History of the Conspiracy of Pontiac, and the war of the North American tribes against the English Colonies after the conquest of Canada

Front matter

THE CONSPIRACY OF PONTIAC AND THE INDIAN WAR AFTEE THE CONQUEST OF CANADA. 11Y FRANCTS PARKMAN. sixth edition, revised, with additions. Vol. I. BOSTON: LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY. 1870. Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1870, by FRANCIS PAKKMAN, In the Office of the Librarian of Congress at Washington. CAMBRIDGE: PRESS OF JOHN WILSON AND SON. TO JARED SPARKS, LL.D., PRESIDENT OF HARVARD UNIVERSITY, THESE VOLUMES ARE DEDICATED AS A TESTIMONIAL. OP HIGH PERSONAL REGARD, AND A TRD3UTE OF RESPECT FOR HIS DISTINGUISHED SERVICES TO AMERICAN HISTORT.

Preface

TO THE SIXTH EDITION. I chose the subject of this book as affording bet ter opportunities than any other portion of Ameri can history for portraying forest life and the Indian character ; and I have never seen reason to change this opinion. In the nineteen years that have passed since the first edition was published, a con siderable amount of additional material has come to light. This has been carefully collected, and is incorporated in the present edition. The most interesting portion of this new material has been supplied by the Bouquet and Haldimand Papers, added some years ago to the manuscript collections of the British Museum. Among them are several hundred letters from officers engaged in the Pontiac war, some official, others personal and familiar, affording very curious illustrations of the events of the day and of the characters of those engaged in them. Among the facts which they bring to light, some are sufficiently startling ; as, for example, the proposal of the Commander-in-Chief to infect the •

PREFACE.

. hostile tribes with the small-pox, and that of a distinguished subordinate officer to take revenge on the Indians by permitting an unrestricted sale of rum. The two volumes of the present edition have been made uniform with those of the series " France and England in North America." I hope to con tinue that series to the' period of the extinction of French power on this continent. " The Conspiracy of Pontiac " will then form a sequel ; and its introductory chapters will be, in a certain sense, a summary of what has preceded. This will involve some repetition in the beginning of the book, but I have nevertheless thought it best to let it remain as originally written. Boston, 16 September, 1870.

PREFACE.

. XI have also been examined, and careful search made for every book which, directly or indirectly, might throw light upon the subject. I have visited the sites of all the principal events recorded in the narrative, and gathered such local traditions as seemed worthy of confidence. I am indebted to the liberality of Hon. Lewis Cass for a curious collection of papers relating to the siege of Detroit by the Indians. Other important contributions have been obtained from the state paper offices of London and Paris, from the archives of New York, Pennsylvania, and other states, and from the manuscript collections of several historical societies. The late William L. Stone, Esq., commenced an elaborate biography of Sir William Johnson, which it is much to be lamented he did not live to complete. By the kindness of Mrs. Stone, I was permitted to copy from his extensive collection of documents such portions as would serve the purposes of the following History.

To President Sparks of Harvard University, Gen eral Whiting, U. S. A., Brantz Mayer, Esq., of Baltimore, Francis J. Fisher, Esq., of Philadelphia, and Rev. George E. Ellis, of Charlestown, I beg to return a warm acknowledgment for counsel and assistance. Mr. Benjamin Perley Poore and Mr. Henry Stevens procured copies of valuable documents from the archives of Paris and London. Henry R. Schoolcraft, Esq., Dr. Elwyn, of Phila-

PREFACE.

. delphia, Dr. O'Callaghan, of Albany, George H. Moore, Esq., of New York, Lyman C. Draper, Esq., of Philadelphia, Judge Law, of Vincennes, and many others, have kindly contributed materials to the work. Nor can I withhold an expression of thanks to the aid so freely rendered in the dull task of proof-reading and correction. The crude and promiscuous mass of materials presented an aspect by no means inviting. The field of the history was uncultured and unreclaimed, and the labor that awaited me was like that of the border settler, who, before he builds his rugged dwelling, must fell the forest-trees, burn the under growth, clear the ground, and hew the fallen trunks to due proportion. Several obstacles have retarded the progress of the work. Of these, one of the most considerable was the condition of my sight.

