Books: Legends, Traditions, and Laws of the Iroquois, or Six Nations, and History of the Tuscarora Indians

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I have now related a few of the tragedies of the dark recesses of the
forest, from the many that our tradition relates.

There was also a little old man of singular appearance that frequented
among them at their ball plays, and did not seem to be inclined to make
acquaintance with any one, but kept by himself and appeared to be mild
and humble. At length this man became very sick with putrefying sores
from head to foot and was very loathesome. Nobody knew who he was or
where he came from: he had no home; he gave his name as Qua-ra, or
Rabbit: he went from house to house of all the different clans or tribes
in the nation, as for instance, the Eel, Snipe, Beaver, Turtle, Wolf,
Deer. When he would approach the house, seemingly to go in, they would
loathe him to enter, and when he came to the doorstep he would seem to
hear their thoughts and then return; thus he was repulsed from all the
houses of the above clans, he finally came to the house of the Bear clan.
When the mistress of the house observed him coming, she had pity on him,
and presently prepared a bed for him with the best deerskins she had;
when he came to the door he knew her hospitable heart and went in. She
immediately assured him of his welcome in her meanly hut, and that she
was ready to do everything in her power to relieve his distress, and
appointed his lodge where he had laid himself nearly exhausted. He then
told her to go and get the root of a certain kind of plant, which she
immediately did and prepared according to his direction, which he took
and readily recovered. He then went through a series of diseases,
directing her as before to get the different kind of medicines for the
different diseases. Lastly, he became sick with that fatal disease,
consumption. This he said was incurable, and he must die. He then told
her he was a messenger from Tarenyawagon, to show them the diseases that
they should be subjected to, and also the medicine to cure them. And also
to tell them the predictions of their fate and doom. Said he could not
withhold the water from his eyes, or keep from quaking when he thought of
their irrevocable doom to which they were destined, and said: "There is a
habitation beyond these great waters towards the sun-rising, which are
inhabited by beings of very pale faces, and are looking only to
themselves, have pity for nobody, and make their delight in doing
mischief. They have killed Rah-wah-ne-yo (God); they mocked him and done
all manner of bad things to him, and finally, they fastened him to a tree
until he died. But death and the grave had not power to hold him. He
arose and lives again, and he has gone to the world above, in those happy
hunting grounds where all good O-qua-ho-wa (Indians), will go when they
die, and will see him as he is.

"Now this class of pale-faces will come across the great waters and make
their abode on this island, and will bring poison to give you to drink,
which will poison the spirit and kill the body. They will kill your
husbands, brothers and sons, and drive you away to the sun-setting, and
will deprive the children that are coming behind, off their domain. They
will drive you until you are in the great salt water up to your waist.
Oh, hostess, this is the final doom of your great nation.

"And now as for you, Oh, mother, I have no words that I can utter, to
express the sincere gratitude of my inmost soul. I have nothing to give
to compensate you for all the tenderness you have given me. But my
blessings I will leave with you. I place in the midst of your clan, the
Bear, a majestic pine tree, which is ever green, and as the top reaches
above all other trees, so will your clan be. Wherever the nation will be
driven to, your clan will multiply above all others, and be the ruler of
the nation. This is all I have to deliver unto you. I now commend myself
to that Great Spirit that has made us all, who ruleth above."

Thus ended the last messenger of Tarenyawagon, who is now basking in the
pleasures of that hunting ground in the world above.

TUSCARORA.

Before the discovery, by Columbus, the Tuscaroras consisted of six towns,
and they were a powerful nation, numbering over twelve hundred warriors,
which, at a ratio according to the rule of estimating, would bring them
at about five or six thousand souls.

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.

It has always been a question in my mind who those white men were, to
give such rash advice. Were they Quakers? But what motive had they in
advising, from which so great a disaster was the result? Or, were they
men in disguise, from the county of Bath, in which the massacre was
committed, to make the Indians believe that they were Quakers, as the two
counties were in arms against each other at that time.

To coroborate the tradition above, I would call your attention to part of
a letter from President Pollock to Lord Craven, in the year 1712, who
attributes the calamity thus:

"Our divisions," says he, "chiefly occasioned by the Quakers and some
other ill-disposed persons, have been the cause of all the troubles, for
the Indians were informed by some of the traders that the people who
lived here are only a few vagabonds, who had run away from other
governments and settled here of their own accord, without any authority,
so that if they were cut off, there would be none to revenge them. This
with their seeing our differences rise to such a heighth, that consisting
of two counties only, were in arms one against the other, encouraged them
to fall upon the county of Bath, expecting it would have no assistance
from this nor any other of the English plantations. This is the chief
cause that moved the Indians to rise against us, as far as I understand."

