only a week,before they concluded that they

m ust go again to B utlersbury ."6 In the morning

,

the whol e family , and John Huston’ s brother

,went on to

B utlersbury , and arr ived there before night. They al l

w ent to the hous e of an Engl i shman named John Secord ,who was styled brother to John Huston

,as he had l i ved

with him sometime before . After some del iberati on,it

w as agreed that Elizabeth Gilbert,j uni or

,should continue

in John S ecord‘

s famil y,unti l she w as sent for by the In

CAPTIV ITY OF T HE GILBER T FAM ILY . 367“

d ians . Abner Gi lbert returned from B utlersbu rywith the Ind ians to thei r s ettl ement, where h is bus iness

was to fence and take care of the cornfield. They

continued at thei r s ettlement unti l the fal l of the year,and as it was not far distant from the fort

,they could

eas ily apply there for provis ions . So they were not so

much d istressed for provi s i ons between the fai l ing of thei r

Ol d crop and the gathering of the new one,as thos e who.

l ived at a greater distance from the fort.”

In the spring of 1781 ,“ the family removed about forty

m i l es and encamped,in order for a new settlement near

Buffal o Creek , whi ch empti es into lake Erie . A s they in

tended th is for thei r summer res idence , th ey went to work

to clear a piece of land,and when prepared , they planted

it with Ind ian corn,pumpkins

,and s quash es . A t this

place Abner Gi lbert heard of h i s s i ster Rebecca, who sti l l

rema ined in capti vi ty , and l ived not far from thi s new

s ettlement but it does not appear that h e had l i berty to

v isit ' her .

Thomas Peart having Ob tained h is rel eas e from the In~

d ians,h e and Capt. Powell

,wi th several others

,came

among the Indian settl ements wi th provi s ions and hoes,

to d istribute among them . The n ews of thei r comingsoon spread among the Ind ians

,and the ch iefs of every

tribe came to recei ve thei r shares . For thi s purpose,they

each brought as many l ittl e sti cks as there were person s

in thei r tribes,to express the number of each

,in order to.

Obta in a j ust and equal proportion of the provi s i ons and

hoes,that were to be d istributed .

W “it

In the 7th month,1781 , the Ind ian fam i ly again went

to B utlersbu ry , for the purpose of trading and getting asupply of provi s ions . While there

,Col . Butler treated

368 HISTORY O F BUFFALO .

with the Indian woman,who was the head of the family

,

for the rel ease of Abner, which she at length consented

to,on receiv ing some presents ; but sh e said he must re

turn home with lrer, and she woul d del iver h im up in

tw enty days . After they returned to thei r s ettlement,

(at Buffal o Creek ,) she told Abner that he was to be giv

en up to Col . Butl er.

Some days before the time agreed upon,they proceeded

to B utlersbury , and went to the house of John Secord ,where h i s s ister Elizabeth had remained ever s ince the

time mentioned in the early part O f th is narrati ve.

Abner Gilbert was del ivered up by the Indians accor

d ing to contract,soon after they arri ved at the Engl ish

vi llage ; and John Secord permitted h im to l ive in his

family with hi s s ister. With thi s family they continued

about two weeks ; and as thev were under the care of

the Engl i sh officers , they were al lowed to draw cloth ing

and provi s ions from the King’ s stores . Afterward B en

j amin Peart and h is brother Thomas who were both re

leased,came over the r i ver to John S ecord’s for Abner

and El izabeth , and took them to Capt. Powell’

s at the fort

that they might be nearer the vessel in which they were

to sai l for Montreal with four of the other capti ves who

had been released where they subsequently arri ved as has

been al ready related .

The fol lowing letter of Col . Guy Johnson w as written

a t th is peri od , and i s inserted as part of the hi story of

c urrent events

CO L . GU Y JOHNS ON T O LORD GERM AIN .

Niagara,O ct. 1 l th, 1781 .

M Y LORD - I had the honor to address your Lordsh ip

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370 HISTORY OF BUF FALO.

can now assure your Lordsh ip that I have re - establ i sh ed

near four thou sand of them , though at much expense,as

by the des truction of thei r country in 1779, they were inwant of everything

,and thei r demands greatlyfincreased ;

but by settl ing them,I have not only reduced the con

sumpti on of provi s ions,but al so of all other expens es

,

which wil l in future be very low.

“ Some endeavors have been made lately by the rebel s

to draw them into a neutral ity,whi ch most Of them d i s

dain . I hope shortly to put an end to such attempts,as

wel l as to reconcil e the Ind ians to the plan of economy

now entered upon,for reducing expen ses

,whi ch howev

er enormous was for a time unavo idable . The aecom

pl ishing th i s , wil l afford me much sati sfacti on , for the

expenses whi ch were on ly occas ional , before they were

drawn ou t of thei r country,and whilst they l ived at con

s iderabl e d istance,increased so m uch

,by thei r residence

here,as to require immediate attenti on .

Some of the princi pal ch iefs now here,request that I

should make favorable men ti on of thei r zeal,and fidelity

to h i s Maj esty,whi ch I constantly tel l them i s done

,as

every such assurance i s v erv flattering to them,and in

deed thei r conduct deserves it,having seldom less than

five hundred on servi ce , who are generally successfu l,

withou t cruelty .

As the Commander - in - ch ief i s ful ly acquainted with

the s tate and servi ce of my department, it i s needles s for

me to add more than that I am with very great respect,

your L orship’

s most obed ient, and mos t humble servant,G . JOHNSON.

”

C H APT E R X X I V

Mos t of the members ofthe Gilbert family were brought

to Niagara and its vi cinity . The Indians s eem to have

had thei r res idence on and near the Niagara river be

tween Schlosser and Fort Niagara,where they had l oca

ted themselves after thei r expuls ion from thei r settl e

ments by Gen . Sull i van ’ s expedi ti on ; some of the cap

tives were taken to Genesee river,upon the head waters

ofwhich'

some settl ements had been made . T wo places

are mentioned in the narrati ve,one cal l ed Caracadera

,

and the other N undow . The settlements made during

1780—1 , at these places as wel l as at Buffal o Creek , Cat

taraugus Creek , A l legany , &c .

,were made in pursuance

of the pol i cy shadowed forth in the ofli cial correspond

ence of Col . Guy Johnson,al ready noti ced . I t wou l d

seem that Col . J ohn Butler with h i s fol lowers , incl uding

h is Rangers , and a large number of tori es with thei r fam

il ie‘

s had settled upon the Opposi te s ide of the ri ver from

Fort N iagara , and the v i l lage thus formed w as cal l ed

B utlersbury .

” The names of several of the inhabi

tants Of the place in 1780—1 , are given in the Gilbert

narrati ve,many of which wil l sound familiar to those ac

quainted on the Canadian frontier forty years ago. T he

j uri sdi ction over the territory here was sti l l claimed by

372 HISTORY OF BUFF ALO .

theEngl ish,and the Indians came here under the patron

age of the Engl ish government. The settl ement O f the In

d ians at Buffalo Creek drew along wi th them,the Ind ian

traders and other wh i te m en ,who had i dentified them

sel ves with the Ind ians and it i s easy to see that the

firs t white settl ers were of a very mixed character . Pres

ident Dwight sai d of the inhabitants of Buffal o in 1 804

“ The inhabi tants are a casual collection of adventu‘

rers and have the usual character of such adventurers,

thus col lected,when remote from regular society

,retain

ing but l ittle sens e of government or rel igion.

”

I t will be remembered that two son s of Sir Will iam

Johnson by Molly Brant,had accompani ed Col . Guy

J ohnson to Canada in 1775 . IVe occas ionally hear of‘them as oflicers in the command of

. smal l parti es of In

..d ians,or serving in s ome more s ubordinate capacity un

d er t he command of others . The Li eut. Johnson Spokenref in the Gilbert Narrative as v is i ting the Senecas with

other Bri ti sh Officers , in the first s ettl em ent of the Indians

at B uffalo Creek in 1781 , w as unquesti onably one of these

s ons . Thei r names were Will iam and Peter. The latter

shad been chosen by the Ind ians who were wi th C 0 1. John

son in Canada , as thei r commander . The former i s the

.one who came to res ide with the Senecas subsequent to'

1 781 . He had al l i ed h imself to the Senecas probably by

marriage , and had been adopted by them as w as thei r

q custom . ,H e had the influence and address,to obta in

.from the Senecas a conveyance of all the lands at the

mouth .O f, B uffal o Creek , incl uding of cours e the lands upon whichp ur ci ty stands ; and h e was sustained wi th

such pertinacity by the Indians in that claim,although

n ot recogn ized by, law ,that the Hol land land company ,

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374 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

you,although we were schoolmates rn our youth . The

threat was not i mmed iately pu t in execu tion , but the

pri soners w ere S hut up in a pen of l ogs,and guarded by

the tories,during the n igh t. The questi on whether they

shoul d be put to death or carri ed to Niagara,w as d i s

cussed,and the latter final ly ag reed upon .

In the morn ing Brant informed Capt. Harper that h e

and h i s compan i ons should be Spared,on cond iti on of

their accompanying h im to Niagara and they immedi

ately commenced thei r journey, Their route lay al ong

the road travel led by Su l l i van ’ s exped ition the year be

fore they suffered greatly for the want of provi s i ons,

nei ther warriors nor prisoners had more than a handful l

of corn each per day and thev were forced to feed upon

the remains of a horse wh ich had been l eft by Sull i van ’ s

expediti on , and had perished from the s everity of the

winter . They procured a fi ne fat horse at Genesee r i ver,

which w as immediately killed,dressed

,and devoured

among the famish ing company, whi ch w as eaten wi th

great rel ish by al l the company, although eaten wi thout

bread or salt. The pri soners fared j u s t as w el l as the

warriors . O n arriving at Genesee r i ver, Brant sent on a

messenger to Niagara,to apprise of hi s approach

,and

the number of h i s pri soners . B ut th i s w as not al l the

Obj ect of sending the messenger forward . Miss Jane

Moore the Cherry Val ley pri soner, whose m arriage to

Capt. Powel l at Fort Niagara, has al ready been men

tioned,w as a nei ce of Capt. Harper

,a fact known to

Brant. Harper however knew nothing of her m arriage

or even ofher being atNiagara . B rant w as anxi ous to save

Capt. Harper from the cruel ordeal of running the gaunt

l ett . He therefore despatched a runner w ith a m essage

CAPT . POWELL ’S ARTIFICE . 375

to Capt. Powell , advis ing of hi s approach , and asking h i s

aid in accompl ish ing h i s des i re .

Capt. Powell managed to have the Ind ians enti ced

away from the neighborhood of the fort,where they were

encamped,to the landing abou t n ine m i l es d istant, for a

frol i c,the mean s for hold ing which

,it i s said , w ere sup

pl i ed out of the publi c s tores,and upon emerging from

the woods,and approach ing the fi rst Indian encampment,

the pri soners were agreeably surpris ed at find ing the In

dian warriors absent from the encampment,and thei r

place suppl ied by a regiment of Bri ti sh sold iers . There

were on ly a few bovs and a few old women in the camp,

a nd these Offered no viol ence to the prisoners,excepting

one of the squaws,who s truck a young m an named

Patch in,over the head with a club

,which caused the

blood to flow pretty freely . B ut the second encamp

ment. ly ing nearest the fort, and usual ly occupied by the

fi ercest and most savage of the Ind ian warriors , w as yetto be passed . B ut here too

,the Ind ians were gone

,and

another regiment of troops were paraded in two paral lel

l ines to protect the p ri s oners . Patch in however, recei ved

another s evere blow In th i s camp,and a young Indian

a imed a blow at h im wi th a tomahawk,but as he rai sed

h i s arm,a sold ier snatched the weapon from h is hand

and threw it into the r i ver. The pri soners were thus

brought into the fort almost unscathed,and had cause of

gratitude at th ei r unexpected del iverance from the fearfuland bloody ordeal th rough wh i ch they had expected to

b e cal led to pass,and Capt. Harper

,in parti cular

,met

with an al together unexpected source of pl easure,in meet

:ing h i s n i ece , Miss Jane Moore , now M rs. Capt. Pow ell .The character of Jane Moore sh ines out with a bril l iant

376 HISTORY O F BUFFALO .

lusture in the h i story of the transactions of th is period

The w oman ly sympathy,and persevering exertions in be

hal f of the helpl ess pri soners of al l classes,in wh i ch she

s eems to have been seconded by her nobl e husband,Capt.

