Indian Biography; Vol. 2 (of 2) / Or, An Historical Account of Those Individuals Who Have Been Distinguished among the North American Natives as Orators, Warriors, Statesmen, and Other Remarkable Characters

CHAPTER XVI.

The Seneca Chief, Red-Jacket—Circumstances under which he succeeded Corn-Planter in his influence—Anecdotes of the latter—Red-Jacket's earliest oratorical triumph—His speech at the Treaty of Canandaigua—Account of Farmer's-Brother, and Brandt—Red-Jacket's political and religious principles—Speech to Mr. Alexander, in 1811—Speech to Mr. Richardson—Remarks on the causes of his heathenism in the conduct of the whites—His military career—Speech in favor of declaring war against the British, in 1812—Seneca Manifesto—Red-Jacket's interview with Washington—His interview with Lafayette—His Memorial to the New-York Legislature—Speech to a Missionary in 1825—His deposition and restoration in 1827—Visits to the Atlantic cities—Death and funeral obsequies—Anecdotes.

The Indian orator of modern times, par excellence, was the New-York Chief, Saguoaha, or the Keeper-Awake, but by the whites commonly called Red-Jacket;—a man who, with whatever propriety he might be entitled "the Last of the Senecas," has at least transiently renewed, in these latter days, the ancient glory of the Mingoes. "Thy name is princely,"—a popular writer has said of him,—

. . . Though no poet's magic Could make Red-Jacket grace an English rhyme, Unless he had a genius for the tragic, And introduced it in a pantomime;

Yet it is music in the language spoken Of thine own land; and on her herald-roll, As nobly fought for, and as proud a token As Coeur-de-Lion's of a warrior's soul. [FN]

[FN] Talisman fox 1830.

This, by the way, is considerably nearer the truth than the statement in a preceding stanza:

. . . Tradition's pages Tell not the planting of thy parent tree; But that the forest tribes have Dent for ages, To thee and to thy sires the subject knee.

Better historical, if not poetical authority informs us, that the Seneca literally "fought" for his rank, if not for his name; and that, like the subject of our last notice, he owed nothing to the advantages of illustrious birth. [FN] We should add, however, that the struggle was in the council-house as well as in the field of battle. "A warrior!"—he once (and probably more than once) had the modesty to say of himself, with a smile of contempt, when some enquiries were made respecting the deeds of blood which are sometimes supposed to constitute the character of an Indian;—"A Warrior! I am an Orator. I was born an Orator!"

[FN] Governor Clinton's Discourse before the New-York Historical Society; 1811.

The predecessor of Red-Jacket, in the respect of the Senecas, and of the Confederacy at large, was a celebrated chief named by the English the Corn-Planter, a personage also well known for his eloquence, and worthy on that account to be distinctly commemorated, were there on record any definite and well authenticated sketches of his efforts. Unfortunately, there are not. The speeches commonly ascribed to him, are believed to have been mostly composed by some of his civilized acquaintances, rather on the principle of those effusions usually attributed to popular candidates for the gallows. Still, there is less reason, we apprehend, for doubting his real genius, than for disputing his nationality. He considered himself a half-breed, [FN] his father being an Indian, according to his own account, and his mother a white woman.

[FN] Appendix, III. and VI.

By a singular combination of circumstances, Red-Jacket was brought forward into public life, and that to great advantage, mainly in consequence of the same incident which destroyed the influence of Corn-Planter. This, indeed, had been rather declining for some time, owing partly to his agency in effecting a large cession of Seneca land to the American Government, at the treaty of Fort Stanwix, in 1784. His loss of popularity, in fine, bitterly chagrined him, and he resolved on a desperate exertion to restore it. With this view, he undertook to practice upon the never-failing superstition of his countrymen, by persuading his brother to announce himself as a Prophet,—of course commissioned by the Great Spirit "to redeem the fallen fortunes of his race,"—that is, his own.

The savages listened to the new pretender with all the veracious credulity which characterises the race. Among the Onondagas, previously the most drunken and profligate of the Six Nations, he acquired such an ascendancy, as to induce them to abandon the use of spirituous liquors entirely, and to observe the common laws of morality and decency in some other respects, wherein they had before been grievously deficient. Indeed, among the Confederates generally, he obtained a supremacy equal to that of the same character obtained by Elskwatawa among the western tribes, not far from the same time. The Oneidas alone rejected him.

Like that notorious impostor, too, he soon availed himself, for evil purposes, of the confidence gained by the preliminary manifestation of good. A cry of "witchcraft" was raised, and a sort of examining committee of conjurers was selected to designate the offenders. And that duty was zealously discharged. The victims were actually sentenced, and would doubtless have been executed, but for the interference of the magistrates of Oneida and the officers of the garrison at Niagara.

But neither the Corn-Planter nor his pious coadjutor was yet discouraged. Nothing but an accident had prevented success, and the failure only made it the more imperatively necessary to try the experiment again. Red-Jacket was publicly denounced. His accusers came forward at a great Indian council held at Buffalo Creek. "At this crisis," says an eminent writer, "he well knew that the future color of his life depended upon the powers of his mind. He spoke in his defence for near three hours. The iron brow of superstition relented under the magic of his eloquence; he declared the Prophet an impostor and a cheat; he prevailed; the Indians divided, and a small majority appeared in his favor. Perhaps the annals of history cannot furnish a more conspicuous instance of the triumph and power of oratory, in a barbarous nation, devoted to superstition, and looking up to the accuser as a delegated minister of the Almighty." [FN]

[FN] Discourse of Governor Clinton.

If this anecdote be true,—and we are not aware of its having been doubted,—the Orator, whatever be said of his genius as such, hardly deserved the precise compliment which is paid him by his eulogist in verse. "Is eloquence," he asks, "a monarch's merit?"

. . . Her spell is thine that reaches The heart, and makes the wisest head its sport, And there's one rare, strange virtue in thy speeches. The secret of their mastery—they are short.

But the Seneca's case, it must be allowed, was one of clear compulsion; and he probably felt, on the occasion in question, very little of the impatience which induced Horne Tooke to say, after a noble friend's plea of eleven hours in his behalf before the Commons, that "he would rather be hanged, another time, than defended."

