USA > Illinois > St Clair County > Cahokia > Cahokia records, 1778-1790 > Part 12
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in the southern village; for the inhabitants of the villages were of the same origin, and their experience had been practically identical except for the few years of the Virginia period.
We have already seen that many traders came into the Illinois in the spring of 1779 and others had followed them. Besides these several soldiers of the Virginia line made permanent settle- ments in the neighborhood. 'In the summer of 1779, Montgomery permitted a number of families to settle, "up the creek about thirty miles," and this probably marks the date of the beginning of Bellefontaine, the first village of Americans north of the Ohio River.1 In 1781, after the abandonment of Fort Jefferson, several families which had established themselves around that post came to Kaskaskia and some two years later made a stockade at Grand Ruisseau, which was under the bluffs at the point where the road from Cahokia to Kaskaskia mounts the hills.2 The leading men in these settlements were James Moore, Henry and Nicolas Smith, Shadrach Bond, and Robert Watts. The number of Americans scattered on the bluffs, in the villages, and on the bottom was over one hundred, most of whom were in or around Kaskaskia.3
If order was to be maintained, it was essential that these scattered communities should be brought into some relations with the courts of the French villages. On July 9, 1782, while the the justices were still holding sessions, fourteen of the Americans at Bellefontaine petitioned the court at Kaskaskia that they be permitted to maintain a subordinate court in their village and that either some one should be appointed justice of the peace or they should be allowed to elect one from among themselves to that office; and they expressed a desire to live under the laws of the county and to be united with the other villages. This petition was granted and an election was held, in which Nicolas Smith received ten votes and James Garretson five. The certificate of election
1 Montgomery to Clark, Dr. MSS., 49J74.
2 Reynold, My Own Times, 59.
3 In a contract with Tardiveau in the summer of that year, there are 130 signatures of Americans.
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INTRODUCTION
was written by James Moore, who signed himself captain.1 The organization of the village of Grand Ruisseau did not take place till the year 1786. Since it was in the district of Cahokia, the petition was sent to the court sitting in the village of that name. On January 2d the Americans were permitted to elect a comman- dant, subordinate to the commandant of Cahokia, and to name arbitrators to decide disputes, but they were to remain subject to the jurisdiction of the court. Robert Watts was appointed commandant .? It was not until the next year that Grand Ruisseau received a justice; but, since the permission to elect such an officer was dependent on of events which occurred in Kaskaskia, the account will be postponed to the proper place.3
The submissiveness of the Americans to the Kaskaskia court did not last long and in their attempt to gain the control of the government, after the abolition of that body by Winston, confusion and disorder reached a climax; and anarchy was made more complete by the drunkenness, insubordination, and lawlessness of the French coureur de bois and the voyageurs.
Affairs were further complicated by the presence of British merchants, who had rushed into the region to capture the Indian trade. The Michillimackinac company, which had a store at Cahokia, was particularly conspicuous in this competition. The British were able to undersell the inhabitants in their commerce with the Indians and, since this deprived the villagers of a trade which they thought rightfully belonged to them, it was the cause of several complaints.4 All the British who appeared in the West were not simply traders. The British government, which looked with covetous eyes on these rich lands, sent agents into all parts to report on the disposition of the people. Some of these, al- though not authorized by their government, openly urged the French people to unite with England, an issue out of their