Powell,entitle her name to a record on the rol l of fame

,

with that of the noblest patriots,the bravest heroes

,and

the purest of ph ilanthrop ists . Prompted by her unti r ing

zeal,her husband vi s ited the prisoners among the Sene

cas,at Buffal o Creek

,several times during the time they

rema ined there,not only to encourage them by his coun

s el and sympathy, but to admin i ster to thei r necess it i es

,

and to procure thei r rel eas e ; whi ch w as ultimately ac~

compl ished , m aifirly through h i s efforts , ass i sted by other

officers at the fort,wh i ch the example and interest O f

'

Jane Moore,the Cherry Val ley capti ve had influenced to

co- operate in th i s work ofmercy.

The releas e ofRebecca Gilbert,and Benjamin Gilbert,

Jr ., the young girl and boy who were brought to Buffalo

Creek by the family of O l d King,was not efl

'

ected

unti l the 6th of June,1782 , and i s thus described in the

narrati ve : As the time approached , when according to

agreement,the Indians were

'

to return to Niagara,and

del iver up the capti ves,they gave Rebecca Gilbert the

pleas ing information,in order to al low h er some tim e to

make preparation for the j ourney,and al s o for the enj oy

ment of her freedom . S o sh e made a quantity of bread

for them to eat on the w ay , with great cheerfulness . O n

thi s occas ion,about thi rty of the Indian s set out to go to

Niagara fort wi th the two capti ves . They went as far as

fort S lasher in bark canoes,the remainder of the way

they went s lowly on foot ; so that it w as s everal days be

fore they reached Niagaran When th ey arrived,they

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378 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

small,laced round hat ; by hi s s ide hung an elegant sil

ver mounted cutlass , and h i s blanket of blue cloth,pur

posely dropped O n the cha i r,on which h e sat

,to d isplay

h is epau l ets,w as gorgeouslv decorated wi th a border of

red.

”if

Col . S tone,in h i s “ Li fe of Brant

,

” has evidently either

m istaken the true character and posi tion of Brant, or

made h im too much a hero . It i s very evident that he

d id not posses s those el ements of character whi ch constitute greatness in the eyes of unci vil ized m en . His im

portance and conceded influence,rather grew ou t of those

qual i ti es whi ch c i vi l ized man approv es and admi res . O r

rather he had influence with the Indians , because they sup

posed he had influence wi th whi te m en . He coul d be

usefu l to them,because he was civ i li zed and associated

with ci vi l i zed people,but in those tra its of character

which cons titute greatness in the eyes of Indian s , Brant

does not seem to have been eminent. He had m ore

showy , than substantial qual iti es ; all accounts of h imseem to indicate this . That he w as a gentl eman in h i s

manners and address,and kind and humane in hi s d ispo

s ition, i s al so apparent. He was probably superi or to

most of those around h im in thi s respect,when the O bser o

vations above were made.

The d ifficul ty of sustain ing such a body of Indians as

had concentrated at Niagara,led to acti ve efforts on the

part O f the ofl‘icers at that post

,under instructi ons from

the Briti sh government, to induce the Senecas to settl e

upon lands which they might cultivate,and by that means ,

furn i sh thei r own s ubs i stence . They appear to have been

*S ee Na rrative of Capt. S nyder, by C . H . Dewitt

,Esq .

SE'

I‘

T LEBEEN T O F THE INDIANS AT BUFFA LO CREEK . 379

l ocated at Buffal o Creek,Cattaraugus Creek , Al legany ,

Nunda,and at two or three points on the Genesee river

,

a nd at Tonawanda Creek . The Mohawks w ere settled

upon the Grand ri ver in Canada . They al l of course

l ooked to the British government for support,and ex

pected to be su stained a t these settl ements by material

aid,and in general

,sonre Offi ce r

,or agent

,of the govern

ment,res ided at the principal points of these settl ements .

It would seem that Wi l l iam Johnson came to res ide atBuffal o Creek

,in that capac ity

,and exercis ed cons idera

bl e influence over the Ind ians . B ut this influence,l ike

that of Brant’ s,was awarded h im on account of h is use

fulness to the Indians in thei r commun i cati ons and inter

course w i th the whi tes , rather than for the qual i ti es whi ch

commanded influence among the Indians themsel ves .

Itwas sa i d of Molly Bran t, that sh e had her ch ild ren

educated quite equal to the ch i ld ren of the best famil ies

of the whi tes in the val l ey of the Mohawk , at that day ,and Johnson seems to have been a l eading m an at Buffa

l o Creek,so far as related to al l the transabtions of the

Indian s w ith the whi tes at l east, for m any years . I t was

s tated by C ornplanter , at a counci l h el d at Canandaigua

as late as 1794 , that“ Johnson had the care Of the Sene

cas at Buffal o Creek,

”and he was at the counci l as a del

egate, by thei r invitation,or procurement . B ut Col .

Pi ckering,who w as the representati ve of the government

at that treaty,treated Jehnson “

as a Bri ti sh spy ,”and

h e w as compelled to reti re in mu ch m ortifi cationfi” There

are some letters and papers to which h i s s ig natu re i s at

tached,where h i s name i s written Johnston

,bu t it i s no

* S ee journal in l ife O f Wil liam S ay ery , p . 116.

380 HISTORY OF BUF FALO .

unusua l th ing for members O f the same family to S pel l

thei r names differently . Thi s has however,l ed many to

suppose that this w as ev idence that the “ John ston ” who

res ided at Buffal o Creek,wi th the Indians

,was not of the

family of S ir l Villiam Johnson .

The j ournal of Will iam Savery,who w as a member of

a del egati on of Fri ends,who attended the treaty at Can

andaigua, by appointment,i s interesting

,and that part

of it wh ich relates to J ohnson,i s ins erted here

J OU RNAL OF WM . SAVERY,1794, WHO A T TENDED AN INDIAN

COU N CIL A T CAN AN DAIGUA .

This morn ing,the 2 5th

,snow was s even or eight in

ches deep, and having been out in it yesterday , I was nu

well . Abundance O f deer are ki l l ed by the Indians , per

haps not less than one hundred to-day , within a few miles

of th i s place,some in s ight ; one m an kil led three in a

short time . A man named Johnson , having arr i ved two

days ago from Fort"

Erie,with a message from Captain

B rant,a Mohawk ch ief of the S i x Nations , assembled

some ch iefs yesterday,and del ivered it to them . Being

in the character of a Briti sh interpreter,he appeared at

the counci l w i th the Ind ians to day, and seemed very in

timate with them . Cornplanter rose to vind icate hi s com

ing , being privy to the great uneas iness it had given Col .

Pi ckering ; h e expressed hi s surpris e that ever s ince the

conclus ion of the peace w ith the Briti sh nati on , such an

antipathy had exi sted,that the Un ited States and the

B r iti sh could not bear to sit s ide by s ide , in treati es held

by the Ind ians . He sa i d Johnson had the care of the

Senecas at Buffal o Creek,and had brought a message to

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382 H IST ORY OF BUFFALO .

trayed great impudence , and was a proof of British insol ence . It w as perhaps as wel l that there was no counci l

yesterday,for h e could not say how far the first emoti ons

of h is mind at s eeing this fellow here,might have carri ed

h im he hoped he was now a l ittl e cool,and woul d en

deavor to moderate his express ions as much as he w ascapable of. He begged thei r pati ence

,for h e must be

obl iged to say a great deal to inform them O fmany of the

reasons of h is indignation at th is step of the Briti sh gov

ernment and why it was total ly improper to go on with

business whil e a Bri ti sh spy w as present. He then wentinto a very lengthy detai l of the ill - treatment of that gov

ernment to the Un ited States,for several years past

,and

con cluded with saying that either th is m an must be s ent

back to those who sent h im,or he

,Col . Pi ckering would

cover up the counci l fire , for hi s instructi ons from Gen .

Wash ington were , to suffer no Bri ti sh agents at the pres

ent treaty.

The Ind ians appeared in amazement at the warmth

with wh ich the Commiss ioner del i vered h imsel f, and sa i d

w hen he sat down , the council fire grows warm,the

sparks of it fly abou t very th i ck . As to John son , he ap

peared l ike one that was condemned to d i e,and now

rose and l eft us.“The Indians requesting we would wi thdraw counseled

among themsel ves about hal f an hou r , and sent for us

aga in . Cornplanter rose and sai d the reason why the.

counci l fire has not been uncovered to day i s because of

a Briti sh man being present. It was caused by us . We

requested h im to come here it i s true , but the faul t i s in

the whi te peopl e . I am very much surprised and de

ceived by what you tol d us at Fort Stanwix , when you;

WILL IAM SAVERY ’S J OU RNAL . 383

laid before us a paper wh ich contained the terms ofpeace

agreed on, between you and the Engl i sh nati on ; and tol d

us it w as agreed on in the presence of the Great Spi r it,and under His influence. We now discover that what

the commiss ioners then told us i s a l i e , when they sai d

they made the cha in O ffriendship bright ; but I now fi nd

there has been antipathy to each other ever s ince . Now

our sachems and warriors say what shal l we do . We

wil l shove Johnson off ; yet th i s i s not agreeable to my

mind,for i f I had fkindled the counci l fire

,I would suffer

a very bad man to sit in it,that h e might be madebetter

,

bu t i f the peace you made had been a good peace,all ah

imosities wou ld have been done away,and you coul d

then have sat s i de by s ide in council . I have one request .

to make,wh ich i s thatyou furn i sh him with provi si ons

to carry h im home .

“The counci l having sat about five hours,adj ourned ti ll

to morrow . We dined by candlel igh t with the commis

sioner and about fifteen chiefs,among whom were Corn

planter,R ed- Jacket

,Li ttl e- B eard

,Bigs - ky , F armers ~

Brother,F i sh - Carri er , Li ttle - Billy

, &c .

“Many repartees of the Indians wh ich Jones interpreted

m an i fes ted a high turn for w it and humor . Red Jacket

has the most conspi cuous talent that w ay ; he is a m an of

a pleas ing countenance , and one of the greatest orators

amongst the S i x Nati ons .

2 6th,first day . The counci l being assembled , the

first bus iness was the preparation of a l etter whi ch the

Indians having got prepared since yesterday , they thought

proper for the commiss ione r to see it,as they intended to

send it by Johnson to Capt. Brant. The contents of it

were not al together agreeable to the comm iss ioner. They

384 H I ST ORY OF BUFFALO .

expressed thei r sorrow that Johnson could not be per

m itted to stay,the reasons for wh ich he w ould doubtless

inform them when he got home . I t assured Brant that

they were determined to ins ist on the l ine agreed to last

y ear , and expressed the s ense they now had,that they

were a poor despi s ed , though an independent peopl e , and

were brought into suffering by the tw o whi te nations,

stri ving who should be greatest. The Indians were pretty

high to-day, and l ittle was done bu t clearing up some

misunders tanding respecting the cause why the treaty

w as not hel d at Buffal o Creek agreeably to the Ind ians

request ; the dispos iti on of the Senecas appeared rather

m ore uncompromis ing than heretofore .

2 8th 96 Yesterday many Of the ch i efs and warr iors

w ere very uneasy at Cornplanter’s frequent private vi s its

to the commiss ioner , and Littl e Bil ly spoke roughly to

h im ,told him he should consi der who he w as

,that h e

was only a w ar ch ief, and it d id not become him to be soforward as he appeared to be ; it w as the bus iness of thesachems more than h is to conduct the treaty. He (Corn

planter ) tol d them he had exerted h imself for several

years,and taken a great deal of pains for the good of the

nation,bu t i f they had no further occas ion for him he

“would return home,and he real ly intended it ; but Col .

Pi ckering and Gen . Chapin exerted themsel ves to detainh im . The d issati sfaction Of the Senecas rose so high that

it was doubtful whether a counci l would be held to day

but about three o ’ clock they met,Cornplanter not atten

d ing.

”

The counci l proceeded , but it does not appear that”C ornplanter p arti cipated in the proceedings , if he was

e ven present. He had evidently incurred the di spleasure

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386 H I ST ORY O F BUFFAL O .

what you can spare no matter what sorte,for which you

shal l he paid , you keeping an account of the whole,from

your fri end and Hum . S erv’t,

JOSEPH BRANT.

