{"collection":"philosophy-ethics","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_41316/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_41316","id":"gutenberg_41316","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/41316","summary":null,"tags":["Category: History - American","Category: History - Modern (1750+)","Category: History - Warfare","Category: Philosophy & Ethics","Maroons","Seminole War, 1st, 1817-1818","Seminole War, 2nd, 1835-1842"],"text":"Produced by Chuck Greif and the Online Distributed\nProofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was\nproduced from images available at the University of Florida\nDigital Collections.)\n\n\n\n\n\n\n[Illustration: Death of Waxe hadjo]\n\n\n\n\nTHE\n\nEXILES OF FLORIDA:\n\nOR,\n\nTHE CRIMES COMMITTED BY OUR GOVERNMENT AGAINST THE MAROONS,\nWHO FLED FROM SOUTH CAROLINA AND OTHER SLAVE STATES,\nSEEKING PROTECTION UNDER SPANISH LAWS.\n\nBY\n\nJOSHUA R. GIDDINGS.\n\n\"I, as commander of the army, pledged the national faith that they\nshould remain under the protection of the United States.\"\n\nGENERAL JESSUP.\n\nCOLUMBUS, OHIO:\nPUBLISHED BY FOLLETT, FOSTER AND COMPANY.\n1858.\n\nEntered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1858.\n\nBY FOLLETT, FOSTER & CO.,\n\nIn the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States, for\nthe Southern District of Ohio.\n\n\nTO\nMY CONSTITUENTS,\n\nTHE PEOPLE WHO HAVE SO LONG HONORED ME\nWITH THEIR CONFIDENCE,\nTHIS WORK IS RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED.\n\nJ. R. GIDDINGS.\n\n\n\n\nINTRODUCTION.\n\n\nDiscarding that code of morals which teaches the suppression of truth,\nfor the purpose of upholding the honor, either of the Government, or of\nthe individuals who wield its administration, the Author of the\nfollowing work has endeavored to give a faithful record of those\ninteresting events which appear directly connected with the Exiles of\nFlorida.\n\nTorn from their native land, their friends and homes, they were sold in\nthe markets of Carolina and Georgia. Feeling the hand of oppression\nbearing heavily upon them, they fled to Florida, and, under Spanish\nlaws, became free. Holding lands of the Spanish Crown, they became\ncitizens of that Territory, entitled to protection. To regain possession\nof their truant bondmen, Georgia made war upon Florida, but failed to\nobtain her object.\n\nAt a time of profound peace, our army, acting under the direction of the\nExecutive, invaded Florida, murdered many of these free men, and brought\nothers to the United States and consigned them to slavery. An expensive\nand bloody war followed; but failing to capture more of the Exiles, our\narmy was withdrawn.\n\nThis war was followed by diplomatic efforts. Florida was purchased;\ntreaties with the Florida Indians were made and violated; gross frauds\nwere perpetrated; dishonorable expedients were resorted to, and another\nwar provoked. During its protracted continuance of seven years, bribery\nand treachery were practiced towards the Exiles and their allies, the\nSeminole Indians; flags of truce were violated; the pledged faith of the\nnation was disregarded. By these means the removal of the Exiles from\nFlorida was effected. After they had settled in the Western Country,\nmost of these iniquities were repeated, until they were driven from our\nnation and compelled to seek an asylum in Mexico.\n\nMen who wielded the influence of Government for the consummation of\nthese crimes, assiduously labored to suppress all knowledge of their\nguilt; to keep facts from the popular mind; to falsify the history of\ncurrent events, and prevent an exposure of our national turpitude.\n\nThe object of this work is to meet that state of circumstances; to\nexpose fraud, falsehood, treachery, and other crimes of public men, who\nhave prostituted the powers of Government to the perpetration of\nmurders, at the contemplation of which our humanity revolts.\n\nThe Author has designed to place before the public a faithful record of\nevents appropriately falling within the purview of the proposed history;\nhe has endeavored, as far as possible, to do justice to all concerned.\nWhere the action of individuals is concerned, he has endeavored to make\nthem speak for themselves, through official reports, orders, letters, or\nwritten evidences from their own hands; and he flatters himself that he\nhas done no injustice to any person.\n\n\n\n\nCONTENTS.\n\n\n                                                                    PAGE\n\nINTRODUCTION                                                           v\n\nCHAPTER I.\n\nCircumstances attending the Early History of Slavery in the Colonies.\nExiles: efforts to restore them                                        1\n\nCHAPTER II.\n\nFurther efforts to restore Exiles                                     16\n\nCHAPTER III.\n\nHostilities maintained by Georgia; First Seminole War commenced       28\n\nCHAPTER IV.\n\nGeneral Hostilities                                                   46\n\nCHAPTER V.\n\nFurther efforts of the Government to restore Exiles to servitude      57\n\nCHAPTER VI.\n\nFurther efforts to enslave the Exiles                                 69\n\nCHAPTER VII.\n\nCommencement of the Second Seminole War                               97\n\nCHAPTER VIII.\n\nHostilities continued                                                115\n\nCHAPTER IX.\n\nHostilities continued                                                125\n\nCHAPTER X.\n\nThe War continued--Peace declared--General Jessup assumes\ncommand of the Army                                                  135\n\nCHAPTER XI.\n\nGeneral Jessup overthrows his own efforts in favor of Peace          142\n\nCHAPTER XII.\n\nThe renewal and prosecution of the War                               156\n\nCHAPTER XIII.\n\nVigorous prosecution of the War                                      172\n\nCHAPTER XIV.\n\nGreat difficulties interrupt the progress of the War                 189\n\nCHAPTER XV.\n\nDifficulties in enslaving Exiles continued                           214\n\nCHAPTER XVI.\n\nFurther difficulties in the work of enslaving the Exiles             224\n\nCHAPTER XVII.\n\nTotal failure of all efforts to enslave the Exiles                   233\n\nCHAPTER XVIII.\n\nFurther difficulties in prosecuting the War                          251\n\nCHAPTER XIX.\n\nHostilities continued                                                274\n\nCHAPTER XX.\n\nHostilities continued                                                284\n\nCHAPTER XXI.\n\nClose of the War                                                     308\n\nCHAPTER XXII.\n\nHistory of Exiles continued                                          317\n\nCHAPTER XXIII.\n\nThe re-union and final Exodus                                        323\n\n\n\n\nTHE EXILES OF FLORIDA.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER I.\n\nCIRCUMSTANCES ATTENDING THE EARLY HISTORY OF SLAVERY IN THE COLONIES.\n\n     Settlement of Florida--Boundaries of Carolina--Enslaving\n     Indians--They flee from their Masters--Africans follow the\n     example--Spanish policy in regard to Fugitive Slaves--Carolina\n     demands the surrender of Exiles--Florida refuses--Colony of Georgia\n     established--Its object--Exiles called Seminoles--Slavery\n     Introduced Into Georgia--Seminole Indians separate from\n     Creeks--Slaves escape from Georgia--Report of Committee of\n     Safety--Report of General Lee--Treaty of Augusta--Treaty of\n     Galphinton--Singular conduct of Georgia--War between Creeks and\n     Georgia--Resolution of Congress--Treaty of\n     Shoulderbone--Hostilities continue--Georgia calls on United States\n     for assistance--Commissioners sent to negotiate\n     Treaty--Failure--Col. Willett's mission--Chiefs, head men and\n     Warriors repair to New York--Treaty formed--Secret\n     article--Extraordinary covenants.\n\n\nFlorida was originally settled by Spaniards, in 1558. They were the\nfirst people to engage in the African Slave trade, and sought to supply\nother nations with servants from the coast of Guinea. The Colonists held\nmany slaves, expecting to accumulate wealth by the unrequited toil of\ntheir fellow-man.\n\n[Sidenote: 1630.]\n\n[Sidenote: 1700.]\n\nCarolina by her first and second charters claimed a vast extent of\ncountry, embracing St. Augustine and most of Florida. This conflict of\njurisdiction soon involved the Colonists in hostilities. The Carolinians\nalso held many slaves. Profiting by the labor of her servants, the\npeople sought to increase their wealth by enslaving the Indians who\nresided in their vicinity. Hence in the early slave codes of that\ncolony we find reference to \"negro and _other_ slaves.\"\n\nWhen the boundaries of Florida and South Carolina became established,\nthe Colonists found themselves separated by the territory now\nconstituting, the State of Georgia, at that time mostly occupied by the\nCreek Indians.\n\nThe efforts of the Carolinians to enslave the Indians, brought with them\nthe natural and appropriate penalties. The Indians soon began to make\ntheir escape from service to the Indian country. This example was soon\nfollowed by the African slaves, who also fled to the Indian country,\nand, in order to secure themselves from pursuit, continued their journey\ninto Florida.\n\nWe are unable to fix the precise time when the persons thus exiled\nconstituted a separate community. Their numbers had become so great in\n1736, that they were formed into companies, and relied on by the\nFloridians as allies to aid in the defense of that territory. They were\nalso permitted to occupy lands upon the same terms that were granted to\nthe citizens of Spain; indeed, they in all respects became free subjects\nof the Spanish crown. Probably to this early and steady policy of the\nSpanish Government, we may attribute the establishment and continuance\nof this community of Exiles in that territory.[1]\n\n[Sidenote: 1738.]\n\nA messenger was sent by the Colonial Government of South Carolina to\ndemand the return of those fugitive slaves who had found an asylum in\nFlorida. The demand was made upon the Governor of St. Augustine, but was\npromptly rejected. This was the commencement of a controversy which has\ncontinued for more than a century, involving our nation in a vast\nexpenditure of blood and treasure, and it yet remains undetermined.\n\nThe constant escape of slaves, and the difficulties resulting therefrom,\nconstituted the principal object for establishing a free colony between\nSouth Carolina and Florida, which was called Georgia.[2] It was thought\nthat this colony, being free, would afford the planters of Carolina\nprotection against the further escape of their slaves from service.\n\nThese Exiles were by the Creek Indians called \"Seminoles,\" which in\ntheir dialect signifies \"runaways,\" and the term being frequently used\nwhile conversing with the Indians, came into almost constant practice\namong the whites; and although it has now come to be applied to a\ncertain tribe of Indians, yet it was originally used in reference to\nthese Exiles long before the Seminole Indians had separated from the\nCreeks.\n\nSome eight years after the Colony of Georgia was first established,\nefforts were made to introduce Slavery among its people. The ordinary\nargument, that it would extend the Christian religion, was brought to\nbear upon Whitfield and Habersham, and the Saltzbergers and Moravians,\nuntil they consented to try the experiment, and Georgia became\nthenceforth a Slaveholding Colony, whose frontier bordered directly upon\nFlorida; bringing the slaves of her planters into the very neighborhood\nof those Exiles who had long been free under Spanish laws.\n\n[Sidenote: 1750.]\n\nA difficulty arose among the Creek Indians, which eventually becoming\nirreconcilable, a chief named Seacoffee, with a large number of\nfollowers, left that tribe--at that time residing within the present\nlimits of Georgia and Alabama--and continuing their journey south\nentered the Territory of Florida, and, under the Spanish colonial\npolicy, were incorporated with the Spanish population, entitled to lands\nwherever they could find them unoccupied, and to the protection of\nSpanish laws.[3]\n\nFrom the year 1750, Seacoffee and his followers rejected all Creek\nauthority, refused to be represented in Creek councils, held themselves\nindependent of Creek laws, elected their own chiefs, and in all respects\nbecame a separate Tribe, embracing the Mickasukies, with whom they\nunited. They settled in the vicinity of the Exiles, associated with\nthem, and a mutual sympathy and respect existing, some of their people\nintermarried, thereby strengthening the ties of friendship, and the\nIndians having fled from oppression and taken refuge under Spanish laws,\nwere also called Seminoles, or \"runaways.\"\n\nAfter Georgia became a Slaveholding Colony, we are led to believe the\npractice of slaves leaving their masters, which existed in South\nCarolina, became frequent in Georgia. But we have no definite\ninformation on this subject until about the commencement of the\nRevolutionary War (1775), when the Council of Safety for that colony\nsent to Congress a communication setting forth, that a large force of\nContinental troops was necessary to _prevent their slaves from deserting\ntheir masters_.[4] It was about the first communication sent to Congress\nafter it met, in 1776, and shows that her people then sought to make the\nnation bear the burthens of their slavery, by furnishing a military\nforce sufficient to hold her bondmen in fear; and if she adheres to that\npolicy now, it merely illustrates the consistency of her people in\nrelying upon the freemen of the North to uphold her system of\noppression.\n\n[Sidenote: 1776.]\n\nGeneral Lee, commanding the military forces in that colony, called the\nparticular attention of Congress to the fact, that slaves belonging to\nthe planters, fled from servitude and sought freedom among the \"_Exiles\nof Florida_.\"\n\nThere also yet remained in Georgia many descendants of those who, at the\nestablishment of that colony and since that time, had opposed the\ninstitution of Slavery. These people desired to testify their abhorrence\nof human servitude. They assembled in large numbers, in the district of\nDarien, and publicly resolved as follows: \"To show the world that we are\nnot influenced by any contracted or interested motives, but by a general\nphilanthropy for all mankind, of whatever climate, language or\n_complexion_, we hereby declare our disapprobation and abhorrence of\nslavery in America.\" The public avowal of these doctrines, naturally\nencouraged slaves to seek their freedom by such means as they possessed.\nOne day's travel would place some of them among friends, and in the\nenjoyment of liberty; and they were sure to be kindly received and\nrespectfully treated, soon as they could reach their brethren in\nFlorida. Of course many availed themselves of this opportunity to escape\nfrom service.\n\nThe Exiles remained in the undisturbed enjoyment of liberty during the\nwar of the Revolution. The Creeks were a powerful and warlike people,\nwhose friendship was courted during the sanguinary struggle that secured\nour National Independence. During those turbulent times it would not\nhave been prudent for a master to pursue his slave through the Creek\ncountry, or to have brought him back to Georgia if once arrested.\n\nThe Exiles being thus free from annoyance, cultivated the friendship of\ntheir savage neighbors; rendered themselves useful to the Indians, both\nas laborers and in council. They also manifested much judgment in the\nselection of their lands for cultivation--locating their principal\nsettlements on the rich bottoms lying along the Appalachicola and the\nSuwanee Rivers. Here they opened plantations, and many of them became\nwealthy in flocks and herds.\n\n[Sidenote: 1783.]\n\nImmediately after the close of the war, the authorities of Georgia are\nsaid to have entered into a treaty with the Creek Indians, at Augusta,\nin which it is alleged that the Creeks agreed to grant to that State a\nlarge tract of land, and to restore such slaves as were then resident\namong the Creeks. But we find no copy of this treaty in print, or in\nmanuscript. As early as 1789, only six years after it was said to have\nbeen negotiated, Hugh Knox, Secretary of War, in a communication to\nCongress, declared that no copy of this treaty was then in the\npossession of Congress; and it has not been since reprinted. Indeed, it\nis believed never to have been printed.\n\n[Sidenote: 1785.]\n\nThe difficulty between Georgia and the Creeks becoming more serious, the\naid of the Continental Congress was invoked, for the purpose of securing\nthat State in the enjoyment of what her people declared to be their\nrights. Congress appointed three commissioners to examine the existing\ncauses of difficulty, and if possible to negotiate a treaty with the\nCreeks that should secure justice to all the people of the United\nStates.\n\nCommunities, like individuals, often exhibit in early life those\ncharacteristics which distinguish their mature age, and become ruling\npassions when senility marks the downhill of life. Thus Georgia, in her\nvery infancy, exhibited that desire for controlling our National\nGovernment which subsequently marked her manhood. Possessing no power\nunder the Constitution to enter into any treaty except by consent of\nCongress, her Executive appointed three Commissioners to attend and\nsupervise the action of those appointed by the Federal Legislature. The\ntime and place for holding the treaty had been arranged with the Indians\nby the Governor of Georgia. At Galphinton,[5] the place appointed, the\nCommissioners of the United States met those of Georgia, who presented\nthem with the form of a treaty fully drawn out and ready for signatures,\nand demanded of the Commissioners of the United States its adoption.\nThis extraordinary proceeding was treated by the Federal Commissioners\nin a dignified and appropriate manner, in their report to Congress. One\nimportant provision of this inchoate treaty stipulated for the return to\nthe people of Georgia of such fugitive negroes as were then in the\nIndian country, and of such as might thereafter flee from bondage.\n\nThe Commissioners appointed by Congress waited at Galphinton several\ndays, and finding only _two_ of the one hundred towns composing the\nCreek tribe represented in the council about to be held, they refused to\nregard them as authorized to act for the Creek nation, and would not\nconsent to enter upon any negotiation with them as representatives of\nthat tribe. This course was not in accordance with the ideas of the\nCommissioners appointed by Georgia. After those of the United States had\nleft, they proceeded to enter into a treaty with the representatives\nfrom the two towns, who professed to act for the whole Creek nation.\n\nThis pretended treaty gave the State of Georgia a large territory; and\nthe eighth article provided, that \"the Indians shall restore all the\nnegroes, horses and other property, that are or may hereafter be among\nthem, belonging to the citizens of this State, or to any other person\nwhatever, to such person as the governor shall appoint.\"[6]\n\nThis attempt to make a treaty by the State of Georgia, in direct\nviolation of the articles of Confederation, and to bind the Creek nation\nby an act of the representatives of only two of their towns, constitutes\nthe first official transaction of which we have documentary evidence, in\nthat long train of events which has for seventy years involved our\nnation in difficulty, and the Exiles of Florida in persecutions and\ncruelties unequaled under Republican governments.\n\nThe Commissioners of the United States made report of their proceedings\nto Congress; and those of Georgia reported to the governor of that\nState.[7] Their report was transmitted to the Legislature, and that\nbody, with an arrogance that commands our admiration, passed strong\nresolutions denouncing the action of the Federal Commissioners,\ncommending the action of those of Georgia, and asserting her State\nsovereignty in language somewhat bombastic.\n\n[Sidenote: 1786.]\n\n[Sidenote: 1787.]\n\nSoon after the making of this pretended treaty, the Creeks commenced\nhostilities, murdering the people on the frontiers of Georgia, and\nburning their dwellings. The Spanish authorities of Florida were charged\nwith fomenting these difficulties, and the Congress of the United States\nfelt constrained to interfere.[8] The Commissioners previously appointed\nto form a treaty with the Creeks, were, by a resolution of the\nContinental Congress, adopted Oct. 26, instructed to obtain a treaty\nwith the Indians which would secure a return of all prisoners, of\nwhatever age, sex or complexion, and to _restore all fugitive slaves\nbelonging to citizens of the United States_.[9]\n\nThis resolution was the first act on the part of the Continental\nCongress in favor of restoring fugitive slaves. It was adopted under the\narticles of Confederation, before the adoption of our present\nconstitution, and of course constitutes no precedent under our present\ngovernment; yet it introduced a practice that has long agitated the\nnation, and may yet lead to important and even sanguinary results.\n\n[Sidenote: 1788.]\n\nWithout awaiting the action of Congress, the authorities of Georgia, by\nher agents, entered into another treaty, at a place called\n\"Shoulderbone,\" by which the Creeks appear to have acknowledged the\nviolation of the Treaty of Galphinton, and again stipulated to observe\nits covenants.[10]\n\nWe have no reliable information as to the number of the Creek towns\nrepresented at the making of this third treaty by Georgia. The whole\ntransaction was by the State, in her own name, by her own authority,\nwithout consent of Congress, and all papers relating to it, if any\nexist, would of course be among the manuscript files of that State. It\nis believed that Georgia never printed any of these treaties; and we can\nonly state their contents from recitals which we find among the State\npapers of the Federal Government. It is however certain, that the Creeks\ndenied that any such treaty had been entered into; and they continued\nhostilities, as though no such treaty had been thought of by them. This\npretended Treaty of Shoulderbone exerted no more moral influence among\nthe Creeks than did that of Galphinton. The war continued between the\npeople of Georgia and the Creeks. The savages appeared to be aroused to\nindignation by what they regarded as palpable frauds. Excited at such\nefforts to impose upon them stipulations degrading to their character,\nthey prosecuted the war with increased bitterness.\n\n[Sidenote: 1788.]\n\nThe natural results of such turpitude, induced Georgia to be one of the\nfirst in the sisterhood of States to adopt the Federal Constitution\n(Aug. 28). Her statesmen expected it to relieve their State from the\nburthens of the war which then devastated her border.\n\n[Sidenote: 1789.]\n\nSoon as the Federal Government was organized under the constitution, the\nauthorities of Georgia invoked its aid, to protect her people from the\nindignation of the Creek Indians.\n\nGeneral Washington, President of the United States, at once appointed\nCommissioners to repair to the Indian country, ascertain the real\ndifficulty, and if able, they were directed to negotiate a suitable\ntreaty, in the name of the United States. The State of Georgia claimed\ntitle to the territory ceded by the treaties of Galphinton and\nShoulderbone; while the Creeks entirely repudiated them, declaring them\nfraudulent, denying their validity, and refusing to abide by their\nstipulations. The governor of Georgia placed in the hands of the\nCommissioners of the United States, a list of property which had been\nlost since the close of the Revolution by the people of Georgia, for\nwhich they demanded indemnity of the Creeks. This list contained the\nnames of one hundred and ten negroes, who were said to have left their\nmasters _during the Revolution_, and found an asylum among the Creeks.\nThe Treaty of Galphinton contained a stipulation on the part of the\nCreeks, to return all prisoners, of whatever age, sex or color, and all\nnegroes belonging to the citizens of Georgia, \"_then residing with the\nCreeks_.\"\n\nArrangements had already been made with the chiefs, warriors and\nprincipal men of the Creek nation, to meet the Commissioners of the\nUnited States at Rock Landing, on the Oconee River. The Commissioners\nwere received by the Indians with great respect and formality; but soon\nas they learned that the Commissioners were not authorized to restore\ntheir lands, they broke off all negotiation, promising to remain in\npeace, however, until an opportunity should be presented for further\nnegotiations.\n\nThe failure of this mission was followed by the appointment of Col.\nWillett, an intrepid officer of the Revolution, who was authorized to\nproceed to the Creek nation, and, if possible, to induce its chiefs and\nheadmen to repair to New York, where they could negotiate a new treaty,\nwithout the interference of the authorities or people of Georgia.\n\nCol. Willett was successful. He induced the principal chief,\nMcGillivray, the son of a distinguished Indian trader, together with\ntwenty-eight other chiefs and warriors, to come on to New York, for the\npurpose of forming a treaty with the United States, and settling all\ndifficulties previously existing between Georgia and their nation. On\ntheir way to New York, they were received at Philadelphia, by the\nauthorities of that city, with great ceremony and respect. Their vanity\nwas flattered, and every effort made to induce them to believe peace\nwith the United States would be important to both parties.\n\nAt New York they found Congress in session. Here they mingled with the\ngreat men of our nation. The \"Columbian Order,\" or \"Tammany Society,\"\nwas active in its attentions. They escorted the delegation to the city,\nand entertained them with a public dinner; and made McGillivray, the\nprincipal chief, a member of their society. In this way, the minds of\nthe Indians were prepared for entering into the treaty which followed.\n\n[Sidenote: 1790.]\n\nThere was, among the people of the entire nation, an intense anxiety to\nrender every part of the Union satisfied and pleased with the Federal\nGovernment, then just formed, as they felt that their only hope of\nprosperity depended upon a continuance of the federal union. There was\nalso a general sympathy throughout the nation with the slaveholders of\nthe South, who were supposed to have suffered much, by the loss of their\nservants, during the war of the Revolution; few people at that time\nrealizing the moral guilt of holding their fellow-men in bondage.\n\nWhile the revolutionary contest was going on, many slaves in the\nSouthern States escaped from the service of their masters, and, under\nthe proclamations of various British commanders, enlisted into the\nservice of his Britannic Majesty; and having taken the oath of\nallegiance to the crown of England, were regarded as British subjects.\nOthers escaped with their families, and getting on board British\nvessels, sailed to the West Indies, where they settled as \"_free\npersons_.\" Thus, while one class of masters had sustained great losses\nby the enlistment of their slaves, another class had suffered by the\nescape of their bondmen, through the aid of British vessels; while a\nthird sustained an equal loss by the escape of their servants to the\nSeminoles in Florida. These three different interests united in claiming\nthe aid of government to regain possession of their slaves, or to obtain\nindemnity for their loss.\n\nThe timely arrival of Mr. Pinckney, secured the insertion of a clause in\nthe Treaty of Paris, providing that his Britannic Majesty should\nwithdraw his troops from all American forts, arsenals, shipyards, etc.,\nwithout destroying ordnance or military stores, or \"carrying away any\nnegroes or other property of the inhabitants.\" This provision was\nregarded by the slaveholders of the South as securing a compensation to\nall those whose slaves had enlisted in the British army, as well as to\nthose whose slaves had escaped to the British West India Islands by aid\nof English vessels; while those whose servants were quietly living with\nthe Seminoles, had not been provided for by the treaty of peace.[11]\nThese circumstances rendered the owners of the Exiles more clamorous for\nthe interposition of the State Government, inasmuch as the federal\nauthority had entirely omitted to notice their interests, while it was\nsupposed to have secured a compensation to the other two classes of\nclaimants.\n\nIt was under these circumstances, that General Washington proceeded to\nthe negotiation of the first treaty, entered into under our present form\nof government. The chiefs, headmen and warriors of the Creek nation were\npresent at New York: Georgia was also there by her senators and\nrepresentatives, who carefully watched over her interests; and General\nKnox, the Secretary of War, was appointed commissioner to negotiate a\ntreaty, thus to be formed, under the personal supervision of the\nPresident.\n\nThe object of the President was effected, a treaty was formed, and bears\ndate August 1, 1790. It constitutes the title-page of our diplomatic\nhistory. This first exercise of our treaty-making power under the\nconstitution, was put forth for the benefit of the Slave interests of\nGeorgia. It surrendered up to the Creeks certain lands, which the\nauthorities of Georgia claimed to hold under the treaty of Galphinton,\nbut retained substantially the stipulation for the surrender of negroes,\nwhich had been inserted in that extraordinary compact.\n\nBy the third article of this new treaty, it was stipulated as follows:\n\n     \"The Creek nation shall deliver, as soon as practicable, to the\n     commanding officer of the troops of the United States stationed at\n     Rock Landing, on the Oconee River, all citizens of the United\n     States, white inhabitants or negroes, who are now prisoners in any\n     part of the said nation. And if any such prisoners or negroes\n     should not be so delivered, on or before the first day of June\n     ensuing, the governor of Georgia may empower three persons to\n     repair to the said nation, in order to claim and receive such\n     prisoners and negroes.\"\n\nHistorians have referred to this clause as containing merely a\nstipulation for the surrender of _prisoners_;[12] but the manner in\nwhich the term \"_negroes_\" stands connected in the disjunctive form with\nthat of \"_prisoners_,\" would appear to justify, at least to some extent,\nthe subsequent construction put upon it, so far as regarded negroes then\nresident with the Creeks; but it certainly makes no allusion to those\nwho were residing with the Seminoles in Florida.\n\nIt is a remarkable feature of this treaty, that the Creek chiefs,\nprincipal men and warriors should, in its first article, profess to act,\nnot only for the Upper and Lower Creek Towns, but for the Seminoles who\nwere in Florida, protected by Spanish laws. They had not been invited to\nattend the negotiation, had sent no delegate, were wholly unrepresented\nin the Council; indeed, so far as we are informed, were wholly ignorant\nof the objects which had called such a council, and of the fact even\nthat a council was held, or a treaty negotiated.\n\nOur fathers had just passed through seven years of war and bloodshed,\nrather than submit to \"_taxation without representation_;\" but this\nattempt to bind the Seminole Indians to surrender up the Exiles, who\nwere their friends and neighbors, and who now stood connected with them\nby marriage, and in all the relations of domestic life, without their\nconsent or knowledge, constitutes an inconsistency which can only be\naccounted for by the desire then prevalent, to gratify and please those\nwho wielded the slaveholding influence of our nation.\n\nAnother extraordinary feature of this treaty may be found in the secret\narticle, by which the United States stipulated to pay the Creeks fifteen\nhundred dollars annually, in all coming time. The reason for making this\nstipulation secret is not to be learned from any documentary authority\nbefore the public, and cannot now be accounted for, except from the\ndelicacy which the authorities of our nation then felt in taxing the\npeople of the free States, to pay southern Indians for the return of\nthose Exiles. And it is interesting at this day to look back and\nreflect, that for nearly seventy years the people of the nation have\ncontributed their funds to sustain the authority of those slaveholders\nof Georgia over their bondmen, while Northern statesmen have constantly\nassured their constituents, they have nothing to do with that\ninstitution.\n\nIt would be uncharitable to believe, that General Washington was at that\ntime conscious that he was thus precipitating our nation upon a policy\ndestined to involve its government in difficulties, whose termination\nwould be uncertain.\n\nAfter the treaty had been agreed to by the parties making it, General\nWashington met the chiefs, headmen and warriors, assembled in the Hall\nof Representatives, in the presence of members of Congress and a large\nconcourse of spectators. The treaty was publicly read, and to each\narticle the Indians expressed their assent, and signed it in the\npresence of the people, each receiving from the President a string of\nwampum. The President then shook hands with each, which concluded the\nceremonies of the day.\n\nThe treaty was transmitted on the following day to the Senate,\naccompanied by a Message from the President, saying: \"I flatter myself\nthat this treaty will be productive of present peace and prosperity to\nour Southern frontier. It is to be expected, also, that it will be the\nmeans of firmly attaching the Creeks and neighboring tribes to the\ninterests of the United States.\" The President also alluded in his\nmessage to the treaty of Galphinton, as containing a stipulation to cede\nto Georgia certain other lands, which it was believed would be\ndetrimental to the interests of the Indians, and, therefore, that\ncovenant had been disregarded in the \"treaty of New York.\" In another\nMessage to the Senate, on the eleventh of August, the President says:\n\"This treaty may be regarded as the main foundation of the future peace\nand prosperity of the Southwestern frontier of the United States.\"\n\nOn the ninth of August, a motion was made in the Senate to refer the\ntreaty to a select committee, which was rejected by a vote of ten nays\nto eight yeas; and on the twelfth, it was approved by a vote of fifteen\nyeas to four nays; but we have no report of any discussion upon the\nsubject, nor do we know at this day the objections which dictated the\nvotes given against its ratification.[13]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER II.\n\nFURTHER EFFORTS TO RESTORE EXILES.\n\n     Seminoles repudiate Treaty of New York--Attempts to induce Spanish\n     authorities to deliver up the Exiles--Their refusal--Lower Creeks\n     hostile to Treaty--McGillivray--His parentage and\n     character--Georgia hostile to Treaty--Makes war upon\n     Creeks--General Washington announces failure to maintain\n     Peace--General Knox's recommendation--Decision of United States\n     Court--Exertions--Combination of various classes of\n     Claimants--Washington finds his influence powerless--Appoints Judge\n     Jay--Failure of claims on England--Condition and habits of\n     Exiles--Effect on Slaves of Georgia--Treaty of\n     Colerain--Commissioners of Georgia leave Council in\n     disgust--Election of the elder Adams--His Administration--Election\n     of Jefferson--His Administration.\n\n\nThe long pending difficulties between Georgia and the neighboring tribes\nof Indians were now (1791) believed to be permanently settled, and it\nwas thought the new government would proceed in the discharge of its\nduties without further perplexity. But it was soon found impossible for\nthe Creeks to comply with their stipulations. The Seminoles refused to\nrecognize the treaty, insisting that they were not bound by any compact,\narrangement or agreement, made by the United States and the Creeks, to\nwhich they were not a party, and of which they had no notice; that they\nwere a separate, independent tribe; that this fact was well known to\nboth Creeks and the United States; and that the attempt of those parties\nto declare what the Seminoles should do, or should not do, was insulting\nto their dignity, to their self-respect, and only worthy of their\ncontempt. They therefore wholly discarded the treaty, and repudiated all\nits provisions. They resided in Florida, under the jurisdiction of\nSpanish laws, subject only to the crown of Spain. There they enjoyed\nthat liberty so congenial to savages, as well as civilized men. The\nCreeks dared not attempt to bring back the Exiles by force, and the\nGovernment of the United States was unwilling to invade a Spanish colony\nfor the purpose of recapturing those who had escaped from the bonds of\noppression, and had become legally _free_.\n\n[Sidenote: 1792.]\n\nIn this state of affairs, an agent by the name of Seagrove was sent to\nFlorida for the purpose of negotiating with the Spanish authorities for\nthe return of the Exiles. He had been agent to the Creek Indians, and\nwell understood their views in regard to the treaty. When he reached\nFlorida, he found the authorities of that Province entirely opposed to\nthe surrender of any subjects of the Spanish crown to slavery. The\nExiles were regarded as holding the same rights which the white citizens\nheld; and it was evident, that the representatives of the King of Spain\nencouraged both the Seminole Indians and Exiles, to refuse compliance\nwith the treaty of New York.[14]\n\nNor was the Creek nation united upon this subject. The \"lower Creeks,\"\nor those who resided on the southern frontier of Georgia, were not\nzealous in their support of the treaty; and it was said that\nMcGillivray, the principal chief of the Creeks, was himself becoming\nunfriendly to the United States, and rather disposed to unite with the\nSpanish authorities. This man exerted great influence with the Indians.\nHe was the son of an Indian trader, a Scotchman, by a Creek woman, the\ndaughter of a distinguished chief. He had received a good English\neducation; but his father had joined the English during the Revolution,\nand he, having been offended by some leading men of Georgia, had taken\nup his residence with the Indians and become their principal chief, in\nwhom they reposed implicit confidence.\n\nAmid these difficulties, the people of Georgia manifested an equal\nhostility to the treaty, inasmuch as it surrendered a large territory\nto that State, which the authorities of Georgia pretended to have\nobtained by the treaty of Galphinton. The general feeling in that State\nwas far from being satisfied with the action of the Federal Government.\nSeagrove, writing to the Secretary of War on this subject, declared,\nthat \"to such lengths have matters gone, that they (the Georgians) now\nconsider the troops and servants of the United States who are placed\namong them, nearly as great enemies as they do the Indians.\"[15]\n\nUnder these circumstances, the Governor of Georgia was addressed, by\norder of the President; but he evidently participated in the popular\nfeeling of his State. While the Spanish authorities and Seminoles, both\nIndians and Exiles, repudiated the treaty of New York, Governor\nTellfair, of Georgia, declared that the people of his State \"_would\nrecognize no treaty in which her commissioners were not consulted_.\"\nInstead of observing its stipulations of peace, he proceeded to raise an\narmy; invaded the Creek country, attacked one of their towns said to be\nfriendly to Georgia, killed some of their people, took others prisoners,\nburned their dwellings, and destroyed their crops.\n\n[Sidenote: 1794.]\n\nThe Creeks declared their inability to return the Exiles,[16] and, on\nthe thirtieth of January, General Washington, in a Special Message to\nCongress, announced the failure of all efforts to maintain tranquillity\nbetween the people of Georgia and the Creek Indians. Such were the\ndifficulties surrounding the subject of regaining the Exiles, that\nGeneral Knox, Secretary of War, in a written communication addressed to\nthe President, recommended that Congress should make an appropriation to\ntheir owners, from the public treasury, as the only practicable manner\nin which that matter could be settled.[17] This communication was\ntransmitted to Congress by the President, accompanied by a special\nmessage, recommending it to the consideration of that body; but the\nmembers appeared unwilling to adopt the policy thus suggested. They\nseem to have entertained doubts as to the propriety of appropriating the\nmoney of the people to pay for fugitive slaves. They respectfully laid\nthe Message, and the recommendation of the Secretary of War, upon the\ntable, and ordered them to be printed.[18]\n\nThe claimants of the Exiles were again encouraged and strengthened in\ntheir expectations by the excitement prevailing in the southern portion\nof the Union, arising from a decision of the Circuit Court of the United\nStates, held at Richmond, Virginia. At the commencement of the war, the\nStates prohibited the collection of debts due British subjects from\ncitizens of the Colonies. These debts had remained unpaid for some\nsixteen years; and although the debtors entertained an expectation of\npaying them at some future period, many intended meeting those demands\nby the funds which they supposed would be awarded them as indemnity for\nslaves carried away in British vessels during the Revolution, and for\nthose enlisted into the British army.\n\nThese laws, enacted at the commencement of the Revolution, were declared\nby the Court to have been superseded by the treaty of peace, in 1783;\nand the debtors in the several States thus became liable to the payment\nof those debts, while their demands of indemnity for slaves were\npending, and the British Government had thus far refused to acknowledge\ntheir validity. These claimants became impatient of delay, and demanded\nthat another treaty be formed with England, by which they could obtain\nindemnity for the loss of their slaves. These uniting with those who\nclaimed a return of the Exiles in Florida, constituted an influential\nportion of the people of the Southern States, whose joint influence was\nexerted to involve the Government in the support of slavery.\n\nNotwithstanding these clamors, the Government was powerless as to\nobtaining relief for either class. The British Ministry refused\nindemnity, and the Seminoles, supported and encouraged by the Spanish\nauthorities, were inexorable in their refusal to surrender the Exiles.\n\nAt that early period of our history, the subject of slavery greatly\nperplexed the Federal Administration; nor was the genius, or the\ninfluence of Washington, sufficiently powerful to silence the\nmalcontents. He was fortunate in selecting Judge Jay, of New York, as a\nMinister Plenipotentiary, for negotiating a treaty with Great Britain.\nThis illustrious patriot possessed great purity of character; had long\nbeen distinguished for his devotion to the welfare of the nation; and,\nalthough a Northern man, Southern slave claimants could raise no\nobjection to him.\n\nBut every step towards the adjustment of the claims arising for slaves\ncarried away by the English ships, or enlisted into the British army,\nhad the effect to render the owners of Exiles more importunate. There\nwas only one recourse, however, left for the Administration; they could\ndo no more than to call on the Creeks for a new treaty, in order to\nadjust these claims.\n\n[Sidenote: 1795]\n\nAs the President was about to take measures for obtaining another treaty\nwith the Creeks, news arrived from England that Judge Jay, in forming a\nnew treaty with the British Crown, had been constrained to surrender all\nclaims of our citizens for slaves carried from the United States in\nBritish vessels during the war, or for those who had enlisted into the\nBritish service. This news created much excitement among the\nslaveholders of the Southern States. The treaty was denounced by the\npublic Press, and a strong effort was made to defeat its approval by the\nSenate. But failing in that, the slave power was rallied in opposition\nto making any appropriation, by the House of Representatives, for\ncarrying the treaty into effect, and perhaps at no time since the Union\nwas formed, has it been in greater danger of disruption; but the friends\nof the treaty prevailed in both Houses of Congress, and it became a\nparamount law of the nation.\n\nWhile those incidents were transpiring, the Exiles were engaged in\ncultivating their lands, extending their plantations and increasing\ntheir flocks and herds, and consolidating their friendships with the\nIndians around them. Of all these facts the bondmen of Georgia had full\nknowledge. It were impossible for them to contemplate their friends, in\nthe enjoyment of these rights and privileges, without a strong desire to\nshare in those blessings of freedom. The example of the Exiles was thus\nconstantly exerting an influence upon those who remained in bondage.\nMany of them sought opportunities to flee into Florida, where they, in\nlike manner, became free subjects of Spain.\n\n[Sidenote: 1796.]\n\nThis condition of things induced General Washington to make another\neffort to remedy existing evils, and prevent their recurrence in future.\nHe took measures to obtain the attendance of the Chiefs, head men and\nwarriors of the Creek nation, at a place called Colerain, for the\npurpose of forming another treaty. He again appointed Benjamin Hawkins,\nGeorge Clymer and Andrew Pickens, Commissioners, to meet the Indians in\nCouncil, and agree upon the proper adjustment of pending difficulties.\nThese men were interested in the institution of Slavery, and were\nsupposed to be perfectly acceptable to the claimants, as well as to the\nauthorities of Georgia.\n\nThe parties met at the place appointed, and proceeded to the\nconsideration of the proposed treaty. The Creeks were not disposed to\nmake further grants of territory; nor were they able to give any better\nassurance for the return of the Exiles than had been given at New York.\nThey insisted that, by the treaty of New York, they were only bound to\nreturn those negroes who had been captured _since_ the treaty of peace\nbetween the United States and Great Britain; these they had delivered\nup, so far as they were able to surrender them. They admitted there were\nmore negroes among them, whom they might probably obtain at some future\nday, and expressed a willingness to do so. It is however evident, from\nthe talk of the various Chiefs, that they had no idea of returning those\nExiles who were residing in Florida--no allusion being made to them by\neither of the Commissioners, on the part of the United States, nor by\nthe Indians. The Council was also attended by Commissioners on the part\nof Georgia, who attempted to dictate the manner of transacting the\nbusiness, and, even in offensive language, charged the Commissioners of\nthe United States with improper conduct; but in no instance did they\nname the Seminoles, nor allude to any obligation, on the part of the\nCreeks, to return the Exiles resident among the Seminoles. It should\nhowever be borne in mind, that these Commissioners on behalf of Georgia\nleft the council in disgust, before the close of the negotiation. In the\ntreaty itself, however, there is a stipulation that the treaty of New\nYork shall remain in force, except such parts as were expressly changed\nby that entered into at Colerain; and that portion of the treaty of New\nYork by which the Creeks assumed to bind the Seminoles, was not\nchanged.[19]\n\nThe seventh article of the Treaty of Colerain reads as follows:--\"The\nCreek nation shall deliver, as soon as practicable, to the\nSuperintendent of Indian Affairs, at such place as he may direct, all\nthe citizens of the United States, white inhabitants and negroes, who\nare now prisoners in any part of the said nation, agreeably to the\ntreaty at New York; and also all citizens, white inhabitants, negroes\nand property, taken since the signing of that treaty. And if any such\nprisoners, negroes, or property, should not be delivered on or before\nthe first day of January next, the Governor of Georgia may empower three\npersons to repair to the said nation, in order to claim and receive such\nprisoners, negroes and property, under the direction of the President of\nthe United States.\" This stipulation was understood by the Creeks, and\nthey were willing to perform it; but it is very obvious, from all the\ncircumstances, that they had no idea of binding the Seminoles to return\nthe Exiles resident in Florida.\n\nThe State of Georgia obtained very little territory by this treaty, and\nno further indemnity for the loss of their fugitive bondmen. The people\nof that State, therefore, were greatly dissatisfied with it. But the\nextraordinary feature of this treaty, consists in the subsequent\nconstruction placed upon it by the authorities of Georgia, who,\ntwenty-five years subsequently, insisted that the Seminoles were in fact\na part of the Creek tribe, bound by the Creek treaties, and that the\nCreek nation were under obligation to compel the Seminoles to observe\ntreaties made by the Creeks.\n\nIn each of the treaties made between the State of Georgia and the\nCreeks, as well as in that made at New York, between the United States\nand the Creek nation, attempts had been made to bind the Seminoles,\nalthough that tribe had steadily and uniformly denied the authority of\nthe Creeks to bind them; and being sustained by the Spanish authorities,\nit became evident that all further efforts to induce them to submit to\nthe government of the Creeks would be useless. This independence they\nhad maintained for nearly half a century. They had in no instance\nacknowledged the authority of the Creeks since they left Georgia, in\n1750; nor is it reasonable to suppose the authorities of that State, or\nthose of the United States, were ignorant of that important\ncircumstance.\n\nThe flagrant injustice of holding the Creeks responsible for fugitive\nslaves resident in Florida, and under protection of the Spanish crown,\nmust be obvious to every reader; and the inquiry will at once arise. Why\ndid the Creek chiefs at New York consent to such a stipulation? The\nanswer _perhaps_ may be found in the secret article of that treaty,\ngiving to the Creeks fifteen hundred dollars annually, _forever_, and to\nMcGillivray _twelve hundred dollars during life_, and to six other\nchiefs _one hundred dollars annually_. These direct and positive bribes\ncould not fail to have effect. The necessity for keeping this article\nsecret from the Indians generally, and from the people of the United\nStates, is very apparent; as the propriety of thus taking money, drawn\nfrom the free States to bribe Indian chiefs to obligate their nation to\nseize and return fugitive slaves, would have been doubted by savages as\nwell as civilized men. But the duty of the Creeks to seize and return\nthe Exiles was legally recognized by the treaty of Colerain, which\nadmitted the treaty of New York to be in force. This was regarded as a\ncontinuance of the claims of Georgia, although the Creeks appear to have\nhad no idea of entering into such stipulations.\n\n[Sidenote: 1797.]\n\nMany circumstances now combined to quiet the apprehensions of the\nfugitive bondmen in Florida. The elder Adams had been elected President\nin the autumn of 1796, and assumed the duties of his office on the\nfourth of March following. A descendant of the Pilgrims, he had been\nreared and educated among the lovers of liberty; he had long served in\nCongress; he had reported upon the rights of the people of the Colonies\nin 1774, and was chairman of the committee who reported the Declaration\nof Independence, in 1776, and to its doctrines he had ever exhibited an\nunfaltering devotion. From such an Administration the claimants in\nGeorgia could expect but little aid.\n\nAnother consideration, cheering to the friends of Freedom, was the total\nfailure of the claims on Great Britain, for slaves lost during the War\nof the Revolution. The influence of those claimants was no longer felt\nin the Government. The public indignation was also somewhat excited\nagainst the institution of Slavery by incidents of a barbarous\ncharacter, which had then recently transpired in North Carolina. After\nthe promulgation of the Declaration of Independence, the Quakers of that\nState, conscious of its momentous truths, proceeded in good faith to\nemancipate their slaves; believing that the only mode in which they\ncould evince their adherence to its doctrines.