For about three years, the light of day was insupportable, and every attempt at reading or writing completely debarred. Under these circumstances, the task of sifting the materials and composing the work was begun and finished. The papers were repeatedly read aloud by an amanuensis, copious notes and extracts were made, and the narrative written down from my dic tation. This process, though extremely slow and laborious, was not without its advantages ; and I am well convinced that the authorities have been even more minutely examined, more scrupulously

PREFACE.

TO THE FIRST EDITION. The conquest of Canada was an event of momentous consequence in American history. It changed the political aspect of the continent, prepared a way for the independence of the British colonies, rescued the vast tracts of the interior from the rule of military despotism, and gave them, eventually, to the keeping of an ordered democracy. Yet to the red natives of the soil its results were wholly disastrous. Could the French have maintained their ground, the ruin of the Indian tribes might long have been postponed ; but the victory of Que bec was the signal of their swift decline. Thence forth they were destined to melt and vanish before the advancing waves of Anglo- American power, which now rolled westward unchecked and unop posed. They saw the danger, and, led by a great and daring champion, struggled fiercely to avert it.

The history of that epoch, crowded as it is with scenes of tragic interest, with marvels of suffering and vicissitude, of heroism and endurance, has been, X

PREFACE.

. as yet, unwritten, buried in the archives of govern ments, or among the obscurer records of private adventure. To rescue it from oblivion is the object of the following work. It aims to portray the American forest and the American Indian at the period when both received their final doom. It is evident that other study than that of the closet is indispensable to success in such an attempt. Habits of early reading had greatly aided to pre pare me for the task ; but necessary knowledge of a more practical kind has been supplied by the indulgence of a strong natural taste, which, at various intervals, led me to the wild regions of the north and west. Here, by the camp-fire, or in the canoe, I gained familiar acquaintance with the men and scenery of the wilderness. In 1846, I visited various primitive tribes of the Rocky Mountains, and was, for a time, domesticated hi a village of the western Dahcotah, on the high plains between Mount Laramie and the range of the Medicine Bow.

The most troublesome part of the task was the collection of the necessary documents. These con sisted of letters, journals, reports, and despatches, scattered among numerous public offices, and pri vate families, in Europe and America. When brought together, they amounted to about three thousand four hundred manuscript pages. Con temporary newspapers, magazines, and pamphlets

PREFACE.

. XI collated, and more thoroughly digested, than they would have been under ordinary circumstances. In order to escape the tedious circumlocution, which, from the nature of the subject, could not otherwise have been avoided, the name English is applied, throughout the volume, to the British American colonists, as well as to the people of the mother country. The necessity is somewhat to be regretted, since, even at an early period, clear dis tinctions were visible between the offshoot and the parent stock. Boston, August 1, 1851. FAQS 1 CONTENTS OF VOL. I.

Chapter I

Introductory. — Indian Tribes East op the Mississippi General Characteristics. — Tribal Divisions. — Mode of Government. — Social Harmony. — The Totem. — Classification of Tribes. — The Iroquois. — Their Position and Character. — Their Political Organization. — Traditions of their Confederacy. — Their Myths and Legends. — Their Eloquence and Sagacity. — Arts — Agriculture. — Their Dwellings, Villages, and Forts. — Their Winter Life. — The War Path. — Festivals and Pastimes. — Pride of the Iroquois. — The Hurons or Wyandots. — Their Customs and Character. — Their Dispersion. — The Neutral Nation. Its Fate. — The Eries and Andastes. — Triumphs of the Confederacy. — The Adoption of Prisoners. — The Tuscaroras. — Superiority of the Iroquois Race. — The Algonquins. — The Lenni Lenape. — Their changing Fortunes. — The Shawanoes. — The Miamis and the Illinois. — The Ojibwas, Pottawattamies, and Ottawas. — The Sacs and Foxes. — The Menomonies and Knisteneaux. — Customs of the Northern Algonquins. — Their Summer and Winter Life. — Legends of the Algonquins. — Religious Faith of the Indians. — The Indian Character. — Its Inconsistencies. — Its Ruling Passions. — Pride. —Hero-worship. — Coldness, Jealousy, Suspicion. — Self-control. — Intellectual Traits. — Inflexibility. — Generous Qualities

