In 1636, the Pequots formed a conspiracy to slay all the English in their country. As a first step, they asked Canonicus and Miantonomah to make a treaty of peace with them, and to join in the war against the settlements. The temptation was a peculiar one to the Narragansett leaders. They had now the chance of striking a blow at their old enemies, the Pequots, or of joining with them against the English. Their inclination was to make common cause against the white men. Roger Williams was living among the Narragansetts when the Pequot messengers came to Canonicus, and he used all his powers to keep the chief out of the alliance. The Pequots were enraged and would have killed him had they dared, but Canonicus was a true friend of the exile, and they were afraid to offend the chief. Finally, he yielded to the prayers of Williams, and refused those of the Pequots, who entered upon the campaign alone, and, as a consequence, suffered destruction at the hands of the colonists. In this dreadful work the whites had the help of several hundred Narragansetts. Another great Indian leader now appears on the stage. He was Uncas, who was born a Pequot, and was one of more than a score of the leaders of that unfortunate nation. During some domestic troubles, he rebelled against his sachem and became the head of a strong "Schism." This was just before the opening of the Pequot war. The territories of the Pequots were divided, and the part known as "Mohegan" fell to Uncas, who aided the English in their overthrow of the Pequot. It is said that he felt pity for the dreadful misfortune of his old friends and neighbors, and, in more than one instance, did what he could to shield them from the fury of their conquerors. Moreover, he gave protection to a number of settlements, Norwich being one of the towns thus favored. [Illustration: A PEQUOT MASSACRE] In 1638, the magistrates at Hartford asked Uncas and Miantonomah to come thither and agree upon the division of the two hundred Pequot captives (not including women and children). In the division eighty went to the Narragansett chief, twenty to a neighboring chief, while a hundred were turned over to Uncas. He and Miantonomah had long been jealous of each other, the feeling being strong on the part of the Narragansett. The two leaders pledged themselves to peace, but their mutual hatred was too deep for either to keep the letter or spirit of the agreement. Miantonomah was ambitious, and wished to become ruler of all the New England Indians. Uncas belonged to the branch with which the Narragansetts had always been at enmity, and the Narragansett leader determined to kill him on the first chance, believing that the way would thus be opened for a union of all the tribes against the English.