\n\nThe advocates of oppression were offended at this practical recognition\nof the \"equal right of all men to liberty,\" and, to manifest their\nabhorrence of such doctrines, arrested the slaves so emancipated as\n_fugitives from labor_. The Quakers, ever true to their convictions of\njustice, lent their influence, and contributed their funds, to test the\nlegal rights of the persons thus set at liberty, before the proper\ntribunals of the State; and the question was carried to the Court of\nAppeals, where a final judgment was rendered in favor of their freedom.\nThis decision appears to have disappointed general expectation among the\nadvocates of slavery, and created much excitement throughout the State.\n\nAt the next session of the Legislature, an act was passed authorizing\npersons possessing landed property to seize and re\u00ebnslave the people\nthus emancipated. But the planters of that State were usually possessed\nof wealth and intelligence, and, holding principles of honor, they\nrefused to perform so degrading a service; and the liberated negroes\ncontinued to enjoy their freedom.\n\nBut the opponents of liberty became so clamorous against the example\nthus set in favor of freedom, that the Legislature passed an amendatory\nact, authorizing _any person_ to seize, imprison and sell, as slaves,\nany negro who had been emancipated in said State, _except those who had\nserved in the army of the United States during the war of the\nRevolution_.\n\nPersons of desperate character, gamblers, slave-dealers and horse\nthieves, were now authorized to gratify their cupidity, by seizing and\nselling persons who had for years enjoyed their liberty; and the scenes\nwhich followed, were in no respect creditable to the State, to the\ncivilization or Christianity of the age. Emancipated families were\nbroken up and separated for ever. In some instances the wife escaped,\nwhile the husband was captured. Parents were seized, and their children\nescaped. Bloodhounds were employed to chase down those who fled to the\nforests and swamps, in order to avoid men more cruel than bloodhounds.\n\nThe Quakers, so far as able, assisted these persecuted people to escape\nto other States. Some left North Carolina on board ships; others fled\nnorth by land; and many reached the free States, where their descendants\nyet live. But even our free States did not afford a safe retreat from\nthe cruelty of inexorable slave-catchers. Those free persons were seized\nin Philadelphia, and, under the fugitive slave law of 1793, were\nimprisoned in that city; and, what excites still greater wonder, were\ndelivered up and carried back to bondage.[20]\n\nSome of these people, while in Pennsylvania, sent petitions to Congress,\npraying protection against such barbarity; and great excitement was\naroused among Southern members by the presentation of such petitions.\nThe Quakers of that State, and of New Jersey, also sent petitions to\nCongress, praying that these people may be protected against such\npiratical persecution. The popular feeling of the nation was shocked at\nthese things, and great indignation against the institution, generally,\nwas aroused.\n\n       *       *       *       *       *\n\nWe have no record of further attempts on the part of the claimants to\nobtain a return of the Exiles, after the Treaty of Colerain, until the\nclose of Mr. Adams's administration. During that period, the fugitives\nremained quietly in their homes, undisturbed by their former masters.\nTheir numbers were often increased by new arrivals, as well as by the\nnatural laws of population, and they began to assume the appearance of\nan established community.\n\nIn 1801, Mr. Jefferson entered upon the duties of President. He had\nhimself penned the Declaration of Independence, and manifested a deep\ndevotion to its doctrines. Nor do we find that any attempt was made by\nhim for the return of the Exiles; nor were there any measures adopted to\nobtain indemnity for the loss of the claimants during the eight years of\nhis Administration.\n\nIn 1802, a new law regulating intercourse with the Indian tribes was\nenacted, by which the holders of slaves were secured for the price or\nvalue of any bondmen who should leave his master and take up his\nresidence with any Indian tribe resident in the United States, or\nTerritories thereof--at least such was the construction given to this\nstatute.\n\nThe Creeks, Cherokees, and other Southern tribes, had gradually adopted\nthe institution of Slavery, so long practiced by their more civilized\nneighbors, and thus became interested in every effort to extinguish the\nhope cherished among their own bondmen, of regaining freedom by fleeing\nfrom their masters. And many circumstances now appeared to favor the\nidea, that no more attempts would be made to compel a return of the\nExiles to bondage.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER III.\n\nHOSTILITIES MAINTAINED BY GEORGIA.\n\n     Mr. Madison's election--His character--Desire of people of Georgia\n     to enslave Exiles--They demand annexation of Florida--Congress\n     passes a law for taking possession of that Territory--General\n     Mathews appointed Commissioner--Declares insurrection--Takes\n     possession of Amelia Island--Spanish Government demands\n     explanation--The President disavows acts of Mathews--Governor\n     Mitchell succeeds Mathews--Georgia raises an Army--Florida\n     Invaded--Troops surrounded by savage foes--Their danger--Their\n     retreat--Stealing Slaves--Lower Creeks join Seminoles--Georgia\n     demands their surrender--Chiefs refuse--Georgia\n     complains--President refuses to Interfere--Another Invasion of\n     Florida--Towns burned; Cattle stolen--Troops withdrawn from Amelia\n     Island--Public attention directed toward our Northern\n     frontier--Lord Cockrane enters Chesapeake Bay--Issues Proclamation\n     to Slaves--Dismay of Slaveholders--Slaves go on board British\n     ships--Several vessels enter Appalachicola Bay--Col. Nichols lands\n     there with Troops--Gathers around him Exiles and Indians--Builds a\n     Fort, arms it, and places Military Stores in Its Magazines--Treaty\n     of Peace with England--Provision in regard to Slaves taken away\n     during War--Claimants of the Exiles encouraged--Col Nichols\n     delivers Fort to the Exiles--Their plantations, wealth, and social\n     condition--Our Army--General Gaines represents Fort as in\n     possession of Outlaws--Plans for its\n     destruction--Correspondence--General Jackson's order--Col. Clinch's\n     Expedition--Met by Sailing-Master Loomis and two gun-boats--Fort\n     blown up--Destruction of human life--Negroes captured and\n     enslaved--Property taken--Claimed by Governor of Florida--First\n     Seminole War commenced.\n\n\nWhen Mr. Madison assumed the duties of President (March 4, 1809), the\nExiles were quietly enjoying their freedom; each sitting under his own\nvine and fig-tree, without molestation or fear. Many had been born in\nthe Seminole country, and now saw around them children and\ngrand-children, in the enjoyment of all the necessaries of life. Many,\neven of those who fled from Georgia after the formation of that colony,\nhad departed to their final rest; but their children and friends had\nbeen comparatively free from persecutions since the Treaty of Colerain,\nin 1796. Discarding all connection with the Creeks, and living under\nprotection of Spain, and feeling their right to liberty was\n\"self-evident,\" they believed the United States to have tacitly admitted\ntheir claims to freedom. With these impressions, they dwelt in conscious\nsecurity, believing no further attempts would be made to re\u00ebnslave them.\nMr. Madison had penned the memorable Address of Congress to the people\nof the United States, published near the close of the old Confederation,\nin which was reiterated, in glowing language, the doctrines of the\nDeclaration of Independence; and in the Convention that framed the\nConstitution, he had declared \"it would be wrong to admit, in that\ninstrument, that _man can hold property in man_.\"\n\n[Sidenote: 1810.]\n\nThe people of Georgia were not satisfied with the existing state of\nthings. They were greatly excited at seeing those who had once been\nslaves, in South Carolina and in Georgia, now live quietly and happily\nin the enjoyment of liberty, with their flocks and their herds, their\nwives and their little ones, around them; but they were on Spanish soil,\nprotected by Spanish laws. The only mode of enslaving them was, firstly,\nto obtain jurisdiction of the Territory; and the annexation of Florida\nto the United States was, accordingly, urged upon the Federal\nGovernment.\n\n[Sidenote: 1811.]\n\nSpain had acquired her American territories by conquest, and was too\nproud to part with them. An excitement, however, was raised in favor of\nits annexation; and this anxiety to secure the slave interests of the\nSouth, soon extended to Congress, and infused itself into the Executive\npolicy of the nation. A law was passed by the two Houses, in secret\nsession, and approved by the President, for taking possession of\nFlorida. Gen. Mathews, a slaveholder of Georgia, was appointed\nCommissioner for that purpose. A few malcontents were found in the\nnortheastern part of the Territory; their numbers were increased by men\nof desperate fortunes from Georgia; and an insurrection was proclaimed\nby the Acting General. Mathews, commanding the insurgents, took\npossession of Amelia Island, and of the country opposite to it on the\nmain land. The Spanish Government, on learning the outrage, remonstrated\nwith our Executive, who disavowed the acts of Mathews, whom he recalled;\nand proceeded to appoint General Mitchell, the Governor of Georgia, to\nact as Commissioner, in place of Mathews.\n\nMitchell, however, continued to hold military possession of the island\nand part of the main land, and, in fact, continued to carry forward the\npolicy which Mathews had inaugurated. These things occurred while our\nnation was professedly at peace with Spain, and constituted a most\nflagrant violation of our national faith.\n\n[Sidenote: 1812.]\n\nThe Executive of Georgia, apparently entertaining the idea that his\nState was competent to declare war and make peace, raised an army,\nwhich, under the command of the Adjutant General, entered Florida with\nthe avowed intention of exterminating the Seminoles, who had so long\nrefused to surrender the Exiles; while the real object was the recapture\nand re\u00ebnslavement of the refugees. The Creeks of the Lower Towns,\nhowever, took sides with the Seminoles, in opposing this piratical foray\nof slave-catchers. The army having penetrated a hundred miles or more\ninto Florida, found itself surrounded with hostile savages. Their\nsupplies were cut off; the men, reduced almost to a state of starvation,\nwere compelled to retrace their steps; and with great loss the survivors\nreached Georgia. But they robbed those Spanish inhabitants who fell in\ntheir way of all their provisions, and left them to suffer for the want\nof food. Nor were the Georgians satisfied with taking such provisions as\nwere necessary to support life; they also took with them a large number\nof slaves, owned by Spanish masters, with whom they resided.[21]\n\nThe people, and the authorities of Georgia, were greatly incensed at the\nCreek Indians, who had assisted the Seminoles in defending themselves;\nand the Governor of that State demanded of the chiefs a surrender of\nthose individuals who had thus offended against the sovereignty of that\ncommonwealth. The chiefs refused to deliver up their brethren, and the\nGovernor complained to the President of this disregard of slaveholding\ncomity by the Creeks.\n\nThe Federal authorities appear to have felt very little interest in the\nmatter, and Georgia determined to redress her own grievances. The\nLegislature of that State, deeming their interests neglected by the\nFederal Government, passed resolutions declaring the occupation of\nFlorida essential to the safety and welfare of their people, whether\nCongress authorized it or not; and they passed an act for raising a\nforce \"_to reduce St. Augustine and punish the Indians_.\"\n\nUnder this declaration of war by the sovereign power of Georgia, another\narmy was raised. Hunters, trappers, vagabonds, and men of desperate\nfortunes, were collected from that State, from East Tennessee, and from\nother Southern States, to the number of five hundred; and Florida was\nagain invaded. This expedition was more successful, in some respects,\nthan the first. They burned two or three of the smaller Seminole towns,\ndestroyed several cornfields that had been planted by the Exiles, and\ndrove back to Georgia large herds of cattle, which they had stolen from\nthe negroes; yet the principal object of the Expedition failed: They\nwere unable to capture an individual, or family, of the Exiles. There\nwere no Spanish inhabitants in that part of Florida from whom they could\ncapture slaves, and they were compelled to return without human victims,\nbut with the loss of several individuals of their own party. Thus, after\na struggle of more than two years (ending May, 1813), the State of\nGeorgia found itself unable to conquer Florida or the Seminoles, or to\ncapture the Exiles. Further prosecution of the war was given up, the\ntroops were withdrawn from Amelia Island, and peace was restored.\n\nThis extraordinary proceeding, on the part of Georgia, appears to have\nexcited very little attention at the time; probably in consequence of\nthe more important operations that were then being carried forward, upon\nour Northern and Northwestern frontiers. Harrison at Tippecanoe, and at\nMaumee; and Scott and Van Rensselaer at Queenston, and along the Niagara\nfrontier, were gallantly confronting the British army, aided by powerful\nallies from the various neighboring tribes of savages; and so greatly\nwas the attention of the people of the Northern States absorbed in these\noperations, that they were scarcely conscious of the slave-catching\nforays carried on by the State of Georgia. Indeed, during these\noperations, the public men of that State were among the most vehement\nadvocates for a strict construction of the Federal Constitution, and for\nmaintaining the American Union.\n\n[Sidenote: 1814.]\n\nThese transactions upon our Southern frontier, called attention of\nBritish Ministers to the Seminoles and the Exiles. A hostile fleet\nentered Chesapeake Bay, under Lord Cochrane, who issued a proclamation\ninviting all persons (meaning slaves), who desired to emigrate from the\nUnited States, to come with their families on board his Britannic\nMajesty's ships of war; assuring them of the privilege of entering his\nMajesty's naval service, or of settling with their families, as _free_\npersons, in either of the British West India Islands. This proclamation\nwas widely circulated, and spread very general consternation along our\nSouthern seaboard: it gave the slaveholders of Georgia occasion to look\nto their own protection, and to secure the fidelity of those bondmen who\nyet remained in the service of their masters.[22]\n\n[Illustration: Gopher John, Seminole Interpreter.]\n\nTwo British sloops of war and some smaller vessels suddenly appeared in\nAppalachicola Bay, where they landed a body of troops, under Lieut.\nColonel Nichols, of the British Army, for the purpose of lending support\nand protection to the Exiles and their Indian allies. He opened\ncommunications with them, furnished them with arms and ammunition, and\nsoon drew around him a considerable force of Indians as well as negroes.\nHis encampment was on the east side of the Appalachicola River, some\nthirty miles above its mouth. In November, he completed a strong fort on\nthe bank of that stream. Some eight pieces of heavy ordnance were\nmounted upon its walls, and its magazine was well stored with the\nmaterial of war.[23] It was evidently intended as a defense against the\nforays of slave-catchers, who were not expected to bring with them heavy\nartillery. The plan was well conceived. Even the plundering expeditions\nauthorized by the State of Georgia, would have been unable to make any\nimpression on this fortification. But neither Nichols, nor the Exiles,\nappear to have anticipated the employment of the United States navy in a\npiratical work, discarded by most Christian nations and people, and\nallowed to be carried on only upon the African coast.\n\nThe British fleet withdrew from the coast of Georgia, and the\nslaveholders of that State were relieved, for a time, from those\napprehensions of slave insurrection which had been excited by the\nproclamation of Lord Cochrane.\n\nIn the meantime the Treaty of Ghent was ratified, and peace restored to\nthe country. In that treaty the interests of Slavery had not been\nforgotten; and the same stipulations were inserted, in regard to the\nwithdrawal of his Majesty's troops and navy, \"without taking or carrying\naway any negroes or other property of the citizens,\" which characterized\nthe treaty of 1782. The owners of slaves who had fled from service under\nthe proclamation of Lord Cochrane, now determined to obtain compensation\nfor their loss. This general feeling again aroused the cupidity of those\nwhose fathers had once claimed to own those Exiles, who fled from\nGeorgia some thirty or forty years previously.\n\nIn the spring of 1815, Colonel Nichols and his troops withdrew from\nFlorida, leaving the fort, with its entire armament and magazine of\nmilitary stores, in the possession of the Exiles, who resided in the\nvicinity. Their plantations extended along the river several miles,\nabove and below the fort.[24] Many of them possessed large herds of\ncattle and horses, which roamed in the forests, gathering their food,\nboth in summer and winter, without expense or trouble to their owners.\n\nThe Pioneer Exiles from South Carolina had settled here long before the\nColony of Georgia existed. Several generations had lived to manhood and\ndied in those forest-homes. To their descendants it had become\nconsecrated by \"many an oft told tale\" of early adventure, of hardship\nand suffering; the recollection of which had been retained in tradition,\ntold in story, and sung in their rude lays. Here were the graves of\ntheir ancestors, around whose memories were clustered the fondest\nrecollections of the human mind. The climate was genial. They were\nsurrounded by extensive forests, and far removed from the habitations of\nthose enemies of freedom who sought to enslave them; and they regarded\nthemselves as secure in the enjoyment of liberty. Shut out from the\ncares and strifes of more civilized men, they were happy in their own\nsocial solitude. So far from seeking to injure the people of the United\nStates, they were only anxious to be exempt, and entirely free from all\ncontact with our population or Government; while they faithfully\nmaintained their allegiance to the Spanish crown.\n\n[Sidenote: 1815.]\n\nPeace with Great Britain, however, had left our army without active\nemployment. A portion of it was stationed along our Southern frontier of\nGeorgia, to maintain peace with the Indians. The authorities and people\nof Georgia maintained social and friendly relations with the officers\nand men of the army. By means of Indian spies, the real condition of the\nExiles was also ascertained and well understood. What means were used to\nexcite the feelings or prejudices of the military officers against these\nunoffending Exiles, is not known at this day. Most of the officers\ncommanding in the South were, however, slaveholders, and probably felt a\nstrong sympathy with the people of Georgia in their indignation against\nthem, for obtaining and enjoying liberty without permission of their\nmasters.\n\nGeneral Gaines, commanding on the Southern frontier of Georgia, making\nFort Scott his head-quarters, wrote the Secretary of War (May 14),\nsaying, \"certain negroes and outlaws have taken possession of a fort on\nthe Appalachicola River, in the Territory of Florida.\" He assured the\nSecretary, that he should keep watch of them. He charged them with no\ncrime, imputed to them no hostile acts. He was conscious that they had\ntaken possession of the fort solely for their own protection; but he\nstyled them _negroes_, which, in the language of that day among\nslaveholders, was regarded as an imputation of guilt; and _outlaw_ was\nsupposed to be a proper term with which to characterize those who had\nfled from bondage and sworn allegiance to another government.[25]\n\nFor more than a year subsequently to the date of this letter, General\nGaines made the Exiles a subject of frequent communication to the War\nDepartment. In this official correspondence, he at all times spoke of\nthem as \"runaways,\" \"outlaws,\" \"pirates,\" \"murderers,\" etc.; but in no\ninstance did he charge them with any act hostile to the United States,\nor to any other people or government.\n\nOf these communications the Exiles were ignorant. They continued in\npeaceful retirement, cultivating the earth, and gaining a support for\nthemselves and families. In the autumn of 1815, they gathered their\ncrops, provided for the support of the aged and infirm, as well as for\ntheir children. They carefully nursed the sick; they buried their dead;\nthey lived in peace, and enjoyed the fruits of their labor. The\nfollowing spring and summer found them in this enviable condition.\n\n[Sidenote: 1816.]\n\nWhile the Exiles living on the Appalachicola were thus pursuing the even\ntenor of their ways, plans were ripening among the slaveholders and\nmilitary officers of our army for their destruction. A correspondence\nwas opened by the Secretary of War with General Jackson, who commanded\nthe Southwestern Military District of the United States, holding his\nhead-quarters at Nashville, Tennessee. Various letters and\ncommunications passed between those officers in regard to this \"Negro\nFort,\" as they called it.\n\nPower is never more dangerous than when wielded by military men. They\nusually feel ambitious to display their own prowess, and that of the\ntroops under their command; and no person can read the communications of\nGeneral Gaines, in regard to the Exiles who had gathered in and around\nthis fort, without feeling conscious that he greatly desired to give to\nthe people of the United States an example of the science and power by\nwhich they could destroy human life.[26]\n\nAt length, on the sixteenth of May, General Jackson wrote General\nGaines, saying, \"I have little doubt of the fact, that this fort has\nbeen established by some villains for the purpose of rapine and plunder,\nand that it ought to be blown up, regardless of the ground on which it\nstands; and if your mind shall have formed the same conclusion, destroy\nit and return the _stolen negroes_ and property to their rightful\nowners.\"[27]\n\nWithout attempting to criticise this order of General Jackson, we must\nregard a fort thus situated, at least sixty miles from the border of the\nUnited States, as a most singular instrument for the purpose of\n\"rapine,\" or plundering our citizens. Nor could General Jackson have\nentertained any apprehensions from those who occupied the fort. The\nentire correspondence showed them to be _refugees_, seeking only to\navoid our people; indeed, his very order shows this, for he directs\nGeneral Gaines to return the \"_stolen negroes_ to their rightful\nowners.\" The use of opprobrious epithets is not often resorted to by men\nin high official stations: yet it is difficult to believe, that General\nJackson supposed these negroes to have been stolen; for, neither in the\nofficial correspondence on this subject, nor in the papers accompanying\nit, embracing more than a hundred documentary pages, is there a hint\nthat these negroes were \"_stolen_,\" or that they had committed violence\nupon any person, or upon the property of any person whatever. They had\nsought their own liberty, and the charge of stealing themselves, was\nused like the other epithets of \"outlaws,\" \"pirates\" and \"murderers,\" to\ncast opprobrium upon the character of men who, if judged by their love\nof liberty or their patriotism, would now occupy a position not less\nhonorable in the history of our country than is assigned to the patriots\nof 1776.\n\nNor is it easy to discover the rule of international law, which\nauthorized the Executive of the United States, or the officers of our\narmy, to dictate to the crown of Spain in what part of his territory he\nshould, or should not, erect fortresses; or the constitutional power\nwhich they held for invading the territory of a nation at peace with the\nUnited States, destroy a fort, and consign its occupants to slavery. But\nthose were days of official arrogance on the one hand, and popular\nsubmission on the other. The Exiles, or their ancestors, had once been\nslaves. They now were cultivating the richest lands in Florida, and\npossessed wealth; they were occupying a strong fortress. Many slaves\nduring the recent war had escaped from their masters, in Georgia, and\nsome were supposed to be free subjects of Spain, living in Florida; and\nif the Exiles were permitted to enjoy their plantations and property in\npeace, it was evident that the institution in adjoining States would be\nin danger of a total overthrow. These facts were apparent to General\nJackson, as well as to General Gaines and the slaveholders of Georgia.\n\nGeneral Gaines only awaited permission from his superior to carry out\nthe designs of the slaveholders, who had become alarmed at the dangers\nto which their \"peculiar institution\" was subjected. Upon the receipt of\nthe order above quoted, he detailed Lieut. Col. Clinch,[28] of the\nregular troops, with his regiment and five hundred friendly Creek\nIndians, under McIntosh, their principal chief, to carry out the\ndirections of General Jackson. Colonel Clinch was directed to take with\nhim two pieces of artillery, for the purpose of cannonading the fort if\nnecessary.[29]\n\nThis commencement of the first Seminole war was, at the time, unknown\nto the people of the United States. It was undertaken for the purposes\nstated in General Jackson's order, to \"blow up the fort, and _return the\nnegroes to their rightful owners_.\" Historians have failed to expose the\ncause of hostilities, or the barbarous foray which plunged the nation\ninto that bloody contest which cost the people millions of treasure and\nthe sacrifice of hundreds of human lives.\n\nIt was July before the arrangements were fully made by Colonel Clinch\nand his savage allies for descending the river, with suitable artillery\nand supplies, to accomplish the object of their mission.[30] The Creeks,\nhaving entered into the treaties of New York and Colerain, by which they\nbound themselves, twenty years previously, to return those Exiles who\nfled from Georgia, and having failed to perform those stipulations, now\ncheerfully united with the American army in this first slave-catching\nexpedition undertaken by the Federal Government.\n\nOf these movements the Exiles had been informed by their neighbors, the\nfriendly Creeks; for, among the Lower Creeks, were individuals who at\nall times sympathized with them, and kept them informed of the measures\nadopted for their destruction. All the families living on the river and\nin the vicinity of the fort, fled to it for protection. They had no idea\nof the advantages arising from scientific warfare; they believed their\nfortification impregnable. Colonel Nichols had erected it for the\npurpose of affording them protection, and they had no doubt of its\nefficiency for that purpose.\n\nSuch were the delays attending the journey, in consequence of\ndifficulties in transporting heavy guns and provisions, that the troops\ndid not reach the vicinity of the fort until the twenty-fourth of July.\nIn the meantime, Commodore Patterson, in pursuance of orders from the\nnaval department, had detailed Sailing-Master Loomis, with two\ngun-boats, to assist in carrying out the order of General Jackson.[31]\n\nOn the twenty-fourth of July, Colonel Clinch commenced a reconnoisance\nof the fort. On the twenty-fifth, he cleared away the brush and erected\na battery, and placed upon it two long eighteen-pounders, and commenced\na cannonade of the fortress. At the time of this investment, there were\nabout three hundred Exiles in the fort, including women and children,\nbesides thirty-four Seminole Indians:[32] yet in the official report of\nColonel Clinch, he makes no mention of his fire being returned; nor does\nhe say that any of his men were killed or wounded by the occupants of\nthe fort.\n\nOn the twenty-sixth of July, Sailing-Master Loomis, with his command,\nreached a point on the river some two miles below the fort. Colonel\nClinch met him at that place, for consultation, and informed him that\nhis fire had thus far proved ineffectual, and that a nearer approach of\nartillery by land would be difficult.[33]\n\nJudging from the language used in his official dispatch, Sailing-Master\nLoomis must have entertained some feelings of distrust towards Colonel\nClinch, as they evidently separated in bad temper: yet no officer in the\nservice of the United States ever exhibited greater prudence in his\npreparations, or more firmness in battle, than Colonel Clinch. He was,\nhowever, a man of kind and humane feelings, and high notions of honor.\nIt has been supposed by many of his friends, that he shrank from the\nperpetration of the outrage which he had been detailed to commit.[34]\n\nOn the morning of the twenty-seventh, Loomis, with his boats, ascended\nthe river and cast anchor opposite the fort, while Colonel Clinch and\nthe Creek Indians took positions so as to cut off retreat by land. The\ncannonade was resumed, and the land and naval forces of the United\nStates were engaged in throwing shot and shells for the purpose of\nmurdering those friendless Exiles, those women and children, who had\ncommitted no other offense than that of having been born of parents who,\na century previously, had been held in bondage. Mothers and children now\nshrieked with terror as the roar of cannon, the whistling of balls, the\nexplosion of shells, the war-whoops of the savages, the groans of the\nwounded and dying, foretold the sad fate which awaited them. The\nstout-hearted old men cheered and encouraged their friends, declaring\nthat death was to be preferred to slavery.\n\nThe struggle, however, was not protracted. The cannon balls not taking\neffect upon the embankments of earth, they prepared their furnaces and\ncommenced the fire of hot shot, directed at the principal magazine. This\nmode proved more successful. A ball, fully heated, reached the powder in\nthe magazine. The small size of the fort, and the great number of people\nin it, rendered the explosion unusually fatal. Many were entirely buried\nin the ruins, others were killed by falling timbers, while many bodies\nwere torn in pieces. Limbs were separated from bodies to which they had\nbeen attached, and death, in all its horrid forms, was visible within\nthat doomed fortress.[35]\n\nOf three hundred and thirty-four souls within the fort, two hundred and\nseventy were _instantly killed_; while of the sixty who remained, only\n_three_ escaped without injury.[36] Two of the survivors--one negro and\none Indian--were selected as supposed chiefs of the allied forces within\nthe fort. They were delivered over to the Indians who accompanied\nColonel Clinch, and were massacred within the fort, in the presence of\nour troops;[37] but no report on record shows the extent of torture to\nwhich they were subjected.\n\nWe have no reliable information as to the number who died of their\nwounds. They were placed on board the gun-boats, and their wounds were\ndressed by the surgeons; and those who recovered were afterwards\ndelivered over to claimants in Georgia. Those who were slightly wounded,\nbut able to travel, were taken back with Colonel Clinch to Georgia and\ndelivered over to men who claimed to have descended from planters who,\nsome three or four generations previously, owned the ancestors of the\nprisoners. There could be no proof of identity, nor was there any court\nauthorized to take testimony, or enter decree in such case; but they\nwere delivered over upon _claim_, taken to the interior, and sold to\ndifferent planters. There they mingled with that mass of chattelized\nhumanity which characterizes our Southern States, and were swallowed up\nin that tide of oppression which is now bearing three millions of human\nbeings to untimely graves.\n\nSailing-Master Loomis informed the Naval Department, through Commodore\nPatterson, that the value of the property captured in the fort was \"not\nless than two hundred thousand dollars.\" He also stated that a portion\nof this property was \"delivered over by Colonel Clinch to the Indians\nwho had accompanied him, on the _express agreement that they should\nshare in the plunder_.\" Another portion of property was held by Colonel\nClinch, as necessary for the use of the troops. A list of the articles\nthus taken is given in the report: it embraces spades, shovels,\npickaxes, swords, sword-belts, pistols and muskets. The remainder of the\nproperty was taken on board the gun-boats, and held subject to the order\nof the Secretary of the Navy.[38]\n\nThe Governor of Florida demanded, in the name of \"his Most Christian\nMajesty the king of Spain,\" possession of the property thus captured in\nthe fort; denying the right of either our army or navy to invade the\nterritory of Spain, and take and carry away property from its\nfortifications.\n\nTo this claim Sailing-Master Loomis replied, that the property did not\nbelong to the Spanish crown, but to the Exiles, who were in possession\nof it, from whom it was taken by _conquest_. This correspondence between\nhis Excellency the Governor of Florida and the Commander of the two\ngun-boats, was duly transmitted to our Government at Washington, and may\nnow be found in our National Archives.[39]\n\nSome twenty-two years subsequent to the capture of this property, and\nthe massacre of those who were in possession of it, a bill was reported\nin the House of Representatives,[40] granting five thousand dollars to\nthe officers, marines and sailors who constituted the crews of those\ngun-boats, as compensation for their _gallant_ services. Whether the\nhonorable Chairman of the Naval Committee who reported the bill, or any\nmember of the House who voted for it, was aware of the true character of\nthe services rendered, is a matter of doubt; but the bill passed without\nopposition, became a law, and the people of the United States paid that\nbonus for the perpetration of one of the darkest crimes which stains\nthe history of any civilized nation.[41]\n\nThe official correspondence connected with this massacre was called for\nby resolution, adopted in the House of Representatives, and was\ncommunicated to that body at the second session of the fifteenth\nCongress. But no action appears to have been proposed in regard to it;\nnor does it appear that public attention was at that time particularly\ncalled to this most wanton sacrifice of human life.\n\nIn this massacre, nearly every Exile resident upon the Appalachicola\nRiver, including women and children, perished or was re\u00ebnslaved. Their\nhomes were left desolate; their plantations, and their herds of cattle\nand horses, became the property of those who first obtained possession\nof them. Probably one-third of all the Exiles at that time resident in\nFlorida, perished in this massacre, or were re\u00ebnslaved by Colonel\nClinch; yet the atrocious character of the transaction appears to have\nattracted very little attention at the time. General Jackson was popular\nas a military officer, and the Administration of Mr. Madison was\nregarded with general favor. No member of Congress protested against the\ntransaction, or made known its barbarity to the people; while the ablest\nmembers taxed their ingenuity, and brought all their rhetoric to bear,\nin vindication of those concerned in the outrage.[42]\n\nWhile Mr. Clay and others severely condemned the technical invasion of\nFlorida, as an act of hostility toward the King of Spain, they omitted\nall reference to this wanton massacre of the Exiles: nor have we been\nable to learn that any member even intimated that the bloody Seminole\nwar of 1816-17 and 18, arose from efforts of our Government to sustain\nthe interests of Slavery; or that our troops were employed to murder\nwomen and children because their ancestors had once been held in\nbondage, and to seize and carry back to toil and suffering those who\nescaped death in that barbarous massacre. The officers of Government,\nand historians of that day, appear to have avoided all reference to the\nfact, that the people thus murdered had been far longer in the\nwilderness than were the children of Israel; that they were contending\nfor that Liberty which is the rightful inheritance of every human being.\nIndeed, more than twenty years elapsed after this massacre, before a\ndistinguished Philanthropist gave to the public the first intimation\nthat such a people as the Exiles had existed.[43]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IV.\n\nGENERAL HOSTILITIES.\n\n     The Troops along the Florida frontier become active--The Exiles on\n     Suwanee and Withlacoochee prepare for War--General Gaines's\n     representation of their numbers--Depredations committed during the\n     Spring and Summer of 1817--Massacre of Lieutenant Scott and his\n     party--Its Effect upon the Country--Congress not consulted as to\n     this War--General Gaines authorized to Invade Florida--General\n     Jackson ordered to the Field--Mr. Monroe assumes the Duties of\n     President--His Cabinet--Character of Congress--Public Sentiment in\n     regard to discussion of Subjects connected with Slavery--General\n     Jackson concentrates his Army at Fort Scott--Proceeds to\n     Mickasukie--Battle--Destruction of the Town--Marches to St.\n     Marks--Indian Chiefs decoyed on board a Vessel--Hanged by order of\n     General Jackson--The Army moves upon Suwanee--Its Situation--Exiles\n     prepare for a decisive Battle--Severe Conflict--General Jackson\n     takes the Town--Captures Indian Women and Children--Burns the\n     Villages of that region--Returns to Pensacola--Capture and Trial of\n     Arbuthnot and Ambrister--Their Execution--Invasion of Florida\n     condemned by some of our Statesmen, and vindicated by others.\n\n\nThe nation having been precipitated into war (1816), the Officers of\nGovernment, and the army, at once became active in carrying it on.\nOrders were sent to General Gaines, exhorting him to vigilance, caution\nand promptitude. He was on the southern frontier of Georgia, where it\nwas naturally supposed the first blow, in retaliation for the massacre\nof Blount's Fort, would fall. His scouts were constantly on the alert,\nhis outposts strengthened, and his troops kept in readiness for action.\n\nThe Seminole Indians had lost some thirty men, who had intermarried with\nthe Exiles, and were in the fort at the time of the massacre. They\nentertain the opinion that the souls of their murdered friends are never\nat rest while their blood remains unavenged; nor could it be supposed\nthat the Exiles would feel no desire to visit retributive justice upon\nthe murderers of their friends. Long did this desire continue, in the\nminds of the surviving Exiles, until, many years subsequently, their\nvengeance was satiated, their hands were stained, and their garments\nsaturated, in the blood of our troops.\n\nThe surviving Exiles had their principal remaining settlements upon the\nSuwanee and Withlacoochee rivers, and in the Mickasukie towns. These\nsettlements were on fertile lands, and were now relied upon to furnish\nprovisions for their support during hostilities. Savages are usually\nimpetuous; but the Exiles were more deliberate. Colonel Clinch had\nreturned to Georgia; Sailing-Master Loomis was at Mobile Bay, and no\ncircumstances demanded immediate action. They gathered their crops,\nobtained arms and ammunition from British and Spanish merchants, and\nmade every preparation for hostilities. During the summer and autumn of\n1816, General Gaines reported slight depredations on the frontiers of\nGeorgia, but in February, 1817, he reported that larger bodies of\nIndians were collecting in some of their villages; and in one of his\nletters he stated that _seven hundred negroes_ were collected at\nSuwanee, and were being daily drilled to the use of arms. This number of\nfighting men would indicate a larger population of Exiles than is\nwarranted by subsequent information.\n\n[Sidenote: 1817.]\n\nDuring the Spring and Summer, both parties were in a state of\npreparation--of constant readiness for war. A few predatory excursions\nto the frontier settlements, marked the action of the Indians and\nExiles, while the army, under General Gaines, often sent parties into\nthe Indian country, without any important incident or effect. The first\neffective blow was struck in November. A boat was ascending the\nAppalachicola river, with supplies for Fort Scott, under the escort of a\nLieutenant and forty men, in company with a number of women and\nchildren. Information of this fact was communicated to the Exiles and\nIndians resident at Mickasukie, and a band of warriors at once hastened\nto intercept them. They succeeded in drawing them into ambush, a few\nmiles below the mouth of Flint River, and the Lieutenant, and all his\nmen but six, and all the children, and all the women but one, were\nmassacred on the spot. Six soldiers escaped, and one woman was spared\nand taken to Suwanee as a prisoner. Here she was kept by the Exiles\nthrough the winter, and treated with great kindness, residing in their\nfamilies and sharing their hospitality. She had thus an opportunity of\nlearning their condition, and the state of civilization to which they\nhad attained, as well as their desire to be at peace with mankind, in\norder to enjoy their own rights and liberties.\n\n[Sidenote: 1818.]\n\nThis massacre was regarded by the country as a most barbarous and wanton\nsacrifice of human life. The newspapers blazoned it forth as an\nexhibition of savage barbarity. The deep indignation of the people was\ninvoked against the Seminoles, who were represented as alone responsible\nfor the murder of Lieutenant Scott, and his men. Probably nine-tenths of\nthe Editors, thus assailing the Seminoles, were not aware of the\natrocious sacrifice of human life at \"Blount's Fort,\" in July of the\nprevious year. Even the President of the United States, in his Message\n(March 25), relating to these hostile movements of the Seminoles, during\nthe previous year, declared \"_The hostilities of this Tribe were\nunprovoked_,\" as though the record of the massacre at \"Blount's Fort\"\nhad been erased from the records of the moral Universe. Notwithstanding\nour army had, in a time of profound peace, invaded the Spanish\nTerritory, marched sixty miles into its interior, opened a cannonade\nupon \"Blount's Fort,\" blown it up, with an unprecedented massacre, in\nwhich both Seminole Indians and negroes were slain, and two of their\nprincipal men given over to barbarous torture; yet, the President, in\nhis Message, as if to falsify the history of current events, declared\nthat \"as almost the whole of this Tribe inhabit the country within the\nlimits of Florida, Spain was bound, by the Treaty of 1795, to restrain\nthem from committing depredations against the United States.\" Such were\nthe efforts made to misrepresent facts, in relation to the first\nSeminole War. With its commencement, the people had nothing to do; they\nwere not consulted, nor were their Representatives in Congress permitted\nto exercise any influence over the subject. The correspondence between\nGeneral Gaines and the Secretary of War, in regard to the occupation of\nthe fort by the Exiles, had commenced on the fourteenth of May, 1815. It\nwas continued while Congress was in session, in 1815 and 1816, but no\nfacts in regard to the plan of destroying it, and entering upon a war,\nfor the purpose of murdering or enslaving the Exiles, had been\ncommunicated to Congress or the public.\n\nOrders were now issued to General Gaines, authorizing him to carry the\nwar into Florida, for the purpose of punishing the Seminoles. General\nJackson was ordered to take the field, in person, with power to call on\nthe States of Tennessee and Georgia for such militia as he might deem\nnecessary, for the due prosecution of the war; and the most formidable\narrangements were made for carrying on hostilities upon a large scale.\n\nMr. Monroe had assumed the duties of President in March, 1817. He had\nappointed Hon. John Quincy Adams Secretary of State, at the commencement\nof his administration; but the office of Secretary of War was not filled\nby a permanent appointment, for some months, in consequence of Governor\nShelby's refusal to accept it, on account of his advanced age. It was\nfinally conferred on Hon. John C. Calhoun, who, through his entire\nofficial life, was distinguished for his devotion to the institution of\nSlavery; and this war having been entered upon for the support of that\ninstitution, it may well be supposed that he exerted his utmost energies\nfor its vigorous prosecution.\n\nThe fifteenth Congress assembled in December, 1817. Most of the members\nfrom the free States had not enjoyed the advantages of having served\nlong in that body. They afterwards showed themselves able men; but the\nbusiness of legislation requires experience, industry, and a perfect\nknowledge of the past action of government. This cannot be obtained in\none session, nor in one Congress; it can only be gathered by the labors\nof an active life. It is, therefore, not surprising that Congress\ngranted to the War Department whatever funds the President required to\ncarry on the war.\n\nIt is not our province to applaud, or condemn, public men; but history\nrepresents no member of the fifteenth Congress as having proclaimed the\ncause of this war, or the atrocious massacre which characterized its\ncommencement. On the contrary, those who spoke on the subject,\nrepresented it as entirely owing to the Indian murders on the frontiers\nof Georgia, and to the massacre of Lieutenant Scott and his men. There\nwas great delicacy exhibited, and had been for many years previously, in\nregard to the agitation of any question touching the institution of\nSlavery; and the people of the free and slave States appeared to feel\nthat silence on that subject was obligatory upon every citizen who\ndesired a continuance of the Union. These circumstances rendered it easy\nfor the Administration to prosecute the war, with whatever force they\ndeemed necessary for the speedy subjection of Indians and Exiles.\n\nOn entering the field of active service, General Jackson called on the\nState of Tennessee for two thousand troops. He repaired to Harford, on\nthe Ockmulgee, where a body of volunteers, from Georgia, had already\nassembled, and organizing them, he requested the aid of the Creek\nIndians also. They readily volunteered, under the command of their\nchief, McIntosh, ready to share in the honors and dangers of the\napproaching campaign. With the Georgia volunteers and Creek Indians,\nGeneral Jackson marched to Fort Scott, where he was joined by about one\nthousand regular troops.\n\nWith this force, he moved upon the Mickasukie towns, situated near the\nLake of that name, some thirty miles south of the line of Georgia. It\nwas the nearest place at which the Exiles had settled in considerable\nnumbers. There were several small villages in the vicinity of this Lake,\ninhabited almost entirely by blacks. A large quantity of provisions had\nbeen stored there. There were also several Seminole towns between\nMickasukie Lake and Tallahasse, on the west.\n\nThe Exiles appear to have viewed the approach of General Jackson with\ncoolness and firmness. They had evidently calculated the result with\nperfect accuracy. Their women and children were removed to places of\nsafety, and their herds of cattle were driven beyond the reach of the\ninvading army; and some of their Indian allies followed the example thus\nset them by the Exiles; yet others were not equally careful in\ncalculating future events.\n\nNeither Indians nor negroes had made these towns their general\nrendezvous; nor did they expect a decisive battle to occur at that\npoint; yet they prepared to meet General Jackson, and his army, in a\nbecoming manner. Most of their forces were collected prior to the\narrival of our troops. In making the requisite dispositions for battle,\nthe Indians were formed in one body, and the negroes in another--each\nbeing under their respective chiefs.\n\nGeneral Jackson encountered the allied forces at some little distance\nfrom the Mickasukie towns, April first. The battle was of short\nduration. The Indians soon fled. The Exiles fought with greater\nobstinacy. Their fire was so fatal that a reinforcement was ordered to\nthat part of the field, and the Exiles were driven from their position,\nleaving twelve of their number dead upon the field.\n\nIn his official report of this battle, General Jackson insisted that\nBritish officers had drilled the negroes, and British traders had\nfurnished them ammunition. He also reported that he burned more than\nthree hundred dwellings, and obtained a supply of provisions and cattle\nfor his army.\n\nThe Exiles, generally, retreated to Suwanee, and the Indians continued\nto hang around the American army, watching its movements. General\nJackson, however, directed his course towards St. Marks, a Spanish fort,\nsituated on the river of that name, some fifty miles southwest of\nMickasukie Lake.\n\nThe American army reached St. Marks on the seventh of April, and\nremained there several days. One of the American vessels lying in\nAppalachicola Bay, hoisted British colors, in order to decoy some\nIndians who were looking at them from the shore. Two of the \"Red Stick\"\nband ventured on board; they were said to be chiefs, and in alliance\nwith the Seminoles. General Jackson ordered them to be hanged, without\ntrial or ceremony, justifying the act by charging them with having\nparticipated in the massacre of Lieutenant Scott and his party, during\nthe previous autumn, apparently unconscious that, by his own orders, two\nhundred and seventy people, including innocent children and women, had\nbeen most wantonly and barbarously murdered at the fort on\nAppalachicola, and that Lieutenant Scott and _thirty_ men were murdered\nin retaliation for that act, according to savage warfare. He appears to\nhave felt it due to offended justice, that these men should die for\nbeing suspected of participating in that act of retaliation. In all\nthese cases, the most assiduous efforts were exerted to misrepresent the\nreal state of facts.\n\nThe time occupied in the approach and capture of Fort St. Marks, gave to\nthe Exiles and Indians full opportunity to concentrate their forces at\nSuwanee. It constituted the most populous settlement of the Exiles,\nafter the destruction of that upon the Appalachicola. It was regarded as\ntheir stronghold. Surrounded by swamps, it was approached only through\nnarrow defiles, which rendered it difficult for an army to reach it.\nHere many of the Exiles had been born and reared to manhood. Here were\ntheir homes, their firesides. Here their chief, Nero, resided; and here\nthey concentrated their whole force. They had removed their women and\nchildren, their provisions and cattle, to places of safety, and coolly\nawaited the approach of General Jackson's army.[44]\n\nScouting parties were, however, sent out to harrass his advance guard,\nand delay his approach, and render it more difficult; but,\nnotwithstanding these obstacles, the army steadily advanced, and on the\nnineteenth of April reached the \"Old Town\" of \"Suwanee,\" and found the\nallied forces in order of battle, prepared to contest the field. The\nIndians were again formed on the right, and the Exiles constituted the\nleft wing, bringing them in conflict with the right wing of General\nJackson's forces.\n\nWith the Exiles, there was no alternative other than war or slavery; and\nthey greatly preferred death upon the battle field, to chains and the\nscourge. We may well suppose they would fight with some degree of\ndesperation, under such circumstances; and the battle of Suwanee gave\nevidence of their devotion to freedom. They met the disciplined troops,\nwho constituted General Jackson's army, with firmness and gallantry.[45]\nAt the commencement, their fire was so fatal that the right wing of the\nAmerican army faltered, and ceasing to advance, gave signs of falling\nback. But the left wing, opposed to the Indians, made a successful\ncharge; the Indians gave way, and the reserve was suddenly brought into\naction to sustain the right wing, when a general charge was ordered, and\nthe Exiles were compelled to fall back.[46]\n\nGeneral Jackson, in his official report of this battle, refers to the\ndesperation with which the negroes fought, and says they left many dead\nupon the field, but does not mention their number. He entered the town\nand set fire to the buildings, and burned all the villages in the\nvicinity. He also captured some three hundred Indian women and children,\nwhile those belonging to the Exiles had been carefully removed beyond\nthe reach of the American army. This superior caution and provident care\nappears to mark the character of the Exiles in all their conduct; while\nthe Indians appear to have practised none of these precautions.