Allen County, Indiana - The whole text, 1889 (part 4 of 17)

"After advancing about five miles. Major Price's corps received so severe a fire from the enemy, who were secreted in the woods and high grass, as to compel them to retreat. The legion was immediately formed in two lines, principally in a close, thick wood, which extended for miles on our left and for a very considerable distance in front, the ground being covered with old fallen timber, probably occasioned by a tornado, which rendered it impracticable for the cavalry to act with effect, and afforded the enemy the most favorable covert for their savage mode of warfare. They were formed in three lines, within supporting distance of each other, and extending for near two miles, at right angles with the river. I soon discovered, from the weight of the fire and extent of their lines, that the enemy were in full force in front, in possession of their favorite ground, and endeavoring to turn our left flank. I therefore gave orders for the second line to advance and support the first; and directed Major-General Scott to gain and turn the right flank of the savages, with the whole of the mounted volunteers, by a circuitous route; at the same time I ordered the front line to advance and charge with trailed arms, and rouse the Indians from their coverts at the point of the baj'onet, and when up, to deUver a close and well-directed fire on their backs, followed by a brisk charge, so as not to give them time to load again.

"I also ordered Capt. Mis Campbell, who commanded the legionar}' cavalry, to tm-n the left flank of the enemj- next the river, and which afforded a favorable field for that corps to act in. All these orders were obej-ed with spirit and promptitude; but such was the impetuosity of the charge by the first line of infantry, that the Indians and Canadian militia and volunteers were driven from all their coverts in so short a time that, although ever}- possible exertion was used by the officers of the second line of the legion, and by Generals Scott, Todd, and Barbee, of the mounted volunteers, to gain their proper positions, but part of each could get up in season to participate in the action; the enem}' being driven, in the course of one hour, more than two miles through the thick woods already mentioned by less than one-half their numbers. From every account, the enemy amounted to 2,000 combatants.* The troops actuall}- engaged against them were short of 900. This horde of savages, with their allies, abandoned themselves to flight, and dispersed with terror and dismay, leaving our victorious army in full and quiet possession of the field of batde, which terminated under the influence of the guns of the British garrison."

Both the foresight and the valor of Little Turtle were now no longer to be questioned. At the council, on the night before the attack, he saw the end of all their efforts against the army of Wayne; and the Indians soon began to realize that their stronghold was lost.

Though it is not positively known whether Tecumseh was at the council or not, yet it is recorded in the narrative b}- Anthony Shane, that he led a party of Shawnees in the attack upon the army of Gen. Wayne. It was in this engagement that he first encountered the " white chief," William Henrj^ Harrison, with whom, a few years later, he had so much to do. Says the account of Shane : " He occupied an advanced position in the battle, and while attempting to load his rifle, he put in a bullet before the powder, and was thus unable to use his gun. Being at this moment pressed in front b_v some infantry, he fell back with his party, till they met another detachment of Indians. Tecumseh urged them to stand fast and fight, saying if any one would lend him a gun, he would show them how to use it. A fowling-piece was handed to him, with which he fought for some time, till the Indians were again compelled to give ground. While falling back, he met another party of Shawnees; and, although the whites were pressing on them, he rallied the Indians, and induced them to make a stand in the thicket. When the infantry pressed close upon them, and had discharged their muskets into the bushes, Tecumseh and his party returned the fire, and then retreated

"There were about 450 Delawares, 175 Miamis, 275 Shawnees, 225 Ottawas, 275 Wyandots, and a small number of Senecas, Pottawatomies, and Chippewas. The number of white men who fought in defense of the Indians in this engagement, was about seventy, including a corps of volunteers from Detroit, under the command of Captain Caldwell.

Campaign Of Anthony Wayne. Io5

To quote Wayne's report, " the bravery and conduct of every officer belonging to the arm}^ from the generals down to the ensign, merit my highest approbation. There were, however, some whose rank and situation placed their conduct in a very conspicuous point of view, and which I observed with pleasure and the most lively gratitude. Among whom I must beg leave to mention Brig.-Gen. Wilkinson and Col. Hamtramck, the commandants of the right and left wings of the legion, whose brave example inspired the troops. To those I must add the names of m3r faithful and gallant aids-de-camp, Captains De Butt and T. Lewis, and Lieut. Harrison, who, with the adjutant-general. Major Mills, rendered the most essential service by communicating my orders in every direction, and b}' their conduct and braverj- exciting the troops to press for victory. Lieut. Covington, upon whom the command of the cavalry now devolved, cut down two savages with his own hand, and Lieut. Webb one, in turning the enemy's left flank. The wounds received b}^ Captains Slough and Prior, and Lieutenants Campbell, Smith [an extra aid-de-camp to Gen. Wilkinson], of the legionary infantry, and Capt. Van Rensselear of the dragoons, Capt. Rawlins, Lieut. McKenny and Ensign Duncan of the mounted volunteers, bear honorable testimony of their bravery and conduct.

"Captains H. Lewis and Brock, with their companies of light infantry, had to sustain an unequal fire for some time, which they supported with fortitude. In fact, every officer and soldier who had an opportunit}^ to come into action displayed that true braver}- which will always ensure success. And here permit me to declare, that I never discovered more true spirit and anxiety for action, than appeared to pervade the whole of the mounted volunteers; and I am well persuaded that, had the enemy maintained their favorite ground for one-half hour longer, they would have most severety felt the prowess of that corps. But, while I pay this tribute to the living, I must not neglect the gallant dead, among whom we have to lament the early death of those worth}' and brave officers, Capt. Mis Campbell, of the dragoons, and Lieut. Towles, of the light infantry of the legion, who fell in the first charge."

Of the killed and wounded in this engagement, according to the report of Gen. Wayne, the regular troops lost twenty-six killed, and eighty-seven wounded. Of the Kentucky volunteers, seven were killed and thirteen were wounded; and nine regulars and two volunteers died of their wounds before the 2Sth of the month. "The loss of the enemy was more than double that of the Federal army," and " the woods were strewn for a considerable distance with the dead bodies of Indians."

The army remained three days and nights on the banks of the Maumee, on the field of battle, during which time all the houses and cornfields were consumed and destroyed for a considerable distance both above and below Fort Miami, as well as within pistol shot of the garrison, who were compelled to remain quiet spectators of this general devastation and conflagration, which was Wayne's method of teaching the Indians that the British were powerless. x\mong the property destroyed were the houses and stores of Col. McKee, the British Indian agent, and principal stimulator of the war.

On the 27th, the army started upon its return march for Fort Defiance, laying waste, as it moved, villages and cornfields for a distance of some fifty miles along the Maumee. While the American forces occupied position within range of the British fort at the rapids, from the afternoon of the 20th to the forenoon of the 23d, five letters passed between Gen. Wayne and Major Campbell, who commanded Fort Miami with 460 men and 12 cannon; the first coming from the British commander, enij^uiring the cause of the army of the United States approaching so near his majesty's fort, asserting that he knew " of no war e.xisting between Great Britain and America." To this Gen. Wayne rephed : " Without questioning the authority or the propriety, sir, of your interrogator}', I think I maj-, without breach of decorum, observe to you, that, were you entitled to an answer, the most full and satisfactor\' one was announced to you from the muzzles of mj- small arms, 3'esterday morning, in the action against the horde of savages in the vicinit)' of your post, which terminated gloriously to the American arms; but, had it continued until the Indians, etc., were driven under the influence of the post and guns you mention, they would not have much impeded the progress of the victorious army under my command, as no such post was estabhshed at the commencement of the present war between the Indians and the United States." To which in turn, the British commander rejoined that the insults that had been offered the British, would, if repeated, compel him to have recourse to measures which the nations might regret. Waj-ne in reply reminded Campbell that he was committing a hostile act in occupying a fort within the limits of the United States, and ordered him to retire peacefully within the limits of the British lines. To which the British commandant rephed that he certainly would not abandon the post at the summons of anj- power whatever, until he received orders to that effect from those he had the honor to serve under, or the fortunes of war should oblige him so to act, and again warned Wayne to beware of the cannon.

Reaching Fort Defiance again, the army soon began improving the works, and here remained till the morning of the 14th of September, 1794, when the legion began its march for Kekionga, whither it arrived at 5 o'clock p. m., September 17, and on the following daj- the troops fortified their camps, while " the commander-in-chief reconnoitered the ground and determined on the spot to build a garrison." Work began on" the fort September 24th and on the 17th of October Wayne forwarded a description of the works to the war department.

On the morning of the 2 2d of October, 1794, the fort was in readiness, and Lieut.-Col. Hamtramck assumed command of the post, with the following sub-legions: Capt. Kingsbury's ist; Capt. Greaton's 2d; Captains Spark's and Reed's 3d ; Capt. Preston's 4th; and Capt. For- ter's of artillery; and after firing fifteen rounds of cannon, Col. Hamtramck christened the post - Fort Wa3-ne. Not less important than the shot that " echoed round the world " was the glad outburst of cannon, saluting the stars and stripes as it floated over this stockade fort in the heart of a boundless and lonely forest region. It signalled the birth of the imperial great west.