Such was the Orator's first triumph. It was not, however, his first effort; for many years before the transaction just referred to, as we suppose, when Red-Jacket was probably about thirty years of age,—and at a period when our relations with all the Indians are well known to have been continually wavering,—a treaty was held with the Six Nations on the beautiful acclivity which overlooks the Canandaigua Lake. Some reminiscences of it, bearing a high interest, have reached us, on the authenticity of which we do not hesitate to rely.

"Two days," says our authority, [FN] "had passed away in negotiation with the Indians for a cession of their lands. The contract was supposed to be nearly completed, when Red-Jacket arose. With the grace and dignity of a Roman senator, he drew his blanket around him, and, with a piercing eye, surveyed the multitude. All was hushed. Nothing interposed to break the silence, save the gentle rustling of the tree-tops, under whose shade they were gathered. After a long and solemn, but not unmeaning pause, he commenced his speech in a low voice and a sententious style. Rising gradually with his subject, he depicted the primitive simplicity and happiness of his nation, and the wrongs they had sustained from the usurpations of white men, with such a bold but faithful pencil, that every auditor was soon roused to vengeance, or melted into tears."

[FN] The writer of a communication on "Indian Biography," for the New-York American, about ten years since. We give him credit for his statements of facts, though we cannot concur with him in charging Red-Jacket with "cowardice." He adds, "It was only at the 'Council-fire' he shone pre-eminent. There, indeed, he was great. The belittling simplicity of his name did not seem to detract from the splendors of his eloquence."

"The effect was inexpressible. But ere the emotions of admiration and sympathy had subsided, the white men became alarmed. They were in the heart of an Indian country, surrounded by more than ten times their number, who were inflamed by the remembrance of their injuries, and excited to indignation by the eloquence of a favorite chief. Appalled and terrified, the white men cast a cheerless gaze upon the hordes around them. A nod from the chiefs might be the onset of destruction. At that portentous moment, Farmer's-Brother interposed. He replied not to his brother chief; but, with a sagacity truly aboriginal, he caused a cessation of the council, introduced good cheer, commended the eloquence of Red-Jacket, and, before the meeting had re-assembled, with the aid of other prudent chiefs, he had moderated the fury of his nation to a more salutary review of the question before them."

The council came together again in cooler blood, and the treaty was concluded. The Western District at this day, it is added, "owes no small portion of its power and influence to the councils of a savage, in comparison with whom for genius, heroism, virtue, or any other quality that can adorn the bauble of a diadem, not only George the IV. and Louis le Desire, but the German Emperor and the Czar of Muscovy, alike dwindle into insignificance."

This somewhat warmly expressed compliment,—the extravagance of which in an old friend of the subject, may be excused in its good feeling,—reminds us of the consideration really due to a man distinguished not alone as a competitor with our hero for savage glory.

Except as related to oratory, he was a competitor in the same course. The name of Farmer's-Brother was merely arbitrary. He was a warrior in principle and in practice, and he spurned agriculture and every other civilized art, with the contempt of Red-Jacket himself. In the war between France and England, which resulted in the conquest of Canada, he fought against the latter, and probably under the remote command of the great Ottawa "Emperor" of the north. One of his exploits in the contest is still told to the traveler who passes a noted stream not very far from the ancient Fort Niagara, in the vicinity of which it occurred. The particulars come to us authenticated by one to whom they were furnished by the Farmer himself on the site of the adventure.

There, with a party of Indians, he lay in ambush, patiently awaiting the approach of a guard that accompanied the English teams employed between the falls of Niagara and the garrison, which had there lately surrendered to Sir William Johnston. The place selected for that purpose is now known by the name of the Devil's Hole, and is three and a half miles below the famous cataract upon the American side of the strait. The mind can scarcely conceive a more dismal looking den. A large ravine, occasioned by the falling in of the perpendicular bank, made dark by the spreading branches of the birch and cedar, which had taken root below, and the low murmuring of the rapids in the chasm, added to the solemn thunder of the cataract itself, conspire to render the scene truly awful. The English party were not aware of the dreadful fate that awaited them. Unconscious of danger, the drivers were gaily whistling to their dull ox-teams. Farmer's-Brother and his band, on their arrival at this spot, rushed from the thicket that had concealed them, and commenced a horrid butchery. So unexpected was such an event, and so completely were the English disarmed of their presence of mind, that but a feeble resistance was made. The guard, the teamsters, the oxen and the wagons, were precipitated into the gulf. But two of them escaped; a Mr. Stedman, who lived at Schioper, above the falls, being mounted on a fleet horse, made good his retreat; and one of the soldiers, who was caught on the projecting root of a cedar, which sustained him until assured, by the distant yell of the savages, that they had quited the ground.—It is the rivulet, pouring itself down this precipice, whose name is the only monument that records the massacre. It is said to have been literally colored with the blood of the vanquished.

In the Revolutionary War, Farmer's-Brother evinced his hostility to the Americans upon every occasion that presented itself; and, with the same zeal, he engaged in the late war against his former friends, the English.

Another anecdote of this Chief will show, in more glowing colors, the real savage. A short time before our army crossed the Niagara, Farmer's-Brother chanced to observe an Indian, who had mingled with the Senecas, and whom he instantly recognized as belonging to the Mohawks, a tribe living in Canada, and then employed in the service of the enemy. He went up to him, and addressed him in the Indian tongue—"I know you well—you belong to the Mohawks—you are a spy—here is my rifle—my tomahawk—my scalping-knife. I give you your choice which I shall use, but I am in haste." The young warrior, finding resistance vain, chose to be put to death with a rifle. He was ordered to lie down upon the grass, while, with his left foot upon the breast of the victim, the Chief lodged the contents of his rifle in his head.

With so much of the savage, Farmer's-Brother possessed some noble traits. He was as firm a friend where he promised fidelity, as a bitter enemy to those against whom he contended; and would lose the last drop of blood in his veins sooner than betray the cause he had espoused. He was fond of recounting his exploits, and dwelt with much satisfaction upon the number of scalps he had taken in his skirmishes with the whites. In company with several other chiefs, he once paid a visit to General Washington, who presented him with a silver medal. This he constantly wore suspended from his neck; and so precious did he esteem the gift, that he was often heard to declare he would lose it only with his life.