CHAPTER LL

1663-1763. Fkance and England in America. Contrast of French and English Colonies. — Feudalism in Canada. — Priests and Monks. — Puritanism and Democracy in New England. — French Life in Canada. — Military Strength of Canada. — Religious Zeal. — Missions — The Jesuits. — Brebeuf CONTENTS OF VOL. I. PAGE 96 and Lallemant. — Martyrdom of Jogues. — Results of the Mis sions. —French Explorers. — La Salle. — His Plan of Discovery. — His Sufferings — His Heroism. — He discovers the Mouth of the Mississippi. — Louisiana. — France in the West. — Growth of English Colonies. — Approaching Collision 46 CHAPTER in. 1608-1763. The French, the English, and the Indians. Champlain defeats the Iroquois. — The Iroquois Wars. — Misery of Canada. — Expedition of Frontenac. — Success of the French. — French Influence in the West. — La Verandrye. — The English Fur-trade. — Protestant and Romish Missions. — The English and the Iroquois. — Policy of the French. — The Frenchman in the Wigwam. — Coureurs des Bois. — The White Sarage. — The English Fur-trader. — William Penn and his Eulogists. — The Indians and the Quakers. — Injustice of Penn's Successors. — The Walking Purchase. — Speech of Canassatego. — Eemoval of the Delawares — Intrusion of Settlers. — Success of French Intrigues. — Father Picquet. — Sir William Johnson. — Position of Parties ..." 66

CHAPTER IV.

1700-1755. Collision of the Rival Colonies. The Puritan and the Canadian. — Fort Frederic. — Acadia. — The French on the Ohio. — Mission of Washington. — Trent driven from the Ohio. — Death of Jumonville. — Skirmish at the Great Meadows. — Alarm of the Indians. — Congress at Albany. — French and English Diplomacy. — Braddock and Dieskau. — Naval Engagement. — The War in Europe and America. — Braddock in Virginia. — March of his Army. — Beaujeu at Fort du Quesne. — Ambuscade at the Monongahela. — Rout of Braddock. — Its Consequences. — Acadia, Niagara, and Crown Point. — Battle of Lake George. — Prosecution of the War. — Oswego — Fort William Henry. — Storming of Ticonderoga. — State of Canada. — Plans for its Reduction. — Progress of the English Arms. — Wolfe before Quebec. Assault at Montmorenci. — Heroism of Wolfe. — The Heights of Abraham. — Battle of Quebec. — Death of Wolfe. — Death of Montcalm. — Surrender of Quebec. — Fall of Canada . . . PAGE

CHAPTER V.

1755-1763. The Wilderness and its Tenants at the Close of the French War. Sufferings of the Frontier. — Treaties with the Western Tribes. — Christian Frederic Post. — The Iroquois. — The remote Tribes. — The Forest. — Indian Population. — Condition of the Tribes. — Onondaga. — The Delawares and neighboring Tribes. — Their Habits and Condition. — The Shawanoes, Miamis, Illinois, and Wyandots. — English Settlements. — Forest Thoroughfares. — Fur-traders — Their Habits and Character. — The Forest Traveller. — The French at the Illinois. — Military Life in the Forest. — The Savage and the European. — Hunters and Trappers. — Civilization and Barbarism 142

CHAPTER VI.

1760. The English take Possession of the Western Posts. The victorious Armies at Montreal. — Major Robert Rogers. — His Expedition up the Lakes. — His Meeting with Pontiac. — Ambitious Views of Pontiac. — He befriends tlie English. — The English take Possession of Detroit. — Of other French Posts. — British Power Predominant in the West 161

CHAPTER VII.