On the 28th of October, Gen. Wayne, with the main body of the regulars, took up his line of march for Fort Greenville, arriving there on the 2d of November. As the tidings of the victory of Wayne flew from town to town in the east, from settlement to settlement in the west, they awakened a thrill of inexpressible joy, that told how much more had been accomphshed than the most sanguine had dared to expect. Congress, by resolution, complimented Wayne and his arm}'. The heart of Washington was cheered as it had not been since he assumed the presidency. His administration was lifted be\'ond reproach; the continental policy he had so patienth' fought for was forever established, the voice of faction which had embittered his life was hushed. The young republic suddenl}' acquired a strength and vigor of policy which Washington and Hamilton had striven almost in vain to impart. The Indians of the south at once hushed their warlike demonstrations. Ninety days after the battle of the Maumee, Minister Jay was able to conclude a satisfactory treat}^ with Lord Grenville. This was effected on the 19th of November; and one of its main stipulations was that of a withdrawal, "on or before the first day of June, 1796, of all troops and garrisons, from all posts and places within the boundary lines assigned to the United States b}- the treaty of peace of 1783."

After the battle of the Maumee, Wayne had continued to invite the Indians to a friendly meeting, but they for some time seemed to be * depending upon support from the British. While Waj-ne was inviting them to meet him at Greenville to conclude a treat}', Lieut. -Gen. Simcoe. Col. McKee, and other officers of the British Indian department, persuaded Little Turtle, Blue Jacket, Buckongahelas and other distinguished chiefs, to agree to hold an Indian council at the mouth of Detroit river.

But when the news of Ja\''s treaty reached the Indians, they felt their last hope of aid from the English fading away, and began seriously to think of peace. During the months of December and January, 1794-5, small parties of Miamis, Ottawas, Chippewas, Pottawatomies, Sacs, Delawares and Shawnees visited Gen. Wayne at his head(|uarters at Greenville, signing preliminary articles of peace, and agreeing to meet Wayne at Greenville on or about the 15th of June, 1795, with all the sachems and war-chiefs of their nations, to arrange a final treaty of peace and amity.

During the period that elapsed between the departure of Wayne for 'Fort Greenville until the 17th of May, 1796, Col. Hamtramck remained in command at Fort Wayne; and nothing of a very important nature occurred during that time, the garrison being principally occupied in receiving parties from the various tribes, issuing rations to them, and otherwise endeavoring to bring about friendly relations with the disheartened savages, who had grown weary of a losing cause.

True to their promise, in the early part of June, 1795, deputations from the different tribes began to arrive at Greenville. The treaty, which was one of much interest throughout, lasted from the i6th of June to the loth of August, many of the principal chiefs making strong speeches, and each nation openly and separately assenting to the articles and stipulations of the treaty. At the conclusion of his speech to the deputies on the loth of August, at the termination of the treaty, Gen. Wayne addressed the assemblage as follows : " I now fervently pray to the Great Spirit, that the peace now established may be permanent, and that it may hold us together in the bonds of friendship, until time shall be no more. I also pray that the Great Spirit above may enlighten your minds, and open your eyes to your true happiness, that }'our children may learn to cultivate the earth, and enjoy the fruits of peace and industry. As it is probable, m}- children, that we shall not soon meet again in public council, I take this opportunity of bidding you all an affectionate farewell, and wishing 3'OU a safe and happy return to your respective homes and families."

Little Turtle took a leading part in this treaty as he had in war, and he was the one selected to make a final protest against part of the boundary line proposed by Wayne. Speaking for the Pottawatomies, Weas and Shawnees, he asked that the boundary be put east of the present limits of Indiana at the south; and in regard to the lands to be taken in the Indian region, he said : " We wish you to take the six miles square on the side of the river where your fort [Wayne] now stands, as your younger brothers wish to inhabit that beloved spot again. The next place j-ou pointed out was the Little river, and said you wanted two miles S(|uare at that place. This is a request that our fathers the French and British, never made us; it was alwaj'S ours. The carrying place has heretofore proved, in a great degree, the subsistence of your younger brothers. That place has brought us, in the course of one day, the amount of one hundred dollars. Let us both own this place and enjo}' in common the advantages it affords." Wayne replied: " I have traced the lines of two forts at Fort Wayne ; one stood near the junction of the St. Joseph's with the St. Marj^'s and the other not far removed on the St. Mary's, and it is ever an established rule among Europeans to reserve as much ground around their forts as their cannon can command." As to the portage at Little river, as a source of wealth, " It may be true, but the traders laid the expense on their goods, and the Indians on the Wabash paid it." By this venerable argument, the Indians were persuaded to surrender the control of their commerce.

At this treaty the Indians ceded the land east of this line : from the mouth of the Cuyahoga river down to the portage to -the Muskingum, west to the portage between the Miami and St. Mary's; thence to Fort Recovery; thence to about the mouth of the Kentuckv river.

Tecumseh S Confederacy. Io9

Within the present limits of Indiana, tlie following isolated tracts were ceded, besides the southeastern strip east of the boundary: One tract of land, six miles square, at the confluence of the St. Mar}- and St. Joseph rivers; one tract of land, two miles square, on the Wabash river, at the end of the portage from the head of the river Maumee, and about eight miles westward from Fort Wayne; one tract of land, six miles S(|uare, at Ouiatenon, the old Wea town on the river Wabash; one tract of 150,000 acres, near the falls of the Ohio, which tract was called the " Illinois Grant," or " Clark's Grant ; " the town of Vincennes, on the river Wabash, and the adjacent lands to which the Indian title had been extinguished; and all similar lands, at other places, in possession of the French people, or other white settlers among them.

The happy conclusion of this treat}- alone was needed to complete the victor}- of the Maumee. A feeling of rejoicing pervaded the country. The hopes of Washington were at last realized, in the tide of emigration that set in from the eastern states. Many immigrants selected sites along the Ohio, the Scioto, and Muskingum rivers; while others began settlements in the fertile regions lying between the Miami and Maumee. Log cabins arose here and there in the vast domain, the children raised in which were to colonize Indiana.

Indiana Territory. - For nearly fifteen years after the events which terminated with the treat}- of Greenville, peace reigned, and the settlements gradually increased toward the west. In the summer of 1796 Gen. Wayne returned to the northwest to supervise the evacuation of the British posts, and by his orders, about the 17th of May of this year. Col. Hamtramck left Fort Wayne, passing down the Maumee to Fort Deposit, and on the nth of July the British fort, Miami, at the foot of the rapids, was evacuated, Capt. Moses Porter taking possession with federal troops. On the 13th of July, Col. Hamtramck took possession of the post at Detroit. Col. Thomas Hunt, with the first regiment, remained at Fort Wayne. In December, upon the death of Gen. Wayne, Gen. James Wilkinson was put in command of the western army of the United States.

On the 23d of April, 179S, a legislative session was convened at Cincinnati, which closed on the 7th of May, participated in by Winthrop Sargent, acting governor, and John Cleves Symmes, Joseph Oilman and Return Jonathan Meigs, Jr., territorial judges. On the 29th of October Gov. St. Clair issued a proclamation, directing the qualified voters of the northwestern territory to hold elections in their respective counties on the third Monday of December, to elect representatives 'to a general assembly, to convene at Cincinnati on January 22, i799- The representatives having met at the appointed place, in compliance with the ordinance of 17S7 for the establishment of a legislative council, nominated ten persons whose names were forwarded to the president of the United States, who, on the 2nd of March, 1799, selected Jacob Burnett,

James Findlay, Henry Vanderburgh, Robert Oliver and David Vance, as suitable persons to form the legislative council of the territory, which selection was, on the following da)', confirmed by the senate. The legislature met again at Cincinnati on September i6, i799j and was fully organized on the the 24th, Henr}' Vanderburgh being elected president, and William C. Schenk secretary' of the council. In the house of representatives were nineteen members, representing the counties of Hamilton, Ross, Wavne, Adams, Knox, Jefferson and Washington. On the 3d of October, of this 3-ear, the names of two candidates, William H. Harrison and Arthur St. Clair, Jr., to represent the northwest territory in congress, being presented to that body, Harrison was chosen - he receiving eleven votes and the other ten.

In 1800, a division of the territory was made, and on the 13th of May William Henr}- Harrison was appointed governor of Indiana territory. The seat of government was established at Vincennes, the only other military post in Indiana, more convenient than Fort Wa3'ne, on account of its accessibility from the Ohio by the Wabash. There the governor met with the judges on Monday the 12th of January, iSoi, to promulgate "such laws as the exigencies of the times" might call for, and for the " performance of other acts conformable to the ordinances and laws ot congress for the government of the territory."

From the time of the formation of the new territor}' until 1810, the principal subjects of attention were land speculations, the adjustment of land titles, the question of negro slavery, the purchase of Indian lands by treaties, the organization of territorial legislatures, the extension of the right of suffrage, the division of the Indiana territory, the movements of Aaron Burr, and the hostile views and proceedings of the Shawnee chief, Tecumseh, and his brother, the prophet.

With hope for good-will between the United States and the Indians of the northwest. Governor Harrison, at an early period of his administration, made efforts to induce the different tribes to engage in agricultural and other pursuits of a civihzed nature, to the end that they might be more agreeably situated and live more in harmon}' with the settlers. Being also invested with power to negotiate treaties between the government and the different tribes in the Indian Territory, and to extinguish by such treaties, the Indian title to lands, the governor was most actively employed from 1802 to 1805.