Soon after the battles of Chippewa and Bridgewater, this veteran warrior paid the debt of nature, aged more than eighty years, at the Seneca village, where, as a mark of respect for his distinguished bravery, the fifth regiment of United States Infantry interred him with military honors. [FN]

[FN] See Village Register, American, and other New-York papers of about 1820.—Also, Appendix. V and VI.

Another elder contemporary of Red-Jacket was the Mohawk chief Brandt, "the accursed Brandt" of Gertrude of Wyoming, whom, however, we think it the less necessary to notice at much length, from his being, like the Corn-Planter, only a half-breed. In the French and English war, he rendered some services to the former. In the Revolution, he was commissioned Colonel in the English army, and distinguished himself in the horrid massacre at Wyoming. His services were rewarded by the present of a fine tract of land on the western shores of Lake Ontario. One of his sons, an intelligent, high-minded man, quite civilized, and much esteemed by his American acquaintances, a few years since laudably undertook the vindication of his father's memory from the often repeated charges of treachery and cruelty, but we apprehend with rather more zeal than success. The father deceased in 1807; the son, only a month or two since.

To return to Red-Jacket After his first oratorical triumph, he rose as rapidly as the Corn-Planter declined in the esteem of his countrymen. The latter withdrew from the rivalry, [FN] but the ambition of his successor was thoroughly aroused. He burned to be, and to be called, the Great Speaker of his nation and his age; to renew that glorious era when the white men trembled at the breath of Garangula; to feel and to make felt.

The monarch mind—the mystery of commanding— The godlike power—the art Napoleon, Of winning, fettering, moulding, wielding, banding The hearts of millions, till they move like one.

[FN] The Prophet died in 1815.

And he succeeded as far perhaps as could be expected in the circumstances of the modern Seneca, as compared with those of the orator who bearded the Canadian lion in his den. More than a century had since elapsed, during which the proud confederacy that had kept all other nations on the continent at bay was reduced to a few lingering, scattered settlements,—surrounded and crowded by civilization,—perhaps besotted in vice,—where the very ground of their ancient council-halls scarcely was sought for. With such discouragements in his way, the young Orator deserves some credit for making the exertions he did, and his countrymen for rewarding them as they were able. They elected him a chief; and then upon all occasions obeyed him in peace, and followed him in war.

Red-Jacket justified their confidence by a strict adherence to principles which on the whole are equally creditable to his heart and head, although either the policy itself, or his singular pertinacity in maintaining it, no doubt made him many adversaries and some enemies, even with his own people. He had early reflected upon and felt deeply the impotent insignificance to which the tribes were reduced;—and he resolved, if he could not restore them to their primitive position, at least to stay the progress of ruin. How should this be done,—was the great question,—by receiving civilization, or by resisting it?

He determined on the latter alternative, and from that hour never in the slightest degree swerved from his resolution to drive away and keep away every innovation on the character, and every intrusion on the territory of the nation. Traders, travelers, teachers, missionaries, speculators in land, were regarded with the same jealousy. In a word, he labored against circumstances whose force had now become inevitable and irresistible, to maintain a system of complete Indian Independence, which few of his countrymen understood, and still fewer were willing to practice.

And this is the trait which distinguishes his character from the majority of those we have heretofore sketched. Some of the most eminent of the number, like Pontiac and Little-Turtle, were anxious to avail themselves of the arts of civilization at least, were it only for purposes of offence and defence against the race whom they borrowed from; and scarcely any were opposed, other than incidentally, to their introduction into Indian use. But Red-Jacket was a Pagan in principle. He advocated as well as acted Paganism on all occasions. He was prouder of his genuine Indianism, if possible, than he was of his oratory. His bitterest foe could not deny him the merit of frankness.

One of his clearest manifestos, in explanation of his system, was delivered as long ago as May, 1811, before a council of the Senecas, held at Buffalo Creek, in the form of a speech to the Rev. Mr. Alexander, a missionary from a Society in the city of New-York, whose commission the address itself sufficiently explains.

"Brother!"—the Orator began, with a complaisance which never, under any excitement, deserted him,-"Brother!—We listened to the talk you delivered us from the Council of Black-Coats, [FN] in New-York. We have fully considered your talk, and the offers you have made us. We now return our answer, which we wish you also to understand. In making up our minds, we have looked back to remember what has been done in our days, and what our fathers have told us was done in old times."

[FN] His usual designation of Clergymen.

"Brother!—Great numbers of Black-Coats have been among the Indians. With sweet voices and smiling faces, they offered to teach them the religion of the white people. Our brethren in the East listened to them. They turned from the religion of their fathers, and took up the religion of the white people. What good has it done? Are they more friendly one to another than we are? No, Brother! They are a divided people;—we are united. They quarrel about religion;—we live in love and friendship. Besides, they drink strong waters. And they have learned how to cheat, and how to practice all the other vices of the white people, without imitating their virtues. Brother!—If you wish us well, keep away; do not disturb us.

"Brother!—We do not worship the Great Spirit as the white people do, but we believe that the forms of worship are indifferent to the Great Spirit. It is the homage of sincere hearts that pleases him, and we worship him in that manner.

"According to your religion, we must believe in a Father and Son, or we shall not be happy hereafter. We have always believed in a Father, and we worship him as our old men taught us. Your book says that the Son was sent on earth by the Father. Did all the people who saw the Son believe him? No! they did not. And if you have read the book, the consequence must be known to you.

"Brother!—You wish us to change our religion for yours. We like our religion, and do not want another. Our friends here, [pointing to Mr. Granger, the Indian Agent, and two other whites, {FN}] do us great good; they counsel us in trouble; they teach us now to be comfortable at all times. Our friends the Quakers do more. They give us ploughs, and teach us how to use them. They tell us we are accountable beings. But they do not tell us we must change our religion.—We are satisfied with what they do, and with what they say."

[FN] An Indian Interpreter, and an Agent of the Society of Friends for improving the condition of the Indians.

"Brother!—For these reasons we cannot receive your offers. We have other things to do, and beg you to make your mind easy, without troubling us, lest our heads should be too much loaded, and by and by burst."

At the same Council, the following reply was made by Red-Jacket, in behalf of his tribe, to the application of a Mr. Richardson, to buy out their right to the reservations lying in the territory commonly called the Holland Purchase.

