American Border Wars by W. L. Stone

Three Rivers
Hudson~Mohawk~Schoharie
History From America's Most Famous Valleys h
Life of Joseph Brant-Thayendanegea

Including the Indian Wars of the American Revolution

by William L. Stone. Volume II

Buffalo: Phinney & Co., 1851.

Chapter XIII.

Thayendanegea in civil life-His activity-His efforts to accelerate the civilization of his people-Difficulties respecting the title to his lands-Successive Councils and Speeches-Governor Simcoe leaves the province-Captain Claus appointed to the Indian Agency-President Russell-Brant's Speeches asserting the absolute Independence and Nationality of his people-Letter to Sir John Johnson- Correspondence with Lord Dorchester-The Count de Puisy-Letter of Brant to Thomas Morris-Sharp correspondence with Sir John Johnson-The St. Regis and Caughnawaga Indians, and the State of New-York involved in the land controversy-Brant's difficulties with the Caughnawagas-Letter to Thomas Morris-Brant's visit to the Caughnawagas-Council-Satisfactory explanations -Fresh difficulties at home-Norton's Mission to England-Plots against the character of Brant-Alienation of some of his friends-Conspiracy to depose him -Red Jacket and Farmer's Brother active in the plot-Character of Red Jacket -Brant deposed by an illegal Council-Letter to the Duke of Northumberland- A legal Council convoked-Brant meets his accusers, and defends himself- Another Council-Speech of Brant-Acquitted of all charges against himCouncil after the return of Norton from England-Proceedings of Red Jacket's Council nullified-Brant re-instated-Letter to the Duke of Northumberland- Letter of the Duke in reply-Last letter of Brant to the Duke.

THE termination of Brant's military life brought not therewith a state of inactivity. The proverbial indolence of his race in regard to all matters excepting the war-path and the chase, was not a characteristic of him. On the contrary, the history -of man scarcely supplies a parallel instance of such active, unremitting, and unwearied public service, as well in the council as in the field, as was performed by this celebrated man, from the day when he first fleshed his youthful tomahawk at Lake George, until his death more than half a century afterward. The war of the American Revolution being ended, it has already been seen that he early thereafter directed his attention to the improvement of the moral and social condition of his nation. Nor did he lose sight of this object during the years of his active interposition in the complicated affairs of the western nations with the United States.

Mention has been made in a former chapter of the difficulties in which, subsequent to the Revolution, the Six Nations were involved, respecting their lands in the State of New-York, the adjustment of which repeatedly demanded the attention of Captain Brant. There were, likewise, similar difficulties to be adjusted with the purchasers of the Connecticut reservation in Ohio, respecting which formal negotiations were held. Nor did these constitute all his troubles. But a. few years had elapsed after the grant of the Grand River country had been obtained, before difficulties sprang up between the Indians and the Provincial Government, in regard to the nature of the title by which the former were to hold their new possessions. The Chief and his people supposed that the territory allotted to them had been conveyed in fee by a perfect title. But in tills supposition they were disappointed. There is scarcely a finer or more inviting section of country in North America than the peninsula formed by Lake Ontario on the east, Lake Erie on the south, and Lake Huron on the west-through the heart of which flows the Grand River. The Indians, therefore, had not long been in the occupancy of their new country, before the white settlers began to plant themselves down in their neighborhood. To a man of Brant's sagacity, it was at once obvious that in such an attractive region of country the approach of the white man would soon circumscribe the hunting-grounds of his people, within the narrow boundaries of their own designated territory. He also saw, and without regret, that the effect; would be to drive his people from the hunter to the agricultural state , in which case, while his territory was too small for the former, it would be far larger than would be necessary for the latter condition of life. As a compensation for the loss of his game, therefore, he conceived the idea of making sales of portions of his lands, for the creation of an immediate fund for the benefit of the nation, and of leasing other portions in such manner as to ensure a perpetual revenue. There was no selfish design in this project, farther than may be found in the fact, that his own fortunes were identified with those of his people. However covetous Captain Brant may have been of honor and power, he was neither covetous nor mercenary in regard to property. In one of his speeches he declared, with all solemnity, that he had never appropriated a dollar of money, or its value in other property, belonging to his nation, to his own use. Nor had he; ever charged his nation a dollar for his services, or even for his personal expenses, in all the journeys he had performed upon their business. All his personal wants, under all circumstances, had been supplied from his own private funds.

There was another consideration connected with his desire to make sales and leases of land to white, settlers, He was anxious to promote the civilization of his people; and in his first negotiations with General Haldimand, after the close of the war, he made provision for the erection of a church and schoolhouse ; and it is an interesting fact, that the first temple erected for the worship of the true God in Upper Canada, was built by the Chief of a people recently pagan ; and the first bell which summoned the people to the house of prayer in that province on the Christian Sabbath, was carried thither by him. In the furtherance of his plans of civilization, the Chief knew very well that an increasing contiguous white population would be the means of introducing such of the common arts and employments of life, as would materially contribute to the comfort and happiness of his people, while at the same time their progress in civilization would be greatly accelerated.

But he had no sooner commenced disposing of some small portions of land, than the colonial government raised objections. It was alleged that his title was imperfect-that a pre-emptive right to the soil had been retained by the government; and, as a consequence, that the Indians had no right to sell a rood of ground, since it was their's no longer than they themselves should occupy it. The question proved a fruitful source of disagreement between the parties, and of perpetual vexation to the old Chief until the day of his death. Council after council was holden upon the subject, and conference after conference; while quires of manuscript speeches and arguments, in Brant's own hand, yet remain to attest the sleepless vigilance with which he watched over the interests of his people, and the zeal and ability with which he asserted and vindicated their rights. Even his friend Governor Simcoe was among the most strenuous opponents of the claim of the Indians to the fee of the soil, and in one instance attempted to curtail their grant by directing the land board to run a line due west from the head of Lake Ontario, which would have stripped the Mohawks of the fairest half of their possessions. On examining the grant from General Haldimand, however, the Governor desisted from this purpose; but still was determined that the Indians should neither lease nor sell any portion of their grant, nor make any manner of use of it, excepting such portions as they should cultivate with their own hands. By these proceedings, the situation of the Indians was rendered truly uncomfortable. Reduced to a narrow strip of land of only twelve miles in breadth, their hunting was of course seriously affected; while their skill in agriculture was so imperfect, that some other resources were indispensable to their sustenance.

In order to define more clearly and explicitly the rights, of the Indians, two other deeds were successively framed and presented for their acceptance-both of which were promptly rejected, as being less favorable than their original grant. Finally, in 1795, Governor Simcoe visited Grand River with his councillors, for the purpose of ascertaining, as he said, the real wishes and condition of the Indians. A Council was holden, and the Chief delivered an elaborate speech, containing the whole history of the grant, the circumstances under which it had been made, and the difficulties they had been called to encounter. Among other objections, it seems to have been alleged by the Provincial authorities, as a pretext for dealing hardly by the Indians, that the government had been deceived in regard to the location and value of the territory. General Haldimand had supposed that the territory in question lay a long distance from Niagara, and would not be approached by a white population for an age to come. These assertions were sternly denied by Brant, who declared that the Commander-in-chief, at the time of making the grant, was thoroughly acquainted with the situation, its peculiar advantages, and its value.

