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.
Minutes of the Provincial
Council of Pennsylvania
(November 14, 1753)
(Due to length divided here into three parts)
In: Minutes of the Provincial Council
of Pennsylvania, Colonial
Records, Vol. V,
pp. 665-689.
Brother Onas:
Your Traders now bring scarce any thing but Rum and Flour. They bring little Powder and Lead or other valuable Goods. The Rum ruins Us. We beg you would prevent its coming in such Quantities by regulating the Traders. We never understood the Trade was to be for Whiskey and Flour. We desire it may be forbidden, and none sold in the Indian country; but that if the Indians will have any they may go among the Inhabitants and deal with them for it. When these Whiskey Traders come they bring thirty or forty Caggs and put them down before Us and make Us drink, and get all the Skins that should go to pay the Debts. We have contracted for Goods bought of the Fair Traders, and by this means We not only ruin Ourselves but them too. These wicked Whiskey Sellers when they have once got the Indians in Liquor make them sell their very Clothes from their Backs. In short, if the Practice be continued We must be inevitably ruined. We most earnestly, therefore, beseech You to remedy it.
A treble String.
Brother Onas:
I have now done with generals, but have something to say for particular Nations.
The Shawonese heard some News since they came here which troubled their Minds, on which they addressed themselves to their Grandfathers the Delawares, and said: "Grandfathers, We will live and die with You and the Six Nations; We, our Wives and Children, and Children yet unborn."
N. B.- This was occasioned by Conrad Weiser's having told them in private Conversation that while he was in the Mohock Country he was informed that the French intended to drive away the Shawonese (as well as the English) from Ohio.
Scarrooyady then proceeded and said, "I have something further to say on Behalf of the Shawonese."
Brother Onas:
At the Beginning of the Summer, when the News was brought to Us of the Approach of the French, the Shawonese made this Speech to their Uncles the Delawares, saying: "Uncles, You have often told Us that We were a sensible and discreet People, but We lost all our Sense and Wits when we slipp'd out of your Arms; however, We are now in one another's Arms again, and hope We shall slip out no more. We remember and are returned to our former Friendship, and hope it will always continue. In Testimony whereof We give You, our Uncles, a String of Ten Rows.
The Shawonese likewise at the same time sent a Speech to the Six Nations, saying: "Our Brethren, the English, have treated Us as People that had Wit; the French Deceived Us; but We now turn (page 677) our Heads about and are looking perpetually to the Country of the Six Nations and our Brethren the English, and desire you to make an Apology for Us; and that gave Eight Strings of Wampum." The Delawares and Six Nations do, therefore, give up these Strings to Onas, and recommend the Shawonese to him as a People who have seen their Error, and are their and our very good Friends.
Gave Eight Strings.
Brother Onas:
Before I finish I must tell You We all earnestly request You will please to lay all our present Transactions before the Council of Onondago, that they may know We do nothing in the dark. They may perhaps think of Us as if We did not know what We were doing, or wanted to conceal from them what we do with our Brethren, but it is otherwise, and therefore make them acquainted with all our Proceedings. This is what We have likewise desired of the Virginians when We treated with them at Winchester.
Brother Onas:
I forgot something which I must now say to You; It is to desire you would assist Us with some Horses to carry our Goods, because You have given Us more than We can carry Ourselves. Our Women and young People present you with this Bundle of Skins, desiring some Spirits to make them chearful in their Own Country- not to drink here.
Presented a Bundle of Skins.
Then he added:
The Twightwees intended to say something to You, but they have mislaid some Strings, which has put their Speeches into Disorder; these they will rectify and Speak to you in the Afternoon.
Then the Indians withdrew.
___
At a Meeting of the Commissioners and Indians, the Third Day of October, 1753.- P. M.
PRESENT:
The Commissioners.
The same Indians as before.
The Magistrates and several Gentlemen of the County.
The Twightwees speak by Andrew Montour.
Brother Onas:
Hearken to what I have to say to the Six Nations, Delawares, Shawonese, and English.
The French have struck us; but though we have been hurt it is but on one Side- the other side is safe. Our arm on that side is entire, and with it we laid hold on our Pipe and have brought it (page 678) along with Us to shew You it as good as ever, and we shall leave it with you that it may be always ready for us and our Brethren to smoke in when we meet together.
Here he delivered over the Calumet decorated with fine Feathers.
Brother Onas:
We have a single Heart- We have but one Heart. Our Heart is green and good and sound. This Shell painted Green on its hollow Side is a Resemblance of it.