The Tuscaroras never had the inclination of cutting off the inhabitance
of the pale faces. Nevertheless, they did not always remain idle or
unconcerned spectators of the feuds and dissensions that so long
prevailed among the white people, toward the red men. The successive and
regular encroachments, on their hunting grounds and plantations, which
the increase of the European population occasioned, had not always been
submitted to without murmur.

Although they were pleased with the neighbors, from whom they had trade
for their furs, and could procure spirituous liquors and other articles,
which tended to the gratification of their real or imaginary wants. And
they were required to surrender larger and larger portions of their
domain, and at last, the removal of families from the neighborhood of
their long cherished memories of the graves of their ancestors, to the
more distant and less valuable tracts of land. Other causes of animosity
and ill-will were not wanting. Their hunters were shot down like so many
beasts, at the edge of the settlement, killed in their wigwams, their
young females' chastity violated, and many other things might be related,
which their tradition shows. But I have neither heart nor inclination to
bring to a resurrection the long gone-by memories of our forefathers. I
would that all were cast into oblivion, where might not be found neither
trace nor track; but rather that the chain of friendship which has
existed for more than a century between the Tuscaroras and the United
States Government may be made brighter and brighter as time rolls on.

I have said that the Tuscaroras never had the inclination of cutting off
the first colonies, and if that were their desire, how readily would they
have excepted the advice of President Thomas Carey, through one of his
counsel--Edward Porter--in the year 1710, of which you will find in
Martin's History of North Carolina a difficulty between Gov. Hyde and the
above, to-wit: "Before any relief could be sent he attempted the landing
of some of his men under fire of his brig, but they were repulsed by the
militia of the neighborhood, which Gov. Hyde had time to collect. They
returned on board, and their Chief sought a safe retreat in the swamps of
the Tar river, where he raised his standard and endeavored to bring the
Tuscarora Indians into an alliance. For this purpose he dispatched to
them Edward Porter, one of his counsel, who endeavored by promises of
great rewards to induce them to cut off all the inhabitants of that part
of the province who adhered to Gov. Hyde. This was acceded to by some of
his young warriors, but when the matter was debated in council the old
men dissuaded them from listening to Porter."

Now, did not some of Carey's men go afterwards to some of the neighboring
Indian nations and induced them, in the year 1710, to commit the
massacre?

I suppose to the critical reader, and to the people generally, my writing
will appear to them fictitious, because of their first impression, which
has been taught them by many historians. Historians generally have given
only one side of the story, and have avoided, as much as possible, to
give the history of the wrongs done to the Tuscaroras, but they are very
scrupulous to preserve the history of the capture of Lawson, his
execution and of the massacre, which they allege to have been committed
by the Tuscaroras, and are styled by many as being inimical, haughty,
jealous, warlike bloodhounds, bloodthirsty and scarcely to be human.
These are the first impressions made by the historians upon the mind of
the world. I suppose, for the purpose of getting a general verdict, that
it was right; that they were crushed as a nation, their domain snatched
from them, driven into the cold world, and not a word has been written by
historians, or the Tuscaroras themselves, to vindicate their cause.

But with all the great tide of prejudiced feelings towards the
Tuscaroras, I have ventured to write their history as I have received it,
and think it to be true.

After the massacre, and the Tuscaroras heard it reported that they were
charged with being the author of the disaster, they immediately sent
messengers and denied the charge of having officially taken any part in
the disorder, but acknowledged that a few of the reckless and lawless
warriors did take part against their admonitions, but they were willing
to make all the restoration that was in their power to do, and would
fight for them if necessary. At different times they petitioned,
remonstrated and supplicated for peace, which was slighted and
disregarded, and only produced more violence and insult.

Notice what Governor Spotswood, of Virginia, said concerning the
Tuscaroras, to wit:

"On the first of the disaster I sent a detachment of the militia to the
tributary Indians of this province to prevent them from joining in the
war, and understanding that the Indians in some of the Tuscarora towns
had refused to march against the whites, sent a messenger to invite them,
with the rest of the friendly tribes, to a conference at the Nottoway
line, on the southern border of Virginia, where he met them on the 7th of
November."

"The Governor, after entering into some conversation with the Chiefs, had
the pleasure of finding the report which his messengers had made, from
their observations while in the Tuscarora towns, that they were very
desirous of continuing in peace, and were greatly concerned that any of
their nation should have joined in the massacre."

The Chiefs, after accounting for the delay that occurred, expressed the
desire of the Indians of their towns to continue in strict friendship
with the whites, and assist them in chastising the authors of the late
disorder.