"Brother!—We opened our ears to the talk you lately delivered to us, at our council-fire. In doing important business it is best not to tell long stories, but to come to it in a few words. We therefore shall not repeat your talk, which is fresh in our minds. We have well considered it, and the advantages and disadvantages of your offers. We request your attention to our answer, which is not from the speaker alone, but from all the Sachems and Chiefs now around our council-fire.

"Brother!—We know that great men, as well as great nations, have different interests and different minds, and do not see the same light—but we hope our answer will be agreeable to you and your employers.

"Brother!—Your application for the purchase of our lands is to our minds very extraordinary. It has been made in a crooked manner. You have not walked in the straight path pointed out by the great Council of your nation. You have no writings from your great Father, the President. In making up our minds we have looked back, and remembered how the Yorkers purchased our lands in former times. They bought them, piece after piece,—for a little money paid to a few men in our nation, and not to all our brethren,—until our planting and hunting-grounds have become very small, and if we sell them, we know not where to spread our blankets.

"Brother!—You tell us your employers have purchased of the Council of Yorkers, a right to buy our lands. We do not understand how this can be. The lands do not belong to the Yorkers; they are ours, and were given to us by the Great Spirit.

"Brother!—We think it strange that you should jump over the lands of our brethren in the East, to come to our council-fire so far off to get our lands. When we sold our lands in the East to the white people, we determined never to sell those we kept, which are as small as we can comfortably live on.

"Brother!—You want us to travel with you and look for new lands. If we should sell our lands and move off into a distant country towards the setting sun, we should be looked upon in the country to which we go, as foreigners and strangers. We should be despised by the red, as well as the white men, and we should soon be surrounded by the white people, who will there also kill our game, and come upon our lands and try to get them from us.

"Brother!—We are determined not to sell our lands, but to continue on them. We like them. They are fruitful, and produce us corn in abundance for the support of our women and children, and grass and herbs for our cattle.

"Brother!—At the treaties held for the purchase of our lands, the white men, with sweet voices and smiling faces, told us they loved us, and that they would not cheat us, but that the king's children on the other side of the lake would cheat us. When we go on the other side of the lake, the king's children tell us your people will cheat us. These things puzzle our heads, and we believe that the Indians must take care of themselves, and not trust either in your people, or in the king's children.

"Brother!—At a late council we requested our agents to tell you that we would not sell our lands, and we think you have not spoken to our agents, or they would have told you so, and we should not have met you at our council-fire at this time.

"Brother!—The white people buy and sell false rights to our lands, and your employers have, you say, paid a great price for their rights. They must have a plenty of money, to spend it in buying false rights to lands belonging to Indians. The loss of it will not hurt them, but our lands are of great value to us, and we wish you to go back with our talk to your employers, and tell them and the Yorkers that they have no right to buy and sell false rights to our lands.

"Brother!—We hope you clearly understand the Ideas we have offered. This is all we have to say."

It is not surprising that Red-Jacket should misunderstand, or not understand at all, the right to buy Indian land, which Richardson said his employers had obtained of the "Council of Yorkers." It was the right of preemption, in plain English—by which better read jurists than the Seneca have been perplexed. He naturally enough mistook the "right" of the State for a right, whereas it amounted to nothing but the privilege of preventing all other parties from acquiring a right. It was a prerogative—as against the whites alone—the legal effect of which was to incapacitate, not the Indians from selling, but themselves from buying.

There certainly can be no mistaking the shrewd independent reflection and plausible reasoning in the address, however much the perversion of such ability and spirit may give occasion for regret. Several of the arguments, too, are clearly founded in reason, as several of the statements are fortified by truth. In regard to the Indians being cheated by the whites, particularly, the only error of Red-Jacket, and that a perfectly obvious one, was in ascribing to the whites at large, and consequently to Christianity, the credit which in fact belonged to a few unprincipled traders and greedy speculators in land, who had indeed carried their manoeuvres to an aggravated extent.

There is good reason to believe that Red-Jacket,—whose military career it is time to allude to,—took his earnest lessons in the art of war during the Revolution, in the ranks of those Senecas who so signally distinguished themselves by their ravages on the frontiers of New-York, Pennsylvania, New-Jersey and Virginia. [FN-1] The only reference, however, which he ever himself made to that part of his history, so far as we know, was latterly at Buffalo, when he was introduced to General Lafayette, then on his tour through the country. He Reminded the latter of a Council at Fort Stanwix in 1784, where both were present, and which had been called with the view of negotiating a treaty with some of the Six Nations. "And where," asked Lafayette, "is the Young Warrior who so eloquently opposed the burying of the tomahawk?" "He is before you," answered the chief. "Ah!"—he added with a melancholy air, and stripping off a handkerchief from his bald head,—"Time has made bad work with me. But you, I perceive,"—and here he narrowly reconnoitered the General's wig—"You have hair enough left yet!" [FN-2] At the date of this interview, seven years since, he was at least sixty-five years of age, and therefore must have been about twenty-five at the time of the treaty.

[FN-1] App. No. VII.

[FN-2] Levasseur's "Tour of Lafayette."

A few years subsequent to the negotiation referred to on this occasion, Red-Jacket had an interview with General Washington, who gave him a silver medal, which he wore ever afterwards, and is said to have named him "the Flower of the Forest." But the Senecas were again hostile soon afterwards, and it was only at the expense of an expedition which ravaged their territory far and wide, that this haughty people were at length subdued into any thing like a state of composure. Red-Jacket is believed to have been second to none of his countrymen in his opposition to the American interest down to that period; but a peace was granted upon liberal terms—some complaints of the Indians were adjusted—a system of protection was devised for their benefit—and thenceforth, both they and he were quite friendly in most instances, and faithful to their engagements in all.

As early at least as 1810, Red-Jacket gave information to the Indian Agent of attempts made by Tecumseh, the Prophet and others, to draw his nation into the great western combination; but the war of 1812 had scarcely commenced, when they volunteered their services to their American neighbors. For some time these were rejected, and every exertion was made to induce them to remain neutral. They bore the restraint with an ill-grace, but said nothing. At length, in the summer of 1812, the English unadvisedly took possession of Grand Island, in the Niagara river, a valuable territory of the Senecas. This was too much for the pride of such men as Red-Jacket and Farmers-Brother. A council was called forthwith—the American Agent was summoned to attend—-and the orator rose and addressed him.

