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 CharactersThatcher, B. B. (Benjamin Bussey)
History
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
Thatcher, B. B. (Benjamin Bussey)
Indians of North America -- Biography; Indians of North America -- History
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.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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 — John Shaqi
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