1 Kas. Rec., Pol. Papers.
2 See post, p. 217.
3 See post, p. cxlviii.
4 Papers of Old Cong., xxx., 453, xl., 113; Smith, St. Clair Papers, ii., 174; Edgar to Clark, Dr. MSS., 53J55.
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troubles which would not have been altogether unacceptable to the Illinoisans.1
Over this turbulent population the Canadian nobleman, Jac- ques Timothe Boucher Sieur de Monbreun, had been appointed governor by Winston. He had been born in Boucherville about thirty-six years before. While still a young man, he had sought his fortune in the West and established himself at Vincennes. He there won the confidence of Lieutenant Governor Abbott during the latter's short stay in the village and was employed by him as a confidential messenger.2 He had readily united with the people of Vincennes in acknowledging the sovereignty of Vir- ginia, influenced by the persuasive eloquence of Father Gibault. He was appointed lieutenant in the militia of the village, and was one of the officers captured by Hamilton, when the British retook the place.3 De Monbreun later enlisted in the Illinois battalion and received the commission of lieutenant, a position he held with honor until the fall of 1782, when the necessities of his family compelled him to ask for his discharge and pay. His letters to Clark show him to have been a man proud of his lineage and with a sensitiveness in matters of honor.4
Exactly what his party affiliations were, previous to his ap- pointment, it is impossible to say. He was connected by marriage with the Bauvais family. He ran for office in 1782 and received only one vote. His appointment as deputy county lieutenant would indicate a close relation to Winston, particularly as the other official appointed at this time, the clerk Langlois, is known to have been of that party; yet his service in the army would show some association with the military party, with which Winston does not appear to have been on the best of terms; and his later actions connect him closely with John Dodge. Every-
1 Papers of Old Cong., xli., 113; Smith, St. Clair Papers, ii., 101; this vol., p. 571; Mc- Laughlin, "The Western Posts and the British Debts," in Annual Report of Amer. Hist. Assn., 1894, p. 413; Winsor, Westward Movement, 373; Green, Spanish Conspiracy, ch. xviii.
2 Can. Archives, B., 122, p. 103; Tanguay, Dict. Gencalogique, i., 71, 73, ii., 383, 388.
3 Can. Archives, B., 122, p. 234.
4 Letters and certificates of De Monbreun, Dr. MSS., 51J24-26; 50J70.
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INTRODUCTION
thing considered, it is probable that his appointment was not favored by the French party.
On January 8, 1783, Winston issued to him the commission of deputy county lieutenant and gave him the following instruc- tions for his guidance: "On every occasion that shall offer to claim your protection in behalf of the people as well as to support the cause of the States, you will act in concert with the oldest inhabitants in order to consider jointly with them the most proper measures to take concerning the affairs which may arise.
"For your direction I cannot direct you to a better guide than the 'Code of Laws and Articles of Right' which his Excellency the Governor has sent and which ought to be in the office of the court. These you will consult from time to time and mitigate as much as possible by the old customs and usages of this country. By adding to this your knowledge of jurisprudence you cannot fall into error.
"Aş there is nothing else which occurs to me to call to your attention, I rely on your prudence and experience as to unforeseen cases. I wish for you a better success in preserving peace than I have had."1
The wish was almost ironical, for the conditions in Kaskaskia were growng steadily worse rather than better, and for this Win- ston was in part to blame. On account of the discontinuance of the sessions of the court through Winston's act, the deputy county lieutenant no longer had the moral support of the best citizens for the preservation of order. For the next few years De Monbreun was generally the only judge and at times he is satisfied to sign this less pretentious title to his name; but the petitions were addressed to him as county lieutenant. It is evident that the government in Kaskaskia had reverted to the older French type, wherein executive and judicial functions were exercised by one man. That there was a great deal of judicial business carried on is proved by the numerous petitions and other legal documents. The notary, Langlois, also found something to do, as is shown by the inventory of instruments drawn up by
1 Enclosure in Memorial of Timothe de Monbreun, Va. State Lib.
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him. In 1783 there were indexed eighty-five titles and in the next year, eighty-seven.1 In the year 1784, for a short time, Aimé Compte, the last president of the former court, reappeared and styled himself, "judge in the village and district of Kaskaskia". In a petition of June 16, there is mention of "De Monbreun, the late commandant". It is possible that this marks some political upheaval which for a time overthrew the deputy lieutenant. This may have been due to the assertion of the rights of the district against the village, for Aimé Compte was from Prairie du Rocher; but if that is the explanation, the revolution was not successful, for De Monbreun's activities as governor and judge can be traced up to the latter half of the year 1786.2
Besides attending to the legal affairs of the district, De Mon- breun managed to maintain peaceful relations with the Indians. Raids were becoming more frequent and dangerous during these years. The county lieutenant held several conferences with the savages as did the commandants of the other villages. He spent the public money and private funds, furnished by himself and the militia officers, to satisfy their demands. By these means a partial treaty was effected, which in a measure protected the Illinois country.3
He was also called upon to maintain the honor of the United States against the infringement of her rights by Spain. In 1785 two deserters from St. Louis took refuge in American Illinois. Cruzat, the commandant of St. Louis, seized these upon the soil of the United States and carried them back to the Spanish village. The action of De Monbreun in the case shows him at his best. In a very dignified letter, dated October 12th, he pointed out to the Spanish governor of New Orleans the illegality of the act and the insult which had been offered to the United States.4 On the whole, however, the relations between the officials of the Spanish possessions and those of the Illinois were most friendly.