To M R .PER S O FER CARR .

Johnson,being a nephewof Joseph Brant

,was in con

stant and intimate commun i cati on wi th h im,and although

B rant had left the territory of the Un ited States,he was

in intimate commun i cation with that portion of the S ix

Nations wh ich chose to remain in the state ofNew York,

by means of messengers or runners,as wel l as by letters

,

w h i ch he made the means of communi cati on with person s

h olding oflicial relations to the Indians,and by thi s means

k eeping himself rectus incuria with them,while he

w as in quas i hosti l ity to the government.

The following is a l etter wri tten by him to Gov . Geo.

Clinton,dated Niagara , 18th June, 1789

S I R Having before written to some of your principal

p eople on the subj ect of our lands at Canaj ohari e , wh ich

we have never as yet had any answer to,probably owing

to thei r not having received , having a safe Opportun ity ,beg leave to menti on to your excel l ency , we are informed

a Mr. Clock whom we found troublesome before the com

m encement of the late war, i s again stri ving to take ad

vantage O f us in order to deprive us of our right in that

part of the country,which when at the last treaty at Fort

S tanwix in 1784, you was with a number m ore of your

principal peopl e kind enough to assure us, as our lands

were not confis cated at the close of the war, we should

not be deprived of our right ; we therefore look up to

GOV. O L IN T O N’S AN SWER T o B RAN T

’S LETTER . 387

y our excel lency for j usti ce and which from your charac

ter we have no doubt but we wi l l Obtain. The reason of

our not exerting oursel ves relati ve to th i s matter before

now was owing to our being employed in business in thed ifferent parts of thi s country

,being obliged to attend at

the d ifferent treati es,whi ch has made us negl ect paying

that attenti on to our pri vate concerns,which we other

w i s e should have done . From the great scarcity of cattl e

at present amongst us,owing to our having lost numbers

thi s last winter,we would wish to d ispose of our Canaj o

bari e lands,and would take part cattl e in payment and

give a just deed of the same . Your Excel lency being at

the head of the State,we have thought proper to firstm en

tion it to you and shall wait your answer,w hi ch we hope

w i ll be soon,that an end may be put to the bus iness . I

flattermyself we wil l give you every sati sfacti on in any

purchas e whi ch may be m ade from us,as what we Our

sel ves do we shall w i sh to abide by . I have the honor tobe your most Ob ’dt H umb

’

l S erv ’t,

JOSEPH BRANT.

In behalf of the Mohawk Nati on,Geo. Clinton

,Esq .

,

Governor of the State ofN ew York .

The following answer to Brant’ s letter, was returned by

Gov. Clinton

A lbany,J uly 14th

,1789.

S IR : I have rece ived your letter of the 18th June last,

and have to inform you in answer to it,the lands at Can

ajoharie are cla imed by private individual s , many oth

ers, as well as Clock , produce deeds from the Mohawk

Nation,for d iffe rent parts of the lands there . Whether

388 H IST ORY OF BUFFALO .

these d eeds were fai rly Obtained,or whether the land s

there remain unsold,I am not able to determine . B ut i f

the lands Im sold are parti cularly pointed out to me,I

wi l l cause an inquiry to be made into the matter,and see

that the Indians have all the j usti ce done them that they

have any right to expect. I t i s unfortunate,and what I

could not have expected,after the explanation wh i ch

took place between us at Fort Stanwix,that the Indian s

continue to treat and make contracts for lands with ind i

viduals,wi thout the consent of our government

,and

against our laws ; and more especial ly as th i s conduct

never fai l s to end to thei r d i sadvantage and inj ury . I

have only to add that I shal l always be ready with thegreatest cheerfulness , to hear and redress any gri evan ce s

the Indians with in thi s State may have cau se to complainOf

,and that I am with regard ,

Your friend,and most Obed ient Servant

,

GEO . CLINTON .

T o CAPT. JOSEPH BRAN T .

It i s evident by this reply of Gov. Cl inton , to the l etter

of Brant, that the true pos ition that ch i ef and the M O

hawks , whose interest he assumes to represent,h el d in

respect to the governmen t, was wel l understood by h im .

His intimation that the complaints of the Indians re s i

d ing wi th in th is S tate would at all times recei ve h i s at

tention,i s sign ificant. Brant however, d id not des i st

from hi s efforts,but sent a l engthy reply to the Governor

,

not only to the subj ect of the l etter . but also in relati on to

other matters of compla int, to whi ch he obtained the

names O f nearly forty chi efs , mostly res id ing at Buffal o

Creek . Brant h imself w as rather reluctant to venture

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390 HISTORY OF BUF FALO .

I suppose that these peopl e have also forgot that I was a

yankee .

”

Joseph Brant had a large family of chi ldren , and two

of hi s sons s eem to have been in s chool at Dartmouth

College . In h is correspondence with James Wheelock,

Esq .

, (son of theiD r.Wheelock ofMoor’ s Charity School, )

in 1801 : some of the l etters of Brant are dated at Buffal o

Creek,bu t most of h i s l etters at thi s period are dated at

Grand Ri ver, (B rantford z) Showing that that, w as h i s res i

dence at thi s period . He s ubsequently removed to what

w as famil iarly called “ the beach ,”

at the head of lake

Ontario . The beach'

separates Burl ington B ay and the

lake . Here lieubuilt a large commodio

‘

us house,and here

be closed h i s extraordinary and eventful l ife,on the 2 4th

of November, 1807, at the age of about s i xty - fi ve years .

His remains were interred at the Mohawk vi llage at the

Grand river,near what i s now the city of Brantford .

C H A P T E R X X V

I t was in M ay of th i s year,1780 , that S ir John John

son invaded the Mohawk Val ley by w ay of lake Cham

plain and Crown Point, and made an effort to repossess

h imself of the O ld homestead at Johnstown . It was in

connecti on with th is exped iti on that the name of the cel

ebrated Seneca chi ef Cornplanter , i s first menti oned . He

i s sa i d to have been the leader,or one of the leaders

,of

the S eneca warriors in that expedition ; and it was on

thi s occas ion,that the incident in regard to the taking of

h is father a prisoner as related in the l i fe of Mary Jemi

son occured. It i s stated that the res idence O f the father,

who w as a white m an of the name of O ’B ail,was in the

vi c in ity of Fort Plain Repa i ring with a detachment of

his warriors,to h is father ’s house

,he made the O ld man. a

pri soner,without l etting him know who hi s captor was

After proceeding ten or twelve miles,the ch ief stepped

before h is S i re,and addressed him as fol lows

My name i s John O ’B ail,commonly cal led COrn

planter. I am your son, you are my father , you are now

my prisoner,and subj ect to the usages of Indian w ar

fare ; bu t you shal l not be harmed , you need not fear,I

am a warrior,many are the s calps wh ich I have taken .

Many prisoners I have tortured to death . I am your

~392 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

son, I am a warri or

,I w as anxious to see you , and greet

you in friendship. I went to your cabin and took you by

force,but your l ife shal l be spared . Indians l ove thei r

friends , and thei r kindred , treat them with kindness . If

now, you choose to fol low the fortunes of your yellow son

and to l i ve wi th our people,I wil l cheri sh your O ld age

with plenty of veni son,and you S hal l l ive easy . B ut if

it i s your choice to return to your fields, and l ive with

y our white chi ldren , I wil l s end a party of my trusty

y oung m en to conduct you back in safety . I respectyou ,my father

, you have been friendly to Indians they are

your fri ends .”

The Old man chose to return . His son true to hi s

word , furni shed him a su itable escort,and he was con

ducted back to h i s home in safety . This story i s prob

ably without any foundation in fact,

although Col .

S tone who O opies it in substan ce,endorses it

,and says in

a note“Thi s anecdote related by Mary Jemison

,m ay be true .

In every instance in which the author has had an oppor

tunity of testing the correctness of her statements by

other authoriti es,they have proved to be remarkably

correct.”

He had forgotten h i s own contradi ction ofMary Jemi

son ’s statement,that it was Li eut. Johnson who courted

and m arried Miss Moore Th e name of Cornplanter’s

father was John Abeel we fi nd the name in the publ i c

records as a citizen or merchant of A lbany,in 1692 .

This was probably the father of John Abeel,the father

O f Cornplanter , as h e must have been a m an some

what advanced in years,and a trader . He al so ap

pears to have held offices at different times in the munic ipal government, and to have been connected with In

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394 HIS TORY OF BUF FALO .

in numerous letters and speeches of h is which have beenpreserved and publ ished ; although a straight

,acti ve

,

athleti c m an when young,h e became in hi s Old age

qu ite infirm,and could not stand erect.

He had not the standing among the Indians that some

of h i s cotemporari es had , and h is character seems to have

been that of a sh rewd diplomati st, rather than that of an

Open,frank, ingenuous m an . There is no doubt that he

w as at heart in the Briti sh interest up to the peri od of

Wayne ’ s vi ctory over the combined forces of the Briti sh

and Indians in 1794 h is S peeches and letters all show

th is . He seems to have acted in concert wi th Brant,du

r ing the period O f the Ind ian troubles in Ohio,after the

close of the Revolutionary war . The speeches of Corn

planter,Hal f-Town and Great-Tree

,publ ish ed in the

Ameri can state papers (Indian aflairs,vol . have gen

eral ly been attributed to Cornplanter, whose s ignature

stands firs t in order.* B ut it i s more probabl e that these

speeches,or m ore properly communi cations , were the

j oint production ofthe three,or perhaps ofGreat-Tree who

was celebrated as an orator,which

,s tri ctly S peaking

,Corn

planter was not.

The curi ous letter of Cornplanter , wri tten in 1794 , to

L i eut. Polhemus,whoiwas then in command O fFortFrank

l in on the Al l eghany,i s characteri sti c ofCornplanter, and

i s an index O f the temper of h is mind and d ispos ition . It

i s as follows

G inashadgo, 2 4 M ay, 1794 .

S IR —I have returned home safe . I wrote a l etter to

you, (hope you have received it, ) in regard to the Briti sh

sending a man to C atarogaras he sent for me— I went

See Appendix.

CO R NPL A N TER S LETTER . 395

to s ee h im,not him alone

,but l i kewi se the M oncyes re

specting the man that w as killed at French - creek as you

wrote to me concern ing that business .

Brother thi s m an that sent for m e to Catarogais want

ed to know what we were about, it seemed to him as i f

we were h id ing ourselves . I spoke to h im,

tol d h im

the reason of our h iding ourselves— that the white peo

ple th ink that we are nobody— I have told him everything

from the beginn ing . That the Si x Nati ons coul d not

be h eard by anybody. This w as al l passed between

thi s Briti sh man myself— h is name i s Will iam John

ston .

Brother then I spoke to the M oncyes in regard of your

writing to me to help you,and I asked their m inds as the

tommyhawk was sti cking in thei r heads . Then the M on

cys S poke tol d me they was not drunk about th i s affai r .

A S you writ to me , and told me you wanted to make our

minds easy about th i s affa i r . -As you writ to me that

you wanted our minds easy— it shal l be so— th is i s all I

have to say th i s present time about it.

As I went there everyth ing happened right, you

will hear a l ittle what Bears - O il ch ief sai d as he w as s ent

there by the ch i efs of Conniatt, (Conyaut.) I send you

three strings of wampum given to m e by Bears - O il ch ief

and h i s words were that God almigh ty had m ad day

and n ight, and when he saw me it appeared to h im as if

it was daylight— Brother,says Bears -O i l my mind i s very

uneasy when I l i ve at C onneat every summer and I see

the bad Indians and always tel l them not to interupt our

fri ends th i s way .

Bears O il says h i s mind i s very uneasy and the rea

son i s , that he cannot hardly keep these western nati ons

396 I IIS T O R Y OF BUFFALO .

back any more , as they the white peopl e are makingforts in their country and another thing our worriors 6:

chil d ren are very uneasy . They say that they cannot go

out of doors to ease themsel ves for fear of spoi l ing Genl .Wash ingtons lands and that m ay (which must) be thereason we wil l or can (are to) be kill ed . Bears O i l Speeksand says he was sent by a l l the chiefs

,and they l ooked

out whi ch w as the best w ay for him to go ; by water their

was a lake that God almighty had m ade for everybody

and he hoped that Genl . Wash ington woul d have noth ing

to say i f h e went by water.

