Newspapers / Western Carolinian (Salisbury, N.C.) / March 5, 1822, edition 1 / Page 2
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ABORIGINAL ELOQUENCE. rHOM THE XATTOTAt, I5Ttr.tTCE.VCEn. Speeches of several of the Chiefs of the Del egation of Indians, u:; !cr Maj. OTallon, to the President of the United r'.t-tcs, in Council, on the 4th of February, 1H22. the rAW.sr.E- cuiEr. My Great Father : I have travelled a great dhtar.ee to sec you I have seen you l:h! my heart re joices. I have heard your words they have entered one car and shall not escape the other, and I will carry them to my people as pure as they came from your mouth. My Great Father I am going to speak the truth. The Great Spirit looks down UDon us, and I call Him to witness all that may pass between us on this occasion. If I am here noiv and have seen your people, your houses, your vessels on the big lake, and a great many wonderful things far beyond my comprehension, which appears to have been made by the Great Spirit and placed in your hands, I am indebted to my Father here, "who invited me from home, under whose wings I have been protected. Yes, my Great Father, I have travelled with your chief. I have followed him, and trod in his tracks ; but there is still another Great Father to ivh'jin I am much indebted it is the Father of us all. Him who made us and placed us on this earth. I feel grateful to the Great Spirit for strengthening my heart for such an undertaking, and for preserving the life which he gave me. The Great Spirit made us all he made my skin red, and yours while; he placed us on this earth, and intended that we should live differ ently from each other. He made the whites to cultivate the earth, and feed on domestic animals, but he made us, red skins, to rove through the uncultivated woods and plains, to feed on wild animals and to dress with their skins He also intended that we should go to war to take scalps steal horses from and triumph over our enemies cultivate peace at home, and promote the happiness of each other. I believe there arc no people of any color on this earth who do not believe in the Great Spirit in rewards and in punishments. We worship him, but we worship him not as you do. Wc differ from you in appearance and manners as well as in our customs ; and wc differ from you in our religion ; we have no large houses as you have to worship the Great Spirit in ; if we had them to-day we should want others to-morrow, for wc have not, like you, a fixed habitation wc have no settled home except our villages, where we remain but two moons in twelve wc, like animals, rove through the coun try ,whilst you whites reside between us and heaven; but still, my Great Father, we love the Great Spirit wc acknowledge hissupremc power our peace, our health, and our happiness, depend upon him, and our lives belong to him he made us and lie can destroy us. My Great Father Some of your good chiefs, as they are called, (missionaries,) have proposed to send some of their good people among us to change our habits, to make us work and live like the white people. I will not tell a lie I m going to tell the truth. You love your country you love your people you love the manner in which they live, and you think your people brave. I am like you, my Great Father, I love my country I love my people I love the 'manner in which wc live, and think myself and warriors brave spare me, then, my Father, let me enjoy my country, and pursue the buffalo, and the beaver, and the other wild animals of our country, and I will trade their skins with your people. I have grown up, and lived thus long, without work I am in hopes you will suffer me to die without it. We have plenty of buffalo, beaver, deer, and ether wild animals we have also an abundance of horses wc have every thing wc want we have plenty of land, if you will keep your people off of it. My Fa ther has a piece on which he lives, (Coun cil Bluffs, and we wish him to enjoy it we have enough without it but wc wish him to live near us to give us good coun sel to keep our ears and eyes open, that wc may continue to pursue the right road the road to happiness. He settles all differences between us and the whites, a:id between the red skins themselves lie makes the whites do justice to the red skins, and he makes the red skins do jus tice to the whites. He saves the effusion of human blood, and restores peace and happiness on the land. You have already sent us a father ; it is enough, he knows us and we know him we have confidence in hi mi we keep our eye constantly upon him, and since we have heard your words, wc will listen more attentively to his. It is too soon, my Great Father, to send those good men among us we are not starving yet wc wiih you to permit us to enjoy the chase until the game of our country is exhausted until the wild ani mals become extinct. Let us exhaust our present resources before yo;: make us toil and interrupt our happiness let me continue to live as 1 have done, and ;fter I have passed to the Good or Evil Spirit from off the wilderness of my pres ent life, the subsistence of my children Pointing to Major O 'Fall on. may become so precarious as to need and embrace the assistance of those good peo ple. There was a time when wc did not know the whites our w:nts were then