This conference with Governor Simcoe resulted in nothing more than a promise that the speech of Thayendanegea should he forwarded to Lord Dorchester. Governor Simcoe left the province soon afterward, and a change was made in the administration of the Indian department; by the appointment of Captain Claus to the Indian agency at Niagara. It appears that before his departure, the Governor had confirmed such sales as had been previously made by the Indians; but difficulties arose on making the surveys, which once more placed everything afloat. The consequence was, that another hearing took place before Mr. Claus at Niagara, in October, 1796, at which, in another written speech, the Chief gave a historical argument of his case. From portions of this speech, it appears that Upper Canada had already become infested with unprincipled landjobbers, who were the especial dislike of the Chief. " I cannot help remarking," said he, " that it appears to me that certain " characters here, who stood behind, the counter during the last war, and whom we knew nothing about, are now dictating to your great? men concerning our lands. I should wish to know what property these officious persons left behind them in their own country, or whether, through their loyalty, they ever lost any ! I doubt it much. But 'tis well known that scarcely a man amongst us but what sacrificed more or less property, by leaving our homes. I again repeat, that if these officious persons have made the smallest sacrifice of property, then I think they may in some measure be allowed to interfere, although it may be well known that personal interest prompts them to it, not the public good.*

This speech, the Chief declared, should be his final effort to obtain justice from the " great men below"-the provincial government meaning. If not successful there, he declared his purpose of proceeding to England, and bringing his case in person before the King. But this resolution was contingent, and was not kept. On the departure of Governor Simcoe, the Executive government of the colony devolved upon the Hon. Peter Russell, President of the Executive Council of the province. For the more convenient administration of the Indian affairs of the province, Mr. Russell was clothed with all the powers upon that subject previously exercised by the General-in-chief at Quebec, acting under the advice of the Superintendent-General of Indian Affairs, Sir John Johnson. Captain Brant lost no time in bringing the subject of his land title be fore Mr. Russell, and he speedily succeeded in part. The sales already made were confirmed, and the old Chief wrote to his friend and correspondent, Thomas Morris, Esq., then a resident of Canandaigua, that their difficulties respecting lands were nearly removed, and he had reason to believe that henceforth their affairs would go on to their satisfaction.* The basis of the arrangement sanctioned by the acting Governor, was, that the lands then sold, or intended to be sold, by the Indians, should be surrendered to the government, which, upon the good faith of the agreement, was to issue grants to the per-
* Letter to Thomas Morris, Esq., July 30, 1797. [Mr. Morris has furnished the author with a package of letters from Capt. Brant, written between the years 1796 and 1801, which, though chiefly upon private business, have nevertheless been found of use in the present work.]

sons nominated as purchasers by the agent transacting the land business of the nation. Captain Brant was acting in that capacity. The lands were of course to be mortgaged as security for the payment of the principal and interest of the purchase money. It was, moreover, the duty of the Agent to appoint three trustees, to receive the payments in trust for the Indians, and to foreclose the mortgages in cases of default-the lands to revert to the Indians. Captain Brant fulfilled his part of the agreement to the letter ; but the government failed altogether to comply with its own corresponding duty. Some of the purchasers had paid their interest for several years, but could not obtain their titles ; others died, and the heirs were in the like predicament, and the whole business became involved more than ever in difficulty. Added to all which, as the Indians themselves improved in their agricultural labors, the system of possessing all things in common operated unequally, and interposed great embarrassments to individual industry. But so long as the government refused to the Indians the privilege of disposing of the fee of the soil, the nation could not convey any portion of its own domain to its own people.*

There were other difficulties in the business, which it would be tedious to enumerate, the result of all which was, that the arrangement was in fact a nullity. Not only so, but the Mohawks felt themselves to be an independent nation, and they, or perhaps more correctly speaking, their proud and indomitable Chief, could ill brook submission to such a species of guardianship. The " satisfaction " arising from the arrangement under the auspices of President Russell, was consequently of but short continuance, and the Captain was compelled to fight his land battles over again. Many were the councils and conferences which succeeded, in all of which Brant was the principal speaker and defender of the rights of his people to the fee of their lands. The design of the British government was to hold the Indians in a state of pupilage, according to the practice of the United States ; and consequently to allow them: merely the occupancy of lands of which the government claimed the title. But neither the Mohawks nor their indefatigable leader would listen to any such doctrine ; always, on all occasions asserting
* Memorial of John Norton to the Marquis of Camden.

their own complete and entire independence as a nation. They were an independent nation in the Valley of the Mohawk, argued the Chief in one of his speeches,* and were the undisputed owners of the soil of their country. Their right in this respect had never been questioned. On the breaking out of the war, they had relinquished their country-their all-because of their friendship and loyalty to the King. " In the year 1775," said the old Chief in the speech now referred to, " Lord Dorchester, then Sir Guy Carleton, at a very numerous council, gave us every encouragement, and requested us to assist in defending their country, and to take an active part in defending his Majesty's possessions ; stating, that when the happy day of peace should arrive, and should we not prove successful in the contest, that he would put us on the same footing in which we stood previous to our joining him. This nattering promise was pleasing to us, and gave us spirit to embark heartily in his Majesty's " cause. We took it for granted that the word of so great a " man, or any promises of a public nature, would ever be held " sacred." Again, in another part of the speech, the Captain remarked:-" We were promised our lands for our services, and those lands we were to hold on the same footing with those we fled from at the commencement of the American war, when we joined, fought, and bled in your cause. Now is published a proclamation, forbidding us leasing those very lands that were positively given us in lieu of those of which we were the sovereigns of the soil. This, brothers, is surely a contradiction that the least discerning person amongst you must perceive, and which we think wonderful. Of those lands we have forsaken, we sold, we leased, and we gave away, when and as often as we saw fit, without hindrance on the part of your government; for your government -well knew we were the lawful sovereigns of the soil, and they had no right to interfere with us as independent nations." In support of this assertion, the Chief proceeded to enumerate various sales and gifts of their lands ; among which he mentioned the large and celebrated tract to Sir William Johnson, commonly called
* Speech delivered at a meeting of the Chiefs and warriors al Niagara before Colonel Sheaffe, Colonel Claus, and others, in August, 1803, on the occasion of a government proclamation forbidding the sale or leasing of any of their lands by the Indians.

the Royal Grant, and for signing the conveyance of which the Captain asserted that he received a present of fifty pounds.

The history of the whole controversy was very clearly stated in the speech just cited, and the argument throughout exceedingly well put. The Captain, in some of" his speeches, dwelt with emphasis upon another feature of his case, affording a farther example of the magnanimity of the Mohawks in their dealings with the government, and the want of that attribute as evidenced in the manner of their requital. The Indians never asked of the crown any compensation for the vast tracts of their hunting-grounds relinquished by adhering to the cause of the crown. In a letter written to Sir John Johnson at this stage of the controversy, the veteran Chief cut with a two-edged blade :-

" You know we demand nothing new. We have made no demand for compensation for our hunting-grounds, which were very extensive, nor for our wood-lands adjoining our improvements. All we ask is a confirmation of our just right to this very land, which we receive in lieu of those for which we received no compensation. I presume few loyalists have omitted charging, and receiving pay for their woodlands, as we did ; many of whom received lands who had never possessed one foot before."*

But the prospect of obtaining justice from the Provincial Government becoming less and less favorable by the lapse of time,the Chief again directed his attention to the parent government. Availing himself of the return to Europe of the Count De Puisy, whom he describes " as a brother soldier and fellow-sufferer in the cause of loyalty,"+ the Captain placed in his hands a succinct history of the troubles he was laboring to remove, with
* In a letter subsequently addressed to Lord Dorchester, after the relinquishment by that officer of the Canadian Government, Captain Brant estimated those hunt-. ing grounds relinquished by his tribe at more than two millions of acres.

+ In one of Captain Brant's speeches, dated October 28, 1900, this passage occurs :-" It had for some time been observed that the too large, uninhabited space between York and the head of the Lake was a great inconvenience to the communication by land, we therefore thought it a fit occasion to remove the difficulty, by presenting the Count de Puisy and his adherents a tract of land in this space sympathizing with them as having suffered in the cause of loyalty, and being obliged to quit their native clime on that account, and seek an asylum in this uncultivated region. This was objected to," &c., &. When the younger Brant visited London, twenty years afterward, he refers to the Count as then living in retirement in the neighborhood of that capital

an urgent request that he -would lay the same before his Majesty's ministers. By the same conveyance he likewise addressed a vigorous appeal to Lord Dorchester; then in England, enclosing to his Lordship a copy of his original promise to him (Brant) as written down in 1775, and also the subsequent confirmation of that promise by General Haldimand.* He was, moreover, in active correspondence upon the subject with the Duke of Northumberland, in whom the Mohawks had ever a constant friend.