N ow Brothers says Bears O i l to the S ix Nations I

have com to know your minds and i f you want me to

com down hear to l i ve,I shal l com

,and I send you five

strings of wampum as h i s Speech on that head— I spoke

to Bears O i l ch ief for Wm . Johnston to help him , as the

w hite peopl e thinks nothing of us , then Johnston S poke

and tol d h im he would help h im,and for (told ) h im to go

home and tel l h i s w orriors and chi ldren to go to work ,pleut corn and git thei r l iving— I then spoke to Ba i rs

O il myself to make h i s mind easy and go home , and i f

he see (saw) any of the western nations going'

to war,to

tell them not to enterupt anybody about French - creek or

anywhere in that country ,* and i f he should see them ,to

tel l them to go back,to those that ware at war— I tol d

Bears O i l afterwards that i f you don’t see any of them ,

and they do any mischief we cannot help it— then after

that I cons idered and dispached runners to Oswego and

to B ufliow - creek and to the Genessees for all the ch i efs to

r ise and l ikewis e Gen . Chapin S upiren’

t of Indian affai rs .

“I wrote you last abou t stoping the troops— I hO pe you wil l til l affairsi s (are ) settled.

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398 HISTORY OF BUFFA LO .

the country of the S ix Nations,we cal l ed you the town

destroyer ; and to thi s day , when that name i s heard , our

women look beh ind them and look pale,and our ch ildren

cl ing close to the necks of their mothers . O ur council lors

and warriors are m en , and cannot be afrai d ; but their

hearts are grieved with the fears of our women and ch i ld

ren,and des i re it may be buri ed so deep as to be heard

no more . When you gave us peace , we cal led you fa

ther,because you promised to secure us in the possess ion

-O f our lands . Do this,and so long as the lands shal l re

m a in,that beloved name wil l l ive in the heart of every

.Seneca .

Father—We mean to Open our hearts before you , and

we earnestly des i re that you will let us clearly understand

what you resolve to do. When our ch iefs returned from

the treaty at Fort Stanwix , and lai d before our council

w hat had been done there , our nati on was surprised to

h ear how great a country you had compelled them to

g i ve up to you , without your paying to us any th ing for

it. Every one sai d that your hearts were yet swelled

with resentment against us,for what had happened du

:ring the war,but that one day you would recons ider it,

with more kindness . We asked each other,what have

-w e done to deserve such severe chasti sement ?

Father—When you kindled your th i rteen fire s s epar

a tely,the wise m en that assembled at them told us

,that

you were al l brothers , the chi ldren of one great Father,

who regarded al s o , the red people as hi s ch i ld ren . They

c al l ed us brothers , and invited us to h i s protection they‘

tol d us that h e res i ded beyond the great water,where the

s un fi rst rises hat h e was a King whose power no peo

ple could resi st,and that h i s goodness w as bright as that

O O R NPL A NT ER’S SPEEO II . 399

sun. What they said went to our hearts ; we accepted

the invitation,and promi sed to obey h im . What the

Seneca Nati on promise , ; they fa ithfully perform and

when you refused obedience to that King,he commanded

us to ass i st h i s beloved m en,in making you sober. In

obeying him,we did no more than yourselves had l ed us

to promise . The m en who claimed th i s promise,tol d us

that you were ch i ldren,and had no guns that when they

had shaken you , you would submit. We hearkened to

them,and were deceived , until your army approached

our towns . We were deceived but your people,in

teaching us to confide in thatKing, had helped to deceive ,and we now appeal to your heart. Is the blame allours

Father— When we saw that we were decei ved,and

heard the invitation whi ch you gave us to draw near to

the fi re whi ch you kindled , and talk with you concern ing

peace,we made haste towards it. Y ou then told us

,that

we were in your hand,and that

,by clos ing it

, you couldc rush us to noth ing, and you demanded from us , a greatcountry

,as the price of that peace whi ch you had Offered

us ; as if our want of strength had destroyed our rights

our ch iefs had felt your power,and were unable to con

tend aga inst you,and they therefore gave up that coun

try. What they agreed to,has bound our nati on but

your anger aga inst us must,by th i s time

,be cool ed and

although our strength has not increased,nor your power

become less,we ask you to cons i der calmly

,were the

terms d i ctated to us by your commiss ioners,reasonable

and j ust ?

Father— Your commiss ioners , when they drew the l ine

wh i ch separated the land then given up to you ,from that

whi ch you agreed should remain to be ours,d id most sol

400 HISTORY OF BUFFAL O .

eInnly promise , that we should be secured in the peaceable possess ion of the lands wh ich we inhabited east and

north of that l ine. Does this promise b ind you Hear

now ,we beseech you

,what has S ince happened concern

ing that land . O n the day in which we fin i shed the trea

ty at Fort S tanwix , commiss ioners from Pennsyl van ia

told our ch iefs that they had come there to purchase from

us al l the lands belonging to us,within the l ines of their

S tate, and they told us that thei r l ine would strike ther iver Susquehanna below Tioga branch . They then l eft

us to cons i der of the bargain ti l l the next day on the

next day , we let them know that we were unwill ing to

s el l all the lands within thei r State,and proposed to let

them have a part of it, which we pointed out to them in

thei r m ap . They tol d us that they must have the whole

that it w as already ceded to them by the great King,at

the time of making peace with vou , and was thei r own

but they sai d that they would not take advantage O f that,

and were w ill ing to pay us for it, after the manner of the i r

ancestors . Our ch iefs were unable to contend, at that

time , and therefore they sol d the lands up to the l ine,

which was then shown to them as the l ine of that State .

What t he commiss ioners had sai d about the land havingbeen ceded to them at the peace, our ch iefs cons idered asintended on ly to lessen the pri ce , and thev pass ed it by with

very l ittl e noti ce ; but, s ince that time , we have heard so

much from others about the right to our lands,which the

King gave when you made peace with h im ,that it i s our

earnest des ire that you will tel l us what it means .

Father— Our nation empowered John Li vingston to let

out part of our lands on rent, to be pai d to us . He tol d

us,that he w as sent by Congress , to do thi s for us, and

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402 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

for our women and ch i ldren,we were thus compelled

,to

give up a ll our country north O f the l ine of Pennsylvan ia,

and east of the Genesee river, up to the fork , and east of

a sou th l ine drawn from that fork to the Pennsyl vania

l ine . For th is land Phelps agreed to pay us ten thousand

dollars in hand,and one thousand a year forever. He

pai d us two thousand and five hundred dollars in hand,

part of the ten thousand , and h e sent for us to come last

S pring, to recei ve our money ; but instead of paying usthe remainder of the ten thou sand dollars

,and the one

thousand dollars due for the first year,he offered us no

m ore than five hundred dollars,and ins isted that he

agreed with us for that sum ,to be pa i d yearly . We d e

bated wi th h im for S ix days,during all which time he

pers i sted in refusing to pay us our ju st demand,and he

insi sted that we shoul d receive the five hundred dollars

and S treet,from Niagara

,al so ins i sted on our receiv ing

the money,as it w as offered to us . The last reason be

ass igned for continuing to refuse paying us,was

,that the

King had ceded the lands to the Thirteen Fi res,and that

he had bought them from you ,and pa i d you for them .

We could bear thi s confus i on no longer, and determined

to press through every di fficul ty,and l i ft up our voi ce

that you might hear us,and to cla im that securi ty in the

possess ion of our lands,which your commiss ioners so sol

emnly promised us . A nd we now entreat you to inqui re

into our compla ints and redress our wrongs .

Father— Our writings were lodged in the hands Of

S treet,Of Niagara, as we supposed h im to be our fri end

but when we saw Phelps consul ting with S treet, on every

occas ion,we doubted of hi s honesty towards us

,and we

have S ince heard,that he was to recei ve for h is endeav

C O R NPL A N T ER’S SPEEO II . 403

ors to decei ve us , a piece of land ten miles in wid th , west

Of the Genesee ri ver,and near forty miles in l ength

,ex

tending to lake Ontari o ; and the l ines of th is tract have

been run accord ingly, al though no part Of it i s wi th in the

bounds that l imi t h i s purchas e . N O doubt he meant to

dece ive us .

Father—Y ou have sa i d that we are in your hand,and

that,by closing it

,you could crush us to noth ing. A re

you determined to crush us ? If you are,tell us so

,that

thos e O f our nation who have become your ch ild ren,and

have determined to d ie so,m ay know what to do. In

thi s case,one ch ief has said h e would ask you to pu t him

out of pain. Another,who will not th ink of dying by

the hand of h i s father or h is brother,has sai d h e wil l re

t ire to the Chateaugay, eat of the fatal root, and S l eepwi th hi s fathers

,in peace. Before you determine on a

measure so unju st,l ook up to God

,who m ade us

,as wel l

as you . We hO pe he wil l not permit you to destroy the

whole of our nation.

Father— Hear our case : many‘

nations inhabited th is

c ountry but they had no wisdom ,and

,therefore

,they

warred together. The S ix Nations were powerful,and

compelled them to peace ; the lands , for a great extent,we re given up to them but the nati ons whi ch were not

destroyed,al l continued on thos e lands , and cla imed the

protection of the Si x Nations,as the brothers of thei r fa

thers . They were m en,and when at peace

,they had a

right to l i ve upon the earth . The French came amongus

,and built Niagara ; they became our fathers , and took

care of us . S i r Will iam Johnston came and took that

Fort from the French he became our father,and prom

ised to take care of us,and d id so

,un ti l you were too

404 HI STORY OF BUFFALO .

strong for h i s King. To him we gave four m il es round

Niagara,as a place of trade. We have al ready sai d how

w e came to j oin agains t you ; we saw that we were

wrong ; we wish ed for peace ; you demanded a greatcountry to be gi ven up to you it was surrendered to you

as the price Of peace , and we ought to have peace and

p ossess ion of the l ittl e land wh ich you then l eft us .

Father— When that great country was gi ven up, there‘

w ere but few chiefs present, and they were compel led to

.give it up ; and it i s not the S ix Nati ons only that re

proach those ch iefs with having given up that country.

The Chippewas,and al l the nati ons who l ived on those

lands westward,cal l to us

,and ask us Brothers of our

fathers , where i s the place you have reserved for us to

l i e down upon 2

Father— You have compel led us to do that which has

m ade us ashamed . We have noth ing to answer to the

ch i ld ren of the brothers of our fathers . When, last S pring

they call ed upon us to go to war,to s ecure them a bed

to l i e upon ,the Senecas entreated them to be quiet, t ill

we had S poken to you . B ut,on our way down , we heard

that your army had gone toward the country which those

nati ons inhabit, and if they meet together , the best blood

on both s ides wil l sta in the ground .

Father— We will not conceal from you , that the great

God, and not m en,has preserved the Cornplanter from

the hands of h is own nati on . F or they ask, continual ly,

where i s the land , which our ch i ldren , and their ch i ldren

. after them ,are to l ie down upon Y ou told us , say they

that the line drawn from Pennsylvan ia to lake Ontari o,

w ould mark it forever on the east, and the l ine running

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406 HISTORY OF BUFFAL O .

give it to you . The land we l ive on,our fathers received

from God,and they transmitted it to us , for our children ,

and we cannot part w ith it.

Father— IVe tol d you that we would Open our hearts

to you . Hear us once more . A t Fort S tanwix , we agreed

to del i ver up those of ou r peopl e who should do you any

wrong,that you migh t try them

,and pun i sh them ac

co rd ing to your law . We del ivered up two m en accord

ingly , but instead of try ing them accord ing to your law,

the l owest of your peopl e took them from your m ag

istrate,and put them imm ediately to death . It i s j ust to

pun i sh murder with death but the Senecas wi l l not de

l i ver their people to m en who d isregard the treati es of

thei r own natiOn .

Father— Innocent men of our nati on are ki ll ed , one af

ter another, and of our bes t famil ies ; but none of your

people who have committed the murder. have been pun

ished. We recol lect that you d id not promise to pun i sh

those who killed our people, and we now ask,w as it in

tended that your peopl e S hould kill the Senecas,and not

only remain unpun i shed by you , but be protected by you

against the revenge of the next of kin ?