On the 17th day of September, 1802, at a conference held at Vincennes, chiefs and head men of the Pottawatomie, Eel river, Piankeshaw, Wea, Kaskaskia, and Kickapoo tribes appointed the Miami chiefs. Little Turtle and Richardville, and the Pottawatomie chiefs, Winnemac and Topinepik to adjust by treat)' the extinguishment of certain Indian claims to lands on the Wabash, near Vincennes. On the 7th of June, 1803, Governor Harrison held a treaty at Fort Wayne, with the Delaware, Shawnee, Pottawatomie, Eel river, Kickapoo, Piankeshaw, and Kaskaskia tribes, whereby was ceded to the United States about 1,600,000 acres of land.

Tecumseh S Confederacy

During this period, abandoning schemes for war, the Indians seemed mainh' to have betaken themselves to the forest and prairies in pursuit of game; and the result was that a considerable traffic was steadily carried on with them by fur-traders of Fort Wayne and Vlncennes, and at small trading posts which were established on the Wabash river and its tributaries. The furs which were obtained from the Indians were generally transported to Detroit. The skins were dried, compressed, and secured in packs. Each pack weighed about loo pounds. A pirogue, or boat, that was sufficiently large to carry forty packs, required the labor of four nien to manage it on its voyage. In favorable stages of the Wabash river, such a vessel, under the management of skillful boatmen, was propelled by poles fifteen or twenty miles a day, against the current. After ascending the river Wabash and the Little River to the portage near Fort Wayne, the traders carried their packs over the portage, to the St. Mary's where the}' were again placed in pirogues, or in keelboats, to be transported to Detroit. At that place the furs and skins were exchanged for blankets, guns, knives, powder, bullets, intoxicating liquors, etc., with which the traders returned to their posts.

But already the mutterings of another Indian war began to be heard. The restless savages, chafing under the restraints of their surroundings, and always discontented and revengeful, began to grow uneas}', and to listen to the voice of the ever-present instigator of revolt.

Tecumsch and the Prophet. - The period approached during which the Shawnee nation was to present its highest types, Tecumseh, whom an author has called the Philip of the west, but who was in ability far above the need of such an historical association, and Capt. Logan, one of the bravest of Indians.

Tecumseh was born on the Mad river, six miles below Springfield, Ohio, about 1768. His father, Puckeshinwa, a chief, died in battle, leaving six sons and a daughter. The fourth child was Tecumseh, or Shooting-Star; the sixth and seventh, Lawlewasikaw and Kumskawkaw, who were twins. According to Anthonj- Shane, Tecumseh was also brought forth at the same birth. Tecumseh, in his boyhood, frolicked in sham battles, and became expert with the bow and arrow. His first engagement was against the Col. Logan who brought up the Indian Logan, and in his second skirmish with the whites, he was so revolted at the burning of a prisoner that he resolved never to witness or permit another outrage of the kind, a resolve he religiously observed. He sought adventures and speedily became famous, not onl}' as a daring fighter, but the best hunter among the Shawnees. His skirmishes with the Kentuckians spread a terror of the young leader among the Americans. While Harmar was leading his expedition against Kekionga, Tecumseh was making an excursion through Ohio, in all essentials the same as those of the errant knights of an earlier age. He returned to assist in the attack on Fort Recovery, and watch Wayne's advance, and at the battle of the Maumee was first opposed to WiUiam Henry Har- rison. Subsequently he attended various conferences with the settlers, and addressed without embarrassment large assemblages, which were awed by his magnificent presence and wonderful eloquence.

He was humane in the treatment of prisoners; his political schemes were sound in conception, and he was patient and masterly in their execution. We may take as a just estimate of his character these words by Gen. Harrison, written soon before the battle of Tippecanoe: "The implicit obedience and respect which the followers of Tecumseh pay to him, is reall}' astonishing, and more than an^' other circumstance bespeaks him one of those uncommon geniuses which spring up occasionally to produce revolutions and overturn the established order of things. If it were not for the vicinity of the United States, he would, perhaps, be the founder of an empire that would rival in glory Mexico and Peru. No difficulties deter him. For four years he has been in constant motion. You see him to-day on the Wabash, and in a short time hear of him on the shores of Lake Erie or Michigan, or on the banks of the Mississippi; and wherever he goes he makes an impression favorable to his purposes."

In 1798, the Delawares residing on the White river invited Tecumseh and his followers to encamp with them, and he remained there several years. In 1805, some of the Shawnees on the .headwaters of the Auglaize sent word to Tecumseh to come to the Tah-wah towns and endeavor to unite the nation, and the Shawnees on the Mississinewa being invited at the same time it happened that the two parties met at Greenville, where Lawlewasikaw persuaded them to stop. This brother of Tecumseh was an audacious, assertive man, given to boasting, and lacking in firmness and talent for command. About this time an old Shawnee prophet died, and Lawlewasikaw was prompted by his ambition for influence to grasp the dead man's place, a comfortable and important office. He changed his name to Tenskwatawah, The-Open- Door, in significance of his teachings of a new wav of life. In November, 1805, he assembled the Shawnees, Wyandots, Ottawas and Senecas in considerable numbers at Wapakoneta, and made his first appearance in the character which he had assumed, and in which he was to exert a great influence as far as the upper lakes and beyond the Mississippi. It appears that nothing was then said about the confederacy, but he endeavored to win the reverence of the tribes by a claim of having been admitted to the glories of the " happy hunting grounds " of the future existence. He had, he asserted, fallen into a trance, during which his companions thought him dead, and had begun preparations for his burial when he returned to earth from the clouds. He was inspired, he said, to warn the Indians to give up drunkenness, to which he himself had been addicted, and he told them that he had seen all the drunkards who had died, in the dwelling of the devil, with flames continually burning from their mouths; which vivid picture led many to renounce the use of "firewater." He denounced the practice of intermarriage with the whites, and called on the red men to abandon all weapons and garments they had learned to use since the white occupation. The old and infirm they should tenderh' care for, and all propert}' should be held in common. Especially did he inveigh against witchcraft, which many believed in. In some way he learned the date of an approaching eclipse of the sun, and foretelling it, caused the Indians to believe he had supernatural power. Contrary to the sentiments of his brother, he began denouncing various Indians for witchcraft, and ordering them to be burned at the stake. Several Delawares were the first victims, and an old woman was toasted over the fire for four days. The old chief Teteboxti was burned on a pile he had himself helped to build, seeing that his death was inevitable. Finally, on the preparation for the destruction of another woman, her brother suddenl}- awakening to good sense took her from the prophet, and boldly rebuked him, considerably checking his influence.

"My Children: - My heart is filled with grief, and my eyes are dissolved in tears at the news which has reached me. You have been celebrated for your wisdom above all the tribes of red people who inhabit this great island. Your fame as warriors has extended to the remotest nations, and the wisdom of your chiefs has gained for you the appellation of graiidfa/kers, from all the neighboring tribes. From what cause, then, does it proceed, that 3'ou have departed from the wise counsel of 3'our fathers, and covered j'ourselves with guilt?" He adjured them to drive the " imposter from them, and cease such abominable wickedness," and closed: "I charge you to stop your bloody career; and, if j'ou value the friendship of your great father, the President - if you wish to preserve the good opinion of the Seventeen Fires, let me hear by the return of the bearer, that you have determined to follow my advice."

The Prophet's influence was greatest with the Kickapoos, next with the Delawares; most of the chiefs of his own nation were opposed to him, and complained of him at Fort Wayne. In the spring of 1S07, he and Tecumseh assembled several hundred Indians at Greenville, and though little could be found out concerning the object of the meeting, great apprehension was felt at the settlements south of there. Capt. William Wells, who had been appointed Indian agent at Fort Wayne, received a letter from the president addressed to the leaders, requesting them to remove without the limits of the government's purchase, and Anthony Shane, a half-blood Shawnee, was sent to invite Tecumseh and his brother to come to Fort Waj-ne and hear the letter. Tecumseh replied that his fire was kindled on the spot appointed by the Great Spirit, and if Capt. Wells had any communication to make he must come there, and in six days. Shane was sent again at the day fixed, and read a copy of the letter to the Indians. Tecumseh was offended that Wells should presume to employ an ambassador in treating with him, and made a speech to the Indians of remarkable power. "These lands are ours," he cried, " as to boundaries the Great Spirit knows none, nor will his red people acknowledge any." Then turning to Shane, he remarked with statel}- indifference, " If my great father, the president of the Seventeen Fires, has anything more to say to me, he must send a man of note as his messenger. I will hold no further intercourse with Capt. Wells."

Instead of dispersing, the Indians continued to flock to Greenville. Full}' 1,500 had passed and repassed Fort Wayne, in their visits to the prophet, before the summer of 1807 had fairly set in. Messengers and runners passed from tribe to tribe, and were greatly aided bj- British agents in their mj'sterious operations.

At the close of summer, reliable persons bore testimony that nearly a thousand Indians, in possession of new rifles, were at Fort Wayne and Greenville, all under the control of the prophet.