These attempts to enlist the parent government in behalf of the Indian claim, were backed by the mission to England of Teyoninhokarawen, alias John Norton, who spread the case before the ministers in a strong and lucid memorial addressed to Lord Camden, then one of his Majesty's ministers. Among other considerations, it was urged by Norton, that in case their lands should be released from all incumbrances, and every tribe and family be allowed to have their just portion of land confirmed to them, the province would be strengthened by the emigration thither of the major part of the tribes of the Six Nations, who still remained in the United States. It had, doubtless, entered into the policy of Brant to bring the ancient confederacy of the Six Nations once more together, within the jurisdiction either of England or the United States. The removal of the Mohawks into Canada had not dissolved the union of those nations, although their separation, thrown, as they were, under the action of different superior laws, and obliged sometimes to hold their own councils within the boundary of one nation, and at other times within the limits of another, could not but be attended with many embarrassments. Indeed, so numerous were the difficulties they were obliged to encounter, and such was the conduct of the provincial government in regard to their lands, that the Mohawk Chief, notwithstanding his attachment to the crown, had at one period contemplated withdrawing from Canada with his people in disgust. That such a project was actually entertained, appears by the following letter to his friend Morris :-
* The copy of this letter to Lord Dorchester is not entire. Two foolscap pages have only been preserved, or rather, all but the first two pages has been lost.

CAPTAIN BRANT TO THOMAS MORRIS, Esq.
(SECRET AND CONFIDENTIAL.)
" Grand River, December 26, 1800.
" DEAR Sir,

" From our friendship, and the regard you have continually shown to Indians in general, I flatter myself you will be so good as to assist in what I am about to communicate to you.

" There are numbers of our people scattered about in the westward at Sandusky, the Miami, &c. I wish to have them collected in one place, and for that purpose intend making a purchase of the Western Indians, so that any moving from here may also find a place to go to. We are certain that the Indians there will be very happy at the proposal, and that they even would give it for nothing; but we rather wish to buy, that it may be indisputably our own. The favor I have to ask of you is, that you would please to oblige us so far as to sound some of your friends in Congress if such a thing could be confirmed by them, for if we should move there, we would desire to be under the protection of the United States. What you may say on the subject to any one, I hope you will do it in a confidential manner ; you may learn the general sentiments in the way of conversation, without making known our real intentions. The
reason of my being so cautious, is the great jealousy of the British.

" Dear Sir,
" I am in truth,
" Your sincere friend
" And humb. serv't,
" Jos. BRANT.
" Thomas Morris, Esq."

Nothing farther is disclosed among the manuscripts of Brant respecting this design of removal into the United States, and the suggestion was most likely owing to a momentary feeling of despondency and vexation. But it was his fortune soon afterward to encounter an annoying circumstance from another and most unexpected quarter-his long and well-tried friend, Sir John Johnson. The circumstance referred to was the receipt of a letter from the Baronet, then at Niagara, under date of September 1st, 1801, in which, after apologizing for his long delay in answering certain letters, from an apprehension that he could not so frame his communications as to avoid hurting the old Chief's feelings, the writer adverted to the difficulties respecting the lands. He spoke of some uneasiness prevailing at Grand River ; and stated that he had given his views, as to these troubles, to Captain Claus, in writing, and advised the Chief to aid in getting up a council, and adjusting the matter upon the basis he had proposed. In regard to the claim of the Mohawks upon a portion of the Mississagua reservation, the Baronet advised the Chief to abandon it at once, admonishing him that the government was determined, under no circumstances whatsoever, to sanction that claim; but on the contrary would protect the Mississaguas in the quiet and peaceable possession of all their lands. The letter concluded as follows :-" Let me therefore once more advise you to give up all concern in their affairs, and desist from assembling the different nations in distant parts of the country, and only attend to the business of your settlement, except when called upon by government to do otherwise ; as it gives opening to the world to put unfavorable constructions on your conduct, which must tend to lessen your consequence in the opinion of those at the head of affairs ; and I much feat may do you serious injury. And as you can have no doubt of my friendship for you and your fine family, I earnestly request you will maturely weigh what I now recommend to you, and consider it as the result of serious reflection."

This missive kindled the indignation of Brant, and elicited some spirited letters in reply. Its burden was the existence of difficulties among the Indians themselves, arising, as the Baronet had left the Chief to infer, from their distrust of the proceedings of Brant himself. The council, which the Superintendent General had directed his Deputy, Captain Claus, to convoke, had been held, but does not seem to have been attended by any other results than an entire exoneration, by the sachems, of their principal Chief from all censure.* The Captain, however, was not satisfied with allowing the matter to rest there; and he wrote the Baronet, in a tone of decision, demanding specific charges, if any could be produced against him, accompanied by the names of his accusers. He likewise severely upbraided the
* See Appendix, No. X.

officers of the government for their conduct toward -him, charging the fact upon them, explicitly, of having not only sanctioned the great Indian Confederacy of which there has been occasion so frequently to speak, but of having caused the formation of that confederacy under their own immediate auspices. This letter, as a historical document, bearing upon other relations than those appertaining to the writer, as an individual, deserves preservation, and is accordingly transcribed:-

CAPTAIN BRANT TO SIR JOHN JOHNSON, BAR'T.
" Grand River, November, 1801.
" DEAR SIR,

" When I answered your favor of the first of September last, I promised to let you hear farther from me after the meeting should have taken place, which you then said Captain Clans was to hold for the purpose of satisfying the discontented, &c.

" He did not, however, do any thing in the business, as I expected, from your letter, he would have done ; but the Chiefs, on being made acquainted with the contents of it, became uneasy, and called a scrutiny to find who it was among the Indians on this river that had expressed dissatisfaction at my conduct respecting the public lands. The dissatisfied party was found to be only a few of the lower Mohawks, mostly women, and no real chief among them. Afterwards, the Chiefs unanimously expressed their general approbation of my conduct as their agent in land matters, in a speech to Captain Claus. They at the same time hinted at the almost impossibility of things being done in such a manner as to please every particular individual, which was also the case in the discharge of his own duty as Superintendent; but assured him that they, the Chiefs, who had constituted me their agent in land affairs, were perfectly satisfied. Since that I hear no more of the discontented; all seem quiet. Then I was prepared to give a full explanation of all my transactions, and also put them in mind of the trouble and expense I had been at on their business ; but this conduct of the Chiefs prevented me, thinking if I yet persevered it would be wantonly ripping up old grievances, &c.

" I hope you will do me the favor to let me know who informed you that there prevailed such an universal discontent among the Grand River Indians at my transactions, as you said was the case; and you will infinitely oblige me by making me acquainted with the author of this rumor, which has not a little hurt my feelings; and it would also give satisfaction to the greater part of the Chiefs here.