fewer than they are now. They were al ways within our control we had then seen nothing which we could not get. But since our intercourse with the whites, (who have caused such a destruction of our game,) when wc could lie down to sleep and we awoke we would find the buffalo feeding around our camp but now we are killing them for their skins, and feeding the wolves with their flesh to make our children cry over their bones. Here, my Great Father, is a pipe which I present you, as I am accustomed to pre sent pipes to all the red skins in peace with us. It is filled with such tobacco as we were accustomed to smoke before we knew the white people. It is pleasant, and the spontaneous growth of the most remote parts of our country. I know tHat robes, leggins, mockasins, bears claws, he. are of little value to you, but wc wish you to have them deposited and preserved in some conspicuous part of your lodge, so that when we are gone and the sod turned over our bones, if our chil dren should visit this place, as wc do now, they may sec and recognize with pleasure the deposites of their .fathers, and reflect on the limes that arc past. PAWNEE LOUT CHIEF. My Great Father : Whenever I sec a white mm amongst us without a protector, I tremble for him. I am aware of the ungovernable disposi tion of some of our young men, and when I see an inexperienced white man, I am always afraid they will make me cry. I now begin to love your people, and, as I love my own people too, I am unwilling that any blood should be spilt between us. You are unacquainted with our fashions, and wc are unacquainted with yours ; and when any of your people come among us, I am always afraid that they will be struck on the head like dogs, as we should be here amongst you, but for our father in whose tracks we tread. When your peo ple come among us, they should come as we come among vou, with some one to protect them, whom wc know, and who knows us. Until this chief came amongst us, three winters since, we roved through the plains only thirsting for each others blood We were blind we could not see the right road, and we hunted to destroy each other. Wc were always feeling for obstacles, and every thing wc felt we thought one. Our warriors were always croinu: to and ccmincr from war. I mvself have killed and scalped in every direc tion. I have often triumphed over my enemies. OTTOEP ARTIZAN. My Great Father : I am brave, and if I had not been brave I should not have followed my father here. I have killed my enemies, I have taken their horses, and although I love and re spect my father, and will do any thing he tells me, I will not submit to an insult from any one If my enemies, of any nation, should strike me, I will rise in the might of my strength, and avenge tue spirits of my dead. o'itAIIA CHIEF. My Great Father: Look at me look at me, my father, my hands are unstained with your blood my people have never struck the whites, and the whites have never struck them It is not the case with other red skins Mine is the only nation that has spared the long knives. I am a chief, but not the only one in my nation ; there are other chiefs who raise their crests by my side. I have always been the friend of the long knives, and before this chief (Major O F.) came among us, I suffered much in support of the whites. I was often re proached for being a friend, but when my father came amongst us he strengthened niy arms, and I soon towered over the rest. My Great Father I have heard some of your chiefs, who propose to send some good people amongst us, to learn us to Sivo as you do ; but I do not wish to tell a tie I am only one man, and will not pre sume, at this distance from my people, to speak for them on a subject with which they arc entirely unacquainted I am a fraid it is too soon for us to attempt to change habits : We have too much game in our country we feed too plentifully on the buffaloe to bruise our hands with the instruments of agriculture. The Great Spirit made my skin red, and he made us to live as we do now ; and I believe that when the Great Spirit pla ced us upon this earth, he consulted our happiness. We love our country we love our customs and habits. I wish you would permit us to enjoy them as long as I live. When we become hungry, naked when the game of our country becomes exhausted, and misery encoihpasses our families, then, and not till then, do I want those good people among us. Then they may lend us a helping hand then show us the wealth of the earth the advanta ges and sustenance to be derived from its culture. I am fond of peace, my Great Father, but the Sioux have disturbed my repose. They have struck upon me and killed two of my brothers, and since more of my bravest warriors, whose deaths arc still Pointing' to Major OTallon. unrevenged. Those Sioux live high up the Missouri, and, although they have seen my Father and heard his words, they rove on the land like hungry wolves, and, like serpents creeping through the grass, they disturb the unsuspected stranger passing through the country. 