The alarm had now become so general, that the governor of Ohio, in September, sent a deputation to Greenville to ascertain the meaning of the gathering. The commissioners were well received by the Indians - a council was called, and the governor's message read; at the close of which, one nf the commissioners addressed them in explanation of their relationship to the United States government, urging them to desist from all aggressions and remain neutral, should a war with England ensue. Having heard the commissioner attentively, according to Indian usage they asked to be permitted to meditate upon the matter until the next day. Blue Jacket, who commanded in the battle with Gen. Wayne, was appointed to deliver the sentiments of the council; and at its re-assembling, that chief, through the interpreter, said:

" Brethren : - We are seated who heard you yesterdaj'. You will get a true relation, so far as our connections can give it, who are as follows: Shawnees, Wyandots, Pottawatomies, Tawas, Chippewas, Winnepas, Menominees, Malockese, Lecawgoes, and one more from the north of the Chippewas. Brethren, you see all these men sitting before you, who now speak to you.

" About eleven days ago we had a council, at which the tribe of Wyandots, the elder brother of the red people, spoke and said God had kindled a fire, and all sat around it. In this council w-e talked over the treaties with the French and the Americans. The Wyandot said the French formerly marked a line along the Alleghan}' mountains, southerly, to Charleston [S. C.j. No man was to pass it from either side. When the Americans came to settle over the line, the English told the Indians to unite and drive off the French, until the war came on between the British and the Americans, when it was told them that King George, by his officers, directed them to unite and drive the Americans back.

" After the treat}- of peace between the English and the Americans, the summer before Wayne's army came out, the English held a council with the Indians and told them if they would turn out and unite as one man, the}' might surround the Americans like deer in a ring of fire, and destroy them all. The Wyandot spoke further in the council. We see, said he, there is like to be war between the English and our white brethren, the Americans. Let us unite and consider the sufferings we have undergone, from interfering in the wars of the English. They have often promised to help us, and at last, when we could not withstand the arm_y that came against us and went to the English fort for refuge, the English told us, 'I cannot let }'ou in; you are painted too much, my children.' It was then we saw the British deal treacherously with us. We now see them going to war again. We do not know what they are going to fight for. Let us, my brethren, not interfere, was the speech of the Wyandot.

" Further, the Wyandot said, I speak to you, my little brother, the Shawnees at Greenville, and to you our Httle brothers all around. You appear to be at Greenville to serve the Supreme Ruler of the universe. Now send forth your speeches to all our brethren far around us, and let us unite to seek for that which shall be for our eternal welfare, and unite ourselves in a band of perpetual brotherhood. These, brethren, are the sentiments of all the men who sit around you; they all adhere to what the elder brother, the Wj'andot, has said, and these are their sentiments. It is not that they are afraid of their white brothers, but that they desire peace and harmony, and not that their white brethren could put them to great necessity, for their former arms were bows and arrows, by which they get their hving."

"About nine years since," said he, "I became convinced of the errors of my ways, and that I would be destroyed from the face of the earth if I did not amend them. Soon after I was told what I must do to be right. From that time I have continually preached to my red brethren, telling them the miserable situation they are in by nature, and striving to convince them that they must change their lives, live honestly and be just in all their dealings, kind to one other and also to their white brethren; affectionate in their families, put away Ij'ing and slandering, and serve the Great Spirit in the way I have pointed out; the}' must never think of war again; the tomahawk was not given them to go at war with one another. The Shawnees at Tawa town would not listen to me, but persecuted me. This made a division in the nation; those who adhered to me removed to this place, where I have constantly preached to them. They did not select this place because it looked fine or was valuable, for it was neither; but becau.'^e it was revealed to me that this is the proper place where I must establish m}' doctrines. I mean to adhere to them while I live, for they are not mine but those of the Great Ruler of the world, and my future life shall prove to the whites the sincerity ot my professions. In conclusion, my brethren, our six chiefs shall go with you to Chillicothe."

gave the governor positive assurances that they entertained none but peaceful intentions toward the whites. A speech which Tecumseh delivered at the tinie occupied between three and four hours in its delivery. It was eloquent and masterl}-, and showed that he possessed a thorough knowledge of all the treaties which had been made for years. While he expressed his pacific intentions if fairly treated, he told the go\-ernor to his face that ever}- aggression or settlement upon their lands would be resisted, and that no pretended treaties would insure the squatters safet\-. Stephen Ruddell acted as interpreter upon the occasion. The governor, convinced that no instant danger was threatened Fort Wa3-ne, disbanded the militia he had called into service. The chiefs returned to their people, and for a short time the settlers were free from apprehension.

Not long afterward the settlements were thrown into excitement b}- the murder of a man named Myers by the Indians, near where is now the town of Urbana, Ohio; and many of the settlers returned to their old homes in Kentuck}-. Being ordered to deliver up the murderers, Tecumseh and his brother disclaimed any knowledge of them - said they were not of their people. A council was finalh' held at Springfield with two parties of Indians, one from the north, the other from Fort Wayne, under Tecumseh. Being embittered against each other, each party was quite anxious that the other should receive the blame for the murder. Says Drake, the party from the north, at the request of the commissioners, left their arms a few miles behind them, but Tecumseh would not consent to attend unless his followers were allowed to keep theirs about them, adding that his tomahawk was his pipe, and he might wish to use it. At this a tall, lank-sided Pennsylvanian, who was standing among the spectators, and had no love for the glittering tomahawk of the self-willed chief, cautiously stepped up, and handed him a greas}-, long-stemmed clay pipe, respectfully intimating that if he would onl}- deliver up his dreadful tomahawk, he might use that article. The chief took it between his thumb and finger, held it up, looked at it a few seconds, then at the owner, who all the time was gradually backing away from him, and instantly threw it, with a contemptuous sneer, over his head into the bushes. The commissioners being compelled to waive this point, the council proceeded; and the verdict was, that the murder was an individual affair, sanctioned by neither party - which brought the council to a close, with a reconciliation of both parties, and the satisfaction of the settlers.

But the protestations of Tecumseh and the Prophet could not allay the uneasiness of the settlements; and before the end of the fall Governor Harrison sent the following speech, by an Indian agent, to the Shawnees :

" My children, it is now twelve years since the tomahawk, which you had seized by the advice of your father, the king of Great Britain, was luried at Greenville, in the presence of that great warrior, Gen. Wayne.

" My children, you then promised, and the Great Spirit heard it, that you would in future live in peace and friendship with your brothers, the Americans. You made a treaty with 30ur father, and one that contained a number «f good things, equally beneficial to all the tribes of the red people, who were parties to it.

"My children, 3'ou promised in that treaty to acknowledge no other father than the chief of the Seventeen Fires; and never to listen to the proposition of any foreign nation. You promised never to lift up the tomahawk against any of your father's children, and to give him notice of an)- other tribe that intended it; your father also promised to do something for you, particularly to deliver to you ever}^ year a certain quantity of goods; to prevent any white man from settling on your lands without your consent, or to do you any personal injury. He promised to run a line between your land and his, so that you might know your own: and 3'ou were to be permitted to live and hunt upon your father's land, as long as you behaved yourselves well. My children, which of these articles has your father broken? You know that he has observed them all with the utmost good faith. But, my children, have you done so? Have j'ou not always had your ears open to receive bad advice from the white people beyond the lakes?

"M3' children, let us look back to times that are passed. It has been a long time since you called the king of Great Britain father. You know that it is the dut)' of a father to watch over his children, to give them good advice, and to do ever3' thing in his power to make them happ3'. What has this father of 3'ours done for 3'ou, during the long time that 3'ou have looked up to him for protection and advice ? Are you wiser and happier than you were before 3'OU knew him, or is your nation stronger or more respectable ? No, m3' children, he took 3-0U b3^ the hand when you were a powerful tribe; 3'Ou held him fast, supposing he was 3'our friend, and he conducted you through paths filled with thorns and briers, which tore 3'Our flesh and shed your blood. Your strength was exhausted, and 3'ou could no longer follow him. Did he sta3' b3^ 3'OU in your distress, and assist and comfort you ? No, he led 3-ou into danger and then abandoned 3'OU. He saw 3'Our blood flowing and he would give 3'ou no bandage to tie up your wounds. This was the conduct of the man who called himself 3'our father. The Great Spirit opened 3'our e3'es; 3'Ou heard the voice of the chief of the Seventeen Fires speaking the words of peace. He called 3'ou to follow him ; 3'OU came to him, and he once more put 3'ou on the right wa)-, on the broad, smooth road that would have led to happiness. But the voice of 3'our deceiver is again heard; and, forgetful of 3'our former sufferings, 3'OU are again listening to him. My children, shut 3rour ears and mind him not, or he will lead 3'ou to ruin and miser)'.

" My children, I have heard bad news. The sacred spot where the great council fire was kindled, around which the Seventeen Fires and ten tribes of their children smoked the pipe of peace - that very spot where the Great Spirit saw his red and white children encircle themselves with the chain of friendship - that place has been selected for dark and bloody councils. My children, this business must be stopped. You have called in a number of men from the most distant tribes, to listen to a fool, who spake not the words of the Great Spirit, but those of the devil, and of the British agents. My children, 3'our conduct has much alarmed the white settlers near you. They desire that you will send away those people, and if they wish to have the impostor with them, they can carry him. Let him go to the lakes; he can hear the British more distinctly."