" Respecting your advice not to have more councils of other nations, &c., the Chiefs, both here and at Buffalo, cannot comprehend the meaning of it; and I have been particularly requested, by two messengers from the latter, to remain unshaken in my public capacity, and attend to their common interests as usual; I therefore hope you will do me the kindness to acquaint me with the reason why I should desist from attending any councils of the nations of the General Confederacy which we formed under the auspices of Great Britain ; and if our friendly intercourse with each other is supposed to be detrimental to the interests of government, and in what measure; for, since the year 1760, perfectly remember what has passed at most councils, and I never recollect an instance of government interfering to prevent our mutual correspondence, but, on the contrary, they have rather encouraged our uniting. Should it therefore be the case, that what formerly gave satisfaction, has now quite a different effect, it will be very difficult for me to act so as not to get censured, without I am well acquainted with the change of politics. Also, the serious consequences you mention, that the hot complying with your advice may be of to me, I would be glad to know what it is. I hope that laws and customs are not so far changed, as that punishment is first to be inflicted, and the trial brought on afterwards, and you should give me no plainer hint of it than that. In short, your advice seems no other than a threat in disguise. Still, my dear friend, don't think that I suspect you to be the author of it; but rather that you have softened the original so as to save my feelings.

" During the war, although I bore the commission of a captain, I never received commands as such, but acted as War Chief, which I believe was of more utility than if I had been in the other capacity-generally having more men under my command than is customary for one of that rank. Since the peace, I have attended to our affairs as a sachem. I never, supposed it to be wrong my so doing; if it is so, I could wish to have written instructions how I am to conduct myself, so as to prevent the serious consequences spoken of, by which, probably, may be meant the taking from me my half-pay or pension. I hope to have the pleasure to hear from you as soon as possible, at the same time I remain

" Dear Sir,
" Your very humble
" And obed't servant,
" Jos. BRANT

" Sir John Johnson, Bar't."

Norton had been furnished by Brant with letters to his friends in England, and among them to the Duke of Northumberland, who interested himself warmly in behalf of the object of his mission. Such, moreover, were the zeal and ability with which he discharged the duties of his errand, that for a time there was a prospect of his mission being crowned with entire success. The decision of the ministers was favorable to the Indians, and letters to that effect were dispatched to the Provincial government. These, however, were met by an unexpected movement at home, which palsied the exertions of the agent, and caused his return with hopes at least deferred, if not blighted. The cause of this untoward change in the course of the parent government will be developed in a few succeeding pages.

It appears that in the course of the controversy violent disagreements had arisen between Captain Brant and the Deputy Superintendent, which were ultimately embittered by mutual allegations of pecuniary delinquency. A charge of this description had been made against Brant, a few years before, in connexion with a negotiation between the government of the State of New-York and the Caughnawaga and St. Regis Indians, calling themselves the Seven Nations of Canada. These nations, as the reader has been informed in a former part of the present work, were clans of the Mohawks, who had long before separated from the principal nation, and settled upon the banks of the St. Lawrence. In the year 1792, they sent a deputation to the government of the State of New-York, claiming a tract of land covering a large portion of the northern part of the state ; all, indeed, lying between Lake Champlain on the East, and the head waters of the Mohawk on the West, bounded north by the St. Lawrence, and south by a line to be drawn from a point between Fort Edward and Lake George to the junction of Canada Creek
VOL. II. 27

with the Mohawk River, in the neighborhood of the Little Falls. This extensive claim was resisted by the state upon several grounds. One of these was, that the Indian title had been extinguished to a portion of the territory in question by the French ; another, that several patents from the English crown had extinguished their title to other portions of it; added to all which; it was held by the state that the Caughnawagas had never any just title to the land, inasmuch as it originally belonged to the Six Nations, of whom the claimants formed but a small number. As proof of this position, it was contended by the state that the Six Nations had themselves sold this same territory, together with a large additional tract, extending from the Mohawk River to the Pennsylvania line, to Colonel John Livingston. This sale to Colonel Livingston was first made by forty-five chiefs of the Six Nations in 1787, and was confirmed in the following year, by a second deed, signed by sixty-five of their chiefs, and witnessed by Colonel John Butler and Joseph Brant. The purchase by Colonel Livingston being unconstitutional, was annulled; but the fact that such a sale had been made by the Six Nations at large, was adduced against the claim of the Caughnawagas, by way of showing that it was unfounded. Still as the St. Regis and Caughnawaga Indians persisted in their claim, a commission, consisting of Egbert Benson, Richard Varick, and James Watson, was appointed to treat with their Chiefs upon the subject; and it was not until the Summer of the year 1796 that an arrangement was effected, by virtue of which the Seven Nations relinquished their claim, with the exception of the St. Regis reservation, for a small sum in hand paid, and a yet smaller perpetual annuity.

It was as a witness only to the deed of sale to Colonel Livingston, that the name of Captain Brant came to be involved m this controversy. The Commissioners maintained to the last that the Six Nations had sold the lands, and that their great chief, Brant, was a witness to the sale. In reply to which, the Caughnawagas insisted that the Six Nations had no more right to sell the lands they claimed than they had to dispose of the city of New-York.* The Caughnawaga Chiefs, probably, did not exactly understand the case of the sale to Colonel Living-
* Talk of the Seven Nations, delivered to the Commissioners at Albany, May, 1796.

ston, which was set aside as being contrary to the fundamental law of the state, nor the position in which the name of Joseph Brant stood upon the deed. On the contrary, they seem to have been impressed with an idea that Brant and the Mohawks had been selling- their lands to the state. The consequence was a controversy between the Caughnawagas and the Mohawks, which gave the old Chief an infinite deal of trouble- even after the affair between the former and the State of New York had been amicably closed. The charges of the Caughnawagas amounted to this-that Brant and the Mohawks had sold their lands to the state, and pocketed the avails. Brant repelled the charge with indignation. In regard to the deed of sale to which he was a witness, he affirmed that not a foot of the territory claimed by the Caughnawagas was embraced within it, but that the sale was of a portion only of lands belonging to the Senecas. He demanded of the Caughnawagas their authority for the charge against himself and the Grand River Indians. They replied, that their information was derived from the representations of the officers of the State of New-York at Albany. Brant opened a correspondence with George Clinton* and Governor Jay upon the subject, the negotiations having commenced under the administration of the former and been concluded under the latter. But not satisfied with any thing resulting from the correspondence, he caused a deputation of his tribe to repair to Albany,+ at the head of which was his
* Sea Appendix, No. XI.
+ Brant had previously, in 1797, visited Albany on the same business, accompanied by Corn-planter and two or three other sachems. Arriving at Canajoharie in the evening, Brant called with his party upon Major Hendrick Frey, who had served in the cause of the crown during the war of the Revolution, but returned to his native county after the close of the contest. The meeting of Brant with Frey was like that of two brothers. The party adjourned to a tavern, where they had a merry time of it during the live-long night. Many of their adventures during the war were recounted, among which was a duel that had been fought by Frey, to whom Brant acted as second. In the course of those relations, Corn-planter acknowledged that he shot the girl who was gathering berries in the neighborhood of Fort Stanwix, as related by Colonel Willett and cited in the first volume of the present work. Corn-planter said he was lurking about the fort in order to seize a prisoner; but failing in that object, fired upon the girl. The landlord of the inn, named Rolfe, had resided near Fort Stanwix at the lime, and could hardly be restrained from doing violence upon Corn-planter on hearing the relation.-[Conversations of the author with Dr. Jonathan Eights of Albany, who, being at the time a resident with Major Frey, was one of the party.]

adopted nephew, John Norton, to meet a similar deputation from the Caughnawagas, face to face, and to require his accusers connected with the government of the State of New York, either to substantiate their charges or acquit him in the presence of both delegations. The papers of Captain Brant are pretty full in regard to this controversy, which seems to have affected him with the keenest sensibility. The result of this double mission to Albany, however, does not exactly appear, save that the Chief was not well satisfied with it. At least thus much is evident from the tone of the annexed letter to his friend, Thomas Morris, who was a member of the Legislature of New-York at that time, and to whom he had given his deputies letters of introduction :-

CAPTAIN BRANT TO THOMAS MORRIS, ESQ.
" Grand River, April 4, 1799.
" DEAR SIR,

" It is now some time since the return of Mr. Norton and the Cayuga Chiefs from Albany: they have acquainted me with their treatment there, and that of the business they went on ; and particularly of your friendship and assistance to them While there; for which I could not omit taking the earliest opportunity of testifying to you my most hearty thanks for the friendship you showed them, and hope yon will not find us unmindful of the favor.