\n\nBut the allied forces, defeated, and their warriors scattered in various\ndirections, were pursued by McIntosh and his Creek warriors, who had\naccompanied General Jackson, until fearing the Seminoles might rally in\nforce against them, they returned and again united with the American\narmy.\n\nThis battle substantially closed the war of 1818. It had been commenced\nfor the destruction of the Exiles; they had shared in its dangers, and\nby their energy and boldness, had given intensity to its conflicts. From\nthe time they united in the expedition for the destruction of Lieutenant\nScott and his party, in November, 1817, until the close of the battle of\nSuwanee, they had been active participants in every skirmish, and had\nuniformly displayed great firmness; bearing testimony to the truth of\nthose historians who have awarded to the African race the merit of great\nphysical courage.\n\nGeneral Jackson appears to have spoken as little of the Exiles as duty\nwould permit, when communicating with the Secretary of War; yet he was\nmore free to complain of them in his correspondence with the Governor of\nPensacola. In a letter to that officer, dated a few days after the\nbattle of Suwanee, he says: \"_Negroes who have fled from their masters,\ncitizens of the United States, have raised the tomahawk, and, in the\ncharacter of savage warfare, have spared neither age nor sex_. _Helpless\nwomen have been massacred, and the cradle crimsoned with blood._\"\n\nWe can, at this day, scarcely believe that this eloquent description of\nsavage barbarity was from the pen of a man whose order for the massacre\nof defenseless women and children, at the Fort on Appalachicola, bore\ndate less than two years before writing this letter; nor can we readily\ncomprehend the effrontery of him who thus attempted to justify the\ninvasion of Florida, by reference to acts done by the Exiles long after\nthe army under his command had entered that territory, and committed the\nmost atrocious outrages ever perpetrated by civilized men upon an\nunoffending people.\n\nAfter the battle of Suwanee, General Jackson returned to St. Marks,\nbeing unable to follow the Indians and Exiles into the more southern\nportions of Florida. While at St. Marks, he ordered a court-martial,\nconstituting General Gaines president, in order to try Arbuthnot and\nAmbrister. The history of their trial and execution is familiar to the\nreader. The first and principal charge against Ambrister was, that he\nexcited the _negroes_ and Indians to commit murder upon the people of\nthe United States; the second charge was for supplying them with arms.\nOn these charges he was convicted and executed. It was also alleged,\nthat he was present at the battle of Suwanee; and some writers say he\ncommanded the Exiles on that occasion, and had previously taught them\nmilitary discipline.\n\nIn May, General Jackson issued an Address to his troops, declaring the\nwar at an end; and wrote the Executive, asking permission to retire to\nhis home in Nashville, there being no further use for his services in\nthe field.\n\nThe Exiles now returned to their homes. They had full leisure to\ncontemplate their situation. Many of their best men had fallen. Nearly\nthe entire population residing upon the Appalachicola River had been\nmassacred. Their villages at Mickasukie and Suwanee had been burned; and\nit is probable that nearly one half of their entire population had been\nsacrificed, in this first war waged by the United States for the murder\nand recapture of fugitive slaves.\n\nThe invasion of Florida by General Jackson was condemned by many public\nmen, and was approved by others with equal ability. Even the then\nSecretary of State, John Quincy Adams, in his correspondence with Don\nOnis, the Spanish Minister, defended the invasion with great ability.\nBut in the discussions of this subject, we find no allusion to the\nmassacre at \"Blount's Fort;\"[47] that appears to have been regarded as\na subject of too delicate a nature for public scrutiny. In the alcoves\nof our National Library, we find many volumes of documents touching this\nwar, embracing some thousands of pages, in which there is the strongest\ncensure expressed against the Seminoles for provoking the war, and\ncondemnation for the barbarous manner in which they conducted it; but we\nsearch them in vain to find any condemnation, by American statesmen, of\nthe object for which the war was commenced, or the unprovoked and worse\nthan savage massacre which marked its beginning.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER V.\n\nFURTHER EFFORTS OF THE GOVERNMENT TO RESTORE EXILES TO SERVITUDE.\n\n     Effects of the War--Situation of the Exiles--Servility of Northern\n     Statesmen--Determination of Southern Slaveholders--The purchase of\n     Florida demanded--Causes which led to it--Territory\n     obtained--Authorities of Georgia demand a new Treaty with\n     Creeks--Mr. Calhoun Secretary of War--His efforts in favor of the\n     Claimants--Georgia appoints Commissioners--They attempt to dictate\n     those appointed by the United States--Correspondence--Mr. Calhoun\n     dissatisfied with those whom he had appointed--They resign--New\n     Commissioners appointed--Their relation to the\n     subject--Difficulties--Indian Talks--Treaty\n     effected--Agreement--Assignment of Fugitive Slaves to United States\n     in trust for the Creek Indians--Claims adjudicated--Slaveholders\n     claim the funds belonging to the Creek Indians.\n\n\nThe first Seminole war, like most other wars, was attended with great\nsacrifice of blood and treasure. It had corrupted the morals of the\nnation; but the Administration had entirely failed to attain the objects\nfor which it had been commenced. Not ten slaves had been captured, if we\nexcept those who were wounded and taken prisoners at \"Blount's Fort,\"\none half of whom had died of their wounds. Under such circumstances, the\nGovernment could not, with propriety, condescend to make a treaty with a\ncommunity of black men, whose ancestors had fled from slavery. Such act\nwould, in the opinion of slaveholders, have compromised the dignity of\nthe Slaveholding States; nor could they treat with the Seminole Indians\nas a separate tribe, for the Administration was endeavoring to hold the\nCreeks responsible for the acts of the Seminoles, who, the slaveholders\ninsisted, were a part of the Creek tribe. The army was therefore\nwithdrawn from Florida, without any treaty whatever. But the act of\nwithdrawing the army and permitting the Exiles to remain in a state of\nfreedom and independence, constituted an acknowledgment of the inability\nof our Government to re\u00ebnslave them, although it was constantly asserted\nthat they were a degraded race, incapable of supporting themselves if\nset at liberty.\n\nIn looking over the official reports of our officers, the action of\nCongress, and the tone of the public press, we are forcibly impressed\nwith the constant and unceasing efforts to hide from the popular mind of\nthe nation the real questions involved in this war. Nor can we account\nfor it upon any other hypothesis, than the popularity of President\nMonroe's Administration. The old Federal party had ceased to exist. They\nhad been the only party opposed to Mr. Monroe; and no member of Congress\nappears to have possessed the requisite independence, information and\nability, to take a position distinctly against his policy.\n\nSoon as our army was withdrawn from Florida, peace was of course\nrestored, and things remained as they were prior to the invasion under\nColonel Clinch, in 1816. The Exiles were again left in peace, as they\nhad been prior to the commencement of the war. Nothing had been gained\nto the United States by the vast expenditure of blood and treasure which\nattended the prosecution of hostilities. The Exiles had maintained their\nliberty for at least a century, and now they had set the American\nGovernment at defiance. These considerations operated upon the minds of\nthe slave population of Georgia and Alabama, who now became more anxious\nto join them; and their numbers were thus increased almost daily by\nslaves from those States.\n\nFrom 1790, our Government had endeavored to re\u00ebnslave these people. No\nNorthern statesmen objected to the policy; while those of the South had\ncome to believe that, although the Union may not have been formed solely\nfor the purpose of capturing slaves, yet that duty was regarded by them\nas _one_ of its most important objects. It had now become evident that\nno military force could pursue them into their retired fastnesses, or\nseek them out when scattered among the hommocks, the swamps and\neverglades of that singular country.\n\nSouthern statesmen now turned their attention to the purchase of\nFlorida. That would deprive the Indians and Exiles of the nominal\nprotection of Spanish laws, and would bring them under the jurisdiction\nof the United States; they therefore addressed themselves to that policy\nwith renewed assiduity. Recent events had convinced the authorities of\nSpain that it was impossible for them to maintain the dignity of the\nSpanish crown, or the sanctity of her soil from invasion against an\nAmerican army, when in pursuit of fugitive slaves. She had seen her\nterritory invaded; her forts at Pensacola and at St. Marks captured, and\nthat upon the Appalachicola destroyed; her subjects massacred; her\nauthority despised, and her rights as a nation treated with indignity by\nour army. There was, indeed, no other way for her but to accede to the\nproposition of the United States.\n\n[Sidenote: 1819.]\n\nA treaty was negotiated (February 22), and in consideration of five\nmillions of dollars, Florida was transferred to the United States, and\nthe Seminoles were brought within the jurisdiction which they most\ndreaded.\n\nThe slaveholders of Georgia, who had so long pressed their claims for\nfugitive slaves, now became more clamorous. They saw, with intense\ninterest, the pertinacity with which the Executive had pressed the\nclaims of those who lost slaves, in the then recent war with England.\nUnder the Treaty of Ghent, the President insisted upon full indemnity to\nthose whose slaves had left the country, under British aid; and when the\nEnglish ministry refused, and insisted upon the same construction as\nthat placed upon the treaty of 1783, which contained the same words, the\nAmerican Executive refused, and the question was referred to the\numpirage of the Autocrat of Russia, who held an entire nation in\nslavery, and could not be expected to decide in any other manner, than\nthat most favorable to the institution.[48]\n\n[Sidenote: 1820.]\n\nThe influence of the slave power having increased so greatly since 1796,\nas to induce the British Government to change its policy, adopted at the\nframing of Jay's Treaty, was now believed competent to compel the Creek\nIndians to comply with the treaties of New York and Colerain. A quarter\nof a century had passed, since the signing of the last of these\ntreaties, and they had been forgotten by many; but the people of the\nfree States, and their Representatives and Senators in Congress, had\nquietly submitted to this prostitution of our national character and\ninfluence, and none appeared to doubt the propriety of continuing these\nefforts.\n\n[Sidenote: 1821.]\n\nGeorgia now demanded of the Federal Government a new treaty with the\nCreek Indians,[49] in order to obtain from them indemnity for the slaves\nshe had lost, subsequent to the close of the Revolution, and prior to\nthe act of 1802. To this demand the Federal Executive assented. The\nSecretary of War, Mr. Calhoun, with his attachment to the institution,\ncould do no less than to exert what influence he was able to wield, in\nassisting Georgia to obtain a compensation for the loss of her slaves.\nOn him devolved the burthen of selecting commissioners to negotiate the\ncontemplated treaty. Careful to place the subject in the hands of men\nwho would be likely to wield their power for the benefit of the\n\"peculiar institution,\" he appointed General Andrew Pickens of his own\nState, and General Thomas Flournoy of Georgia, to conduct the\nnegotiation.\n\nIn his letters of instruction to those gentlemen, he was careful to\ninform them that the treaty was to be negotiated _for the benefit of\nGeorgia_;[50] that she would also appoint commissioners to attend the\nnegotiation, and watch over the interests of her people. The\ncommissioners proceeded to make arrangements for the treaty. They\nappointed the time and place for holding it; employed an agent to\nfurnish the requisite supplies, and made arrangements for the necessary\npayments. At this point a correspondence arose between them and the\ncommissioners of Georgia, who assumed to dictate the terms on which the\ntreaty was to be founded. The commissioners of the United States,\nfinding those of Georgia inclined to dictate the course of action which\nthey were to pursue, were unwilling to submit to such dictation, and\nreported the difficulty to the Secretary of War; while the commissioners\non the part of Georgia, feeling perfect confidence in the devotion of\nthat officer to the interests of slavery, made their report of the\nmatter to him also.[51]\n\nThe Secretary returned an answer, reproving the commissioners whom he\nhad himself appointed, so severely for their refusal to obey the\ndictation of those appointed by Georgia, that they both immediately\nresigned their offices, appearing to feel that their own self-respect\nmust be compromised by acting under the instruction of the State\nCommissioners.[52]\n\nApparently determined to appoint no man who should again prove\nrefractory, the Executive--probably at the instance of the Secretary of\nWar--next selected as commissioner, in the place of Mr. Flournoy, David\nMeriwether, who had, up to the time of receiving the appointment, acted\nas commissioner on the part of Georgia. At the request of the Secretary\nof War, he resigned his office of commissioner on behalf of the State,\nand accepted the appointment from the Federal Government. Hon. D. M.\nForney, of North Carolina, was selected as the other commissioner, in\nplace of Mr. Pickens. These commissioners were expressly instructed to\nassist the State of Georgia in obtaining the objects for which she was\nstriving.[53]\n\nThese preliminary arrangements could not fail to foreshadow the\ncharacter of the treaty negotiated under such auspices. Anticipating no\nother motive for the treaty than the settlement of the boundary between\nthe State of Georgia and the Creeks, the chiefs, head-men and principal\nwarriors of the tribe assembled at the time and place appointed. After\nthe ordinary formalities on such occasions, the commissioners on the\npart of the United States opened the business by simply stating, that\nthe people of Georgia complained to the President that the Creeks had\nnot returned the property (negroes, cattle and horses), which they were\nunder obligations to return to their owners in Georgia, by the treaties\nof New York and Colerain.\n\nThe commissioners on the part of Georgia now delivered their talk,\nsaying, that by the treaty of Augusta (1783), of Galphinton (1785), and\nof Shoulderbone (1786), the Creeks had agreed to return to their owners,\nnegroes who had left their masters, and other property; that these\ntreaties were all made before the formation of the government of the\nUnited States under their present Constitution; but they were ratified\nby the treaty of New York (1790), and of Colerain (1796), made with the\nUnited States, and Georgia now demanded compensation for the loss of her\nnegroes and other property.\n\nOn the following day, General McIntosh, principal chief of the Creeks,\nreplied, that he came to meet the commissioners of the United States,\nand had no expectation of meeting those of Georgia; nor had he or his\nfriends any idea that such claims were to be presented. That the chief,\nMcGillivray, when he returned, after the treaty of New York, informed\nthem that they were to deliver up such negroes as were _then in the\nnation_; that they were to pay for none who had removed or died; that\nthey all so understood that treaty, and that nothing was then said about\nany other claims than for _negroes_; that the _prisoners_, both black\nand white, were delivered up under the treaty of New York; that the\nclaims now presented were also presented at the treaty of Colerain, in\n1796, but the Creeks then absolutely refused to acknowledge any further\nobligation than that contained in the treaty of New York, and by that\nthey were under obligation to surrender no property except persons held\nas prisoners, and negroes then in the nation. That many of these negroes\nwere carried away by the British, during the war of 1812; that others\nwere in the fort at Appalachicola, when he and his warriors went with\nColonel Clinch and blew it up, and killed nearly all who were in it; and\nthe others were with the _Seminoles_, and not with the Creeks.\n\nTo this answer the commissioners of Georgia replied, that by the\ntreaties of Augusta, and Galphinton, and Shoulderbone, the Creeks were\nbound to deliver all negroes who had left their masters in Georgia;\nthat, if they had done so, the British would not have carried them off,\nnor would they have been killed in the fort; that the _Seminoles were a\npart of the Creek nation_, who were responsible, not only for the slaves\nand their increase, but also for the loss of the labor which they would\nhave performed had they remained in bondage.\n\nOf the means used to obtain the treaty, we have no other information\nthan appears of record. Those acquainted with the usual modes of\nnegotiating Indian treaties, by the use of intoxicating liquors, by\nbribery, and those appliances generally used on such occasions, will not\nwonder at the stipulations contained in the Treaty of \"Indian Spring.\"\n\nBy the first article, the Creeks ceded to the United States, for the\nbenefit of Georgia, about five million acres of their most valuable\nterritory. The second article provided for the reservation of certain\nlands, to be retained by those who were then living upon them. The third\nreserved certain lands for the use of the United States agency; and the\nfourth is in the following words:\n\n\"It is hereby stipulated and agreed, on the part of the United States,\nas a consideration for the land ceded by the Creek nation, by the first\narticle, that there shall be paid to the Creek nation, by the United\nStates, ten thousand dollars in hand, the receipt whereof is hereby\nacknowledged, forty thousand dollars as soon as practicable after the\nratification of this convention, five thousand dollars annually for two\nyears thereafter, sixteen thousand dollars annually for five years\nthereafter, and ten thousand dollars annually for six years thereafter;\nmaking in the whole fourteen payments, in fourteen successive years,\nwithout interest, in money or goods, and implements of husbandry, at the\noption of the Creek Nation, seasonably signified, from time to time,\nthrough the agent of the United States residing with said nation, to the\nDepartment of War. And as a further consideration for said cession, the\nUnited States do hereby agree to pay to the State of Georgia, whatever\nbalance may be found due by the Creek Nation to the citizens of said\nState, whenever the same shall be ascertained, in conformity with the\nreference made by the commissioners of Georgia and the chiefs, head-men\nand warriors of the Creek Nation, to be paid in five annual\ninstallments, without interest, provided the same shall not exceed the\nsum of two hundred and fifty thousand dollars; the commissioners of\nGeorgia executing to the Creek Nation a full and final relinquishment of\nall the claims of the citizens of Georgia against the Creek Nation, for\nproperty taken or destroyed prior to the act of Congress, of one\nthousand eight hundred and two, regulating the intercourse with the\nIndian tribes.\"\n\nThe fifth article merely provides for running the boundaries of the\nseveral reservations. It was duly signed and witnessed, and bears date\non the eighth of January, 1821.\n\nDeeming the treaty not sufficiently explicit in its terms, the\ncommissioners on the part of Georgia, entered into a further agreement\nwith the Indians, which reads as follows:\n\n\"Whereas at a conference, opened and held at the Indian Spring, in the\nCreek Nation, the citizens of Georgia, by the aforesaid commissioners,\nhave represented that they have claims to a large amount against the\nsaid Creek Nation of Indians: Now, in order to adjust and bring the same\nto a speedy and final settlement, it is hereby agreed by the aforesaid\ncommissioners, and the chiefs, head-men and warriors of the said Nation,\nthat all the talks had upon the subject of these claims, at this place,\ntogether with all claims on either side, of whatever nature or kind,\nprior to the act of Congress of one thousand eight hundred and two,\nregulating the intercourse with the Indian tribes, with the documents in\nsupport of them, shall be referred to the decision of the President of\nthe United States, by him to be decided upon, adjusted, liquidated and\nsettled, in such manner and under such rules, regulations and\nrestrictions as he shall prescribe: Provided, however, if it should meet\nthe views of the President of the United States, it is the wish of the\ncontracting parties, that the liquidation and settlement of the\naforesaid claims shall be made in the State of Georgia, at such place as\nhe may deem most convenient for the parties interested; and the decision\nand award thus made and rendered, shall be binding and obligatory upon\nthe contracting parties.\"\n\nThere was also an assignment of the title, or right of property claimed,\nexecuted to the United States by the Commissioners of Georgia, which is\nin the following language:\n\n\"Whereas a treaty, or convention, has this day been made and entered\ninto, by and between the United States and the Creek Nation, by the\nprovisions of which the United States have agreed to pay, and the\ncommissioners of the State of Georgia have agreed to accept, for and on\nbehalf of the citizens of the State of Georgia having claims against the\nCreek Nation, prior to the year one thousand eight hundred and two, the\nsum of two hundred and fifty thousand dollars:\n\n\"Now know all men by these presents, that we, the undersigned,\ncommissioners of the State of Georgia, for and in consideration of the\naforesaid sum of two hundred and fifty thousand dollars, secured by the\nsaid treaty, or convention, to be paid to the State of Georgia, for the\ndischarge of all bona fide and liquidated claims which the citizens of\nthe said State may establish against the Creek Nation, do, by these\npresents, release, exonerate and discharge the said Creek Nation from\nall and every claim and claims, of whatever description, nature or kind\nthe same may be, which the citizens of Georgia now have, or may have\nhad, prior to the year one thousand eight hundred and two, against the\nsaid Nation. And we do hereby _assign, transfer and set over unto the\nUnited States, for the use and benefit of the said Creek Nation_, for\nthe consideration hereinbefore expressed, all the right, title and\ninterest of the citizens of the said State to all claims, debts,\ndamages, and property of every description and denomination, which the\ncitizens of the said State have or had, prior to the year one thousand\neight hundred and two, as aforesaid, against the said Creek Nation.\"\n\nIt were useless for the historian to criticise the language of these\nseveral instruments. The \"claims\" mentioned in them, and referred to the\nPresident, were mostly for slaves who left their masters during the\nRevolution, and prior to 1802; at least such was the construction given\nto the treaty, the agreement and assignment by the parties; and we\ncannot, at this day, assert that they did not understand their own\ncompacts.\n\nThe Creeks were to receive two hundred thousand dollars in cash; and the\nUnited States agreed to pay to Georgia her claims, provided they did not\nexceed _two hundred and fifty thousand dollars_. The amount due to\nGeorgia was to be ascertained by the President, and paid by the United\nStates. The third, and a very important point was the _assignment_ to\nthe United States, for the benefit of the Creek Indians, of the\ninterest vested in the claimants to the _property_ and _persons_\nclaimed--the _United States to hold such interest in trust_ for the\nCreek Indians.\n\nBy this arrangement, our Government became owners of the Exiles referred\nto, _in trust for the benefit of the Creeks_, according to the\nconstruction which the Indians, the authorities of the United States and\nthose of Georgia, placed upon the assignment, the agreement and treaty.\nThis important point, if borne in mind, will aid the reader in\nunderstanding the subsequent action of the Federal authorities in\nrelation to this subject.\n\n[Sidenote: 1822.]\n\nIn pursuance of this treaty, the President promptly appointed a\ncommissioner to ascertain the amounts due the several claimants. But\ngreat difficulties had to be encountered. The claims commenced in 1775\nand extended down to 1802, and it was extremely difficult to obtain\nevidence of facts which transpired so long prior to the examination.\nSufficient proof was produced, however, to satisfy the commissioner that\nninety-two slaves had, within the periods mentioned, left their masters,\nin Georgia, and fled to the Indians; and the estimated value of slaves\nand other property lost to the owners in this manner, amounted to one\nhundred and nine thousand dollars.[54]\n\n[Sidenote: 1823.]\n\nThis amount of money was duly appropriated by Congress. So far as we are\ninformed, no member of the House of Representatives, or of the Senate,\nappears to have entertained doubts as to the propriety of this\ngovernmental slave-dealing. The whole negotiation and arrangement had\nbeen conducted and managed by Southern men, and Northern statesmen\nquietly submitted. Thus, after a struggle of thirty-eight years, the\nSlaveholders of Georgia, by the aid of our Federal Government, obtained\ncompensation for the loss of their fugitive bondmen.\n\nAfter the distribution of the amount found due to the claimants, there\nyet remained in the hands of the President one hundred and forty-one\nthousand dollars, being the remainder of the two hundred and fifty\nthousand appropriated by the treaty to secure the payment of these\nclaims. This money apparently belonged to the Indians. The claimants for\nslaves could not have any title to it, for they had expressly\nstipulated, that the award of the commissioner should be _conclusive_\nupon the parties. The claimants, by that award, received full\ncompensation for their loss; yet they next demanded of the President the\nhundred and forty-one thousand dollars which remained in his hands.\nNotwithstanding the commissioners on the part of Georgia expressly\nagreed to abide by the award, and had assigned all interest in the\nproperty and _in the persons_ residing with the Indians, to the United\nStates, and had received their money in full, under the treaty; yet they\ndesired to get the remainder, which was considerably larger than the\namount awarded them by the commissioner.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VI.\n\nFURTHER EFFORTS TO ENSLAVE THE EXILES.\n\n     Indians and Exiles on the Appalachicola River--Other Exiles at\n     Withlaeoochee, St. John's, Cyprus Swamp, Waboo Swamp--Indians in\n     various parts of Territory--Difficulty of the subject--President's\n     Message--Committee of Congress--Interrogations--Mr. Penieres'\n     Answer--General Jackson's Answer--He relies on Force--United States\n     recognize the Florida Indians as an Independent Band--Willing to\n     treat with them--Difficulties--Instructions to\n     Commissioners--Treaty of Camp Moultrie--Reservations--Covenants on\n     part of United States--Covenants on part of the Seminoles--Congress\n     makes no objection--Effect of Treaty--Its Objects--Election of the\n     younger Adams--His Policy--Indian Agent, Colonel Humphreys--William\n     P. Duval's Instructions--Claimants complain of the\n     Agent--Commissioner of Indian Affairs reproves him--His\n     Letter--Reply--Difficulty of Agent--Dangers which threaten the\n     Exiles--Colored Man seized and enslaved--Indians Protest--Colonel\n     Brooke's Advice--United States Judge expresses his Opinion--Effect\n     on Exiles--Mrs. Cook's Slave--Demand for Negroes--Suggestions of\n     Agent--Practice of Government--Treaty of Payne's Landing--Its\n     Stipulations--Abram--His Character--Chiefs become\n     Suspicious--Delegations sent West--Executive Designs--Supplemental\n     Treaty--Major Phagan--Petition of the People of\n     Florida--Indorsement thereon--Treaties approved by Senate--Creeks\n     remonstrate--Payment of $141,000 to Slave Claimants--Supineness of\n     Northern Statesmen--Creeks demand Exiles or Slaves--Georgians\n     kidnap Exiles--Their Danger--They dissuade from Emigration--Their\n     Warriors--Wiley Thompson's Statement--General Clinch's\n     Interest--Colonel Eaton's Views--General Cass's Reply--His Address\n     to Indians--He authorizes Slave trade--Effects of such\n     License--Agent and others Remonstrate--He replies--Agent\n     rejoins--Exiles prepare for War.\n\n\nAfter the close of the war of 1818, many of the Seminole Indians took\npossession of the deserted plantations and villages along the\nAppalachicola River, whose owners had fallen in the massacre of Blount's\nFort, in 1816; and some of the Exiles united in reoccupying the lands\nwhich had been reduced to cultivation by their murdered brethren. Some\nsix or eight small bands of Indians thus became resident along that\nriver. The fertile bottom lands, near that stream, constituted the most\nvaluable portion of Florida, so far as agriculture was concerned. These\ntowns afforded convenient resting places for fugitive slaves, while\nfleeing from their masters in Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee and Louisiana,\nto the interior portions of Florida.\n\nThe United States, nor the slaveholders of the States named, could with\nany propriety whatever hold the Creek Indians responsible for the many\nrefugees, who were now almost daily increasing the number of fugitives\nlocated far in the interior of Florida; and the difficulties attending\nthe holding of slaves increased in exact proportion as the slaveholding\nsettlements extended towards these locations; while the greater portion\nof the Exiles were taking up their residence farther in the interior of\nthe territory, upon the Withlacoochee, the St. John's, the Big Cypress\nSwamp, the Islands in the Great Wahoo Swamp, and places far retired from\ncivilization. The Seminole Indians were scattered extensively over\ndifferent portions of the country; and although the United States now\nowned the unoccupied lands, it was difficult to determine upon any\ncourse of policy by which the difficulties, so long existing, could be\nterminated.\n\n[Sidenote: 1822.]\n\nThe subject was alluded to by the President in his Annual Message to\nCongress (Dec. 3), and a select committee was appointed to take that\nportion of it into consideration. The committee propounded\ninterrogatories to various officers of government, who were supposed\ncapable of giving useful information in regard to the subject.[55]\n\nIn answer to these interrogatories, Mr. Penieres, Sub-Agent for the\nFlorida Indians, replied, stating the number of Indians at more than\nfive thousand, while the number of slaves which they held were estimated\nat only forty. These he declared to be far more intelligent than the\nslaves resident among the white people, and possessing great influence\nover their Indian masters. He alluded to the Exiles in the following\nlanguage: \"It will be difficult (says he) to form a prudent\ndetermination with respect to the 'maroon negroes,' (Exiles), who live\namong the Indians, on the other side of the little mountain of\nLatchiouc. They fear being again made slaves, under the American\nGovernment, and will omit nothing to increase or keep alive mistrust\namong the Indians, whom they, in fact, govern. If it should become\nnecessary to use force with them, it is to be feared that the Indians\nwill take their part. It will, however, be necessary to remove from the\nFloridas this group of freebooters, among whom runaway negroes will\nalways find a refuge. It will, perhaps, be possible to have them\nreceived at St. Domingo, or to furnish them means of withdrawing from\nthe United States!\"\n\nThis gentleman appears to have had more knowledge of the Exiles, than\nwas possessed by the officers of the United States, generally, who\nsupposed that each negro must have a legitimate master. He appears,\nalso, to have had sufficient humanity to suggest the plan of their\n_removal_, rather than their enslavement.\n\nIn answer to the interrogatories of this committee, General Jackson\nproposed to compel the Seminoles to _re\u00fcnite with the Creeks_, by\nleaving Florida and returning to the Creek country; and closed his\nrecommendation by saying, \"this must be done, or the frontier will be\nmuch weakened by the Indian settlements, and be a perpetual harbor for\nour slaves. These _runaway slaves, spoken of by Mr. Penieres_, MUST BE\nREMOVED from the Floridas, or scenes of murder and confusion will\nexist.\"[56]\n\nThis suggestion of General Jackson for the removal of the Seminoles,\nboth Indians and negroes, bears date September second, 1822, and is the\nfirst suggestion, of that precise character, of which we have knowledge.\nGeneral Jackson was a warrior, and had more faith in the bayonet than in\nmoral truths. He trusted much to physical power, but had little\nconfidence in kindness, or in justice or moral suasion. He was an\nofficer of great popularity, however, and it is not unlikely that his\nviews had greater weight with those who followed him in official life,\nthan their intrinsic merits entitled them to. It is certain that his\npolicy of removing the Indians and Exiles from Florida, was subsequently\nadopted by him while President, and has continued to be the cherished\nobject with most of his successors in that office.\n\nThe controversy between the State of Georgia and the Creeks had been\nsettled at Indian Springs. In the treaty entered into at that place, the\nUnited States had held the Creek Nation responsible for the action of\nthe Seminoles, under the plea that they were a part of the Creek Nation.\nHaving obtained two hundred and fifty thousand dollars from the Creeks\nin this way, to satisfy the slave claimants of Georgia, the Executive\nnow suddenly became satisfied that the Seminoles were a distinct and\nindependent tribe, and he prepared to treat with them as such.\nCommissioners were appointed for that purpose, and efforts made to\ncollect their chiefs, warriors and principal men, in order to carry out\nthis object.\n\n[Sidenote: 1828.]\n\nSuspicious of the objects which prompted this proposal, the Indians were\nunwilling to meet the commissioners. Runners were sent to the different\nbands, and eventually some thirty or forty were collected. These were\ndeclared by the commissioners to represent a majority of the Seminole\ntribe, and (Sept. 18) they proceeded to form the treaty of \"Camp\nMoultrie.\" The letter of instructions, from the Secretary of War, was\nspecific on one point only. The commissioners were directed to so\narrange the treaty, as to constrain the Indians to settle within the\nterritory south of Tampa Bay, excluded from the coast on all sides by a\nstrip of country at least fifteen miles in width. This would have taken\nfrom them their most fertile lands on the Suwanee River, the\nAppalachicola River, and in the vicinity of the Mickasukie Lake. Some\nsix chiefs, who had taken possession of the plantations which had been\nopened and cultivated by the Exiles murdered at \"Blount's Fort,\" refused\nto sign the treaty. They were, however, prevailed upon to agree to the\ntreaty, when it had been so modified as to give them each a reservation\nof fertile lands, to meet their own necessities.\n\nBy agreeing to these stipulations, the commissioners obtained their\nsignatures to the treaty--the United States guaranteeing to the Indians\npeaceable possession of the country and reservations assigned them. They\nalso covenanted to \"_take the Florida Indians under their care and\npatronage, and_ AFFORD THEM PROTECTION AGAINST ALL PERSONS WHATSOEVER,\"\nand to \"_restrain and prevent all white persons_ from hunting, settling,\nor otherwise _intruding_, upon said lands.\" They also agreed to pay the\nIndians six thousand dollars in cattle and hogs, furnish them with\nprovisions to support them one year, and pay them five thousand dollars\nannually for twenty years. But one great object of the treaty was\nembraced in the seventh Article, which was expressed in the following\nlanguage:\n\n\"The chiefs and warriors aforesaid, for themselves and tribes, stipulate\nto be active and vigilant in preventing the retreating to, or passing\nthrough, the district, or country assigned them, of any absconding\nslave, or fugitives from justice; and they further agree _to use all\nnecessary exertions to apprehend and deliver the same to the agent_, who\nshall receive orders to compensate them agreeably to the trouble and\nexpense incurred.\"\n\nIt is worthy of note, that the commissioners, acting under instructions\nof the Secretary of War, now assured the Seminoles that they had been a\nseparate and independent tribe more than a century; while other\ncommissioners, acting under instructions from the same Secretary, only\ntwenty months previously, insisted that the Seminoles were, at that\ntime, a part of the Creek tribe; and on that assumed fact, the Creeks\nwere held responsible for the value of such slaves as left their masters\nduring the Revolution and prior to 1802, and took up their residence\nwith the Seminoles. But these contradictory positions appeared to be\nnecessary to sustain the slave interest.\n\nIt may be remarked that from the signing of this treaty, there was no\nlonger any controversy between our Government and the Creeks in relation\nto fugitive slaves. That quarrel was transferred to the Seminoles; and\nnow, after thirty-four years have passed away, and many millions of\ntreasure have been expended, and thousands of human lives sacrificed, at\nthe moment of writing these incidents, our army is actively employed in\ncarrying on the contest which arose, and for more than the third of a\ncentury has been almost constantly maintained, for the recapture and\nreturn of these people; and although our members of Congress from the\nfree States had witnessed the long and expensive contest, and the vast\nsacrifice of blood and treasure, which had been squandered in efforts to\nregain possession of the Exiles; yet we do not find any objection to\nhave been raised or protest uttered against this new treaty, in either\nbranch of our National Legislature. Indeed, so far as we have\ninformation on the subject, the appropriations for carrying it into\neffect were cheerfully made, without objection.\n\nThis compact drew still more closely the meshes of the federal power\naround the Exiles. The United States now held what is called in\nslaveholding parlance the \"legal title\" to their bones and sinews, their\nblood and muscle, while the Creek Indians were vested with the entire\nbeneficial interest in them. But neither the United States nor the Creek\nIndians had been able to reduce them to possession. The white\nsettlements were, however, gradually extending, and the territory of the\nSeminoles was diminishing in proportion; and it was easy to foresee the\ndifficulties with which they were soon to be surrounded.\n\nBy the treaty, many of their cultivated fields, and most of the\nvillages, which they had recently defended with so much bravery, were\ngiven up to the whites, and those who had so long occupied them, were\ncompelled to retire still further into the interior, and commence new\nimprovements. A few Exiles remained with the chiefs who held\nreservations upon the Appalachicola. Those who remained, however, were\npersons who had become connected by marriage with the Indians belonging\nto those small bands, from whom they were unwilling to separate.\n\nTo this treaty some writers have traced the causes which produced the\nrecent \"Florida War.\" They attribute to its stipulations that vast\nsacrifice of treasure, and of national reputation, which has rendered\nthat territory distinguished in history. With that war, our present\nhistory is connected only so far as the Exiles were concerned in its\nprosecution; but it would appear difficult for any historian to overlook\nthe important fact that obtaining possession of fugitive slaves\nconstituted the moving consideration for this treaty, and the primary\ncause of both the first and second Seminole wars.\n\n[Sidenote: 1824.]\n\nMost of this year was occupied in removing the Indians to their new\nterritory. They also suffered severely for the want of food, and the\nattention of both Indians and officers of Government appears to have\nbeen occupied with these subjects.\n\n[Sidenote: 1825.]\n\nIn the autumn, Mr. Adams was elected President. But his policy was in\npart unfavorable to the Exiles. Removals from office under his\nadministration were limited. If an officer were removed, it was not\nuntil after it had been ascertained that just cause existed for the\nremoval. This policy continued nearly every man in office who had been\nconnected with the Indian Department under the former Administration.\nColonel Gad Humphreys had been appointed Agent for the Seminoles as\nearly as 1822. He was a resident of Florida, and a slaveholder, deeply\ninterested in maintaining the institution; but so far as his official\nacts have come before the public, he appears to have performed his duty\nwith a good degree of humanity. Indeed, such were his efforts in behalf\nof justice to the oppressed, that he became obnoxious to Southern men,\nand was eventually removed from office on that account. William P. Duval\nwas also continued in the office of Governor, and ex-officio\nSuperintendent of Indian Affairs for the Territory of Florida. He was\nalso a slaveholder, and resident of the territory; but even Southern men\nfound little cause to complain of his devotion to liberty or justice.\nHe, and many other officers, appear to have supposed the first\nimportant duty imposed on them, consisted in lending an efficient\nsupport to those claims for slaves which were constantly pressed upon\nthem by unprincipled white men.\n\nEarly as the twenty-fifth of January, Governor Duval, acting\nSuperintendent of Indian Affairs for the Territory, wrote Colonel\nHumphreys, giving him general directions in regard to the course which\nhe should pursue in all cases where fugitive slaves were claimed. \"On\nthe subject (said he) of runaway slaves among the Indians, within the\ncontrol of your agency, it will be proper in all cases, where _you\nbelieve_ the owners can identify the slaves, to have them taken, and\ndelivered over to the Marshal of East Florida, at St. Augustine, so that\nthe Federal Judge may inquire into the claim of the party, and determine\nthe right of property. But in all cases where the same slave is claimed\nby a white person and an Indian, _if you believe_ the Indian has an\nequitable claim to the slave, you are directed not to surrender the\nslave, except by the order of the Hon. Joseph L. Smith, Federal Judge\nresiding at St. Augustine; and in that case, you will attend before him,\nand defend the right of the Indian, _if you believe_ he has right on his\nside.\"\n\nIn all these cases, the slave or colored man, whether bond or free, was\nto be treated in the same manner as a brute. He was permitted to say\nnothing upon the subject of his own right to liberty. His voice was\nsilenced amidst the despotism with which he was surrounded. No law was\nconsulted. The _belief_ of a slaveholding Agent decided the fate of the\nperson claimed. Those who claimed to own their fellow men, would always\nfind persons to testify to their claims, and it was in vain for an\nIndian to attempt litigation with a slaveholding white man before a\nslaveholding Judge.[57]\n\nThe Exiles were not the property of the Indians in any sense. The\nIndians did not claim to own them. Under the rule prescribed, if a white\nman could get one of the Exiles within his power, he could at any time\nprove some circumstance that would entitle him to claim _some_ negro;\nwhen he proved this, the law of Florida presumed every colored man to be\na slave, unless he could prove his freedom. This, no Exile could do;\nand, when seized, they were uniformly consigned to bondage. The only\nsafety for the Exile was, to entirely avoid the whites, who were not\npermitted to enter the territory except upon the written permit of some\nofficer.\n\nThe slave-catchers, therefore, had recourse to the practice of\ndescribing certain black persons, in the Indian country, as their\nslaves, and demanding that the Agent should have them seized and\ndelivered to him. But the Agent, knowing these claims to be merely\nfictitious in some instances, paid no attention to them. The claimants,\nintent on obtaining wealth by catching negroes, and selling them as\nslaves, complained of the Agent to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs,\nwho, on the eighth of February (1827), wrote the Agent, reproving him\nfor his remissness in failing to capture and return fugitive slaves,\nsaying: \"Frequent complaints have been made to the Department,\nrespecting slaves claimed by the citizens of Florida, which are in\npossession of the Indians; all which have been acted on here, in issuing\nsuch orders to you as it was expected would be promptly obeyed; * * *\nand that these proceedings would be followed by the proper reports to\nthe Department. _Nothing satisfactory has been received._\"\n\n[Sidenote: 1826.]\n\nThus the Indian Bureau, at Washington, took upon itself the\nresponsibility of deciding particular cases, upon the _ex parte_\ntestimony which the claimants presented; and the commissioner concluded\nhis letter by a peremptory order to Colonel Humphreys, directing him to\ncapture and deliver over two slaves, said to be the property of a Mrs.\nCook.\n\nTo this order the Agent replied in the language of dignified rebuke.\nAfter stating that one of the slaves had been captured by the Indians,\nand given up, he says: \"but they will not, I apprehend, consent further\nto risk their lives in a service which has always been a thankless one,\nand has recently proved so to one of their most respected chiefs, who\nwas killed in an attempt to arrest a runaway slave.\"[58]\n\nThe love of liberty is universal. We honor the individual who gives high\nevidence of his attachment to this fundamental right, with which God has\nendowed all men, and we applaud him who manfully defends his liberty,\nwhether it be a Washington with honors clustering upon his brow, or the\nmore humble individual who defends his liberty in Florida, by slaying\nthe man who attempts to deprive him of it. But these views were not\nrecognized by the agents of our Government.\n\n[Sidenote: 1827.]\n\nWhile the Department at Washington supposed the Agent to have neglected\nhis duty, the Superintendent of Indian Affairs for the territory\nsupposed the Agent had been quite too faithful to the slaveholders. On\nthe twentieth of March he wrote Colonel Humphreys, saying, \"_Many slaves\nbelonging to the Indians_ ARE NOW IN POSSESSION OF THE WHITE PEOPLE.\nThese slaves cannot be obtained for their Indian owners without a\nlawsuit;\" and he then directed the Agent to submit the claim, in all\ncases where there was an Indian claimant, to the chiefs for decision.\n\nIn these contests between barbarians and savages, concerning the rights\nwhich they claimed to the bodies of their fellow men, the Exiles had no\nvoice. They well understood that the rapacity of the slave claimants was\nunbounded and inexorable; they therefore endeavored to avoid all contact\nwith the whites, and to preserve their freedom by affording the\npiratical slave-catchers no opportunity to lay hands on them.\n\nThese demands for negroes alleged to be among the Indians, continued to\nexcite the people of Florida and to perplex the officers of Government,\nthreatening the most serious results,[59] and continually enhancing the\ndangers of the Exiles.\n\n[Sidenote: 1828.]\n\nThe troops at Fort King were called on to aid in the arrest of fugitive\nslaves; but their efforts merely excited the ridicule and contempt of\nboth Indiana and negroes. These circumstances becoming known to the\nslaves of Florida, naturally excited them to discontent; and while their\nmasters were engaged in efforts to arrest negroes to whom they had no\nclaim, their own servants in whom they had reposed every confidence,\nsuddenly disappeared and became lost among the Exiles of the interior.\nThe white people became irritated under these vexations. Their\nindignation against the Indians was unbounded. The Agent, Colonel\nHumphreys, gave a vivid description of their barbarity, in a letter to\nthe Commissioner of Indian Affairs.[60] But remonstrances with the\nIndian Department appeared to have no effect. Peremptory orders for the\narrest and delivery of slaves continued to reach the Agent. These orders\nhe _could not carry into effect_, as he could command no force adequate\nto the arrest of the fugitives. Governor Duval began to regard the Agent\nas remiss in his efforts, and so reported him to the War Department.\nSome of the most wealthy Seminoles had purchased slaves of the white\npeople, and for many years, perhaps we may say for generations, had been\nslaveholders. They held their slaves in a state between that of\nservitude and freedom; the slave usually living with his own family and\noccupying his time as he pleased, paying his master annually a small\nstipend in corn and other vegetables. This class of slaves regarded\nservitude among the whites with the greatest degree of horror.\n\nThe owners of fugitive slaves, or men who pretended to have lost slaves,\nwhen able, would seize and hold those belonging to the Indians. The\nIndians being ignorant of legal proceedings, were unable to obtain\ncompensation from those who thus robbed them of what the slaveholders\ntermed _property_. This practice became so common that, on the\nseventeenth of April, many of the chiefs and warriors assembled at the\nAgency, and made their protest to the Agent, declaring that \"many of\ntheir negroes, horses, cattle, etc., were in the hands of the white\npeople, for which they were unable to obtain compensation.\" Contrary to\nthe treaty of Camp Moultrie, white men were at that time in the Indian\ncountry searching for slaves, and the chiefs demanded of the Agent the\nreason why the white people thus violated the treaty to rob the Indians?\nThe Agent could only reply, that the white men were there by permission\ngiven them by the _Secretary of War_.[61]\n\nSo flagrant were these outrages upon the Indians and negroes, that\nColonel Brooke, of the United States Army, at that time commanding in\nFlorida, took upon himself the responsibility of addressing the Agent,\nadvising him not to deliver negroes to the white men, unless their\n\"_claims were made clear and satisfactory_.\"[62] The District Judge of\nthe United States for the Territory, also wrote Colonel Humphreys,\ngiving his construction of the rules adopted by the Indian Bureau. He\nthought, in no case, should a negro be delivered up, where the Indians\nclaimed him, until proofs had been made and title established before\njudicial authority.[63]\n\nNo law was looked to as the rule by which officers of Government were to\nbe controlled in their official duties. The opinion, the judgment, of\nthe individual constituted his rule of action. During the nineteenth\ncentury, perhaps no despotism has existed among civilized nations more\nunlimited, or more unscrupulous, than that exercised in Florida, from\n1823 to 1843.\n\nThis state of affairs determined the Exiles _not to be arrested by white\nmen_. Thus, when Governor Duval ordered a compensation for a slave\nclaimed by Mrs. Cook, to be retained from their annuities, the chiefs\nheld a talk with the Agent, and assured him that the \"_man was born\namong the Seminoles, and had never been out of the nation_.\"[64]\n\nThese demands for negroes increased in number; and the whites became\nmore and more rapacious, and the Indians more and more indignant, until\nhostilities appeared inevitable. The Agent, from long association with\nthe Indians and his knowledge of facts, naturally sympathised with them.