The Prophet's repl}' was, that evil birds had sung in the governor's ears; and he denied any correspondence with the British, protesting that he had no intentions whatever of disturbing the settlements. Tecumseh continued to urge a confederacy and the Prophet's influence extended. Even the Ojibways, far up the lakes, and their neighbors, came down in great numbers, and exhausting their provisions, were fed at Fort Wayne by order of Gov. Harrison.

The Pottawatomies and Kickapoos having granted them a tract of land, Tecumseh and the Prophet, in the spring of 1808, removed to Tippecanoe, where he collected some Shawnees and about 100 from the northern tribes. The Miamis and Delawares, being friendly to the whites, were greatly opposed to their coming, and even sent a delegation to stop them. But Tecumseh boldly told the part}- they were not to be thwarted in their purposes to ameliorate the condition of their brethren.

In August, the Prophet, accompanied by several of his followers, visited Governor Harrison, at Vincennes, protesting, as formerly, that his purposes were peaceable. In the course of his speech he made these remarkabty wise and just observations:

" The Great Spirit told me to tell the Indians that he had made them, and made the world - that he had placed them on it to do good and not evil. I told all the red-skins, that the way they were in was not good, and that they ought to abandon it. That we ought to consider ourselves as one man: but we ought to live agreeably to our several customs, the red people after their mode and the white people after theirs; particularly, that they should not drink whisk}'; that it was not made for them, but the white people, who alone knew how to use it; and that it is the cause of all the mischiefs which the Indians suffer; and that they must always follow the directions of the Great Spirit, and we must listen to him, as it was He that made us; determine to listen to nothing that is bad; do not take up the tomahawk, should it be offered by the British or by the Long-Knives; do not meddle with anything that does not belong to you, but mind 3'our own business, and cultivate the ground, that your women and your children may have enough to live on.

"I now inform you that it is our intention to live in peace with our father and his people forever, and I call the Great Spirit to witness the truth of my declaration. The religion which I have established for the last three years, has been attended to by the different tribes of Indians in this part of the world. These Indians were once different people; they are now but one ; they are all determined to practice what I have communicated to them, that has come immediately from the Great Spirit through me.

"I have listened to what you have said to us. You have promised to assist us. I now request you, in behalf of all the red people, to use your exertions to prevent the sale of hquor to us. We are all well pleased to hear you say that 3'ou will endeavor to promote our happiness. We give you every assurance that we will follow the dictates of the Great Spirit."

To test the influence of the Prophet over his followers. Gov. Harrison held conversations with and offered them spirits, but they always refused, and he became almost convinced that the Indian was sincere in his professions, and had no other ambition than to ameliorate the condition of his race.

During the following year Tecumseh and the Prophet sought quietly to add strength to their movement. Both were engaged in a deep game; and while the Prophet seemed the leading spirit, Tecumseh was yet the prime mover. The Prophet attempted but little without first getting the advice of his brother, though it is evident he was most headstrong in much that he undertook.

In the spring of 1809, Capt. Wells sent word to Gov. Harrison that manj' of the Indians were leaving the Prophet because of his requiring them to become parties to a scheme for the massacre of the inhabitants of Vincennes. The governor began the organization of two companies of militia, to garrison a post two miles from that town. But the Prophet's followers dispersed before the close of the summer.

On the 30th of September, 1809, Gov. Harrison concluded another treaty at Fort Wayne, in which the Delaware, Pottawatomie, Miami and Eel river tribes participated. According to this treaty, the Indians ceded about 2,900,000 acres of land, principally situated on the southeastern side of the river Wabash, and below the mouth of Raccoon creek, a little stream which empties into the Wabash, near what is now the boundar}' of Parke county. The chiefs of the Wea tribe, in the following month, having met Gov. Harrison at Vincennes, acknowledged the legality of this treaty; and by a treaty held at Vincennes on the 9th of December following, the Kickapoo tribe also confirmed the treaty. Up to this time, the fend ceded to the United States by treaty stipulations between Governor Harrison and the different tribes of Indiana territor}-, amounted to 29,719,530 acres.

Having received, through a reliable source, information regarding an effort of Tecumseh and the Prophet to incite the Indians against the settlements, and that those who had left the ranks of the Prophet had again returned to his support;, and further, that the British had their agents quietly at work among the tribes thus banded, and that the Indians were boasting to American traders that they were getting their ammunition without cost, Gov. Harrison, through instructions from the secretary of war, in Jul}', 1810, began to prepare for the protection of the frontier.

I20 Valley Of The Upper Maumee

As the summer of iSio advanced, it became more and more evident to Governor Harrison that the true purpose of Tecumseh and the Prophet was to make war upon the whites. Early in June, Leatherlips, subsequently known as the "Doomed Warrior," a chief of the Wyandots, who held the " great belt," was accused of witchcraft and sentenced to death, and the sentence was carried out by breaking his skull with a tomahawk. From the best information Governor Harrison could obtain, this charge of witchcraft was made by the Prophet, and its penalty inflicted only against and upon those friendl3' to the United States. A few weeks after the death of the W3-andot chief, he learned that a plot was nearly matured for the surprise and massacre of the garrisons at Fort Wayne, Detroit, Chicago, Vincennes and St. Louts. Tecumseh and the Prophet were moving secretly but surety to that end.

There was still much opposition to the proposed union and war, and such chiefs as Winnemac, and various civil chiefs, remained friendty to Gen. Harrison. From one of the lowas Harrison learned that a British agent had recently visited the Prophet, and encouraged the latter to continue in his efforts to unite the tribes, but to await a signal from the British before carrjdng out their designs against the Americans.

Finding that the most constant watchfulness was necessary, Gov. Harrison dispatched two agents to Tecumseh and his brother to ascertain, if possible, their real designs. Receiving the agents very courteously, in reply to the inquiries made, the Prophet told the agents that the assembling of the Indians upon that spot was by the explicit command of the Great Spirit.

The agent told him that his movements had excited so much alarm that the troops of Kentucky and Indiana were being called out, and preparations were being made for trouble.

In answer to the questions of the agents as to the cause of his complaints against the United States, the Prophet replied that his people had been cheated of their lands. Though told that his complaints would readil}' be listened to b}' Gov. Harrison, at Vincennes, the Prophet refused to go, saj'ing that while there upon a former occasion he was badly treated.

Receiving this information, the governor at once wrote to the secretary, stating the cause, and telling him that all this caviling was merely a pretext on the part of Tecumseh and the Prophet; that he had been as liberal in the conclusion of treaties as his understanding of the views and opinions of the government would permit, and that none of the tribes had just cause for complaint.

Having heard, in July, that the Sacs and Foxes had formed an alliance with the Prophet, and were ready and willing to strike the Americans at any time, Governor Harrison sent the following address to the Prophet by a confidential interpreter:

" Notwithstanding the improper language which you have used toward me, I will endeavor to open your eyes to your true interests. Notwithstanding what bad white men have told you, I am not your per-

" Ahhough I must say that you are an enemy to the Seventeen Fires, and that you have used the greatest exertions with other tribes to lead them astray. In this, you have been in some measure successful; as I am told they are ready to raise the tomahawk against their father; yet their father, notwithstanding his anger at their folly, is full of goodness, and is always ready to receive into his arms those of his children who are willing to repent, acknowledge their fault, and ask for his forgiveness.

" There is yet but little harm done, which may easily be repaired. The chain of friendship which united the whites with the Indians may be renewed, and be as strong as ever. A great deal of that work depends upon you - the destiny of those who are under you, depends upon the choice you may make of the two roads which are before you. The one is large, open and pleasant, and leads to peace, security and happiness; the other, on the contrary, is narrow and crooked, and leads to misery and ruin. Don't deceive yourselves; ao not believe that all the nations of Indians united are able to resist the force of the Seventeen Fires. I know your warriors are brave, but ours are not less so; but what can a few brave warriors do against the innumerable warriors of the Seventeen Fires ? Our blue-coats are more numerous than you can count; our hunters are like the leaves of the forest, or the grains of sand on the Wabash.

" Do not think that the red-coats can protect j'ou; they are not able to protect themselves. They do not think of going to war with us. If they did, you would, in a few months, see our flag wave over all the forts of Canada.

" What reason have you to complain of the Seventeen Fires ? Have they taken any thing from you ? Have they ever violated the treaties made with the red-men ? You say that they have purchased lands from them who had no right to sell them; show that this is true, and the land will be instantly restored. Show us the rightful owners of those lands which have been purchased - let them present themselves. The ears of your father will be open to your complaints, and if the lands have been purchased of those who did not own them, they will be restored to their rightful owners. I have full power to arrange this business; but if 3-ou would rather carry your complaints before your great father, the president, you shall be indulged. I will immediately take means to send you, with those chiefs which you may choose, to the city where your father lives. Every thing necessary shall be prepared for your journey, and means taken for your safe return."