Father— These are to us very great th ings . We know

that you are very strong,and we have heard that you are

w i s e, and we want to hear your answer to what we hav e

said,that we m ay know that you are j ust.

his

C O RN MPL A N TERmark

HALF K T O WN,markhis

GREAT l>< TREE.

m arkS igned at Ph iladelph ia, the l st day of December

,1790. Present at

signing,Joseph Nicho lson, Interpreter, T im ’

y Matlack .

GEN . WASHINGTON'

S REPLY. 407

'

The reply of Gen . IVashington w as couched in kind and

c onci liatory language,informing the ch iefs that he w as

aware that thei r peopl e had been l ed into some d ifficul ty

about their lands,but assured them that the government

of the Un i ted S tates fel t bound to protect them in al l the

lands secured to them by the treaty of Fort S tanw i x , in

1784 . He al so assured them that John L i vingston w asnot authorized to treat with them in regard to their lands,and that every th ing that he did was null and void

,and

that the federal courts would afford th em rel i ef as readi

ly and as effectually as any wh ite ci ti zen , and that it did

not appear from any proofs in possess ion of the govern

ment,that O l i ver Phelps had defrauded them . He ad

vi sed them to be strong in thei r friendship to the govern

ment which was s incerely desi rous of thei r fri endsh ip,

U pon terms of the most perfect j usti ce,and human ity.

He al s o assured them that an agent would soon be appointed to res id e at some place conven i ent to them

,to

whom they might apply at all times for advi ce or ass ist

ance . They were then di smissed with handsome pres

ents for themsel ves,and for other ch i efs in their nati on .

C ornpl anter and hi s colleagues had complained of some

of the provisions of the treaty at Fort Stanwi x In 1784.

That they were compelled to give up too much of thei r

lands,and asked that the treaty m ight be recons idered ,and a part of thei r land restored . To th i s the Pres ident

repl i ed “ Y ou seem to enti rely forget that you your

selves,the Cornplanter , Hal f-Town ,

and Great Tree,with

oth ers of your nati on,confirmed

,by the treaty of Fort

Ha rmer,upon the Muskingum

,so late as the 9th of J an "

na ry , 1789, the boundary marked at the treaty of Fort

Stanw ix,and that in cons i deration thereof

, you then re

408 HI STORY OF B UF F AL O .

ceived goods to a cons iderable amount. T he l inesfixed at Fort S tanwix and Fort Harmer must therefore

rema in established .

”

T he delegati on took thei r leave of the Pres ident on the .

7th of February, 1791 , in an address O fwhich the follow

ing i s a Copy

FAT H ER - NO Seneca ever goes from the fires of his

fr i end,unti l h e has sai d to h im

,I am going .

” We now

therefore tell you , that we are now setting out for our

own country.

Father - We thank you from . our hearts that w e now

know there i s a country we may call our own , and on

wh i ch we m ay l i e down in peace. We see that there w i ll

be peace between your ch i ldren and our ch ildren ; and

our hearts are glad. We will persuade the Wyandots,

and other western nati ons , to Open thei r eyes,and l ook

towards the bed wh ich you have m ade for us,and to ask

of you a bed for themselves,and thei r ch i ldren , that will

not sl id e from under them . We thank you for your press

ents to us , and rely on your promis e to instruct us in rai

s ing corn, as the white peopl e do ; the sooner you do this,

the better for us . A nd we - thank you for the care you

have taken to prevent bad m en from coming to trade

among us ; if any come w ithout your l i cense , we w i l l turn

them back ; and we hope our nation will determine to ,

S pi l l al l the rum whi ch shal l,hereafter

,be brought to our

'

towns .

Father—We are glad to hear that you determine to

appoint an agent that will do us j usti ce, in taking care

that bad men do not come to trade amongst us but we

earnestly entreat you that you will elet us have an inter

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410 HISTORY OF BUFFA LO .

Cornplanter and Brant had attended the treaty at Fort

S tanwix in 1784 , as the principal representati ves of the

S ix Nations . The concess ions O f land made at that treaty

had been a subj ect of d issatis facti on and compla int,on

the part of a great maj ori ty of the ch iefs and sachems,

and Cornplanter had al ready began to feel the growing

unpopulari ty of those,who were cons idered the au thors

Of these measures,and it i s not surpris ing that he S hould

make strenuous efforts,to get the terms of that treaty so

mod ified,as to make it l ess obnoxiou s to h i s people.

The condi tion of Indian affa i rs in the Northwestern

Territory,was da i ly growing more and more threaten

ing . I t was the pol i cy of the government,by every pos

s ibl e means,to concil iate the S ix Nati ons . Whi le on the

other hand,the Briti sh were acti ve in inciting

,and en

couraging them to j oin the western Indians , in the im

pending struggle . Johnson , Brant and others,were ac

ti ve agents of the Briti sh,and soon after the vis it of Corn

planter,Hal f-Town

,and Big Tree

,to thei r great father

,

Pres ident Wash ington,an agent was d ispatched to vis it

C ornplanter , wi th a v i ew to engage h im,and through

him,the influential ch i efs of the S ix Nations

,to go on an

embassy to the western Ind ians ; parti cularly the Wyan

dots,ih the v i c in i ty of Sandusky . Accord ingly

,in

March,17 Col . Thomas Proctor was appointed to pro

ceed to vi s it Cornplanter , at h i s res idence on the head

waters of the Al l egany river . A s“

h i s j ournal i s interest

ing, and relates to the conditi on of the Senecas,and thei r

l ocation in th i s v i cinity,it wil l be inserted at l ength

,in

an append ix .

It has been stated that Cornplanter acted in concert

with Brant at the Fort S tanwix treaty in 1784 . It should

DEATH OF CO R NPL A N T ER . 411

be understood however,that there existed between these

two ch iefs,a personal d i s l ike . I t m ay be, that the resu lts

Of that treaty heightened th is feel ing of an imos ity on the

part ofCornplanter , for h e never ceased to regret the acts

into wh ich h e was drawn,or d ri ven

,at that treaty ; and

he refers to it on almost al l occas ions,either to complain

of its terms,or

,of the bad fa ith

,in whi ch its provis ions

had been Observed on the part of the whites . He was a

war ch ief of the Senecas . Brant hel d the same pos ition

among the Mohawks . It i s s carcely poss ibl e that they

should have been r ival s . A S a warrior,whatever may be

thought,or said . by white m en

,Cornplanter , in the estima

tion of the Indian s,who were thei r cotemporari es

,was his

superi or. The Senecas were a nati on ofwarriors,and itwill

be admitted,that they d id most of the fighting for the S ix

Nations,during nearly two centuries Of thei r h istory

,with

wh i ch we are conversant. From the time Cornplanter

c ame on to the stage, (and he entered upon the war path

early,) down to the close O f the Revolutionary war , he

had no superior,and few equal s as a warr ior . His other

qual ifications w il l be j udged,by the record he has l eft

,in

h i s speeches,and l etters , in the archieves Of our S tate,

and fnational government. After the war he reti red to

the land given him by the State of Penn syl vania, where

he continued to res ide unti l h i s death,which occurred in

March,1836

, at the age of over one hundred years .

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414 HISTORY OF BUFFALO .

Q

which station he proved to be a v igilant and brave offi cer. T he latterpart of the evening I accompanied Col . Pickering, Prothonotary of thecounty, and late Adju tant General of the arm ies of the United S tates.Much snow fel l wh ile w e remained at th is place ; weather extremely cold.2 oth. This day we set forward for Capt. Waterman Baldwin’

s ; arrivedthere in the evening, hal ted for him part of two days, as I had orders totake him with me to the residence of the Cornplanter, at wh ich place hewas intended to act as instructor to the Indian youth , as also a directorin the mode and management of agricu l ture , for the use and benefi t ofthe Indians. Th is gentleman was made prisoner by Cornplanter, duringthe late war, and was treated by him with remarkable tenderness

,until

legall y exchanged.

2 2 d. Passed the fi rst narrows of S usquehanna ; encamped this evening in the woods

,thirteen miles from L ahawanock

,on the waters of the

Buttermilk Fal ls. This place I had the opportunity of examiningminutely, when going on the expedition of Gen. S ul livan against the sava

ges, in the year 1779. We landed,and I passed to the top of the mouu ‘

tain to review so great a cu riosity.

2 3d. T he S usquehanna being so extremely h igh , and al l the watersleading thereto, compel led us to qu it the river road, and go by that latelyout (though not cleared ) by John Nicholson, Esq.

,Comptrol ler General

of the state of Pennsylvania. T he taking of this road wh ich was ou t

abou t twenty feet in width , the trees lying across the same, and in everydirection

,was not a matter of choice, bu t necessity, for the river road

’

was impassible.

2 4th. We were obliged to .encamp ear ly this afternoon under a veryheavy storm of rain

,thunder and lightning, and what is very remarkable ,

the snow was in general fi fteen inches deep on the groun d.

2 5th. We stil l travel led by the way of N icholson ’s road

,til l we reached

the one cut by M r. El licott, geographer to the United S tates, which leadsto the greatbend on the east branch of the S usquehanna

,and to describe

the same, it is hardly possible, bu t to say the leas t of them ,there is none

can equal them for heigth ofmountains,and swampy val leys. Encamped

this nigh t ten m iles from T ioga point.2 6th. We arrived at the ferry at T ioga Point

,the river stil l very h igh .

From there we proceeded on our way to Newtown Point. A t T ioga PointI w as compel led to purchase a pack- horse, as the rou te we had to takefrom the Painted Post to the Genesee, was not inhabited ; wh ich by computation was ninety- nine miles. Capt. Baldwin also purchased anotherhorse, the better to enable him to carry on the farming business for the

APPENDIX .

Cornplanter. From hence I also took a gu ide named Pe ter,in his

own language Cayantha, there being nothing bu t a bl ind path to theGenesee river .S unday, 2 7th. Hal ted for the nigh t. reviewed the ground on wh ich theBritish and Indians were entrenched for better than a m ile

,against the

forces under the command ofM ajor Gen . S u l l ivan.

2 8 th. Proceeded to the Painted Post or Cohoc ton in the Indian lan

guage ; dined , and refreshed our horses, it being the last house we S hou l dmeetwith , ere we shou ld reach the Genesee river. Here I was joined company by a M r. George S locum ,

who fol lowed us from Wyom ing , to placeh imself under our prot-eetion and assistance until we S hou l d reach the Cornplanter’ s settlement on the head-waters of the A l leghany

,to the redeem

ing of his S ister from an unpleasing captivity of twe lve years,to wh ich

end he begged our immediate interposition . O n leavmg the PaintedPost

,we entered the warriors path , lying on the north east S ide of the

T ioga river.

2 9th. Continued our rou te by the aforesaid path th is day .

30th. We began our journey before sunrise ; the course of the w ar

riors path gives a travel ler a S igh t of the river T ioga,u pwards of sixty

miles. T he next principal water we crossed is cal led,in the Indian lan

guage, Connesserago, from whence it is cal led twelve miles to the Genesee

river.

3 l st. This morning I found myself in a settlement of Ind ians,cal led

the S quawkey tribe, bu t a branch of the S eneca Nation.

April 1st. M r. Horatio Jones,Indian interpreter

,arrived th is morning

,

and abou t eleven o’ clock

,there were thirty O dd Ind ians co llec ted and

shortly afterwards I convened into council , and introdu ced my messageby some prefatory sentiments, tou ch ing on the candor and justice of the

United S tates. I read the message to them from the Hon . S ecretary of ’

War ; having ended the same, they signifi ed their ful l approbation intheir accustomed manner. Capt. L ittle Beard acquainted me that theirgreat warrior

,Capt. O ’

B eel,or Cayantaw anka, in the Indian language

,

had arrived at Pittsburgh,from Philade lph ia, and sent ou t runners from .

thence, to summon the chiefs and warriors of the S ix Nations at Buffal o,where he desired that the great council fi re m igh t be kindled , and wherehe Shou ld lay before them al l the business that had been done by him at

Ph iladelph ia,and the public papers and documents, wh ich he had recei

ved for the S ix Nations,from the President of the United S tates, the

S ecretary of War,and from the Governor of the S tate of Pennsy lvania.