\nHe assembled a number of the chiefs at the Agency, and suggested to them\nthe absolute necessity of submitting to the white people; and for the\npurpose of avoiding further difficulties, advised them to emigrate west\nof the Mississippi, or, rather, to send a delegation to examine the\ncountry; and, as an inducement, offered to accompany their chiefs and\nwarriors on such a tour. To this proposition a few of them consented,\nand the Agent notified the Department of the fact.[65]\n\nIt was easy to see that, under the existing state of affairs,\nhostilities could not long be avoided. Up to the period of which we are\nspeaking, the action of our Government had been dictated by those who\nsought to uphold and encourage Slavery; nor could it be expected that\nthis long-established policy would be suddenly changed, unless such\nchange were peremptorily demanded by the people.\n\nThere was apparently but one course to be pursued under this\npolicy--that was the removal of the Indians from Florida. This plan had\nbeen recommended by General Jackson ten years previously, and he now\nbeing President, had an opportunity of carrying out his proposed policy.\nTo effect this purpose, it would be necessary to negotiate a treaty by\nwhich the Indians should consent to abandon Florida and remove west of\nthe Mississippi.\n\nIt had long been the policy of those who administered the Government, to\nselect Southern men to act in all offices in which the institution of\nslavery was likely to be called in question. From the time General\nWashington sent Colonel Willett to ascertain facts in regard to the\ncontroversy between the State of Georgia and the Creek Indians, in 1789,\nto the period of which we are now speaking, no Northern man was\nappointed to any office which required his personal attention to the\nsituation of the Exiles.[66]\n\n[Sidenote: 1832.]\n\nIn accordance with this practice, General Cass, acting as Secretary of\nWar, appointed Colonel James Gadsden, of South Carolina, to negotiate\nthe treaty of Payne's Landing. By the preamble of this treaty, the\nSeminoles stipulated that eight of their principal chiefs should visit\nthe Western country, \"_accompanied by their faithful interpreter,\nAbraham_,\" (an Exile, and a man of great repute among both Exiles and\nIndians,) and should they be satisfied with the character of the\ncountry, and of the favorable disposition of the Creeks to reunite with\nthe Seminoles as one people, they would, in such case, agree to the\nstipulations subsequently contained in said treaty.\n\nThe first article merely makes an exchange, by the Seminoles, of lands\nin Florida for an equal extent of territory, west of the Mississippi,\nadjoining the Creek Nation.\n\nThe second article provides compensation for the improvements, and\nspecifically stipulates, that Abraham and Cudjoe (two Exiles who acted\nas interpreters) should receive, each, two hundred dollars.\n\nThe third provides for the distribution of blankets and frocks among\nthem.\n\nThe fourth article provides for certain annuities, etc.\n\nThe fifth merely stipulates the manner in which the personal property of\nthe Seminoles shall be disposed of in Florida, and the same articles\nsupplied them in their new homes at the West.\n\n[Illustration: Negro Abraham.]\n\nThe sixth is in the following language: \"The Seminoles, being anxious to\nbe relieved from the repeated vexatious demands for slaves and other\nproperty, alleged to have been stolen and destroyed by them, so that\nthey may remove to their new homes unembarrassed, the United States\nstipulate to have the same properly investigated, and to liquidate such\nas may be satisfactorily established, provided the amount does not\nexceed fourteen thousand dollars.\"\n\nThe seventh article stipulates that a portion of the Indians should\nremove in 1833, and the remainder in 1834.\n\nTwo leading features of this treaty attract the attention of the reader.\nThe first is the removal of the Seminoles; second, their _reunion with\nthe Creeks_. The Creeks, having paid the slaveholders of Georgia for\ntheir loss of Exiles, had permitted the subject to rest in silence, and,\nso far as we are informed, no formal claim had yet been asserted by the\nCreeks to seize and hold the Exiles as slaves; but it is evident that\nthe negotiators of this treaty intended to place the Seminoles, when\nsettled in their western homes, within the power, and under the\njurisdiction, of the Creeks. Yet it was well known that, from the time\nof their separation, in 1750, up to the signing of this treaty, they had\ndisagreed and, at times, had been in open war with each other. General\nCass, the Secretary of War, as well as the President, must have known\nthat McIntosh, the principal chief of the Creeks, had accompanied\nColonel Clinch, with five hundred warriors, when he invaded Florida for\nthe purpose of massacreing the Exiles at \"Blount's Fort,\" in 1816; that\nthe Creeks shared in that massacre, and had publicly tortured and\nmurdered one Indian and one negro, whom they styled chiefs. It is\ndifficult to believe that any man could expect them to live together in\npeace, with the recollection of those scenes resting on the mind; nor\nhas any explanation yet been given, nor reason assigned, for the anxiety\nof our officers to place the Seminoles within the power of the Creeks,\nexcept a desire to enslave the Exiles.\n\nAbraham, who acted as interpreter, had been born among the Seminoles.\nHis parents had fled from Georgia, and died in their forest-home. He\nappears to have been a man of unusual influence with his more savage\nfriends; and although he insisted on emigrating to the West, in\nopposition to many of his brethren, yet he has to this day maintained a\nhigh reputation among his people. Cudjoe was less known, and,\nsubsequently, was less conspicuous than Abraham; indeed, we know but\nlittle of him. But the experience of Abraham, nor the learning of\nCudjoe, could detect that vague use of language which was subsequently\nseized upon for justifying the fraud perpetrated under this treaty.\n\nIn the preamble, it was stipulated that the Seminoles were to send six\nof their confidential chiefs to view the western country; and if _they_\nwere satisfied with the country, etc. The Seminoles supposed the pronoun\n_they_ had relation to the Tribe; while General Jackson construed it to\nrefer to the chiefs sent West. If they were satisfied, he held the Tribe\nbound to emigrate at all events; and his efforts were, therefore,\ndirected to satisfying the chiefs who went to view the country.\n\nBut the leading men of the Seminoles became suspicious of the design of\nthe Creeks to enslave the Exiles, before their delegation left Florida,\nand publicly expressed their suspicion.[67]\n\nThe President appears to have determined on securing the emigration of\nthe Indians at all hazards and at any sacrifice. For that purpose he\nappointed commissioners to go west and obtain from the Seminole\ndelegation, while yet in the western country, and absent from the tribe,\nan acknowledgment that the country was suitable for a residence, and\nthat the Creeks were anxious to unite with them as one people. This was\nto be obtained before the Seminole delegation should return to Florida,\nor make report to their nation, or give the Tribe an opportunity to\njudge or act upon the subject.\n\n[Sidenote: 1833.]\n\nHis object was accomplished (March 28). The commissioners obtained an\n\"_additional treaty_,\" signed by the Seminole delegation sent West,\nwithout any authority from their Nation to enter into any stipulation;\nnor had the commissioners, on the part of the United States, authority\nto form any treaty whatever: yet this additional treaty, as it was\ncalled, after reciting some of the stipulations contained in that of\nPayne's Landing, declares \"that the chiefs sent to examine the country\nare well satisfied with it;\" and then stipulates, \"that the Seminole\nIndians shall emigrate to it so soon as the United States shall make the\nnecessary preparations.\" There was also another provision in this\nadditional treaty of vast importance to the Exiles; it designated and\nassigned to the Seminoles a certain tract of country, giving its metes\nand bounds, to the \"_separate_ use of the Seminoles forever.\"\n\nTheir agent, Major Phagan, appears to have been willing and capable of\nperforming his part in this diplomatic intrigue. We have no knowledge of\nthe means used to obtain this additional treaty, nor the bribery by\nwhich it was secured; but it is known that the chiefs, before they went\nWest, expressed their dislike of reuniting with the Creeks; that when\nthey returned, they denied having agreed to settle under Creek\njurisdiction; it is also certain that the additional treaty stipulates\nthat the Seminoles shall have their lands _separate_ from the Creeks.\n\nWhen they returned, their agent, Major Phagan, represented them as\nhaving stipulated for the positive removal of the Seminoles. The chiefs\ndenied it, and insisted they had understood their authority as extending\nonly to an examination of the country, and to report the result to the\nNation. They requested that the chiefs, head-men and warriors be\nassembled to hear their report, and to express their own determination.\nBut the agent refused to call such council, and assured them that their\nhomes and heritage were already sold, and that nothing now remained for\nthem to do but to prepare for removal.\n\nThe people of Alachua County, Florida, feeling indignant at the\ndetermination of the Seminoles to remain in that Territory, addressed a\nprotest to the President of the United States, declaring that the\nSeminoles did _not capture and return_ the fugitive slaves who fled to\nthe Indian country, according to their stipulations in the treaty of\nCamp Moultrie, but rather afforded protection to them. They further\nstated that while the Seminoles remained in the country no slaveholder\ncould enjoy his property in peace. This protest was signed by ninety of\nthe principal citizens of said county, and forwarded to the President.\n\nThis statement aroused the ire of the President, who at once indorsed on\nthe back of the petition an order to the Secretary of War to \"inquire\ninto the alleged facts, and if found to be true, to direct the Seminoles\nto _prepare to remove West and join the Creeks_.\" The order was\ncharacteristic of the author. He waited not for the approval or\nratification of any treaty; with him the whole depended upon the alleged\nfact of the Seminoles failing to bring in fugitive slaves--not upon\ntreaty, nor upon the ratification of treaties.[68]\n\n[Sidenote: 1834.]\n\nThe Senate of the United States was subsequently called on by the\nPresident to approve the treaty after the lapse of nearly two years from\nits date. This was done, and the President by his proclamation\nimmediately declared it in force. It was said by public officers, then\nin Florida, that had the Seminole delegation been permitted to give an\nunbiased opinion to their people, there would not have been a man in the\nNation willing to migrate.[69]\n\nThe whole Nation became indignant at this treatment, and such was the\nfeeling against the agent that he deemed it prudent to retire from the\nagency. General Wiley Thompson was appointed to succeed him. General\nClinch was appointed to the command of the troops, and every preparation\nwas made to insure the speedy removal of the Indians and Exiles west of\nthe Mississippi.\n\nIn the meantime, the Creeks learning that a tract of country was, by the\nadditional treaty, agreed to be set off to the separate use of the\nSeminoles, saw clearly the influence which Abraham had exercised in the\nmatter, and, fearing their own designs for obtaining slaves would be\ndefeated through their principal chiefs, addressed a protest to the\nHon. Lewis Cass, then Secretary of War, remonstrating against the policy\nof giving the Seminoles a _separate_ country.\n\nThese chiefs were sagacious men, who had attained distinction with the\nCreeks by their manifestation of superior intelligence. Two of them,\nRolley McIntosh and Chilley McIntosh, sons of a Scotch trader who lived\nwith the Indians, had been educated, and were regarded as among the able\npoliticians of the day. They, together with \"Toshatchee Mieco\" and\n\"Lewis,\" urged the propriety of uniting the two tribes as one people,\nwithout any separate organization. The next day they addressed another\nletter to Secretary Cass, giving additional reasons and arguments why\nthe Seminoles should not have separate lands.[70]\n\nThe President had already adopted the policy of compelling the Seminoles\nto unite under one government with the Creeks: and this stipulation for\n_separate_ lands was introduced into the \"additional treaty,\" by\ncommissioners who were not fully informed of the President's views. This\ncompact, entered into at Fort Gibson, erroneously called an \"additional\ntreaty,\" was known to be void: neither the Seminole chiefs nor the\nUnited States commissioners had authority to negotiate any treaty\nwhatever; and this stipulation, for holding separate lands by the\nSeminoles, appears to have been totally disregarded by the Executive, as\nwill more fully appear hereafter.\n\nAnother circumstance had induced the Creeks to remain silent in regard\nto the Exiles. By the treaty of Indian Spring, they had placed at the\nPresident's disposal $250,000, out of which the slaveholders of Georgia\nwere to be paid for slaves and property lost prior to 1802. The\ncommissioners appointed to make the examination found but $109,000 due\nthe claimants under this stipulation, leaving in the hands of the\nPresident $141,000 belonging to the Creeks. This, however, was claimed\nby the slaveholders, in addition to the amount allowed by the treaty. To\nobtain this money the slaveholders sent their petition to Congress. The\nsubject was referred to a committee, of which Mr. Gilmer, of Georgia,\nwas Chairman. The committee made a very elaborate report, setting forth\nthat the claimants had an equitable right to this money as an indemnity\n\"_for the loss of the offspring which the Exiles would have borne to\ntheir masters had they remained in bondage_,\" and it is among the\ninexplicable transactions of that day, that the bill passed, giving the\nmoney to those claimants without the uttering of a protest, or the\nstatement of an objection, by any Northern representative or senator.\n\nThe Creeks now having paid the full amount stipulated in the treaty, and\nbeing robbed of the $141,000, to compensate the slaveholders for\nchildren who had never been born, were excited to madness. They believed\nthemselves to hold the beneficial interest in the bodies of the Exiles,\nand determined to obtain possession of them.[71] They immediately sent a\ndelegation to the Seminoles to demand possession of the Exiles as their\nslaves.\n\nWhile the Creeks were thus demanding possession of the refugees, the\nExecutive of the United States and his officers were endeavoring to\ncompel them to go West, where the Creeks could, without opposition, lay\nhands upon them and enslave them.\n\nThe six Seminole chiefs holding reservations upon the Appalachicola\nRiver owned some slaves, and with those slaves some of the Exiles had\nintermarried. Each chief, by the terms of the treaty of Camp Moultrie,\nwas permitted to name the _men_ who were to reside with him, and such\nchief became responsible for the conduct of the persons thus named;\nwhile the United States stipulated to \"afford the chiefs and their\npeople _protection against all persons whatsoever_.\"\n\nThe white settlements had extended to the vicinity of these\nreservations, and the Exiles and Seminole slaves living on them were\nmore immediately exposed to the rapacity of the whites than were those\nin the interior of the territory.\n\n[Sidenote: 1835.]\n\nThe mania for obtaining slaves by piratical violence, seems to have\nreached a point almost incredible to the people of the free States.\nE-con-chattimico was one of the chiefs whose reservation lay on the west\nside of the river. He had long been highly respected by the whites. He\nowned some twenty slaves, who were residing with him in a state of\npartial freedom--paying him an annual stipend of provisions for their\ntime, and holding such property as they could acquire. Connected with\nthese slaves, and with some of the Indians on the Reservation, were\nabout an equal number of Exiles, who had never known slavery, but whose\nancestors, in former generations, had toiled in bondage. Unwilling to\nseparate from their intimate friends and connexions, they had, as stated\nin a former chapter, come here to occupy, with E-con-chattimico and his\nfriends, one of the extensive plantations which had been occupied by\ntheir brethren who fell at Blount's Fort, in 1816. The chief had named\nthem as his friends, and a record of the fact had been deposited in the\noffice of the Commissioner of Indian Affairs; and for their conduct\nE-con-chattimico was responsible, under the treaty of \"Camp Moultrie;\"\nwhile, by the same instrument, the faith of the nation had been solemnly\npledged \"to protect them _against all persons whatsoever_.\"\n\nThe piratical slave-dealers of Georgia looked upon these people, both\nExiles and slaves, with strong desire to possess them. One of these\nfiends in human shape, named Milton, residing in Columbus, Georgia,\nprofessed to have purchased them from a Creek Indian. The claim was\npresented to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, and by him referred to\nJudge Cameron, of the United States District Court in Florida, for\nexamination.\n\nThe chief being a man of influence and respected by the whites, found\nfriends to espouse his cause. The claimant began to doubt his success\nunder such circumstances, and proposed to withdraw his claim; but so\nflagrant was its fraudulent character, that Judge Cameron felt it his\nduty to report upon it, showing it to be void.[72] This report was duly\ntransmitted to the proper department at Washington, and the Old Chief,\nwith his people, once more reposed in apparent security.\n\nIt has been alleged, that men who so far paralyze their own moral\nsensibilities as to rob their fellow-men of their labor, their liberty,\ntheir manhood, and hold them in degrading bondage, can not entertain any\nclear conceptions of right and wrong. However this may be, it is certain\nthat men who deal in slaves, are ever regarded, even by slaveholders, as\ndestitute of moral sentiment.\n\nIn this case, Milton, finding that Judge Cameron had reported the claim\nto be fraudulent and void, professed to sell his interest in these\npeople to certain other slaveholders, of Columbus. These men provided\nthemselves with chains, and fetters, and bloodhounds, and all the\nparaphernalia of regular slave-dealers upon the African coast, and\ndescending the river in a steamboat, intended to surprise their victims\nbefore any notice should be given of their approach. But some friendly\nwhite, who had learned the intentions of the pirates, had whispered to\nthe aged chief the danger which threatened his people. They were soon\narmed, and prepared to defend themselves or die in the attempt. The\ndesperadoes landed upon the Reservation; but finding the people armed,\nand ready to receive them in a becoming manner, they retired into the\ncountry and alarmed the settlers, by proclaiming that E-con-chattimico\nhad armed his people and was about to make war upon the whites. The news\nflew in all directions; troops were mustered into service; an army was\norganized and marched to the Reservation, and the proper officer sent,\nwith a white flag, to demand the object and intentions of the chief, in\narming his people. The old man was most indignant that his honor should\nbe impugned in such manner. He fully explained the cause which induced\nhis people to convene, and assume a hostile attitude towards those who\nhad come to rob them of their liberty.\n\nThe officers, who sympathized with the pirates, were sustained by\nmilitary force. They assured the old man that no persons should be\nallowed to injure him or his people; that the country was alarmed, and\nthe public mind could only be pacified by a surrender of his arms and\nammunition. To this proposition he was constrained to yield. They took\nhis arms and ammunition, and left him defenseless. They remained\nundisturbed, however, during the night; but the next morning the\nslave-hunters returned, fully armed. They seized every negro residing\nupon the Reservation, including both Exiles and the slaves of\nE-con-chattimico, and, fastening the manacles upon their limbs, hurried\nthem off to Georgia, where they were sold into interminable\nbondage.[73][74] They, and their ancestors, had enjoyed a hundred years\nof freedom; but they were suddenly precipitated into all the sufferings\nand sorrows of slavery, and now toil in chains, or have departed to that\nland where slavery is unknown.\n\nE-con-chattimico petitioned Congress for indemnity, but obtained no\nredress. Neither the President, nor the Secretary of War, manifested any\ninterest in maintaining our most solemn treaty obligations with the\nIndians, or attempted any redress for their violation. Disheartened and\nbroken down in spirits, E-con-chattimico yielded to General Jackson's\norders, emigrated to the western country, and spent the remainder of his\ndays in poverty and want.\n\nNor were the piracies of the white people confined to the crime of\nkidnapping Exiles. They robbed the Indians and Exiles of horses, cattle\nand money.\n\nA chief named Blunt also held a reservation on the river, under the\ntreaty of Camp Moultrie. He had some friends among the Exiles who\npreferred to occupy, with him, one of the plantations left destitute by\nthe murder of the people at \"Blount's Fort,\" in 1816. He too had named\nhis friends and become responsible for their conduct, and relied upon\nthe pledged faith of the nation to protect them.\n\nSome desperadoes, said to have come from Georgia, entered his\nplantation, robbed him of a large amount of money, and carried away all\nthe negroes living on the Reserve.\n\nAnother chief named Walker, also residing on a reservation, with some\nslaves and Exiles, discovered that a notorious slave-catcher from\nGeorgia, named Douglass, and some associates, were hanging around his\nplantation, with the apparent intention of capturing and enslaving the\ncolored people. Warned by the outrage committed upon E-con-chattimico\nand his people, both Indians and negroes collected together, armed\nthemselves, and determined to resist any violence that should be offered\nthem.\n\nWhen the piratical Georgians approached, they fired upon them. Finding\nthe people armed and determined to resist, the manstealers retreated and\ndisappeared. Feeling they were in danger, Walker wrote the Agent of the\nSeminoles, calling for protection, according to the stipulations of the\ntreaty of Camp Moultrie. In his letter he says, \"Are the free negroes\n(Exiles), and negroes belonging to this town (slaves), to be _stolen\naway publicly_ in the face of law and justice--carried off and sold to\nfill the pockets of those worse than land pirates?\"\n\nThis appeal was in vain. The Agent paid no attention to it. The\nkidnappers were vigilant and watchful, and when their victims supposed\nthemselves safe, they stole upon them, seized them, and hurried them off\nto the interior of Alabama, and sold them into slavery.\n\nThe scenes so often witnessed upon the slave coast of Africa became\ncommon in Florida; while Georgia, and Alabama, and Florida, afforded a\nclass of men in no respect superior in morals to those outlaws and\npirates who pursue the foreign slave trade.\n\nThe dangers threatening the Exiles now became imminent. They saw clearly\nthey were to be enslaved, or compelled to resort to arms in defense of\ntheir liberties. Their entire influence was exercised to prevent\nemigration, as they feared that would subject them to Creek jurisdiction\nand enslavement.\n\nThese objections were made known to the Department at Washington by the\nAgent of the Seminoles, Wiley Thompson, who, in plain and unmistakable\nlanguage, informed the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, that the\nprincipal objection to removing West which operated upon the minds of\nthe Seminoles arose from the claim of the Creeks to those people who had\nfled from Georgia prior to 1802, and extending back to the commencement\nof the Revolutionary War. He assured the Department, that if the\nSeminoles were compelled to remove West, _these descendants of the\nExiles would be enslaved by the Creeks_, and if they remained in\nFlorida, they would be enslaved by the whites. He told the Department in\nplain language, that many of those negroes who had been born and raised\namong the Indians had been enslaved by the people of Florida and of\nGeorgia, and were then held in bondage.[75]\n\nAmong other officers who espoused the cause of humanity at that period,\nso interesting to the Exiles, was the veteran General Clinch. He was a\nman of great probity of character--one of the most gallant officers in\nthe service--at the time in actual command of the troops in Florida. He\nhad long been acquainted with the Indians, and no man perhaps better\nunderstood the character of the Exiles. He had twenty years before\ncommanded, the troops at the massacre of \"Blount's Fort,\" and well\nunderstood the persecutions to which the Exiles had been subjected. In\nstrong language, he pointed out the wrong about to be perpetrated upon\nthem, as well as upon the Seminoles. He informed the Secretary of War,\nin direct and positive language, that if the Seminoles and their \"negro\nallies\" were sent West, the _negroes would be enslaved by the\nCreeks_.[76]\n\nHon. John H. Eaton, Governor of Florida, a warm personal and political\nfriend of the President, in whom it was believed the Executive reposed\ngreat confidence, also wrote the department, delineating the wrongs\nabout to be perpetrated upon these colored people, who for several\ngenerations had resided with the Seminoles.\n\nThese and other officers of Government united in the opinion, that these\n\"_negroes_,\" as they were generally called, exerted a controlling\ninfluence over the Indians, and that it would be in vain to attempt the\nremoval of the Indians under these circumstances.\n\nTo these remonstrances, the Hon. Secretary of War, General Cass,\nreplied, with apparent determination to remove the Indians at any\nexpense of blood, of treasure, and of national reputation. The appeals\nmade to the justice of our Government were stigmatized \"as the\npromptings of a _false philanthropy_;\" and our agents and officers were\ndirected to inform the Seminoles, in peremptory language, that they must\nemigrate to the western country.\n\nLaboring under the delusion that official station would add a\ncontrolling influence to his language, General Cass transmitted to the\nIndian Agent a speech, addressed to the Seminoles and their allies, in\nwhich he endeavored to persuade them to emigrate and join the Creeks,\nand subject themselves to Creek authority. The Seminoles and their\nfriends listened to the speech with that respectful attention which\nwould be expected from men who knew their lives and liberties were in\ndanger.\n\nIt was at one of these consultations, in the presence of their Agent,\nthat \"Osceola,\" at that time a young warrior, attracted attention by\nsaying, \"_this is the only treaty I will ever make with the whites_,\"\nat the same time drawing his knife and striking it forcibly into the\ntable before him.[77]\n\nIt was at this period that abandoned white men conceived the plan of\nbuying negroes from Seminoles while in a state of intoxication, and\nselling them to the white people. If they could get an Indian drunk,\nthey could of course obtain from him a bill of sale of any negro they\npleased, whether the Indian had any title to him or not. This plan of\nseparating the Seminoles from their colored friends, it was thought\nwould conduce to their removal.\n\nApplications to enter the Indian Territory for the purpose of purchasing\nslaves were referred by the Secretary of War to the Commissioner of\nIndian Affairs, and by the latter officer to the Attorney General Felix\nGrundy, who gravely reported, that he \"saw no good reason why the white\npeople should not be permitted to buy slaves of the Indians;\" and the\nPresident having considered the matter, ordered permission to be granted\nfor that purpose.\n\nOfficers who were in Florida saw at once that this policy would kindle\nthe smothered indignation of the Indians and Exiles into a flame. The\nAgent of the Seminoles, refusing to obey the orders thus given,\nremonstrated against the policy in a letter addressed to the head of the\nDepartment, in which he says: \"The remark in your letter that it is not\npresumed the condition of these negroes (the Exiles) would be worse than\nthat of others in the same section of country is true; yet you will\nagree that the same remark would apply to _you, to me, or to any other\nindividual of the United States_, as we should, if subjected to slavery,\nbe in the precise condition of other slaves.\"\n\nSo general and so great was the indignation excited by this order for\nestablishing a commerce in human flesh with drunken Seminoles, that it\nwas soon after countermanded; yet the immediate emigration of the\nIndians was urged with increased earnestness, although the Department of\nWar was informed by nearly every officer in the military and Indian\nservice of Florida, that they could not be induced to emigrate, so long\nas the Exiles should be regarded as in danger of being subjected to\nCreek authority.\n\nBut the stern decree had gone forth that \"the Indians should prepare to\nemigrate West and _join the Creeks;_\" and the necessary preparations\nwere hurried forward both in the Military and Civil Departments of\nGovernment. The Exiles and Seminoles saw clearly the terrible\nalternative to which they were soon to be driven, and they turned their\nattention to active preparations for the conflict. Their crops were\ncarefully secured; their cattle driven far into the interior; and their\nwomen and children removed from the frontier to places of safety. They\nomitted no opportunity of securing powder and lead; and while\nassociating with the white people, they manifested a bold contempt and\ndislike for them, which gave gloomy forebodings of the future.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VII.\n\nCOMMENCEMENT OF THE SECOND SEMINOLE WAR.\n\n     The number of Exiles in Florida--Spanish Maroons--Seminole\n     Slaves--Osceola--His Parentage--His Character--His Wife--Her\n     Parentage and sad Fate--Imprisonment of Osceola--His Release--He\n     swears Vengeance against Mr. Thompson--Decree of General\n     Council--Fate of Charley E. Mathler--Osceola and followers seek the\n     life of Thompson--Lay in wait near Fort King--Fate of Mr. Thompson\n     and Lieut. Smith--Of the Sutler and his Clerks--General Clinch\n     orders Major Dade to Fort King--The Major seeks a faithful\n     Guide--Engages the Services of Louis, a Slave--His Learning and\n     Character--He meditates the Massacre of Dade and his men--Councils\n     with the Exiles--Arranges the plan of Massacre, and informs them of\n     the time--Exiles and Indians rendezvous in Wahoo Swamp--Dade's\n     Approach--The preparation--The Massacre--Osceola and Louis--The\n     Exiles and Indians again meet in the Swamp for the\n     night--Digression--Incidents.\n\n\nThe number of Exiles at the commencement of the Second Seminole War, has\nbeen variously estimated. Probably their whole number, including women\nand children, was not less than twelve hundred. To these may be added\nthe slaves belonging to the Seminoles, estimated at two hundred, making\na population of fourteen hundred blacks. Most of the slaves lived with\nthe Exiles, separate and apart from their masters, paying a certain\nquantity of vegetables annually, for the partial freedom which they\nenjoyed. There were many half-breeds, however, some of whom resided with\nthe Indians, and others were located with the Exiles.\n\nThe Spanish population called the Exiles \"Maroons,\" after a class of\nfree negroes who inhabit the mountains of Cuba, Jamaica, and other West\nIndian islands. Indeed, some of the Maroons of Cuba appear to have\nfound their way to Florida,[78] and many of the Exiles passed from that\nTerritory to the West India Islands. Many officers of Government appear\nto have known or cared little for these people, while others manifested\nmuch intelligence and humanity in regard to them. We have already\nnoticed the efforts of Mr. Thompson, the Indian Agent, of Colonel\nClinch, and of Colonel Eaton, in behalf of the Exiles, who had long\nresided in Florida.\n\nDuring the summer, the Indians committed various depredations upon the\nwhite people, such as stealing horses and killing cattle; but the first\nopen hostilities occurred on the twenty-eighth of December, when two\nimportant and bloody tragedies took place, which left the country no\nlonger in doubt as to the actual existence of war.\n\nA young and gallant warrior, named Osceola, was the principal actor in\none of these scenes. He was the son of an Indian trader, a white man,\nnamed Powell. His mother was the daughter of a Seminole chief.\n\nHe had recently married a woman said to have been beautiful. She was the\ndaughter of a chief who had married one of the Exiles; but as all\ncolored people by slaveholding laws are said to follow the condition of\nthe mother, she was called an African slave. Osceola was proud of his\nancestry. He hated slavery, and those who practiced the holding of\nslaves, with a bitterness that is but little understood by those who\nhave never witnessed its revolting crimes.\n\nHe visited Fort King, in company with his wife and a few friends, for\nthe purpose of trading. Mr. Thompson, the Agent, was present, and, while\nengaged in business, the wife of Osceola was seized as a slave.\nEvidently having negro blood in her veins, the law pronounced her a\nslave; and, as no other person could show title to her, the pirate who\nhad got possession of her body, was supposed of course to be her owner.\n\n[Illustration: As.se.he.ho.lar. (known as Osceola, or Powell.)]\n\nOsceola became frantic with rage, but was instantly seized and placed in\nirons, while his wife was hurried away to slaveholding pollution.[79] He\nremained six days in irons, when, General Thompson says, he became\npenitent, and was released.\n\nFrom the moment when this outrage was committed, the Florida War may be\nregarded as commenced. Osceola swore vengeance upon Thompson, and those\nwho assisted in the perpetration of this indignity upon himself, as well\nas upon his wife, and upon our common humanity.\n\nThe Exiles endeavored to stimulate the Indians to deeds of valor. In\ngeneral council, they decreed that the first Seminole who should make\nany movement preparatory to emigration, should suffer death. Charley E.\nMathler, a respected chief, soon after fell a victim to this decree.\nOsceola commanded the party who slew him. He had sold a portion of his\ncattle to the whites, for which he had received pay in gold. This money\nwas found upon his person when he fell. Osceola forbade any one touching\nthe gold, saying it was the price of the red man's blood, and with his\nown hands he scattered it in different directions as far as he was able\nto throw it.\n\nBut his chief object appeared to have been the death of General\nThompson. Other Indians and Exiles were preparing for other important\noperations; but Osceola seemed intent, his whole soul was absorbed, in\ndevising some plan by which he could safely reach Mr. Thompson, who was\nthe object of his vengeance. He, or some of his friends, kept constant\nwatch on the movements of Thompson, who was unconscious of the danger to\nwhich he was exposed. Osceola, steady to his purpose, refused to be\ndiverted from this favorite object. Thompson was at Fort King, and\nthere were but few troops to protect that fortress. But Indians seldom\nattempt an escalade, and Osceola sought an opportunity to take it by\nsurprise. With some twenty followers, he lay secreted near the fort for\ndays and weeks, determined to find some opportunity to enter by the open\ngate, when the troops should be off their guard.\n\nNear the close of December, a runner brought him information that Major\nDade, with his command, was to leave Fort Brooke on the twenty-fifth of\nthat month, and that those who intended to share in the attack upon that\nregiment, must be at the great \"Wahoo Swamp,\" by the evening of the\ntwenty-seventh. This had no effect whatever upon Osceola. No\ncircumstance could withdraw him from the bloody purpose which filled his\nsoul.\n\nOn the twenty-eighth, in the afternoon, as he and his followers lay near\nthe road leading from the fort to the house of the sutler, which was\nnearly a mile distant, they saw Mr. Thompson and a friend approaching.\nThat gentleman and his companions had dined, and, on taking their\ncigars, he and Lieut. Smith, of the Second Artillery, had sallied forth\nfor a walk, and to enjoy conversation by themselves.\n\nAt a signal given by Osceola, the Indians fired. Thompson fell, pierced\nby fourteen balls; Smith received about as many.[80] The shrill\nwar-whoop followed the sound of the rifles, and alarmed the people at\nthe fort. The Indians immediately scalped their victims, and then\nhastened to the house, where Mr. Rogers, the sutler, and two clerks,\nwere at dinner. These three persons were instantly massacred and\nscalped. The Indians took as many valuable goods as they could carry,\nand set fire to the building. The smoke gave notice to those in the fort\nof the fate that had befallen the sutler and his clerks. But the\ncondition in which the commandant found his troops, forbade his sending\nout any considerable force to ascertain the fate of Thompson and his\ncompanion. Near nightfall, a few daring spirits proceeded up the road to\nthe hommock, and brought the bodies to the fort; but Osceola and his\nfollowers had hastened their flight, not from fear of the troops, but\nwith the hope of joining their companions at Wahoo in time to engage in\nscenes of more general interest.\n\nGeneral Clinch had foreseen that hostilities were unavoidable, and, as\nearly as the fifteenth of November, had sought to increase the number of\ntroops at Fort King by such reinforcements as could be spared from other\nstations. For this purpose, he ordered Major Dade, then at Fort Brooke,\nnear Tampa Bay, to prepare his command for a march to Fort King. The\ndistance was one hundred and thirty miles, through an unsettled forest,\nmuch diversified with swamps, lakes and hommocks. No officer nor soldier\ncould be found who was acquainted with the route, and a guide was\nindispensable: yet men competent to the discharge of so important a\ntrust were rarely to be found, for the lives of the regiment might\ndepend upon the intelligence and fidelity of their conductor.\n\nAt this point in our history, even before the commencement of general\nhostilities, we are led to the acquaintance of one of the most romantic\ncharacters who bore part in the stirring scenes of that day. On making\ninquiry for a suitable guide, the attention of Major Dade was directed\nto a colored man named Louis. He was the slave of one of the old and\nrespectable Spanish families, named Pacheco, who resided in the vicinity\nof Fort Brooke. Major Dade applied to the master, Antonio Pacheco, for\ninformation concerning his slave, and was assured that Louis, then near\nthirty years of age, was one of the most _faithful_, _intelligent_, and\n_trustworthy_ men he had ever known. He had also been well bred, was\npolite, accomplished, and learned. He read, wrote, and spoke, with\nfacility, the Spanish, French, and English languages, and spoke the\nIndian, and was perfectly familiar with the route to Fort King, having\nfrequently traveled it.\n\nPleased with the character and appearance of Louis, Major Dade entered\ninto an agreement with the master for his services in conducting the\ntroops through the forest to Fort King, at the rate of twenty-five\ndollars per month, and stated the time at which the service was to\ncommence. The contract was made in the presence of Louis, who listened\nattentively to the whole arrangement, to which he of course gave his own\nconsent.\n\nLouis Pacheco was too enlightened to smother the better sympathies of\nthe human heart. He was well informed, and understood the efforts that\nwere making to re\u00ebnslave his brethren, the Exiles. With many of them he\nhad long been acquainted; he had witnessed the persecutions to which\nthey had been subjected, the outrages heaped upon them, and now saw\nclearly the intention to subject them to slavery among the Creeks. He\nhad spent his own life thus far in servitude, and, although his\ncondition was regarded with envy by the plantation servants around him,\nhe yet sighed for freedom.\n\nBlessed with an intellect of no ordinary mould, he reflected deeply upon\nhis condition, and determined upon his course. Hostilities had not yet\ncommenced, and he was in the daily habit of conversing with Indians, and\noften with Exiles. He was well acquainted with the character of each,\nand knew the men to whom he could communicate important information with\nsafety. To a few of the Exiles, men of integrity and boldness, he\nimparted the facts that Dade, with his troops, would leave Fort Brooke\nabout the twenty-fifth of December, for Fort King, and that he, Louis,\nwas to act as their guide; that he would conduct them by the trail\nleading near the Great Wahoo Swamp, and pointed out the proper place for\nan attack.[81]\n\nThis information was soon made known to the leading and active Exiles,\nand to a few of the Seminole chiefs and warriors. The Exiles, conscious\nthat the war was to be waged on their account, were anxious to give\ntheir friends some suitable manifestation of their prowess. They desired\nas many of the Exiles capable of bearing arms as could assemble at a\ncertain point in the Great Wahoo Swamp, to meet them there as early as\nthe twenty-seventh of December, armed, and prepared to commence the war\nby a proper demonstration of their gallantry.\n\nInformation was sent to Osceola and his followers, inviting them to be\npresent. They were lying secreted near Fort King, too intent upon the\ndeath of Thompson to turn their eyes for a moment from their victim.\nHowever, many other chiefs and warriors assembled at the time and place\ndesignated, in order to witness what they supposed would be the first\nscene in the great drama about to be acted. Their spies detached for\nthat purpose, arrived at their rendezvous almost hourly, bringing\ninformation of the commencement of Dade's march, the number of men\nforming his battalion, and their places of encampment each night.\n\nIn the evening of the twenty-seventh, their patrols brought word that\nDade and his men had arrived within three miles of the point at which\nthey intended to attack them. Of course every preparation was now made\nfor placing themselves in ambush at an early hour, along the trail in\nwhich it was expected the troops would pass. The scouts reported that\nprecisely one hundred and ten men constituted the force which they\nexpected to encounter, and the official report fully confirms the\naccuracy of their intelligence. The Exiles looked to the coming day with\ngreat intensity of feeling. More than two hundred years since, their\nancestors had been piratically seized in their own country, and forcibly\ntorn from their friends--from the land of their nativity. For a time\nthey submitted to degrading bondage; but more than a century had elapsed\nsince they fled from South Carolina, and found an asylum under Spanish\nlaw in the wilds of Florida. There their fathers and mothers had been\nburied. They had often visited their graves, and mourned over the sad\nfate to which their race appeared to be doomed. For fifty years they had\nbeen subjected to almost constant persecution at the hands of our\nGovernment. The blood of their fathers, brothers and friends, massacred\nat \"Blount's Fort,\" was yet unavenged. They had seen individuals from\namong them piratically seized and enslaved. Their friends, residing with\nE-con-chattimico and with Walker, had been openly and flagrantly\nkidnapped, and sold into interminable servitude, where they were then\nsighing and moaning in degrading bondage. In looking forward, they read\ntheir intended doom, clearly written in the slave codes of Florida and\nthe adjoining States, which could only be avoided by their most\ndetermined resistance. If they behaved worthy of men in their condition,\ntheir influence with their savage allies would be confirmed, and they\nwould be able to control their action on subsequent occasions. Every\nconsideration, therefore, tended to nerve them to the work of death\nwhich lay before them.\n\nIn the meantime, their victims were reposing at only four or five miles\ndistant in conscious security. Their encampment had been selected\naccording to military science. The men and officers were encamped in\nscientific order. Their guards were placed, their patrols sent out, and\nevery precaution taken to prevent surprise. They had seen service, and\ncheerfully encountered its hardships, privations, and dangers, but had\nno suspicion of the fate that awaited them on the coming day.\n\nAt early dawn, the men were paraded, the roll called, and the order for\nregulating the day's march given. They were then dismissed for\nbreakfast, and at eight o'clock, resumed their march, and proceeded on\ntheir way in the full expectation of reaching their destination by the\nevening of that day.\n\nBut the insidious foe had been equally vigilant. They had left their\nisland encampment with the first light of the morning, and each had\ntaken his position along the trail in which the troops were expected to\nmarch, but at some thirty or forty yards distant. Each man was hidden by\na tree, which was to be his fortress during the expected action. A few\nrods on the other side of the trail lay a pond of water, whose placid\nsurface reflected the glittering rays of the morning sun. All was\npeaceful and quiet as the breath of summer.\n\nUnsuspicious of the hidden death which beset their pathway, the troops\nentered this defile, and passed along until their rear had come within\nthe range of the enemies' rifles, when, at a given signal, each warrior\nfired, while his victim was in full view and unprotected. One-half of\nthat ill-fated band, including the gallant Dade, fell at the first fire.\nThe remainder were thrown into disorder. The officers endeavored to\nrally them into line; but their enemy was unseen, and ere they could\nreturn an effective shot, a second discharge from the hidden foe laid\none-half their remaining force prostrate in death. The survivors\nretreated a short distance toward their encampment of the previous\nnight, and, while most of the Exiles and Indians were engaged in\nscalping the dead and tomahawking those who were disabled, they formed a\nhasty breastwork of logs for their defense. They were, however, soon\ninvested by the enemy, and the few who had taken shelter behind their\nrude defenses were overcome and massacred by the Exiles, who conversed\nwith them in English, and then dispatched them.[82] Only two individuals\nbeside Louis, the guide, made their escape. Their gallant commander, his\nofficers and soldiers, whose hearts had beat high with expectation in\nthe morning, at evening lay prostrate in death; and as the sable victors\nrelaxed from their bloody work, they congratulated each other on having\nrevenged the death of those who, twenty years previously, had fallen at\nthe massacre of \"Blount's Fort.\" The loss of the allied forces\nwas--three killed and five wounded.\n\nAfter burying their own dead, they returned to the island in the swamp\nlong before nightfall. To this point, they brought the spoils of\nvictory, which were deemed important for carrying on the war. Night had\nscarcely closed around them, however, when Osceola and his followers\narrived from Fort King, bringing intelligence of the death of Thompson\nand Lieutenant Smith, together with the sutler and his two clerks.\nThere, too, was Louis, the guide to Dade's command. He was now _free_!\nHe engaged in conversation with his sable friends. Well knowing the time\nand place at which the attack was to be made, he had professed necessity\nfor stopping by the way-side before entering the defile; thus\nseparating himself from the troops and from danger. Soon as the first\nfire showed him the precise position of his friends, he joined them; and\nswearing eternal hostility to all who enslave their fellow men, lent his\nown efforts in carrying forward the work of death, until the last\nindividual of that doomed regiment sunk beneath their tomahawks.\n\nThe massacre of the unfortunate Dade and his companions, and the murder\nof Thompson and his friends, at Fort King, occurred on the same day, and\nconstituted the opening scenes of the second Seminole War.\n\n[Sidenote: 1847.]\n\nWe bespeak the indulgence of the reader, while we digress from the\nchronological narration of events which followed consecutively upon this\nopening of the second Seminole War, in order to give a short sketch of\nsome incidents which occurred in Congress, and were connected with the\nemployment of Louis, and his subsequent service with the enemy.\n\nTwelve years after the massacre of Dade's command, Antonio Pacheco\npresented his petition to Congress, setting forth that he had been the\nowner of a valuable slave named Louis; that he hired him as guide to\nMajor Dade to conduct his command from \"Fort Brooke\" to \"Fort King;\"\nthat at the time of Dade's defeat, Louis had been _captured by the\nIndians_, and by them had been subsequently surrendered to Major General\nJessup, and by that officer sent to the Indian country, west of the\nMississippi, whereby he became lost to his owner, who, therefore, prayed\nCongress to grant him full indemnity for his loss.\n\nAmong the proofs accompanying this petition was a letter from General\nJessup, setting forth that, after Louis had been employed to act as\nguide, he had kept up a correspondence with the \"Seminole negroes,\"\ninforming them of the intended march of Major Dade, etc. He also\nrepresented Louis as a man of extraordinary intellect and learning,\ndeclaring that he regarded him as a _dangerous_ man; that he would have\nhad him tried and hanged, instead of sending him West, if he had found\nleisure to attend to it; that from prudential motives he had sent him\nto the Indian country; and stated that he was worth a _thousand\ndollars_.\n\nThe case was most interesting in its character. Louis was probably the\nmost dangerous enemy of the United States at that time in Florida. With\nhis intelligence, he must have felt an inveterate hostility to the\nGovernment and the people, who robbed him of his most sacred right to\nliberty. Probably his former master and family were in greater danger\nfrom his vengeance than any other persons. He had surrendered to General\nJessup as prisoner of war with arms in his hands; had been treated--very\nproperly treated--as a prisoner of war: therefore, the master called on\nthe people of the nation to pay him a thousand dollars for protecting\nhim, his family, friends and nation from the fury of his own slave; and\nGeneral Jessup and many Northern Representatives exerted their personal\nand political influence to sustain the claim.\n\nThe petition and accompanying papers were referred to the committee on\nMilitary Affairs, a majority of whom were known to be favorable to the\ninterests of slavery. At the head of it was the Hon. Armisted Burt, of\nSouth Carolina, a man of intelligence and influence. He appeared devoted\nto the interests of the \"peculiar institution.\"\n\n[Sidenote: 1848.]\n\nHaving examined the case, he presented it to the consideration of the\ncommittee, and a majority at once agreed to sustain a bill giving to the\nowner a fair compensation for the loss of his slave. The Chairman agreed\nto draw up a report sustaining the bill, and present it to the committee\nthe next morning.\n\nHon. John Dickey, of Beaver County, Pennsylvania, now deceased, was also\na member of the committee. He boarded at the same house with the author\nof this narrative. While at tea that evening, Mr. Dickey remarked, that\nhis committee were about to report a bill to pay for this slave, and\nsaid, if he were familiar with the subject, he would draw up a minority\nreport against the bill. A gentleman sitting at the table remarked, that\nother gentlemen, who were familiar with the subject, would doubtless\nfeel willing to lend him any aid in their power. All however agreed,\nthat an evening was too short a time to draw up a suitable report on so\nimportant a question; yet it was known that slaveholders controlled the\naction of the House, and they showed no courtesy to those opposed to the\n\"peculiar institution,\" and would of course grant no time to draw up a\nminority report. After tea, Mr. Dickey and another gentleman retired to\na room by themselves, and before sunrise the next morning, had completed\nthe report, which now appears among the House Documents, Thirtieth\nCongress, first session, numbered 187, filling sixteen heavy octavo\npages of printed matter. At ten o'clock the committee met, and, having\nlistened to the report of their Chairman, they were called on to hear\nthat of Mr. Dickey, which took distinct and unmistakable grounds against\nthe right of men to hold their fellow-beings as _property_, under the\nFederal Constitution. This case furnishes the first instance in which\nthe records of the nation show a minority report from any committee\n_against_ slavery. Mr. Dickey, having taken his position, stood firmly\nupon the doctrines he had avowed in his report; and the other members of\nthe committee took their choice between the report of Mr. Burt and that\nof Mr. Dickey.