After hearing this speech, the Prophet told the interpreter that, as his brother intended to pay Governor Harrison a visit in a few weeks, he would let him carry the reply to the governor's message. Receiving this information. Governor Harrison sent a message to Tecumseh, requesting him to bring but a small body of his followers, as it was inconvenient for him to receive many. To this Tecumseh paid no regard, and on the I2th of August, 1810, with four hundred warriors, all armed with tomahawks, war-clubs, and "painted in the most terrific manner," he began to descend the Wabash. Arriving near Vincennes, on the morning of the 15th, attended by about fifteen or twenty of his warriors, Tecumseh approached the house of the governor, who, in company with the judges of the supreme court, several arm}- officers, a sergeant and a dozen men, besides a large number of citizens, waited upon the portico of his house to receive the chief.

During the milder season of the year, to hold a council other than in a grove, with logs or turf to sit upon, was distasteful to the Indians, and to the invitation to come forward and take seats upon the portico, he objected, signifying that it was not a fit place to hold a council, and at his request the governor and his attendants took seats beneath a grove of trees before the house.

With a firm and elastic step and with a proud and somewhat defiant look, Tecumseh advanced to the place where the governor and those who had been invited to attend the conference were sitting.- This place had been fenced in to prevent the crowd from encroaching upon the council. As he stepped forward he seemed to scan the preparations which had been made for his reception, particularly the military part of it, with an eye of suspicion - by no means, however, with fear. As he came in front of the dias, an elevated portion of the place upon which the governor and the officers of the territor}- were seated, the governor invited him, through the interpreter, to take a seat with him and his counselors, premising the invitation by saying that it was the wish of their "great father," the president of the United States, that he should do so. Pausing for a moment, at the utterance of these words by the interpreter, and extending his tall figure to its greatest height, he looked upon the troops and then upon the crowd about him. Thus, for a moment, with keen, piercing eyes fixed upon Gov. Harrison, and then upward to the sk}-, he raised his sinewy arm toward the heavens, with a tone and gesture expressive of supreme contempt for the paternit}' assigned him, and in a clear, loud, full voice, exclaimed:

"My Father? - The sun is my father - the earth is m}' mother - and on her bosom I will recline." Having finished, he stretched himself with his wai-riors on the green sward. The effect is said to have been electrical - for some moments there was a perfect silence throughout the assembly.

Gov. Harrison said to Tecumseh through the interpreter, that he had understood he had complaints to make, and redress to ask for certain wrongs which he, Tecumseh, supposed had been done his tribe, as well as the others; that he felt disposed to hsten to the one, and make satisfaction for the other, if it was proper he should do so. That in all his intercourse and negotiations with the Indians, he had endeavored to act justly and honorably with them, and believed he had done so, and had heard of no complaint of his conduct until he learned that Tecumseh was endeavoring to create dissatisfaction toward the government, not only among the Shawnees, but among the other tribes dwelling on the Wabash and Illinois; and had, in so doing, produced a great deal of mischief and trouble between them and the whites, b}' averring that the tribes, whose land the government had lately purchased, had no right to so sell, nor their chiefs any authority to convey. That the governor had invited him to attend the council with a view of learning from his own lips whether there was any truth in the reports, and to learn from him whether he, or his tribe, had any cause of complaint. against the whites; and if so, as a man and a warrior, openly and boldly to avow it. That, as between himself and as great a warrior as Tecumseh, there should be no concealment - all should be done by them under a clear sky, and in an open path, and with these feelings on his own part, he was glad to meet him in council.

In appearance, Tecumseh was accounted one of the most splendid specimens of his tribe - who claimed that they were the first created and most perfect of men. Tall, athletic and manly, dignified and graceful, he was the bean ideal of an Indian chieftain. In- a voice, at first low, but distinct, Tecumseh replied, stating at length his objections to the treat}' at Fort Wajme, made by Gov. Harrison in the previous year; and in the course of his speech, boldly avowed the principle of his party to be that of resistance to every cession of land, unless made by all the tribes, which he contended, formed but one nation. He admitted that he threatened to kill the chiefs who signed the treaty of Fort Wayne; and that it was his fixed determination not to permit the village chiefs, in future, to manage their affairs, but to place the power with which they had been heretofore invested, in the hands of the war chiefs. The Americans, he said, had driven the Indians from the sea-coast, and would soon push them into the lakes; and while he disclaimed all intention of making war upon the United States, he declared it to be his unalterable resolution to make a stand, and resolutely oppose the further intrusion of the whites upon the Indian lands. He concluded with a brief but impassioned recital of the various wrongs and aggressions upon the Indians from the commencement of the revolutionary war.

The governor rose in reply, and in examining the right of Tecumseh and his party to make objections to the treaty of Fort Wayne, took occasion to say, that the Indians were not one nation, having a common property in the lands. The Miamis, he contended, were the real owners of the tract on the Wabash, ceded by the late treaty, and the Shawnees had no right to interfere in the case; that upon the arrival of the whites on this continent, they had found the Miamis in possession of this land, the Shawnees being then residents of Georgia, from which they had been driven by the Creeks, and that it was ridiculous to assert that the red men constituted but one nation; for, if such had been the intention of the Great Spirit, he would not have put different tongues in their heads, but have taught them all to speak the same language.

sprang to his feet, and began to speak with great vehemence of manner. The governor was surprised at his violent gestures, but as he did not understand him, he thought he was making some explanation, and suffered his attention to be drawn toward Winnemac, a friendly Indian lying on the grass before him, who was renewing the priming of his pistol, which he had kept concealed from the other Indians, but in full view of the governor. His attention, however, was again attracted toward Tecumseh, by hearing Gen. Gibson, who was intimately acquainted with the Shawnee language, say to Lieut. Jennings, " Those fellows intend mischief; you had better bring up the guard." At that moment, the followers of Tecumseh seized their tomahawks and war-clubs, and sprang upon their feet, their eyes turned upon the governor. As soon as he could disengage himself from the arm-chair in which he sat, he rose, drew a small sword which he had by his side, and stood on the defensive, Capt. G. R. Floyd who stood near him, drew a dirk, and the chief Winnemac cocked his pistol. The citizens present were more numerous than the Indians, but were unarmed; some of them procured clubs and brick-bats, and also stood on the defensive. The Rev. Mr. Winans, of the Methodist church, ran to the governor's house, got a gun, and posted himself at the door to defend the family. During this singular scene, no one spoke, until the guard came running up, and appeared to be in the act of firing, when the governor ordered then not to do so. He then demanded of the interpreter an explanation of what had happened, who replied that Tecumseh had interrupted him, declaring that all the governor had said was /aJse: and that he and the Seventeen Fires had cheated and imposed on the Indians.

The governor then told Tecumseh that he was a bad man, and that he would hold no further communication with him ; that as he had come to Vincennes under the protection of a council-fire, he might return in safety, but he must immediatel}^ leave the village. Here the council terminated. During the night, two companies of militia were brought in from the countr}-, and that belonging to the town was also called out. Next morning Tecumseh requested the governor to afford him an opportunity of explaining his conduct on the previous day - declaring that he did not intend to attack the governor, and that he had acted under the advice of some of the white people. The governor consented to another interview, it being understood that each party should have the same armed force as on the previous da}-. On this occasion the deportment of Tecumseh was respectful and dignified. He again denied having any intention to make an attack upon the governor, and declared that he had been stimulated to the course he had taken, by two white men, who assured him that one-half the citizens were opposed to the governor, and willing to restore the land in question; that the governor would soon be put out of ofhce, and a good man sent to fill his place, who would give up the land to the Indians. When asked by the governor whether he intended to resist the survej' of these lands, Tecumseh replied that he and his followers were resolutely determined to insist upon the old boundary. When he had taken his seat, chiefs from the W_yandots, Kickapoos, Pottawatomies, Ottavvas and Winnebagoes, spoke in succession, and distinctly avowed that they had entered into the Shawnee confederacy, and were determined to support the principles laid down by their leader. The governor, in conclusion, stated that he would make known to the president the claims of Tecumseh and his party, to the land in question; but that he was satisfied the government would never admit that the lands on the Wabash were the property of any other tribes than those who occupied them when the white people first arrived in America; and, as the title to these lands had been derived by purchase from those tribes, he might rest assured that the right of the United States would be sustained b}' the sword. Here the council adjourned.

On the following day. Gov. Harrison visited Tecumseh in his camp, attended only by the interpreter, and was politely received. A long conversation ensued, in which Tecumseh again declared that his intentions were reall}- such as he had avowed them to be in the council; that the policy which the United States pursued, of purchasing land from the Indians, he viewed as mighty water, read}' to overflow his people; and that the confederacy which he was forming among the tribes to prevent any individual tribe from selling without the consent of the others, was the dam he was erecting to resist this mighty water. He stated further, that he should be reluctantly drawn into war with the United States; and that if he, the governor, would induce the president to give up the lands lately purchased, and agreed never to make another treaty without the consent of all the tribes, he would be their faithful all}', and assist them in the war, which he knew was about to take place with England; that he preferred being the ally of the Seventeen Fires, but if the}' did not comply with his request, he would be compelled to unite with the British. The governor replied, that he would make known his views to the president, but that there was no probability of its being agreed to. "Well," said Tecumseh, " as the great chief is to determine the matter, I hope the Great Spirit will put sense enough into his head to induce him to give up this land; it is true, he is so far off, he will not be injured by the war; he may sit still in his town and drink his wine, while you and I will have to fight it out." This prophec}', it will be seen, was literally fulfilled; and the great chieftain who uttered it, attested that fulfillment with his blood. The governor, in conclusion, proposed to Tecumseh that in the event of hostilities between the Indians and the United States, he should use his influence to put an end to the cruel mode of warfare which the Indians were accustomed to wage upon women and children, and upon prisoners. To this he cheerfully assented; and it is due to the memory of Tecumseh to add, that he faithfully kept his promise.