This information indu ced me to prepare my self for going to Buffalo in the

4 16 HI S TORY OF BUFFAL O .

morning, instead of continu ing my rou te to O ’B eelstown

,and urged it

upon them in a very pressing manner,that they wou ld accompany me on

this deserving errand to Buffalo,as its design was big with advantages to

every Indian on the continent. F ive of them immediately offered to at

tend Capt. Houdin and myself,and ch iefs of the fi rst notoriety in this

settlement,and accordingly appointed a sugar camp

,eight m iles distant

,

the place of meeting in the morning, where they must go and acquainttheir people of th is hasty departure. I now made the necessary inquirywhether it was easy to obtain a good interpreter at Buffalo

,or otherwise :

and being informed that there were no interpreters there b u t those underBritish pay and establ ishments

,I conceived it a duty incumbent on me

,

to engage M r. Jones,as being a proper person for my business, from the

repu tation be bore from inqu iries I have made,and I accordingly agreed

with him, in the behalf of the United S tates, to pay him the customarywages

,so long as 1 shou ld fi nd occasion for his services.

April 2 d. Departed from the council fi re at S quawkey Hill, to proceedby the way of T onawandy, to Buffalo— presumed distance betweenninetyand one hundred m iles but

,agreeable to my promise to the chiefs yes

t erday, I had to cal l for them at their sugar encampment. O n my waythither

,I stopped at the bu t of S tump Foot

,with the B lack Chief

,who

a ccompanied me,just at the instant that a runner had arrived there from

Buffalo Creek , who brough t the information that the council fi re at that

p lace had been quenched , by direction of the chiefs who had lighted thesame, at the instance of O

’B eel ’ s message to them

,and was to be covered

for one moon. Upon this sudden information to me, and their determination to continue as above directed

,1 determined to change my route

from this place,and go for the O il S prings, near which the Cornplanter

has his residence,and of wh ich intention ofmine I immediately informed

them,that S hou ld I be so fortunate as to fi nd him at home

,I would u se

every possib le endeavor to bring forward to Buffalo,Capt. O ’

B eel and his

chiefs,in order to rekindle the council fi re. O n these remarks we part

ed,and I proceeded w ith my people to a vil lage eigh t miles distant

,

cal led N ondas, and halted for the night at the bu t of a white woman,who had been with the savages from her infancy, and had borne to one ofthem nine ch ildren

,al l of whom were l iving . T wo of her daughters I

have seen,possessing fair features, bearing the bloom upon their cheeks

,

and incl ining to the S ide of beau ty and her second son had lately beenadopted a sachem

,and styled the promoter of peace.

S unday,April 3d . A rrived this day at an Indian vil lage cal led Carase

d era,situated on a high bluff of land overlooking the Genesee river. It

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418 HISTORY or BUF FALO .

tion . Having at th is time no path to go by , made the way lengthy anddisagreeable. O ur gu ide conduc ted us in safe ty

,at about 10 o ’ clock

,

at nigh t,to O

’

B eel’s town. Th is town is pleasantly situated

,on the north

side of the river, and contains about twenty - eight tolerable wel l builthouses and the one wh ich they had se lec ted for me and my fol lowers toreside in

,w as commodiously fi tted up, w ith berths to sleep in

,and uncom‘

monly clean, and provided us for the night w ith plenty of provisions, suchasboiled venison and dumplings. M attcrs were no sooner arranged

,than I

desired my interpreter to have the ch iefs col lected where I cou ld speak tothem . Upon wh ich . we found that al l the ch iefs and warriors of the

town were gone on to Venango,hearing that their head warrior

, O’B eel .

and their sachem,the N ew Arrow

,were forced to take sanc tuary in Fort

Franklin, (one of our garrisons, ) for the protection of their lives that

none remained in the town on this account,bu t three very old men

,the

women and ch ildren. I then desired that they wou ld furnish mewith a canoe and a gu ide

,to conduc t me to the place where I coul d meet

with O ’B eel and his people

,being desirous of going forward immediately ;

and that I shou ld, without doubt, b e the instrument of bringing theirchiefs and warriors to them in a few days. Upon wh ich

,they sent fi ve

miles to procure me a canoe,and by dayl igh t, two young Indians attend

ed me,with whom my interpreter and Capt. Baldwin

,went for French

Creek,distant abou t one hundred and th irty m iles, and arrived on the

8th day of April , abou t four in the afternoon as we worked our canoe byturns

,al l nigh t.

I no sooner arrived at the garrison on French Greek , than I received a

v isit from Cornplanter, and those Indians that accompanied him at Philaadelph ia, who professed the greatest happiness to see me, being under thegreatest anxiety ofmind. for the safety of the New - Arrow

,who was car

ried in the Garrison boat to Pittsburgh in the forcible manner before re

lated . I desired him (Cornplanter ) withou t loss of time,to bring

with him into the garrison al l the head men of the nation then present,so that I m igh t inform them of the message I was charged with from his

excel lency,the S ecretary ofWar, to the S ix Nations ; upon this Capt.

O ’B eel leftme

,and soon after summoned the ch iefs present, e leven in

number,who met me in the garrison by permission of Lieut. J effet s

,and

in the ful lest manner I gave them the necessary information. I proposedmeeting them again in their encampment over French Creek, early in theforenoon

,and of wh ich I desired that they m ight inform their people, so

that none might be absent.April 9th. I crossed French Greek to their encampment, about eleven

APPENDIX . 19

o’

cloek,where I found them prepared to receive m e abou t seventy- fi ve in

number,exclusive ofwomen, child ren and youth ; in the who le one hun

dred and eigh ty. I read fi rst the message to the S eneca Nation from the

S ecretary ofWar, and after explaining to them the principles uponwhich it was founded, I read to them the messages from Governor S t.C lair to the Wyandot and Delaware tribes, who were deemed and ob

served to be friends of the United S tates. Here I thought it my duty toexplain to them the force ofmy message to the Indians

,who were carry

ing on their wanton depredations and crue l ties on the defenceless inhabitants resident near the O hio. That with th is present council it rests

to save those misgu ided peop le on the M iami and Wabash,from the dis

truction that is just ready to fal l and crush them ; and the better to effectso laudable an undertaking

,let there be selected from amongst you , any

number ofyour chiefs and warriors,not more than fi fteen nor less than

fi ve,to guide and accompany me to the Miami’ s, as by your going from

hence we shal l save the distance of four hundred m iles,if not compel led

to go to Buffalo Creek ; and by th is act you wil l fu l ly complete the end of

my message to the S eneca Nation ; and foryour services you shal l receiveample reward from the United S tates

,and due honor to your nation.

We left,

them for about an hour and a hal f, when a chief came to informme that they were desirous of seeing me again at their fi re. I accordingly attended

,and Capt. O ’

B eel was appointed to acquaintme with the de~

termination of their council ; wh ich briefly was that they cou ld not agreeto my request of going direc tly to the M iamies

,as they must determine

on that business in fu l l council of the S ix Nations at Buffalo Creek. S ee

ing therefore, that I had no other al ternative, but by going to Buffalo,I

requested then,that they wou ld prepare themselves to leave th is place

,

and proceed for Buffalo on to-morrow , which they read ily complied with ;and for Cornpl anter

’

s address to me upon this occasion,see subsequent

page.

3‘

April l 0th. Agreeably to the arrangements made by me at the generalcouncil yesterday

,w e set ou t from French Greek to go up the A l leghany

river with thirty canoes. Hal ted th is night at O il Creek,abou t e igh t

miles from the garrison . Lieut. Jed‘

ers came to u s at th is place abou t 12o’ clock at night

,and brought with him certain letters that he had re

ceived from Pittsburgh that evening, with verbal messages he had re

ceived by express,by wh ich means the Indians were informed that some

of their canoes were plundered of what they contained, bu t the garrisonboat was returning with their ch ief, the N ew A rrow &c .

,under the escort

of Major IIart, w ith a proper guard .

42 0 HISTORY or BUFFALO .

Monday, l l th ofApril . We silently began to load our canoes

,and

shortly after took up the l ine ofmarch , O’B eel taking the lead . I held

it prO per to take my place next to his canoe to stimulate him to press forward on his journey. Ere we cou ld reach Buffalo Creek, we arrived th isevening at an old Indian settlement cal led Hog ’ s Town ; we had mu chrain th is night and very cold.

April 12 th I was invited this morning to breakfast with Capt. O ’B cel

his squaw. dz o. O ur repast, boiled chestnu ts, parched meal swee tened ;his daughter made us some tea, also, wh ich she pu t into an open kettlewhen the water was cold, and being boiled in that manner withou t any

cover to the kettle,it became very dirty and disagreeable to the taste ;

but of the chestnuts I took suflicicntly. Th is day abou t one o’ clock

we arrived at the Munsee settlement, where al l the canoes came to at,in

order to rest and prepare for ou r dinners. Immediately after we had

landed,and what appeared very strange to me

,several Indian women

came forward with kettles ful l of boiled corn and bears meat, and placedit before Capt. O ’

B eel,who they had heard was approach ing with his

people. This being done,each family of a canoe

, (as in each were womenand children) approached with their kettles, withou t any signal beingmade

,to receive their stipend ; and to do which , an old squaw w as ap

pointed to act as an issuing commissary, who deal t it ou t in proportionsso justly

,that each went away fu l ly satisfi ed. Cap t. U ’

B e e l requested ofmy interpreter to inform me it was expected that I wou ld par take ofwhatw as prepared ; I did so accordingly

,to prevent displeasure, bu t w ith the

weakest appetite.

12 th. A t 9 o’ clock at night Cap t. O ’

B ecl the Delaware chiefs and S en

ecas, when Capt. S nake’s interpreter gave his speech as fo l lowsUncle, (for that is the term given by the De lawares to the S enecas

, )God has been good to us this day ; for we have each heard the good talkfrom the great ch ief of the thirteen fi res ; and w e have ever said thatwe wou ld advise each other of every thing we heard that was bad

,or was

like to befal l either ofour nations. Now uncle, we have determined togo with you and our brother

,who brings to us these good tidings, to

Buffalo,and there meet ou r nations at the great council fi re. B lood may

fal l upon us while we are going,but now w e give you our hands as we

prom ised,and we w il l l ie down and w il l rise together.

”(H ere a be l t of

wampum was given,consisting of fi ve strings

,wh ich Cap t. O ’

B eel viewedin his hand a short time, and then presented it to me. ) Cap t. S nakeagain repeated : Uncle in three days we remove our women and children, and al l that we have to you r towns, they are to remain w ith you r

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42 2 msronr or BUFFA L O .

snflicient to carry the goods brough t forward by Cornplanter from Philadelphia. This afternoon

,the canoes wh ich had waited on the way,

arrived ; and by which I was informed that the Delaware and MunseeIndians at H ickorv town, were mov ing with their stock, &c.

,to Cattaran

gus.

19th. O’B eel and chiefs arrived here from the lower town

,and ordered

their conch shel l to be sounded through the town,to summon the head

men to council. Noth ing more material this day .

2 0th. A n express arrived from Buffalo Creek,inform ing that the fir e of

the S ix Nations had been kindled by a number of ch iefs and warr iors.and they had been stirring it long to keep it alive , waiting for the se

chems of the S enecas and their brothers, who were sent by the great

chief of the thirteen fi res, whom we want to hear speak with us. O n

receiving this public message,I was requested by O ’

B eel and the otherchiefs

,to write an answer

,on their behalf

,as hearing that Col . Bu tler

and Brant were at Budale,waiting our coming. I complied with their

request,and directed the same to the Farmers’ Brother

,Kayasatta, and

R ed Jacket,chiefs of the S ix Nations

,at Buffalo Creek .

2 1st. This morning. the who le of the town were preparing to have a

grand feast,to return thanks to the great keeper of al l men, for their be

ing spared to meet once more together several of the chiefs cal led onus to invite us to be present. In the evening

,Capt. O ’Beel and other

chiefs,informed me that they wou ld be ready to go with me to Buffalo

Creek in the morning,if I thought proper the information gave me the

most heart- felt satisfaction,and I acquainted him that I was ready to de

part,at any hour they shou ld agree togo, as mu ch precious time had been

wasted since my arrival in this place from the Genesee country.

2 3d. We left O ’B eel

’s town about twelve o ’ clock

,and proceeded with a

few chiefs and warriors, (the whole not being ready to depart with us, )

taking the route for Buffalo through the vil lage cal led Cattarag us, wh ichwe did not reach before the 2 5th, in the evening and on our way thith

er,passed through a settlement of Delaware , or Munsee Indians, in wh ich

was about twenty houses.

