1 Their con ANALYSIS perpetually at war with some branch of that wandering nation. In 1712 they assisted the English against the duct in 1712 Tuscaroras, but in 1715 they joined the Indian confederacy against the colonies. and 1715. 2 Hostilities with the Five subsequent 3. War with a. Doo Kane. the English. "Their long continued hostilities with the Five Nations Nations, and were terminated, through the interference of the British alliance with government, about the year 1750; and at the commencethe British. ment of the subsequent French and Indian war, they acted as auxiliaries of the British, and assisted at the capture of Fort Du Quesne. Soon after their return from this expedition, however, a war broke out between them and the English, which was not effectually terminated until 1761. 'They joined the British during the war of the Revolution, after the close of which they continued partial hostilities until the treaty of Holston, in 1791; since which time they have remained at peace with the United States, and during the last war with Great Britain they assisted the Americans against the Creeks. 4. Their con the Revol tion, and the G. Britain. last war 5. Their civil "The Cherokees have made greater progress in civilizatation, potion than any other Indian nation within the United States, and notwithstanding successive cessions of portions of their territory, their population has increased during the last fifty years. They have removed beyond the Mississippi, and their number now amounts to about fifteen thousand souls. One of the most remarkable discoveries of modern times has been made by a Cherokee Indian, named GEORGE GUESS, or Sequoyah. This Indian, who was unacquainted with any language but his own, had seen English books in the missionary schools, and was informed that the characters represented the words of the spoken language. Filled with enthusiasm, he then attempted to form a written language for his native tongue. He first endeavored to have a separate character for each word, but he soon saw the impracticability of this method. Next discovering that the same syllables, variously combined, perpetually recurred in different words, he formed a character for each syllable, and soon completed a syllabic alphabet, of eightyfive characters, by which he was enabled to express all the words of the language. A native Cherokee, after learning these eighty-five characters, requiring the study of only a few days, could read and write the language with facility; his education in orthography being then complete; whereas, in our language, and in others, an individual is obliged to learn the orthography of many thousand words, requiring the study of years, before he can write the language; so different is the orthography from the pronunciation. The alphabet formed by this uneducated Cherokee soon superseded the English alphabet in the books published for the use of the Cherokees, and in 1826 a newspaper called the Cherokee Phanix, was established in the Cherokee nation, printed in the new characters, with an English translation. At first it appeared incredible that a language so copious as the Cherokee should have but eighty-five syllables, but this was found to be owing to a peculiarity of the language--the almost uniform prevalence of vocal or nasal terminations of syllables. The plan adopted by Guess, would therefore, probably, have failed, if applied to any other language than the Cherokee. We notice a Cherokee chief by the name of SPECKLED SNAKE, for the purpose of giving a speech which he made in a council of his nation which had been convened for the purpose of hearing read a talk from President Jackson, on the subject of removal beyond the Mississippi. The speech shows in what light the encroachments of the whites were viewed by the Cherokees. Speckled Snake arose, and addressed the council as follows: "Brothers! We have heard the talk of our great father; it is very kind. He says he loves Lis red children. Brothers! When the white man first came to these shores, the Muscogees gave him land, and kindled him a fire to make him comfortable; and when the pale faces of the south* made war upon him, their young men drew the tomahawk, and protected his head from the scalping knife. But when the white man had warmed himself before the Indian's fire, and filled himself with the Indian's hominy, he became very large; he stopped not for the mountain tops, and his feet covered the plains and the valleys. His hands grasped the eastern and the western sea. Then he became our great father. He loved his red children; but said, 'You must move a little farther, lest I should, by accident, tread on you.' With one foot he pushed the red man over the Oconee, and with the other he trampled down the graves of his fathers. But our great father still loved his red children, and he soon made them another talk. He said much; but it all meant nothing, but move a little farther; you are too near me.' I have heard a great many talks from our great father, and they all began and ended the same. "Brothers! when he made us a talk on a former occasion, he said, ' Get a little farther; go beyond the Oconee and the Oakmulgee; there is a pleasant country.' He also said, 'It shall be yours forever.' Now he says, 'The land you live in is not yours; go beyond the Mississippi ; there is game; there you may remain while the grass grows or the water runs.' Brothers! will not our great father come there also? He loves his red children, and his tongue is not forked." 2. Their opin antiquity. 3. Their his ion of their UCHEES. 'The Uchees, when first known, inhabited the ANALYSIS. territory embraced in the central portion of the present Locality of State of Georgia, above and below Augusta, and extend- the Uchees. ing from the Savannah to the head waters of the Chatahooche. "They consider themselves the most ancient inhabitants of the country, and have lost the recollection of ever having changed their residence. They are little known in history, and are recognized as a distinct family, only on account of their exceedingly harsh and guttural language. "When first discovered, they were but a remnant of a probably once powerful nation; and they now form a small band of about twelve hundred souls, in the Creek confederacy. tory and language. 