"Brother!"—said he, after stating the information received,—"you have told us we had nothing to do with the war between you and the British. But the war has come to our doors. Our property is seized upon by the British and their Indian friends. It is necessary for us, then, to take up this business. We must defend our property; we must drive the enemy from our soil. If we sit still on our lands, and take no means of redress, the British, following the customs of you white people, will hold them by conquest; and you, if you conquer Canada, will claim them, on the same principles, as conquered from the British. Brother!—We wish to go with our warriors, and drive off these bad people, and take possession of those lands."

The effect of this reasonable declaration, and especially of the manner in which it was made, was such as might be expected. A grand council of the Six Nations came together, and a manifesto, of which the following is a literal translation, issued against the British in Canada, and signed by all the grand Councilors of the Confederation.

"We, the Chiefs and Councilors of the Six Nations of Indians, residing in the State of New-York, do hereby proclaim to all the war-chiefs and warriors of the Six Nations, that war is declared on our part against the provinces of Upper and Lower Canada.

"Therefore, we do hereby command and advise all the war-chiefs to call forth immediately the warriors under them, and put them in motion to protect their rights and liberties, which our brethren, the Americans are now defending." [FN]

[FN] Niles's Register, Vol. IV.

No speech of Red-Jacket at this memorable meeting of the tribes is preserved, but from the address of one of the oldest warriors it appears that they expected to raise as many as three thousand fighting-men. But this must be an exaggeration. In 1817, there were supposed to be only seven thousand Indians of all descriptions within the State of New-York, on a liberal estimate, and the usual proportion of warriors would be in that case about two thousand. It is improbable that more than half this number were actually organized for service at any period during the war.—Those who engaged, however, cannot be accused of want of zeal, for although the Declaration was made quite late in 1812, we find a considerable body of them taking a spirited part in an action near Fort George, of which an official account was given by General Boyd, under date of August 13th. The enemy were completely routed, and a number of British Indians captured by our allies.

"Those," adds the General, "who participated in this contest, particularly the Indians, conducted with great bravery and activity. General Porter volunteered in the affair, and Major Chapin evinced his accustomed zeal and courage. The regulars under Major Cummings, as far as they were engaged, conducted well. The principal chiefs who led the warriors this day, were Farmers-Brother, Red-Jacket, Little-Billey, Pollard, Black-Snake, Johnson, Silver-Heels, Captain Halftown, Major Henry O. Ball, (Corn-planter's son,) and Captain Cold, who was wounded. In a council which was held with them yesterday, they covenanted not to scalp or murder; and I am happy to say that they treated the prisoners with humanity, and committed no wanton cruelties on the dead."

Of the chiefs here mentioned, we believe all were Senecas, except Captain Cold. The General repeats, in his next bulletin,—"The bravery and humanity of the Indians were equally conspicuous;" and another authority says,—"They behaved with great gallantry and betrayed no disposition to violate the restrictions which Boyd has imposed." [FN] These restrictions,—it should be observed in justice to Red-Jacket and his brave comrades,—had been previously agreed upon at the Grand Council, and the former probably felt no humiliation in departing in this particular from the usual savagery on which he prided himself. We have met with no authentic charges against him, either of cruelty or cowardice, and it is well known that he took part in a number of sharply contested engagements.

[FN] Niles's Register.

After the conclusion of peace, he resumed, with his accustomed energy, the superintendence of the civil interests of the Senecas. The division of the tribe into parties,—the Christian and Anti-Christian,—was now completely distinct; the former being headed by Little-Billey, Captain Pollard, and other noted chiefs; and the latter by Red-Jacket, with young Corn-planter and several more spirited assistants, whose names are appended to the following memorial to the Governor of New-York. This was the composition of Red-Jacket It had been preceded by a private letter from himself to the Governor, which had probably produced little or no effect.

"To the Chief of the Council-fire at Albany.

"Brother!

"About three years ago, our friends of the great council-fire at Albany, wrote down in their book that the priests of white people should no longer reside on our lands, and told their officers to move them off whenever we complained. This was to us good news, and made our hearts glad. These priests had a long time troubled us, and made us bad friends and bad neighbors. After much difficulty we removed them from our lands; and for a short time have been quiet and our minds easy. But we are now told that the priests have asked liberty to return; and that our friends of the great council-fire are about to blot from their book the law which they made, and leave their poor red brethren once more a prey to hungry priests.

"Brother!—Listen to what we say. These men do us no good. They deceive every body. They deny the Great Spirit, which we, and our fathers before us, have looked upon as our Creator. They disturb us in our worship. They tell our children they must not believe like our fathers and mothers, and tell us many things that we do not understand and cannot believe. They tell us we must be like white people—but they are lazy and won't work, nor do they teach our young men to do so. The habits of our women are worse than they were before these men came amongst us, and our young men drink more whiskey. We are willing to be taught to read, and write, and work, but not by people who have done us so much injury. Brother!—we wish you to lay before the council-fire the wishes of your red brethren. We ask our brothers not to blot out the law which has made us peaceable and happy, and not to force a strange religion upon us. We ask to be let alone, and, like the white people, to worship the Great Spirit as we think it best. We shall then be happy in filling the little space in life which is left us, and shall go down to our fathers in peace." [FN]

[FN] Niles's Register, Vol. XXVIII; 1828.

This unique document was subscribed with the mark of Red-Jacket first, and then followed those of Corn-Planter, Green-Blanket, Big-Kettle, Robert Bob, Twenty-Canoes, senior and junior, Two-Guns, Fish-Hook, Hot-Bread, Bare-Foot, and many other staunch advocates of the same principles. It was presented to the Assembly, but we have not learned that any efficient order was taken upon it. About the same time, Red-Jacket made an earnest appeal to his Quaker neighbors,—a people always beloved by the Indians,—with the same design. He told them that those whites who pretended to instruct and preach to his people, stole their horses and drove off their cattle, while such of the Senecas as they nominally converted from heathenism to Christianity, only disgraced themselves by paltry attempts to cover the profligacy of the one with the hypocrisy of the other.

