THE OHIO VALLEY-GREAT LAKES ETHNOHISTORY
ARCHIVES: THE MIAMI COLLECTION
It is noted that the following work from the Miami Archives should be read and
considered within the historical context in which it was composed and printed.
The opinions expressed and the language used do not reflect the opinions or
standards of the Glenn A. Black Laboratory of Archaeology, but are, rather,
indicative of thought in that historical moment during which the document was
published.
Vaudreuil to Rouille
(April 8, 1752)
Vaudreuil in: Archives
Nationales,
Ministere des Colonies, C13A
36:66-75 and in Pease and
Jenison, French Series,
III, pp. 572-586.
MONSEIGNEUR:
I had the honor to give you an account by my letter of the tenth of October last of the revolution that we had to apprehend in the Illinois from the Indian tribes of that region which was at length confirmed the seventh of December last. There is even reason to believe that the scheme had been concerted in such a way that a general movement might have been feared if one can judge by the arrangements the enemy had made in dividing their forces in the different settlements and on the approaches to each place to observe the movements of the inhabitants. However the impatience of some warriors of the different parties who should have struck together a few days later happily disconcerted all these plans.
At the outset there only appeared a party of thirty-three men from the village of the Piankashaw and the Vermilion who came to seek M. Benoist de St. Claire under pretext of a war party (page 573) against the Chickasaw. This officer that the ordinary ammunition given them, persuaded of the sincerity of their intentions. But he was not long in penetrating their real design when a scalp was taken from a soldier of his garrison, and Indian of the party overcome by two young negroes who had escaped it, and several of the inhabitants wounded on the road from Fort de Chartres to Kaskaskia.
All these hostilities left the Sieur Benoist no longer in doubt that this was the moment when the storm was about to break. He at once had the general alarm beaten, mustered his troops and militia, and sent detachments to reconnoiter the enemy and to pursue them. Of all the detachments which he sent into the country to pursue these Indians who had taken flight on seeing their plans discovered, only the one under the command of the Sieur de Montchervaux had the opportunity to make them repent the affair. Of the Indians who had stopped in the village called the Settlement, five were killed and four others made (page 574) prisoners, among whom was the Indian called Le Loup, one of the chiefs of the Pinakashaw tribe, with one of his warriors and two Illinois.
M. de Macarty fortunately arrived the day after the affair with a convoy which much reassured the inhabitants, who feared yet more unfortunate from this enterprise on account of the number of other parties which were discovered and which escaped from the pursuit of a large detachment, due to a dark night which did not permit it to follow the trail. This commandant has neglected nothing to discover from these prisoners, whom he keeps carefully in irons, which of the tribes took part in this conspiracy. It has been established that all the tribes of the Wabash with the exception of the Kickapoo and Mascoutens had entered into it, and all the arrangements had been made by La Demoiselle, one of the Miami chiefs and one of the refugees on Great Miami River.
The Illinois even appeared to be in the plot and were not able to deny having received to this end belts sent by the rebels who came in search of them to their winter camp, to engage them by entreaties and by threats to take sides with them; otherwise they would begin by attacking them before coming to hostilities with the French, who within a few moons would be attacked by an English partisan at the head of a thousand of these republicans. In short, the Illinois only had to decide as soon as possible to bring French scalps; otherwise they would be treated with the utmost severity.
There is every appearance that these threats had made an impression on the Illinois, especially on a large part of them since some of their people were found among the Pinakashaw who attacked; this they were not able to deny; However they have given as the reason of their action that they had transmitted to M. Benoist de St. Claire the belts which they had received from the English, and that otherwise it was the young men who (page 576) had let themselves be intimidated and persuaded without the knowledge of the chief and the chief men of their tribe who had known nothing of the designs of the moment.
M. de Macarty made them all the reproaches which they merited in conformity with the orders which I had given him, delaying to inform them of my intentions until they returned from their hunt where they were to assemble with all the tribes of the Wabash that we might know their real sentiment toward us. I am awaiting the result by the first messenger.
But whatever may be the disposition of these Illinois, domiciled Indians of this place, I do not think that they dare to undertake anything against us. The garrison which I am very glad to have sent will keep them in order, especially when there shall be a fort at Kaskaskia as I had the honor to inform you, Monseigneur, by the king's ship Le Parham. For a long time I have felt the necessity of it, but I find it today much more important on account of the continual movements of this republic, (page 577) which has just shown us the prelude of the designs which the English appear to have formed upon the upcountry.
M. de la Jonquiere has communicated to me a plan which he had conceived to forestall such events by quelling the audacity of these rebels and constraining them by open force to return to their nation.
To that end he sent last summer to Detroit about six hundred well-armed men to make the expedition with the forces which could be assembled in that place. But M. de Celoron, finding them far inferior to what he had asked for, decided not to make a second expedition against them, fearing it would be no more successful than the first.
This appears to have caused M. le Marquis de la Jonquiere to give up all hope of extirpating this republic by force; today he plans to harry it by means of all the tribes which are on our side, paying them for the scalps and the prisoners which they (page 578) take. He adds to me that he has given orders in consequence at Detroit and to the commandants of the other distant posts, even to the commandant of the Illinois.
Apparently he is not informed that there are a few of those tribes who have not relatives by blood or marriage among these refugees. As a result they will with difficulty be induced to strike, especially today when they are more than ever persuaded that we are in no situation to undertake anything against them.
Secondly, supposing the plan of M. de la Jonquiere in that respect might have all the success which might be expected from it, how much will it cost the king and how many years will be necessary to extinguish this republic if we confine ourselves to having it harried? This is indeed a means of making it uneasy, but what result will come of it?
In proportion as it is attacked, it will attack us as has already happened at the Miamis last year where the party of La Demoiselle had two soldiers killed at the gate of the fort in reprisal for (page 579) two warriors whom he had lost in the campaign of the Sieur Belestre. Moreover that will never be a thoroughly effective way to make the English withdraw from that place; they will draw in the Indians one tribe after another as a result of the advantages which they afford them, and which the Indians cannot expect of us.
Thirdly, M. de la Jonquiere is apparently ignorant of the fact that by taking this course he alienates from us in the Illinois country the tribes of the Wabash allied by blood and marriage with these refugees. These tribes will certainly seek to revenge them and will make their resentment fall upon us; thus they will cut our communication between here and the Illinois.
According to my way of thinking, Monseigneur, it would be more simple and much less expensive to undertake an enterprise capable of reducing these rebels by means of the forces which Canada is in a condition to put on foot, what with the French and with the tribes of the lower part of the colony joined to (page 580) those that could be assembled in the upcountry. They should have express orders to give quarter to no one, especially to the English, in order to make them lose their taste for pushing their trading interests so far.
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