" At the same time I cannot avoid expressing my surprise to you at the conduct of your government respecting the affair of the Caughnawagas. In the first place, it appears their Commissioners treated the business so mysteriously as to make these people believe we had sold their lands ; first having defrauded us by having all that country included in the confirmation of Mr. Livingston's deed to Mr. Oliver Phelps, to which the Senecas signed their names, only supposing that they sold part of their own country, and to which I signed as a witness. This was made use of to convince the Caughnawagas they had no right to the country they inhabit; and I learn that it was not till after much argument that your Government owned that they never paid any money to me or the Five Nations on account of these lands, and that they never looked on any Indians to have a right to them, either Caughnawagas or Five Nations. Had they only said this at first, when they treated with the Caughnawagas, and not brought our name in question, they would have saved us immense trouble. And now I cannot imagine what good reasons they could have to refuse our Deputies to certify in writing that they never paid us any money on account of these lands claimed by the Caughnawagas, which it is certain they never did. It still appears they wish to make the affair mysterious, and evade, as much as they can, the thorough-ly clearing up of the business, so as to keep the Caughnawagas from making farther claims on them ; for it now appears pretty clear to us that they have wronged these people. However, their conduct comports a good deal with the uncivilized character of Judge Benson, who, I find, was one of the Commissioners; and now the Governor left the business mostly to him, who I knowwould skin a flint if it was possible, should it belong to the Indians.*

" I intend, for my own satisfaction, to have the whole affair, from the beginning to ending, published in the newspapers.

" Dr. Sir,
" I am your most humble and
Obd't. Serv't.
" Jos. BRANT.
" Thomas Morris, Esq'r"

In July of the same year, Brant proceeded to the Caughnawaga country in person; accompanied by a body of Chiefs of several of the tribes, for the purpose of a thorough investigation in General Council. Such a council was convened ; and the difficulties, from the reports of the speeches preserved in writing by Captain Brant, were fully discussed-and that, too, in the most amicable manner. From several intimations in these speeches, it appears that the whole difficulty had been caused " by chattering birds," and by the machinations against Captain Brant, of the old Oneida Sachem, Colonel Louis. The Council-fire was kindled on the 8th of July. On the 9th Captain Brant was satisfied by the explanations given, and remarked " that he had
* Judge Benson was only one of the Commissioners ; but it is probably true that the business was confided entirely to him. In the original account of the treaty with the Caughnawagas, of May, 1796, containing the speeches written out in full on both sides, found by the author among Brant's papers, Judge Benson's signature stands alone at the close of the whole.

pulled up a pine, and planted down beneath it the small bird that tells stories;" on the 10th, the Caughnawaga Chief replied-" Brother, we return you thanks: we also join with you to put the chattering-bird under ground from where the pine was taken up, there being a swift stream into which it will fall beneath, that will take it to the Big Sea, from whence it never can return."

The result of the Council seems to have been satisfactory on all hands. Indeed, as Brant himself wrote to a correspondent in the States,"* a short time afterward, he was rather surprised that he had so little to encounter at their meeting:-" We expected they would have had a great deal to say to us ; but instead of that, they said they had never accused us of themselves-that it was only from what the people of New-York said that they had inquired about the matter ; and that now they hoped we would be so good as to agree to bury the whole affair under ground." To Sir John Johnson he subsequently wrote in the following terms ;-" "Without doubt, long before this you have received an authentic account of our business with the Caughnawagas, which has convinced you and the world of our innocence. You know that I was supposed to be a leader in that business, and how often I have been falsely accused. But upon investigation my rectitude has ever been sufficiently proved. This groundless accusation of theirs created a great expense to government as well as us, and I should expect that, after being convinced of their error, some acknowledgment should be made for the great trouble they have put us to."

But the Caughnawaga difficulties were no sooner at an end, than it was his lot to encounter others yet more nearly touching his pecuniary integrity, which annoyed him not a little. There were active spirits about him, official and unofficial, who, for reasons of their own, looked with no favorable eye upon the mission of Teyoninhokarawen. So strongly indeed were these men opposed to the claims of the Indians, that they were led to the adoption of very unjustifiable means, not only to circumvent the negotiations of Norton, but to prostrate the power and
* The name of this correspondent is not given in the original draught of the latter preserved among Brant's papers.

influence of the old Chief himself. To this end, domestic dissensions were fomented, even among his own kindred, the Mohawks. The Chief was again accused of peculations; and although the grant of the Grand River territory had been notoriously made for the exclusive benefit of the Mohawk nation, yet the Senecas, and others of the Iroquois Nations, not residing in Canada, were stirred up to claim a voice in the disposition of those lands, and in the domestic relations of that nation, by virtue of their confederate league, which had never before been construed as clothing them with any such rights or powers. In furtherance of the design of prostrating Brant and thwarting the efforts of Norton in England, a Council of the Six Nations was held at Buffalo Creek, under the direction of the Seneca Chiefs, Red Jacket and the Farmer's Brother; at which all the proceedings of Brant and Norton were formally disavowed, and Brant himself deposed from the chieftainship of the Confederacy, at the head of which he had stood for more than a quarter of a century. His associate Mohawk Sachems were likewise removed, and others, taken, as Jeroboam selected his priest, from the lowest of the people, appointed in their stead. None of the Mohawk Chiefs were present at this Council, but only a few of the discontents, and of the more worthless members of the nation, who had been wrought upon by the white opponents of the principal Chief. The whole movement was illegal, according to the ancient usages of the Confederacy, in other respects. The Council was not convened at the National Council-fire, which had years before been regularly removed from Buffalo Creek to the Onondaga Village on the Grand River. Nor, aside from the fact that the Senecas, and others residing within the United States, had no right to a voice in regard to the domestic affairs or the lands of the Mohawks, was the General Confederacy properly or legally represented. Red Jacket, however, was both a ready and a willing instrument in the hands of Brant's opponents. In all the councils in which it had been the fortune of the two Chiefs to meet for the transaction of business, there had been little of cordiality between them; and much less of friendship. Yau-go-ya-wat-haw, or Red Jacket, was not a chief by birth, but had made himself such by his cunning. He was artful, eloquent, and ambitious. Aspiring to the rank of a chief, he availed himself of the superstitious dispositions of his people to attain his object. His first essay was, to dream that he was, or should be, a Chief, and that the Great Spirit was angry because his nation did not advance him to that dignity. These dreams, with the necessary variations, were repeated, until, fortunately for him, the small-pox broke out among the Senecas. He then proclaimed the loathsome infliction as a judgment of the Great Spirit, because of the ingratitude of the nation to him. The consequence, ultimately, was, that by administering flattery to some, and working upon the superstitious fears of others, he reached the goal of his ambition. Brant, however, had always, on all suitable occasions, pronounced him a coward-the greatest coward of his race. He used to say that Red Jacket was always valiant for fight with his tongue ; but that, although by his eloquence he persuaded many warriors to fight, he was ever careful not to get into personal danger himself. He also asserted as a fact, that having sent others upon the war-path, he would turn to, and steal and kill their cows for his own use.* Smarting under the contemptuous treatment of the Mohawk Chief, therefore, the eloquent demagogue of the Senecas was not backward in compassing, as he hoped, the overthrow of his enemy, if not his rival. Hence, for years antecedent to the council called clandestinely for the deposition of Brant, Red Jacket had labored, with all art and diligence; to create jealousies and distrust against him.+ The Chief himself was, of course, early apprised of what had taken place, and the manner of the conspiracy, of which he appears to have written a full account to his friend, the Duke of "Northumberland. The copy of only a portion of that communication has been discovered. It is without date, but must have been written in A. D. 1805.
* Conversations of the author with Thomas Morris, Esq. This gentleman, during his residence in the western part of New-York, became intimately acquainted with the Senecas and Mohawks-especially with their Chiefs-having assisted at several treaties with them. He once entertained Brant, Red Jacket, and a number of other chiefs, at his own house in Canandaigua. At dinner, Brant was very amusing; and among other stories, related the cow-killing exploits of a Seneca Chief, in such an arch manner as to direct the attention of the whole company upon Red Jacket, and yet compel Red Jacket himself to raise an affected laugh.

