USA > Pennsylvania > Colonial records of Pennsylvania, Vol. VI > Part 20
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" Honoured Sir, Your very humble Servt.,
*
"DAN. CLAUS."
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A Letter from John Harris to Mr Peters. "PHILADA., October 29th, 1754.
% Sir ?
" On the first of this Instant Monacatootha and Several Others, the Chiefs of the Six Nations, came to my house and brought the half King and his Family along with them, who were in General in a very low Condition, particularly himself, who died in a few days, after which I asked Monacatootha and others where they chused to bury him and in what Manner, or if they wanted any thing Neces- sary for his funeral; their Answer was that they looked upon him to be like one of our Selves, and as he dicd among us we might bury him as we thought proper; that if he was buried well it would . be very good, which I did much to their Satisfaction. Immediately after Monacatootha and the Chiefs Set of for Aughquick, leaving the half King's family and Relations under my Care (saying that in some short time there should some horses and Indians come down for them, weh. they have not yet done, and I have been at Expences for their Provissions and his Funeral; my Account I shall send down, which I hope you'll be pleas'd to lay before the Assembly. I shall continue to give his Family necessary Provissions till they Remove, & I should be satisfied how soon that might be). I con- clude, Sir, your Most obedient & most Humble Serv.,
" JOHN HARRIS."
Then the Governour offer'd to the Council for their Judgment a Draught that he had prepared of a Speech to the Assembly, which being read, and after some Alterations approved, a Message was sent to the House by the Secretary ordering their Attendance in the Council Chamber ; and on the Speaker's coming with the House the Governor delivered the Speech in these Words :
" Mr. Speaker and Gentlemen of the Assembly :
" As you are now met for the Dispatch of Business I think it my Duty to remind you of what I said at the Opening of the last Sitting, and to lay before you a Letter I have since received from Sir Thomas Robinson, one of his Majesty's principal Secretaries of State, signifying to me 'His Majesty's express Commands that I should not only act vigorously in Defence of the Government under my Care, but that I should likewise be aiding and assisting his Majesty's other Colonies to repel any hostile Attempts made against them.'
" At the Time of writing that Letter, on the Fifth of July last, His Majesty and His Ministers were only informed that the French had drove some of the Virginia Troops from a Place on Ohio at the Mouth of Mohongialo and were erecting a Fort there ; and you will observe they think those Advantages gained by the French 'might have been in a great Measure if not totally prevented if every one
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of His Majesty's Governments had exerted themselves according to the Directions in the Earl of Holderness' Letter of the Twenty- eighth of August.'
"You are sensible that many Things have happened since the Retreat from the Forks of Mohongialo that have put our Affairs upon the Frontiers in a very bad Situation, much worse than His Majesty and His Ministers have any Knowledge of, or than they can possibly imagine, as they are well informed of the flourishing State of these Colonies, of the Numbers of Men they are capable of raising, and had great Reason to expect that in a Matter in which the Interest and Safety of the Colonies were so nearly concerned they would have exerted themselves with uncommon Vigor.
" From the Letters and Intelligence I have ordered to be laid be ' fore you it will appear that the French have now at their Fort at Mohongialo above a Thousand regular Troops besides Indians ; that they are well supply'd with Provisions, and that they have lately receiv'd an additional Number of Cannon ; that their Upper Forts are also well garrisoned and provided, and that they are making a Settlement of Three Hundred Families in the Country of the Twightwees at the South-West End of the Lake Erie.
"From those Papers you will likewise be informed of the Use they have made of their last Year's Success among the Indians of the Six Nations-having prevailed with many of them to remove to Canada, who will either be neuter in the present Dispute or take up Arms against us; while such few of the Indians as still retain their Attachment to the English dare not be active for us till they soe a Force in the Field superior to that of the French, and if that be not soon they will certainly give up our Cause and embrace the tempting Offers made them by the French.
"Gentlemen: it is now several Years since the French under- took this Expedition, and we have long had full Intelligence of their Designs and of the Steps they have taken to carry them into Ex- ecution. Their Progress indeed has been very surprising, owing chiefly to the inactivity of the English Colonies, who I am sorry to say have looked with two much Indifference upon an Affair that must end in their Ruin if not timely prevented.