4. Supposting them, Population, tion concern and present situation. the Natches. guage. NATCHES. "The Natches occupied a small territory on 5 Locality of the east of the Mississippi, and resided in a few small villages near the site of the town which has preserved their name. "They were long supposed to speak a dialect of 6. Their lanthe Mobilian, but it has recently been ascertained that their language is radically different from that of any other known tribe. They were nearly exterminated in a war 7. Their war with the French in 1730, since which period they have French, subbeen known in history only as a feeble and inconsiderable sequent his nation, and are now merged in the Creek confederacy. present num. In 1840 they were supposed to number only about three a. See p. 524. Bundred souls. with the tory, and bers. * The Spaniards from Florida. ANALYSIS. SECTION V. MOBILIAN TRIBES. 1. The confed- 'With the exception of the Uchees and the Natches, known as the and a few small tribes west of the Mobile River, the eracies Mobilian 2. The coun try embraced noles. whole country from the Mississippi to the Atlantic, south of the Ohio River and the territory of the Cherokees, was in the possession of three confederacies of tribes, speaking dialects of a common language, which the French called MOBILIAN, but which is described by Gallatin as the Muscogee Chocta. MUSCOGEES OR CREEKS. "The Creek confederacy exby the Creeks. tended from the Atlantic, westward, to the dividing ridge which separates the waters of the Tombigbee from the Alabama, and embraced the whole territory of Florida. 3. The Semi- The Seminoles of Florida were a detached tribe of the Muscogees or Creeks, speaking the same language, and considered a part of the confederacy until the United States treated with them as an independent nation. The Creeks consider themselves the aborigines of the country, as they have no tradition of any ancient migration, or union with other tribes. 4. Supposed the Creeks antiquity of 5. Origin of the Yamas history. "The Yamassees are supposed to have been a Creek sees, and their tribe, mentioned by early writers under the name of Savannas, or Serannas. In 1715 they were at the head of a confederacy of the tribes extending from Cape Fear River to Florida, and commenced a war against the southern colonies, but were finally expelled from their territory, and took refuge among the Spaniards in Florida. 6. Wars of the Creeks with the Americans. For nearly fifty years after the settlement of Georgia, no actual war took place with the Creeks. They took part with the British against the Americans during the Revolution, and continued hostilities after the close of the war, until a treaty was concluded with them at Philadelphia, in 1795. A considerable portion of the nation also took part against the Americans in the commencement of the second war with Great Britain, but were soon reduced 7. Seminole to submission. The Seminoles renewed the war in 1818, and in 1835 they again commenced hostilities, which 471 and 477. Were not finally terminated until 1842.^ hostilities. a See pp. 8. Treaties, and cessions of lands. "The Crecks and Seminoles, after many treaties made and broken, have at length ceded to the United States the whole of their territory, and have accepted, in exchange, The pres- lands west of the Mississippi. "The Creek confederacy, confederacy. Which now includes the Creeks, Seminoles, Hitchitties, Alibamons, Coosadas, and Natches, at present numbers ent Creek about twenty-eight thousand souls, of whom twenty-three ANALYSIS. thousand are Creeks. Their numbers have increased 1. Increase of during the last fifty years. numbers. One of the most noted chiefs of the Creek nation was ALEXANDER M'GILLIVRAY, son of an Englishman by that name, who married a Creek woman, the governess of the nation. He was born about the year 1739, and at the early age of ten was sent to school in Charleston. Being very fond of books, especially histories, he acquired a good education. On the death of his mother he became chief sachem of the Creeks, both by the usages of his ancestors, and by the election of the people. During the Revolutionary War he was at the head of the Creeks, and in the British interest; but after the war he became attached to the Americans, and renewed treaties with them. He died at Pensacola, Feb. 17, 1793. Another distinguished chief of the Creeks, conspicuous at a later period, was WEATHERFord, who is described as the key and corner-stone of the Creek confederacy during the Creek war which was terminated in 1814. His mother belonged to the tribe of the Seminoles, but he was born and brought up in the Creek nation. In person, Weatherford was tall, straight, and well proportioned; while his features, harmoniously arranged, indicated an active and disciplined mind. He was silent and reserved in public, unless when excited by some great occasion; he spoke but seldom in council, but when he delivered his opinions, he was listened to with delight and approbation. He was cunning and sagacious, brave and eloquent; but he was also extremely avaricious, treacherous, and revengeful, and devoted to every species of criminal carousal. He commanded at the massacre of Fort Mims which opened the Creek war, and was the last of his nation to submit to the Americans. When the other chiefs had submitted, General Jackson, in order to test their fidelity, ordered them to deliver Weatherford, bound, into his hands, that he might be dealt with as he deserved. But Weatherford would not submit to such degradation, and proceeding in disguise to the head-quarters of the commanding officer, under some pretence he gained admission to his presence, when, to the great surprise of the General, he announced himself in the following words. "I am Weatherford, the chief who commanded at the capture of Fort Mims. I desire peace for my people, and have come to ask it." When Jackson alluded to his barbarities, and expressed his surprise that he should thus venture to appear before him, the spirited chief roplied. "I am in your power. Do with me as you please. I am a soldier, I have done the whites all the harm I could. I have fought them, and fought them bravely. If I had an army I would yet fight.