Camfaign of Tippecanoe. - Not long after this council, a Winnebago chief, who had been employed to watch the proceedings of Tecumseh, brought word to Gov. Harrison that the former was sending to each of the tribes a large wampum belt, with a view of uniting them in one great confederation ; and that, upon a return of the belt, he saw a British agent fairly dance with joy - adding, with tears in his eyes, that he and all the village chiefs had been deprived of their power, and that the control of everything was in the hands of the warriors, who were greatly opposed to the United States. The governor of Missouri sent word that the Sac Indians had allied themselves to the confederacy; that Tecumseh himself was then doing all in his power to induce the tribes west of the Mississippi to join him; to which were added the reports of different Indian agents, who were generally of opinion that the period for a war with the Indians would soon arrive.

Earl}- in 1811, as a part of the annuity to the Indians, Gov. Harrison sent a boat load of salt up the Wabash, a portion of which was to be given to the Prophet for the Shawnees and Kickapoos; but, upon the arrival of the boat at the point where the Prophet had his lodges, he made bold to seize the entire cargo, alleging as a reason for so doing that he had 2,000 men to feed, who had been without salt for two years. Upon being informed of this. Gov. Harrison felt justified in demanding aid from the government, and made application to the secretary of war to have Col. Boyd's regiment, then at Pittsburg, sent immediately to him, requesting, at the same time, to receive authority to act on the offensive as soon as it was known that the Indians were in actual hostilitj- against the United States. The governor's apprehensions were well founded, and it soon became an acknowledged fact that Vincennes was to be the first point of attack.

A council was held in which Tecumseh participated, but was defiant, and closed an impassioned speech with the prophetic declaration: "I will stamp my foot at Tippecanoe, and the ver}' earth shall shake." This was on the 30th day of Jul}', iSii, and in the early morning of the 6th of November, was fought the battle of Tippecanoe, where, in the defeat of the Prophet, the gallant Harrison and his small but heroic army won lasting fame. Here the Prophet lost his influence, for he had made war against the orders of Tecumseh, then absent in the south. The latter on his return was deeph' dejected. He sent word to Gov. Harrison that he wished to visit the president, but upon Gov. Harrison de-' dining to allow him an escort, he refused to visit Washington.

Tecumseh at Fort Wayne. - One of the strange inconsistencies of the dealings of the general government, which has been apparent to the present day, is exhibited by what followed. Only a few days after the battle of Tippecanoe, on the 22d of November, 1810, the period for the annual meeting of the Indians to receive their annuities, having arrived, the}' began to assemble at Fort Wayne in great numbers. John Johnson was then Indian agent here. Many of the chiefs in attendance were fresh from Tippecanoe, claiming their portions of the annuity equally with the most peaceful of the tribes - representing that the Prophet's followers had him in confinement, and purposed taking his life; that he was chargeable with all their troubles; together with many other stories of a similar character, all more or less, in the main untrue, especially as regarded the Prophet's confinement. But the stories presented to Col. Johnson had the desired effect and he was induced thereby to inform the government that the Indians were all favorable to peace, and that no further hostilities should be committed against them ; and yet, saj's M'Afee, in most of the nations here assembled, a British faction was boiling to the brim, and ready to flow on our devoted frontiers, wherever the British agents might think proper to increase the fire of their hostilit}'. The old council-house was located near the spot lately occupied b}' Michael Hedekin. It was a two-story log building, about sixty feet long, by about twenty wide; and stood but a short distance to the southwest of the' fort. It was in this building the agent Hved.

The assemblage of the Indians to receive their annuity at the hands of Col. Johnson, after the battle of Tippecanoe, consisted principally of chiefs and head men of the Miamis, Delawares, the Pottawatomies, and Shawnees. Col. Johnson, on this occasion, made them a speech, presenting the importance of an adherence to peaceable relations on the part of the tribes and the United States, telling them that the president was desirous of living in peace and friendship with them; and that pardon would be granted to any of the hostile tribes who would put away their arms and be peaceable. To this Black-Hoof, a Shawnee chief, responded in behalf of all the tribes present, assuring him that they all had the strongest desire to lay hold of the chain of peace and friendship v^'ith the United States. It was believed that this expression was sincere on the part of the Shawnees and a large number of the Delawares; but that the Miamis and Pottawatomies had little or no intention of being peaceable after receiving their annuities. Little Turtle, now in the decline of life and influence, was the strenuous advocate of peace, but a majority of his people followed the counsels of Tecumseh. The Indians generally made great pretensions to a desire for peace.

Tecumseh made his appearance at Fort Wayne some time during the month of December. The result of his brother's recklessness had affected him deeply. His scheme was broken, but he was still for war - for freedom - for the expulsion of the white race that occupied the ancient hunting ground of his fathers. His air was haughty, and he was still obstinate in the opinions he had embraced. He made bitter reproaches against Harrison, and at the same time had the presumption to demand ammunition from the commander at Fort Wa3'ne, which \j'as refused him. He then said he would go to his British father, who would not deny him. He appeared thoughtful a while, then gave the war-whoop, and went awa}' to join the British at Maiden.

W«r zvith Great Britain. - Such was the spirit in which Tecumseh left Fort Wayne on this memorable occasion; and early in the spring of 1812, he and his party began to put their threats into execution. Small parties began to commit depredations on the frontier settlements of Indiana and Illinois territories, and part of Ohio. Twenty scalps were taken in Indiana territory alone before the first of June; and the people were compelled to protect themselves by going into forts. Volunteer companies of militia were organized, and the Indians were frequently pursued, but trenerall}' without success, as they fled at once after committing their depredations. Governor Harrison asked permission of the war department to raise a mounted force to penetrate to their towns, with a view of chastising them. But this was sefused, the government hesitating to disturb them in that way at that time, fearing the}' would take a more active part with the British. The government was imbued with a "peace on any terms " policy, and the Indians accepted all that was given them, and laughed at the credulity of the giver. In June, 1812, war was declared with Great Britain, and congress passed acts authorizing the recruiting of the army, and the emplo3ment of 100,000 militia.

During this month the president made a requisition on the state of Ohio for 1200 militia, and the famous Fourth regiment, under command of Col. Miller, which had sometime before been ordered to the relief of Vincennes, was now ordered to Cincinnati, to join the militia, which was ordered by Governor Meigs to rendezvous on the 29th of April, at Dayton. As directed by the secretarjr of war, on the 25th of May following, Governor Meigs surrendered the command of the army to General Hull, for some time previous governor of Michigan territor}', but who had been appointed a brigadier-general in the United States arm}'. From Da3'ton the array under Hull marched for Staunton on the I St of June. From Staunton it marched to Urbana. Here Governor Meigs and General Hull held a council with twelve chiefs of the Shawnee, Mingo and Wyandot nations, to obtain leave from them to march the army through their territoiy, and to erect such forts as might be deemed necessary. This was promptly granted, and every assistance which they could give the army in the wilderness was promised. Governor Meigs had held a council with these Indians on the 6th, in which it was agreed to adhere to the treaty of Greenville. On the loth of June, the Fourth regiment, under Col. Miller, made its appearance at Urbana, and was escorted into camp through a triumphal arch, adorned with an eagle, and inscribed with the words, "Tippecanoe - Glory."

From Urbana the army, on the i6th, moved as far as King's Creek,' and from this point opened a road as far as the Scioto, where the}' built two block-houses, which they called Fort M'Arthur, in honor of the officer whose uegiment had opened the road. To this fort the whole army came on the 19th, and on the 21st Col. Findley was ordered to open the rord as far as Blanchard's fork, on the Auglaize, whither the army, excepting a guard left at Fort M'Arthur, marched on the 2 2d. Here, amid rain and mud, another block-house was erected, which was called Fort Necessity. From Fort Necessity the army moved to Blanchard's fork, where Col. Findley had built a block-house, named in honor of that officer. A road was shortly after, under direction of Col. Cass, cut to the rapids, and the main army soon encamped on the banks of the Maumee, opposite the old battle ground of Gen. Wayne. From this point, after a day or two's rest, the army mo\ed down just below the old British fort Miami. For a considerable period, the movements of the army under Hull were directed toward Detroit and the region of the lakes, and there, a great disaster was destined soon to come, which not only caused great perturbation among the settlers and frontier posts, but which reall}' threatened them with destruction.