The Pagans were generally opposed to the cession of land, but foreign influence, united with that of their antagonists at home, sometimes proved too strong for them. At a treaty held with the tribe in 1826, eighty-two thousand acres of fine territory were given up. Red-Jacket opposed the measure in an eloquent appeal to the Indian feelings of his countrymen, but the effort gained him but few votes.

The speech which has perhaps added most to his reputation was a thoroughly Pagan one, delivered not long previous to the affair just mentioned to a council at Buffalo, convened at the request of a missionary from Massachusetts, with the view of introducing and recommending himself to them in his religious capacity. The Missionary made a speech to the Indians, explaining the objects for which he had called them together. It was by no means, he said, to get away their lands or money. There was but one religion, and without that they could not prosper. They had lived all their lives in gross darkness. Finally he wished to hear their objections, if any could be made; and the sooner, the better, inasmuch as some other Indians whom he had visited, had resolved to reply to him in accordance with their decision.

At the close of this address, the Senecas spent several hours in private conference, and then Red-Jacket came forward as speaker.

"Friend and Brother!"—he began—"It was the will of the Great Spirit that we should meet together this day. He orders all things, and he has given us a fine day for our council. He has taken his garment from before the sun, and caused it to shine with brightness upon us. Our eyes are opened that we see clearly. Our ears are unstopped that we have been able to hear distinctly the words you have spoken. For all these favors we thank the Great Spirit, and him only.

"Brother!—This council fire was kindled by you. It was at your request that we came together at this time. We have listened with attention to what you have said. You requested us to speak our minds freely. This gives us great joy, for we now consider that we stand upright before you, and can speak what we think. All have heard your voice, and all speak to you as one man. Our minds are agreed.

"Brother!—You say you want an answer to your talk before you leave this place. It is right you should have one, as you are a great distance from home, and we do not wish to detain you. But we will first look back a little, and tell you what our fathers have told us, and what we have heard from the white people.

"Brother!—Listen to what we say. There was a time when our forefathers owned this great island." [FN-1] Their seats extended from the rising to the setting sun. The Great Spirit had made it for the use of Indians. He had created the buffalo, the deer, and other animals for food. He made the bear and the beaver, and their skins served us for clothing. He had scattered them over the country, and taught us how to take them. He had caused the earth to produce corn for bread. All this he had done for his red children because he loved them. If we had any disputes about hunting-grounds, they were generally settled without the shedding of much blood. But an evil day came upon us. Your forefathers crossed the great waters, and landed on this island. Their numbers were small. They found friends and not enemies. They told us they had fled from their own country for fear of wicked men, and come here to enjoy their religion. They asked for a small seat. We took pity on them, granted their request, and they sat down amongst us. We gave them corn and meat. They gave us poison [FN-2] in return. The white people had now found our country. Tidings were carried back, and more came amongst us. Yet we did not fear them. We took them to be friends. They called us brothers. We believed them, and gave them a larger seat. At length their numbers had greatly increased. They wanted more land. They wanted our country. Our eyes were opened, and our minds became uneasy. Wars took place. Indians were hired to fight against Indians, and many of our people were destroyed. They also brought strong liquors among us. It was strong and powerful, and has slain thousands.

[FN-1] Meaning the Continent—a common belief and expression among the Indians.

[FN-2] Spirituous liquor.

"Brother!—Our seats were once large, and yours were very small. You have now become a great people, and we have scarcely a place left to spread our blankets. You have got our country, but are not satisfied. You want to force your religion upon us.

"Brother!—Continue to listen. You say that you to sent to instruct us how to worship the Great Spirit agreeably to his mind; and if we do not take hold of the religion which you white people teach, we shall be unhappy hereafter. You say that you are right and we are lost. How do we know this to be true? We understand that your religion is written in a book. If it was intended for us as well as for you, why has not the Great Spirit given it to us; and not only to us, but why did he not give to our forefathers the knowledge of that book, with the means of understanding it rightly? We only know what you tell us about it. How shall we know when to believe, being so often deceived by the white people.

"Brother!—You say there is but one way to worship and serve the Great Spirit. If there is but one religion, why do you white people differ so much about it? Why not all agree, as you can all read the book?

"Brother!—We do not understand these things. We are told that your religion was given to your forefathers, and has been handed down from father to son. We also have a religion which was given to our forefathers, and has been handed down to us their children. We worship that way. It teaches us to be thankful for all the favors we receive, to love each other, and to be united. We never quarrel about religion.

"Brother!—The Great Spirit has made us all. But he has made a great difference between his white and red children. He has given us a different complexion and different customs. To you he has given the arts; to these he has not opened our eyes. We know these things to be true. Since he has made so great a difference between us in other things, why may we not conclude that he has given us a different religion, according to our understanding? The Great Spirit does right. He knows what is best for his children. We are satisfied.

"Brother!—We do not wish to destroy your religion, or take it from you. We only want to enjoy our own.

"Brother!—You say you have not come to get our land or our money, but to enlighten our minds. I will now tell you that I have been at your meetings and saw you collecting money from the meeting. I cannot tell what this money was intended for, but suppose it was for your minister; and if we should conform to your way of thinking, perhaps you may want some from us.

"Brother!—We are told that you have been preaching to white people in this place. These people are our neighbors. We are acquainted with them. We will wait a little while, and see what effect your preaching has upon them. If we find it does them good and makes them honest and less disposed to cheat Indians, we will then consider again what you have said.

"Brother!—You have now heard our answer to your talk, and this is all we have to say at present. As we are going to part, we will come and take you by the hand, and hope the Great Spirit will protect you on your journey, and return you safe to your friends."

The speech being finished, Red-Jacket and several others, intending to suit the action to the word, came forward to exchange a farewell greeting with their visitor. This however he declined, and the Indians quietly withdrew.

The civility of the old orator was in somewhat singular contrast with his obstinacy on many other occasions. A young clergyman once made a strong effort to enlighten him, through the medium of an Indian interpreter named Jack Berry [FN]—for Red-Jacket spoke very little of the English language. The result was discouraging. "Brother!"—said Jack, at length, for the Chief,—"If you white people murdered 'the Saviour,' make it up yourselves. We had nothing to do with it. If he had come among us we should have treated him better." This was gross heathenism, truly, but it was not aggravated by insolence. The Chieftain made a sincere acknowledgment of the clergyman's kindness, and paid him some deserved compliments upon other scores.