1 am al most the only red skin opposed to war- but, my Father, what should I do to satis fy the dead, when every wind coming o ver their bones brings to my cars their cries for revenge ? I am constantly dis turbed by the recollection of my brothers, and am- afraid to neglect their bones, which have been thrown to the winds, and lie uncovered and exposed to the sun I must not be slow to avenge their death ; I am forced to war, my Great Father, and I am in hopes you will assist me ; I am in hopes that you will give some arms to my Father to place in the hands of my braves to enable them to defend their wives and children. Since I have known my Father I have obeyed his commands, and when I die, I will leave my children to him that he may do with them as he pleases. o'maha tartizan. My Great Father : My Father was a chief, but he grew old, and became dry like grass, and pass ed away, leaving the roots from which I sprung up, and have grown so large with out one mark of distinction. I am still green, but am afraid to die without the fame of my father. I wish you would be so good as to give me a mark to attract the attention of my people, that when I return home I may bring to their recol lection the deeds of my father and my claims to distinction ; since I left home I have been much afilicted ; death sought me, but I clung to my father and he kept it off. I have now grown fat and am in hopes to return to my nation. There is my chief, (pointing to the Big Elk,) who has no claims, no inheritance from his father. I am now following behind him, and treading upon his heels, in hopes that you and my Father here, will take pity on me and recollect who my father was. Pointing to Major O'Fallon. CO AG R F:S8. SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS FIRST SESSION. FIIOM THE NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE II. AV SE.W1TE. Thursday, fer. 14 On motion of Mr. Pleasants, the Senate took up for consideration the bill from the other House, making partial appropriations for the naval service of the present year. Mr. Pleusants recapitulated the facts contained in the letters from the Secreta ry of the Navy to the Committee of Ways and Means of the other House, to shew the necessity of anticipating, as early as possible, a part of the annual appropria tion, for the purpose, principally, of fit ting out an additional force for the pro tection of our commerce in the West India seas, Sec. Sec. The bill was ordered to a third read ing ; and, on motion of Mr. Pleasants, the bill was forthwith read a third time by general consent, passed, and returned to the other House. The Senate then again proceeded to the consideration of the bill confirming the title of the Marquis dc Maion Rouge the motion made on yesterday by Mr. Talbot, to refer this and all similar cLims to the adjudication of the Judicial y being the question pending. Mr. Van Dyke, thinking that each of these large cases ought to stand on its own merits, as it comes before congress, moved to amend the motion so as to refer the claim of Maison Rouge alone to the decision of the Courts. Mr. Eaton supported the amendment, deeming it inexpedient to refer the "oth er great claims now pending, on which there was less difficulty than the present claim. Mr. Johnson, of Louisiana, thought the whole of those claims (so many years pending) should be brought immediately before the Judiciary, where they must ul timately be brought, as they could never be finally adjudicated in any other way, and. in such manner as would ensure an early decision, as it was all important to the claimants, to the United States, and, more than all, to thft State of Louisiana, so large a portion of which was covered by the claims, and its prosperity so much affected by the delay, that they should be speedily adjusted and finally settled ac companying his remarks with a brief his tory of the proceedings on the prominent claims and avowing also his belief in the justness of the present claim. Mr. Barton was averse to the refer ence of this special case to the Judiciary, hut would prefer a general act referring all such to that tribunal ; and lie offered a few remarks to shew the superiority of i that mode of adjusting such titles, over a J settlement by the legislature. Mr. Otis was in favor of the amend-! mcnt, but il not agreed to, he should still I vote for the general proposition, consider ing it highly proper that a tribunal should be provided by which these rights may be decided correctly and finally ; and de precating a decision of them, and this claim in particular, by Congress. Mr Holmes, of Maine, could perceive no reason for referring this claim to the Judiciary, any more than the various oth er claims which are presented to Con gress, pecuniary as well as others; and endeavored to shew that if Congress could not trust themselves to decide these claims for land, it would be much more dangerous to the public interest to submit them to a jury or a tribunal o; the vicini ty in which the claimant resides. He also went considerably into the merits of this claim to shew its illegality, and that it was not entitled to the preference pro posed. Mr. Brown, of Louisiana, replied to the latter part of the preceding remarks ; and vindicated his former arguments in support of the genuineness and validity of the title of Maison Rouge- Mr. Talbot also replied to Mr. Holmes, and enforced the cxpediencv of the course he had proposed ; supported the superior ity of courts and juries to examine and determine such claims ; that all claims were