The Country beyond us towards the Setting of the Sun where the French live is all in Darkness- We can see no Light there. But towards Sun rising where the English live we see Light, and that is the way We turn our Faces. Consider us your fast Friends and good Brethren.
Here he delivered a large Shell painted green on the Concave Side, with a String of Wampum tied to it.
Brother Onas:
This Belt of Wampum was formerly given to the King of the Piankashas, one of our Tribes, by the Six Nations, that if at any time any of our People should be killed or any attack made on them by their Enemies, this Belts should be sent with the News, and the Six Nations would believe it.
The Twightwees, when they brought this Belt to the Lower Shawonese Town, addressed themselves to the Shawonese, Six Nations, Delawares, and then to the English, and said:
Brethren:
We are an unhappy People. We have had some of our Brethren the English killed and taken Prisoners in our Towns. Perhaps our Brethren the English may think or be told that we were the cause of their Death. We therefore apply to you the Shawonese, & to assure the English we were not. The attack was so sudden that it was not in our Power to save them. And we hope when you deliver this Speech to the English they will not be prejudiced against Us, but look on Us as their Brethren. Our Hearts are good towards them.
A large Belt of fourteen Rows.
Brethren:
One of our Kings on his Death Bed delivered to his Son, the young Boy who sits next to me, these eight Strings of Wampum, and told him, "Child, I am in Friendship with the Shawonese, Delawares, Six Nations, and English, and I desire you, if by any misfortune I should happen to die, or be killed by my Enemies, You would send this String to them, and they will receive You in Friendship in my Stead.
Delivers the String.
The following is a Speech of the Wife of the Piankasha King, after her Husband's Death, addressed to the Shawonese, Six Nations, Delawares, and English: "Remember, Brethren, that my Husband took a fast Hold of the Chain of Friendship subsisting between your Nations. Therefore I now deliver up his Child into your Care and Protection, and desire You would take Care of him, and remember the Alliance his Father was in with You, and not forget his Friendship but continue kind to his Child."
Gave Four Strings, black and White.
Brethren Shawonese, Delawares, Six Nations, and English:
We acquaint all our Brethren that We have prepared this Beaver Blanket as a Seat for all our Brethren to sit on in Council. In the middle of it We have painted a green Circle, which is the Colour and Resemblance of our Hearts, which We desire our Brethren may believe are sincere towards our Alliance with them.
Delivered a Beaver Blanket.
Then Scarrooyady stood up and said:
Brother Onas:
The Shawonese and Delawares delivered this Speech to the Six Nations, and desired they would deliver it to the English, and now I deliver it on their Behalf:
Brethren:
We acquaint You that as the Wife of the Piankasha King delivered his Child to all the Nations to be taken Care of, they desire that those Nations may be interceeded with to take care that the said Child may be placed in his Father's Seat, when he comes to be a man, to rule their People. And the Six Nations now, in behalf of the whole, request that this Petition may not be forgot by the English, but that they would see the Request fulfilled.
Gave Four Strings.
Then Scarrooyady desired the Six Nations' Council might be made acquainted with all these Speeches; And added, that they had no more to say, but what they have said is from their Hearts.
___
At a Meeting of the Commissioners and Indians the Fourth Day of October, 1753.
PRESENT:
The Commissioners.
The same Indians as before.
The Gentlemen of the County.
The Commissioners unwilling to lose any Time prepared their (page 680) Answers early this morning and sent for the Indians, who having seated themselves the following Speech was made to them:
Brethren, Six Nations, Delawares, Shawonese, Twightwees, and Owendats-
The several Matters delivered by You Yesterday have been well considered, and We are now going to return You our Answers.
The Concern expressed by the Twightwees for the Death and Imprisonment of the English, with their Professions of Love and Esteem, denotes a sincere and friendly Disposition which entitles them to our thanks and the Continuance of our Friendship, this they may certainly depend on.
Brethren:
You have recommended to Us the several Nations who, You say, live in that great Extent of Country over which our Traders travel to dispose of their Goods, and especially the Twightwees, Adirondacks, and Caghnawagas, who, You say, live at different Extremities and have good Inclinations towards the English. We believe You would not give them this Character unless they deserved it. Your Recommendations always will have a Weight with Us, and will dispose Us in Favour of them agreeable to your Request.