1760-1763. Anger of the Indians. — The Conspiracy Discontent of the Tribes. — Impolitic Course of the English. — Disorders of the Fur-trade. — Military Insolence. — Intrusion of Settlers. — French Intrigue. — The Delaware Prophet. — An abortive Plot. — Pontiac's Conspiracy. — Character of Pontiac. — Gloomy Prospects of the Indian Race. — Designs of Pontiac. — His War Messengers. — Tribes engaged in the Conspiracy. — Dissimulation of the Indians. — The War-belt among the Miamis 172

CHAPTER VIII.

1763. IndIan Preparation. The Indians as a military People. — Their inefficient Organization. — Their insubordinate Spirit. — Their Improvidence. — Policy b PAGE of the Indian Leaders. — Difficulties of Forest Warfare.— Defenceless Condition of the Colonies. — The Peace of Paris. — Royal Proclamation. — The War-chief. His Fasts and Vigils. — The War-feast. — The War-dance. — Departure of the War riors. — The Bursting of the Storm 191

CHAPTER IX.

1763, April. The Council at the River Ecorces. Pontiac musters his Warriors. — They assemble at the River Ecorces. — The Council. — Speech of Pontiac. — Allegory of the Delaware. — The Council dissolves. — Calumet Dance at Detroit. — Plan to surprise the Garrison 200

CHAPTER X.

1763, May. Detroit. Strange Phenomenon. — Origin and History of Detroit. — Its Condition in 1763. — Character of its Inhabitants. — French Life at Detroit. — The Fort and Garrison. — Pontiac at Isle a la Peche. — Suspicious Conduct of the Indians. — Catharine, the Ojibwa Girl. — She reveals the Plot. — Precautions of the Commandant. — A Night of Anxiety 212

CHAPTER XL

1763. Treachery of Pontiac. The Morning of the Council. — Pontiac enters the Fort. — Address and Courage of the Commandant. — The Plot defeated. — The Chiefs suffered to escape. — Indian Idea of Honor. — Pontiac again visits the Fort. — False Alarm. — Pontiac throws off the Mask. — Ferocity of his Warriors. — The Ottawas cross the River. — Fate of Davers and Robertson. — General Attack. — A Truce. — Major Campbell's Embassy. — He is made Prisoner by Pontiac 223

CHAPTER XII.

1763. Pontiac at the Siege bf Detroit. The Christian Wyandots join Pontiac. — Peril of the Garrison.— — Indian Courage. — The English threatened with Famine. — PAGB 260 Pontiac's Council with the French. — His Speech. — He exacts Provision from the French. — He appoints Commissaries. — He issues Promissory Notes. — His Acuteness and Sagacity. — His Authority over his Followers. — His Magnanimity 243

CHAPTER XIII.

1763. Rout of Cuyler's Detachment. — Fate of the Forest Garrisons. Re-enforcement sent to Detroit. — Attack on the Schooner. — Relief at Hand. — Disappointment of the Garrison. — Escape of Prisoners. — Cuyler's Defeat. — Indian Debauch. — Fate of the Captives. — Capture of Fort Sandusky. — Strength of the Besiegers. — Capture of Fort St. Joseph. — Capture of Fort Michillimackinac. — Capture of Fort Ouatanon. — Capture of Fort Miami. — Defence of Fort Presqu' Isle. — Its Capture

CHAPTER XIV.

1763. The Indians continue to blockade Detroit. Attack on the Armed Vessel. — News of the Treaty of Paris. — Pontiac summons the Garrison. — Council at the Ottawa Camp. — Disappointment of Pontiac. — He is joined by the Coureurs de Bois. — Sortie of the Garrison. — Death of Major Campbell. — Attack on Pontiac's Camp. — Fire Rafts. — The Wyandots and Pottawattamies beg for Peace 287

CHAPTER XV.

