Lives of Famous Indian Chiefs: From Cofachiqui, the Indian Princess, and Powhatan; down to and including Chief Joseph and Geronimo. Also an answer, from the latest research, of the query, Whence came the Indian? Together with a number of thrillingly interesting Indian stories and anecdotes from historyWood, Norman B. (Norman Barton)
History
Lives of Famous Indian Chiefs: From Cofachiqui, the Indian Princess, and Powhatan; down to and including Chief Joseph and Geronimo. Also an answer, from the latest research, of the query, Whence came the Indian? Together with a number of thrillingly interesting Indian stories and anecdotes from history
Wood, Norman B. (Norman Barton)
Indians -- Origin; Indians of North America -- Anecdotes; Indians of North America -- Biography
"Father, we have all smoked out of this pipe of peace. It is your
children's pipe; and as the war is over, and the Great Spirit and Giver of
Light, who has made the earth and everything therein, has brought us all
together this day for our mutual good, I declare to all nations that I have
settled my peace with you before I came here, and now deliver my pipe to be
sent to Sir William Johnson, that he may know I have made peace, and taken
the King of England for my father, in the presence of all the nations now
assembled; and whenever any of those nations go to visit him, they may
smoke out of it with him in peace. Fathers, we are obliged to you for
lighting up our old council-fire for us, and desiring us to return to it;
but we are now settled on the Miami river, not far from hence. Whenever you
want us you will find us there.
"Our people love liquor, and if we dwelt near you in our old village of
Detroit, our warriors would be always drunk, and quarrels would arise
between us and you."
The wise chief could see that drunkenness was the bane of his whole unhappy
race, and therefore chose to be remote from the white settlement. He kept
his young men away from whisky. When will the white chiefs be as wise and
keep whisky away from their young men?
The following spring, 1766, Pontiac was as good as his word, and visited
Sir William Johnson at his castle on the Mohawk, and in behalf of the
tribes lately banded in his confederation concluded a treaty of peace and
amity.
From this time he disappears from the page of history, only to reappear in
the closing scene in the eventful drama of his life. He is believed to have
lived like a common warrior, with a remnant of his tribe, in different
parts of what is now the States of Indiana and Illinois.
In April, 1769, he went to St. Louis, and made a two days' visit with his
old friend, St. Ange, who was then in command at that post, having offered
his services to the Spaniards after the cession of Louisiana. St. Ange,
Pierre Chouteau and other principal inhabitants of the little settlement,
entertained him and his attendant chiefs with cordial hospitality for
several days. But hearing that there was a large assembly of Illinois
Indians at Cahokia, on the Illinois side of the river, Pontiac, against the
advice of his friends, determined to go over and see what was going
forward. It was at this time he was arrayed in the full uniform of a French
officer, which had been presented to him by the Marquis of Montcalm as a
token of esteem, and this fact tended to excite uneasiness, as well as to
enrage the English traders at Cahokia, who believed the chief did it to add
insult to injury.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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