\n\nGeneral Dudley Marvin, of New York, General James Wilson, of New\nHampshire, and Hon. David Fisher, of Ohio, signed the report of Mr.\nDickey; while the four Democratic members, all of whom resided in the\nslave States, signed that of Mr. Burt. So far as the committee were\nconcerned, the five Democratic members assumed the position now occupied\nby that party, to wit, that under our Federal Constitution, man may\nhold, sell and transfer human beings as property; while the four Whig\nmembers based their action upon the doctrine now occupied by the\nRepublican party--that, under our Federal Constitution, men cannot be\ntransformed into brutes; nor can one man hold _property_ in another.\n\nThe reports of the majority and minority were printed, and attracted\nattention among the members; but the bill did not come up for discussion\nuntil the next session. On the twenty-third of the following December,\nthe committee of the whole House, in passing through its calendar of\nprivate claims, reached this case. Mr. Dickey led off in a short, but\nwell-arranged argument, sustaining his report. His remarks were so well\ndirected and so pertinent, that, near the close of his speech, Mr. Burt\ncalled him to order, for _discussing the subject of slavery_. Upon the\nconclusion of Mr. Dickey's remarks, General Wilson of New Hampshire\nobtained the floor, and the House adjourned.\n\nThe bill did not come up again for discussion until the twenty-ninth.\nBefore going into committee on that day, Mr. Rockwell, of Connecticut,\nChairman of the committee on Claims, offered a resolution closing debate\non this bill at half-past one o'clock, allowing but one hour and a\nquarter for the discussion of this important question, which now\nagitates the whole Union; but it was regarded at that time as\nmeritorious in any member to prevent agitation of the subject of\nslavery, and the resolution passed with little opposition. When the\nHouse resolved itself into committee of the whole, Mr. Wilson, of New\nHampshire, delivered his views, sustaining the report of the minority of\nthe committee; making the question distinctly to depend upon the right\nof men to hold property in men, under the Federal Constitution.\n\nMr. Brown, of Mississippi, followed in a few remarks, taking strong\nground in favor of the principle, that slaves are _property_, to the\nsame extent that horses and cattle are property. Mr. Cabel, of Florida,\nfollowed in a few words to the same point. Here the time for closing the\ndebate arrived; but Mr. Burt, having reported the bill, held the right\nto speak one hour, under the rules, in reply to those who opposed its\npassage. He had evidently expected the bill would pass without serious\nopposition, and had become somewhat excited by the difficulties with\nwhich he had to contend; confident however of final success, he at once\ndeclared the only question to be, that of _property in human flesh_.\nMany Northern men were unwilling to meet this bald question. Mr.\nCollamer, of Vermont, interrupted Mr. Burt, inquiring, if there were not\nother questions of law involved? Burt replied, with some degree of\narrogance, that he would \"leave no other loop-hole for gentlemen to\nescape.\" This supercilious bearing of Mr. Burt greatly delighted some\nNorthern members, while it appeared greatly to embarrass others; but his\nspeech was the last, and, there being no opportunity for reply, every\nthing gave promise of a triumphant victory to the slaveholders.\n\nAfter the conclusion of this speech, the vote was taken in committee,\nwhere no record was kept, and stood for the bill _seventy_, against it\n_forty-four_--the majority being even greater than the slaveholders\nexpected. The bill was then reported to the House, and Mr. Crowell, of\nOhio, moved to lay it on the table, and called for the yeas and nays;\nand the recorded vote stood, ayes _sixty-six_, noes _eighty-five_--being\na majority of nineteen in favor of the claim. The bill was then ordered\nto a third reading without division.\n\nSoon as this result was announced, the Author moved a reconsideration of\nthis vote. The reconsideration being a privileged question, he held the\nfloor, and was proceeding to deliver his views, but gave way for an\nadjournment.\n\n[Sidenote: 1849.]\n\nOn the sixth of January, the bill again came up in the regular order of\nbusiness, and Mr. Giddings concluded his remarks. He endeavored to meet\nthe arrogance of Mr. Burt, clearly and as fully as his abilities would\npermit. He accepted the challenge thrown out by that member, that he\nwould leave no other loop-hole for gentlemen to escape, than by meeting\nthe question of _property in human flesh_. To this point he directed his\nremarks, attempting to show the doctrine of Mr. Burt to be opposed to\nthe Declaration of Independence, to the Constitution of the United\nStates, to civilization, to the dictates of our common humanity.[83]\nWhen he concluded his remarks, he withdrew his motion to reconsider, in\norder to test the sense of the House on the passage of the bill, which\nwould be the next question in order.\n\nAs the roll was called, and the votes given, the result became doubtful,\nand much interest was manifested in all parts of the hall. The bill and\ndiscussion had been thrust upon the House by slaveholders: its whole\nmerits were based upon the most vital principles of slavery. The\nquestion of property in human flesh, constitutes one of the essential\nelements of the institution, without which it could not survive one\nhour. The slave power had not for many years been defeated on any\nproposition touching slavery, and it appeared painful for those\ninterested in that institution to have their influence doubted.\n\nThe Clerk (a deputy) was engaged a long time in counting the votes, and\nascertaining the result. He was a slaveholder, and appeared perplexed;\nsome members, even before he made report of the vote, expressed doubts\nof his accuracy. At length he passed his report to the Chair. The\nSpeaker, Mr. Winthrop of Massachusetts, casting his eye upon the\nfigures, rose from his seat, and announced the vote--\"ayes _ninety_,\nnoes _eighty-nine_,\" and then remarking that the rules of the House made\nit his duty to vote in all cases when such vote would _change the\nresult_, began to give his reasons for the vote he was about to record,\nand as he proceeded it became evident that he was _opposed to the bill_.\nThe Clerk then handed him another paper, and the Speaker, after reading\nit, announced that the Clerk had mistaken the vote, and without saying\nmore, announced--\"ayes _ninety-one_, noes _eighty-nine_,\" and declared\nthe bill \"_passed_.\"\n\nThe interest had now become intense in all parts of the hall. It was\nperfectly natural that men should be suspicious of the Clerk. Mr.\nDickey, in particular, had taken a deep interest in the question. He was\nsitting near the Author, and expressed freely the opinion, that the\nClerk had reported the vote incorrectly. So strong was this belief, that\nhe went to the Clerk, and demanded a copy of the record giving the ayes\nand noes. The Clerk promised to give it soon. Dickey waited a short\ntime, and renewed his call on the Clerk, who again promised. Dickey,\nafter waiting a proper time, went to the Clerk's table, and took the\nrecord of yeas and nays, and brought it to the seat of the Author, and\nrequested his assistance in counting the vote. They counted and\n_re_-counted several times, but were unable to make the vote other than\n\"_eighty-nine_ ayes, and _eighty-nine_ noes\"--showing a tie vote; which,\nwithout the Speaker's vote, would have defeated the bill. Dickey\nreturned the record to the Clerk, and then called the attention of the\nHouse and the Speaker to the fact, that the Clerk had inaccurately\nreported the vote. The Speaker replied, if an error had occurred, the\nproper time to correct it would be the next morning, on reading the\nJournal, when a motion to correct the entry would be in order, in\npreference to any other business.\n\nOn looking over the list, it was subsequently discovered, that the vote\nof Hon. John W. Farrelly of Crawford county, Pennsylvania, was not\nrecorded. This added intensity to the interest already felt on the\nsubject.\n\nThe next meeting of the House was on Monday, when the Speaker recited\nthe facts as they occurred on Saturday, and declared that, on a more\ncareful examination, it was found that the vote stood--\"ayes\n_eighty-nine_, noes _eighty-nine_.\"\n\nMr. Farrelly inquired, if his vote was recorded? The Speaker informed\nhim it was not, but that it was his right to have it recorded, if he had\nactually voted on the passage of the bill. That gentleman declared that\nhe had voted _no_, on the passage of the bill, and the vote being\nrecorded, the Speaker declared the result to be \"_ayes eighty-nine,\nnoes_ NINETY,\" and then announced the bill \"_lost_!\"\n\nThe friends of freedom were greatly cheered, from the consideration,\nthat party ties had not been strong enough to control members on this\nimportant vote. Of the twenty-one members from Ohio, only Mr. Ritchey of\nPerry, Mr. Cummins of Tuscarawas, and Mr. Taylor of Ross, voted with the\nslaveholders; while such Democrats as Messrs. Faran, Fries, Kennon,\nLamb, Miller, Morris, Sawyer and Starkweather voted against the doctrine\nthat men and women may be held and treated as property. Indeed, there\nwere but few Representatives from the free States willing to recognize\nthat doctrine. No member from New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode\nIsland, Connecticut, Vermont, Michigan, Wisconsin or Iowa voted for it.\nFrom Maine, Messrs. Clapp, Clarke and Williams; from New York, Messrs.\nBirdsal, McClay, Murphy, Necoll and Tallmadge; from Pennsylvania,\nMessrs. Brady, Bridges, Brodhead, Charles Brown, C. J. Ingersol, Levin\nand Job Mann; from Indiana, Messrs. Dunn, R. W. Thompson and Wick; and\nfrom Illinois, Messrs. McClernand and Richardson voted to pay Pacheco a\nthousand dollars, because General Jessup sent a most dangerous enemy out\nof Florida.\n\nMr. Burt, and the friends of slavery generally, appeared irritated by\ndefeat. They had driven their Northern allies to revolt. The more they\nreflected upon the subject, the more important the issue appeared. They\nhad caused great agitation, while professing to deprecate all discussion\nin regard to slavery. If slaves were not _property_ under the Federal\nConstitution, they must be regarded as _persons_. If the civilized world\nlooked upon them as persons, those who held them in bondage must of\ncourse be considered as oppressors of mankind, and could have no claim\nto the title of Democrats or of Christians. In every point of view, the\nresult appeared disastrous to the slave power.\n\nIt was under these circumstances, that the Hon. William Sawyer of Ohio,\nwas induced to move a reconsideration of the vote by which the bill was\nlost. From the fact that none but those voting in the negative could by\nthe rules of the House move a reconsideration, and that he subsequently\nvoted against his own motion, it is probable he made it from personal\nkindness to those who supported the bill. On this motion, a long\ndiscussion subsequently arose, which did not terminate until the\nnineteenth of January, when the motion to reconsider prevailed, and on\nthe final passage of the bill the vote stood--ayes 101, noes 95. So the\nbill was passed by the House of Representatives, and the struggle in\nthat body terminated. But the bill was never brought up for discussion\nin the Senate, and the claim was never more moved in either House of\nCongress. The question of property in human flesh, however, continued to\nbe discussed by the people, and in Congress, until it has become one of\nthe great issues on which political parties now base their action.\n\n       *       *       *       *       *\n\nNOTE.--The life of this slave Louis is perhaps the most romantic of any\nman now living. Born and reared a slave, he found means to cultivate his\nintellect--was fond of reading; and while gentlemen in the House of\nRepresentatives were engaged in discussing the value of his bones and\nsinews, he could probably speak and write more languages with ease and\nfacility than any member of that body. In revenge for the oppression to\nwhich he was subjected, he conceived the purpose of sacrificing a\nregiment of white men, who were engaged in the support of slavery. This\nobject effected, he asserted his own natural right to freedom, joined\nhis brethren, and made bloody war upon the enemies of liberty. For two\nyears, he was the steady companion of Coacoochee, or, as he was\nafterwards called, \"Wild Cat,\" who subsequently became the most warlike\nchief in Florida. They traversed the forests of that territory together,\nwading through swamps and everglades, groping their way through\nhommocks, and gliding over prairies. They bivouacked together; suffered\nheat and cold, hunger and thirst, together. For two years, they stood\nshoulder to shoulder in every battle; shared their victories and defeats\ntogether; and when General Jessup had pledged the faith of the nation\nthat all Indians who would surrender should be protected in the\nenjoyment of their slaves, Wild Cat appeared at head quarters, followed\nby Louis, whom he claimed as his property, under slaveholding law, as he\nsaid he had captured him at the time of Dade's defeat. The ruse took.\nGeneral Jessup, being a slaveholder, and believing that slaves, like\nhorses and cattle, were the subjects of capture, immediately sent Louis\nwith other black warriors to Fort Pike, near New Orleans, and thence\nwith the first emigrating party of Seminoles to the western country,\nwhere he was three years subsequently joined by Coacoochee, and these\nfriends, again united, became intimate, sharing together the fortunes\nwhich awaited them, of which we shall speak in due time.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VIII.\n\nHOSTILITIES CONTINUED.\n\n     The Allies in their Camp--News of General Clinch's advance--Two\n     hundred men volunteer to meet him--His force--The Allies await his\n     approach in ambush--He crosses the river in another place--They\n     attack him--The battle--His intrepidity saves his army--The loss of\n     the Allies--The loss of General Clinch--Escape of Florida\n     slaves--Their blood-thirsty conduct--Families murdered--Dwellings\n     burned--Inhabitants flee to villages--Their suffering--Effects of\n     the War--General Jackson--Members of Congress--General Cass--His\n     views and policy--Orders General Scott to Florida--General Gaines\n     moves upon Florida with his Brigade--Reaches the scene of Dade's\n     massacre--Buries the dead--Visits Fort King--While returning, is\n     attacked--Ino, the Exile Chief--His character--The Allies surround\n     General Gaines--His position--Is closely invested--Sends for\n     assistance--Provisions fail--Unauthorized Interference of\n     C\u00e6sar--Flag of Truce--General Clinch arrives, and fires upon the\n     Allies--They flee--General Gaines returns to Fort Brooks--General\n     Clinch returns to Fort Drane.\n\n\nThe night after the massacre of Dade and his companions was spent in\nexultation by the allies. Osceola and his friends brought with them from\nthe sutler's store various goods, with which they decorated their\npersons; while the numerous scalps taken from the heads of their\nenemies, were displayed as trophies of victory. They had also found\namong the stores with which Major Dade's party were provided, sufficient\nrum and whisky to intoxicate most of them, and their rejoicings and\nfelicitations continued, for hours, amid the darkness of night.\n\nIt was a late hour in the morning when they awoke from the stupor\noccasioned by severe labors of the previous day, and the night's\ndebauch. Before they had refreshed themselves with the morning's meal,\ntheir scouts arrived, bringing intelligence that troops were advancing\ntowards the Withlacoochee, in pursuit of Indians and Exiles. General\nClinch had been lying at Fort Drane. He clearly saw the evidence of\napproaching hostilities; and, although wholly unconscious of the danger\nwhich had threatened Major Dade, had felt it his duty to raise such\nforces as he could command, and advance into the Indian country as far\nas the Withlacoochee. He gathered about two hundred Regulars, from the\n1st, 2d and 3d Artillery, and, with some four hundred Florida\nvolunteers, under General C. K. Call, had nearly reached the\nWithlacoochee before the captors of Dade were informed of his approach.\n\nAbout two hundred warriors, fifty of whom were Exiles, volunteered to\nmeet this army, of three times their own number, under the command of\none of the most able and gallant officers at that time in the service of\nthe United States.\n\nOsceola and Halpatter-Tustenuggee commanded the allies. They hastened to\nthe crossing of the Withlacoochee, and there lay awaiting the approach\nof General Clinch. Here the water was not more than two feet in depth,\nand they entertained no doubt that the advancing forces would seek this\nplace for the purpose of fording the stream. Here they waited until the\nmorning of the thirtieth, when they learned that General Clinch, with\nhis two hundred Regulars, had already passed the stream some two miles\nbelow. He had effected his passage by the aid of a bark canoe, which\ncarried only eight men at a time.\n\nHaving attained a position on the south side of the river with his\nRegulars, General Clinch was ready for battle; although the four hundred\nvolunteers were yet on the north side of the stream. The Indians and\nExiles immediately engaged these veteran troops, although sustained by a\nheavy force of volunteers, who were yet on the opposite side of the\nriver. At twelve o'clock, on the thirtieth of December, the contending\nforces engaged, and a severe and deadly conflict followed.\n\nAs Osceola now for the first time engaged in battle, he felt anxious to\ndistinguish himself by his intrepidity. His voice was heard on every\npart of the field, urging on his troops to deeds of daring. Undaunted by\nthe shrill war-whoop, and the constant report of Indian rifles and the\nwhistling balls around him, General Clinch charged his enemy. The allies\nfell back, and he continually advanced until he drove them from the\nthick hommock into the open forest. The gallant general coolly passed\nalong the lines during the action encouraging his men, and stimulating\nthem to effort by his presence and bravery. A ball passed through his\ncap and another through the sleeve of his coat, to which he paid no\nattention, but continued to encourage his men.\n\nThe Exiles also displayed unusual gallantry. Feelings which had\ndescended from father to son through several generations, had been\nrecently inflamed to the highest degree of indignant hatred. Conscious\nthat they were contending for their homes, their firesides, their\nfamilies, their liberties, they fought with desperation, and their aim\nwas fatal. Unfortunately, Osceola was wounded and disabled early in the\ncontest, and it was said that the Indians did not exhibit that undaunted\nfirmness on the field that was manifested by their more dusky allies.\nThey suffered less than our troops. Two negroes and one Indian were\nkilled, and three negroes and two Indians wounded--the loss of the\nExiles being twice as great as that of the Indians, although they\nnumbered but one-fourth of the allied force.\n\nThe battle continued an hour and twenty minutes. During this time, the\nregular troops under Colonel Clinch were subjected to a brisk fire, and\ntheir loss was severe. Eight men were killed and forty wounded, of whom\nabout one-third died of their wounds. Several officers were also\nwounded. The militia consulted their own safety by refusing to expose\nthemselves to the fire of the enemy; while the regular troops lost, in\nkilled and wounded, nearly one-fourth of their number. The allies drew\noff, leaving Colonel Clinch in possession of the field; but the victory\nhad been won at great expense of blood; and the determined coolness and\ngallantry of the veteran officer who commanded our forces, saved them\nfrom a total defeat.\n\nThe blows thus far had fallen most heavily upon our own troops. It\nbecame evident, that the carrying out of General Jackson's policy, of\nremoving the Exiles and Indians from Florida, in order to encourage and\nsustain slavery, was to be attended with great sacrifice of blood and\ntreasure. But while the Government and people were looking at these\nunexpected exhibitions of firmness and love of liberty, on the part of\nthe allied forces, other scenes were presented to their view. The\nfugitive slaves who had recently left their masters in Florida and\njoined the Exiles, were stimulated with that hatred which slavery alone\ncan engender in the human breast. They thirsted for revenge upon those\nwho had held them in bondage; who had scourged and tortured them. They\nwere acquainted with the location of the small settlements throughout\nthe Territory. Uniting with the more daring spirits among the Indians\nand Exiles, they proceeded rapidly and stealthily from plantation to\nplantation, burning buildings, destroying property, and scattering\ndevastation throughout the border settlements; at times murdering whole\nfamilies, killing and scalping such individuals as fell in their way.\n\nMen who had urged on the war with the hope of seizing and enslaving the\nmaroons of the interior, now saw their own plantations laid waste, and\nin frequent instances mourned the loss of wives and children, instead of\nrejoicing over captured slaves, whom they had intended to acquire by\npiratical force. Farms, and the smaller villages on the frontier, were\nabandoned to the enemy; and the inhabitants fled to the larger villages,\nwhere they banded together for mutual defense. The citizens of Florida\nwho had petitioned General Jackson for the forcible removal of the\nIndians, because they failed to capture and return slaves, were now\ncompelled to flee, with their families, before the infuriated servants\nwho had left them subsequently to the signing of that petition. Driven\nfrom their homes--their property destroyed, their servants fled--many\nfamilies, who but a few months previously had been regarded as wealthy,\nwere now suffering from the want of bread.[84]\n\nThe whole scene was calculated to impress statesmen and people with that\nreligious philosophy which teaches, that every violation of justice or\nof moral principle, is, by the immutable law of the Creator, inseparably\nconnected with an appropriate penalty. All that the Exiles or Indians\nhad ever asked or desired of the American Government, was to leave them\nto themselves; to permit them to remain as they were, as they had been\nfor many generations.\n\nThe war on our part had not been commenced for the attainment of any\nhigh or noble purpose. No desire to elevate mankind, or confer benefits\nupon our race, had guided our national policy in commencing the war. Our\nnational influence and military power had been put forth to re\u00ebnslave\nour fellow men; to transform immortal beings into chattels, and make\nthem the property of slaveholders; to oppose the rights of human nature;\nand the legitimate fruits of this policy were gathered in a plentiful\nharvest of crime, bloodshed and individual suffering.\n\nThe great body of the people were ignorant as to the real causes of the\nwar. General Jackson had been popular as a military officer, and was not\nless so as President of the United States. With his political friends\nhis will was law. The opposing political party were comparatively few in\nnumbers. They feared his power; and no member of either Senate or House\nof Representatives appeared willing to expose the great moral crimes\nwhich the Government was committing against humanity. Hence Congress\ngranted whatever supplies were demanded for carrying on this piratical\nwar, and enabling the President to slay those who refused to be\nenslaved.\n\n[Sidenote: 1836.]\n\nGeneral Cass, a statesman with whose character the present generation is\nfamiliar, was Secretary of War. On him devolved the duty of controlling\nthe movements of the army. Unfortunately for him and for mankind, he\nappears to have regarded moral and political duties as separate and\ndistinct in their character. He evidently believed that no moral\nturpitude was attached to movements of the army, and the outrages\ncommitted upon the Indians and Exiles, in order to compel them to\nemigrate to the western country. He ordered Major General Scott to the\nfield, as Commanding General of the army in Florida (Jan. 20), with\nauthority to call on the Governors of South Carolina, Georgia and\nAlabama for such troops as he should deem necessary. General Eustis,\ncommanding at Charleston, South Carolina, was directed to repair at once\nto Florida with such forces as were stationed in that city and Savannah,\nand to accept the services of such number of volunteers as he might deem\nnecessary under the circumstances.\n\nMajor General Gaines, commanding the western military department,\nholding his head quarters at New Orleans, hearing of the sad fate of\nMajor Dade and his regiment, embarked at once with a brigade of eleven\nhundred men, and reached \"Fort Brooke\" on the tenth of January. On the\nthirteenth, he took up his line of march for \"Fort King,\" and on the\nnineteenth, encamped upon the same ground which Major Dade had occupied\non the night of the twenty-seventh of December. The next day they took\npossession of the field of massacre, and buried the bodies of those who\nhad fallen in that unfortunate conflict. He then proceeded to Fort King,\nwhere he arrived on the twenty-second. Leaving Fort King on the\ntwenty-fifth, he took a more westerly route back toward Fort Brooke.\n\nOn the twenty-seventh, as he was seeking a place at which to cross the\nWithlacoochee, the allied forces opened a fire upon his advanced guard\nfrom the opposite bank. The firing increased as other forces were\nbrought into action, and continued for more than two hours, ceasing with\nthe nightfall.\n\nThere were resident at different points upon the Withlacoochee many\nfamilies of Exiles. Their commander was named \"Ino\" of whom General\nJessup speaks in respectful terms. He is said to have been their\nprincipal counselor, and one of the most important chiefs among the\nExiles. He, and such of his men as could be collected, hastily joined\nthe allied forces already in the field, and shared in the dangers of\nthat and of several following days. Both parties bivouacked upon the\nfield, on the different sides of the river, and at daylight the next\nmorning every man had his arms in readiness for renewing the conflict.\n\nAt sunrise, General Gaines moved down the river three miles, where he\nexpected to find a suitable ford; but on reaching it, the Indians and\nExiles opened a brisk fire upon his men. Lieutenant Izard of the\ndragoons, endeavoring to rally his men to ascertain the possibility of\nfording the stream, fell by a shot from the opposite bank.\n\nFinding it impossible to ford the river, attempts were made to construct\nrafts; but the fire upon the men employed was so galling that they were\nordered back out of the range of the enemies' shot. During these\nmovements, the Exiles, understanding the English language, kept up a\nconversation with the whites on the opposite side of the river, and\ntauntingly defied them. General Gaines was too well acquainted with the\nIndian mode of warfare to attempt a retreat, under the circumstances\nwith which he was surrounded. He at once dispatched an express to\nGeneral Clinch, who was at Fort Drane, directing that officer to repair\nas soon as possible to his relief with such troops as he could at the\nmoment bring with him. General Gaines soon after retired with his forces\ninto a pine barren, half a mile from the river, threw up a breastwork of\nlogs for the protection of his men, and awaited reinforcements.\n\nThe allied forces were estimated by General Gaines at fifteen hundred,\nthough subsequent reports show they did not exceed five hundred Indians\nand two hundred negroes. He was immediately invested in his fortified\ncamp, but he coolly awaited the arrival of General Clinch. As the enemy\ncrossed the river in large forces, and became more bold in their\nadvances toward the breastwork, their fire became more annoying. In a\nfew days his provisions were nearly exhausted, and his men appeared to\nfeel unsafe, and expressed solicitude for the arrival of General Clinch.\n\nOn the first of February, the allied forces made a vigorous attack upon\nthe fortified camp, but they were repulsed after an hour of steady\nfiring. On this day, General Gaines directed all the corn in the camp to\nbe collected and dealt out to the men in equal quantities. It gave to\neach _one pint_. On the third, they commenced killing horses, and\nappropriating the flesh to sustain the lives of the men. The fire of the\nallied forces was kept up on the fourth and fifth, while the troops had\nnothing but horse flesh for food, and no tidings had yet arrived from\nGeneral Clinch. At this time great enthusiasm prevailed among the\nallies. Their women were at the camp, a mile distant, casting balls,\ncooking food for the men, and doing what they could to cheer them on to\nvictory, which they began to regard as almost certain. In the meantime,\nthe situation of General Gaines and his army was constantly becoming\nmore critical. His troops were depressed with a sense of their\nsituation; while the allies were becoming hourly more enthusiastic. They\nhad destroyed Dade's regiment; had maintained a severe battle with\nGeneral Clinch in the open forest. They knew their power, and that any\nattempt to retreat from them would be fatal; while it would be\nimpossible for our troops to remain much longer in camp, as their stock\nof horses must soon fail.\n\nTwenty-one years had passed since General Gaines transmitted a letter to\nthe War Department, giving the first official notice that the Exiles\nwere collecting at \"Blount's Fort.\" He then despised the friendless\npeople who were seeking liberty. He had himself detailed Colonel Clinch\nand the regiment under his command, attended by Creek Indians, with\nGeneral Jackson's orders \"_to destroy the fort, and return the slaves to\ntheir rightful owners_.\" He then called the Exiles \"outlaws,\" supposed\nthem incapable of taking care of themselves, even if in full possession\nof their liberty. But he and his gallant army were now surrounded by\nthem and their friends, who were killing his men whenever they exposed\nthemselves to view. On the fifth of March, he had lost four men killed\nand thirty wounded.\n\nA circumstance occurred on the night of the fifth of February, which has\nnever been fully explained. About ten o'clock in the evening, John\nC\u00e6sar, one of the Exiles residing at Micanopy, an old man and somewhat\nof a privileged character among both Indians and Exiles, advanced in the\ndarkness near the camp of General Gaines, and hailed the nearest\nsentinel on duty. Speaking in good English, the sentinel supposed him a\nmessenger from General Clinch; but, on learning his true character, he\nwas inquired of as to his object. He declared that the allies were tired\nof fighting, and wished to come in and shake hands with General Gaines\nand his men. He was told to come in the morning with a white flag.\n\nC\u00e6sar returned to the allied camp and reported his conversation. He had\nspoken to our troops as if authorized, while all the chiefs and head-men\ndenied his authority, and many were for inflicting upon him the penalty\nof immediate death for this unauthorized act. Osceola, now raised to the\ndignity of a chief, interposed to save him. He had headed the party who\nput to death Charley E. Mathler, a brother chief, for consenting to go\nWest, and with his own hands had scattered the gold found on his person,\ndeclaring it to be \"the price of the red man's blood:\" While now a black\nman, one of their \"allies,\" had committed a far greater impropriety, he\ninterposed to save him. All agreed that their honor had been pledged,\nalthough C\u00e6sar had no authority for his conduct.[85]\n\nThe next day some of their warriors left in disgust, after it had been\ndetermined to send in a flag of truce, according to C\u00e6sar's agreement.\nBut those who remained to carry out the arrangement, formed at twelve\no'clock into line, some forty rods in the rear of General Gaines's camp.\nThree of their number, gaily dressed, advanced with a white flag.\nAdjutant Barrow of the Louisiana Volunteers, met them. Osceola told him\nthat he desired a talk with General Gaines.\n\nWhile these arrangements were going forward, General Clinch arrived in\nsight of the Indians, on his way to relieve General Gaines. Seeing the\nenemy thus drawn up, facing the camp, he at once deployed his column,\nand opened a fire upon them. The allies supposing themselves to have\nbeen betrayed fled precipitately, and the forces under General Clinch\nunited with those under General Gaines.\n\nIt is said that up to the time the allies received the fire of General\nClinch, they had not lost a man. That fire killed two Indians and one\nnegro, and wounded five others.\n\nOne of the Exiles, residing upon the Withlacoochee, who, after the\ncompact with General Jessup in 1838, surrendered, with others, and\nemigrated West, stated that he assisted Osceola in counting the sticks\nhanded in by each warrior engaged in this affair, and there were seven\nhundred present; and another bunch of sticks numbering one hundred had\nbeen sent by a party who expected to reach the scene of action the next\nday, when a general and determined attack was to have been made. But\ntheir forces disbanded upon the arrival of General Clinch, and they\nseparated to their different homes.\n\nThe officers under General Gaines charged the allies with bad faith,\nintending to massacre them under pretense of treating with them; while\nthe allies charged our troops with a treacherous effort to shoot them\nwhile their flag of truce was floating over them, and they engaged in\npeaceful negotiation.\n\nGeneral Gaines proceeded to Fort Brooke, and thence returned to New\nOrleans; while General Clinch conducted his troops back to Fort Drane.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IX.\n\nHOSTILITIES CONTINUED.\n\n     General disappointment in regard to the continuance of the War--Its\n     Difficulties--Feelings of the People of Florida--Letter of their\n     Delegate in Congress--Letter of General Jessup to F. P.\n     Blair--President Jackson's order in regard to it--Secretary of War\n     orders General Scott to Washington, and General Jessup to take\n     command--General Call in temporary command of the Army--Court of\n     Inquiry--Osceola attacks Micanopy--Major Heilman's gallant\n     Defense--General Jessup meets General Call at Tallahasse--Refuses\n     to assume Command--Major Pearce's Expedition to Fort Drane--Meets\n     Osceola with an equal force--Severe Contest--Major Pearce retires\n     to Micanopy--General Jessup's contract with Creeks--Its\n     Character--Resumes barbarous practice of Enslaving\n     Prisoners--General Call's Expedition to Withlacoochee--Its\n     Failure--Further attempts to destroy Stores on that\n     River--Armstrong's Battle--Another severe Battle--Another\n     Expedition to Withlacoochee--Its Failure--Skill and Valor of the\n     Exiles and Indians--Loss of Creeks--They become Disheartened.\n\n\nWhen General Scott took command of the army in Florida, the\nAdministration and the country confidently expected that he would bring\nthe war to an immediate close. There was but little known of the\ncombined strength, or the determined purpose, of the Seminoles and\nExiles. They were regarded as few in number, and were supposed to be\nfighting without any very definite purpose. The difficulties of\ncollecting an army in that territory, procuring supplies and arranging a\ncampaign, were great; and the most effective mode for penetrating the\nstrongholds of the allied forces could only be ascertained by\nexperience.\n\nThe inhabitants of Florida had urged on the war. They held their enemy\nin great contempt. They were slaveholders, accustomed to look upon the\nnegro as an inferior being, possessed of very limited reasoning powers,\nand devoid of the nobler sentiments which adorn the human character.\nThey do not appear to have supposed the African capable of noble\naspirations, or of manly effort. They were also accustomed to look upon\nthe Indians with about the same degree of contempt. Regarding the war as\ncommenced and prosecuted for their own benefit, they felt authorized in\nsome degree to dictate the manner in which it should be conducted.\n\nGeneral Scott, bred to the profession of arms, and conscious of that\nself-respect which was due to an officer of his rank, paid but little\nattention to their attempts at interference with his official duties.\nThis was regarded as offensive, and the delegate in Congress from that\nTerritory demanded his withdrawal from the command.\n\nGeneral Jessup, at that time in command of the army in Georgia,\noperating against the Creek Indians, in order to compel them to emigrate\nWest, also wrote a letter (June 20), addressed to a private citizen of\nWashington City,[86] criticising General Scott's policy. This letter was\nplaced in the hands of President Jackson, who, after reading it,\nindorsed upon it as follows:\n\n     \"Referred to the Secretary of War, that he forthwith order General\n     Scott to this place, in order that an inquiry may be had into the\n     unaccountable delays in prosecuting the Creek war, and the failure\n     of the campaign in Florida. Let General Jessup assume the\n     command.[87]\n\nA. J.\"\n\n\n\nIt is very evident that General Jackson, when speaking of the\n\"_unaccountable delays_\" of a few months, had little expectation that\nunder the direction of his most favorite officer the war would continue\nduring his life, and that he would leave another generation involved in\nhostilities, for the purpose of enslaving persons whom he had ordered to\nbe \"returned to their masters\" twenty years previously. But it is also\napparent that neither the President, nor Congress, nor the officers of\nthe army, had any just conceptions of that love of liberty which nerved\nthe Exiles to effort, and stimulated them to encounter every hardship\nand privation, and suffering and danger, rather than be delivered over\nto degrading bondage.\n\nCongress, participating in the general astonishment at the failure of\nour arms to conquer a handful of Indians and negroes, adopted a\nresolution, calling on the President for information touching that\nsubject. In answer to this resolution, General Cass, Secretary of War,\ntransmitted voluminous papers to Congress, which may be found in the\nExecutive Documents of the second session, Twenty-fourth Congress, from\nwhich much of our information is derived.\n\nThe Secretary of War issued the order for General Scott to retire, and\nanother for General Jessup to assume the command.\n\nA court of inquiry was duly convened for the purpose of ascertaining the\ncause of delay under General Scott.[88]\n\nSeveral months now passed without any important incident to mark the\nprogress of hostilities. As the summer approached and the sickly season\ncommenced, General Scott left Florida, and the command of the army, for\nthe time, devolved on General C. K. Call. The allied forces seemed to\nhave retired to the interior, and were supposed to be engaged in raising\ncorn and other provisions, for their support during the coming winter,\nand all appeared quiet.\n\nOsceola, after the death of Thompson at Fort King, had become a\nmaster-spirit among the Seminoles. He had conducted bravely during the\nbattle with General Clinch, and equally so in the several conflicts with\nGeneral Gaines, and had been raised to the dignity of a chief. He now\nconceived, and executed, one of the boldest movements ever made by\nsavages against a fortified post manned by regular troops.\n\nOn the ninth of June, with three hundred warriors, some sixty of whom\nwere negroes, he attacked the stockade at Micanopy, garrisoned by an\nequal force of disciplined troops, under the command of Major Heilman.\nThe assault was maintained with determined obstinacy for an hour and a\nhalf, the assailants boldly facing the artillery, which was brought to\nbear upon them; and when they left the scene of action, they carried\naway their dead and wounded.\n\nAlthough this attack proved unsuccessful, it gave the country to\nunderstand, in some degree, the character of the enemy with whom our\nGovernment was contending.\n\nMajor Heilman, in his report, regrets the severe wound of Capt. Lee; but\nsays nothing of his other loss, or that of the allies, either in killed\nor wounded. He himself died soon after, from excessive fatigue during\nthe action.\n\nSoon after this attack the allies became again active, making their\nappearance at various points on the frontier, again spreading\ndevastation wherever they went.\n\nMajor General Jessup continued in Georgia, engaged in constraining the\nCreeks to emigrate. In this he was very successful, and for that reason\nwas ordered to take command of the army in Florida. With this view he\nrepaired to Tallahasse, where he met General Call, who laid before him a\nplan, which he had conceived, for an expedition to Withlacoochee.\nGeneral Jessup, not having received his instructions for prosecuting the\ncampaign, refused to assume the command at that time, leaving General\nCall to carry out his contemplated movement.\n\nGeneral Clinch owned a plantation some twenty miles northwesterly of\nFort King. During the early part of the season he had encamped there\nwith his troops, and planted sugar-cane, and other crops; and, being\noccupied as a military post, he gave it the name of \"Fort Drane.\"\n\nIn consequence of the constant depredations committed by the enemy, he\nwas directed to fall back to an Indian town called \"Micanopy,\" which\nthereby became an outpost. He left Fort Drane in July, when his crops\nwere growing luxuriantly; and Osceola, being in the vicinity with about\na hundred followers, consisting of Indians and Exiles, took possession\nof this plantation, and occupied it with apparent pride, at having\ndriven its veteran owner back farther towards the settlements.\n\nOn the twelfth of August, Major Pearce, being in command at Micanopy,\nleft that station, with one piece of artillery and one hundred and ten\nregular troops, for the purpose of attacking the allies at Fort Drane.\nHe reached the plantation, situated eight miles from Micanopy, at\nsunrise, and commenced the attack. Osceola and his followers fell back\nto a hommock, where they made a stand. The number of men engaged were\nabout equal; Major Pearce and Osceola were known as gallant warriors; of\ncourse, the battle was warm and well contested.\n\nAfter an engagement of an hour and a quarter, Major Pearce fell back;\nand the allied forces showing no disposition to follow him into the open\nfields, he retreated to Micanopy, leaving them in possession of the\nfield of battle. Major Pearce's loss was reported to be one killed and\nsixteen wounded.\n\nBefore leaving Alabama, John A. Campbell, aid to General Jessup, acting\nunder direction of that officer, entered into a written contract with\ncertain Creek chiefs and warriors. Being somewhat extraordinary in its\ncharacter, and rendered still more so by the construction given to it by\nthe Administration and the Indians, it is deemed worthy of being\ninserted. The following is the language of the instrument:\n\n     \"The State of Alabama, Tallapoosa County.\n\n     This contract, entered into between the United States of America on\n     the first part, and the Creek tribe of Indians on the other part,\n     Witnesseth: That upon the consideration hereafter mentioned, the\n     party of the first part agrees to advance to the party of the\n     second part the sum of thirty-one thousand nine hundred dollars, to\n     be applied to the payment of the debts due by the Creek Nation of\n     Indians. And the party of the second part hereby covenants, and\n     agrees to furnish from their tribe, the number of from six hundred\n     to one thousand men, for service against the Seminoles, to be\n     continued in service until the same shall be conquered; they to\n     receive the pay and emoluments, and equipments, of soldiers in the\n     army of the United States, and such _plunder as they may take from\n     the Seminoles_.\"\n\n     \"And the party of the second part releases, transfers and assigns\n     to the party of the first part, all their right, title, claim,\n     interest and demand in and to the annuity granted by the party of\n     the first part to the party of the second part, for the year 1837.\n     In witness whereof, I, John A. Campbell, on the part of the United\n     States, do hereby set my hand and affix my seal, the 28th of\n     August, 1836.\"\n\n\"JOHN A. CAMPBELL, [L.S.]\"\n\n     \"In witness whereof, we, the Chiefs and Head-men of said tribe, on\n     the behalf of said Nation, do hereby set our hands and affix our\n     seals, the 28th of August, 1836.\"\n\n\"HYPOTHLE YOHOLA, his X mark, [L.S.]\n LITTLE DOCTOR, his X mark, [L.S.]\n TUCKABATCHEE MICO, his X mark, [L.S.]\n YELCO HAYO, his X mark,[L.S.]\"\n\n\"Attest: EDWARD HAWICK,\n         BARENT DUBOIS.\"\n\nThe real character of this contract will at once be seen when the reader\nshall be reminded, that the laws of the United States had, in the most\nspecific manner, prescribed the amount to be paid each man who should\nenter the military service of the Government, and the manner and time of\npayment; nor had there been any act passed enabling General Jessup, or\nthe Secretary of War, or the President, to employ any other persons in\nthe army except those enlisted in the ordinary mode; yet this contract\nwas duly approved by the War Department, at that time under the\ndirection of General Cass. That provision which gives to the Creek\nwarriors such _plunder as they might capture_, has been denounced as\n\"_piratical_;\" and we are constrained to admit there is some degree of\npropriety in this denunciation, when we find that General Jessup, by\nwhose orders it was framed, and General Cass, Secretary of War, who\napproved it, and the Creek Warriors who signed it, all understood that\nthe Creeks were to _hold as slaves all the negroes they might capture_,\nwhile engaged in the service of the United States. It was this\nconstruction which subsequently involved the War Department in\ndifficulties, from which it has never been able to extricate itself.\n\nThe barbarous practice of enslaving prisoners captured in war, had been\nrepudiated by all Christian nations for more than two hundred years. The\ncivilization of the sixteenth century had brought that atrocious\npractice into disrepute, which was now resorted to and renewed in the\nnineteenth, by this American Republic, so boastful of its refinement and\nChristianity. While the laws of the United States provided for an\nignominious punishment of those who seize the stupid heathen of Africa\nand enslave them, our nation was taxing its resources, employing our\narmy and paying out its funds, to employ heathen allies to capture and\nenslave a people who for generations had been free.\n\nOn the nineteenth of September, General Armstrong, with a brigade of\ntwelve hundred Tennessee militia, was ordered to Suwanee \"Old Town.\"\nHere he was met by a detachment of two hundred Creek warriors, under\nMajor Brown, and a battalion of Florida militia, under Colonel Warren;\nand with this formidable army, Governor Call moved upon Withlacoochee.\nOn coming near the stream he encamped.\n\nDuring the darkness of night the allies fired upon his troops, and kept\nthem in a state of alarm. In the morning it was found that the _river\nhad suddenly risen_, which rendered it difficult for the troops to\ncross; and this gallant army returned to Fort Drane for supplies without\nfiring a gun or seeing an enemy, leaving the allies in peaceful\npossession of the country.\n\nBut the Indians and Exiles now found themselves almost daily threatened\nin their own fastnesses. Along the Withlacoochee were many small\nvillages and plantations occupied almost exclusively by Exiles. Large\ncrops of corn and other vegetables had been raised there during the\nseason, and it was known that stores of provisions were located upon\nvarious islands surrounded by the swamps lying along that river, and in\nthe great morass called the \"Wahoo Swamp;\" while it was equally known\nthat many families of the Exiles were residing in that vicinity. It was\ntherefore deemed important to destroy those villages and obtain the\nsupplies which they contained.\n\nGeneral Armstrong, with five hundred mounted men, while marching toward\nthese villages on the fourteenth of November, encountered a strong force\nconsisting of Indians and Exiles. The conflict was spirited. In forty\nminutes, eleven of Armstrong's men fell before the deadly aim of the\nallies. He, however, drove them from the field, but they took with them\ntheir dead and wounded. This fact with savages is regarded the only test\nof success in battle: they never acknowledge defeat while they hold\npossession of their dead and wounded.\n\nBut the time drew near when they were constrained to acknowledge a\n_defeat_. On the eighteenth of November, a regiment of Tennesseeans,\nconsisting of about five hundred, encountered a body of the enemy whose\nnumbers are not given by any officer or historian whom we have\nconsulted. They were posted in a hommock. The Tennesseeans were the\nassailing party. The battle continued more than two hours, when the\nallies fled, leaving upon the field twenty-five Indians and Africans\nslain in battle; while the loss of the assailants was still larger. This\nwas the best contested battle which occurred during the campaign of\n1836, and the first in which the allies left their dead in possession of\nour troops.\n\nThis defeat appears to have taught the allies to be cautious, and\nstimulated a desire to wipe out the impression which their defeat was\ncalculated to make upon the public mind.\n\nGeneral Call having formed a junction with Major Pearce of the regular\nservice, with nearly three hundred regular troops under his command,\nmaking in all more than one thousand men, entered the great Wahoo Swamp\non the twenty-first of November. Their intention was to obtain the\nprovisions supposed to be deposited in the villages situated upon the\nislands in that extensive morass. But they were attacked soon after\nentering the swamp. The fire at first was principally concentrated upon\nthe Creek Indians, the mercenary troops employed by General Jessup.\nMajor Pearce hastened to their relief. The fire then became general. The\nmen were in a swamp which was nearly covered with water, and much of it\nwith a thick underbrush. After maintaining the battle for a time, the\nIndians fell back, crossed the river, and formed upon its bank, each man\nprotected by a log or tree. The river was turbid and appeared difficult\nto pass. As our troops approached it, the fire upon them was severe.\nCaptain Moniac, of the Creek warriors, was killed while examining the\nstream to ascertain if it could be forded. Others were wounded. The\nallied force appeared determined to make their final stand upon this\nstream. Behind them were their wives and children, their provisions,\ntheir homes and firesides.\n\nGeneral Call and his troops now obtained an opportunity of fighting the\nenemy; a privilege which he had long sought, though he embraced it under\ndisadvantageous circumstances. Our troops had great inducements to\nadvance, but the dangers corresponded with the advantages to be\ngained.[89] General Call, however, concluded to withdraw; and after\nsustaining a heavy loss he retreated and left the allies in possession\nof the field. They very correctly, feeling that their success depended\ngreatly upon the position they had taken, did not pursue General Call,\nwho, with his whole force, retired to Volusi to recruit. His loss was\nfifteen killed and thirty wounded.\n\nIt is certain the allies manifested great skill in selecting their\nplace of attack, and the position for their final stand. Their success\ngreatly encouraged them, and the gallantry displayed by the Exiles\nserved to increase their influence with the Indians.