1763. The Fight of Bloody Bridge. Dalzell's Detachment. — Dalzell reaches Detroit. — Stratagem of the Wyandots. — Night Attack on Pontiac's Camp. — Indian Ambuscade- — Retreat of the English. — Terror of Dalzell's Troops. — Death of Dalzell. — Defence of Campau's House. — Grant conducts the Retreat. — Exultation of the Indians. — Defence of the Schooner Gladwyn 306

CHAPTER XVI.

1763. Michillimackinac. The Voyager on the Lakes. — Michillimackinac in 1763. — Green Bay and Ste. Marie. — The Northern Wilderness. — XX PAGE Tribes of the Lakes. — Adventures of a Trader. — Speech of Minavavana. — Arrival of English Troops. — Disposition of the Indians. — The Ojibwa War-chief. — Ambassadors from Pon tiac. — Sinister Designs of the Ojibwas. — Warnings of Danger. — Wawatam. — Eve of the Massacre 322

CHAPTER XVII.

1763. The Massacre. The King's Birthday. — Heedlessness of the Garrison. — Indian Ball-play. — The Stratagem. — Slaughter of the Soldiers. — Escape of Alexander Henry. — His appalling Situation. — His Hiding-place discovered. — Survivors of the Massacre. — Plan of retaking the Fort. — Adventures of Henry. — Unexpected Behavior of the Ottawas. — They take Possession of the Fort. — Their Council with the Ojibwas. — Henry and his Fellowprisoners. — He is rescued by Wawatam. — Cannibalism. — Panic among the Conquerors. — They retire to Mackinaw. — The Island of Mackinaw. — Indian Carouse. — Famine among the Indians. — They disperse to their Wintering Grounds. — Green Bay. The neighboring Tribes. — Gorell. His Address and Prudence. — He conciliates the Indians. — He abandons Green Bay. — The English driven from the Upper Lakes . . THE CONSPIRACY OF PONTIAC.

CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTORY.

— INDIAN TRIBES EAST OF THE MISSISSIPPI. The Indian is a true child of the forest and the desert. The wastes and solitudes of nature are his congenial home. His haughty mind is imbued with the spirit of the wilderness, and the light of civilization falls on him with a blighting power. His unruly pride and untamed freedom are in har mony with the lonely mountains, cataracts, and rivers among which he dwells ; and primitive America, with her savage scenery and savage men, opens to the imagination a boundless world, un matched in wild sublimity. The Indians east of the Mississippi may \>e di vided into several great families, each distinguished by a radical peculiarity of language. In their moral and intellectual, their social and political state, these various families exhibit strong shades [Chap. I. INDIAN TRIBES. of distinction ; but, before pointing them out, I shall indicate a few prominent characteristics, which, faintly or distinctly, mark the whole in com mon.

All are alike a race of hunters, sustaining life wholly, or in part, by the fruits of the chase. Each family is split into tribes ; and these tribes, by the exigencies of the hunter life, are again divided into sub-tribes, bands, or villages, often scattered far asunder, over a wide extent of wilderness. Unhappily for the strength and harmony of the Indian race, each tribe is prone to regard itself, not as the member of a great whole, but as a sov ereign and independent nation, often arrogating to itself an importance superior to all the rest of man kind ; ' and the warrior whose petty horde might muster a few scores of half-starved fighting men, strikes his hand upon his heart, and exclaims, in all the pride of patriotism, " I am a Menomone." In an Indian community, each man is his own master.

He abhors restraint, and owns no other au thority than his own capricious will ; and yet this wild notion of liberty is not inconsistent with certain gradations of rank and influence. Each tribe has its sachem, or civil chief, whose office is in a man ner hereditary, and, among many, though by no means among all tribes, descends in the female line ; so that the brother of the incumbent, or the son of his sister, and not his own son, is the right- 1 Many Indian tribes bear names which in their dialect signify men, indicating that the character belongs, par excellence, to them. Sometimes the word was used by itself, and sometimes an adjective was joined with it, as original men, men surpassing all others. Chap. I.] 3 ORGANIZATION. ful successor to his dignities.1 If, however, in the opinion of the old men and subordinate chiefs, the heir should be disqualified for the exercise of the office by cowardice, incapacity, or any defect of character, they do not scruple to discard him, and elect another in his place, usually fixing their choice on one of his relatives.

