The Treaty Held with the Indians of the Six Nations at Philadelphia, in July 1742 | Page 5

in doing a Thing so inconsistent with our Engagements to them; You are, said we aloud, that all our People might hear and take Notice, to know and remember, that the Six Nations have obliged themselves to sell none of the Land that falls within the Province of Pensilvania to any other but our Brother ONAS, and that to sell Lands to any other is an high Breach of the League of Friendship. Brethren, this rash Proceeding of our young Men makes us ashamed. We always mean well, and shall perform faithfully what we have promised: And we assure you, this Affair was transacted in the Manner we have related, without our Privity or Consent. And that you may be fully convinced of this, and of the Sincerity of our Intentions, we have brought you these Two Strowds [here he presented two Red Strowds to the Governor] they are the very Strowds our foolish young Men received; we took them from them, and we give them to you to return to those white People who made the Bargain, and desire when the Strowds are returned to them, they may be told what we now say, and that we shall not confirm such Bargains nor any other that may interfere with our Engagements to our Brother ONAS.'
The Governor then spoke:
'BRETHREN,
'I thank you for this Piece of News; you have taken this Matter perfectly right. All Bargaining for Land within this Province, is, to be sure, a manifest Breach of your Contract with the Proprietors, and what we know you will not countenance. We have hitherto found the Six Nations faithful to their Engagements, and this is a fresh Instance of their Punctuality. You could not help these Mistakes of your young Men; they were not done in your Presence: But as several Inconveniencies may arise from these kind of clandestine Sales, or from any such loose Sales of Land by your People, we desire you will, on your Return home, give publick Notice to all your Warriours not to bargain for any Land; or if they do, that you will not confirm such Bargains; and that this very Affair, together with what you have done therein, may be particularly reported to all your Nation assembled in Council.'
The Onondago Chief promised to give such publick Notice; and desiring Liberty to mend his former Speech, he proceeded:
'BRETHREN,
'I forgot one Circumstance: Our People who pretended to sell the Land, demanded a Belt of Wampum of the Buyers to carry to their Chiefs; and on their declaring they had no Wampum, our Warriours said, they would not answer that their Chiefs would confirm this Bargain, since they never did any thing of this Nature without Wampum.'
The Governor, after a short Pause, spoke:
'BRETHREN of the Six Nations,
'I shall take this Opportunity to relate to you a Piece of disagreeable News I received some Days ago in a Letter from Le Tort the Indian Trader, at Allegheny, who says, That in May last some Indians of the Taway Nation, supposed by us to be Twightwees, in their Return from War, called and stayed sometime with the Shawanese; who being asked, and denying they had brought either Scalps or Prisoners, the Shawanese suspecting them, had the Curiosity to search their Bags, and finding two Scalps in them, that by the Softness of the Hair did not feel like Indian Scalps, they wash'd them clean, and found them to be the Scalps of some Christians. On this Discovery, the Twightwees were so much ashamed, that they stole away from their Town in the Night-time; and coming, as they afterwards understood, to a little Village belonging to the Shawanese, they told our People that their Hearts were full of Grief; for, as they came along the Road, they found it all bloody; and having good Cause to believe it was made bloody with the Blood of some of the White Brethren, they had very sorrowfully swept the Road; and desired them to inform the Governor of Pensilvania of their (the Twightwees) Grief; and how they had swept the Road clean.' Le Tort adds, on Behalf of the Shawanese, 'That they were much troubled and grieved at this unfortunate Accident; and prayed as they had no Concern in it, more than by being Instruments to discover it, their Brethren would not blame them, nor suffer a Misunderstanding to arise between them on this Account: They would sweep the Road clean, and wipe all the Blood away; and desired their Brethren would be satisfied with this, and not weep too much for a Misfortune that might not happen again as long as the Sun and Moon shone.'
'The Person who delivered me Le Tort's Letter, brought this Bundle of Skins as a Present to me; but I told the Messenger, I would not