\n\nThe Creek warriors had shown themselves very efficient in this\nexpedition, but they suffered severely; and at no subsequent period did\nthey maintain their former character as warriors. They had been greatly\nstimulated in this conflict with the expectation of capturing women and\nchildren, whom they expected to seize and sell as slaves. But so far as\nthat object was concerned, their warriors who fell in this battle died\ningloriously, and the result discouraged the survivors.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER X.\n\nTHE WAR CONTINUED--PEACE DECLARED.\n\n     General Jessup assumes command of the Army--Number of Troops in the\n     Field--His Advantages--His energetic Policy--Orders Crawford to the\n     Withlacoochee--Capture of fifty two Women and Children--They are\n     held as _plunder_ by the Creeks--Wild Cat and Louis attack Fort\n     Mellon--Severe Battle--Allies retire with their dead and\n     wounded--Death of Captain Mellon--Our loss in killed and\n     wounded--Caulfield's Expedition to A-ha-popka Lake--Capture of nine\n     Women and Children--Expedition to Big Cypress Swamp--Capture of\n     twenty-five Women and Children--General Jessup seeks\n     Negotiation--Abram and Alligator meet him preparatory to a more\n     general Council--Several Chiefs agree upon terms of\n     Capitulation--Difficulty in regard to Exiles--Jessup\n     yields--Express Stipulation for their Safety--Indians and Exile\n     come into Tampa Bay--Are Registered for Emigration--General Jessup\n     discharges Militia and Volunteers--Transports prepared--He declares\n     the War at an end, and asks to be relieved from active duty.\n\n\nOn the eighth of December, 1836, Major General Jessup joined General\nCall at Volusi, and relieved that officer from the further command of\nthe army in Florida. He had now eight thousand troops in the field well\nprovided in all the material of war. They were in fine spirits, and he\nwas in all respects prepared to push the campaign with energy. He had\nall the advantages which experience of the previous campaign had\nfurnished, and endeavored to profit by it. He was careful to order no\nlarge body of troops, nor any artillery, into the uninhabited portions\nof the country. He employed only light troops for such purposes. His\nfirst attention was directed to the settlements of Exiles on the\nWithlacoochee who had up to that time defied our army. They had been\nthe object of frequent attacks, and the scene of as frequent defeats.\nHe directed a battalion of mounted men under Major Crawford, accompanied\nby two battalions of Creek Indians, to make a sudden descent upon those\nvillages. But the allies had removed their provisions, and most of the\npeople had abandoned the settlements. A few only were left. The warriors\nfled to the swamps; and the troops seized and secured fifty-two women\nand children. These were the first prisoners captured during the war;\nand General Jessup made a formal report of this important victory. It\nwas a victory over defenseless women and helpless children, obtained by\nthe aid of Creek Indians, who claimed both women and children as\n_plunder_ under their contract. But this victory stimulated the allies\nto strike in retaliation for the injury thus inflicted upon\nnon-combatants.\n\n[Sidenote: 1837.]\n\nFort Mellon, on the south side of a small body of water called Lake\nMonroe, some thirty miles west of the Atlantic, was supposed by the\nallies to be in a weak condition, and they determined to surprise it.\nPreparatory to this, however, they sent spies to examine and report the\ncondition of the troops at that station. Their report being favorable,\n\"Wild Cat,\" acting in conjunction with Louis, the slave of Pacheco, who,\nit will be recollected, concerted the massacre of Major Dade, made their\narrangements for an assault. With a force of two hundred and fifty\nwarriors the allies invested this fort, which they supposed to be\ngarrisoned by not more than one hundred men. Unfortunately for the\nassailants, however, other troops arrived after the Indian spies had\nleft the vicinity of the fort, and the allied forces unexpectedly met\nsuperior numbers protected by defenses which are always regarded as safe\nagainst savage foes. The attack was made with great determination, and\ncontinued for three hours, when the assailants retired without leaving\neither dead or wounded upon the field.\n\nLieutenant Colonel Faning commanded our troops, numbering some three\nhundred men. A steamboat was lying in the lake, near the fort, having a\nfield-piece on board. This was also brought to bear upon the left wing\nof the allied forces, so as to completely drive them from that part of\nthe field.\n\nCaptain Mellon, who had entered the military service of the United\nStates in 1812, fell early in the action. Midshipman McLaughlin and\nseventeen others were wounded; some of them mortally.\n\nIt may well be doubted, whether history furnishes an instance in which\nsavage troops have beset a superior number of disciplined forces in a\nfortified position with such daring and obstinacy as that which was\nmanifested at Fort Mellon.\n\nThere was a small settlement of Exiles and Indians upon the south side\nof A-ha-popka Lake, situated about the twenty-eighth degree of north\nlatitude, and nearly equi-distant between the Atlantic and the Gulf of\nMexico. On the twenty-second of January, Lieutenant Colonel Caulfield\nwith his regiment was ordered to visit that settlement, attended by the\nCreek Indians. A sub-chief of the Seminoles, named Osuchee, with his\nband of warriors, hastened to the defense of their friends, as soon as\nthey ascertained the object of our troops; but they were unable to\nresist the large force under Caulfield. Osuchee and three warriors were\nkilled; and nine Exiles, all of them women and children, were taken\nprisoners.\n\nAll the disposable forces under General Jessup were now put into active\nemploy. With the main body of the army he penetrated far into the Indian\nterritory. His report, dated at Fort Armstrong, February seventh, after\nstating the commencement of his march, says, \"On approaching the\nThla-pac-hatchee, on the morning of the twenty-seventh ultimo, the\nnumerous herds of cattle feeding on the prairies, and the numerous\nrecent trails in various directions, indicated the presence of the\nenemy.\" He goes on to say: \"On the twenty-eighth, the army moved\nforward, and occupied a strong position on 'Ta-hop-ka-liga' Lake, _where\nseveral hundred head of cattle were obtained_.\" These immense herds of\ncattle show to some extent the means of subsistence which the allies\npossessed. The commander of our army, however, proceeds to state that\n\"the enemy was found on the Hatchee-lustee, in and near the great\nCypress Swamp, and gallantly attacked. Lieutenant Chambers of the\nAlabama Volunteers, by a rapid charge, succeeded in capturing the horses\nand baggage of the enemy, with twenty-five Indians and negroes,\nprincipally women and children.\" This language was novel in the military\nreports of our officers. A charge made by a body of armed troops upon\nhorses, women and children, is termed by the commanding General\n\"_gallant_.\"\n\nThe next day one of the prisoners was directed to return to the two\nprincipal chiefs, Abraham, with whom the reader is already acquainted,\nand Alligator, who commanded the Indians, with a message of peace,\ndesiring them to meet the commanding General in council.\n\nAbraham was, perhaps, the most experienced and best informed chief in\nthe allied forces. He had lived at Micanopy; and his familiar\nacquaintance with the treaty of Payne's Landing, and the supplemental\ntreaty entered into at the West, qualified him to exert a powerful\ninfluence with the Exiles.[90] The Indians, also, appear to have held\nhim in the highest respect.\n\nAlligator was an active warrior and chief. He was a bold leader; but was\nsupposed to be much under the influence of Micanopy, a chief somewhat\nadvanced in years, said to be very corpulent, and too indolent to be\notherwise than pacific in his desires. It is related of him, that he was\nactually carried, by the younger and more enthusiastic warriors, into\nbattle on one occasion, in the early part of the war. It is not unlikely\nthat both Abraham and Alligator were influenced in some degree by\nMicanopy to visit General Jessup, and make arrangements to hold a\nconference with him, at Fort Dade, on the eighteenth of February.\n\nLieut. Colonel Henderson, of the United States Marines, serving on land,\nalso made a very successful excursion into the Indian Country, with a\npretty large force of mounted men and friendly Indians. In his report,\nhe states the capture \"of twenty-three negroes, young and old; over a\nhundred ponies, with packs on about fifty of them; together with all\ntheir clothes, blankets, and other baggage.\" In this expedition, his\nloss was two men killed and five wounded.\n\nOn the first of March, the troops under the command of Major General\nJessup had captured one hundred and nine women and children of the\nExiles, and some fifteen belonging to the Indians. The fortunes of war\nnow bore hard upon those friendless and persecuted people; but not a\nwarrior had fallen into the hands of our troops. It is a remarkable\nfact, that in all the conflicts which had occurred, no Seminole Indian\nnor negro warrior had surrendered, even to superior numbers. They had\nfought gallantly, they had died freely; but they preferred death to that\nslavery which they knew would follow a surrender.\n\nGeneral Jessup now ordered the cessation of hostilities, in the hope of\ngetting the Indian and negro chiefs to assemble in council, in order to\nnegotiate for their emigration West. After his interview with Abraham\nand Alligator, he appears to have felt confident of success. The Exiles\nand Indians also began to feel that it would soon be necessary for them\nto plant corn, potatoes and pumpkins, for their support during the\ncoming season. Every effort was made by General Jessup to acquaint the\ndifferent chiefs with this arrangement, and to induce them to come in,\nor send by some sub-chief or warrior an expression of their willingness\nto emigrate to the western country.\n\nAgreeably to these arrangements, a few of their principal men met\nGeneral Jessup at Fort Dade, near the Withlacoochee, on the sixth of\nMarch. Only five chiefs were present, either in person or by proxy. The\nprincipal chiefs in attendance were Halatoochie and Jumper.\n\nBut the former difficulty was again encountered, at the very\ncommencement of the negotiation. The Indians would enter upon no\narrangement that did not guarantee to the Exiles equal protection and\nsafety as it did to the Indians. Such stipulation would constitute an\nabandonment of the objects for which the war had been commenced and\nprosecuted; but, after sixteen months occupied in hostilities, and the\nexpenditure of much blood and treasure, this question lay directly\nacross the path of peace. But the Indians were firm. Not one of the\nExiles, except Abraham, now dared trust himself within the power of our\ntroops; yet Abraham's influence was powerful with the Indians.\n\nGeneral Jessup yielded. The articles of capitulation were drawn up and\nconsidered. The fifth reads as follows:--\"Major General Jessup, in\nbehalf of the United States, agrees that the Seminoles and _their\nallies, who come in and emigrate West, shall be secure in their lives\nand property_; that their negroes, their bona fide property, shall also\naccompany them West;[91] and that their cattle and ponies shall be paid\nfor by the United States.\"\n\nThe language of this article could not be misunderstood. The black men\nthen residing with the Indians, in the Indian Country, who were acting\nwith them, and fighting our troops by the side of the Seminoles, were\ntheir \"_allies_:\" and to show that the capitulation was not a surrender\nof property, they were careful to have the compact expressly state, that\ntheir own \"_negroes_, their bona fide _property_\" (for many Seminoles\nowned slaves), should accompany them; and that their cattle and ponies,\nwhich would become the _property_ of the captors by virtue of an\nordinary surrender, under their ideas of warfare, were to be paid for by\nthe United States. There was no room left for cavil or dispute on these\npoints;[92] nor could it be supposed that Abraham, with his experience\nand shrewdness, would leave such an important point doubtful.\n\nUnder these articles, the Exiles were to enjoy that security for which\nthey had contended during a century and a half. It was for this that\ntheir ancestors left South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama and Florida; to\nattain it, they were willing to leave the graves of their fathers--the\ncountry in which they had lived during many generations. Abraham now\nentered upon the work of inducing all his brethren, both Indians and\nnegroes, to go to the Western Country, where they could be free from\npersecutions.\n\nThose willing to emigrate, were to assemble within a district of ten\nmiles square, marked out for that purpose, near Tampa Bay. Many of the\nIndian chiefs visited that station; spoke encouragingly of the prospect;\nthat the whole Nation would emigrate at no distant day. Even Osceola,\nthe most inveterate of all the Seminole chiefs, visited Fort Mellon,\navowing his intention to emigrate; while Abraham made report of a like\nfeeling among the Exiles. Twenty-six vessels, employed to transport the\nemigrants to New Orleans, were anchored in Tampa Bay. Hundreds of\nIndians and negroes had reached the camp assigned to the emigrants, near\n\"Fort Brooke.\" Their names were duly registered; they drew their\nrations, and made every preparation to go West.\n\nGeneral Jessup announced the war at an end, dismissed the militia and\nvolunteers, and asked of the Department leave to retire from active\nduty.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XI.\n\nGENERAL JESSUP OVERTHROWS HIS OWN EFFORTS IN FAVOR OF PEACE.\n\n     Mr. Van Buren's advent to the office of President--Follows the\n     policy of his predecessor--General Jessup's stipulation in favor of\n     the Exiles--Sustained by precedent, and by National Law--Not\n     contrary to General Jackson's object in commencing the\n     War--Citizens of Florida protest--Compact ratified by War\n     Department--General Jessup for a time endeavors to carry out\n     Articles of Capitulation--Begins to yield--Promises to make\n     arrangements with Chiefs to deliver up Slaves who had left their\n     Masters during the War--Then declared he had done so--No such\n     Compact found by the Author--Subsequent history shows that he had\n     made such arrangement, by parol, with Co-Hadjo only--He also uses\n     army to seize and return Exiles claimed by citizens of\n     Florida--Revokes Order No. 79--Indians and Exiles take alarm--Flee\n     to their fastnesses--General Jessup acknowledges _all is lost_--The\n     War renewed.\n\n\nOn the fourth of March, Mr. Van Buren assumed the duties of President of\nthe United States, and General Jackson retired to private life.\nBelonging to the same political party to which General Jackson had\nattached himself, Mr. Van Buren was not expected to make any particular\nchange in the administration of the Government. Indeed so popular had\nGeneral Jackson been, that it would have required great boldness in his\nsuccessor to attempt any very obvious change in our national policy; and\nso far as the Florida war was concerned, there was none whatever.\n\nIt was therefore fortunate that, under the administration of General\nJackson, the existence of the Exiles, as a distinct people, had been\nacknowledged. In the articles of capitulation, they were again\nrecognized as the \"allies\" of the Indians. In entering into this\nstipulation, General Jessup went no farther than his legitimate powers\nextended. The peace of the country in that region was entrusted to his\njudgment, under the direction of the President. If necessary to secure\npeace, he had the undoubted right to send every slave, of whatever\ndescription, from the Territory of Florida; and it would appear, that no\ndoubt whatever could arise as to his authority to transport to the\nWestern Country, all who were engaged in actual hostilities against our\nnation, and that too without stopping to inquire whether one portion of\nthe people were, or were not, claimed as property by the people of\nFlorida. General Jackson had set a noble example on this subject which\nwas well worthy of imitation. When New Orleans was threatened by the\nBritish, in 1814, he proclaimed martial law--ordered men into service\nwithout inquiring whether they were slaves or freemen. Many of them were\nslaves, and on the day of battle were emancipated by being captured or\nkilled by the enemy. The same powers had been exercised by our officers\nalmost constantly during the Revolution. It is a principle understood by\nall intelligent men, that when war exists, peace may be obtained by the\nemancipation of all the slaves held by individuals, if necessary.[93]\n\nThese articles of capitulation were duly transmitted to the War\nDepartment, and were regularly approved by the Executive. It would\nappear impossible that General Jessup, or any other person, could either\nmisapprehend or fail to understand this stipulation, which was in no\nrespect modified by other covenants.\n\nBut this solemn covenant was in direct conflict with the views and\nfeelings of the slaveholders in Florida and the adjoining States. They\nunderstood the war to have been commenced for the purpose of re\u00ebnslaving\nthe Exiles. These articles of capitulation constituted not only an\nabandonment of that policy, but actually operated as an emancipation of\nall the slaves who, having fled from service in Florida, Georgia and\nAlabama, had joined the Seminoles and taken up arms against their\noppressors. The slaveholders were indignant at this stipulation, nor did\nthey fail to express their indignation.\n\nA few gentlemen of distinction, who, with their families, had been\ndriven from the Territory, were residing at Charleston, South Carolina.\nHaving learned the character of the capitulation from private sources,\nwithout waiting for its publication, they at once addressed the\nSecretary of War, stating they had casually learned from a gentleman who\nwas present, that a treaty of peace had been concluded with the Seminole\nIndians which contained \"no stipulation for _indemnity, on the part of\nthe Indians, for such property of the inhabitants as had been captured\nby said Indians_, and destroyed. Nor (say they) is it, we are told,\nexacted from them that they should even _make restitution of such stolen\nand other property, to wit_, NEGROES, _etc._, _as they now have in\npossession_, or as has been invited into their country and allowed\nrefuge from its owners. We respectfully conceive, that the termination\nof the war on such terms, anxiously as we desire peace, would be a\nsacrifice of the national dignity, and an absolute and clear triumph on\nthe part of the Indians, who cannot fail to view the proposition made to\nthem, to close hostilities, followed up by a treaty permitting to them\nsuch extraordinary terms, as a virtual suing for peace on the part of\nthe United States, and evidencing a want of confidence in their ability\nto conclude the war through the means of their belligerent and physical\nstrength.\"[94]\n\nBut the most singular portion of this memorial is the reference to the\ntreaty of Camp Moultrie, by which the Indians agreed to arrest and\nreturn fugitives; and the memorialists insisted that unless the Indians\nbe compelled to perform this stipulation the owners \"_may never regain\ntheir slaves_.\"\n\nThe gentlemen who thus attempted to control the action of our National\nGovernment appear to have forgotten that the treaty of Camp Moultrie had\nbeen abrogated by that of Payne's Landing, which our Government was now\nprofessing to enforce. By this latter treaty, the Indians agreed to pay\nseven thousand dollars as an indemnity for all slaves then in their\nterritory. This was accepted as a full indemnity, and the slaves then\nresident with the Indians became free in law.\n\nThis memorial, though written at Charleston, South Carolina, bears date\nonly twelve days later than the articles of capitulation, entered into\nat \"Fort Dade in Florida.\" Of this movement of the slaveholders, General\nJessup appears not to have been informed at the time; nor is there any\ndoubt that he then intended to carry out this solemn compact in good\nfaith. On the nineteenth of March, we find his aid-de-camp Colonel\nChambers, by order of General Jessup, writing Lieutenant Colonel Harney,\nstationed at Fort Mellon, directing him not to permit the friendly\nIndians (the Creeks) to pass into the country occupied by the Seminoles,\nand to distinctly inform the Creeks they \"_must make no more captures of\nproperty_;\" and if they had made any since the signing of the treaty,\n(meaning the capitulation,) Harney was directed to take a list of such\ncaptures.\n\nBut the first serious difficulty suggested to General Jessup, in\ncarrying out his stipulations with the \"_allies_,\" appears to have been\na letter from Major Thomas Child, commanding at Fort Armstrong,\ninforming him that a \"Colonel Dill,\" a citizen of Florida, was at that\npost, wishing to pass into the Indian country for the purpose of\nreclaiming certain negroes which he professed to have owned, but who\nwere then supposed to have fled to the Seminoles.\n\nIn reply to this note Colonel Chambers said: \"I am _instructed by the\ncommanding General_ to say, that 'Colonel Dill,' the person whom you\nreport having detained at Fort Armstrong, must not be permitted to pass,\n_but be required to return from whence he came with all convenient\ndispatch_. Hereafter, no person, not in the employment of the\nGovernment, or express rider, must be allowed to pass your post. The\nnecessity of this order, and the strict enforcement of it, arise from\nthe necessity, that, if persons come forward to urge their claims to\nnegroes, it will evidently prevent the negroes from coming in; and if\nthey do not come in, the commanding General is decidedly of opinion,\nthat the Indians themselves will be greatly delayed, if not entirely\nprevented, from compliance with the terms of capitulation.\"\n\nThe termination of the war had been regarded as certain by the\ncommanding officer, and by him so reported. The first article in the\ncapitulation, provided for the cessation of hostilities. But they were\nrenewed soon after, and the Indians and Exiles charged with a breach of\nfaith, both by General Jessup and by the Executive. And it becomes\nimportant to the truth of history, that facts should be stated. The\narticles of capitulation pledged the faith of the nation for the safety\nof both persons and property of the \"Seminoles _and their allies_.\"\nThose \"allies\" could have been no other people than the black men who\nwere with them contending against a common foe. It is also evident that\nAbraham and the Exiles who came in for the purpose of emigrating so\nunderstood it. It is equally certain that the people of Florida who\nmemorialized the Secretary of War so understood it; and we need only\nread the letters and orders of General Jessup to learn that he surely so\nunderstood it: and the whole conduct of the Indians shows that they put\nthe same construction upon it. While, therefore, justice should be done\nto General Jessup, we should be careful to do no injustice to either the\nSeminoles or the Exiles. As further evidence of General Jessup's good\nfaith at the time, we quote an extract from a letter, bearing date six\ndays later than the one last referred to. It was addressed to Lieutenant\nColonel Miller, commanding at Tampa Bay, and is dated March\ntwenty-seventh, 1837. It is signed by General Jessup himself, who says:\n\"I have also been informed that Mr. Cooley's business at Tampa Bay is to\n_look after negroes_. If that be so, he must be sent away; a trifling\ncircumstance would _light up the war again. Any interference with the\nnegroes which would produce alarm on their part would inevitably deprive\nus of all the advantages we have gained._ I sympathize with Mr. Cooley\nin his afflictions and losses; but responsible as I am for the peace of\nthe country, _I cannot and will not permit that peace to be jeopardized\nby his imprudence_.\"\n\nBut these demands for slaves increased. The slaveholders were indignant\nat the loss of slaves, and it soon became apparent that the stipulation\nof safety to the \"allies\" of the Seminoles was _unpopular_ in Florida.\n\nOn the twenty-ninth of March, General Jessup wrote Colonel Warner, of\nthe Florida Militia, saying, \"There is no disposition on the part of the\ngreat body of the Indians to renew hostilities; and they will, I am\nsure, faithfully fulfill their engagements, if the inhabitants of\nFlorida be prudent: but any attempt to seize their negroes, or other\nproperty, would be followed by an instant resort to arms. _I have some\nhopes of inducing both Indians and Indian negroes_ to unite in bringing\nin the _negroes taken from the citizens during the war_.\"\n\nIn this letter, General Jessup begins to modify his former position. He\nstill entertains no fear of the Indians, if _their_ negroes or other\nproperty be not interfered with, and suggests the hope that he may\neffect an arrangement with the Indians and Indian negroes to bring in\n(that is, to surrender up,) the negroes _taken during the war_. This\nletter gives the first evidence, which we find on record, of General\nJessup's intention to modify or disregard the solemn compact he had\nmade, or to make another with the Indians and Indian negroes by which\nthey should betray those who had fled to them during the war.\n\nBut that he did make some arrangement of that character with the chiefs,\nwe are led to infer from a letter bearing date May fifth, 1837,\naddressed to General Jessup by the Commissioner of Indian Affairs,\ninforming him that his articles of capitulation with the Seminoles had\nbeen submitted to the Secretary of War, \"_together with his letters of\nthe first and fifteenth of April, and had been approved_;\" and the\nwriter then adds: \"In relation to the negroes captured by the Seminoles\nand to be _surrendered_, I am directed to say, that your arrangement for\nhaving them delivered to officers of posts on the St. John's River, _is\napproved_.\"[95]\n\nThis letter also directs General Jessup to keep a registry of all\nnegroes delivered to citizens, showing their names, age, sex, etc.\n\nA general order, dated Tampa Bay, April fifth, and numbered\nseventy-nine, announces first, \"The commanding General has reason to\nbelieve that the interference of unprincipled white men with the _negro\nproperty of the Seminole Indians_ will prevent their emigration, and\nlead to a renewal of the war. Responsible as he is for the peace and\nsecurity of the country, he will not permit such interference under any\npretense whatsoever. And he therefore orders that no white man, not in\nthe service of the United States, be allowed to enter any part of the\nterritory, between the St. John's and the Gulf of Mexico, south of Fort\nDrane.\"\n\nOn the eighth of April, General Jessup wrote Colonel Harney, saying, \"I\nhave made an arrangement with the chiefs _to-day_ to surrender the\nnegroes of white men, particularly those taken during the war.\"\n\nWith what particular chiefs this arrangement was made, or what were the\nterms of the arrangement, the Author has not learned; yet, as we shall\nsee hereafter, he represented it to have been made at \"Fort King\" with\n_Co-Hadjo_, an unimportant chief, and then attempted to hold the\nSeminole Nation responsible for Co-Hadjo's promise. But under these\ncircumstances, the reader will ask what consideration was paid Co-Hadjo\nto bribe him to enter into such a contract? That chief and General\nJessup and General Cass, Secretary of War, must have known he possessed\nno power to bind the Seminole Nation, nor to surrender those persons to\nslavery. It will long remain a subject of inquiry. Why did the War\nDepartment sanction this violation of the solemn articles of\ncapitulation, which these officers termed a _treaty_, and which\ncertainly possessed all the solemnity and binding force of a treaty?\n\nThere is also an inexplicable obscurity attending this subject. General\nJessup wrote Colonel Harney, on the eighth of April, that he had _that\nday_ made the arrangement, etc.; while the Secretary of War states that\nhe had learned of this arrangement by General Jessup's _two_ letters,\ndated the first and fifteenth of April. One of these letters appears to\nbear date seven days before, and the other seven days after, the day on\nwhich he declares the arrangement was made. The withholding of such fact\nseven days from the War Department would be as incompatible with\nmilitary duty as the giving it seven days before its existence, is\nirreconcilable with the common perceptions of mankind.\n\nIn several instances, General Jessup had foretold that a renewal of the\nwar would follow any attempt to deliver up negroes to the claimants in\nFlorida, and it would appear that he must have expected that result; but\nhe communicated to the commandants of nearly all the different posts,\nthat he had made arrangements _with the chiefs_ for returning slaves\n_captured during the war_. But, up to the twenty-sixth of April, he\nsteadily insisted that no obligation rested upon the Indians to bring in\nrunaway negroes who had fled to them before the war.\n\nOn the twenty-sixth, he wrote Colonel Brown, of St. Augustine,\nsaying:--\"I have made arrangements with the Indians for the delivery of\nthe negroes _captured during the war_. They are to be delivered, if they\ncan be taken without delaying the Indians in their movements, at the\nposts on the St. John's. The Indians are not bound to surrender runaway\nnegroes. _They must, and shall, give up those taken during the war_: at\nall events, they shall not take them out of the country. Further than\nthat, I shall not interfere.\"\n\nBut while relating facts on this subject, we should be unfaithful to the\ntruth of history were we to omit the letter which this officer wrote, on\nthe following day, to Hon. J. L. Smith, a citizen of Florida. This\nletter, bearing date at Tampa Bay on the twenty-seventh of April, 1837,\nsays:\n\n\"I received, yesterday, your letter of the eighteenth, with a list of\nthe slaves which you claim. Ansel is the only one of the three who has\nbeen taken. I have him employed, at one of the interior posts, as an\ninterpreter. _The negroes generally have taken the alarm_, and but few\nof them come in; and those who remain out, prevent the Indians from\ncoming. But for the premature attempts of some citizens of Florida to\nobtain possession of their slaves, a majority of those taken by the\nIndians during the war, as well as those who absconded previous to it,\nwould have been secured before this time. More than thirty negro men\nwere in and near my camp, when some of the citizens, who had lost\nnegroes, came to demand them. The Indian-negroes immediately\ndisappeared, and have not been heard of since.\"\n\nIt is believed that, in the conducting of this second Seminole war, no\nact of any public officer will hereafter appear more inexplicable than\nthe conduct of General Jessup, in regard to this stipulation in favor of\nthe Exiles. No person can suppose there was any doubt in regard to the\noriginal design of this stipulation. He at first appears determined to\ncarry it out in good faith; this was before he learned the complaint of\nthe slaveholders of Florida, made to the Secretary of War. He next\nexpressed his intention to make an arrangement with the chiefs to\nsurrender negroes captured during the war--as though the chiefs were\nauthorized to consign \"their allies\" to slavery. He next says he had\nmade such an arrangement, but fails to say with whom. At length it comes\nout, in the future history, that he alleges it to have been made with\nCo-Hadjo, an obscure chief, in no way a party to the capitulation, or\nconnected with it. And finally, in this letter to Judge Smith, he\nintimates that he would have _betrayed_ many of those allies to slavery,\nif the people of the Territory had been quiet.\n\nOur present duty, however, is to record facts, without asking attention\nto the intended treachery or fraud of individuals; but this avowed\nintention of entrapping the negroes by inducing them to come in under\nthe expectation of emigrating West with their Seminole friends, and then\nconsign them to bondage, must attract the attention and excite the\nwonder of Christian men. This wonder is increased by the fact, that\nlanguage is constantly used by slaveholders apparently intended to\nmislead the Northern reader. For instance, General Jessup speaks of\nslaves \"_captured during the war_,\" as though the Indians made prisoners\nof slaves. This is believed to be entirely without foundation. Slaves\nbeing regarded by Southern men as _property_, incapable of thought,\nwhenever they fled from their masters and sought an asylum with the\nIndians, the masters spoke of them as _captured_.\n\nSoon us it was known that slaves were to be seized and returned, claims\nwere preferred from all quarters. The correspondence on this subject,\nnow in the Department of War, would of itself form a volume, if quoted\nat length. Spaniards sent in claims for slaves lost while the Territory\nwas in possession of Spain, in 1802 and 1803. Claims from South\nCarolina, from Georgia, Alabama and Florida, and from Creek Indians,\nwere presented to the commandants of different posts. Slaveholders\nevidently felt that they were to be permitted to seize such colored\nprisoners as they could lay their hands upon, and enslave them. They no\nlonger waited for black prisoners to be brought to the St. John's, or\nother posts, but like wolves greedy for their prey, they hurried into\nthe Indian Country, and risked their lives in order to secure victims\nfor the slave-markets.\n\nThe Legislative Council of Florida became affected with this general\nmania, and in the most formal manner declared the right of masters to\nregain possession of their slaves, without regard to the Federal\nGovernment or its officers.\n\nFinding General Jessup incapable of resisting the popular clamor, the\nclaimants for slaves openly demanded a revocation of the General Order,\nby which they were prohibited from entering the Indian territory for the\npurpose of seizing slaves. A public meeting of the citizens of various\nparts of Florida, was held at San Augustine, and a committee appointed\nto remonstrate with General Jessup, and procure a rescission of his\norder, No. 79, prohibiting them from entering the Territory, between the\nSt. John's River and the Gulf of Mexico, south of Fort Drane. The\ncommittee addressed him in a long, written protest, in which they\ndeclare, \"the regaining of their slaves constitutes an object of\nscarcely less moment than that of peace to the country.\"[96]\n\nGeneral Jessup now began to modify his order, No. 79, so as to admit\ncitizens to enter the Territory as far south as the road leading from\nWithlacoochee to Volusi; and, on the first of May, so informed Major\nMcClintock, commanding at Fort Drane. On the day following, he addressed\na letter to Brig. General Armistead, directing that officer to \"consider\nOrder No. 79 so far modified, that citizens will be permitted to visit\nany of the posts on the St. John's, and to traverse or remain in any\npart of the country south of Withlacoochee. There are large herds of\ncattle in that part of the country which no doubt _belong to the\ncitizens_, and by allowing them to go into the country, they may perhaps\nsecure a large portion of them.\"\n\nIt will be recollected, that General Scott would not permit the people\nof Florida to interfere in the discharge of his official duties, and\nthat they, through their representative in Congress, had demanded his\nremoval from command of the army. They now applied directly to the\nSecretary of War, remonstrating against the action of General Jessup;\nand it is possible that officer deemed it prudent to yield to their\ndictation. Be that as it may, it is certain that he now lent the power\nof the army to carry out the wishes of the citizens. Officers and men\nwere detailed to take black prisoners--who had come in and surrendered\nwith the expectation of emigrating West--from their places of rendezvous\nto certain points where it would be most convenient for claimants to\nreceive them.\n\nOn the seventeenth of April, Major Churchill, aid to General Jessup,\nwrote Colonel Harney, saying, \"I am instructed by the commanding General\nto acknowledge the receipt to-day of your letter of the seventh instant,\nand to inform you that the negro prisoners captured from the Indians,\nand supposed to belong to the white people, were sent from this place,\non the eleventh instant, to Lieutenant D. H. Vinton, at St. Marks, for\nthe purpose of being returned to their owners. The Indians have agreed\nto send all slaves, _taken from white people during the war_, to Fort\nMellon and Volusi; and runners are now employed in the interior on that\nservice.\" On the same day, information was given to William De Payster,\nthat seven of the number sent to Volusi probably belonged to him. On the\nsame day also, \"A. Forrester\" was informed of the fact, that those\nslaves \"had been sent to St. Marks, and that six of the number probably\nbelonged to him.\"\n\nOther plans were devised for securing slaves, as we are informed by a\nletter from General Jessup to E. K. Call, Governor of Florida, dated\neighteenth of April, 1837, in which he says: \"If the citizens of the\nterritory be prudent, the war may be considered at an end; but any\nattempt to interfere with the _Indian negroes_, or to _arrest_ any of\nthe chiefs or warriors as _debtors_ or _criminals_, would cause an\nimmediate resort to arms. The negroes control their masters; and have\nheard of the act of your legislative council. Thirty or more of the\nIndian negro men were near my camp on the Withlacoochee in March last;\nbut the arrival of two or three citizens of Florida, said to be in\nsearch of negroes, caused them to disperse, and I doubt whether they\nwill come in again; at all events the emigration will be delayed a month\nI apprehend in consequence of this alarm among the negroes.\"\n\nThe emigration of those Indians who had come in to Fort Brooke, and\nregistered themselves as ready for emigration, was delayed in\nconsequence of the difficulty of collecting those who were expected; and\nGeneral Jessup began to see the effects which his violation of the\narticles of capitulation had wrought on the minds of both Indians and\nnegroes. Indeed, he had in plain and distinct language repeatedly\naffirmed that the negroes _controlled the Indians_; that any\ninterference with the negroes would cause a resort to arms; yet he\nhimself subsequently ordered negroes to be sought out, separated from\ntheir friends, and delivered over to slavery.\n\nThe ships were yet lying in the harbor. About seven hundred Indians were\nencamped ready for emigration, and had been waiting for others to join\nthem. Impatient at delay and disappointment, on the twenty fifth of May,\nhe wrote Colonel Harney, as follows:\n\n\"If you see Powell (Osceola) again, I wish you to tell him that I intend\nto send exploring and surveying parties into every part of the country\nduring the summer, and that I shall send out and _take all the negroes\nwho belong to the white people_, and he must not allow the Indians or\nIndian negroes to mix with them. Tell him I am sending to Cuba for\nbloodhounds to trail them, and _I intend to hang every one of them who\ndoes not come in_.\"\n\nThis intention to re\u00ebnslave the Exiles who had recently taken up their\nresidence with the Seminoles became known, and created general alarm.\nMany of the blacks, who had come in for the purpose of emigrating,\nbecame alarmed and fled; and General Jessup, doubtful whether more could\nbe obtained by peaceful means, seized about ninety Exiles who were\nconfined within the pickets at Tampa Bay, on the second of June, and at\nonce ordered them to New Orleans, under the charge of Lieutenant G. H.\nTrevitt, of the United States Marines.\n\nThis struck the Indians and Exiles with astonishment. The chiefs,\nwarriors and families, numbering some seven hundred, who had collected\nat Tampa Bay for the purpose of emigrating to the western country,\nthinking themselves betrayed, now fled to their former fastnesses, far\nin the interior, and once more determined to defend their liberties or\ndie in the attempt. A few, however, were secured at other posts, and\nsent to New Orleans, where they were delivered over to Quarter-Master\nClark, and confined at \"Fort Pike.\"\n\nOn the fourteenth of June, General Jessup, writing General Gadsden of\nSouth Carolina, says: \"_All is lost_, and principally, I fear, _by the\ninfluence of the negroes_--the people who were the subject of our\ncorrespondence. * * * I _seized_, and sent off to New Orleans, about\nninety Indian negroes, and I have about seventeen here. I have captured\nninety, the property of citizens; all of whom have been sent to St.\nMarks and St. Augustine, except four at this place, twelve at Fort\nMellon, and six who died.\"\n\nGeneral Jessup now saw that both Seminole Indians and negroes had clear\nconceptions of justice and honor. That his efforts to deliver over\nnegroes to slavery had defeated the entire object of the articles of\ncapitulation of the eighteenth of March. The Indians had fled. The\nnegroes, except those who were imprisoned, had fled. The twenty-six\nvessels, collected at Tampa Bay to transport them to New Orleans, were\nyet idle; and, to use his own words, \"_all was lost!_\"\n\nAbraham, acting for his brethren while West, in 1833, had caused the\narticle to be inserted in the supplemental treaty, giving the Seminoles\na separate country for their settlement.\n\nIn forming the articles of capitulation with general Jessup, he again\nexhibited his capacity for negotiation; obtaining the insertion of an\narticle which, if carried out, would have proved a triumphant\nvindication of their cause. But from this second manifestation of his\npowers for negotiation, the Government of the United States found it\nnecessary to recede, in order to maintain its designs of enslaving the\nExiles.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XII.\n\nTHE RENEWAL AND PROSECUTION OF THE WAR.\n\n     Objects of the first and second Seminole War--Action of General\n     Jessup and the Executive in regard to the Capitulation--His alleged\n     arrangement--Resumes hostilities with intent to carry out original\n     design of General Jackson--Establishes a series of forays for the\n     capture of Negroes--Choctaws and Delawares employed--Cherokees\n     refuse--Send a Delegation to make peace--Ross, the Cherokee Chief,\n     addresses a Letter to Wild Cat, Osceola, and others--Difficulty\n     with Creek Warriors--General Order--General Jessup's policy--Creek\n     Warriors discharged--Capture of King Phillip--His message to Wild\n     Cat--Influence of Cherokees--Wild Cat bears plume, etc., from\n     Osceola to General Jessup, proposing to negotiate--Jessup sends\n     back answer--Wild Cat, Osceola and Exiles come in to Fort\n     Peyton--Are betrayed--Seized as prisoners--Imprisoned at San\n     Augustine--Wild Cat escapes--Thrilling Narrative--Cherokee\n     Delegation induce Micanopy, Cloud and others to visit General\n     Jessup--They too are seized, and one hundred Exiles\n     captured--Extraordinary conduct of General Jessup--Cherokees leave\n     in disgust.\n\n\nBy the articles of capitulation, entered into on the sixth of March\n(1837), the second Seminole War had been terminated. General Jessup so\nregarded it, and so declared it. The Exiles and Indians so regarded it,\nand some eight hundred came in under it and registered their names for\nemigration, in good faith. The people of Florida regarded it in that\nlight, and remonstrated against it. They declared it a treaty of peace;\nbut complained of its terms, for the reason that it gave up the slaves\nwhom they claimed to own.\n\nLearning this dissatisfaction to exist among the slaveholders of\nFlorida, General Jessup expressed, in his correspondence, an intention\nof making an _arrangement_ with the chiefs, by which the slaves\nbelonging to the _citizens of Florida_, captured during the war, should\nbe given up. Why those claimed by the citizens of Florida should be\ngiven up, and those escaped from Georgia and Alabama remain free, he has\nfailed to show! Why those who escaped, or, as he expresses it, were\ncaptured during the war, should be returned, and those who escaped or\nhad been captured the day previous to the commencement of hostilities,\nshould not be returned, he has not explained; but he soon announced,\nthat he had made an arrangement with the chiefs to deliver up these\npersons; and at once set the army at work to restore them. This\nrestoration of slaves, of itself, constituted a renewal of the war. It\nhad caused the first Seminole war, in 1816: it had caused this second\nSeminole war, and General Jessup was himself conscious that such\ninterference with the Exiles would induce a renewal of hostilities. That\nclass of Exiles was numerous; they constituted a portion of the \"allies\"\nfor whose safety he had solemnly pledged the faith of Government.\n\nIt were useless for the friends of the then existing Administration to\nsay, that General Jessup made an arrangement with the Indian chiefs for\ndelivering up these people. The Exiles were the persons interested in\ntheir own safety, for which they had fought. No chiefs had authority to\nsell them, or to deliver them over to interminable bondage. But the\nreader will inquire, with what particular chiefs was this arrangement\nmade? When, and where was it made? What were its terms? The only\nanswers, so far as we are informed, are to be found in the\ninterrogatories propounded to Osceola and other chiefs, when they were\ncaptured, at Fort Peyton, on the twenty-first of October following.\nGeneral Jessup's first written interrogatory was, \"Are they (the chiefs)\nprepared to deliver up the negroes taken from the citizens? Why have\nthey not surrendered them already, as _promised by Co-Hadjo, at Fort\nKing_?\" Here he merely claimed a promise from Co-Hadjo, an obscure\nchief, who was not a party to the capitulation--did not sign it, and so\nfar as we are informed, was not present when it was entered into.\n\nBut, to show that no obligation whatever rested on the chiefs in this\nmatter, his next interrogatories were, \"Have the chiefs of the Nation\nheld a Council in relation to the subjects of the talk at Fort King?\nWhat chiefs attended that Council, and what was their decision?\" These\nquestions seem to admit, that Co-Hadjo had merely promised to lay the\nsubject before the chiefs in Council; and here we find the reasons, on\nthe part of General Jessup, for not laying the arrangement before the\npeople: yet, under these circumstances, that officer charges bad faith\nupon the Indians and Exiles, in renewing the war. The Exiles possessed\nno means of informing the American people, and other nations, as to\nthese facts, or of maintaining their honor against this charge of having\nviolated their plighted faith.\n\nIn renewing hostilities, General Jessup appears to have fully determined\non carrying out the designs of General Jackson, in 1816, when he\ndirected General Gaines to \"destroy the fort, and _return the slaves to\ntheir owners_.\" From this time forward, he lent his energies, and the\npower of the army, to the object of capturing and returning slaves. He\nalso deemed it necessary to change the mode of prosecuting the war, and\nto make it a series of forays for the capture and enslavement of the\nExiles.\n\nHe had, the previous year, entered into a contract with the Creek\nIndians, by which he stipulated to pay them a large pecuniary\ncompensation, and to allow them to hold all the plunder (negroes) whom\nthey might capture, as _property_. He now evidently believed that such\ninducements, held out to the Florida militia, would have an effect to\nstimulate them to greater effort.\n\nOn the eleventh of June, he wrote Colonel Warren, saying, \"There is no\nobligation to spare the property of the Indians; they have not spared\nthat of the citizens. Their _negroes_, cattle and horses, as well as\nother property which they possess, will belong to the corps by which\nthey are captured.\"\n\nThe same orders were communicated to the Commandants of other posts, and\nto the militia from other States; and the system by which the _negroes\nand other property_ were to be distributed among the captors, was\nprescribed in a letter to Colonel Heilman, declaring the field officers\nentitled to _three shares_, the company officers to receive _two\nshares_, and the non-commissioned officers and soldiers _one share\neach_.\n\nThese arrangements were, of course, all duly certified to the War\nDepartment, and approved, and thereby became acts of the Administration.\nThe letters of General Jessup, written during the summer and autumn of\n1837, to Colonel Crowell, at Fort Mitchell, Alabama; to Colonel Mills,\nof Newmansville, Florida; to Thomas Craghill, Esq., of Alabama; to\nCaptain David S. Walker, Captain Bonneville and Captain Armstrong;[97]\nall show, conclusively, that the war was to be conducted by the\norganization of slave-catching forays, in which the troops were expected\nto penetrate the Indian Country for the purpose of capturing negroes.\n\nDuring the sickly season no active operations against the allies could\nbe carried on, and the time was occupied in preparing for the more\nvigorous prosecution of hostilities, so soon as the unhealthy months\nshould be passed. In order to carry out these forays, the Indians\nresiding west of the Mississippi were applied to for assistance. The\nChoctaws and Delawares furnished many individuals whose low moral\ndevelopment did not prevent their engaging in the proposed piratical\nexpeditions, for seizing and enslaving their fellow-men; but of the\nprecise number of individuals thus furnished, we have no authentic\ninformation. The Cherokees however appear to have rejected a proposition\nwhich, to them, appeared incompatible with the civilization of that\ntribe; they evidently felt deep sympathy for their brethren, the\nSeminoles, as well as for the Exiles. They agreed to furnish a\ndelegation who should, in a friendly manner, visit the Seminoles, state\nto them the condition of the Western Country, and advise them in good\nfaith to emigrate.\n\nAt that period John Ross was acting as principal chief of the Cherokee\nNation. He was the son of a wealthy white man, who had long been\nengaged as an Indian trader. His mother was a Cherokee. Ross had been\neducated: had seen the advantages of civilization, and of Christianity,\nand was at the time, and had long been engaged, in promoting\ncivilization among his own people. It will readily be supposed, that the\nfeelings of such a man would revolt at a proposition for his people to\nengage in the capture and enslavement of any portion of the human\nfamily. The correspondence between Ross and the Secretary of War is\ninteresting, and its perusal would well compensate the curious\nreader.[98]\n\nThis delegation from the Cherokees consisted of some twelve of their\nmost influential men. They bore with them an address from Ross, written\nwith great ability and sincerity. Among other things, he assured the\nSeminoles that they might confide in the justice and honor of the United\nStates.[99] This address was directed to Micanopy, Osceola and Wild Cat,\nthe three most powerful and warlike chiefs among the Seminoles.\n\nThe Creek warriors had engaged to serve until the Seminoles were\nconquered; but after the death of Captain Moniac, and their other\nfriends who fell in the Great Wahoo Swamp, they had shown a disposition\nrather to _avoid danger_ than to _catch negroes_; and it was deemed\nproper to discharge them. But difficulties intervened in regard to the\ndivision of the negroes claimed to have been captured by them, while\nacting in concert with our troops. Some ninety negroes had been\ncaptured, in whose bones and muscles, blood and sinews, seven hundred\nCreek warriors claimed an interest; while the Tennesseeans, and other\ntroops, had been in the field acting with the Creeks at the time of\ncapture; and the Creeks could, in equity, claim only a pro rata\ninterest. General Jessup however met the difficulty with promptness,\nand, to put an end to all future strife and discontent, he issued the\nfollowing:\n\n\n\"ORDER No. 175. TAMPA BAY, Sept. 6, 1837.\n\n     \"1. The Seminole negroes captured by the army, will be taken on\n     account of Government and held subject to the _orders of the\n     Secretary of War_.