Brethren:
The several Articles which contain your observations on the Indian Traders, and the loose stragling manner in which that Trade is carried on thro' Countreys lying at great Distances from your Towns, Your Proposals to remedy this by having names three Places for the Traders to reside in under your Care and Protection, with a Request that the Province would appoint the particular Person to be concerned in this Trade, for whom they will be answerable; What You say about the vast Quantities of Rum and its ill Effects, and that no more may be brought amongst You, All these have made a very strong Impression upon our Minds, and was it now in our Power to rectify these Disorders, and to put Matters on the Footing you propose, We would do it with Great Pleasure, But these are affairs which more immediately concern the Government; in these, therefore, we shall imitate your Example by laying them before the Governor, assuring You that our heartiest Representations of the Necessity of these Regulations shall not be wanting, being convinced that unless something effectual be speedily done in these Matters the good People of this Province can no longer expect Safety or Profit in their Commerce, nor the Continuance of your Affection.
Brethren:
We will send an account to Onondago of all that has been transacted between us.
We will assist You with Horses for the Carriage of the Goods given You.
We grant your Women and Young Men their Request for Rum, on Condition it be not delivered to them until You shall have passed the Mountains.
Scarrooyady some Days ago desired us to give Orders for the Mending of your Guns, &ca., and we did so, being obliged to send for a Gunsmith out of the Country, as no one of that Trade lived in the Town, who promised to come, But having broke his word it has not been in our Power to comply with this Request.
Here the String given with the Request was returned.
Having delivered our general Answer, we shall now proceed to give one to what was said by particular Nations, as well by the Shawonese in the Forenoon as by the Twightwees in the Afternoon.
Brethren, Delawares, and Shawonese:
We are glad to see You in such good Dispositions to each other. We entreat You to do every Thing You can to preserve the Continuance of agreeable Harmony. The Shawonese may be assured we retain no manner of Remembrance of their former Miscarriages; we are perfectly reconciled, and our Esteem for their Nation is the same as ever.
Gave a large String.
Brethren Twightwees:
We shall take your several Presents, Shells, Strings, Beaver, Blanket, and Calumet Pipe with us, and deliver them to the Governor, that these and the several things said at the Delivery of them may remain in the Council Chamber at Philadelphia for our mutual Use and Remembrance, whenever it shall please the Great Being who sits above to bring us together in Council again.
Gave a long String.
Brethren:
We desire You will Send these two Strowds to the Young King as an acknowledgment of our Affectionate Remembrance of his Father's Love to Us and of our good will to him.
Be pleased to present to the Widow of the Piankasha King, our late hearty Friend, these Handkerchiefs to wipe the Tears from her Eyes; and likewise give her Son these two Strowds to clothe Him.
Here two Handkerchiefs and Two Strowds were given.
Brethren Twightwees:
We assure You we entertain no hard Thoughts of you, nor in any wise impute to you the Misfortune that befel the English in your Town; it was the Chance of War. We were struck together, We fell together, and we lament your Loss equally with our own.
Brethren- Six Nations, Delawares, Shawonese, Twightwees, and Owendats:
We have now finished our Answers, and We hope they will be agreeable to You. Whatever We have said had been with a hearty Good Will towards You; our Hearts have accompanied our Professions and You will always find our Actions agreeable to them. Then the Commissioners were silent, and after a Space of Time renewed their Speeches to them:
Brethren- Six Nations, Delawares, Shawonese, Twightwees, and Owendats:
We have something to say to You, to which We entreat You will give your closest Attention, since it concerns both Us and You very much.
Brethren:
We have held a Council on the present Situation of your Affairs; We have reason to think from the Advices of Taaf and Callender that it would be too great a Risque, considering the present Disorder Things are in at Ohio, to encrease the Quantity of Goods already given You. We, therefore, acquaint You that though the Governor has furnished Us with a larger Present of Goods to put into your publick Store House as a general Stock for your Support and Service, and We did intend to have sent them along with You, We have on this late disagreeable Piece of News altered our Minds and determined that the Goods shall not be delivered till the Governor be made acquainted with your present Circumstances, and shall give his own Orders for the Disposal of them; And that they may lye ready for your Use, to be applied for whenever the Delivery may be safe, seasonable, and likely to do You the most Service, We have committed them to the Care of your good Friend George Croghan, who is to transmit to the Governor by Express a true and faithful Account how your Matters are likely to turn out; and on the Governor's Order, and not otherwise, to put You into the Possession of them.
This We hope You will think a prudent Caution, and a Testimony of our Care for your real good and Welfare.