" When you have maturely considered the Conduct of the French upon the present Occasion, and observed the Steadiness with which they have pursued a well-laid Plan, you cannot doubt but very con- siderable Men have been concerned in the Formation of this Scheme, and that proper persons are employ'd in the Execution of it; and as the circumstances of these Colonies are by no Means un- known to the French, they are doubtless prepared to make a vigorous Defence, and will not easily give up what they have taken so much Pains and been at such Expence to gain, but rather will be induced to attack us, knowing our weak and defenceless State, and that we are as it were an open door for the Conquest of the rest of the
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Provinces. We must, therefore, resolve to act with Vigour or not at all , for in my Opinion we had better not attempt than be defeated.
" These Incroachments of the French upon the Territories of the Crown of Britain in America have turned the Eyes of Europe to this Quarter of the World, as it is uncertain what Effects they may produce; the Conduct, therefore, of these Colonies will be more than ever the Object of their attention, and ours in particular, who are most immediately concerned ; for whether the French Forts are within the particular Limits of this Province or not I look upon to be very immaterial in the present Case, though in my Opinion they are elearly so; but be that as it may, our Situation at present is certainly very alarming. The French on our Borders are numer- . ous, strongly fortified, well provided, and daily encreasing. The small Body of English, Troops on the Frontiers weaken'd by the Desertion from the Independent Companies, and the want of Dis- cipline in the New Levies. The six Nations of Indians formerly our firm Friends, divided among themselves, many of them gone over to the French, and others wavering and in Doubt whether to follow their Brethren or continue with us. The neighbouring Provinces (except Virginia) though nearly Interested in the Issue of the present Affair, either contributing nothing towards the common Cause or sparingly ; and though Virginia has indeed given Thirty Thousand Pounds, yet it will avail but little unless a considerable Body of Troops be sent from this Province and kept up till the Work is done.
"Permit me, therefore; Gentlemen to press this Matter upon you ; exert yourselves upon the present Occasion ; dissipate the Cloud that hangs over your Country and Save her from the threatned Destruction. His Majesty ever anxious for the welfare of all his Subjects excites and command Us; The Eyes of a British Parlia- ment, of the People of our Mother Country, of the other American Colonies, and even of all Europe are upon Us; And the Fate of this Country, the Happiness or Misery of Your Posterity, very much depend on your Resolutions.
"I cannot, therefore, admit myself to doubt but you will enter Seriously upon the Consideration of this important Affair, and by enabling me to carry the King's Commands into full Execution convince His Majesty of your Readiness to pay Obedience to his Royal Orders, Set a Seasonable and noble Example to the other Colonies, and shew your Constituents that You have nothing more at Heart than to secure to them and their Posterity the Continuance of the many invaluable Blessings they enjoy.
"ROBERT HUNTER MORRIS. " December 3, 1754."
Mr. Weiser reminded the Governour of what passed at Augh-
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wick between him and the Indians in September last, and his Jour- nal being called for and read, the Governour after consulting with Mr. Weiser drew up the following Message to be sent them by the first Opportunity :
" The Honourable ROBERT HUNTER MORRIS, Esquire, Lieutenant Governor and Commander-in-Chief of the Province of Pennsylvania and the Counties of Newcastle, Kent, and Sus- sex, upon Delaware,
" To the Delaware Indians living on the River Ohio and the Sus- quehannah :
" Bretheren :
"Be pleased to hear what I am going to say to you.
" Bretheren :
" Immediately after my Arrival to this Government of Penn- sylvania, which is committed to my Care by your Bretheren the Proprietaries of Pennsylvania, the then Governour, that is Mr. Hamilton, gave me all the Papers relating to Indian Affairs in order that I might deliberate upon them. I found among them a Speech you made at Aughwick to Conrad Weiser the Provincial Interpreter to the Six United Nations, at which I am exceedingly well pleased and have laid it before the Old and Wise People of Pennsylvania now met in Council. We are very glad that you so well remember the Arrival of that great Man William Penn and his People the first Settlers of Pennsylvania, and that you are desirous the Treaty of Friendship then made between our Forefathers on both Sides should last from Generation to Generation as long as the World should stand. You judge right to say that we are one Flesh and Blood with you. We thank you for your Good Will and Kindness, and we do on our Side renew the Said Treaty made between our Forefathers."
