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.
Colden to
Sir William Johnson
(Spring Hill, June 13, 1765)
|
Colden, Cadwallader in: The Letters and Papers of Cadwallader Colden, vol. III, 1878, Collections of the New York Hist. Soc. for the year, 1877, pp. 19-21. |
Holland and Mr Upton could have any thoughts of this land, and therefore I assured Mr O'Brien when he mentioned Lands near Conojohary that he must be under some mistake, because all the Lands on both sides the Mohawks River are already Granted, and that no Lands Purchased for the Crown in that Part of the Country remain to be Granted. But since I had the honour of your Lordships last Letter, I suspect that these noble Persons have had these Lands in view which the Indians have given to Sir William Johnson. That you Lordships may have all the Information I can give you, I have directed the Surveyor General to make out a Map of all the Lands Granted on the Mohawk River together with the Lands which the Indians have given to Sir William. Now that I have done this, together with what I wrote on the 31st of last Month for your Lordships information Be assured my Lords that your Commands shall be punctually obeyed as soon as received by, My Lords
_________
TO THE HONBLE SIR WILLIAM JOHNSON, BART.
|
Spring Hill, June 13th 1765. |
DEAR SIR,
I have the favour of yours of the 24th of last Month. You have my hearty congratulations on your success in your negociations with the Indians, and that you have at last got rid of such numerous & troublesome Guests.
I have often thought that the Six Nations assumed too much to themselves in directing affairs with all the other Nations & that some method ought to be taken to check their ambition of having the lead everywhere. By what I have heard (the Senecas at least) had a principal part in the late general revolt. They must at all times have a great influence on all the nations to the westward who pass thro' their Country (page 20) to treat with you. Now that all our apprehensions of the French are removed, our Principles of negotiating with the Indians are quite changed. As the Six Nations are the most ambitious and the most Politic & have been long practice in all the artifices of negociation between the English & French may it not be dangerous & impolitic to suffer them to take the lead in all public affairs. To avoid this may it not be proper for you to Treat with the distant Western Indians separately once in two years at Detroit to incourage their ambition of Independency on the Six Nations, & by all means to prevent for the future such an union among all the Indian Nations as lately happened. For the same purposes may it not be proper for you sometimes to meet the Shawanese & Delawares & the nations in that neighborhood at Fort Pitt. You are the best judge how proper such measures may be.
As to Kayaderosseras you know that on my laying your Letter on that subject before the Council, an order of Council issued to the Attorney General to Prosecute the Pattentees by Scire facias, & to take his information from you. After this I do not perceive how you can well avoid to give him all the information you can which may serve to vacate that Pattent. The Topics on which your information may be given for that purpose, I mentioned to you in my Letter which I wrote to you immeadiately after the order was given to the Attorney General. After this Information is given the Attorney Generals Opinion ought to be in writing how far that Information may be sufficient to vacat the Pattent by Scire facias or if it be not what other method may be proper to procure reliefe to the Indians. When this is done you may lay the whole matter with great propriety before the Plantation Board for their direction. If it should be thought proper to apply to Parliament for Reliefe to the Indians this application cannot properly be made without the previous Informations which I now propose & the Attorney Generals Opinion thereon in writing.
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