Brethren:
"We have a favour of a particular Nature to request from your Speaker, Scarrooyady, in which We expect your Concurrence and joint Interest; and therefore make it to him in your Presence." Here the Commissioners applying to Scarrooyady spoke as follows:
Respected Chief and Brother Scarrooyady: We have been informed by Andrew Montour and George Croghan, that You did at Winchester, in publick Council, undertake to go to Carolina to sollicit the Release of Some Warriors of the Shawonese Nation, who are said to be detained in the Publick Prison of Charles Town on Account of some Mischief committed by them or their Companions in the inhabited Part of that Province; and these two Persons, who are your very good Friends, have given it as their (page 683) Opinion, if after You know what has passed at Ohio You shall now leave this Company of Indians and not return with them to their Families, and assist in the Consultations with the Half King and the other Chiefs, what Measures to take in this unhappy Situation of your Affairs, all may be irrecoverably lost at Allegheny, and the Loss with Justice be laid at your Door. You may perhaps be afraid to disoblige the Shawonese, as it was at their Instance You undertook this Journey, but We intend to speak to them and have no Doubt of obtaining their Consent, convinced as We are that the Release of these Prisoners will be sooner and more effectually procured by the joint Interposition of the Governors of Pennsylvania and Virginia than by your personal Sollicitation, in as much as our Governor, to whom We shall very heartily recommend this Affair, can send, with greater dispatch, his Letters to Carolina than You can perform the Journey, for at this Season Opportunities present every Day of sending by Sea to Charles Town; and an Express by Land may be dispatched to Governor Dinwiddie as soon as We return to Philadelphia.
Gave a String.
The Shawonese Chiefs expressing Dissatisfaction at this Endeavour of the Commissioners to stop Scarrooyady, it gave Us some Trouble to satisfy them and obtain their Consent; but at last it was effected; and when this was signified to Scarrooyady he made this Answer:
Brother Onas:
I will take your Advice and not go to Virginia at this time, but go home and do every Thing in my Power for the common Good. And since We are here now together, with a great deal of Pleasure I must acquaint You that We have set a Horn on Andrew Montour's Head; and that You may believe what he says to be true between the Six Nations and You they have made him one of their Counsellors and a great Man among them, and love him dearly.
Scarrooyady gave a large Belt to Andrew Montour, and the Commissioners agreed to it.
After this Difficulty was got over nothing else remained to be done; and as the Absence of these Indians was dangerous, the Commissioners put an End to the Treaty and took their Leave of them, making private Presents at parting to such of the Chiefs and others as were recommended by the Interpreters to their particular Notice.
Thus, may it please the Governor, We have given a full and just account of all our Proceedings, and We hope our Conduct will meet with his approbation. But in Justice to these Indians and the Promises we made them, We cannot close our Report without taking Notice that the Quantities of strong Liquors Sold to these (page 684) Indians in the Places of their Residence and during their Hunting Season, from all Parts of the Counties over Sasquehannah, have encreased of late to an inconceivable Degree, so as to keep these poor Indians continually under the Force of Liquor; that they are hereby become dissolute, enfeebled, and Indolent, when Sober, and untractable and mischevious in their Liquor, always quarreling, and often murdering one another; that the Traders are under no Bonds, nor give any Security for their Observance of the Laws and their good Behaviour; and by their own Intemperance, unfair Dealings, and Irregularities, will, it is to be feared, entirely estrange the Affections of the Indians from the English, deprive them of their natural Strength and activity, and oblige them either to abandon their Country or submit to any Terms, be they ever so unreasonable, from the French. These Truths, may it please the Governor, are of so interesting a Nature that we shall stand excused in recommending in the most earnest manner the deplorable State of these Indians and the heavy Discouragements under which our commerce with them at present labours, to the Governors most serious Consideration, that some good and speedy Remedies may be provided before it be too late.
|
RICHARD PETERS, |
|
ISAAC NORRIS, |
|
BENJ. FRANKLIN. |
November 1st., 1753.
The Letter of Taffe and Callender referred to in the above Report was read and ordered to be entered:
|
September 28th, 1753, |
|
SHAWONESE CABBINS. |
Sir:
This Day met with Josep Nelson coming from Ohio and brought the News which I believe to be true, which I am sorry for, of the French coming down and all the English have come off the River Ohio and have brought their Good with them; the Half King went to the French Fort to know what was the Reason of their coming to settle the Lands of Ohio. The Commander told him the Land was their's and discharged him home, and told him he was an Old Woman and all his Nation was in their Favour only him, and if he would not go home he would put him in Irons. He came home and told the English to go off the Place for fear they should be hurt, with Tears in his Eyes. Sir, we are on our Journey to the River to see the Half King and to talk to him, but durst not take our Goods over the Hill; Pray, Sir, keep the News from our wives but let Mr. Peters know of it, as we understand he is to be in Carlisle.
|
Remain your Friends and humble Servants, |
|
|
CALLENDER AND TAFFE. |
|
To Mr. WILLIAM BUCHANAN.
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