-I would contend to the last: but I have none. My people are all gone. I can only weep over the misfortunes of my nation." When told that he might still join the war party if he desired; but to depend upon no quarter if taken afterwards; and that unconditional submission was his and his people's only safety, he rejoined in a tone as dignified as it was indignant. "You can safely address me in such terms now. There was a time when I could have answered you :-there was a time when I had a choice :-I have none now. I have not even a hope. I could once animate my warriors to battle-but I cannot animate the dead. Their bones are at Talladega. Tallushatches, Emucfau, and Tohopeka. I have not surrendered myself without thought. While there was a chance of success I never left my post, nor supplicated peace. But my people are gone, and I ask it for my nation, not for myself. You are a brave man, I rely upon your generosity. You will exact no terms of a conquered nation, but such as they should accede to." Jackson had determined upon the execution of the chief, when he should be brought in bound, as directed; but his unexpected surrender, and bold and manly conduct, saved his life. A Creek chief, of very different character from Weatherford, was the celebrated but unfortunate General WILLIAM MCINTOSп. Like M'Gillivray he was a half breed, and belonged to the Coweta tribe. He was a prominent leader of such of his countrymen as joined the Americans in the war of 1812, 13, and 14. He likewise belonged to the small party who, in 1821, 23, and 25, were in favor of selling their lands to the Americans. In February, of the latter year, he concluded a treaty for the sale of lands, in opposition to the wishes of a large majority of his See page 450. nation. For this act the laws of his people denounced death upon him, and in May, his house was surrounded and burned, and McIntosh and one of his adherents, in attempting to escape, were shot. His son, Chilly McIntosh, was allowed to leave the house unharmed. Among the Seminoles, a branch of the Crock nation, the most distinguished chief with whom the whites have been acquainted, was Powell, or, as he was commonly called, OSCEOLA. His mother is said to have been a Creek woman, and his father an Englishman. He was not a chief by birth, but raised himself to that station by his courage and peculiar abilities. He was opposed to the removal of his people west of the Mississippi, and it was principally through his influence that the treaties for removal were violated, and the nation plunged in war. He was an excellent tactician, and an admirer of order and discipline. The principal events known in his history will be found narrated in another part of this work.* Other chiefs distinguished in the late Seminole war, were Micanopy, called the king of the nation, Sam Jones, Jumper, Coa-Hadjo (Alligator), Charles Emathla, and Abraham, a negro Chickasas. tions with the ANALYSIS. CHICKASAS. 'The territory of the Chickasas, extending 1. The terri- north to the Ohio, was bounded on the east by the country tory of the of the Shawnees, and the Cherokees; on the south by the 2 Character Choctas, and on the west by the Mississippi River. The of the nation. Chickasas were a warlike nation, and were often in a state 3. Their rela- of hostility with the surrounding tribes. Firm allies of English and the English, they were at all times the inveterate enemies of the French, by whom their country was twice unsuccessfully invaded, once in 1736, and again in 1740. "They adhered to the British during the war of the Revolution, since which time they have remained at peace with the United States. "Their numbers have increased during the last fifty years, and they now amount to between five and six thousand souls. the French. 4. With the U. States. 5. Their num bers. Du Pratz, in his History of Louisiana, gives an account of a very intelligent Chickasaw In dian, of the Yazoo tribe, by the name of Moncatchtape, who travelled many years for the purpose of extending his knowledge, but, principally, to ascertain from what country the Indian race originally came. He first journeyed in a northeasterly direction until he came upon the ocean, probably near the Gulf of St. Lawrence. After returning to his tribe, he again set out, towards the northwest -passed up the Missouri to its sources-crossed the mountains, and journeyed onwards until he reached the great Western Ocean. He then proceeded north, following the coast, until the days became very long and the nights very short, when he was advised by the old men of the country to relinquish all thoughts of continuing his journey. They told him that the land extended still a long way between the north and the sun setting, after which it ran directly west, and at length was cut by the great water from north to south. One of them added, that, when he was young, he knew a very old man who had seen that distant land before it was cut away by the great water, and that when the great water was low, many rocks still appeared in those parts.-Finding it therefore, impracticable to proceed any farther, Moncatchtape returned to his own country by the route by which he came. He was five years absent on this second journey. This famous traveller was well known to Du Pratz about the year 1760. By the French he was called the Interpreter, on account of his extended knowledge of the languages of the Indians. "This man," says Du Pratz," was remarkable for his solid understanding, and eleva tion of sentiment; and I may justly compare him to those first Greeks, who travelled chiefly Into the east, to examine the manners and customs of different nations, and to communicate to their fellow citizens, upon their return, the knowledge which they had acquired." The narrative of this Indian, which is given at considerable length, in his own words, appears to have satisfied Du Pratz that the aborigines came from the continent of Asia, by way of Behring's Straits. * See pages 477 and 481. |