Here a Belt of Wampum to be given.
" Bretheren :
" Notwithstanding you now live at a great distance from us we look upon you to be one People with us, and that you sprung up out of the same Spot of Earth where some of us did, and now live upon it. We look upon the Place you now live on as a place of Sport and good Hunting; this never makes any Odds between Bretheren. You are within Call, and we desire that a good Cor- respondence may be kept between us and you from time to time, especially in time of Danger. Consider always that here is your Home, and here your Council Fire has been burning for many Years."
Here give the largest Belt.
" Bretheren :
" We desire that you will not listen to any thing contrary to what
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has been said to you now. You know how many false Stories are told. We, on our side, take no more Notice of them than of the Noise of little Birds singing in the Woods."
Here give a String of Wampum.
"Bretheren :
"We are glad to hear that there subsists such a good Under- standing between you and your Bretheren the Shawonese, a People that we love. Be pleased to give them this Belt of Wampum, and thank them on our Behalf for the kind Speech (or Answer to our former Request) made at Aughwick in your Presence to this Gov- ernment and delivered to Conrad Weiser."
Here a large Belt of Wampum.
ROBT. H. MORRIS." "[L. S.]
At a Council held at Philadelphia, Tuesday the 17th December, 1754.
PRESENT :
The Honourable ROBERT HUNTER MORRIS, Esquire Lieu- tenant Governour.
John Penn,
Robert Strettle, ~ Benjamin Shoemaker, Esquires. Richard Peters,
William Logan,
The Governour inform'd the Board that on the 4th Instant he recciv'd two Letters from Mr. Croghan by Express to acquaint him " that the Indians under his Care had held a Council, in which it was agreed that Scaroyady and two of the Sachems should imme- diately go to Onondago to lay before the Council the State of their Affairs, and to take their Advice as to the Part they should act on this seizure that the French had made of the Ohio, and that all the Indians should stay at Aughwick till their Return, and they desired this might be made known to the Governour of Pennsylvania that he might be pleased to make provision for their Subsistence. They desir'd likewise to know if he would send any Message by Scaroo- yady to the Six Nations."
The Letters were laid before the Assembly, accompanied with this Message :
" Gentlemen :
"I have ordered two Letters which I received by Express from Mr. George Croghan, the Person entrusted with the Care of the Indians at Aughwick, to be laid before you, by which you will be informed of the Proposals made by the French to the Indians that removed from the Ohio, and of their Answer.
" These People have been hitherto maintained by this Province,
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and I believe you will be of opinion that it is necessary to continue this Support at least till next Spring; and as some of the Chiefs are to set out for the great Council at Onondago upon the Return of this Express it may determine the Resolution of that Council in Favour of the English if I am enabled to assure these Chiefs be- fore their Departure that this Government will continue to maintain such of their People as they leave behind them, and will take Measures to secure them against any sudden Attack. As those People have always been very firmly attached to the English Interest, and by their Answer to the French Message seem to give up all Thoughts of returning to Ohio while it remains in their Hands, I must recommend it to you to make provision for their Maintenance, and for setting up some Stoccadoes round the place they fix upon for their Winter Residence.
" I have detained the Express till I could know your Resolutions, and therefore hope you will give this Affair the necessary Dispatch.
"That part of Mr. Croghan's Letters relating to himself will, I make no doubt, be duly considered, and his Services rewarded in such Manner as to give him perfect Satisfaction.
" ROBERT HUNTER MORRIS.
"December 4, 1754."
And in Answer thereto he had on the 6th Inst received the fol- lowing Message from the Assembly :
" May it please the Governor :
" We have considered the Letters and Accounts laid before us by the Governor relating to the Indians now at Aughwick, and are well satisfied with their Steadiness in our Interest, and the Answer they have given to the Proposals of the French to induce them to return to the Ohio.