+ See the certificate of Israel Chapin, as to the general character of Brant, and the unfounded jealousies excited against him by his opponents, Appendix, No. XII

CAPTAIN BRANT TO THE DUKE OF NORTHUMBERLAND.
" MAY IT PLEASE YOUR GRACE :

" As my nephew, Teyoninhokarawen, has safe returned, gratitude prompts me to return you my most hearty thanks for the very kind reception and aid you gave him, and express the regret myself and the other Chiefs of the Five Nations inhabiting the Grand River feel, that after the trouble your Grace has taken in our affairs, he should have been frustrated in having them concluded to our satisfaction by the intrigues of the Agent for Indian affairs, (a Mr. Claus,) of which I shall take the liberty to give you a succinct account.

" When, in consequence of the warm support you gave my nephew, dispatches were received by the late Governor from England, in favor of the Indians, the Agent insinuated, through his instruments of intrigue, that lie was about effecting something much to their detriment, should they not immediately prevent it., But finding that he could, not succeed at the Grand River, a few of the common people went to Buffalo Creek, a village of the Five Nations within the American line, where they had a council, and then went to Niagara,* where Mr. Claus, the Agent, dictated to them what was sent to England. * * * * * Several of the principal Chiefs from Buffalo, who signed, are pensioners to the Americans ; one of them, Red Jacket, or the Cow-killer, the speaker; and the greatest coward of all the Five Nations, at the Connecticut (in New-England) Assembly swore, or promised, kissing the portrait of General Washington, to be true to their interests. But to make their numbers appear more respectable, all the common people signed as Chiefs, from the villages on the American side, as did the few, with three or four petty chiefs, who went from the Grand River. The poor fellows, in consequence of the promises, and having signed together with the officers, have been long expecting to receive their commissions ; and even some of them have been expecting to receive tidings of them by Teyoninhokarawen. The purport of the writing was, that the mission and proceedings of Teyoninhokarawen should be disallowed of and disavowed; that I should be displaced from being Chief; and that a few settlers introduced by the Chiefs --------,"
* Vide certificate of Captain Leonard, and other American officer, then stationed at Niagara.-Appendix, No. XIII.

Here the copy of this communication abruptly breaks off. But although the proceedings referred to were transmitted to England by the opponents of the Chief, and followed by consequences fatal to the mission of Norton ; yet the failure, so far as the Chief himself was concerned, was as signal as the plot in all respects was indefensible and unjust. It was but a few months anterior to these procedings, founded, in the main, upon alleged embezzlements, or mis-appropriations, of the revenue of his nation, that a General Council had been holden at Grand River, which was attended by the chiefs and warriors, the Deputy and Superintendent-General, and the principal military officers of the province, and at which the pecuniary transactions of Captain Brant had been fully investigated-found to be accurate, and approved. The proceedings at this council appear to have been dictated in the most amicable spirit; and from their complexion, nothing could have been more unlikely than the revival, of charges, then so thoroughly shown to be without foundation in truth.*

But the old Chief did not remain passive under his persecutions. He took an early occasion to meet a council of the faction of his own nation who were opposing him, and to upbraid them in no very measured terms for their ingratitude. His address was written out in full, in the Mohawk dialect, and was afterward circulated in the form of an appeal to his nation.+ After a spirited review of his life, and the services he had rendered them from the commencement of the war of the Revolution, the appeal proceeded :-

* * * * "It astonishes me, therefore, after all that I have done for you, to hear almost all of you, young and old, joining your voices with Colonel Claus, and saying of me that I have embezzled your property, and such like hard speeches, which you know are false,-while you never so much as think of mentioning the many important services I have rendered you, the many privations I have suffered on your account, and the journies I have undertaken for your benefit-for the
* See Appendix, No. XIV. 9
+ This document was never translated by Captain Brant, Portions of the manuscript are illegible; but all that can be read has been translated for the use of the author.

time and expenses of which you have never paid me one penny. * * * * * * * * At Philadelphia the Americans spoke in a very friendly manner to me, and made me large offers of presents for myself and family if I would prevent any farther attacks from the Indians. But I positively refused to accept of any thing from them, lest I should injure your good name as the Six Nation Indians. And again, I knew that the King would not suffer me to be in want; and had I accepted any thing- at this time, it might have been thought that I had been bribed, and become a traitor, which, when made public, would have been disgraceful to me, and injurious to you as my people. I thought I could depend on our white brethren, the King's subjects, should I at any time need their assistance. * * * * * * * * * * * * * I think the only way I could satisfy you, would be for me to pay out of my own purse for every item that has to be expended for your public uses. My only crime is, that I want to make you a happy people, and for you to be enabled to call your land your own forever; and not leaving it doubtful whether it is yours or not. I say you would be well pleased if every thing could be done for the general good of the Six Nations, without parting with a foot of land to pay for contingencies. Colonel Claus asks you where your money is gone to ? He never asks where the proceeds of sales of your lands are gone to, else you might tell him that it is gone to assist in building his splendid house. Whenever I have had occasion to use any of your money, I have never touched any but the interest, and have left the principal entire. But your friend Claus has devoted principal and interest together; and yet you come to my house complaining. * * * * * * * * * I ask again, what do you find in my conduct to disapprove of? If you can point any thing out, I should like to hear it. Or, will you say that every thing that I have done has been for your injury and not for your benefit?

" I say I cannot find, in all that I have done, that any thing has tended to your injury, or the injury of the King's cause. Yet you speak of me as one who is your enemy-as one who does what he can to injure you ; and I have no doubt that you, who are hearing me, feel so toward me in your hearts, although I have reiterated in your hearing many instances where what I did tended to raise your name as well as my own ; and in other instances, when I might have been enriched, I have refused receiving for fear of your name being tarnished. Still, you would almost brand me with the name of thief, although not one of you have ever subscribed a penny to pay my expenses when I have travelled on your public business."

The original manuscript of this address is much broken, especially in that portion of it containing a review of his services in connexion with the wars of the north-western Indians with the United States. The following fragments of sentences upon that subject, only, have been translated:-

* * * " Every man of us thought, that by fighting for the King, we should ensure to ourselves and children a good inheritance. * * * * * * * * * * * * " At another time, at the last council we held, when the Americans were talking with the Indians, I spoke to Otsinarenta, and said, ' if the Americans fail in * * * * * I should like to go and surprise Wayne when he least expects it.'"

It was very soon manifest that the pretended deposition of the veteran Mohawk, at the instigation of white men, and through the immediate agency of Red Jacket, was no act of the great body of the Six Nations, much less of his own nation; and the attempt to shake the faith of their " fathers in council," in the perfect integrity of the Chief who had so long been their leader in the cabinet and in the field, was a signal abortion. A meeting of the chiefs and warriors was soon afterward held, at which the whole controversy seems again, from the fragments of the proceedings yet in existence, to have been renewed. From one of the speeches, the following passages, connected immediately with the position and conduct of Brant, and the proceedings against him, are extracted:-

" BROTHER, LISTEN! Is it not thus, when a present is given, that the bestower will not think of again grasping hold of it ? But it seems as if we were in that predicament-not being considered as real proprietors. "We are grieved and ashamed that so much should have been said on the subject, without it being confirmed according to the first promise.