1 Kas. Rec., Inventory.
2 Kas. Rec., Petitions; Amer. State Papers, Pub. Lands, ii., 206.
3 Memorial of De Monbreun, Va. State Lib .; Mason, John Todd's Record-Book, 315. In this last the date has been transcribed incorrectly or some other error has been made, for De Monbreun had no civil office in February, 1782.
4 Memorial of De Monbreun, Va. State Lib.
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INTRODUCTION
Many letters passed between them on a variety of subjects, generally of a legal character. In fact, it was the policy of Spain at this time to propitiate the French and the Americans of the West, in order to persuade them either to revolt against the United States and unite with the Spanish colonies or to emigrate to the western bank. There has been preserved an interesting letter, the motive of which must be found in this policy. Shortly before the episode of the Spanish deserters, Cruzat wrote to De Monbreun that the merchants of American Illinois might have the protection of the Spanish convoy in sending down their mer- chandise to New Orleans.1
Where De Monbreun failed in his government was where Todd and Winston had failed before him, namely in preserving peace between the factions. In his memorial to Virginia he has re- corded the policy which he adopted, "in quieting the animosities between the French Natives and American Settlers." He writes : "Without troops to oppose the hostile designs of the savages, without any coercive means to keep under subjection a country where a number of restless spirits were exciting commotions and troubles, the greater circumspection and management became necessary, and the Commandant was induced to temporize with all parties in order to preserve tranquillity, peace, and harmony in the country."2
The temporizing of De Monbreun meant that he permitted the American settlers, who had found in John Dodge a leader of force and ability, to control the village. These men understood better than the French the anomalous position of Illinois-no longer a part of Virginia and not yet under the control of the United States - and took advantage of it. Many of them had obtained con- cessions of land from the court and many more from De Mon- breun, who was particularly free-handed in making grants.3 It is very probable that the Kaskaskia government was not strong enough to deny or limit such concessions. A good example of
1 Memorial of De Monbreun, Va. State Lib.
2 Ibid.
3 Smith, St. Clair Papers, ii., 169.
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the illegal occupation of land is offered by the case of this same John Dodge. He seized the old French fort on the bluffs, and fortified it with building materials and two cannon from the Jesuit building, known as Fort Clark, and was prepared from this vantage ground to defy what was left of the civil government in the village; for the site commanded the defenseless community below.1 For this seizure of public property there was not the slightest authority, but no one dared to oppose the act. Dodge was so audacious and the fort so favorably situated that his influence was unquestioned in the village, and both the deputy county lieutenant and the people were compelled to do his bidding .?
He was far more successful than Winston in building up a party among the French by persuasion and intimidation. One of the former judges, Nicolas Lachance, became his chief supporter, and several of the others appeared ready to follow his lead. From the glimpses we obtain of the French people, they appear to have acknowledged the supremacy of the strongest and to have cringed in a most unmanly manner before the energetic American, or as a writer to Congress at a later time says: "But seeing they could not give any information of their unfortunate condition and consequently obtain any redress, they began the most shame- full slavery, by flattering their Tyrant and serving him in the most humiliating manner."3 Dodge, in turn, bullied the people, struck them with his sword, insulted them, and fought with them.4
w5 1 Papers of Old Cong., xlviii., 19; this vol., p. 569. The occupation of the fort on the bluffs by Dodge caused the old fort in the Jesuit building, which was known as Fort Gage under the British and Fort Clark under the Virginians, to be forgotten, and the villagers came to speak of the former as the fort, so that men like Mann Butler and John Reynolds, coming later to Kaskaskia, supposed that it was the Fort Gage captured by Clark in 1778 and thus caused a controversy, curious if not very profitable, over the site of the fort and Clark's maneuvers. (Butler, Hist. of. Kentucky, 52; Reynolds, Pioneer Hist., 72; for the history of controversy, see Winsor, Nar. and Crit. Hist., vi., 719, note I.)