[FN] Jack called himself a chief, too, though his importance was owing mainly to his speaking bad English, and to a bustling shrewdness which enabled him to play the factotum to some advantage. Jack made himself first marshal at the funeral of Farmer's-Brother.

During the last war with England, a gallant officer of the American Army, [FN] stationed on the Niagara frontier, shewed some peculiarly gratifying attentions to Red-Jacket. The former being soon afterwards ordered to Governor's Island, the Chief came to bid him farewell. "Brother,"—said he, "I hear you are going to a place called Governor's Island. I hope you will be a Governor yourself. I am told you whites consider children a blessing. I hope you will have one thousand at least. Above all, wherever you go, I hope you will never find whiskey more than two shillings a quart."

[FN] Colonel Snelling. For several of the anecdotes in the text we are under obligations to the author of "Tales of the North-West." He was present at the interview when Berry acted as Interpreter.

The last of these benevolent aspirations was perhaps the highest possible evidence which Red-Jacket could give of his good will, for we are under the mortifying necessity of placing this talented Chieftain in the same class, as relates to his personal habits, with Uncas, Logan, and Pipe. In a word, he gradually became, in his latter days, a confirmed drunkard. Temptation and association proved too strong for him, and the pride of the Confederates made himself but too frequently a laughing-stock for the blackguards of Buffalo.

Unfortunately for his political as well as personal interests, he indulged his weakness to such an extent as not unfrequently to incapacitate him for the discharge of his public duties. This was an advantage which his opponents shrewdly considered, and, in 1827, they took a favorable opportunity to deprive him of his civil rank. The document issued from the Seneca council-house on this singular occasion, under date of September 15th, is too extraordinary to be omitted. The following is a literal translation, made by an intelligent American who was present.

"We, the Chiefs [FN-1] of the Seneca tribe, of the Six Nations, say to you, Yaugoyawathaw, [FN-2] that you have a long time disturbed our councils; that you have procured some white men to assist you in sending a great number of false stories to our father the President of the United States, and induced our people to sign those falsehoods at Tonnawanta as Chiefs of our tribe, when you knew that they were not Chiefs; that you have apposed the improvement of our nation, and made divisions and disturbances among our people; that you have abused and insulted our great father the President; that you have not regarded the rules which make the Great Spirit love us, and which make his red children do good to each other; that you have a bad heart, because, in a time of great distress, when our people were starving, you took and hid the body of a deer you had killed, when your starving brothers should have shared their proportion of it with you; that the last time our father the President was fighting against the king, across the great waters, you divided us, you acted against our father the President and his officers, and advised with those who were no friends; that you have always prevented and discouraged our children from going to school, where they could learn, and abused and lied about our people who were willing to learn, and about those who were offering to instruct them how to worship the Great Spirit in the manner Christians do; that you have always placed yourself before those who would be instructed, and have done all you could to prevent their going to schools; that you have taken goods to your own use, which were received as annuities, and which belonged to orphan children and to old people; that for the last ten years you have often said the communications of our great father to his red children were forgeries, made up at New-York by those who wanted to buy our lands; that you left your wife, because she joined the Christians and worshiped the Great Spirit as they do, knowing that she was a good woman; that we have waited for nearly ten years for you to reform, and do better; but are now discouraged, as you declare you never will receive instruction from those who wish to do us good, as our great father advises, and induce others to hold the same language."

[FN] Several of them were soi-disant functionaries.

[FN] A variation of Saguoaha, which is the orthography adopted by Governor Clinton.

"We might say a great many other things, which make you an enemy to the Great Spirit, and also to your own brothers,—but we have said enough, and now renounce you as a chief, and from this time you are forbid to act as such. All of our nation will hereafter regard you as a private man; and we say to them all, that every one who shall do as you have done, if a chief will, in like manner be disowned, and set back where he started from by his brethren." [FN]

[FN] Buffalo Emporium.

Several of these charges, it is fair to presume, were dictated by party spirit, and those who subscribed the deposition cared but little about proving them, could they but prostrate their great antagonist. The signatures are twenty-six, and most of them are well-known Anti-Pagans; though with Young-King, Pollard, and Little-Billey, who led the subscription, we also find the names of Twenty-Canoes, Doxtateri, Two-Guns, Barefoot, and some other partizans of the fallen orator in his better days.

But Red-Jacket was not yet prepared to submit patiently to his degradation, especially when he knew so well the true motives of those who effected it. Nor was he by any means so much under the control of his bad habits as not to feel occasionally, perhaps generally, both the consciousness of his power and the sting of his shame. "It shall not be said of me,"—thought the old Orator, with the gleam of a fiery soul in his eye,—"It shall not be said that Saguoaha lived in insignificance and died in dishonor. Am I too feeble to revenge myself of my enemies? Am I not as I have been?" In fine, he roused himself to a great effort. Representations were made to the neighboring tribes,—for he knew too well the hopelessness of a movement confined to his own,—and only a month had elapsed since his deposition, when a Grand Council of the chiefs of the Six Nations assembled together at the upper council-house of the Seneca-village reservation.

The document of the Christian party was read, and then Half-Town rose, and, in behalf of the Catteraugus (Seneca) Indians, said there was but one voice in his nation, and that was of general indignation at the contumely cast on so great a man as Red-Jacket. Several other chiefs addressed the council to the same effect. The condemned orator rose slowly, as if grieved and humiliated, but yet with his ancient air of command.

"My Brothers!"—he said, after a solemn pause,—You have this day been correctly informed of an attempt to make me sit down and throw off the authority of a chief, by twenty-six misguided chiefs of my nation. You have heard the statements of my associates in council, and their explanations of the foolish charges brought against me. I have taken the legal and proper way to meet these charges. It is the only way in which I could notice them, charges which I despise, and which nothing would induce me to notice but the concern which many respected Chiefs of my nation feel in the character of their aged comrade. Were it otherwise, I should not be before you. I would fold my arms, and sit quietly under these ridiculous slanders.

"The Christian party have not even proceeded legally, according to our usages, to put me down. Ah! it grieves my heart, when I look around me and see the situation of my people,—in old times united and powerful, now divided and feeble. I feel sorry for my nation. When I am gone to the other world,—when the Great Spirit calls me away,—who among my people can take my place? Many years have I guided the nation."

