Legends, Traditions, and Laws of the Iroquois, or Six Nations, and History of the Tuscarora IndiansJohnson, Elias
History
Legends, Traditions, and Laws of the Iroquois, or Six Nations, and History of the Tuscarora Indians
Johnson, Elias
Iroquois Indians; Tuscarora Indians
The Tuscaroras had many years of enjoyment and peaceful possession of
their domain, consisting of six towns on the Roanoke, Neuse, Taw and
Pemlico rivers, in the State of North Carolina. And they were also
confederated to six other nations, which were the Corees, Mattamuskeets,
Notaways and the Bear River Indians; the names of the other two nations I
have been unable to obtain. My readers will readily see why some writers
have it that they consisted in twelve towns, and other writers would have
it that they consisted in six towns. The real Tuscaroras consisted in six
towns; but with the confederate nations, altogether, were known to be in
twelve towns, and all these different nations which composed the
confederacy went under the name of Tuscarora, the Tuscaroras being the
most powerful of the several nations.
The tradition of the Tuscaroras admits of having captured Lawson and his
party, and executed some of them to death on account of their
encroachments upon their domain; but concerning the massacre of Oct. 2d,
1711, the Tuscaroras emphatically deny having taken any part in the
affair whatever, officially. The project was presented to them and in the
council of the sachems, chiefs and warriors, they emphatically declined
taking any part in such a movement, but said if the colonists made
encroachments and trespass on their domain, it is no more than right and
just that we defend our rights, and even cautioned their young men that
they should not take any part whatever in the action; but, nevertheless,
there were a few of the rash and reckless warriors that took part in the
disorder.
The Corees, Mattamuskeets, and Bear River Indians seemed to be the
instigators of the project: but there were several other nations that
took part in the massacre. These three nations being considered
Tuscaroras, on account of the confederacy, and the capture of Lawson and
his party a little previous to this time by the Tuscaroras, led the
colonists to conclude that it was the Tuscaroras who caused the disaster,
and to them was directed the feud of the colonists.
A little previous to these disorders, it seems that there were some white
men, as our tradition states, with long coats and wide brimmed hats,
visited several nations of the Indians in that neighborhood, and appeared
to be very friendly toward them, wished them success in everything, and
told them that those settlers who were on the borders of their lands and
constantly encroaching and committing depredations upon the Indians, were
not of the government, but were merely squatters, who settled there of
their own accord, and if they were cut off, there would be none to avenge
them, and were advised to do so.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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