From the time of his abrupt departure from Fort Wayne up to the breaking out of the war of 1812, Tecumseh had plotted against the Americans, and from the first hostile movements of the British, had allied himself to their cause, and begun to take a most active part with the enemy, in whose army he was made a brigadier-general in the service of the king. Early in August, at the head of a party of Shawnees, accompanied by a number of British soldiers, he made an attack upon a company of Ohio militia sent to escort some volunteers engaged in bringing supplies for the army. This occurred at Brownstown, and was the tirst action after the declaration of war. Tecumseh and his party succeeded in drawing the compan}- into an ambush, in which it suffered considerable loss, and it was then followed bv Tecumseh in its retreat toward the river Ecorce. The movements of the arm}' under Hull were directed toward Detroit, which became the headquarters of that force. Hull prepared orders to be sent to the forts giving warning of the necessity of preparing for defense, but there was remarkable delay in transmission.

The garrison at Mackinaw not having received the order of Gen. Hull, written about the 5th of July, relating to the declaration of war, that post was surrendered on the 17th of that month, which caused Gen. Hull to declare that the whole northern hordes of Indians would be let loose upon him. Fort Dearborn, at Chicago, was in a position as hazardous as that of Mackinaw. Toward the last of Jul}', Gen. Hull began to think seriously of the situation at Chicago, and of the relief of the garrison under Capt. Heald, which was being surrounded by a party of Indians in communication with Tecumseh, which, though not yet attempting any acts of violence was only awaiting the necessary encouragement from the enemy. Hull took action by sending an express to Major B. F. Stickney, then Indian agent at Fort Wayne, requesting him to at once extend to Capt. Heald all the information, assistance and advice within his power, who was ordered to accept of such aid, and to conform to such instructions as he might receive from the Indian agent at Fort Wayne. Instructions were accordingly prepared by Major Stickney to accompany the order of Gen. Hull, and an agent dispatched to Chicago. In this letter Capt. Heald was promised military aid as soon as it was possible to render it.

Capt. William Wells was at that time Indian sub-agent here. He was a great favorite with the Miamis, and accounted a perfect master of everything pertaining to Indian life, both in peace and war, and withal a stranger to personal fear; and, says Major Stickney, "if Gen. Wayne desired a prisoner to obtain information, Capt. Wells could always furnish one." This capable man was selected to lead a party to the aid of

Capt. Heald, and Major Stickney suggested the raising of a band of thirty warriors. These he selected from the Miamis. The Pottawatomies were known to be in the vicinit}' of Chicago, and the fact of Wells being a favorite with the Miamis made the former tribe unfriendly toward him, there having arisen an enmitj- between the two tribes. So that Wells' position was at best, should trouble arise upon their arrival at Fort Dearborn, a most precarious one, a fact that he was by no means unacquainted with. But his nature was fearless. On the 3d of August, with his braves well equipped b}' the agent, he set out full of hope and courage, for the relief of the garrison at Chicago, whither they arrived on the 1 2th.

Wells and his party had not been long at the fort before he discovered unmistakable evidences of coming trouble. A large number of Pottawatomies and Winnebagoes, professing friendship, were encamped about the fort; and for some time Tecumseh and the British, through their runners, had kept up a regular correspondence with the Indians. On the night of the 14th, a runner having arrived among the Indians with the news from Tecumseh that Major Vanhorn had been defeated at Brownstown ; that the arm}' under Hull had returned from Canada to Detroit; and that there was prospect of success, the Indians at once decided to remain no longer inactive.

Wells was warmly attached to Capt. Heald. The latter had married his niece, and she was with her husband to share the dangers that surrounded them.

On the arrival of Wells with his warriors at the fort, Capt. Heald informed him that he had received the dispatch from the agent at Fort Wayne, with the order of Gen. Hull, and had then called together all the Indian warriors in his neighborhood, and had entered into a treaty with them. The leading terms were, that he was to deliver up to the Indians the fort with all its contents, except arms, ammunition and provisions necessary- for their march to Fort Wa3'ne. The Indians on their part were to permit him to pass unmolested. Wells at once protested against the terms of the treat}-. There was a large quantity of ammunition and whisky in the fort. These, he declared, they should not have. He urged that if the Indians had the whisky they would get drunk, and pay no regard to the treaty; and he was for throwing the ammunition and whisky into the lake. The Indians learned what was going on, and determined to attack Heald and his party, at the first convenient point, after they should leave the fort. Wells understood Indian character so perfectly that he was aware of their intentions at a glance.

As soon as it was da3-break. Wells saw that the tomahawk was sharpening for them, and told Heald they must be off as quick as possible, hoping to move before the Indians were ready for them. No time was to be lost. Topeeneebee, a chief of the St. Joseph band, had, early in the morning, informed Mr. Kinzie of the mischief what was intended by the Pottawatomies, who had engaged to escort the detach- ment; and urged him to relinquish his design of accompanying the troops by land, promising him that the boat containing himself and family should be permitted to pass in safety to the St. Joseph. This offer was declined by Mr. Kinzie, on the ground that his presence might operate as a restraint upon the fury of the savages, so warmly were the greater part of them attached to himself and family.

As the garrison marched out on the morning of the 15th, the band struck up the Dead March, as if some invisible force had impressed upon them the fate many of them were soon to meet; and on they moved, solemn and thoughtful, in military array, Capt. Wells taking the lead, at the head of his little band of Miami warriors, his face blackened. Taking their route along the lake shore, as they gained a range of sand hills lying between the prairie and the beach, the escort of Pottawatomies, some 500 in number, instead of continuing along the beach with the Americans and Miamis, kept the level of the prairie. The}^ had marched about a mile and a half, when Capt. Wells, who had ridden a little in advance with the Miamis, suddenly came galloping back, exclaiming: " They are about to attack us; form instantly, and charge upon them," teUing his niece not to be alarmed, that " they would not hurt her, but that he would be killed." No sooner had he ceased to speak, than a volley was fired from among the sand hills. The little company being hastil}^ brought into line, charged rapidly up the bank. A veteran, some seventy years, was the first to fall. Capt. Wells fell, pierced with many balls, and in the words of Mrs. Kinzie, " Pee-sotum held dangling in his hand a scalp, which, by the black ribbon around the queue, I recognized as that of Capt. Wells." Their leader being killed, the Miamis fled; one of their chiefs, however, before leaving the scene of the disaster, rode up to the Pottawatomies, exclaimed to them: " You have deceived the Americans and us. You have done a bad action, and brandishing his tomahawk, I will be the first to head a party of Americans to return and punish your treachery;" and then galloped away over the prairie in pursuit of his companions, who were rapidly starting for Fort Wayne. " The troops," wrote Mrs. Kinzie, "behaved most gallantlj-. They were but a handful; but the}' seemed resolved to sell their lives as dearlj' as possible. Our horses pranced and bounded, and could hardl}' be restrained, as the balls whistled among them."

The Indians made desperate attempts to rush upon and tomahawk the soldiers, but every such effort was bravely repulsed. Several women and children were killed; and the ranks at length became so reduced as not to exceed twent}' effective men; yet they were undaunted and resolute, and remained united while able to fire. Withdrawing a distance, the Indians sent a French boy to demand a surrender. The bo}' was Capt. Heald's interpreter, who had deserted to the side of the Indians in the early part of the engagement. Advancing very cautiously toward the Americans, a Mr. Griffith advanced to meet him, intending to kill him for his conduct in deserting; but the boy declaring that it was the only war he could save himself, and at the same time appearing quite sorry for having been obliged to act as he did, he was permitted to approach. He said the Indians proposed to spare the lives of the Americans, if they would surrender. But the surviving soldiers all refused. The bo}' soon returned, saying the Indians were very numerous, and strongl}' urged Mr. Griffith to use his endeavors to bring about a surrender, which was at length consented to. The men having laid down their arms, the Indians came forward to receive them; when, in the face of their promise, they tomahawked three or four of the men; and one Indian, it is stated, with the fur}- of a demon, approached Mrs. Heald, with his tomahawk raised to strike her. Much accustomed to danger, and being well acquainted with Indian character, with remarkable presence of mind she looked him earnestly in the face, and smiling said: " Surely you will not kill a squaw." The Indian's arm fell, and the brave lady was protected by the barbarous hand that was about to rob her of life. She was the daughter of Gen. Samuel Wells, of Kentucky, who fought most valiantly at the battle of Tippecanoe. The rage of the Indians was lavished upon the bod}" of Capt. Wells. After this massacre, his head was cut off, and as his character was unequaled for braverv, the Indians took his heart from his body, cooked it, and divided it among themselves in very small pieces. They religioush' believed that each one who ate of it, would thereby become as brave as he from whom it was taken.

In accordance with their ancient custom, the Indians now divided the prisoners. Captain Heald and wife and Mr. Griffith being selected by the Ottawas, were taken by this band to the lake shore, beyond the mouth of the river St. Joseph. Having been severely wounded, they considered their fate as inevitably sealed; but Griffith's eye fell upon a canoe, at a convenient point, sufficiently large to hold them, and one night soon afterward they succeeded in making their escape, traversing the lake in this frail bark some 200 miles to Mackinaw, where the British commander enabled them to reach the United States in safet}'.

On the next day after this disaster Gen. Hull filled the cup of mis- . fortune in the west b}- surrendering Detroit without firing a gun, to an inferior British force, consisting of some 700 troops and about 600 Indians, under command of Gen. Brock. This placed the whole territor}- in the hands of the British. Said Gen. Brock, in writing to his superior officer: " When I detail my good fortune, you will be astonished." The nation shared his astonishment and added thereto disgust.