"We are confidant the Treatment of our Indian Allies have always received from this Province has great Weight with them, and that we have a large Share in their Affections, which we are willing to preserve by continuing to treat them with Justice, Hu- manity, and Tenderness. We therefore, notwithstanding the heavy Charge the Province has been at and is like to be continued upon us, have unanimously resolved to defray such reasonable Charges as may accrue on the Support of those Indians till our next Meet- ing. As we apprehend the Governor will agree with us in the Necessity of regulating that Expence with all possible Oeconomy, and as George Groghan (whose Accounts we have allowed) seems resolved to remove from Aughquick, and the Indians by that Means will be left without any proper Person to take the necessary Care of providing for their Subsistence, we recommend it to the Governor's Consideration whether it might not be more convenient for the Indians themselves, and less Expence to the Province, if they were invited to come nearer our Back Inhabitants, till by
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Hunting or otherwise they may be able to subsist themselves with Safety.
"ISAAC NORRIS, Speaker. " December 6th, 1754."
The Governour further said that he had sent to Mr. Croghan the said Message, with a Letter desiring him to acquaint the Indians that he would take Care of them and make suitable Provision for them, but recommended it to them to Hunt and do something for themselves, and to consult whether it would not be as convenient for them to come and reside at some place nearer the Inhabitants, as it would make their Maintenance less chargeable. He likewise sent a Message to the Six Nations to go by Scarroyady, and a large Quantity of Wampum to be employ'd as he should judge it most for the Service of the English, & the Sum of £100 for Cloathes for the Women principally, and the Children, with a particular Speech to them on the Occasion.
The Governor further informed the Council that on the ninth Instant he received an Answer from the Indians to his Message notifying his Arrival, &ca., wherein they Express much Satisfaction and return him their Thanks, and promise to be directed by him in every thing that may contribute to keep up a good understanding between the Governour and them, and desire their Complements and Thanks may be given to the late Governour Hamilton for the: Care he took of them during his Administration.
The Governour further informed the Council that on the 12th Instant he sent to the House a Message recommending it to them to revise the Laws relating to sickly Vessels & Passengers, and to make other more effectual Provision to prevent the spreading of infectious Disorders, which was read :
"Gentlemen-
" A Contagious Distemper was this Summer introduced into this City by the coming up of sickly Vessels and landing distemper'd Per- sons and their infected Goods, and tho' every Thing the Government could legally do was done to prevent its introduction or Spreading, yet the Measures taken did not prove effectual. The Disorder, I am informed, was chiefly confined to the Germans and those who were obliged to be much with them, and is now abated.
" But Distempers of that kind may hereafter be more universal and more fatal, I therefore think this Matter worthy your Consider- ation, and recommend it to you to revise the Laws now in being relating to sickly Vessels and Passengers, and to make Provision for preventing the ill Effects that may arise from such for the Future, and also more effectually to prevent the spreading of any infectious Disorder that may be introduced into this City and Province.
"ROBERT HUNTER MORRIS.
" December 12, 1754."
1
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And the same Day he received the Assembly's Answer to his Speech, which was also read :
" May it please the Governor-
" We have deliberately considered the Governor's Speech of the third Instant, with the Letter from Sir Thomas Robinson, one of his Majestie's principal Secretaries of State, and the other Letters and Papers he has been pleased to lay before us, And as we account it our indispensible Duty to do every thing in our Power to com- ply with his Majesty's Royal Orders, or that they may contribute to the Welfare of the People we represent, we have chearfully and almost unanimously resolved to grant Twenty Thousand Pounds for the King's Use, for the Raising and Sinking of which Sum we have prepared a Bill, which will be laid before the Governor for his con- currence with all possible Dispatch.
" Tho' we hope the Numbers of the French and their Indian Allies mention'd in George Croghan's Letters are full large, yet the uncommon Efforts they have made towards obtaining a Posses- sion on that Part of his Majesty's Dominions are truly alarming and Dangerous to the British Interest in North America; And we have good Reason to believe the Sums granted the King by our late Assembly, had the then Governor been pleased to pass the Bills offered to him for that Purpose, 'might in a great Measure if not totally have prevented the bad Situation of our Affairs at present,' and have placed our Duty to the best of Kings, as we desire it always should appear among his most loving and loyal Subjects; and for this Reason it is with Concern we find by the above-men- tioned Letter from the Secretary of State, 'That it was with great Surprize the King had observ'd in our late Governor's Answer to the Earl of Holderness he had been totally silent on that Part of his Majesty's Orders which relate to a Concert with the other Colonies.' But as we have great Confidence in our Governour that he will at all Times afford us all good Offices and Protection, and will be pleased to represent us and our Affairs in a favourable Light, as we hope he may do with great Justice, So on our Part we shall not fail to contribute every Thing in our Power to answer all reasonable Expectations from so you ig a Colony, so far as it is consistent with our Civil and Religious Liberties, beyond which, under so good a King, we are well assured nothing further will be ask'd or expected from us. And in lieu of the Governor's Justice and Protection, it will give us particular Pleasure to make his Administration in this Province easy to himself and honourable to all.