2 Papers of Old Cong., xxx., 463; xlviii., 19.
3 Ibid, xlviii., 13.
4 The fullest information in regard to Dodge is contained in the petitions to Congress of the year 1787. These were written by that faction of the French party which remained un- reconciled after the visit to Kaskaskia of Colonel Harmar. (See post, p. cxxxvii.) The writers were Father de la Valiniere and the clerk, Pierre Langlois. They exhibit such hostility and animosity against Dodge that their testimony should be suspected, were not some of the facts mentioned by them supported by other witnesses. Governor St. Clair wrote in 1790 that: "The Illinois regiment being disbanded a set of men pretending the authority of Virginia, embodied themselves and a scene of general depdreation and plunder ensued." (Amer. State Papers, Pub. Lands, i., 20.) The whole French party united on June 2, 1786, in a petition to Congress in which they made charges against Dodge similar to those of De
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INTRODUCTION
The people found difficulty in making their condition known; for Dodge was powerful and had many friends, so that his story was generally believed. He himself drew up a petition to Congress in June, 1784, asking that Illinois be created an independent state, and found seventeen French inhabitants to sign it, most of whom belonged to the least intelligent of the community ; eight were unable to sign their names, one was a woman, and of the other eight, only four had held office. They were not even all from Kaskaskia; one was an inhabitant of Vincennes, and the names of several .of the others do not appear in any list of French inhabitants of the Illinois. The other signatures were those of Americans.1 The French party, a few months later, appointed Major Lebrun called Belcour to present their griev- ances to Congress. Petitions were prepared in both Cahokia and Kaskaskia, but Dodge "prophetsyed, concerning him, be certain he shall never bear the west coat that he asketh." This prophesy was fulfilled, for the bearer of the petitions was killed on his way east near the Falls of the Ohio.2 A copy of the peti- tion from Cahokia finally reached Congress, but not until it had been somewhat disguised and changed.3
Dodge maintained his ascendency in the village until 1786, in which year the inhabitants became thoroughly aroused and finally succeeded in overthrowing this representative of "Greek tyranny." The initial impetus to this action probably came from George Rogers Clark, who had always entertained a poor opinion of Dodge. In a letter he wrote to Congress in May, recommending that body to establish a government in the
la Valiniere but without so many details. (Papers of Qld Cong., xli., 113; see post, p. cxxx) In the placard of Commissioner Janis (See post, p. 495) there is an unmistakable reference to the seizure of building material from Fort Clark. In the record of the court held by De Mon- breun the influence of Dodge is very evident and that in a case mentioned by De la Valiniere. (Kas. Rec., Court Record). Several papers in a suit brought by Madame Bentley against Dodge, give witness of his violence. (Kas. Rec.) There should be added to these the succession of events which occurred after the departure of Dodge and his later attack on John Edgar. (See post, p. cxlii.) For these reasons it seems proper to accept the testimony of the leaders of the smaller faction as that which would have been given by the prominent Frenchmen at an earlier date, had they had occasion to write about the same events.
1 Papers of Old Cong., xxx., 435.
2 Ibid, xlviii., 19.
3 See post, pp. 567 et seq.
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Illinois, he says that he had advised the French to revive their former magistracy.1 There is nothing to show, however, that any steps were taken in Kaskaskia at that time; but an opportunity was afforded shortly afterwards by the presence of Joseph Parker to send a communication to Congress.2 On the 2nd of June a very earnest petition was drawn up asking for an immediate govern- ment, because of the wrongs the inhabitants were suffering from the British merchants, who threatened to take the country under the law of that nation, and who were supported by John Dodge and Nicolas Lachance. These last had made themselves com- mandants and were acting most tyrannically.3 With this petition they sent a copy of the one which had been written by the Caho- kians in 1784, but which had never reached its destination. This was now somewhat altered so as to give it the appearance of being also directed against Dodge.4 .
