History of the settlement of Upper Canada (Ontario,): with special reference to the Bay QuintéCanniff, William
History
History of the settlement of Upper Canada (Ontario,): with special reference to the Bay Quinté
Canniff, William
Ontario -- History; Quinte, Bay of (Ont.)
CONTENTS—Indian Names—The Five Tribes—The Sixth—Confederation—
Government—Subdivisions—Origin—Hendrick—Death—Brant—Birth—
Education—Married—Teaching—Christianity—Brant elected Chief—
Commissioned a British Captain—Visits England—Returns—Leads his
warriors to battle—Efforts of Rebels to seduce Brant to their
cause—Attempted treachery of the Rebel Herchimer—Border warfare—
Wyoming—Attempt to blacken the character of Brant—His noble
conduct—Untruthful American History—The inhabitants of Wyoming—The
Rebels first to blame—Cherry Valley—Van Schaick—Bloody orders—
Terrible conduct of the Rebels, Helpless Indian families—Further
deeds of blood and rapine by the rebel Sullivan—A month of
horrible work—Attributes of cruelty more conspicuous in the Rebels
than in the Indians—The New Englander—Conduct toward the Indians—
Inconsistent—The “down trodden”—The Mohawks—Indian agriculture—
Broken faith with the Indians—Noble conduct of Brant—After the
war—His family—Death—Miss Molly—Indian usage—The character of the
Mohawk—The six Indians as Canadians—Fidelity to the British—
Receiving land—Bay Quinté—Grand River—Settling—Captain Isaac,
Captain John—At present—Mohawk Counsel.
THE SIX NATIONS.
This once powerful Confederacy styled themselves Kan-ye-a-ke; also, they
sometimes called themselves _Aganuschioni_ or _Agnanuschioni_, which
signifies _united_ people. The French designated them Iroquois, from a
peculiar sound of their speech. The English knew them as the _Five
Nations_, and _Six Nations_, more generally by the latter term. The
original five tribes that formed the Confederacy, were the Mohawks,
Oneidas, Cayugas, Onondagas, and Senecas. Subsequently in 1712, the
Tuscaroras came from the south, North Carolina, and made the sixth
nation. But according to some authority, there were six nations before
the Tuscaroras joined them. However, we learn from several sources, that
up to 1712, the English, in speaking of them, referred to only five
nations. The Oneidas seem, at one time, to have been omitted, and the
Aucguagas inserted in their stead. The oldest members of the
confederation were the Mohawks, Onondagas, and Senecas. The union of
those three tribes took place prior to the occupation of America by the
Europeans. The time at which the confederation of the five nations was
formed is uncertain, but it is supposed to have been in the early part
of the sixteenth century. The league binding them together was rather of
a democratic nature.
Each tribe was represented in the great council of the nation by one
principal sachem, with a number of associates.
They were always deliberate in their councils, considerate in their
decisions, never infringing upon the rights of a minority, and dignified
in their utterances. They were noted, not only as warriors, but as well
for their agriculture, their laws, and their oratorical ability.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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