The office of the sachem is no enviable one. He has neither laws to administer nor power to enforce his commands. His counsellors are the inferior chiefs and principal men of the tribe ; and he never sets himself in opposition to the popular will, which is the sover eign power of these savage democracies. His province is to advise, and not to dictate ; but, should he be a man of energy, talent, and address, and especially should he be supported by numerous relatives and friends, he may often acquire no small measure of respect and power. A clear distinc tion is drawn between the civil and military authority, though both are often united in the same per son. The functions of war-chief may, for the most part, be exercised by any one whose prowess and reputation are sufficient to induce the young men to follow him to battle ; and he may, whenever he thinks proper, raise a band of volunteers, and go out against the common enemy.

We might imagine that a society so loosely framed would soon resolve itself into anarchy ; yet this is not the case, and an Indian village is singu- 1 The dread of female infidelity has been assigned, and with probable truth, as the origin of this custom. The sons of a chiefs sister must ne cessarily be his kindred ; though his own reputed son may be, in fact, the offspring of another. [Chap. I. INDIAN TRIBES. larly free from wranglings and petty strife. Sev eral causes conspire to this result. The necessities of the hunter life, preventing the accumulation of large communities, make more stringent organiza tion needless ; while a species of self-control, inculcated from childhood upon every individual, enforced by a sentiment of dignity and manhood, and greatly aided by the peculiar temperament of the race, tends strongly to the promotion of harmony.

Though he owns no law, the Indian is inflexible in his adherence to ancient usages and customs ; and the principle of hero-worship, which belongs to his nature, inspires him with deep respect for the sages and captains of his tribe. The very rudeness of his condition, and the absence of the passions which wealth, luxury, and the other incidents of civilization engender, are favorable to internal harmony ; and to the same cause must likewise be ascribed too many of his virtues, which would quickly vanish, were he elevated from his savage state. A peculiar social institution exists among the Indians, very curious in its character ; and though I am not prepared to say that it may be traced through all the tribes east of the Mississippi, yet its prevalence is so general, and its influence on political relations so important, as to claim especial attention.

Indian communities, independently of their local distribution into tribes, bands, and vil lages, are composed of several distinct clans. Each clan has its emblem, consisting of the figure of some bird, beast, or reptile; and each is distin- Chap. I.] TOTEMS. guished by the name of the animal which it thus bears as its device ; as, for example, the clan of the Wolf, the Deer, the Otter, or the Hawk. In the language of the Algonquins, these emblems are known by the name of Totems.1 The members of the same clan, being connected, or supposed to be so, by ties of kindred, more or less remote, are prohibited from intermarriage. Thus Wolf cannot marry Wolf; but he may, if he chooses, take a wife from the clan of Hawks, or any other clan but his own. It follows that when this pro hibition is rigidly observed, no single clssn can live apart from the rest ; but the whole must be min gled together, and in every family the husband and wife must be of different clans.

To different totems attach different degrees of rank and dignity ; and those of the Bear, the Tor toise, and the Wolf are among the first in honor. Each man is proud of his badge, jealously asserting its claims to respect ; and the members of the same clan, though they may, perhaps, speak differ ent dialects, and dwell far asunder, are yet bound together by the closest ties of fraternity. If a man is killed, every member of the clan feels called 1 Schoolcraft, Oneota, 172. The extraordinary figures intended to represent tortoises, deer, snakes, and other animals, which are often seen appended to Indian treaties, are the totems of the chiefs, who employ these devices of their respective clans as their sign manual. The device of his clan is also sometimes tat toed on the body of the warrior.

