USA > Indiana > Knox County > Vincennes > History of Old Vincennes and Knox County, Indiana, Volume I > Part 22
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for the want of instruction in certain cases I thought would amount to a reflection on government as having no confidence in me. I resolved to usurp all the authority necessary to carry my points. I had the greater part of our troops re-enlisted on a different establishment-commissioned French officers in the country to command a company of the young in- habitants-established a garrison at Cahokia, commanded by Captain Bow- man ; and another at Kaskaskia, commanded by Captain Williams. Colonel William Linn, who had accompanied us a volunteer, took charge of a party that was to be discharged on their arrival at the Falls, and others were sent for the removal of that post to the main land. Colonel John Montgomery was despatched to government with letters." Continuing, Colonel Clark says :
"I again turned my attention to Post Vincennes. I plainly saw that it would be highly necessary to have an American officer at that post, Captain Leonard Helm appeared calculated to answer my purpose. He was past the meridian of life and a good deal acquainted with the Indian disposition. I sent him to command at that post, and also appointed him Agent for Indian Affairs in the Department of the Wabash, and about the middle of August he set out to take possession of his new command. An Indian chief called the Tobacco's Son, a Piankeshaw, at this time re- sided in a village adjoining Post Vincennes. This man was called by the Indians 'The Grand Door to the Wabash,' and as nothing of consequence was to be undertaken by the league on the Wabash without his assent, I discovered that to win him was an object of signal importance. I sent him a spirited compliment by Mr. Gibault: he returned it. I now, by Captain Helm, touched him on the same spring that I had done the inhabitants, and sent a speech, with a belt of wampum, directing Captain Helm how to manage, if the chief was pacifically inclined or otherwise. The captain arrived safe at Post Vincennes and was received with ac- clamations by the people. After the usual ceremony was over he sent for the 'Grand Door' and delivered my letter to him. After having read it, he informed the captain that he was happy to see him, one of the Big Knife chiefs, in his town-it was here he had joined the English against him; but he confessed that he always thought they looked gloomy; that as the contents of the letter was of great moment he could not give an answer for some time; that he must collect his counselors on the subject, and was in hopes the captain would be patient. In short, he put on all the courtly dignity that he was master of; and Captain Helm, following his example, it was several days before this business was finished, as the whole proceeding was very ceremonious. At length the captain was in- vited to the Indian council, and informed by Tobacco that they had ma- turely considered the case in hand, and had got the nature of the war between the English and us explained to their satisfaction; that, as we spoke the same language and appeared to be the same people, he always thought that he was in the dark as to the truth of it; but now the sky
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was cleared up; that he found the Big Knife was in the right; that per- haps if the English conquered they would serve them in the same manner that they intended to serve us; that his ideas were quite changed, and that he would tell all the red people on the Wabash to bloody the land no more for the English. He jumped up. struck his breast, called himself a man and a warrior, said that he was now a Big Knife and took Captain Helm by the hand. His example was followed by all present, and the evening was spent in merriment. Thus ended this valuable negotiation and the saving of much blood. * *
* In a short time almost the whole of the various tribes of the different nations on the Wabash, as high as the Quiatenon, came to Post Vincennes and followed the example of the 'Grand Door' chief; and as expresses were continually passing between Captain Helm and myself the whole time of these treaties, the business was settled perfectly to my satisfaction, and greatly to the advantage of the public."