2 6th. We took up our journey towards Buffalo, and in abou t fi ve m ilesgoing from thence

,we came in upon the verge of lake Erie, wh ich had a

beautifu l appearance,it being a pleasant morning, and the waters were

very serene,and looking over the lake, w e cou ld just perceive the land

upon the other side. We traveled along the sandy beach for some miles,bu t were obliged, at three or four different places, to leave the shore, andtake to the woods, the rocks having come bluff up to the deep water.

APPEND IX . 42 3

2 7th. We arrived at Buffalo Creek, having travelled through a countryof exceeding rich land, from our las t encampment, the extent of which Ihave not been able to ascertain. T he pre

- emptive right to this valuablecountry is vested in the state ofMassachusetts, but at present the property of the H on. Robert Morris of the city of Philadelphia

,by a late pur

chase. T he principal v il lage of Buffalo belongs to the S eneca Nation,

and in it the Young- King and Farmer ’ s- B rother reside ; as also R ed Jacket the great Speaker, and prince of the tur tle tribe. O n my entering thetown there were numbers of Indians col lected at the but where we aligh tcd from our horses

,and on taking a general v iew of them

,I found that

they were far better clothed than those Indians were,in the towns at a

greater distance,owing entirely to the immediate intercourse they had

with the British,being bu t thirty- fi ve miles distance from Niagara, and

bu t six miles from Fort Erie, situate on the north side of the lake ; fromwhich places they are supp lied yearly with almost every necessary theyrequire

,so much so as to make them indifferent in their huntings

,and

the chiefs who are poor in general,have to look up to them for almost

their daily subsistence, not only of provisions bu t for apparel ; for theYoung- King was fu l ly regimentaled as a Colonel

,red

,faced with blue, as

belonging to some Royal Regiment, and equ ipped with a pair of the bestepauletts. S o that from his after conduct

,it may not appear extraordi

nary where the King has thrown in his opposition to my er

rand,he being paid so wel l for his influence over the Indian Nations as

to carry his favorite point in question . I had not been long in the vil lagebefore 1 w as invited to the great coun cil house

,with my companion

,at

tended by R ed Jacket, O

’B eel and other chiefs. Just as we approached

the porch they had a two pounder swive l gun , which had been loadedvery heavy

,having put into her an un common chnrge wh ich the acting

gunner being sensible of,stood within the door, and flred it from the end

of a long pole which he passed between the legs ; which being done, theexplosion upset the gun and its fi xture. This they said was done as a

treat for our safe arrival through the dangers that we had encounteredand for which they were thankfu l to the Great Keeper. T he speech givenby R ed J acket, being ended, he came forward to me to the seat I had beeninvited to in the centre of the council

,and presented mewith four strings

ofwampum , which he had hel d in his hands wh ile speak ing (for partienlars ofwhich see another page) Capt. O ’

B eel having been particu larlynamed by R ed Jacket

,he rose and returned the compliment in behalf of

us that were strangers.

Being just at sun setting,I apprised the council through my interpre

42 4 HISTORY OF BUF FA LO.

ter,that I had messages from Gen. Wash ington, the great ch ief O f the

thirteen fires, which were par ticularly addressed to the notice of the S ix

Nations, the representatives ofwh ich nations presumed were principally p resent ; bu t as i t w as getting late, I requested leave to postpone theintroduc tion til l the morning

,which was consented to. Upon this

,R ed

Jacket rose to remark that many persons had occasional ly come into theircountry who said they had also come in by the au thority of the thirteenfi res, bu t of the tru th of wh ich they were not always convinced . Th is intimation O pened the door that I expec ted ; having been informed by aFrench gentleman

,a trader amongst them

,that these sentiments had

fal len from Brant and Bu tler. abou t seven days previous to our arrival atthis place, who desired O f the ch iefs in private council to pay no atten

tion to what shou ld be said to them by me ; and as they knew the pur

port O fmy mission,from the chiefs whom I had held council with at Gen

esee river ; the Colonels advised them not to assist me in going to the M iamies, as the consequences wou l d be fatal to those that should attend me,and consequent death to me and my companion. From these suggestionswhich had fallen from R ed Jacket

,I mentioned in O pen council , that I

was desirous that they might cal l forward any gentleman O f veracity inwhom they had confi dence , to be present while I shou ld deliver myself tothem

,and examine any writing that I w as directed to lay before the S ix

Nations,as by that means proof wou ld be made that my commission was

founded on the au thority of the United S tates of America. They thenagreed upon sending for the commanding offi cer of Fort Erie

,and dis

patched a runner for that purpose. S oon after the council broke up, Capt.John of the O nondagas came to my bu t, and informed me in a privateconversation, that no scruple was made of the au thority I came under tothem , being wel l informed by the chiefs of the Genesee, who had giventhat information some considerable time before my reaching Buffalo. T he

reason, he said , they were so particu lar with me, was on account of a cer

tain Wil liam Ewing , a resident from Conncdesago lake , who had come inbehalf of the H on. Robert Morris

,whom he cal led the second greatest

man in the union ; that he had convened a council the day previous tomy arrival , informing those of the S ix Nations present, that the pre- emp

tive right to the land in this country as belonging to the state of Massachusetts, were now the property of the said RobertMorris, whensoever theS ix Nations of Indians were disposed to sel l any part O f the same ; thatthe better to authenticate the business he had to perform

,he produced his

instructions under the hands and seals of the said Robert Morris, and theHonorable O gden, both of the state ofPennsylvania, adding thatnow

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42 6 HISTORY or BUFFALO.

in the great council , viz : that they wou ld not determine on any ma tterof consequence with me, without their concurr ence. These. injunctionsbeing laid upon them, (as I received it from my informant, ) the BritishO ffi cers retired to their different posts.Friday

,A pril 2 9th. T he business which I postponed yesterday, I O pened

in a mu ch larger council. than had appeared before ; and after I had read

the S ecretary of War’s message to the S ix Nations, I continued to read

those also directed to the Delawares,&c.

,and c losed the whole w ith an

address to them. T he reply of R ed Jacket to the foregoing , as it

wil l come more proper in its place here, I wil l insert it at ful l length :“Brother from Pennsylvania—We have heard al l that you have said to

us, and by which you have informed, that you are going to the bad Indians to make peace with them

,and that you are sent to us

,to seek our as

sistance. Now we must consider the matter thoroughly,and to choose

which way to go, either by land or by water. Y ou likewise tel l us that

you have messages to the Wyandots, and to Capt. Snake of the Delawares,and that they are to take hol d of you and u s by the hands

,and go to the

bad Indian nations with us ; and this also, we mu st consider O f thoroughly, for we fi nd that al l our S ix Nations are not present ; and as our brother,Capt. Powel l , of the British is here, and true to u s, for he is here at

every treaty, we must let you know that we shal l move our council fi re toNiagara with him,

and that you must go with us to-merrow , as far as

Capt. Powel l ’ s house. A nd as soon as we can know what time we canreach N iagara, we wil l send runners off to the Fort to acquaint the com

manding O ffi cer of the garrison. A nd now the council want to have youranswer.

” I did not long hesitate to make answer in what I deemed avery unwarrantable request. therefore I shou ld decline accompanyingthem . A silence prevailed for some time in the whole council

,after

which,R ed Jacket and Farmer’ s Brother

,spoke to the council by turnS ’

the resu l t of it being that a runner must be immediatel y sent to Niagara,

to request the attendance of Col . Butler,&c . , to meet them in their coun

cil as soon as he cou l d make it convenient.

"Continued in appendix to second volume "

I N D E X .

Page .

A benaqu is— S ubdued by the I l linois . 33

Abee l— A n A lbany trader 140, 141

Abeel,John— S kins he fraudu lently obtained inthe S eneca’

s country .

Abeel— A lias O ’B ail

,alias Cornplanter 141 , 379, 383, 384 , 385 , 392 , 393

- 394,

407,409

,410 , 411

A darak ta— Chief S achem of the F rench deputation to O nondaga 86

Adirondacks— Attack and surprise a party of the Five Nations,hunting beaver 106

A gastarax— O r Gastrax, a great S eneca chief, lately deceased 166

A l len, C ol. B athan -Crossed to the Island of Montreal - 2 51

A lden, C O L— Mentioned 308, 309

A lbany—' Mentioned 37; 86, 89: 92

A lgonkins— S ubdued by the Iroquois 33

A l lemont,le Father— Report made to 2

A nencraos—A great chief O f the Iroquois, prisoner with the Cat Nation.5

Baker, Capt — A noted rebel,kil led near lake Champlain - 2 48

Bal d Eagle— A De laware chief,murdered on the O hio - 171

Barque —Lest on lake O ntario 57

Battle —Near O riskany 2 80 2 81;2 82

Bermudas— Rebel cruisers attack an EnglishWar vesse l near - 955

Bears—.Mode of kil l ing ; 400 kil led 2 3. 2 4

B ig T ree— A S eneca chief 306, 307

Bolton, Col . Mason— H is letters 2 92 , 300

Bel lemont, Ear l—Appointed Governor of N ew York 106, 1 10

B lack S nake—A S eneca w ar ch ief 398

B leeker, Ru tgers— Bearer of Dispatches to S ir John Johnson 2 58

Boughton H l l l— S eneca v il lage ; battle at 45,4s, 40

Brant,Joseph sent to Moor ’ s Charity S chool - 12 6

154,2 52

,2 71 , 2 72 , 2 73, 2 79, 373, 374, 378, 379, 381 ,

383, 385

386,387, 389, 390 , 410, 411

Brant, John—Mentioned . 32 6

Braddock, Gen.

— Proposes to capture the posts occupied by the F rench. l 2 7

Brant,Mol ly— O neidas revenge themselves on 2 73, 2 74, 372

B rebeuf,Jean—Mission to the Neu tre Nation 2

Bu tler, Col . Jehn— Left at Niagara 956

Burgoyne, Gen.

—S ir John Johnson reaches 2 55

Burne tt, Gov .

-Ho lds a council with the S ix Nations 11 2

B l l fi alo —B ufl‘

alo Creek 18 32 8 , 32 9, 353, 359, 373,379

,384

Bul ls and Cows— Wild, O bserved by L e Moine 2 2

Buffaloes—Formerly abundant in O hio and New York 2 1

Bush Lopers- O r Indian traders 89

42 8 I nsrony or B UF FAL O .

Pa e .

Buckley,Capt. Edward— Mentioned

Bu tler. Col . Z ebu lon- Mentioned 304B utlersbury

—O pposite Fort N iagal a . 366,367

,371

Butler,M rs John 32 6

Bu tler: Capt. Wal ter 314, 315 , 317, 32 3

Bu tler ’ s Rangers 308,32 2

,32 6

Burgoyne, G en. . - 2 55 2 93,2 94

,2 95

,2 96

,2 97, 2 98

Canandaigua - 32 4, 353

C atal aqui- (Kingston, abandoned by the French

Campbel l, Col .

—House surl ounded,fam ily taken prisonel s 312 317

Campbell,I l l s— Taken prisoner with hel Child-1 8 11

Carrying P lace— A t Niagara 147

Campbel l, Major —Arrives at Montreal .2 50,2 5 2

,2 54

Canawagus— Mentioned 32 4

Cannon M r.“ Taken pri sonel at Chei ry Val ley 32 5

Caldwe l l , Capt. —Mentioned 304

Cal lender - Aptl ader

,plundered 163

Canesadageafl (Geneva warr iors from

,join Col . Johnson 2 49

Canandaigua Lake 13

Cannahoot —A S eneca sachem , de livers the message of his people 87

Canoes— 2 00 loaded with furs arl ive at Q uebec from M acinae 100

C anaghquieson- Chief O neida sachem

,his speech - 139, 140

Canadian Militia-" Gen. Car leton depends upon 2 49

Carleton,Gen.