The word tribe might, perhaps, have been employed with as much pro priety as that of clan, to indicate the totemic division; but as the former is constantly employed to represent the local or political divisions of the Indian race, hopeless confusion would arise from using it in a double capacity. INDIAN TRIBES. [Chap. I. upon to avenge him ; and the wayfarer, the hunter, or the warrior is sure of a cordial welcome in the distant lodge of the clansman whose face perhaps he has never seen. It may be added that certain privileges, highly prized as hereditary rights, some times reside in particular clans ; such as that of furnishing a sachem to the tribe, or of performing certain religious ceremonies or magic rites. The Indians east of the Mississippi may be di vided into three great families : the Iroquois, the Algonquin, and the Mobilian, each speaking a language of its own, varied by numerous dialectic forms.

To these families must be added a few stragglers from the great western race of the Dah cotah, besides several distinct tribes of the south, each of which has been regarded as speaking a tongue peculiar to itself.1 The Mobilian group embraces the motley confederacy of the Creeks, the crafty Choctaws, and the stanch and warlike Chickasaws. Of these, and of the distinct tribes dwelling in their vicinity, or within their limits, I shall only observe that they offer, with many mod ifications, and under different aspects, the same essential features which mark the Iroquois and the Algonquins, the two great families of the north.2 The latter, who were the conspicuous 1 For an ample view of these divisions, see the Synopsis of Mr. Gal latin, Trans. Am. Ant. Soc. II. 2 It appears from several passages in the writings of Adair, Hawkins, and others, that the totem prevailed among the southern tribes.

In a conversation with the late Albert Gallatin, he informed me that he was told by the chiefs of a Choctaw deputation, at Washington, that in their tribe were eight totemic clans, divided into two classes, of four each. It is very remarkable that the same number of clans, and the same di vision into classes, were to be found among the Five Nations or Iroquois. Chap. I.] THE IROQUOIS. actors in the events of the ensuing narrative, de mand a closer attention. THE IROQUOIS FAMILY. Foremost in war, foremost in eloquence, foremost in their savage arts of policy, stood the fierce peo ple called by themselves the Ilodenosaunee, and by the French the Iroquois, a name which has since been applied to the entire family of which they formed the dominant member.1 They extended their conquests and their depredations from Quebec to the Carolinas, and from the western prairies to the forests of Maine.2 On the south, they forced tribute from the subjugated Delawares, and pierced the mountain fastnesses of the Chero- '' A great difficulty in the study of Indian history arises from a redun dancy of names employed to designate the same tribe ; yet this does not prevent the same name from being often used to designate two or more different tribes.

The following are the chief of those which are applied to the Iroquois by different writers, French, English, and German : — Iroquois, Five, and afterwards Six Nations ; Confederates, Hodenosau nee, Aquanuscioni, Aggonnonshioni, Ongwe Honwe, Mengwe, Maquas, Mahaquase, Massawomecs, Palenachendchicsktajeet. The name of Massawomecs has been applied to several tribes ; and that of Mingoes is often restricted to a colony of the Iroquois which established itself near the Ohio. 2 Francois, a well-known Indian belonging to the remnant of the Pe nobscots living at Old Town, in Maine, told me, in the summer of 1843, that a tradition was current, among his people, of their being attacked in ancient times by the Mohawks, or, as he called them, Mohogs, a tribe of the Iroquois, who destroyed one of their villages, killed the men and women, and roasted the small children on forked sticks, like apples, before the fire.

When he began to tell his story, Francois was engaged in patch ing an old canoe, in preparation for a moose hunt ; but soon growing warm with his recital, he gave over his work, and at the conclusion exclaimed with great wrath and earnestness, " Mohog all devil ! " [Chap. I. INDIAN TRIBES. kees with incessant forays.1 On the north, they uprooted the ancient settlements of the Wyandots ; on the west they exterminated the Eries and the Andastes, and spread havoc and dismay among the tribes of the Illinois ; and on the east, the Indians of New England fled at the first peal of the Mohawk war-cry. Nor was it the Indian race alone who quailed before their ferocious valor. All Canada shook with the fury of their onset; the people fled to the forts for refuge ; the blood besmeared conquerors roamed like wolves among the burning settlements, and the colony trembled on the brink of ruin.