Before the news of Clark's victory in the Illinois country had reached the Virginia authorities, the time of service of his troops had expired and every mother's son of them was anxious to go home. Thus was the courageous Virginian beset with a new difficulty, which really made his position one of imminent peril, and caused the high hopes he had builded for a final move against Detroit, after he had succeeded in capturing the southern towns forming the outposts of this formidable base of British operations, to become perceptibly shattered, although he revealed his feel- ings to but few friends. While he had received no direct information of the strength of the British forces at Detroit, he had no idea of march- ing against it with the small number of men he then had; but he feared by them returning home at this time it would make it more difficult for him to recruit later on a larger army in the localities whither they went. And, worst of all, he needed the men at this most critical time to carry out his campaign against Vincennes; and the condition which confronted him in this instance was one calling for the exercise of both strategy and diplomacy, prerequisites for which he was never lacking. "It was," he says, "with Difficulty that I could support that Dignity that was necessary to give my orders that force that was necessary, but by great preasants and promises I got about one hundred of my Detachment Enlisted for eight months, and to colour my staying with so few Troops I made a faint of returning to the Falls, as though I had sufficient confidence in the People, hoping that the Inhabitants would remonstrate against my leaving, which they did in the warmest terms. Then seemingly by their request I agreed to stay with two Companies of Troops, and that I hardly thought, as they alledged, that so many was necessary; but if more was wanted I could get them from the Falls, where they were made to believe there was a Considerable Garrison."
After having despatched the dissatisfied volunteers who refused to re- main with him, to the Falls, and delivering into their hands for extradition
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to Williamsburg the crest-fallen prisoner, Mr. Rochblave, Clark forwarded by special messenger a letter to Governor Henry "letting him know of my situation and the necessity of Troops in the Country," and determined on spending the winter at Kaskaskia. His "little army" had now been re- duced to merely a handful. His position was one of such distress that had he not been a man of undaunted courage, daring and determination he would have forsaken it. Removed by hundreds of miles from any post garrisoned by American soldiers, and being still further separated from the seat of government he was striving with unparalleled heroism to serve, knowing that it would be impossible for him to get reinforcements, or even advice or instruction, from Virginia for months to come, he made up his mind to "hold the fort" at any and all hazard. He recognized that a temporary relinquishment of the territory he had just acquired would result in it again falling into the hands of the British and forever destroy the plans he had formulated for the capture of Vincennes. Governor Henry had an abiding faith in Colonel Clark and had given him the privi- lege of exercising his own powers of discernment and descretion in every measure of a last resort, and it was Clark's aim to hold on to what he had acquired at the sacrifice of his life. Few, if any, men could have main- tained the position that Clark did. It is doubtful whether any other man could have counciled so successfully with and subdued so completely the treacherous and warlike Indians with whom he was called upon to treat. In spite of the fact that the dusky warriors were coached by the Britons, Clark's knowledge of the nature of the red people enabled him to pacify and win them over by the adoption of measures as phenomenal in results as they were bold and courageous in character.
There was one man at least in all the Illinois country to whom Clark knew he could look for aid-Father . Gibault. The magnanimous con- queror had been given assurance of the good priest's friendship after tell- ing him that American soldiers had nothing to do with churches further than to defend them all alike from insult; that in the eyes of the laws of Virginia the Catholic church had as great privileges as any other, and for the priest to assemble his flock in the little church as often as he wished. Clark had also been given unmistakable evidence of Father Gibault's loyalty by the impressive manner in which he had told his parishioners of the alli- ance formed between France and America in the prosecution of war against the British, and the earnestness with which he exhorted them, both at Kaskaskia and Cahokia, to espouse the cause of Virginia. And, at the mere suggestion from Clark, the holy man gave the Virginian all the aid possible in filling the ranks of his depleted troops with young French re- cruits, until, as Clark observes, "the different Companies soon got Com- pleat." While the undaunted Colonel was much elated in thus having the gaps in his lines closed up, it brought him, nevertheless, additional difficulties. His situation and weakness, he says, convinced him that more depended on his own behavior and conduct than all the troops he could raise-so