—Col . Guy Johnson ’s intel v iew with W2 45 2 50

Casconchagon— (Genesee Rivel , ) Indians ask to have Joncl are settle there . 1 17

Caughnawagas —T wo kil led and several wounded 2 49

Cat Nation— Lived upon the sou th side of Lake Erie 5

Catawbas— T he I l oquois war against . 33

Champlain— A ttacks the O nondagas, and i s wounded 2 8

Cherry Val ley— M assacre at 306, 308, 309, 318 319, 32 1 , 32 23 2 0

Chal levoix— S peaks of the dread , or fear, of the Iroquois 34

Chaumonot, Joseph Marie— Visits the IroquoisChonidagon

—A chief of the S enecas,signs treaty of peace - l 52

Chew . Joseph— S ecretary of Indian Affairs 2 53,2 71

Cherokees- T he Iroquois war againstChoueguen cal led by the FrenchC laus

, Col . Daniel— Marries a daugh ter of S ir Wm . Johnson 1 2 6,184

2 50. 2 70

C linton,Dewitt— H is remarks on the Iroquois 30

Connecticu t —Purchased lands of the Iroquois 34

Cochran,Major— Command ing at Fort S tanw ix 306

Connol ly,Capt. —O fm il itia at Pittsburgh 172

Cornbury,Lord— Appointed Gov ofN ew York 1 11

Con- agh-

qui- eson —A n O neida ch i ef, opens council at J ohnson Hal l - 186

Cox, Col -

“ Kil led - 2 80

Cornstook - A t the battle of the Kanhawa 177, 178 ,1 79

Croghan,Wm —Agent of S il Wm . Johnson on the O h io

C reasap, C ressop, C l esa1) M l cll ael —A l l l l l hab l tant ofVa 167

Dablon,Father— Visits the Iroquois . 5

Dail lon,F athern De la Roche passed the winter w ith the Neu treNation 2

Dartmou th, Earl— S ir Wm . Johnson ’

s l eport to 167

Danbury—Lord Howe sends a body of troops to 2 71

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430 H ISTORY O F BUFFALO.

PgG len, Henry— Bearer of dispatches to S ir John Johnson 2 58.Governor of Canada—Refuses to recognize the a lish sovereign

ty over the Indians- 106

Gratehouse— A rrd others, col lected at the house of one Baker - 167,2 87

Greenhalgh - V isits the S eneca v il lage- 43

G regg, Capt. —Wounded and scalped 2 86 2 87

Grifiin- Name oi the ship built above the Fal ls of Niagara 60 63 , 66, 67, 68Gumersal l—H is statement 2 56, 2 57,

’

365

G rl i- yah”

gwaah- doh —O l G i en- gwah toh 32 7

Harris,R ev . M r.

— Journey to O hio 2 3

H ayadonda— A head warrior of the C enisseo castle - 141

H aldimand, Gen 32 0

,333

Hartley, Col 32 1

,32 2

Harper,Cap t. A lexander - 373 , 374

Hennepin,Father— V isits the S enecas 4

,5 2

,53 , 62 , 63

Hendrick— A great Mohawk ch ief kil ledH il lsbororrgh, Lord— H is circu lar letter to the Governors . 164

Hil lier,L ieu t 352

Herkimer, C O L—Joins Gen . S chuyler with the Tryon county militia 2 59

, 2 75 , 2 77, 2 78, 2 79, 2 80 , 2 83

Howe,S irWil liam - 2 71 , 300

H oneyoye 32 4

Ice— From lake Erie in the Niagara river - 56

Il linois Indians— S ubdued by the IroquoisIndian T radition - Ih regard to the origin of the war w ith theEries . 6

Ingoldsby,Capt. - Assumes the government of N ew Y ork 97

,98

Iroquois- “ Their country 5 , 2 9, 33, 34, 35, 43, 59, 64, 97

Irondequoit B ay - French landed at 45

Isle au Nem u - Rebel army retire to 2 49

Jesuit Missionaries -With the IroquoisJemison

,Mary —H er statement of the marriage of a captive 2 86

Jonciare,Chabert - (Jean Coner, ) long a prisoner with the S ene

cas - 103,

Jonciare,Chabert J r - Appointed to fi l l his father ’ s offi ce 1 19

Joncral e C l au z oune - S ent to the S enecas 1 18

Johnson,S ir Wil liam - B0 1n in Ireland

137, 138, 142 , 156 167

192

Johnson , Guy-Nephew of SirWil liam ,

married a daughter of S irWil liam Johnson - 12 6

,2 43 , 337

334,Johnson , S ir John- " S on of S ir Wil l iam Johnson ”2 59 2 60 , 2 64

2 65,2 93 , 391

Johnson, Wm . and Pe ter -Natural sons of S ir Wil liam Johnson 372 , 373

2 65 , 2 67, 2 54

Johnson,Lady~ -Wife of S irWm . Johnson

,of Dutch or German descent.1 2 6

Wife of S ir John .

Karor1ghyanaghqui- A sachem of the Cenisseo castle 141

Kandaruntl e - T he great S eneca warrior 140

Ka - an-

yes- A S eneca chief 15 2

Kanhawa river - Battle nearKanak les - A place on the S usquehanna 307

Kanedasaga-N ot mentioned by De Nonvil le - 50 1 2 0

,162

,306, 307, 315

32 3, 32 8, 32 9, 349, 353

runnx. 31

Kaw Q uaws, Kaw Kwas -Reside near 18 m ile C reek,not a rem

nant of theEriesKayashota, or Kayagshota

- A S eneca chief at Fort P itt. his addressKayrn

o waarton - 1 chief of the S enecas, as spel led 111 the scalp cer

tifi cate 32 9

Kagswoughtanewanda, al ias Bel t- " S eneca warriorK ing

,Thomas - A ch ief of the Mohawks

,heads a depu tation to O h io . 165

King, O ld —U r O ld Smoke, a ch ief of the S enecasK ing , Young - A ch ief of the S enecasK irkland , R ev S amuel - H is letter to the A lbany Comm ittee - 2 09 , 2 10

2 11,

2 40 , 2 69

L a Moyne -Visits the Iroquois - 5 6 , 2 2 , 30 , 39

Lake Erie -Waters of,have subsided 2 0 63 64

Lake O ntario -Wate1 s of,have subsided

,cal led lake Iroquois - 2 0

,2 5 , 45

59, 95 , 103, 1 1 1, 142 , 158 , 159, 185

Lake S t. C lair -Ve1y shal lowLake Huron- " Entered by the G riffi n 65

L a S al le - H is Journey from I llinois to Q u ebec 2 3, 33, 55 . 59, 62 63,L a Barre - H is expedition against the Iroquois 45

Livingston,Peter - Heads a commission to O nondaga 110

L ittlehales, Col . —S urrende1 s the Fort at O swego 135

Little Beard ’ s Town -Mentioned 32 5

Logan,James - S ecretary of the Proprietors of Pennsylvania

Logan - A chief of the M ingoesLonan - Pretended speech of 180

, 181

Longuevil le -Mentioned 1 2 4,135

Marshal l , 0 . H —Visits Boughton Hil l - S ee also 2 6

Mohawks— T o keep the eastern door of the long house 43 . 89. 90 , 91 , 92

95 . 2 42

Moore , M rs— Cap tured at Cherry Val ley,w ith her children 314

Moore, M iss Jana - Marries Capt. Powe l l 3 74 375 , 376

Montour—Historical notice of 42, 343

Montour, Catharine - 32 5,341, 344

Montour, Rowland - 345 , 346 , 359

Montour, Capt. Andrew 43

Montour, Johm- " Interpreter 345 . 346

Montcalm , Marqu is de - Commands an expedition against O swego -134

Montgomery, Gen.- Lands near S t. Johns with 1000 nren - 2 49

Moncour t - A cadet of the French colonial troops,tragical end of - 143

M cCrea, M iss - Tragica l fate of 2 94,2 95

, 2 96

M cDonel l , M r. A l len 2 56, 2 59

Nason , John -Lieut. Gov . of N ew York 1 1 1

Neutre Nation - French fi rst discover 3

Nevi l le,M r.

- From VirginiaNra frara Fa l ls

,or O neagara

- First description of 50 5 1 5 2

Niagara, Fort - Abandoned by the French - 83 - S poken of 32 5, 376, l l

12 2, 32 3

,337

N undow or Nunda - Prisoners taken to 370

O ak O penings - Formerly prairies 17 . 88, 107, 16 1

O hio -Events upon the 163,1 67

O neidas 2 55, 2 7

O nondaga— Council at,5 , attacked by Champlain

O ntario—S poken of 2 42,2 44 ,

O swego— Traders leave 12 2,138 ,

Perthus—A u Indian interpreter kil led

432 msromr O F'

B U F F A L O .

Prescott, Brig. GenP23

26.

Pont i ac—Consp i racy of 146P i ttsburgh - A meeting at 172Prai ri es— Thei r origi n 17

,seen by L e M o ine 19 , 2 2

P rideaux, Geu.— Besi eges N i agara 142

Pouehot— French commander a t N iaga1 a . - 1 19P i ckeri ng, Col .— H olds a counc i l at C ananda igua 379, 385Powel l , Cap t . Thos— A t N iagara, 360, 361 , 367

,368

,376. 375, 364

Red Jache t—A celeb1ated Seneca orator " 383R iver

,N iagara— F irst vessel enters _55

Rive1 , Welland— M ent i oned _55Rob i son

,C ap t . - Exerts himself 16 1 the rel ease of prisonei s 352

Rob i n Abbe— Reports the speech of L onan 181Royal G 1eens— T r0 0 ps ra i sed by S i1 John Johnson

,ca l led 2 65

Sayenqua1a 0 hta— Ch1ef of the Senecas 3 2 9Schuyler , Pe te1 - A t a counc i l a t O nondaga - 86 87, 99, 1 11Sch losse1 , a lias L i tt le N iaga1a 371 376Senecas— Guard the weste1n doo1 of the l ong house . 43

,44. 55 , 60 . 84

156

Schenec tady— Desmoyed 37

S chuy1e1 , Ph i l ip—R equh es h ostages 0 1 S 11 John Johnson. 259,2 57

,2 58,

2 62,2 63

,2 64

,

S ix Nat i ons— Att ack M on trea l 86 , 87 88 135

968,990 . 2 91

S erihowane— A Seneca chief, h i s speech 188S hawnese - A nswe1 to Cap t Connel ly “

S he lby,C ap t . Isaac - " L eads the attack at Kanhaw a 78

S kannandario —L ake O n tari o,so cal led 54

S kanonyade- O r hnil f K ing of the Senecas, h is Speech

Slaugh ter,C ol - H olds a counc i l w i th the S ix Nat i ons

,94

,h is death - 95

Spencer,Thos. - A ha lf b i eed sachem of the O neidas 2 77

S tewart , Rev . M 1 .-Engl i sh M i ssi onary to the M ohan ks 2 41

Stone, Col . - H is no t i ce

zD

ot'

C athari ne M on tou r - 32 6. 331 , 340

S tedman . J ohn - A 11 Engl i shman,i n charge of N iagara Carry ing P lace - 147

Stacey, Col - TTaken p ri soner 32 2

St L eger, Gen.- H is exped i t i on aga i n st Ft. S tanw ix . 2 72 , 2 73, 2 94 2 97

Sull ivan, Gen.

- H is exped i t i on aga i n st the Senecas - 32 8 , 32 9, 341 , 354

T e Deum - Sung 55 , 6 1, 64 65

T irondequat- French name for Irondequoi t land i ng on lake Fron tenac . 12

T on t i - A n I ta l ian , L a Sa l le 5 L i eu ten an t 67, 68

T 11yon Gov - H is 1 eports and le tte1 s . 2 66 , 2 67

T sonontouans -N ame given to the Senecas by the F l ench 55 59,60

17audrieu l M . de - Gov . of CanadaV an Slyke

,Cap t . -Ki l led 2 80

V ic tor - T o\vu of,Bough ton H i l l 1n

Wash ington,G en.

-Wri t ten to by L ady Johnson 2 65,306

Wat ts,M ajor. - Bro ther- ih - law of S i r J ohn Johnson 2 79

Warren,SirPeter- " U ncle to S i r Wm . Johnson

,h i s esta te 12 5

War1aghiyagey- Ind ian name of S i r W i ll iam Johnson 138

el ls,Robe 1 t - And h i s family mmassacw d . 31 1 , 313 , 3 17

Weld,M 1 .

- A h Engl ish t 1 aveler, v i si ts Butta loWomp. M 1 . (M ynde1 t, Ind ian bl a cksm i th 2 2 1

,2 33 . 2 34, 2 36, 2 39

W1 1ght , Rev. Asher - 1nd ian m issiona1y and inte1p1ete1 , his le tte1 . - 32 7

3 19. 82 2 32 5,32 6