"But now an unfortunate difference arose between the Governor and the
burgesses, the latter insisting on the passage of a bill for raising an
army in Virginia, without trusting to the sincerity of the profession of
the Tuscarora Chiefs. The Governor refusing to accede to this
proposition, and declining to co-operate in their plans, the dispute
ended by a dissolution of the assembly."

There was at one time a treaty of peace concluded between the Sachems and
Chiefs of the Tuscaroras and Governor Spotswood, of Virginia, and one of
the conditions of the treaty was to help in chastising the authors of the
late massacre. In conformity with this pledge the Tuscaroras made an
attack on the Mattamuskeets, where they obtained thirty scalps and
presented them to the authorities of the whites, of which they pretended
to be pleased. I don't doubt but that they were really pleased, but not
with any good feelings towards the Tuscaroras. I suppose the object was
to get all the other Indian nations alienated from them, so that in due
time they might be easily conquered, because they were the nation that
the whites seemed bent on destroying. The Tuscaroras had faith in the
treaty, but only to disappoint them in the thought of having the dark
cloud which hung so glowingly over them taken away. It is said by
historians that the Tuscaroras disregarded the treaty and began
hostilities. But I will relate a tradition, handed down from generation
to generation, which is as follows, to wit:

Some little time after the treaty concluded, several white men went into
one of their towns and said that they were sent by the government to
distribute among them an annuity of goods in token of friendship; and
also said, "In token of your sincerity to the treaty of peace, you will
all repair to a place where there is a cord stretched out in a straight
line, you must all take hold of the line with your right hand, and all
those that refuse to take hold will be considered as hostile and will be
omitted in the distribution of the goods." They all went to the place
designated and found the cord strung out for nearly a mile; at one end of
it was a bundle covered with cloth, which, as they supposed, contained
the goods; so the unsuspecting Indians, women and children, with eager
hearts, laid hold on the rope. When it was thought that they were in a
proper position, the white men all at once uncovered the supposed goods,
which was a large cannon, and being prepared to shoot in a line with the
cord it was at once fired and roared like thunder. In a moment the ground
along the cord was strewn with the meats of the Tuscaroras. This is one
of the effects of the treaty at that time.

I will copy a report of Governor Spotswood to the Lords Commissioners of
Trade, in the year 1711, to-wit:

"Had they," said he, "really intended to carry on the war against the
Indians, they could not have done it in a more frugal way than by the
treaty I concluded with the Tuscarora chiefs.

"Indeed, some of that house, since the dissolution, own more freely than
they would do while sitting, that most of the irregularities of their
proceedings are owing to some rash votes, passed without foresight, which
they could not afterwards get over without breaking the rules of their
house; and so they chose, rather, to let the country suffer than to own
themselves in an error.

"Some of the Tuscarora chiefs have lately been with Governor Spotswood,
of Virginia, and pretend a great inclination to peace.

"They are again to be with him on the 26th of this month; we are to send
two agents to meet them there--Mr. Tobias Knight and Mayor Christophe
Gale--not with any expectation that the Governor will make any treaty for
us, for that would be dishonorable to your lordship and make us appear
contemptible in the eyes of the Indians, but with a view to hear what
they have to propose."

I might quote many more passages similar to those above, but let these
few suffice to show how the Tuscaroras were treated. Now, finally, with a
combination of causes, they were in 1713, crushed and broken down as a
nation, to satisfy the inclinations of the white people, persecutions
being kept up by neighboring whites and southern Indians until June
following. The Oneida Indians, having heard of the disaster to the
Tuscarora Nation, invited them to come and make their dwelling among
them: so, accordingly, they left Carolina and took their journey north to
rejoin their sister nations.

Methink I can see them leaving their once cherished homes--the aged, the
helpless, the women and children, and the warriors faint and few--the
ashes are cold on their native hearth; the smoke no more curls round
their lowly cabin: they move on with slow, unsteady steps; they turn to
take a last look upon their doomed village and cast a last glance upon
the long cherished memories of their fathers' graves. They shed no tears;
they utter no cries: they heave no groans, they linger but a moment. They
know and feel that there is for them still one more remove further, not
distant nor unseen.

One bright, sunny June morning, in the year 1813, was one of the darkest
days that the Tuscaroras ever witnessed, when most of the nation took
their pace to the north until they came within the bounds of the Oneida
domain, about two miles west of Tamaqua, in the state of Pennsylvania,
where they located and set out apple trees which can be seen to this day:
some of the trees, will measure about two feet in diameter. Here they
dwelled for about two years.