The petition from the French party was read in Congress on the 23d of August and caused that body to change its action, after it had supposed that two petitions from the French had already been considered. The first had been presented by Carbonneaux, former clerk and follower of Richard Winston, and had asked for some one with powers to govern;5 the second was the petition prepared by Dodge on June 22, 1784, which, being accompanied by a letter from the county lieutenant, De Monbreun, had an official appearance. Action had been taken on these two in February and March, 1785, and it had been decided to send a commissioner to investigate titles, to have magistrates elected, and to reform the militia; but for some reason no commissioner was sent." On December 28, 1788, three years later, the secretary called the attention of Congress to this omission, but the needs, for which the commissioner was to have been appointed, had already
1 Papers of Old Cong., Ivi., 279.
2 I have found nothing concerning Parker.
3 Papers of Old Cong., xli., 113.
+ See post, p. 569.
5 Papers of Old Cong., xxx., 453.
6 Ibid, xxx, 431., 483
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INTRODUCTION
been supplied by the ordinance of 1787 and the appointment of Governor St. Clair.1
Upon the receipt of this third petition, Congress instructed its secretary to inform the inhabitants that "Congress have un- der their consideration the plan of a temporary government and that its adoption would not be longer protracted than the import- ance of the subject and a due regard to their interest may require."2 In accordance with instructions the secretary sent the message, employing as messenger the same Parker by whom the Kaskaskians had sent their petition.
During this critical period the French party received an impor- tant addition. For some years the only priest in the region had been Father Gibault, whose assistance to Clark has made his name so well known in the West. He had taken up his permanent residence in Vincennes, and therefore the churches in the American Bottom were neglected.3 Gibault had been sent by the bishop of Quebec, and his right to exercise his duties still rested on that earlier appointment. But now the Catholic Church of the United States had received a head in the person of the Prefect- Apostolic John Carroll, whose jurisdiction was extended to the Mississippi valley. The first priest sent by him to this district was the wandering Carmelite, Father St. Pierre, who undertook the charge of the parish in Cahokia in 1785 and continued there until 1789.4 Sometime in the summer of 1786 the Rev. Pierre Huet de la Valiniere arrived at Kaskaskia with an appointment as vicar general of the Illinois.5 He was the kind of man needed to draw the French out of the stupid timidity into which they had
1 Papers of Old Cong., clxxx., 11.
2 Journals of Congress, iv., 688.
3 Shea, Archbishop Carroll, 469.
4 Ibid, 272; this volume, pp. 630, n. 78, 259, 269, 393.
5 Amer. Cath. Hist. Researches, New Ser., ii., No. 3. In this magazine the editor, Mr. Griffin, has published the most important papers on the life of De la Valiniere, where may be found the various disputes between him and the other priests. It is impossible to dis- cuss them here, but Gibault claimed to be vicar general under his appointment by the bishop of Quebec and was unwilling to acknowledge the superiority of the new appointee. The matter was peaceably adjusted by the Canadian bishop withdrawing his jurisdiction from this region. (Shea, Archbishop Carroll, 466.) De la Valiniere entered into a dispute with Father St. Pierre also, but the latter was supported by the Cahokians, who appealed to the bishop of Quebec.
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fallen. By nature he was impulsive and erratic, but full of en- thusiasm for any cause to which he had given himself. In the year 1779 he had been expelled from Canada for his open espousal of the American cause;1 later he came to the United States and served at Philadelphia and at New York. He was now sent to a region where his peculiar talents would have an immediate effect, and, since the French regarded him as a representative of the United States, to which the Illinois now belonged, his advice carried great weight.2 It was undoubtedly his example and inspiration that encouraged the French to continue their resis- tance to the tyranny of Dodge.
Before the return of the messenger who had carried their petition to Congress the French people had themselves taken steps to gain control of their civil government. They first brought about, in July, the appointment of Maturin Bouvet of St. Philippe as civil and criminal judge. On August 14th Timothe de Mon- breun, who had supported Dodge, resigned his office of deputy county lieutenant and appointed in his place a man who had consistently supported the French party, Jean Baptiste Barbau of Prairie du Rocher.3 It is noticeable that neither of the two newly appointed officers was a Kaskaskian.
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