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far removed from the seat of the government he was serving, located among French and Spaniards, and surrounded on every side by numerous bands of savages who were just as liable to become favorably as well as unfavorably impressed with his actions, with the result of leaving lasting effects of good or evil. But he persevered, and tells how he went about it : "Strict subordination among my troops was my first object, and I soon effected it. Our Troops being all Raw and undissiplined You must be sensible of the pleasure I felt when harrangueing them on Perade, Telling them my Resolutions, and the necessity of strict duty for our own pres- ervation, &c. For then to return me for answer, that it was their zeal for their Country that induced them to engage in the Service, that they were sencible of their situation and Danger; that nothing could conduce more to their safety and happiness, than good order, which they would try to adhere to, and hoped that no favour would be shown those that would niglict it. In a short time perhaps no Garrison could boast of better order or a more Valuable set of Men."*
St. Louis, then a hamlet of little consequence, was the home of Don Francisco de Leyba, Lieutenant-Governor of Louisiana, the business part- ner of Colonel Vigo. Clark sought to cultivate the friendship of all the Spaniards with whom he came in contact, and, on account of de Leyba's official prominence, nerved himself in order to make proper advances for the purpose towards that individual. The first meeting between the two, which occurred at Cahokia, seems to have been mutually agreeable to both, inasmuch as it subsequently led Colonel Clark to assert that as he "was never before in company with any Spaniard Gent I was much surprised in my expectations; for instead of finding that reserve thought peculiar to that Nation, I here saw not the least symptoms of it; freedom almost to excess gave the greatest pleasure." How well Clark succeeded in his advances to gain the sympathies and good will of other subjects of Spain is disclosed in his letter to Governor Henry, which relates that "our friends, the Spaniards, are doing everything in their power to convince me of their friendship."
In the preceding chapter mention is made of Clark's conduct towards the Indians, who came from far and near to treat with him while he was in the Illinois country, and especially has reference been made to a mem- orable conference held at Cahokia, which was attended by warriors repre- senting every Indian nation between the Northern Lakes and the Mis- sissippi river. These conferences began about the last of August and con- tinued for five or six weeks. On the second day of the great council Clark delivered a speech, in reply to the speeches of several chiefs who had spoken the day before-and while it may be a slight digression, and a repetition of a few phrases heretofore quoted, to introduce in full his remarks here, they will, nevertheless, be acceptable to the reader as show-
* Reuben Gold Thwaites, How George Rogers Clark Won the Northwest, p. 36, 37.
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ing more clearly the great Indian fighter's method of handling his red- skinned subjects-friends and foes. He said :
"Men and warriors! pay attention to my words. You informed me yesterday that the Great Spirit had brought urs together, and that you hoped, as he was good, that it would be for good. I have also the same hope, and expect that each party will strictly adhere to whatever may be agreed upon-whether it be peace or war-and hence- forth prove ourselves worthy of the attention of the Great Spirit. I am a man and a warrior-not a counsellor. I carry war in my right hand, and in my left, peace. I am sent by the Great Council of the Big Knife, and their friends, to take posses- sion of all the towns possessed by the English in this country; and to watch the motions of the Red People; to bloody the paths of those who attempt to stop the course of the river; but to clear the roads from us to those who desire to be in peace -that the women and children may walk in them without meeting anything to strike their feet against. I am ordered to call upon the Great Fire for warriors enough to darken the land, and that the Red People may hear no sound, but of birds that live on blood. I know there is a mist before your eyes. I will dispell the clouds that you may clearly see the cause of the war between the Big Knives and the English, then you may judge, for yourselves, which party is in the right; and if you are warriors, as you profess to be, prove it by adhering faithfully to the party which you shall believe to be entitled to your friendship, and do not show yourselves to be squaws.
"The Big Knives are very much like the Red People; they don't know how to make blankets, and powder, and cloth. They buy these things from the English from whom they are sprung. They live by making corn, hunting, and trade, as you, and your neighbors, the French, do. But the Big Knives, daily getting more numerous, like the trees in the woods, the land became poor, and hunting scare; and having but little to trade with, the women began to cry at seeing their children naked, and tried to learn how to make clothes for themselves. They soon made blankets for the hus- bands and children, and the men learned to make guns and powder. In this way we did not want to buy so much from English. They then got mad with us, and sent strong garrisons through our country; as you see they have done among you on the lakes, and among the French. They would not let our women spin, nor our men make powder; nor let us trade with anybody else. The English said we should hy every- thing from then ; and, since we had got suasy, we should give two bucks for a blanket, which we used to get for one; we should do as they pleased, and they killed some of our people, to make the rest fear them. This is the truth, and the real cause of the war between the English and us, which did not take place for some time after this treatment.