" BROTHER : We find divisions among us. The young men think to take the lead, who know nothing of our affairs nor what we suffered in the war." According to the first formation of our confederacy, the Mohawk was the leading nation. So it has been since our establishment at the Grand River. Therefore our leading Chief, Captain Brant, has stood foremost in our affairs, with which he is thoroughly acquainted.

" BROTHER : There have been rumors concerning our money, and the application made of it. We, that have been engaged in the public affairs, know where it is gone. He has not been always travelling, and employed on his own concerns-it has been on those of the public. He has been to the other side of the water, and several times to Quebec ; and always in these journies expended his own property, we never making any collection for him whatever. And now what he may have made use of is only the interest. Nothing has been taken from the principal. The payment for one township has been made without any delinquency whatever. We are perfectly satisfied with all his transactions.

" BROTHER, LISTEN ! That which was done at Buffalo, and which you have confirmed and sent to the other side of the water, was a thing that had never before taken place, in which they pretend to break our Chief, Captain Brant. But we assure you, brother, that this shall not be ; for we know not his having so transgressed as to merit such treatment. Neither is it proper that such a proceeding within the American line, and done by Indians inhabiting that territory, should be countenanced by you."

At the same setting, Tchaosennoghts, or Dugnoin, a Seneca Chief, spoke as follows :-

" BROTHER: You see here a remnant of the warriors that fought last war, whose hearts are grieved that they have lived to see the present change of our treatment, and our situation. The divisions existing among us, and the attempts of the young men to put the Chiefs aside, have no other origin than the Indian store. It is there the young men receive from his Majesty's bounty that which was designed for those who fought and suffered in his cause, and who are now treated with neglect. It is from this they are led to imagine themselves men of ability and consequence. It is easy for them to say, now, there is nothing to be done, or no danger-that they are loyal, and side with government. We are no less loyal, we assure you, now; and when occasion required, we gave proofs of our attachment. But we know our Great Father is no less generous than opulent, and does not want our lands. Neither can we think ourselves departing from our duty in wishing to preserve them for our posterity, for we are poor. It is not Captain Brant who is the sower of dissension ; but it is what I just mentioned that causes the division amongst us.

" BROTHER : The right of being chief, according to our customs, arises either from hereditary line on the female side, or from having been distinguished by meritorious conduct, so as to be accepted as such. This has not been the case in the late appointment you sanctioned. One of them, to whom you pay great regard, we know has been distinguished in your opinion for some things which we have not been accustomed to pay that respect to."

Finally, at this, or a subsequent General Council, a speech, drawn up in the form of a declaration, was executed, under the sanction of the signatures and seals of sixteen of the most distinguished chiefs; residents upon the Grand River, and representing the Mohawks, Cayugas, Oghkwagas, Tuscaroras, and one Delaware chief; bearing the most unequivocal testimony to the integrity of Thayendanegea, and asserting their undiminished confidence in his faithful management of their business, as agent in the matter of their lands. It was stated in this paper that he had desired, of himself, some time before, to withdraw from that agency, and that he had only consented to remain therein at their urgent solicitation-he requiring that a board of twenty-four chiefs might be selected from the different tribes, to act as counsellors, and probably to determine all questions of doubt or controversy. " This," says the declaration, has been done-but at the same time we desired that he might continue at the head. And farther hearing that there are many obstacles yet preventing the equitable conclusion of our land business, we now unanimously renew and strengthen him in quality of agent, which, from the confidence we have in his integrity from what has already passed, we assure ourselves he will exert himself in that office, as far as lies in his power, to promote the general welfare. With these strings we therefore exhort him to continue with moderation and patience, and flatter ourselves from the equity of our brethren, " the British government, and his abilities, all difficulties will at last be surmounted."

Nothing could be more explicit than this testimony of exoneration, so far as the charges against the Chief were connected with his management of the land concerns of his people. But his vindication did not rest here. Soon after the return of Teyoninhokarawen to the Grand River, a general council of the Six Nations was convened at Niagara, for the purpose of meeting the Deputy Superintendent-General, and entering a solemn protest against the proceedings of the council at which Red Jacket and the Farmer's Brother had pretended to depose Thayendanegea. For several days the Deputy declined meeting the Council, upon the plea of waiting for the attendance of Mr. Selby, a gentleman from Detroit. But as that gentleman did not arrive, and it was uncertain when he would come, if at all, the Chiefs determined to proceed with their business. The Deputy, accompanied by Colonel Proctor, met the Chiefs only to repeat his excuse, and to declare, that under existing circumstances, he would not listen to what they had to say. The Chiefs, however, resolved to proceed with their deliberations ; and their protest, yet existing in the chirography of Captain Brant, was read and sanctioned by the council, in presence of several officers of the garrison, and also of several distinguished civilians. This paper contained a succinct review of the controversy respecting the lands; the object of Norton's mission to England; the partial success of that agent-thwarted only by the use that had been made of the proceedings of Red Jacket's unauthorized and illegally-constituted council-a review of those proceedings; and a protest against the whole.* After the reading had been concluded, Okoghsenniyonte, a Cayuga Chief, rose, and declared the general approbation of the document by the council.

With these proceedings, it is believed, the efforts to prostrate Brant, and deprive him of the chieftainship, ceased. In any event they were not successful, and he remained at the head of
* See Appendix, No. XV.

the Mohawks, and consequently at the head of the Confederacy, until the day of his decease.

But, even under all these discouragements, it was not the design of the indefatigable Chief to relinquish his exertions -to obtain justice for his people at the hands of the parent government. For this purpose another visit to England was determined upon, to be performed, either by himself, or Norton, or perhaps by both. This determination was announced to the Duke of Northumberland by letter, early in the year 1806 :-

CAPTAIN BRANT TO THE DUKE OF NORTHUMBERLAND.
" Grand River, January 24th, 1806.
" My LORD DUKE,

" The kind and affectionate letter I received from your Grace, has deeply penetrated our hearts with a sense of the honor you confer on the Five Nations in the sincere regard you express for their welfare; and we hope that our future conduct, and that of our descendants, may never fail to cause such sentiments to be cherished in the noble hearts of the leaders of the British nation. For, however wounding to our feelings, or detrimental to our interests, may be the treatment we have received, and yet continue to receive, in this country, our reliance on the fatherly protection of his Majesty, and the confidence we have ever placed in the humanity, love of justice, and honor of your nation, is not weakened.

" The reason of my having delayed so long writing to your Grace, is, that from the arrival of a new Governor,* I received some hopes that what respects our land affairs might have been accomplished to our satisfaction in this country. But these hopes are now vanished-for appearances give me reason to apprehend that the old council, (principally composed of men influenced by an insatiable avarice for lands,) have so prejudiced his Excellency against us, as to disappoint what otherwise we might have expected from the innate benevolence of our father's representative. It is therefore the determination of the real chiefs and faithful warriors to comply with the brotherly advice of your Grace.+ Therefore, either both of us, or Te-
* Sir Francis Gore.
+ Contained, probably, in a letter from the Duke, which has not been found.

yoninhokarawen,* shall make another attempt in England, investcustoms, which your distance and our situation at present render absolutely necessary. Some small difficulties necessitate delay, or we would immediately be on the road.

" His Excellency has expressed that he will only hear from us through Mr. Claus, the head of the Indian Department, who is our implacable enemy; and from what has already passed, we are well assured will do every thing in his power to thwart our success. Previous to receiving any speech, he requests that we give him a copy of it; but himself, when he pretended, last of all, to make a defence to what we had expressed at Niagara in July, in reference to his having deceived the British ministry by the improper names sent to England to thwart the mission of Teyoninhokarawen, he read his speech in such a low voice that it could only be heard by those who sat next to him, and afterwards refused to give us a copy of it. So we remain as ignorant of what he alleged in his defence, as if he had made no speech.