In about the year 1815, the Iroquois, being the Mohawk, Onondaga, Seneca,
Oneida and Cayuga nations, which were then called the five nations, had a
general council where the Tuscarora made an application through their
brothers the Oneida, to be admitted into the Iroquois and become the
sixth nation, on the grounds of a common generic origin, which was
granted them unanimously. Then the Seneca adopted the Tuscarora as their
children. Ever since that time to the present, if a Seneca addresses the
Tuscaroras, he will invariably salute them as "my sons," in social or in
council; and also the Tuscaroras in return will say "my fathers." The
relation has always been kept up to the present.

The Tuscaroras were then initiated without enlarging the frame-work of
the confederacy and formation of the League, by allowing them their own
Sachems and Chiefs, which they had as hereditary from their nation in the
south, except on which they gave, as the Holder of the Tree, to sit and
enjoy a nominal equality in the councils of the League, by the courtesy
of the other five nations. They were not dependent, but were admitted to
as full an equality as could be granted them without enlarging the frame-
work of the confederacy. In the councils of the League they had no
national designation. They were then assigned a portion of the Oneidas'
territory, which is lying upon the Unadilla river on the east, the
Chenango on the west, and the Susquehanna on the south, where they
dwelled and enjoyed their peace again for about seventy years. In 1736
they numbered 200 warriors of fighting men.

We again hear of the Tuscarora by history, concerning a massacre of the
German Flats, N. Y., in November, 1757.

A narrative communicated to the author of the Documentary History of New
York, vol. 2, page 520, viz: A few days after this massacre and
desolation had been perpetrated, Sir William Johnson dispatched Geo.
Croghan, Esq., Deputy Agent, with Mr. Montour, the Indian interpreter, to
the German Flats, where he understood several of the Oneida and Tuscarora
Indians were assembled, in order to call upon them to explain why they
had not given more timely notice to the Germans of the designs and
approach of the enemy, it having been reported that no intelligence had
been given by the Indians until the same morning the attack was made, and
as these Indians might naturally be supposed, from their situation and
other circumstances, to have had an earlier knowledge of the enemy's
design and march.

Before Mr. Croghan could get up to the German Flats the aforesaid Indians
were on their road homewards, but he was informed that the Chief Sachem
of the Upper Oneida town, with a Tuscarora Sachem (which is supposed to
be Solomon Longboard) and another Oneida Indian, were still about four
miles from Fort Harkeman, upon which he sent a messenger to acquaint them
that he was at the said fort.

The aforesaid Indians returned, and on the 3oth of November, at Fort
Harkeman, Conaghquieson, the Oneida Sachem, made the following speech to
Mr. Croghan, having first called in one Rudolph Shumaker, Hanjost Harkman
and several other Germans who understood the Indian language, and desired
them to sit down and hear what he had to say. Conaghquieson then
proceeded and said:

"Brothers:--I can't help telling you that we were very much surprised to
hear that our English brethren suspect and charge us with not giving them
timely notice of the designs of the French, as it is well known we have
not neglected to give them every piece of intelligence that came to our
knowledge.

"Brothers, about fifteen days before the affair happened we sent the
Germans word that some Swegatchi Indians told us that the French were
determined to destroy the German Flats, and desired them to be on their
guard. About six days after that we had a further account from the
Swegatchi Indians that the French were preparing to march.

"I then came to the German Flats, and in a meeting with the Germans told
them what we had heard, and desired to collect themselves together in a
body at their fort, [Footnote: A stockaded work round the church, and a
block-house, with a ditch, and a parapet thrown up by Sir William
Johnson, a year ago, upon an alarm then given.] and secure their women,
children and effects, and to make the best defence they could. At the
same time I told them to write what I had said to our brother,
Warraghryagey (meaning Sir William Johnson [Footnote: They never sent
this intelligence to Sir William Johnson.]), but they paid not the least
regard to what I told them, and laughed at me, slapping their hands on
their buttocks, saying they did not value the enemy, upon which I
returned home and sent one of our people to the lake (meaning Oneida
Lake) to find out whether the enemy were coming or not. After he had
staid there two days the enemy arrived at the carrying-place, and sent
word to the castle at the lake that they were there, and told them what
they were going to do, but charged them not to let us at the upper castle
know anything of their design. As soon as the man I sent there heard this
he came on to us with the account that night; and as soon as we received
it we sent a belt of wampum, to confirm the truth thereof, to the Flats,
which came here the day before the enemy made their attack: but the
people would not give credit to the account even then, or they might have
saved their lives. [Footnote: The Indians who brought the belt of wampum,
finding the Germans still incredulous, the next morning, just before the
attack began, laid hold on the German Minister, and in a manner forced
him over to the other side of the river, by which means he and some who
followed him escaped the fate of their brethren.] This is the truth, and
those Germans here present know it to be so. The aforesaid Germans did
acknowledge it to be so, and that they had such intelligence.

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