"But our women became cold and hungry and continued to cry. Our young men got lost for want of counsel to put them in the right path. The whole land was dark. The old men held down their heads for shame, because they could not see the sun; and thus there was mourning for many years over the land. At last the Great Spirit took pity on us, and kindled a Great Council Fire, that never goes out, at a place called Philadelphia. He then stuck down a post and put a war tomahawk by it, and went away. The sun immediately broke out; the sky was blue again, and the old men held up their heads and assembled at the fire. They took up the hatchet, sharpened it, and put it into the hands of our young men, ordering them to strike the English as long as they could find one on this side of the great waters. The young men im- mediately struck the war post, and blood was shed. In this way the war began; and the English were driven from one place to another, until they got weak; and then they hired you Red People to fight for them. The Great Spirit got angry at this, and caused your old father, the French King, and other great nations, to join the Big Knives and fight with them against all their enemies. So the English have become like deer in the woods; and you may see that it is the Great Spirit that has caused your waters
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to be troubled, because you have fought for the people he was mad with. If your women and children should now cry, you must blame yourself for it, and not the Big Knives.
"You can now judge who is in the right. I have already told you who I am. Here is a bloody belt, and a white one; take which you please. Behave like men, and don't let your being surrounded by the Big Knives cause you to take up the one belt with your hands, while your hearts take up the other. If you take the bloody path you shall leave the town in safety, and may go and joun your friends, the English. We will then try, like warriors, who can put the most stumbling blocks in each other's way, and keep our clothes longest stained with blood. If, on the other hand, you should take the path of peace, and be received as brothers to the Big Knives, with their friends, the French, should you then listen to bad birds that may be flying through the land, you will no longer deserve to be counted as men, but as creatures with two tongues, that ought to be destroyed without listening to anything you might say. As I am convinced you never heard the truth before, I do not wish you to answer before you have taken time to counsel. We will, therefore, part this evening; and when the Great Spirit shall bring us together again, let us speak and think like men with but one heart and one tongue."
The speeches of Clark to the Indians, which were delivered frequently, without effort or study, eventually convinced the red people that the Big Knives were in the right; that the Indians would be subjected to the same treatment as the Big Knives by the English if the latter were not prevented from building forts and increasing the number of their soldiers in the red man's country. They, therefore, accepted the belt of peace, and promised their loyal support to the Big Knives; and at the conclusion of the council the Piankeshaws, Ouiatenons, Kickapoos, Illinois, Kaskaskias, Peorias, Chippewas, Ottawas, Pottawattomies, Puans, Sacs, Foxes, Sayges, Tau- ways and Maumees signed articles of peace.
Colonel Clark was holding his own in the Illinois country against many difficulties, but he met every emergency with such determination that his demeanor, outwardly, was that of confidence and composure rather than of doubt and anxiety. While he was conferring with the Indians his communication to Governor Henry, relative to the success of his expedition in the Illinois country, conveying the important intelligence that the French inhabitants of Kaskaskia, Cahokia and Vincennes, had taken the oath of allegiance to Virginia, had not yet reached the chief executive of that State. Soon after receiving the message, however, the Governor put its contents before the General Assembly of the Old Dominion with the re- sult that in an act passed by that honorable body in October, 1778, pro- vision was made that "all citizens of the Commonwealth of Virginia who are already settled, or shall hereafter settle, on the western side of the Ohio, shall be included in a district county, which shall be called Illinois county : and the Governor of this Commonwealth, with the advice of the Council, may appoint a County Lieutenant, or Commander-in-Chief in that county, during pleasure, who shall appoint and commission so many Deputy Commandants, Militia officers and Commissaries, as he shall think proper in the different districts, during pleasure; all of whom, before they
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enter into office, shall take the oath of fidelity to this Commonwealth, and the oath of office according to the form of their own religion. And all civil officers to which the inhabitants have been accustomed, necessary for the preservation of the peace, and the administration of justice, shall be chosen by a majority of the citizens in their respective districts, to be convened for that purpose by the County Lieutenant, or Commandant, or his Deputy, and shall be commissioned by the said County Lieutenant or Commandant- in-Chief."