" The same confidence in the good faith of our allies, which animated my courage to persevere in the most trying situations during the war, and exhort to a similar perseverance those whom extraordinary difficulties, or American intrigue, might stagger, yet encourages me to hope for justice, notwithstanding the clouds that shade us from it.

" Mr. Wyatt, Surveyor General of this province, does me the favor to take this. The copy of the speech delivered at Niagara last July, Teyoninhokarawen sent you several months ago; so I hope you have received it by this time. With the sincerest respect and gratitude, I remain,
" Your Grace's
" Faithful friend and
" Brother warrior,
" Jos. BRANT,
" Thayendanegeeh,
" His Grace the Duke of NORTHUMBERLAND,
" Thorighiwageri."

* John Norton.
VOL. II. 28

THE DUKE OF NORTHUMBERLAND TO CAPTAIN BRANT.
Northumberland House, 6th May, 1806.
" MY VERY GOOD FRIEND AND BROTHER WARRIOR :

" I have received safely your letter of the 24th January, which reached me on the 23d of last month, with all that pleasure which is naturally felt by one friend when he receives a letter from another friend. I am happy to find that the interest I took in the affairs of the Five Nations has been acceptable to their Board, as I am by being one of their community. They may rest assured. I shall always be happy to assist them to the utmost of my power. -

" I was very sorry that the zeal of my brother Teyoninhokarawaren failed of success ; but I can assure you and the Chiefs of the Five Nations, that it was not for want of constant attention and the most unremitting zeal on his part. No person could possibly execute the mission on which he was sent, with more ability than he did. It is only a piece of justice due to him, to desire you to mention this to the General Council when they meet.

" The names of those who gave credit to Mr. Claus's fictitious council, are washed out from the administration of this country, and a more sensible set of ministers are appointed in their roorn, and I think those who now fill the high offices of State in this kingdom, would listen to the wishes of our brethren in the Five Nations.* I shall be happy if I can be of service in procuring for them the accomplishment of their wishes. But before I attempt any thing, I must desire clearly to understand what are the wishes of the Five Nations. Do they desire to have a confirmation of the grant of Sir Frederick Haldimand and (if possible) to have it under the Great Thayendanegea, &c. with the Seal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland ? Would they consent, (if such a thing is proposed) to have a clause inserted in the confirming grant declaring the

* The Duke, probably, referred to the dissolution of Mr. Addington's administration in 1804, and the return to power of Mr. Pitt. True, the ministry of the latter was dissolved by the decease of that incomparable premier, in January antecedent to the time the Duke was then writing ; but it must have been the Addington ministry which was in power at the time of Norton's mission, and which was "washed out" by dissolution after Pitt had abandoned it, and made a speech in opposition, even on the same Bide with Fox.-Author.

grant to be vacated, if the Five Nations should at any time part with the territory thus granted to them, either to the Americans, or to any other nation of Indians, or to any other person or persons not being of the Five Nations, or a British subject, without the consent of the crown of Great Britain ? I mention this circumstance, because I think something of this kind was hinted at by Mr. Cooke, and the improper manner in which it was stated, gave reason to suppose that the Five Nations could not alienate it, or any part of it, from one Indian of the Five Nations to another Indian of the Five Nations, which never was intended to be prevented.

" I should, however, advise that either yourself, Teyoninhokftrawen, or some other chief, should come over, properly authorised by the chiefs, to transact and finally settle all this business.

" There are a number of well-meaning persons here, who are very depirous of forming a society to better (as they call it,) the condition of our nation, by converting us from hunters and warriors into husbandmen. Let me strongly recommend it to you, and the rest of our chiefs, not to listen to such a proposition. Let our young men never exchange their liberty, and manly exercises, to become hewers of wood and drawers of water. If they will teach our women to spin and to weave, this would be of use ; but to endeavor to enervate our young men by doing nothing but tilling the earth, would be the greatest injury they I could do the Five Nations. Nine hundred or a thousand warriors, enured to hardship by hunting, are a most respectable and independent body ; but what would the same number of men become who were merely husbandmen ? They would hardly rate a small parish, seeking for protection from others, scarcely heard of and known, and obliged tamely to submit to laws and regulations made by other people, and incapable of defending themselves. If you want an example of what the Five Nations would soon become, look only at the Stockbridge Indians. They, like us, were once a noble and formidable tribe; they now are less than women. Some of the persons who propose this plan, have their own private reasons. They wish to go over among you, and when they have collected you together in order to teach you to cultivate the ground, they will then show you how very small a part of the land granted you is sufficient for to supply your wants, and will next endeavor to prevail upon you to grant them the remainder, in gratitude for the trouble they have had in instructing you in agriculture. No, my dear friend and brother warrior, never suffer yourself, or your Chiefs, to be induced by their plausible arguments. If you do, remember I now foretell that you will become a poor, dependent, and insignificant body, instead of continuing a free, warlike, and independent nation as we now are. I wish to see the Christian religion, Sobriety, and good morals, prevail among our nation; but let us continue free and independent as the air that blows upon us; let us continue hunters and warriors, capable of enforcing respect, and doing ourselves justice; but let us never submit to become the tillers of land, hewers of wood, and drawers of water, by the false and interested advice of those who, from being our pretended friends, would soon become our imperious masters. Accept this, my good friend and brother warrior, from one who wishes the Five Nations ever to continue a formidable nation, commanding respect from all its neighbors, and who interests himself most sincerely in their welfare. Say every thing proper for me to my brother Chiefs, and believe me,

" Your faithful friend and brother warrior,
" NORTHUMBERLAND,
" Thorighwageri

" Dezonhighkor (Lord Percy) desires to return his thanks, and to one his compliments to you and to Teyoninhokarawen, (Norton,) to whom I desire you to give my compliments likewise. I have received his letter, and will write to him by this mail if I possibly can."

Pursuant to the suggestions of the preceding correspondence, the preparations were made for another mission to London, by Thayendanegea himself. He actually commenced his journey, and proceeded as far as Albany, with the design of embarking at New-York. Circumstances, however, occurred, which rendered it necessary for him to return to his own country. Afterward, owing to pecuniary difficulties, the undertaking was indefinitely deferred, as will be seen by the annexed communication to the Duke, which was probably the last ever addressed to that nobleman by his brother warrior of the forest:-

CAPTAIN BRANT TO THE DUKE OF NORTHUMBERLAND.
" Head of Lake Ontario, June 26, 1807.
" MY LORD DUKE;

" I wrote you last by the Surveyor General, Mr. Wyatt, acquainting your Grace that Teyoninhokarawen or myself should again cross the sea on the subject of our land affairs, &c. Shortly after that we have been formally deputed, either jointly or separately, by a general council of the chiefs and warriors of the Grand River, held at the Onondaga Village, according to the ancient custom of the Five Nations.

" The want of money for the journey, and suspicions of new intrigues being attempted in our absence again to frustrate our endeavors for the public good, have deterred us for the. present from undertaking the intended journey. But, confiding in the regard which we know that your Grace has for your brethren of the Five Nations and their interests; in the fatherly affection of his Majesty; and in the justice of the British nation; we send you the powers we have received; and beg that your Grace may grant us your aid to obtain from his Majesty a confirmation of General Haldimand's grant to the Five Nations under the Great Seal; and that the part we have surrendered to Government for sale, they shall guarantee to us and our heirs the regular payment of the purchase money stipulated, according to former representation.

"With the greatest respect and esteem, I have the honor to be

" Your Grace's humble servant, and
" Faithful brother warrior "

For a good and sufficient reason, which will appear in the closing pages of the present work, the claims of the Mohawks were prosecuted no farther by their old and vigilant Chief, Thayendanegea. Nor have their difficulties with the officers of the crown entirely ceased to this day.