Here he introduced some artful observations on the origin of the attack made upon him. He then alluded to the course taken by the Christians, as ruinous and disgraceful, especially in their abandonment of the religion of their fathers, and their sacrifices, for paltry considerations, of the lands given them by the Great Spirit. As for the "Black-Coats," Mr. Calhoun had told him at Washington, four years before, that the Indians must treat with them as they thought proper; the Government would not interfere. "I will not consent,"—he concluded, sagaciously identifying his disgrace with his opposition to the Christians,—"I will not consent silently to be trampled under foot. As long as I can raise my voice, I will oppose such measures. As long as I can stand in my moccasins, I will do all that I can for my nation." It is scarcely necessary to add, that the result of the conference was the triumphant restoration of the Orator to his former rank.

Red-Jacket visited the Atlantic cities repeatedly and for the last time, as late as the spring of 1829. He was, oh these occasions, and especially on the latter, the object of no little curiosity and attention. [FN] He enjoyed both, and was particularly careful to demean himself in a manner suited to the dignity of his rank and reputation. His poetical friend does him but justice in thus alluding to his Washington medal, his forest costume, and the fine carriage which the Chieftain still gallantly sustained.

[FN] Of more indeed than he was probably aware. Witness the following advertisement in the Boston papers:—

"Red-Jacket.—This celebrated Indian Chief, who has recently attracted so much attention at New-York and the Southern cities, has arrived in this city, and has accepted an invitation of the Superintendent to visit the New-England Museum, this evening, March 21, in his full Indian costume, attended by Captain Johnson, his interpreter, by whom those who wish it can be introduced and hold conversation with him."

Thy garb—though Austria's bosom-star would frighten That medal pale, as diamonds, the dark mine, And George the Fourth wore, in the dance at Brighton, A more becoming evening dress than thine;

Yet 'tis a brave one, scorning wind and weather, And fitted for thy couch on field and flood, As Rob Roy's tartans for the highland heather, Or forest green for England's Robin Hood.

Is strength a monarch's merit?—like a whaler's— Thou art as tall, as sinewy, and as strong As earth's first kings—the Argo's gallant sailors— Heroes in history, and gods in song.

Those strictly personal attractions which most subserved his forensic success, are not unfairly delineated by the same elegant observer. And this is not the only civilized authority to the same effect, for one of the most distinguished public men of the State in which the Chieftain resided, was wont to say that the latter reminded him strongly of the celebrated orator of Roanoke, in his best estate, and that they two were the only orators of nature he had ever heard or seen. "Who will believe?"—-asks the poet—

. . . that, with a smile whose blessing Would, like the patriarch's, sooth a dying hour With voice as low, as gentle, and caressing, As e'er won maiden's lip in moonlight bower;

With look, like patient Job's, eschewing evil; With motions, graceful as a bird's in air; Thou art, in sober truth, the veriest devil That e'er clenched fingers in a captive's hair!

That in thy veins there springs a poison fountain, Deadlier than that which bathes the Upas tree; And in thy wrath a nursing cat o'mountain Is calm as her babe's sleep, compared with thee?

And underneath that face, like summer's ocean's— Its lip as moveless, and its cheek as clear,— Slumbers a whirlwind of the heart's emotions, Love, hatred, pride, hope, sorrow—all, save fear.

Love—for thy land, as if she were thy daughter; Her pipes in peace, her tomahawk in wars; Hatred—of missionaries and cold water; Pride—in thy rifle-trophies and thy scars;

Hope—that thy wrongs will be by the Great Spirit Remembered and revenged, when thou art gone; Sorrow—that none are left thee to inherit Thy name, thy fame, thy passions, and thy throne.

In the last of these stanzas is an allusion to the melancholy domestic circumstances of the subject of them. He had been the father of thirteen children, during his life-time, and had buried them all.

Red-Jacket is said to have understood English quite well, although he would never converse in it. We have often heard it from a gentleman well acquainted with him, that he once met him hastening out of Buffalo when all the neighboring country was eagerly rushing in to witness the execution of three culprits; and that the Chieftain recognized him, and made him understand by signs, that he was hurrying away from the horrid spectacle which so many thousand had already assembled to enjoy. Levasseur states, that, in his conference with Lafayette, he evidently comprehended every thing uttered in his presence, while he would speak only Indian; and that his former high opinion of the General seemed to be much increased by a few chance-medley Seneca words, which the latter had the good fortune to remember, and the courtesy to repeat. We also have been informed that, many years since, when the notorious Jemima Wilkinson compassed the country in the business of making proselytes to her doctrines, she invited some of the Senecas to a conference. Red-Jacket attended, and listened patiently to the end of a long address. Most of it he probably understood, but instead of replying to the argument in detail, he laid the axe at the root of her authority. Having risen very gravely, and spoken a few words in Seneca, he observed his adversary to enquire what he was talking about? "Ha!"—he exclaimed, with an arch look,—"She inspired,—she Jesus Christ,—and not know Indian?" The solidity of her pretensions was at once decided in the minds of at least the heathen part of her audience.

At the date of his last-mentioned visit to the Atlantic cities, the Chieftain was more than seventy years of age, and though then habitually temperate, excess had already hastened the work of time. He died in January, 1830, at the Seneca village, near Buffalo, where his funeral took place on the 21st of the month. It was attended by all parties of his own tribe, and by many Americans, drawn together by a curiosity to witness the obsequies. His body was removed from his cabin into the mission-house, where religious services were performed. In these the Pagans took but little interest. Wrapped in profound and solemn thought, they however patiently awaited their termination. Some of them then arose, and successively addressed their countrymen in their own language. They recounted the exploits and the virtues of him whose remains they were now about to bear to his last home. They remembered his own prophetic appeal—"Who shall take my place among my people?" They thought of the ancient glory of their nation, and they looked around them on its miserable remnant. The impression was irresistible. Tears trickled down the cheeks of the grave comrades of the dead.

Well might they weep! He that lay before them was indeed the "Last of the Senecas." The strong warrior's arm was mouldering into dust, and the eye of the orator was cold and motionless forever.

APPENDIX.

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