At this stage of the great drama of change a new character appeared, and prevented any provisions of the law above set forth being carried into execution at this time. The character referred to was Henry Hamilton, who bore also the ignominious title of the "Hair-Buyer General." Hamilton was the British Lieutenant-Governor of Detroit and acquired the appella- tion of "Hair-Buyer General" from the fact that he incited the Indians to raid the exposed and unprotected settlements of the American frontiers, which necessarily led to the taking of scalps of the defenseless settlers and subjecting them to all the indignities and atrocities that savage and fiend- ish natures could suggest. The fame of the "Hair-Buyer General" was known to Clark and the Kentuckians long before the Illinois expedition was undertaken, and the name of Hamilton had become a stench in the nostrils of all self-respecting people in the Northwest Territory before the blood-thirsty Briton's triumphant entry therein. Governor Abbott, who preceded him, discountenanced his policies-his barbarous treatment of American settlers-and wrote to the Governor of Canada that they were working an irreparable injury to the cause of His Britannic Majesty in this country. Hamilton claimed that in inciting Indian raids on the borders, by which helpless women and innocent children were made to suffer the most horrible indignities, he was simply executing orders received from his superior officers. Mr. Bancroft, the historian, says as much. But Governor Abbott intimates that Hamilton went beyond his instructions; that he was the instigator of policies which led to events "too shocking to dwell upon." Mr. English, unlike many of his contemporaries, places all blame on Hamilton for these Indian outrages, and scorns his pretentions that "all parties going to war (meaning the Indians, in this instance) were exhorted to act with humanity." Mr. English says: "The idea of giving arms and ammunition to savages raiding a frontier, coupled with an ad- monition that they were to be linmane and behave well, is absurd. Hamil- ton must have known perfectly well that Indians were strangers to humanity on such occasions, and that to 'behave well' in their estimation, meant to take as many scalps as possible. To furnish arms and ammunition, and to encourage Indians by presents and otherwise to make raids upon the frontier settlements, meant the practice of every enormity savage ingenn- ity could devise, and there was but little difference discernible between the guilt of the actual perpetrators and those who sent the Indians on such expeditions. Thomas Jefferson believed there was no difference. Referring
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to the subject, he said 'he who employs another to do a deed of an assassin, or murderer, himself becomes the assassin or murderer.' These raids, in- stigated or encouraged by Hamilton, soon brought legitimate results, and his own admissions show the falsity of the pretense that they were con- ducted with humanity. He wrote General Carleton, early in 1778, that the Indians had 'brought in seventy-three prisoners alive, twenty of which they presented to me, and one hundred and twenty-nine scalps,' and on the 16th of September of that year he wrote to General Haldimand, who in the meantime had succeeded Carleton as Governor, that 'since last May the Indians in this district have taken thirty-four prisoners, seventeen of which they delivered up, and eighty-one scalps, several prisoners taken and adopted not reckoned in this number.' Eighty-one scalps and thirty-four prisoners show the kind of humanity practiced by Hamilton's Indians. That Hamilton was guilty of encouraging these Indian expeditions is mani- fest, and mere pretty speeches about favoring humanity could not relieve him of the odium of the usual savagery of such raids. Hence the ani- mosity of Clark and the Americans towards him was natural, and not at all surprising."
General Haldimand, in writing to Hamilton under date of August 26, 1778, says: "The expediency of supporting the Ouabash Indians is very evident and I can not therefore but approve of such steps as you shall find necessary to take for this purpose. And I must observe that, from the great expense to which government had been put for the Indians in general, it might be expected that some of them might be induced to un- dertake expeditiously to clear all the Illinois of these invaders.
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