" ISAAC NORRIS, Speaker."
A Bill Entituled " An Act for striking the Sum of Forty Thou- sand Pounds in Bills of Credit and for granting Twenty Thousand Pounds thereof to the King's Use, and to provide a Fund for sink- ing the same and for applying the Remainder to the Exchange of
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ragged and torn Bills now current in this Province," which had been presented to the Governor on the 13th Instant by two Mem- bers, was read.
The Lords Justices additional Instructions to Governor Thomas of the 21st August, 1740, were likewise read.
And then the Governor produced the Attorney General's Opinion, which Mr. Hamilton had procured and was kind enough to give him, which was likewise read, and as his Opinion was that it was by no Means safe or adviseable or consistent with Mr. Hamilton's Duty to pass it without a suspending Clause, and as the Council had always been of Opinion that no Paper Money Bill ought to re- ceive the Governor's Assent without a suspending Clause, and had duly and frequently considered the Judgment on both sides, they advised the Governor to Amend it with a Suspending Clause, which was done and sent to the House with this Message :
: "Gentlemen-
" I have taken your Bill into Consideration, which among other Things proposes the Emitting of Twenty Thousand Pounds for the King's Use in Paper Bills to be current for Twelve Years, to which I cannot by any Means agree, as I am forbid by a Royal Instruc- tion to pass any Law for creating Money in Paper Bills without a suspending Clause that it shall not take Effect till his Majesty's Pleasure be known; And to shew you, Gentlemen, that I do not en- tirely rely upon my own Judgment as to the Validity of that In- struction, I herewith send you the Opinion of Sir Dudley Ryder, the late Attorney General and present Chief Justice of England, by which you may see that upon as favourable a State of the Case as could have been drawn up by your own House he is clearly of Opinion that the Instruction is most certainly in Force and binding upon me; however, as the Act of Parliament restraining the four Eastern Governments from Emitting Paper Currency gives them a Power to strike Bills of Credit in case of Emergency, I hope I shall be justified in thinking the Reason holds good as to Us who are in the greatest Danger, being already invaded by the French and in immediate Expectation of Outrage from the Indians in their Alliance. I will, therefore, join with you in any Bill for what Sum you shall think our pressing Occasions demand, provided a Fund be established for sinking the same in Five Years.
"I am exceedingly obliged to the House for their kind Sentiments with Regard to me, and shall make it iny peculiar Care so to act as to merit the Continuance of their good Opinion, and can truly say it is no small Mortification to me to be obliged to differ in Opinion from the Representatives of the Province, who I am convinced Act from upright Motives and what they esteem to be its true Interest, but would willingly hope when they come to reflect on the Obliga- tions I am under to pay Obedience to his Majesty's Instructions that they will not press me to disobey them, especially when they
--
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consider that should I disregard my own Honour and Safety in pass- ing a Bill circumstanced as this is there is great Danger of its being disapproved by his Majesty, and what Loss and Confusion such an Event would cause in the Province by the Paper Bills becoming of no Value I need not particularly mention.
" You will observe from Governor Sharpe's Letter, which I yes- terday received and now lay before you, that the French and In- dians upon the Ohio are much more numerous than we apprehended, making in the whole Two Thousand Men besides what they have already on the Lake Erie, and as they have got together such a con- siderable Force at this inhospitable Season we cannot make a Doubt but they will be much stronger in the Spring.
"On the Information mentioned in that Letter we may likewise expect an Attack upon our Back Settlements, the French having sent a Detachment of the Arundack Indians upon that Service, and as we have no Force to resist them they will be at Liberty to com- mit what cruelties they please upon the defenceless People that in- habit the remote Parts of this Province.
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