worthy of it ; that it was the most prompt and most cheap, if not the most enlightened mode of adjudication ; that even if Congress were properly constitu ted for such decisions, there was no hope of a final decision here ; some of these claims having been prosecuted before Congress 12 or 15 years one of which (Winter's) turned on the construction of a single word, wherein there was no sha dow of doubt as to the genuineness of the claim and in following-it up to obtain a decision, the original claimant died here in penury. He had no particular objec tion to the amendment, if it was thought best, though he had no doubt a general provision would have, of necessity, to be passed before long. Mr. Holmes, of Maine, contended that, for all those purposes, Congress was a court of justice, and an impartial court of justice, that it was as capable and as willing to do justice as any jury that Congress was not a party, but the umpire between a petitioner and the people though he professed the highest venera tion for the institution of the trial by ju- Mr. Johnson of Louisiana replied, that admitting Congress to he a competent and impartial tribunal, still their decision could not be final, as it could not divest a right, nor the individuals be deprived of a judicial trial ; so that, after wasting years on them, the individuals could resort to the courts; and it was expedient at once to refer these claims to the ultimate tri bunal ; concluding with some remarks on the claim of Maison Rouge, which lie be lieved, after a particular examination of the title, to be legal and complete. Mr. Mucon thought it was immaterial how this question was decided, as the special law would soon bring on a general one. As to the blame of delay, the delay in deciding cases arose often from the friends of petitioners, and there was just as much delay in the courts of justice as here ; the law's delay had become a toast. lie did not like this unjust blame of Congress. Pass the bill, and it would be for the rich only for the poor could not afford to go to law, much less to follow up a suit to the Supreme Court. The talk for some time had been, that the Court had more business than it could perform ; and it now was proposed to take business belonging pro perly to the legislature and throw it on the court. I lis ob jection was, it gave the rich two chances first here, and then in court. Mr. Eaton adverted to the great claims of "Win ter, Bastro, &.c. to shew the bad effects on the country in which they were situated, that arose from the delay to decide on them ; and he re viewed briefly the nature of these claims, to shew that they could not be adjusted so well, if ever adjusted at all, m Congress as by the Judi ciary. After eight days' debate, this claim was just where it was at first, and the sense of the Senate could not be conjectured. lie would not open the door to all claims, but refer those spe cifically which appeared to require and to justi fy it. Mr. Van Dyke had always deemed the right of petition one of the most valuable features in the government under which it was the happy lot of the American people to be cast ; and he was always ready to receive and pay due atten tion to all which were presented here. lie was opposed to a general reference, because it would he impossihle for any committee to examine and report on all of them at this season ; because the present case was now understood, the evidence before the Senate ; and, if an attempt were made to refer it, with others, to the Judiciary, it would certainly fail. lie argued at some length on dif ferent points bearing on the question. Mr. Smith thought the trial by jury the great palladium of the liberties and rights "of the peo ple, but not the proper tribunal for such cases as this. It belonged especially to Congress it was a part of the duties which they were sent here to perform therewas plenty of time for it, as there was no period fixed for an ad journment ; and he had no idea the session would close until ahout the second quarter of the moon in May. He spoke some time to shew the inexpediencv and danger to the public interest of referring those claims to the courts, and particularly a gainst the amendment offered to take the pres ent casealone. He deived the superior promp titude of the courts in deciding, where it was notorious that causes remained undetermined for ages, and w hole generations of parties passing away without obtaining a decision. The question being'taken on Mr. Van Dyke's amendment to 'confine the reference to the claim of Maison Rouge, it was carried Aves 26. Mr. Macon observed that, as this was the first time in which this principle was adopted by Con gress, he requested the ayes and noes on the question. The question was then taken on the proposi tion to refer the claim to the Judiciary, and de cided by yeas and nays, as follows : YEAS Messrs. Benton, Brown, of Lou. D v on, Laton, Inwards, "Elliott, Findlay, Gaillard, of nouncs, oi suss, jonnson, ot Kv. Johnson lmu. iving, ot a lab. Kingot N. Y.. Kniirht. f.lnvrf Lowne, Mills, Otis, Palmer, Parrott, Seymour, .uthard Stokes Talbot, Taylor, Thomas, Van Dyke, Vv ilhams of Miss. Williams of Tenn. 29. NAYS Messrs. Harbour, Barton, Boardman! Brown, of Ohio, Chandler, Dickerson, Holme, of Maine, Macon, Morril, Noble, Pleasants, Rod ney, Ruggles, Smith, Van Buren, "Walker. 16. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. On motion of Mr. McLane, it was Resolved, That the Committee on Naval Af fairs be instructed to inquire into the expedien cy of providing measures to prevent the destruc tion of the timber of the U. S. in Florida. Mr. Floyd remarked, that in consequence ot unofficial reports of the promulgation of an im perial ukase of the Autocrat of all the Russias, in relation to the western limits of the U. States, he begged leave to lay on the table the following resolution : liesolved, That the President of the U. States he requested to communicate to this House, whether any foreign government have made claims toanv part of the territory of the United States upon'thc coast of the Pacific Ocean north . of the 42d degree of latitude, and to w hat ex tent ; whether anv regulations have been made bv foreign powers affecting the trade on that coast, and how far it affects the interests of this republic, and whether any communications have been made to this government, by foreign 'pow ers, touching the contemplated occupation ot Columbia river. On motion of Mr. Saunders, of North Carolina, it was Jiesoh-ed, That a committee be appointed for the purpose of investigating the affairs of the Post Office Department, and that they have power to send for persons and papers. INTELLIGENCE. lie comes, the herald of a noisy world, News from all nations lumb'ring at his back. -ew-yotik, feb. 9. The ship Robert Fulton, Capt. Iloldridgc, arrived below last evening in 33 days from Liverpool, by which the Editor of the National Advocate has received regular files of London papers to the evening of the 4th of January, and the Liverpool Saturday's Advertis er of the 5th. RUSSIA AND TURKEY. An article contained in the Paris papers from Leipsic, and dated 17th December, states " the Russians had passed the Pruth, and that war had broken out." This statement is corroborated by letters from Utrecht, of the 23d December, in which it is said u that war has been formally de clared between Russia and Turkey, and that intelligence might be expected soon , to arrive of the first acts of hostility." There can be no doubt that the sword has been unsheathed. When it will be re stored to its scabbard, no one can tell. Considerable rise took place in the funds in London on the 3d January, in consequence of a rumour that the differ ences between Russia and the Porte had been adjusted. On this the Courier re marks, " there is not the least foundation for these reports. No such advices have been received." Accounts from Vienna of the 30th Dec mention the assassination of the Sultan, in an insurrection of . the Jannissaries ; but this afterwards appeared to be a stock jobbing rumour, as no such event had ta ken place. The Austrian and British Ambassadors are stated to have recom mended to the Divan the unqualified ac ceptance of the Russian ultimatum. But this the Sultan positively refused. He would not consent, he said, to the Greek church being reinstated till perfect tran quility was restored ; and as to Wallachia and Moldavia, he would never agree that they should be given up to be occupied either by Greeks or Russians. On being reminded, that war would be the conse quence of his refusal, he replied that the Turks could never be conquered with swords in their hands. Intelligence had been received from Genoa, that Lesser Wallachia had been evacuated by the Ottoman troops, and that the Turkish frontiers on the Austrian side were as unprovided with the means of de fence as in times of the most profound peace. Jassy had been entered by fresh troops belonging to the Porte, and the Russian artillery had crossed the Dnieper and advanced towards the Pruth.- Every thing indicated a most determined and bloody contest. Although the accounts of an insurrec tion at Constantinople appear to have been unfounded, it is certain that the most barbarous massacres of the Greeks had been renewed. " These excesses says the Courier, arc ascribed entirely to the sailors landed from the Turkish fleet which arrived from the Archipelago. They brought 30 Greek vessels in as prizes, and on their passing Seraglio Point, these barbarians hung on each yard- arm 3 or 4 Greeks, as trophies of victo ry ; the crews were afterward allowed to go on shore, where they were guilty of the greatest cruelties." The Paris pa pers, referring to these renewed cruelties, say, oil the authority of accounts from Vienna, that rivers of blood have flowed at Constantinople ; and it was even assert ed, though the account wanted confirma tion, that two Ambassadors had lost their lives. . SPAIN. The Cortes presented an address to the King of Spain on the 21st December, in which they implored him to dismiss his ministers, as a measure essential to the public tranquility. Ferdinand is stated to have returned a laconic answer, and to have promised to take the request into consideration. It was thought he would submit it to the council of state. His ministers are said to have tendered their resignations, but he had refused to accept them. It does not appear from the Span ish papers that the country is in that dis-
Western Carolinian (Salisbury, N.C.)
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