\n\n     2. The sum of eight thousand dollars will be paid to the Creek\n     chiefs and warriors by whom they were captured, or who were present\n     at their capture, in full for their claims; the amount to be\n     apportioned among the battalions in proportion to the numbers\n     respectively taken by each, viz: To the first battalion, five\n     thousand seven hundred dollars; to the second battalion, two\n     thousand dollars; and to the spy battalion, three hundred dollars.\n\n     3. To induce the Creeks to take alive, and not destroy, the negroes\n     of citizens who had been captured by the Seminoles, a reward was\n     promised them for all they should secure. They have captured and\n     secured thirty-five, who have been returned to their owners. _The\n     owners have paid nothing_, but the promise to the Indians must be\n     fulfilled. The sum of twenty dollars will be allowed them for each,\n     from the public funds.\n\n     4. Lieutenant Frederick Searle is charged with the execution of\n     this order. He will cause accounts to be made, in the name of the\n     United States, and receipts taken from the Indians in full, for all\n     claims to the negroes, both of the Seminoles and citizens.\n     Lieutenant Searle will call on the Commanding General for funds to\n     enable him to comply with this order.\n\n     5. Until further orders, the Seminole negroes will remain at Fort\n     Pike, Louisiana, in charge of the Assistant Quarter-Master at New\n     Orleans, and in custody of the Commanding Officer of the post. They\n     will be fed and clothed at the public expense.\"\n\nThis order was reported to the Secretary of War, and on the seventh of\nOctober was approved and became the act of the Executive; and the people\nof the nation became the actual owners of these ninety slaves, so far as\nthe Executive could bind them to the ownership of human flesh.\n\nSuch was, undoubtedly, the view of General Jessup, who, on the\nfourteenth of September, wrote the Commissioner of Indian Affairs,\nsaying, \"The Seminole negro prisoners are now the _property of the\npublic_. I have promised Abraham the freedom of his family, if he prove\nfaithful _to us_; and I shall surely hang him if he be not\nfaithful.\"[100]\n\nThis refinement in cruelty by which the life and liberty of a man and\nhis family is held out as a bribe to induce him to prove traitor to his\nown kindred and nation, or to be hanged, and his family enslaved in case\nof refusal, appears worthy a place in the history of our Government, in\norder that our successors may have a correct idea of its administration.\nThe intention to enslave Abraham's wife, who was an Indian woman and had\nbeen the wife of the former chief of the _nation_, and now the wife of\nthe principal chief of the Exiles, exhibits a total disregard of the\nfeelings and sympathies of the human heart, as well as of the prejudices\nand condition of both Exiles and Seminoles. These Exiles were at Fort\nPike, near New Orleans, where we will leave them for the present, to\npursue our narrative of events which were transpiring in Florida.\n\nOn the ninth of September, General Jessup wrote Lieutenant Searle, as\nfollows: \"You will muster the Creek regiment out of service, and\nhonorably discharge them. Then you will proceed to New Orleans, and\nobtain funds to pay the Creeks for the captured negroes. The chiefs and\nwarriors who were actually in the field at the time of the capture of\nnegroes are alone to receive any part of the sum allowed. Those who\nremained in camp and did not march are to receive nothing.\n\n\"You will examine the prisoners at 'Fort Pike,' (the ninety Exiles,) and\ncause an accurate description to be taken of them, specifying their\nnames, ages, height, sex, and such other particulars as you may deem\nimportant. They must all be comfortably clothed, at the public expense,\nimmediately, by the Assistant Quarter-Master at New Orleans, who will\nkeep them properly clad.\"\n\nIt would appear that some difficulty arose with the Choctaw and Delaware\nwarriors, who had expected to receive higher wages than the law allowed\nfor serving in the army. Such had been done with the Creeks, and\nundoubtedly had been promised the Choctaws and Delawares. To quiet these\ndiscontents, General Jessup wrote Colonel Davenport, on the seventh of\nNovember, saying, \"I regret the circumstance to which you refer. The\nimportance of fulfilling all our engagements with the Indians with the\nmost scrupulous good faith, is unquestionable. To dismiss them now,\nmight not only cost us another campaign, but may cause us difficulties\non our western border. We must retain them at all hazards. I wish you to\nassure them, that _our laws_ do not authorize the payment of the sum\n_stipulated_; but that the enemy has a large property, consisting of\nponies, cattle and _negroes_, and that I will pay them for all the\ncattle they take, and they will be paid _fifty dollars for every negro_.\n* * * Represent to them also, that our country is just, and if they will\nserve well, I will take their chiefs to Washington, and represent their\ncase to the Great Council (Congress), and I have no doubt they will get\nall that has been promised them.\" He also wrote Captain Armstrong of the\nChoctaw agency, and Captain Bonneville, commanding the Choctaw warriors,\nencouraging the Indians to faithful effort in order to obtain negroes.\n\nSome of the Georgia volunteers appeared anxious to know definitely the\nterms on which they were to expose their lives in these slave-catching\nforays; and a letter was addressed to Brigadier General C. H. Nelson,\ncommanding the Georgia volunteers, by J. A. Chambers, aid to General\nJessup, saying, \"We have not the order book with us at this moment; but\nthe General directs me to say, that all Indian property captured belongs\nto the capturers.\"\n\nOn the same day, General Hernandez of the Florida militia, found means\nto secure King Phillip, an aged chief, who lived some distance south of\nSan Augustine, with eleven others of his tribe. It may be regarded as\nsomewhat unfortunate, that history has failed to give us the particulars\nof this capture. The subsequent conduct of General Hernandez may lead\nthe reader to look back upon this incident of the war with some desire\nto know the manner of King Phillip's capture; to understand whether it\nwas peaceful or hostile; and whether any, and how many, white men, and\nhow many Indians and Exiles, fell in the conflict? But we must pass over\nthese particulars, as we have no authentic account concerning them.\nGeneral Jessup, when called on to report to the Secretary of War as to\nviolations of the flag of truce, merely remarks, incidentally, that King\nPhillip and his companions were captured by General Hernandez.\n\nPhillip had long been regarded as a chief of influence among the\nSeminoles. Finding himself a prisoner, he became anxious to see, and\nconverse with, some of his friends; and General Hernandez, at his\nrequest, gave permission, for one of the prisoners to carry this talk to\nhis family, inviting them to come and visit him in his captivity. The\nmessage was faithfully delivered to his oldest son, already known to the\nreader as \"Wild Cat.\" He had been an active warrior at the massacre of\nDade's battalion; had been subsequently elevated to the dignity of a\nchief; had visited General Jessup, under the articles of capitulation of\nMarch, 1837, and at that time delivered up \"Louis\" as his slave,\ndemanding his transportation West under those articles; and when he\nlearned the intention of General Jessup to deliver up a portion of the\nExiles to slavery, he left Fort Brooke, and again swearing vengeance\nupon the enslavers of mankind, became one of the most active warriors in\nthe Seminole Nation.\n\n[Illustration: Coacoochee. (Wild Cat.)]\n\nThe Cherokee Delegation had reached the Indian country. The address of\nJohn Ross was directed to Wild Cat and Osceola, as two of the principal\nSeminole chiefs. They were together, and received the talk of Ross, the\nCherokee chief, assuring them of the integrity and honor of the United\nStates. After due consideration, it was determined that Wild Cat\nshould comply with the filial obligations due to his aged father,\nbearing with him the peace token of Osceola, consisting of a neatly\nwrought bead pipe, together with a beautiful white plume, to be\npresented to General Hernandez, as the assurance of Osceola's pacific\ndesires. Co-Hadjo, another chief, bore a similar message and emblems.\n\nThese were received by General Hernandez, who communicated immediate\ninformation thereof to General Jessup. They were propositions for\nnegotiating a peace, forwarded at the special request and advice of the\nCherokee Delegation, who were active in their efforts to stop the\neffusion of blood, and restore harmony between our nation and the\nSeminoles. By direction of General Jessup, Hernandez returned various\npresents to Osceola by Co-Hadjo, saying, that General Jessup and himself\nwould be glad to hold a conference with them. The same assurances and\npresents were given to Wild Cat, who also became the messenger between\nGeneral Jessup and General Hernandez on the one hand, and his brethren\non the other. With the hope of effecting an arrangement beneficial to\nhis friends and to mankind, Wild Cat left San Augustine with the promise\nto return in ten days.\n\nPunctual to the day, he returned with the very satisfactory assurance,\nthat Osceola, and one hundred Indians and as many Exiles, were on their\nway toward San Augustine, for the purpose of entering upon negotiations.\nWith the intention of hastening their arrival, and manifesting an\nearnest desire for peace, General Hernandez proceeded, with Wild Cat and\nother friendly Seminoles, to meet the advancing chiefs, some twenty\nmiles south-west of San Augustine, at a place called \"Pelican Creek.\"\nHere he learned that Osceola would join them at evening. General\nHernandez left a quantity of provisions with them, and, desiring them to\nselect their encampment for the next day (Oct. 22) somewhere near Fort\nPeyton, at which place he would meet them with a proper escort, left\nthem, and returned to San Augustine. They accordingly encamped the next\nday near Fort Peyton, situated seven miles south-west from San\nAugustine. They approached their encampment with great formality:\nOsceola and other chiefs bearing white flags, expecting to meet a\nsuitable escort under General Hernandez, with the well-understood\nintentions of entering upon diplomatic negotiations with that grave\ndignity for which the Indian is so much distinguished. These flags were\nkept flying in their encampment through the night and the next morning.\n\nAt ten o'clock (Oct. 23), General Hernandez, accompanied by his staff\nand by most of General Jessup's staff, in full dress, met them as had\nbeen promised, with the apparent purpose of escorting them to\nhead-quarters at San Augustine. After the ordinary salutations had been\nexchanged, instead of preparing to march, General Hernandez, from a\nwritten paper signed by General Jessup, read the following questions\naddressed to Osceola: \"Are you prepared at once to _deliver up the\nnegroes taken from the citizens_? Why have you not surrendered them\nalready, as promised by Co-Hadjo at Fort King? Have the chiefs of the\nnation held a council on this subject?\"[101]\n\nOsceola exhibited the most perfect astonishment at hearing these\nquestions propounded at such a moment. He appeared, however, instantly\nto comprehend his situation. Turning to Co-Hadjo, he said to him in his\nown dialect, \"You must answer; I am choked,\" at the same time exhibiting\nunusual emotion for an Indian chief.[102]\n\nAt this moment, by a concerted signal, armed troops at once surrounded\nthe whole encampment, gathered rapidly in upon the occupants, made\nprisoners of them, and at once disarmed them. They were then marched to\nSan Augustine, and closely imprisoned in the ancient castle of that\ncity. There was about an equal number of Exiles captured, at this\nviolation of our plighted faith; they were, however, sent to Tampa Bay\nfor safe keeping.\n\nWild Cat, having been made the instrument for betraying Osceola and\nother friends, felt great indignation at what he regarded as the perfidy\npracticed upon him and his brethren, and determined to escape from his\nimprisonment so soon as an opportunity should offer. But he was\nimprisoned in the Castle of San Augustine, whose gray walls, lofty\nturrets, battlements and Catholic chapel, must have presented to the\nyoung warrior a spectacle in striking contrast with the rude huts in\nwhich he was accustomed to lodge, in the interior of the Territory. We\nprefer letting him tell the story of his escape, which we copy from the\nworks of one who was then serving in our army.[103] Said Wild Cat:\n\n\"We were in a small room, eighteen or twenty feet square. All the light\nadmitted was through a hole (embrasure) about eighteen feet from the\nfloor. Through this we must effect our escape, or remain and die with\nsickness. A sentinel was constantly posted at the door. As we looked at\nit from our bed, we thought it small, but believed that, could we get\nour heads through, we should have no further or serious difficulty. To\nreach the hole was the first object. In order to effect this, we from\ntime to time cut up the forage bags allowed us to sleep on, and made\nthem into ropes. The hole I could not reach when upon the shoulder of my\ncompanion; but, while standing upon his shoulder, I worked a knife into\na crevice of the stone-work as far as I could reach, and upon this I\nraised myself to the aperture, when I found that, with some reduction of\nperson, I could get through. In order to reduce ourselves as much as\npossible, we took medicine five days. Under the pretext of being very\nsick, we were permitted to obtain the roots we required. For some weeks\nwe watched the moon, in order that, on the night of our attempt, it\nshould be as dark as possible. At the proper time we commenced the\nmedicine, calculating on the entire disappearance of the moon.\"\n\n\"The keeper of this prison, on the night determined upon to make the\neffort, annoyed us by frequently coming into the room, and talking and\nsinging. At first we thought of tying him and putting his head in a bag,\nso that, should he call for assistance, he could not be heard. We first,\nhowever, tried the experiment of pretending to be asleep, and, when he\nreturned, to pay no regard to him. This accomplished our object. He came\nin and went immediately out; and we could hear him snore, in the\nimmediate vicinity of the door. I then took the rope we had secreted\nunder our bed, and, mounting on the shoulder of my comrade, raised\nmyself upon the knife worked into the crevice of the stone, and\nsucceeded in reaching the embrasure. Here I made fast the rope, that my\nfriend might follow me. I then passed through the hole a sufficient\nlength of it to reach the ground upon the outside (about fifty feet), in\nthe ditch: I had calculated the distance when going for roots. With much\ndifficulty I succeeded in getting my head through, for the sharp stones\ntook the skin off my breast and back. Putting my head through first, I\nwas obliged to go down head foremost until my feet were through, fearing\nevery moment the rope would break. At last, safely on the ground, I\nawaited with anxiety the arrival of my comrade. I had passed another\nrope through the hole, which, in the event of discovery, Talmeco-Hadjo\nwas to pull, as a signal to me upon the outside that he was discovered,\nand could not come. As soon as I struck the ground, I took hold of the\nsignal for intelligence from my friend. The night was very dark. Two men\npassed near me, talking earnestly, and I could see them distinctly. Soon\nI heard the struggle of my companion, far above me; he had succeeded in\ngetting his head through, but his body would come no farther. In the\nlowest tone of voice, I urged him to throw out his breath and then try;\nsoon after, he came tumbling down the whole distance. For a few moments\nI thought him dead. I dragged him to some water close by, which restored\nhim; but his leg was so lame he was unable to walk. I took him upon my\nshoulder to a scrub, near town. Daylight was just breaking: it was\nevident we must move rapidly. I caught a mule in the adjoining field,\nand, making a bridle of my sash, mounted my companion. The mule we used\none day; but fearing the whites would track us, we felt more secure on\nfoot in the hommock, though moving very slowly. Thus we continued our\njourney for five days, subsisting on berries, when I joined my band,\nthen assembled on the head-waters of the Tomoka River, near the Atlantic\ncoast. I gave my warriors the history of my capture and escape, and\nassured them that they should be satisfied my capture was no trick of my\nown, and that I would not deceive them.\"\n\nWhile Wild Cat and his friends were imprisoned at San Augustine, the\nCherokee Delegation had been actively engaged in exertions to induce\nother chiefs and warriors to come in, for the purpose of ascertaining\nwhat negotiations could be effected with General Jessup in favor of\npeace. Their objects were of the most humane character. Anxious to stop\nthe further shedding of human blood, they had come a thousand miles upon\nthis errand of mercy.\n\nAfter great effort, Micanopy, the most important chief in the Nation,\nChoud, Toskogee, and Nocose Yoholo, agreed to accompany a portion of the\nCherokee Delegation to General Jessup's camp, for the purpose of\nnegotiation, or rather to ascertain whether further negotiation were\npracticable. They were accompanied by about seventy-five Indians and\nforty Exiles. They approached the American camp under a flag of truce,\nthat emblem of peace, which is recognized as such by all civilized\nnations, and treated with respect.\n\nThey reached General Jessup's camp on the third of December, in company\nwith a part of the Cherokee Delegation, and confided themselves to the\npower of the commanding officer, trusting to the honor of our nation.\nThey were received with apparent respect and good faith, and remained in\ncamp under the expectation of further negotiation; of which there was\nmuch said, and frequent conversations held.\n\nAfter a few days spent in this way, the Seminole chiefs and warriors\nwere unsuspectingly seized, disarmed, made prisoners, hurried on board a\nsteamboat, and sent to San Augustine as prisoners of war.\n\nAs the Cherokees saw this violation of the flag, they were struck with\nastonishment, and began to remonstrate against an act which, to them,\nappeared an outrage upon the rules of civilized warfare, and which\ninvolved them in its guilt. Finding remonstrance of no avail, they\nrequested permission of General Jessup to converse with the Seminoles,\nin order to assure them that they, the Cherokees, had acted in good\nfaith, and were in no degree cognizant of the fraud practiced upon the\nSeminoles, or implicated in the discreditable violation of the flag of\ntruce. This privilege, however, was denied them.\n\nFeeling indignant, and conscious that the Seminoles would charge them\nwith complicity, in this violation of faith, they next demanded that\ntheir principal chief should have an opportunity, in the presence of\nsuch officer or officers as General Jessup may appoint, to see the\nSeminoles, and explain to them that the Cherokees had in no respect\nparticipated in the perfidy practiced upon them. To enforce this\nrequest, they stated to General Jessup that, if the Seminoles were sent\nWest, they would thereby become neighbors to the Cherokees, and, if they\nbelieved the Cherokee Delegation to have participated in this\ntransaction, they would never forget it, but would thereafter be hostile\nto them.\n\nGeneral Jessup at length consented to permit the chief of the Cherokees\nto explain these facts to the Seminoles, in the presence of himself and\nofficers; but would not suffer any other member of the delegation to\nattend him.[104]\n\nThe Seminoles were sent to San Augustine; and that portion of the\nCherokees who had accompanied them to General Jessup's camp, at once\nrefused all further efforts to restore peace, and returned to their\nhomes; leaving, however, some four or five of their brethren in the\nSeminole country, who, ignorant of the occurrences just related,\ncontinued to urge other Seminoles to make peace upon such terms as they\nbelieved just--assuring them that the Americans demanded nothing more.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIII.\n\nVIGOROUS PROSECUTION OF THE WAR.\n\n     General Zachary Taylor--His character and past service--His\n     expedition--Battle of Okechobee--His loss--Returns to\n     Withlacoochee--Repudiates the work of catching Slaves--Exiles\n     delivered over to bondage--Regular Troops despise such\n     Employment--Indian prisoners indignant at the outrages perpetrated\n     against the Exiles--Separated from Exiles--Are sent to\n     Charleston--Exiles to Tampa Bay--Further efforts to re-enslave\n     Exiles--General Jessup moves South--Skirmish of Loca\n     Hatchee--Erects Fort Jupiter--Is persuaded to propose peace on\n     basis of permitting Indians and Exiles to remain in Florida--Sends\n     one of the Exiles to the enemy with these propositions--He returns\n     with Hallec Hajo--Parties agree to hold Council and endeavor to\n     form Treaty on that basis--Indians and Exiles meet for that\n     purpose--Letter to Secretary of War--His answer--Indians and Exiles\n     treacherously seized--Their numbers--Alligator and others\n     surrender--Exiles sent to Fort Pike--Indians sent to Charleston.\n\n\n[Sidenote: 1837.]\n\nGeneral Zachary Taylor was in command of an efficient force in the\nwestern part of Florida, holding his head-quarters at Tampa Bay. He had\nbeen thirty years in service; had distinguished himself in battle, and\nwas regarded as an officer of great merit. Looking to the honor of our\nflag and the prestige of the service, he appears to have borne himself\nentirely above all efforts to prostitute the powers of the nation to the\nre\u00ebnslavement of the Exiles. He was particularly opposed to the plan of\nGeneral Jessup, directing that all negroes captured should be the slaves\nof the captors.[105]\n\nIt now became evident that there was hard fighting to be done. General\nTaylor was at all times ready for such service. It is one of the\nimperfections of human government, that the men who conceive and direct\nthe perpetration of great national crimes are usually exempt from the\nimmediate dangers which beset those who act merely as their instruments\nin the consummation of transcendent wrongs. Had General Jackson and\nGeneral Cass been assured they would have been the first individuals to\nmeet death in their efforts to enslave the Exiles, it is doubtful\nwhether either of them would have been willing to adopt a policy which\nshould thus consign them to premature graves. Or had Mr. Van Buren, or\nhis Cabinet, at the time of which we are now writing, been conscious\nthat, in carrying on this war for slavery, they would fall victims to\ntheir own policy, it may well be doubted whether either of them would\nhave laid down his life for the safety of that institution; yet they\nwere evidently willing to sacrifice our military officers and soldiers,\nto maintain the degradation of the African race.\n\nGeneral Jessup had written General Taylor, that all hope of terminating\nthe war through the agency of the Cherokees, was at an end; that Sam\nJones and the Mickasukies had determined to fight to the last. He,\ntherefore, directed General Taylor to proceed, with the least possible\ndelay, against any portion of the enemy he might hear of within striking\ndistance. General Taylor at once concentrated such force as he deemed\nnecessary for the contemplated expedition. His little army was composed\nof regulars and volunteers, including nearly one hundred Delaware and\nShawnee Indians, who had been induced to join the army under the\nexpectation of obtaining plunder by the capture of slaves. His whole\nforce amounted to nearly eleven hundred men. Conscious that he was\nexpected to encounter the full force of the enemy, if he could succeed\nin bringing them to action, he left his artillery; divested his troops\nof all heavy baggage, and prepared, as far as possible, for a rapid\nmovement. With him were some of the most valued officers in the service\nof Government; men on whom he could rely with confidence, and who were\nworthy to command veteran troops. With this force, he left his\nencampment on the morning of the nineteenth of December, and directed\nhis coarse southeastwardly in the direction where, it was said, Sam\nJones and his forces were encamped. As he advanced into the interior, he\ndiscovered signs of Indians; and, through the efforts of Captain Parks,\na half-breed chief, who commanded the Delawares and Shawnees, he induced\nJumper, and a few families of the Seminoles and some few Exiles, to come\nin and emigrate under the articles of capitulation of March previous. On\nthe twenty-second of December, being the third day of their march, they\nfound conclusive evidence that they were in the vicinity of the enemies'\nprincipal force, but found it difficult to bring them to action. That\nnight every precaution was taken against surprise. The necessary patrols\nwere kept out, sentinels doubled, and the troops slept upon their arms.\nThey confidently expected to engage the enemy the next day.\n\nBut the allies were cautious; they passed from swamps, through hommocks,\nand over prairies, constantly keeping too far in advance of our army to\nincur any danger. In this manner the whole of that day was occupied.\n\nAt night the troops bivouacked as on the previous night. They were in\nthe deepest recesses of the Indian Country, surrounded by swamps,\neverglades and hommocks: through these they had groped their way for a\nhundred miles. Up to this time, the mounted volunteers had managed to\nkeep their horses with them, knowing they might be useful in battle. But\nthe enemy indicated an unwillingness to encounter our troops with the\nadvantages which the mounted men would possess over them.\n\nEarly on the morning of the twenty-fourth, the troops were again put in\nmotion: the enemy keeping sufficiently in advance to be beyond the reach\nof musket or rifle balls. General Taylor and his followers were in close\npursuit; and as the allies left a swamp, or hommock, or prairie, Taylor\nand his men entered it, hoping to bring on a general action.\n\nAt about ten o'clock, the enemy were traced to a swamp of some\nthree-fourths of a mile in width, thickly covered with saw-grass, not\nless than four feet in height. Through it flowed a turbid stream, whose\ncurrent was scarcely perceptible, while it seemed to stretch away to the\nleft in an endless savanna, and to the right it appeared to deepen into\nan impassable morass. After the proper reconnoissance, it was found that\nit could not be passed by horses; and on the farther side a thick\nhommock reached down to the very edge of the swamp.\n\nIt was now plain that the enemy intended to make a stand at this point,\nand give battle. Perhaps the whole territory did not furnish a more\nadvantageous position than that now occupied by the allied forces.\nGeneral Taylor saw at a glance the difficulties which lay before him. He\nwell understood the superiority of the enemy's position, but determined\nto maintain the honor of the service. He did not hesitate in entering\nupon the conflict. His arrangements were soon made. The volunteers were\ndirected to dismount, and act on foot. Knowing well that the battle was\nto be fought here if anywhere, he directed his troops to divest\nthemselves of all baggage, which together with the horses, was left\nunder the charge of a small guard. His troops entered the swamp in two\nlines. The first was composed of the volunteers, spies, and friendly\nIndians, under the command of Colonel Gentry. They were ordered to\nengage the enemy, and maintain their ground until reinforced; or, if\ncompelled to fall back, they were directed to form immediately in rear\nof the second line, and await orders.\n\nThey entered the swamp in this manner at about twelve o'clock. The sun\nwas shining pleasantly, and a quiet stillness appeared to pervade the\nscene around them. They passed the stream in safety, and the front line\nwas approaching the thick hommock in front. There, too, all was silent;\nnot an enemy to be seen; no voice was heard, nor could they discover any\nevidence of animal life within the dense forest before them.\n\nThere, however, lay Wild Cat and his band, and the prophet and other\nmighty chiefs of the nation with their followers. Wild Cat had been\nstimulated to desperation by what he regarded the perfidy of General\nJessup, and his imprisonment at San Augustine, from which he had just\nescaped. Most of the Exiles, who remained among the Seminoles, and were\ncapable of bearing arms, were collected here under their respective\nleaders. They had retreated to this point for the purpose of separating\nour troops from their horses, and then engaging them at such superior\nadvantage as would be most likely to insure victory. Their spies had\nclimbed into the very tops of the trees, whence they had witnessed every\nmovement of our troops in the swamp, and given constant information to\ntheir comrades who were on the ground, and who, acting under the\ninformation thus received, were enabled to place themselves directly in\nfront of those who were pursuing them. Every warrior was protected by a\ntree, and the thick foliage of the hommock shielded every movement from\nthe scrutiny of our spies and officers.\n\nSoon as the first line, commanded by Colonel Gentry, came within\npoint-blank shot of the hommock, the allies opened a heavy fire upon\nthem. The saw-grass was so high as partially to protect the bodies of\nour men from view; but the fire was very fatal. Colonel Gentry, the\ngallant commander of the volunteers, fell at the first fire; his son, an\ninteresting youth, acting as sergeant-major, was wounded almost at the\nsame moment. Captain Childs, and Lieutenants Rogers and Flanagan, of the\nsame regiment, and Acting Major Sconce, and Lieutenants Hare and Gordon\nof the spies, and twenty-four men, fell wounded at the very commencement\nof the action.\n\nIt was hardly to be expected that militia would stand such a fire. They\nbroke, fell back, and instead of halting in the rear of the regulars as\ndirected, they continued their flight across the swamp, to the place\nwhere they left their horses; nor were the officers of General Taylor's\nstaff able to induce them again to join their comrades, who soon became\nengaged in a most deadly conflict.\n\nBut the regulars moved steadily to the charge, under Colonel Thompson, a\nmost gallant and estimable officer. General Taylor says: \"The weight of\nthe enemy's fire seemed to be concentrated upon five companies of the\n6th Infantry, which not only stood firm, but continued to advance until\ntheir gallant commander, Lieut. Colonel Thompson, and his adjutant,\nLieutenant Center, were killed; and every officer, with one exception,\nas well as most of the non-commissioned officers, including the\nsergeant-major, and four of the five orderly sergeants, were killed or\nwounded. When that portion of the regiment retired a short distance and\nre-formed, it was found that one of these companies had but _four men\nuntouched_.\"\n\nAmid these difficulties, Lieut. Colonel Foster of the 4th Infantry, with\nsix companies, numbering about one hundred and fifty men, gained the\nhommock in good order, and, after maintaining his ground a short time,\ncharged upon the allies and drove them from the field, with the loss of\nnine Indians and one of the Exiles killed, and eleven wounded.\n\nThe battle commenced at half-past twelve M., and continued nearly three\nhours, and proved the most desperate, and to our troops the most fatal\nconflict which occurred during the war. It was past three o'clock in the\nafternoon when the allies gave up the field, for which they had\ncontended against a force more than double their own numbers.\n\nGeneral Taylor and his surviving officers were now left to ascertain\ntheir loss, and contemplate the expense of subduing even a savage\npeople, fighting for their homes, their firesides, their _liberties_.\nAnd we are led to think if those Northern statesmen who, for many years\nsubsequent to that date, were accustomed to inquire, What has the nation\nto do with slavery? had been present and propounded that question to\nGeneral Taylor or his officers, they would have been silently pointed to\n_twenty-six dead bodies_ of their deceased comrades, then lifeless upon\nthe ground, and to _one hundred and twelve wounded officers and\nsoldiers_, who were prostrated in that swamp and hommock, suffering all\nthe pangs which mortals are capable of enduring; but the language of\ntheir gallant commander better expresses his feelings than any which we\ncan command.\n\nIn his official report, General Taylor says: \"We suffered much, having\ntwenty-six killed and one hundred and twelve wounded, among whom are\nsome of our most valuable officers. * * Soon as the enemy were\ncompletely broken, I turned my attention to taking care of the wounded,\nto facilitate their removal to my baggage, where I had ordered an\nencampment to be formed. * * And here I trust I may be permitted to say,\nthat I experienced one of the most trying scenes of my life; and he who\ncould have looked on it with indifference, his nerves must have been\nvery differently organized from my own. Besides the killed, among whom\nwere some of my personal friends, there lay one hundred and twelve\nofficers and soldiers, who had accompanied me one hundred and forty-five\nmiles, through an unexplored wilderness, without guides; who had so\ngallantly beaten the enemy, under my orders, in his strongest positions;\nand who had to be conveyed back, through swamps and hommocks, from\nwhence we set out, without any apparent means of doing so.\"\n\nThe next day was occupied in burying the dead, making litters for the\ntransportation of the wounded, and preparing for their return to\nWithlacoochee. One hundred and thirty-eight men had fallen in this\nsingle conflict, victims to the policy of our Government, in attempting\nto restore to a state of slavery men who abhorred and had fled from it.\nThe allies had also suffered severely. General Taylor reported that ten\nof their dead and wounded were left on the field.[106] But no prisoners\nwere taken, no slaves were captured; and those Indians who had come from\nArkansas to Florida, for the purpose of sharing in slave-catching\nforays, found it a far more dangerous employment, and one of more\ndifficulty, than they had expected.\n\nOn the morning of the twenty-sixth, General Taylor, with his sick and\nwounded, left his encampment, and, after encountering great\ndifficulties, reached Withlacoochee on the thirty-first of December;\nhaving been absent twelve days. He made a brief official report of this\nexpedition, and of the severe battle he had fought. This report was\nquietly filed away in the War Department, and but few, even of our\npublic men, appeared to be fully conscious that he had performed\nmeritorious service in the Florida war.[107]\n\nBut while General Taylor was thus quietly engaged in the most hazardous\nservice, General Jessup was active in securing negroes, and employing\nthe military power of the nation, so far as able, to seize and return\nfugitives to their owners. It would exceed the limits of our present\nwork, were we to notice the efforts of various individuals claiming to\nhave lost slaves. The Indian Bureau at Washington was engaged in this\nservice, and applications were constantly made for slaves to the\ncommanding officer. These applications were usually referred to some\nquarter-master, or pay-master, for decision; and if such inferior\nofficer belonged to the militia, the person claimed was usually\ndelivered over to bondage, whether the claimant had ever seen him\npreviously or not. It is a matter of astonishment that our National\nAdministration, guided by a Northern President (Mr. Van Buren), should\nhave permitted a pay-master or quarter-master of militia, to sit in\ngrave examination of the right of their fellow-men to liberty; to act as\njudge, jury and counselor, in cases involving the rights with which the\nGod of Nature had endowed them.\n\nBut to the honor of our army, it was said that both officers and men of\nthe regular service, generally held the work of catching slaves in\nsupreme contempt. More than three hundred heavy documentary pages were\ncommunicated to Congress on this subject, nearly all of which are filled\nwith extracts of letters, reports, orders, opinions and directions\nconcerning slaves, connected with this Florida war.[108]\n\nGreat difficulty arose among the Indians in consequence of the\nre\u00ebnslavement of their friends, the Exiles. They felt the outrage with\nas much apparent keenness as though it had been perpetrated upon\nthemselves. To prevent these difficulties, General Jessup separated the\nExiles from their Indian allies, whenever they surrendered or were taken\nprisoners.[109]\n\nIn pursuance of this plan, he sent Osceola and the other Indians seized\nat Fort Peyton; and Micanopy, and others who had come into his own camp\nfor the purpose of negotiating a treaty, to Charleston, South Carolina;\nwhile the Exiles were sent, some to Tampa Bay and other places, to be\nsubjected to the inspection of men who professed to have been their\nprevious owners.\n\nGeneral Jessup, in the very elaborate defense of his proceedings, dated\nJuly, 1838, justifies this policy of separating the Indians and Exiles\nby saying, that he learned the year previous, from prisoners captured,\nthat the Indians through the Seminole negroes had entered into\narrangements with their slaves that so soon as hostilities should\ncommence, the latter were to join their masters, and take up arms\nagainst the whites. This information, representing the Indians as\nentering into negotiation with their own slaves _through_ the \"Seminole\nnegroes\" (Exiles), bears the character of fiction; yet it is gravely set\nforth in an official report, and we are bound to treat it\nrespectfully.[110]\n\nUnder this arrangement--separating the Indians and Exiles--all the\nrelations of domestic life were disregarded. The Indian husband was\nseparated from the wife he had selected among the daughters of the\nExiles; and the Indian wife was separated from her more sable husband.\nThe darker colored prisoners were hurried to Tampa Bay, and the red men\nand women were sent to Charleston for safe keeping.\n\nUp to the commencement of the year 1838, General Jessup appears to have\nbeen mostly employed in efforts to obtain peace by negotiation and in\ndirecting the movements of various detachments of the army, who did not\nrequire his personal attendance, and making arrangements for the\ndelivery of negroes to their supposed former owners; but had found very\nlittle time to mingle in the dangers of the field. Brigadier General\nTaylor had performed a most hazardous service; and it appeared proper\nthat the Commanding General should also strike a blow that would\ndistinguish his administration of the military department of the\nterritory.\n\n[Sidenote: 1838.]\n\nEarly in January, he moved south, with about five hundred mounted men,\nwell provided. On the twenty-fourth, at about twelve o'clock, he\nencountered the \"allies,\" near the \"Locka-Hatchee,\" and a short skirmish\nfollowed, in which the General was himself wounded somewhat severely in\nthe arm. He lost seven men killed and thirty wounded. The enemy yielded\nthe field to our troops, but left neither dead nor wounded upon the\nscene of conflict, nor is it known whether they sustained any loss\nwhatever. General Jessup expresses the belief that there were not more\nthan a hundred warriors engaged on the part of the enemy. On the\ntwenty-fifth, he erected a stockade called \"Fort Jupiter.\" Here he lay\nuntil the fifth of February, when he moved forward some twelve miles,\nwhere, it is said, some of his officers--General Eaton and\nothers--proposed that General Jessup should make terms with the Indians\nand their allies, and permit them to remain in the country, confining\nthem to the southern portion of the Territory. He, however, moved\nforward another day's march, when, being called on by Colonel Twiggs,\nand learning that it was the general desire of the officers, he says he\ndetermined to send a messenger to the Indians, offering them peace.\n\nThe first messenger dispatched on this service was one of the Exiles,\nor, as General Jessup called him, a \"Seminole negro.\" This man soon\nreturned with several Indians, among whom was a sub-chief named \"Hallec\nHajo,\" who was willing to hold a conference, and expressed a desire to\nremain in the country; but said, if compelled, they must go West.\n\nGeneral Jessup insisted that \"Toshkogee,\" the principal chief in that\nneighborhood, should attend, and hold a Council the next day; and that\nthe Indians should give up their arms. Hallec Hajo at once refused to\ncomply with such condition. He would meet in Council, but would never\nsurrender his arms.\n\nOn the morning of the eighth of February, Toshkogee and Hallec Hajo met\nGeneral Jessup agreeably to appointment. An interchange of opinions and\nviews took place, and the General agreed to recommend the conclusion of\na peace upon the _basis of allowing the allies to remain in the\ncountry_, and occupy a suitable portion of the southern part of the\nTerritory. It was also agreed that a certain territory, near the place\nof negotiation, should be occupied by the Indians and their families,\nwhere they should be safe, and might remain until the views of the\nExecutive should be ascertained.[111]\n\nIn pursuance of this arrangement of treating upon the basis of\npermitting the allies to remain in the country, many of the Seminoles\nand Exiles collected with the expectation that the agreement was to be\ncarried out in good faith.\n\nOn the next day, General Jessup addressed a long communication to the\nSecretary of War, in which he gives his views upon the policy of\nimmediate emigration somewhat at length, and advises its abandonment in\nthe following language:\n\n\"In regard to the Seminoles, we have committed the error of attempting\nto remove them when their lands were not required for agricultural\npurposes; when they were not in the way of the white inhabitants, and\nwhen the greater portion of their country was an unexplored wilderness,\nof the interior of which we were as ignorant as of the interior of\nChina. We exhibit in our present contest the first instance, perhaps,\nsince the commencement of authentic history, of a nation employing an\narmy to explore a country, (for we can do little more than explore it,)\nor attempting to remove a band of savages from one unexplored wilderness\nto another.\"\n\n\"As a soldier, it is my duty, I am aware, not to comment upon the policy\nof the Government, but to carry it out in accordance with my\ninstructions. I have endeavored faithfully to do so; but the prospect of\nterminating the war in any reasonable time is any thing but flattering.\nMy decided opinion is, that, unless _immediate_ emigration be abandoned,\nthe war will continue for years to come, and at constantly accumulating\nexpense. Is it not, then, well worthy the serious consideration of an\nenlightened Government whether, even if the wilderness we are traversing\ncould be inhabited by the white man, (which is not the fact,) the object\nwe are contending for would be worth the cost? I do not certainly think\nit would; indeed, I do not consider the country south of\nChickasa-Hatchee worth the medicines we shall expend in driving the\nIndians from it.\"\n\nTo this communication the Secretary of War replied: \"In the present\nstage of our relations with the Indians residing within the States and\nTerritories east of the Mississippi, including the Seminoles, it is\nuseless to recur to the principles and motives which induced the\nGovernment to determine their removal to the West. The acts of the\nExecutive, and the laws of Congress, evince a determination to carry out\nthe measure, and it is to be regarded as the settled policy of the\ncountry. In pursuance of this policy, the treaty of Payne's Landing was\nmade with the Seminoles; and the character of the officer employed on\nthe part of the Government is a guarantee of the perfectly fair manner\nin which that negotiation was conducted and concluded. Whether the\nGovernment ought not to have waited until the Seminoles were pressed\nupon by the white population, and their lands become necessary to the\nagricultural wants of the community, is not a question for the Executive\nnow to consider. The treaty has been ratified, and is the law of the\nland; and the constitutional duty of the President requires that he\nshould cause it to be executed. I cannot, therefore, authorize any\narrangement with the Seminoles by which they will be permitted to\nremain, or assign them any portion of the Territory of Florida as their\nfuture residence.\"\n\n\"The Department indulged the hope, that, with the extensive means placed\nat your disposal, the war by a vigorous effort might be brought to a\nclose this campaign. If, however, you are of opinion that, from the\nnature of the country and the character of the enemy, such a result is\nimpracticable, and that it is advisable to make a temporary arrangement\nwith the Seminoles, by which the safety of the settlements and posts\nwill be secured throughout the summer, you are at liberty to do so.\"\n\nGeneral Jessup had previously represented the subjection of the\nSeminoles as an object easily to be accomplished. He had so represented\nin his letter to Mr. Blair, in 1836, which occasioned the withdrawal of\nGeneral Scott, and his own appointment to the command of the army in\nFlorida. He had himself been in command more than a year, and the War\nDepartment was doubtless somewhat astonished at his recommendation now\nto adopt the policy which the Indians and Exiles had from the first been\nready to accept. He was probably somewhat mortified at seeing his\nproposition so coldly received, and the whole responsibility of carrying\nit out placed upon himself, upon condition that he was _satisfied\nnothing better_ could be accomplished. He had done all in his power to\neffect the objects so much cherished by the Administration. But the\nSecretary of War still urged the carrying out of the treaty of Payne's\nLanding, not according to its letter and spirit, but according to the\nunnatural and unexpected construction which General Jackson placed upon\nit, after complaints were made against the Seminoles by the people of\nFlorida. It is also evident that no intention of executing it according\nto the supplemental treaty entered into by the Seminole Delegates while\nat the West, was entertained by the Administration. No measures had been\ntaken for establishing the boundaries between the Seminoles and the\nCreeks; nor do we hear of any intention to fulfill that stipulation. On\nthe contrary, it had been constantly asserted by the Secretary of War,\nthat the Seminoles and Creeks were to be _united as one people_.\n\nThe Commanding General, in the opinion of many statesmen, had\ncompromited the honor of the service, and violated the plighted faith of\nthe nation by treacherously seizing Indians and Exiles who had\napproached the army under the white flag, which had so long been\nregarded as a sacred emblem of peace by all civilized nations; yet,\nnotwithstanding these circumstances, his propositions were in spirit\nrejected, although in language he had been authorized to negotiate a\ntemporary peace upon the basis he had proposed.\n\nIt is believed that the substance of this answer had become to some\nextent known, or suspected by the Indians, for General Jessup admits he\nreceived the decision of the Secretary of War on the seventeenth; and on\nthe nineteenth, he directed the chiefs to meet him in Council on the\ntwentieth, at twelve o'clock. For some cause, the Indians and their\nallies appear to have been indisposed to do this, and he directed\nColonel Twiggs to seize them, and hold them prisoners; and he reported\nto the War Department that, by this movement, \"five hundred and thirteen\nIndians, and one hundred and sixty-five negroes, were secured.\"[112]\n\nOf this transaction we can only speak from the account given of it by\nGeneral Jessup. From his report, certain important facts are clearly\nunderstood. For instance, he announces to the Indians and Exiles a\nproposition to treat with them, _upon the basis of permitting them to\nremain in the country_. That, for the purpose of entering into such a\nnegotiation, they collected near Fort Jupiter; and that, without any\nattempt to negotiate, and while they were in his camp, they were\nunexpectedly seized against their will; and that Passac Micco, and\nfourteen others, escaped capture. Nor does General Jessup pretend that\none of those six hundred and seventy-eight persons _voluntarily_\nsurrendered. It is certain, that however honorable the intentions of\nGeneral Jessup were, the Indians and the Exiles were deceived, and, as\nthey believed, treacherously dealt with.\n\nThe official register of colored persons seized at Fort Jupiter,\nrepresents one hundred and fifty-one as properly belonging to the\nSeminoles, or as \"_Seminole negroes_,\" the term usually applied to the\nExiles by General Jessup and his officers; and fourteen are represented\nas the slaves of citizens of Florida. These people were soon hurried off\nto Tampa Bay, where they were confined within the pickets, under a\nstrong guard. Fort Brooke now presented to the eye of a stranger all the\nexternal appearances of a first class \"slave factory\" upon the African\ncoast. The Exiles who had been betrayed at Fort Peyton and other places,\nand not delivered over to slave-hunters, were also here; and the number\nhad so greatly increased, that many had to be sent to New Orleans for\nsafe keeping.\n\nWhen the Exiles seized at Fort Jupiter arrived at Tampa Bay, they found,\namong those already there, many old acquaintances, friends and\nrelatives, who had been taken at other places. Families, in some\ninstances long separated, were once more united; husbands, whose wives\nand children had been seized and long imprisoned at Tampa Bay, now\nrejoined their families, and were in some degree compensated for the\nmortification of having been made prisoners by treachery.\n\nBut fathers and husbands, whose children and wives were captured by the\nCreeks near Withlacoochee and other places during the previous year, now\nlooked around for their families in vain. On making inquiry, they were\ninformed their friends had been taken to Fort Pike, which had now become\na general depot for the imprisonment of Exiles.\n\nThe Indians who had been captured by this \"coup d'etat,\" were sent to\nCharleston, South Carolina, for safe keeping; and the negroes reported\nupon the registry as \"slaves of citizens of Florida,\" were without\nceremony delivered over to those who claimed to be their masters.\n\n       *       *       *       *       *\n\nWe have now reached a period of the war at which we are constrained to\nadmit our inability to give a full or accurate history of the various\ncaptures of Exiles, or of the re\u00ebnslavement of those captured.\n\nCaptain Sprague, who had the advantages of personal observation and\nexperience during the war, says that General Hernandez of the Florida\nMilitia, serving principally in the eastern part of the Territory,\n\"captured some important chiefs, and restored to citizens more than\n_three hundred negroes_ who had been captured by the Indians.\" But the\nmeans which he used for their capture is not stated.\n\nGeneral Jessup informs us, also, that Abraham, the negro chief, and two\nIndians, were sent to the Seminoles west of the Okechobee, and prevailed\nupon Alligator, and three hundred and sixty Indians and negroes, to\nsurrender to Colonel Smith and General Taylor. But what proportion of\nthis number were Exiles, we are not informed; nor are we told of the\nmeans used, or the assurances given, to induce them to surrender. It is\ncertain, that many of the chiefs alleged that the Cherokee Delegation\nassured their friends, that they would be permitted to remain in their\nown country, and that the President was desirous of making peace upon\nthose terms; and General Jessup says, that the negro chief Abraham, and\nanother negro interpreter named Auguste, gave the same information.\nAbraham had in fact dictated the supplemental treaty, entered into by\nthe delegation while in the Western Country, and was made to believe, at\nall times, that the Government would fulfill, and abide by, the terms of\nthis supplemental treaty. It was on this conviction that he acted, and\nhe appears never to have doubted the good faith of the Executive until\nhe actually arrived in the Western Country.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIV.\n\nGREAT DIFFICULTIES INTERRUPT THE PROGRESS OF THE WAR.\n\n     John Ross, the Cherokee Chief, demands the release of Wild Cat and\n     other Chiefs--Answer of Secretary of War--Mr. Everett's resolution\n     in Congress--Secretary's Report--General Jessup's answer--Agitation\n     in Congress--Hon. John Quincy Adams--Hon. William Slade--Difficulty\n     with Creek Warriors--The Exiles who had been captured by the\n     Creeks--Arrangements for emigrating both Indians and\n     Exiles--Indians at Charleston, and Negroes at Tampa Bay,\n     transported to Fort Pike--Families again united--Sympathy\n     excited--General Gaines becomes engaged in their behalf--His noble\n     conduct--Embarrassment of Commissioner of Indian Affairs, and of\n     the Secretary of War--Singular arrangement--Discrepancies\n     unexplained--A Slave-dealer professes to purchase ninety of the\n     Exiles, in order to relieve the Government--Appoints his\n     brother-in-law an Agent to receive them--Department furnishes the\n     necessary vouchers--Sudden change of policy--Sixty Exiles claimed\n     by a Slave-dealer named Love--General Gaines appears on behalf of\n     Exiles--His able defense--Court renders judgment discharging\n     Rule--Thirty-six Exiles released by Love--Lieutenant Reynolds with\n     the Indians, and all but these thirty-six Exiles, take passage for\n     Fort Gibson.\n\n\nWhile General Jessup was engaged in carrying out the designs of the\nAdministration by artifice, and by force, events of a serious character\nwere transpiring at Washington which demanded the attention of both the\nExecutive and himself. John Ross, principal chief of the Cherokee\nNation, learning the manner in which Osceola, Wild Cat, and other\nSeminole chiefs and warriors, had been betrayed and seized, while\nvisiting General Jessup under a flag of truce, by advice and at the\nsuggestion of the Cherokee Delegation, wrote an able and very spirited\nletter to the Secretary of War, demanding the release of the prisoners\nthus captured in violation of the principles of civilized warfare.\n\nThe Secretary attempted a vindication of General Jessup, and an\ninteresting correspondence followed, marked with great ability, in which\nRoss, with much force, exhibits what he seemed to regard as the\nperfidious treatment to which the Seminoles had been subjected, while\nacting under the advice of himself and his country-men, and protected by\nthe flag of truce, which had ever been recognized and held sacred as the\ninviolable emblem of peace. This was the first exposure of the manner in\nwhich this disastrous war had been conducted. Up to that time no member\nof Congress, or Executive officer, appears to have uttered an objection\nor protest against the war, or against the manner in which it was\ncarried on. Ross was at the city of Washington, and mingled freely with\nmembers of Congress, and in private conversations called their attention\nto the facts stated.[113]\n\nMr. Everett, of Vermont,[114] a man of great experience and ability,\nmoved a resolution (March 21) in the House of Representatives, calling\non the Secretary of War for such information as he possessed touching\nthe capture of Indians, while visiting the American army under flags of\ntruce. The resolution was adopted, and, in reply, the Secretary of War\n(April 11) transmitted the answer of General Jessup, in which he rests\nhis justification, upon the bad faith which, he alleges, the Indians had\npreviously exhibited towards the United States. This answer occupies\nsome fifteen documentary pages, most of which are filled with the facts\nalready known to the reader.\n\nAfter the report of the Secretary of War had been printed, Mr. Everett\ngave his views upon the facts, in a speech which attracted much\nattention in the country. The people were already turning their\nattention to the subject of slavery. Petitions were sent to Congress\ncalling on that body to abolish the institution within the District of\nColumbia. The Hon. John Quincy Adams had thrown the weight of his\ninfluence in behalf of the right of petition, and was known to be\nopposed to the institution. Hon. William Slade, a member of the House of\nRepresentatives from Vermont, had openly avowed his deep and heart-felt\nsympathy with the Abolitionists, who were striving to direct the popular\nmind to the crimes of the \"_peculiar institution_,\" as slavery was then\ncalled.\n\nIt was evident, that a full exposure of the causes which led to the\nFlorida war, and of the manner in which it had been prosecuted, would\ntend to defeat the Democratic candidate in the next Presidential\ncampaign. It was therefore clearly the policy of that party, and of the\nAdministration, to maintain as great a degree of silence as possible\nupon all these subjects.\n\nAmong the early difficulties presented to the consideration of the War\nDepartment, was the settlement with the Creek warriors who had served\nunder the contract made by order of General Jessup, in 1836, to give\nthem a certain gross amount in cash, and all the _plunder they could\ncapture_--which General Jessup and the Creeks understood to embrace\nnegroes, as well as horses and cattle.\n\nThe General, by his order, had directed eight thousand dollars to be\npaid to them, and twenty dollars for each negro belonging to citizens,\nwho had been captured by them and delivered over to the claimants.\n\nThis disposal of the public treasure by an individual, was most clearly\nunauthorized, either by law or by the constitution; yet the order had\nbeen approved by the Executive, and had been made the act of the\nPresident, who thus assumed the moral and political responsibility\nattached to this gross violation of law, and of the Constitution.\n\nThe question how this charge upon the treasury was to be met, seems to\nhave borne heavily upon the mind of the Commissioner of Indian Affairs,\nand he expressed this difficulty to General Jessup. That officer, being\nless familiar with matters of finance than with those of a strictly\nmilitary character, replied, that the amount might with propriety be\ncharged to the annuities due the Seminoles; but as that fund was under\nthe supervision of Congress, it would not do to charge it over to that\nappropriation, lest it should create agitation.\n\nAnother difficulty was, as to the disposal of the negroes themselves.\nThey were now said to be the \"_property of the United States_;\" and the\nquestion very naturally arose, what shall be done with them? This\nquestion was also propounded to General Jessup by the Commissioner of\nIndian Affairs. The General replied, that he thought it best to send\nthem to Africa, for the benefit of civilization on that coast. But that\ncould not be done except by appropriations made by Congress; and it was\nfeared that, to ask Congress for an appropriation of that character,\nmight lead to the disclosure of unpleasant facts.[115]\n\nIn the meantime, arrangements were made to send the prisoners, both\nIndians and Exiles, to the Western Country, without any particular\ndecision in regard to the ninety negroes captured by the Creek warriors,\nand sent to Fort Pike as the property of the United States, and fed and\nclothed at the public expense for more than a year.\n\nAgreeably to orders from the War Department, General Jessup detailed\nLieutenant J. G. Reynolds to superintend the emigration, as disbursing\nagent, and W. G. Freeman as an assistant. These appointments were\napproved by the Department; and transports were engaged to take such\nprisoners as were at Charleston, South Carolina, around the peninsula of\nFlorida to Tampa Bay, on the western coast, and thence to New Orleans.\n\nThere were at that time many negroes at Tampa Bay, intentionally\nseparated from the Indians, who had been sent, at the same time, to\nCharleston. Major Zantzinger wrote the Commissioner of Indian Affairs,\nto know how these negroes at Tampa Bay were to be disposed of. The\nCommissioner immediately answered by letter, directed to Lieutenant\nReynolds, saying, \"I have to instruct you, that all of those negroes\nmentioned by Major Zantzinger, which are the property of the\nSeminoles,[116] are to be received with, and to constitute a portion of,\nthe emigrating party for all purposes of transportation and subsistence.\n* * * * You will consider it your duty to call at Tampa Bay, receive\nthis party, and transport it to the West _with the detachment now at New\nOrleans_.\"\n\nThis direction required Lieutenant Reynolds to transport the ninety\nExiles, sent to New Orleans on the second of June, 1837, to the Western\nCountry; for they constituted a part of \"the detachment at New Orleans,\"\nwhich he was directed to transport West. They had been captured while\nfleeing from our army, and of course were nearly all of them women and\nchildren, who, by the fortunes of war, had been separated from their\nhusbands, and fathers, and brothers, that were left behind in the Indian\nCountry. Those husbands, brothers and fathers, were among the first to\ncapitulate in order to rejoin their families from whom they had thus\nbeen separated. Many Exiles had been betrayed and seized at Fort Peyton.\nSome had surrendered at Volusi; others had capitulated at Fort Jupiter;\nothers had come in and given themselves up at different posts: and all\nthese were assembled for transportation at \"Tampa Bay,\" where they\nawaited arrangements for sending them to the Western Country.\n\nMajor General Gaines was at that time commanding the south-western\ndivision of the army of the United States; and Fort Pike was situated\nwithin his military district. Lieutenant Reynolds had taken the\nprisoners at Charleston on board the transports; had sailed around the\npeninsula of Florida; called at Tampa Bay; had taken on board the\nnegroes assembled at that point, and had reached Fort Pike.\n\nMembers of families long separated were now united. Fathers embraced\ntheir wives and children, whom they had not seen for more than a year;\nbrothers and sons embraced their sisters and mothers; and all exhibited\nthose deep sympathies of the human heart, which constitute the higher\nand holier emotions of our nature. The officers and soldiers who\nwitnessed this scene could not but feel interested in these people, many\nof whose ancestors had fled from oppression generations previously, and\nwho, for more than half a century, had been subjected to almost constant\npersecution. It was undoubtedly owing to these circumstances, that so\nmany of the officers of our army became deeply interested in securing\ntheir freedom.\n\nMajor Zantzinger was in command at Fort Pike; but he could only act\nunder the direction of his superior officers. Lieutenant Reynolds,\ntherefore, applied to Major General Gaines for orders to Major\nZantzinger to deliver the Exiles at Fort Pike to him for emigration.\nFrom the peculiar language used in this order, it is most evident that\nGeneral Gaines expected some effort would be made to prevent the\nemigration of the Exiles, then resident at Fort Pike. The order is so\nunusual in its tone and language, that we insert it, as follows:\n\n     \"To Major Zantzinger, or the officer commanding at Fort Pike, or\n     the officer who has charge of the slaves, or other servants,\n     belonging to, or lately in possession of, Seminole Indians, now in\n     charge of Lieutenant Reynolds, destined to the Arkansas: You will,\n     on receipt hereof, deliver to the said Reynolds all such slaves or\n     servants belonging to, or claimed by, or lately in possession of,\n     the said Seminole Indians to be conducted by him in their\n     movements to the Arkansas River, where the Indians, or their\n     slaves or servants, are to be permanently located and settled:\n     taking triplicate receipts for said slaves or servants, one of\n     which will be forwarded to the undersigned.\n\nEDMUND P. GAINES,\n\n_Maj. Gen. U. S. A., Commanding_.\"\n\n\n\nThe above order was dated on the twenty-first of March. The next day\nLieutenant Reynolds inclosed a copy to the Commissioner of Indian\nAffairs, saying, he should commence his voyage West with the emigrants,\nand adding, \"It is not my intention to remove the negroes from Fort Pike\nuntil ready for departure, as I am convinced that many individuals with\nfraudulent claims are in a state of readiness, and only waiting the\narrival of the negroes in this city (New Orleans) to carry their object\ninto effect. The measures I shall adopt will bar their intention.\"\n\nThis letter explains the reason of the precise and specific terms in\nwhich the order of General Gaines was expressed. It is due to the memory\nof General Gaines, and to the character of Lieutenant Reynolds, that\ntheir determined efforts to preserve the liberties of these people, so\nfar as they were able, should find a place in history. The war had been\ncommenced and prosecuted for the purpose of seizing and returning to\nbondage all those people whose ancestors had once fled from oppression.\nIt was the avowed policy of the Administration to prevent these ninety\nExiles, who had been captured by the Creek Indians, from going to the\nWestern Country, preferring to have them consigned to slavery in Georgia\nor Florida, rather than enjoy freedom in the new homes assigned to the\nIndians in the West. This feeling had encouraged desperate men to make\nunfounded claims to their persons: and it should be recorded to the\nhonor of many of our officers, that they were active and vigilant in\ntheir efforts to defeat these piratical claims, and the exertions of the\nPresident and heads of the various Executive Departments, to consign\nthese people to interminable bondage. In order to do justice on this\nsubject, it is necessary to permit all concerned to speak for\nthemselves, so far as convenience will allow. To carry out this object,\nthe reader will excuse our frequent quotations from official documents.\n\nOn the twenty-sixth of March, Lieutenant Reynolds wrote the Commissioner\nof Indian Affairs, dating his letter at \"New Barracks,\" below New\nOrleans, saying, \"The Indian negroes will be received at Fort Pike, and\nbrought to this place, via the Mississippi River. This course was\nadopted with the concurrence of General Gaines. Everything will be in\nreadiness to embark soon as the boat arrives. General Gaines has\ndirected that the guard under the direction of Lieutenant Wheaton shall\nproceed with me.\"\n\nMajor Zantzinger, who commanded at Fort Pike, appears to have felt some\ndelicacy at delivering up the negroes on the order of General Gaines,\nand, with those impressions, wrote General Jessup, inquiring as to that\npoint. He received an answer, dated seventh of April, approving his\ncourse, and saying, \"the removal of the negroes was _proper_; they were\neither _free_, or the property of the Indians.\"\n\nAll these proceedings were reported to the proper Department at\nWashington. About the time, or soon after, they would naturally reach\nthat city, William Armstrong, Acting Superintendent of the Indians in\nthe Western Territory, evidently in the joint service of our Government\nand of the Creek Indians, addressed a note to the Commissioner of Indian\nAffairs, dated at Washington City, April twenty-third, 1838, saying,\n\"When General Jessup called upon volunteers to go to Florida, he\npromised them all the _property_ they could capture. Accordingly, the\nCreeks captured near _one hundred negroes_, which they left in\npossession of the officers of the United States. _What has become of\nthese negroes?_ Will they receive them, or their value, as promised?\"\n\nThe difficulty attending the transformation of men into chattels now\nincreased so much, that the Commissioner of Indian Affairs addressed a\nletter to the Hon. Secretary of War, which is so characteristic of the\nmanner in which the administration of our Government was then conducted,\nthat we give the letter in full:\n\n\n\"WAR DEPARTMENT,\n\n\"_Office of Indian Affairs_, May 1, 1838.\n\n     \"SIR: I have the honor to submit for the consideration and decision\n     of the Department a question that has been presented by the\n     Superintendent of the Western Territory, (Captain Armstrong.)\n\n     \"In September last, General Jessup advised the Department that he\n     had purchased from the Creek warriors all the negroes (about eighty\n     in number), captured by them, for $8,000, and this purchase was\n     approved on the seventh of October. At a subsequent date, he wrote\n     that he had supplied Lieutenant Searle with funds, and directed him\n     to make the payment. It is believed, however, that the warriors\n     refused to take the sum named, Lieutenant Searle having made no\n     such payment, and the delegation here asserting that they never\n     received it. It is now asked, whether they will be permitted to\n     take the negroes, or be paid their value? It was suggested by\n     General Jessup, that the consideration for the captives would be a\n     proper charge on the Seminole annuity. But this would deprive the\n     friendly portion, who have emigrated, of what they are justly, and\n     by law, entitled to, and to a certain extent would be paying the\n     Creeks with their own money; for the fourth Article of the Treaty\n     with the Seminoles, of May ninth, 1832, provides, that 'the\n     annuities then granted shall be added to the Creek annuities, and\n     the whole amount be so divided that the chiefs and warriors of the\n     Seminole Indians may receive their equitable proportion of the same\n     as members of the Creek confederation.' Independently of this\n     difficulty, I would respectfully suggest, whether there are not\n     _other objections to the purchase of these negroes by the United\n     States_? It seems to me, that a proposition to Congress _to\n     appropriate money to pay for them, and for their transportation to\n     Africa, could its authority for that course be obtained, or for any\n     other disposition of them_, WOULD OCCASION GREAT AND EXTENSIVE\n     EXCITEMENT. Such a relation assumed by the United States, for\n     however laudable an object, would, it appears probable, place the\n     country in no enviable attitude, especially at this juncture, when\n     the _public mind here and elsewhere it so sensitive upon the\n     subject of slavery_. The alternative would seem to be, to deliver\n     the negroes to the Creeks, as originally agreed on. The subject\n     involves so many delicate considerations, that I respectfully\n     invite your attention to it, and your direction as to the answer to\n     be given to the delegation now in the city. As early a decision of\n     this question as practicable, is very desirable: the Indians\n     intending to leave this place in four or five days, and being\n     anxious that this matter should be disposed of before they go.\n\n\"Very respectfully,\n\nYour most obedient servant,\n\nC. A. HARRIS, _Commissioner_.\n\nCaptain S. COOPER, Acting Sec'y of War.\"\n\n     \"P. S.--If it should be determined to deliver them to the Creeks, I\n     would suggest, as the opinion of this office, that it would be\n     _impolitic for them to be taken to the country West_, and that so\n     far as the Department may of right interfere in regard to the\n     ultimate disposition, _it should endeavor to have it effected_ IN\n     SOME OTHER MODE.\n\nC. A. H.\"\n\n\n\nIt is no part of our duty to comment on these proceedings; yet we are\nconstrained to say, that no historian has, or can explain the reason of\ndelay on the part of the Creek Indians, in regard to their claim to\nthese people, for more than an entire year, upon any principles of\nconsistent action. General Jessup said, in his official communications,\nthey _had received their pay_, and that \"the negroes _were the property\nof the Government_;\" and the Department had approved his whole course on\nthis subject. The Creeks, so far as we can learn, left the country and\nwent West, perfectly satisfied. This Delegation had been some months in\nWashington, and, as the Commissioner of Indian Affairs says, were to\nleave in four or five days; when, for the first time, they mentioned the\nsubject, although the negroes had been detained from them, as they\nallege, in direct violation of their contract. They appear to have\nrested satisfied until difficulties from other quarters were presented\nto the Administration. And these letters may all easily be explained, as\nthe carrying out of a previous understanding between these officers and\nthe Creek Indians. However that may be, the Commissioner of Indian\nAffairs wrote Captain Armstrong, Superintendent of the Western\nTerritory, as follows:\n\n\n\"WAR DEPARTMENT,\n\n\"_Office of Indian Affairs_, May 5, 1838.\n\n     \"SIR: The Secretary of War has directed that the negroes belonging\n     to the Seminoles, and captured by the warriors in Florida, shall be\n     placed at the disposal of the Delegation now in this city. But\n     before this can be carried into effect, it will be necessary to be\n     satisfied that the warriors have not received the $8,000 promised\n     in the agreement with General Jessup; to ascertain accurately their\n     number and identity, and the claims of citizens upon any of them.\n     For all to which such claims can be established, $20 each will be\n     allowed. From the information now here, the number is supposed to\n     be between sixty and seventy, the original number having been\n     reduced by sickness. All the facts herein indicated will be\n     required as early as practicable; but some time must necessarily\n     elapse. It is the opinion of the Department, that it will be\n     impolitic to take these negroes West, and that they should be\n     otherwise disposed of. Any arrangement the Delegation may make\n     respecting them, and submit to this office, will be sanctioned, and\n     instructions given for such action as may be proper on the part of\n     the Government.\n\n\"Very, &c., C. A. HARRIS.\n\nCapt. WM. ARMSTRONG,\n\nWashington.\"\n\n\n\nOne feature in these communications stands out prominently to the view\nof the reader: the number of these victims appears to have undergone\nconstant diminution. General Jessup reported the number sent to Fort\nPike at _ninety_. In his previous letter, addressed to the Secretary of\nWar, Commissioner Harris states the number at eighty; and in this\ncommunication, written four days subsequently, he states the number to\nbe between sixty and seventy; while the official registry shows there\nwas one hundred and three--of whom some, however, undoubtedly died.\n\nIf the honorable Secretary of War intended these people should be\ndelivered over to the Creek Indians as their _property_, it would be\ndifficult to understand by what law he should himself attempt to control\nthem, in the subsequent disposition of their legalized chattels, or by\nwhat authority he should object to their going West.\n\nIt will however be seen that one point yet remained undecided. The\nnegroes were not to be delivered until it was ascertained that the\nCreeks had _not_ received the eight thousand dollars, agreeably to the\norder of General Jessup in September, 1837.\n\nFortunately, a Lieutenant Sloan, who had acted as a disbursing agent of\nthe United States, was at that precise time in Washington City. He\nstated to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, in a letter dated May\nsixth, being the day after this decision of the Secretary of War,\nassuring him that he had learned _from Lieutenant Searle himself that\nthe Indians refused_ to accept the eight thousand dollars for their\ninterest in the negroes. These statements constituted a series of\nsupposed facts, which appears to have been regarded as necessary to\nauthorize the subsequent proceedings.\n\nThis evidence was, accordingly, deemed satisfactory; and the Creek\nIndians were now declared to be the owners of these ninety Exiles, under\nthe original contract made between them and General Jessup, in 1836:\nthus abrogating the order of General Jessup, No. 175, and setting aside\nthe approval of that order by the Department of War itself--which was\ndated the seventh of October, 1837--leaving the United States to sustain\nthe loss incurred by feeding and clothing the prisoners, and guarding\nthem for thirteen months.\n\nAt this time a slave-dealer by the name of James C. Watson, said to\nreside in Georgia, happened to be also at the seat of Government, as was\ncommon for Southern gentlemen during the sessions of Congress. To this\nman the officers of Government now applied for aid, in extricating\nthemselves from the difficulty into which they had been brought by this\nslave-dealing transaction. Even the Secretary of War is said to have\nencouraged Watson to purchase those negroes of the Creek Indians.[117]\nBy request of these public functionaries, and at their instance, Mr.\nWatson declares he was induced to purchase the negroes, and to give\nbetween fourteen and fifteen thousand dollars for them.[118] It was\nperhaps the heaviest purchase of slaves made in the city of Washington\nduring that year, and certainly the most dignified transaction in human\nflesh that ever took place at the capital of our nation, or of any other\ncivilized people; inasmuch as the high officers of this enlightened and\nChristian confederation of States constituted a negotiating party to\nthis important sale of human beings.\n\nThe purchase appears to have taken place on the seventh of May; and\nWatson, being unable to go immediately to New Orleans, authorized his\nbrother-in-law, Nathaniel F. Collins of Alabama, as his agent and\nattorney, to repair to that city and take possession of the prisoners.\nYet the whole business appears to have been carried on in the name of\nthe Creek Indians.\n\nOn the eighth of May, five persons, styling themselves \"chiefs, head-men\nand delegates of the Creek Tribe of Indians,\" filed with the\nCommissioner of Indian Affairs a request, stating that they had\nappointed Nathaniel F. Collins, Esq., of Alabama, their agent and\nattorney, to demand and receive from General Jessup the negro slaves\nwhich the Creek warriors had captured in Florida, under their agreement\nwith that officer, made in September, 1836, and requesting the\nDepartment to furnish the proper order for obtaining possession of the\nslaves from the officer having them in charge. This request was\ncommunicated to the Secretary of War the next day, by the Commissioner\nof Indian Affairs, and constitutes a part of the record; and, coming\nfrom that department of government most implicated in this slave-dealing\ntransaction, we place it before the reader:\n\n\n\"WAR DEPARTMENT,\n\n_Office of Indian Affairs_, May 9, 1838.\n\n     SIR: The decision made a few days since, requesting that the\n     negroes captured by the Creek warriors in Florida, should, in\n     compliance with the engagement of General Jessup, be delivered to\n     the Delegation now here, has been communicated to them with the\n     intimation that, when they had determined what disposition would be\n     made of them, and communicated information of the same to this\n     Department, the necessary orders would be issued. In a\n     communication just received from the Delegation, they state they\n     have appointed Nathaniel F. Collins, of Alabama, their attorney in\n     fact to receive the negroes. I have the honor to request that an\n     order be issued to the commanding officer at Fort Pike; to Major\n     Isaac Clark, at New Orleans; to the commanding officer in Florida,\n     and to any other officer who may have charge of them, to deliver to\n     Mr. Collins all the negroes in question. He will, of course, hold\n     them subject to the lawful claims of all white persons. Abraham and\n     his family should be excepted, in consequence of a promise made by\n     General Jessup. The officers should be instructed to use due\n     caution, so as to deliver only those captured by the Creeks. It is\n     proper to remark, that it appears from a letter received from\n     Lieutenant Sloan, that these Indians refused to receive the $8,000,\n     offered them under the direction of General Jessup, for their\n     interest in these negroes.\n\nVery respectfully,\n\nYour most obedient servant,\n\nC. A. HARRIS.\n\nCapt. S. COOPER, Acting Sec. of War.\"\n\n\n\nOn the same day, Mr. Collins was furnished with written instructions,\nwhich, being also important, are presented to the reader:\n\n\n\"WAR DEPARTMENT,\n\n\"_Office of Indian Affairs_, May 9, 1838.\n\n     \"SIR: Having been notified by the Creek Delegation that they have\n     appointed you their agent and attorney in fact, to receive the\n     negroes captured by their warriors in Florida, which, by the\n     decision of the Secretary of War, are to be delivered up to them,\n     in conformity to the agreement made with them by General Jessup, I\n     have the honor to transmit herewith the copy of a communication to\n     the Secretary of War on the subject, which has received his\n     approval. Orders will be given to the officers therein named to\n     carry the measure into effect, in conformity to the recommendation.\n     Captain Morrison, Superintendent of Seminole Emigration at Tampa\n     Bay, and Lieutenant Reynolds, engaged in removing a party of the\n     same, at New Orleans, have been instructed to assist and co\u00f6perate\n     in the matter. Herewith you will receive the copy of a list of\n     negroes captured by General Jessup, which, it is believed, embraces\n     the negroes to which the Creeks are entitled; but as this is not\n     certain, much caution should be used in identifying them. It is\n     supposed that all these negroes now alive are at Fort Pike; but\n     some of them may be at Tampa Bay, or other places: it will be for\n     you to find them. No expense of any nature whatever, growing out of\n     this matter, will be paid by the United States.\n\nC. A. HARRIS, _Comm'r._\n\nN. F. COLLINS,\n\nWashington, D. C.\"\n\n\n\nPreparations being now perfected, and the whole matter being fully\nunderstood, Mr. Collins left Washington on the following morning,\nprepared to bring those fathers, and mothers, and children, back to\nservitude in Georgia, from which their ancestors had fled nearly a\nhundred years previously; and this nefarious work was thus encouraged\nand sanctioned by our Government.\n\nOf these movements the Exiles were ignorant. Many hearts were moved in\nsympathy for them, and many of our military officers were active in\ntheir endeavors to defeat the machinations of the President and the War\nDepartment.\n\nLieutenant Reynolds found it necessary to return to Florida before\nleaving New Orleans with his party of Emigrants. While he was absent,\nthe efforts of slaveholders to re\u00ebnslave these people appeared to\nincrease, and they became more bold, although Collins had not yet\nappeared, clothed with the authority of Government, to effect their\nenslavement.\n\nGeneral Gaines, commanding the Western Military District of the United\nStates, and residing at New Orleans, as if premonished of the arrival of\nthis national slave catcher, issued his peremptory order (April 29),\ndirecting Major Clark, Acting Quarter-Master at New Orleans, to make\narrangements for the _immediate_ embarkation and emigration of the\nSeminole Indians and _black prisoners of war_, at that time in\nLouisiana, to the place of their destination on the Arkansas River, near\nFort Gibson.\n\nMajor Clark being thus placed in charge of the prisoners for the purpose\nof emigrating them, at once informed the Commissioner of Indian Affairs,\nthat claims were \"made for about seventy of the Seminole negroes, and\nthe courts here have issued their warrants to take them. The United\nStates District Attorney has been consulted. He gives it as his opinion,\nthat the Sheriff must be allowed to serve the process. It appears they\nare claims from Georgia, purchased from _Creek Indians_. No movement of\nthe Indians or negroes can be made at present. The Indians are almost in\na state of mutiny.\"\n\nThis state of feeling arose from these attempts again to separate the\nIndians and negroes. Many of them were intermarried: they had been\nseparated; their families broken up, but were now reunited, and they\ndetermined to die rather than be again separated. The Exiles had also\nfought boldly beside the Indians; they had encountered dangers together,\nand had become attached to each other; and soon as the subject of\nsurrendering the Exiles to bondage was named, the Indians became\nenraged, threatening violence and death to those who should attempt\nagain to separate them from the Exiles.\n\nThe claimants mentioned by Major Clark, were from _Georgia_. The pirates\nwho robbed E-con-chattimico and Walker of their slaves and seized the\nExiles resident with those chiefs, as stated in a former chapter, were\nfrom Georgia. Watson, the more dignified dealer in human flesh, and\nacting in accordance with the advice of the Secretary of War, was also\nfrom Georgia; and all these claims were said to be derived from Creek\nIndians, who, as we have seen, professed to own all the Exiles who fled\nfrom Georgia after the close of the Revolution, and prior to 1802,\ntogether with their descendants.\n\nInformation, respecting these difficulties of re\u00ebnslaving the Exiles,\nreached the authorities at Washington, and created great embarrassment.\nThe War Department appears never to have anticipated that negroes, who\nwere already prisoners of war, would find friends or means to awaken the\nsympathy of others. But it was clear that any litigation would make the\npublic acquainted with the facts.\n\nIt will be recollected that on the tenth of May, the Commissioner of\nIndian Affairs wrote an order, directed to General Jessup, to deliver up\nnear one hundred of these Exiles to Collins, the Agent of Watson, and\ntwo days later--that is, on the twelfth of May--he wrote Thomas Slidell,\nDistrict Attorney of the United States at New Orleans, saying, \"It is\nrepresented to this Department, that the emigration of the Seminoles,\nnow near New Orleans, has been impeded by claims set up to some of their\nnegroes. I am directed by the Secretary of War to request that you will\ngive the Indians your advice and assistance, and by all proper and legal\nmeans protect them from injustice and from harrassing and improper\ninterferences with their property and persons. It is of the highest\nimportance that, if possible, no impediments should be suffered to be\nthrown in the way of their speedy conveyance to their country, west of\nArkansas.\"\n\nIt is a historical curiosity, that the Secretary of War should so often\nchange his policy. He had, as the reader is aware, exerted his influence\nto prevent those Exiles, who had been captured by the Creeks, from going\nWest.\n\nOn the fifth of May, Commissioner Harris declared--\"_it is the opinion\nof the Department that it will be impolitic to take these negroes\nWest_;\" and on the ninth, acting under the direction of the Secretary of\nWar, he furnished Mr. Collins with authority to demand and receive these\npeople, and instructions were also issued \"to the officer commanding at\nFort Pike; to Major Isaac Clark at New Orleans; to the commanding\nofficer at Florida, and to any other officer who may have the negroes in\ncharge,\" to deliver them to Mr. Collins; while three days afterwards he\nassures Mr. Slidell, as before stated, \"It is of the _highest importance\nthat, if possible, no impediments should be suffered to be thrown in the\nway of their speedy conveyance to their country, west of Arkansas_.\"\nThis letter to Mr. Slidell was inclosed in another of the same date,\naddressed to Major Clark, as follows:\n\n     \"SIR: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt to-day of your\n     letter of the third instant.\n\n     \"The enclosed copy of a letter of this date to the United States\n     District Attorney will show you what measures have been adopted in\n     relation to the claims set up to the Seminole negroes. This is all\n     that this Department can do in this matter.\n\n     \"_It is very much to be regretted, that anything has occurred to\n     prevent the speedy emigration of these Indians._ I will be greatly\n     obliged to you, should no emigrating agent be at New Orleans, to\n     give all the aid in your power in removing the difficulties which\n     are thrown in their way.\"\n\nWhile the Executive officers at Washington, the Creek Indians, and the\nslave-dealer Watson, were arranging their contracts and perfecting\ntheir plans for enslaving those Exiles, who had been captured with the\nassistance of the Creek warriors, an important and most spirited contest\nwas progressing in New Orleans.\n\nBefore one of the courts of the State of Louisiana, a slave-dealer by\nthe name of Love, claimed title to the bodies, the bones and muscles,\nthe blood and sinews, of some sixty of these persons, held by the United\nStates as _prisoners of war_. They had been captured by our troops as\nhostiles; had been held for thirteen months as prisoners of war; had\nbeen fed, and clothed, and guarded, at the expense of the people of the\nUnited States: but they were now claimed as the _property_ of Love. This\nabsurdity was presented before an enlightened court as a grave question\nof international law; and a determined effort was put forth before that\nState tribunal to change the law of nations; to modify the law of Nature\nand of Nature's God, so far as to transform men into chattels, and\ndeclare these prisoners of war to be the property of their fellow men.\n\nLove demanded the Exiles of General Gaines, who was in actual command of\nthe Western Military District of the United States, and by virtue of his\noffice held control of the Exiles while in his district. Bred to the\nprofession of arms, he had made himself familiar with those principles\nof natural, of international, law which point out the rights of\nbelligerents, whether they belong to the victorious or the vanquished\nnation. Being advised that efforts were making to get possession of\nthese Exiles for the purpose of re\u00ebnslaving them, he indicated to the\nofficer in command at the barracks the propriety of retaining possession\nof them as he would of other _prisoners of war_.\n\nOn the second of May, the Sheriff of New Orleans appeared at the\nbarracks, and desired to pass the line of sentinels for the purpose of\nserving his process; but the sentinel, punctilious to his duty, refused\nto let him enter. The Sheriff then returned his writ with the following\nindorsement thereon:\n\n     \"Received May second, 1838, and demanded the within slaves of\n     General Gaines, the defendant, who answered me, that he never had\n     the within described _slaves_ in his possession, or under his\n     control. I found the slaves at the barracks of the United States,\n     but the officers in charge of the same refused to deliver them to\n     me. Returned May eighth, 1838.\n\nFREDERICK BUISSON, _Sheriff_.\"\n\n\n\nThe Exiles still remained in the barracks under the officers in charge\nof them; and on the ninth of May, General Gaines sued out a rule to set\naside the order of sequestration upon the grounds, \"that the negroes\nwere '_prisoners of war_' of the United States, taken in combat with the\nSeminole Indians; that the control of the United States over said\nnegroes, and their right to the control of such negroes as _prisoners of\nwar_, could not be taken away by the sequestration issued.\"\n\nThus was the manhood of these colored people asserted by this military\nofficer of the United States at that day, when few members of Congress\nwould have hazarded their reputation by the avowal of similar doctrines.\nTwenty-three years previously, as the reader has already been informed,\nGeneral Gaines gave to the War Department notice that \"fugitives and\noutlaws had taken possession of a fort on the Appalachicola River.\"\nTwenty-two years previously, he had detailed General Clinch, with his\nregiment and five hundred Creek warriors, to destroy \"Blount's Fort,\"\nand take the fugitive slaves and return them to their owners. He had\nonly two years previously gone to Florida, marched into the Indian\nTerritory, and fought them bravely for several days. He now saw these\nExiles and Indians in a different situation. He witnessed their\nattachment to each other as parents and children, as husbands and wives,\nas members of the human family, and his sympathy was aroused--his\nhumanity was awakened. His finer feelings being called forth, he\npossessed the firmness, the independence, to act according to the\ndictates of his conscience and judgment.[119]\n\nHe assumed the responsibility of paying costs and damages, caused\nhimself to be made defendant in the case, and, having obtained a rule on\nthe sheriff to show cause why the negroes should not be delivered as\nprisoners of war to him, as commander of that Military District, he\nappeared in person at the bar of the court, and ably vindicated the\nrights of Government, of himself, and of the prisoners.\n\n\"The laws (said he) of the United States authorize the late and existing\nwar against the Seminole nation of Indians, and against all persons in\ntheir service. The negroes claimed by the plaintiff were found in the\nservice of the Indians, speaking the same language, and, like the\ninhabitants of all savage nations, aiding and assisting in the war. They\nwere captured and taken by the United States forces _as prisoners of\nwar_, and they are now in charge of a United States officer, Lieutenant\nReynolds, acting pursuant to the orders of the President of the United\nStates, directing him to superintend their transportation from the\ntheatre of war in Florida, to a place set apart for their location, west\nof the State of Arkansas, _as prisoners of war_, as well as servants of\nthe Seminole Indians, who are also _prisoners of war_.\n\n\"The laws of war, as embraced in the works of Brynkershoeck, Vattel and\nWheaton, clearly sanction the principle, that all persons taken in\nbattle, or who may be forced to surrender, whether officers, soldiers,\nor followers of the enemy's army, _are prisoners of war_. * * *\n\n\"Among savage nations, it is universally known and admitted, that in war\nthey have no _non-combatants_, excepting only such as are physically\nincapable of wielding arms. Every man, without regard to age or color;\nevery boy able to fire a gun, or wield a hatchet, or an arrow, is a\n_warrior_. And every woman is a laborer, in the collection and\npreparation of subsistence and clothing for the warriors: all are\ntherefore liable, when captured in a state of hostility, to be treated\n_as prisoners of war_.\"\n\nHe declared himself \"lawlessly taxed with this investigation, and\nlawlessly threatened with heavy damages and costs, and forced to be\ndefendant, without any legal or rational grounds of action against him.\nI am (said he) authorized, in virtue of my official station as Major\nGeneral, commanding the Western Division of the Army of the United\nStates of America, to serve them honestly and faithfully against their\nenemies and opposers, whomsoever, and to obey the orders of the\nPresident of the United States, etc. Under this official pledge, I deem\nit my duty to afford every officer of the army whatever facilities may\nbe necessary and proper, to enable them to perform whatever duty is\nconfided to them by the President of the United States. In pursuance of\nthis authority, I ordered Major Clark to furnish transportation, for\nenabling Lieutenant Reynolds, and the officers on duty with him, to\nconvey the prisoners of war to the place of their destination in the\nWestern Country.\"\n\n\"But it seems that the counsel for the claimant has flattered himself\nthat I should make the most convenient and accommodating defendant\nimaginable. I was expected to take _the responsibility_ of doing\nwhatever the voracious claimant might desire, without coming into this\nhonorable court. I take leave to apprise the court, for the benefit of\nall concerned, that I have never hesitated to assume the responsibility\nof _doing my duty_, or of doing _justice_; but I have not yet learned,\nwhile acting in my official capacity on oath, to take the responsibility\nof doing that which is _repugnant to law, unjust and iniquitous_, as I\nverily believe any favor shown to this claim would be.\"\n\n\"The court appears to labor under the impression, that the negroes in\nquestion were captured by the Seminole Indians, in the course of their\nhostile incursions upon our frontier inhabitants. _Is this the fact?_ I\nwill assume, for the learned counsel of the claimant, that he _will\nnever have the temerity to assert that they are among the number taken\nfrom our frontier inhabitants in the present, or in any former war_.\"\n\nThe gallant General, as well as some other well informed officers,\nappears to have been conscious of the real character of these Exiles, as\nwill have been noticed in his last remark, assuring the court, that they\nwere _never captured from the white people_ \"in the present, or in _any\nformer war_.\"\n\nThe ground which he assumed, that the captives were prisoners of war,\nsubject to the orders of the Executive, was so self-evidently true that\nit could not be met or overthrown, by reason or by argument.\n\nHis honor the Judge, in delivering his opinion discharging the rule,\ndisregarded all claims to right on the part of the Exiles. They being\nblack, under the laws of Louisiana, were presumed to be slaves to some\nperson; and he spoke with exultation of the fact, that neither General\nGaines nor the United States had claimed them as _slaves_; and he\ndeclared it would be infinitely more wise and natural for the United\nStates to hold them as lawful _prize_ to the captors, than it would be\nto send them with the Indians to cultivate their lands in time of peace,\nand swell the number of our enemies in times of war; but, on this\nmotion, he thought the court bound to regard the facts set forth in the\nplaintiff's claim as true, and he therefore discharged the rule, and\nmade the order of sequestration absolute.\n\nThere now appeared no hope of escape for these people; they seemed to be\nthe sport of fortune. For more than a century they and their ancestors\nhad set at defiance the efforts of slaveholders, assisted by Government,\nto re\u00ebnslave them; but they now appeared to be within the power of those\nwho were anxious to consign them to bondage.\n\nOn the fifteenth of May, Lieutenant Reynolds, having returned to New\nOrleans, wrote the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, saying, \"I arrived at\nthis place from Tampa Bay yesterday; was detained longer than I expected\nto be, in consequence of the absence of General Jessup from Fort Brooke.\nArrangements are made for the embarkation of the party for 'Fort\nGibson,' with the exception of sixty-seven of the negroes, who are\nclaimed by persons from Georgia. The civil authorities, I understand,\nrequire that these negroes be not removed. It appears that General\nGaines presented himself as defendant, and contended, that as the\nnegroes were _prisoners of war_, the civil authority had no right to\nwrest them from the Government's hands. The court however decided\ncontrary, acknowledging the Indians alone as _prisoners_, and the\nnegroes as the _property_ of the Indians. The case will not come on for\nsome time, and, deeming (from all that I can learn) that the claim is\nfraudulent, it will be necessary that they remain.\"\n\nLieutenant Reynolds was delayed until the twenty-first of May before he\nwas able to embark the other prisoners. One steamer left on the\nnineteenth; and on the twenty-first, he wrote the Commissioner of Indian\nAffairs, saying, \"Thirty-one of the negroes, out of the sixty-seven,\nhave been selected by the claimants. These negroes, I am informed, do\nnot belong to the Indians on whom the claims have been made.\"\n\nThis opened up new hopes for those to whom the claimants admitted they\nhad no title. There is, however, something about this surrender which we\nare not able to explain. It is certain that Lieutenant Reynolds left New\nOrleans on the twenty-first of May with all the prisoners, both Indians\nand negroes then at that city, except thirty-one left in charge of the\nsheriff, and seven Spanish maroons, whom he discharged. The remaining\nthirty-one were left in the charge of the sheriff, with the\nslave-catching vultures watching, and eager to fasten their talons upon\nthem so soon as opportunity should permit. The separation was painful.\nFamilies were again severed: parents were torn from their children, and\nbrothers and sisters compelled to bid adieu to each other; and as they\ncould see no escape for those left at New Orleans, they regarded the\nseparation as final.\n\nBut the other prisoners were on board. Lieutenant Reynolds and other\nofficers had done what they could, and they desired soon as possible to\nget the hapless Exiles, who yet remained in their possession, beyond the\nreach of slave-hunters and slave-catchers. That mysterious power,\nsteam, was now applied; and rapidly the vessel was driven against the\nstrong current of the Mississippi, as the sable passengers cast their\nlast, lingering look toward their friends who remained behind, the\nvictims of a tyranny--an oppression--which yet disgraces the\ncivilization of the age in which we live. The Indians were also\nthoughtful and sad, as they cast their eyes back towards their beloved\nFlorida, the scenes amidst which they had been born and reared; where\nthey had fought; where their brethren had been slain; where their\nfathers rested peacefully in their graves. Many bitter sighs were heard,\nand many tears fell from the eyes of those prisoners as they resumed\ntheir voyage, for unknown homes in the Western Country.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XV.\n\nDIFFICULTIES IN ENSLAVING EXILES CONTINUED.\n\n     Collins, Agent for the Slave-dealer, reaches Fort Pike--Prisoners\n     gone--He repairs to New Orleans--reaches that City one day after\n     the Exiles and Indians had left--He follows them up the\n     River--Whole number of Prisoners on the two boats--They stop a few\n     hours at Vicksburg--Collins overtakes them--Hands his Order to\n     Reynolds--They consult together--Difficulty in separating Indians\n     from Negroes--They all proceed together--Reynolds and Collins\n     endeavor to persuade Indians to deliver over Negroes--They\n     refuse--They reach Little Rock--Call on Governor Roane for military\n     aid--His emphatic Answer--They proceed to Fort Gibson--Call on\n     General Arbuckle to separate them--He refuses--Collins gives up all\n     as lost--His Letter to Commissioner of Indian Affairs.\n\n\nCollins, the agent of Watson, left the City of Washington on the tenth\nof May with full powers to act for the Creek chiefs as well as for his\nprincipal; fully provided, also, with orders from the Commissioner of\nIndian Affairs, directing all officers of the United States, in whose\ncustody the Exiles might be, to deliver them to this agent of the\nslave-dealer. Expecting to find his victims at Fort Pike, he repaired to\nthat place; but on his arrival found they had left for New Orleans some\ndays previously. He forthwith followed them, and reached that city on\nthe twenty-second of June, being one day after Reynolds and his\nprisoners had left that city for Fort Gibson.\n\nThus it will be seen, that the efforts of General Gaines, and the active\nvigilance of Major Clarke and Lieutenant Reynolds, had barely succeeded\nin getting these people under way for their western homes, when the\nauthority for their re\u00ebnslavement arrived.\n\nVexed and mortified at this disappointment, Collins took passage on the\nfirst packet bound up the river, determined to secure the victims of\nWatson's cupidity wherever he should find them.\n\nWhile Collins was thus speeding his way up the river, Reynolds and his\ncharge, unconscious that the slave-hunter was on their track, stopped at\nVicksburg for a few hours to obtain supplies for their journey. While\npassing up the river, Reynolds wrote a report to the Commissioner of\nIndian Affairs, stating that on the boat which left New Orleans on the\nnineteenth, six hundred and seventy-four prisoners had been placed for\nemigration; that on the boat which left the twenty-first, on which he\nhad taken passage, there were four hundred and fifty-three--making in\nall twelve hundred and twenty-one Indians and negroes, who were now\nemigrating to the Western Country. While they were lying at Vicksburg,\nCollins arrived, and, as he states, \"succeeded in getting the order of\nthe Commissioner of Indian Affairs handed to Reynolds.\" This was\nundoubtedly correct, for Reynolds wrote the Department the same day,\nsaying, \"Since my letter this morning, enclosing an abstract of my\nmuster-roll, Mr. Collins, the attorney, recognized by you, has sent off\nvarious papers, in relation to certain claims for negroes taken by the\nCreek Volunteers, and _your order has been received_. I have therefore\nmade arrangements with Mr. Collins to accompany me to Little Rock on\nboard of my boat, that no time may be lost in the emigration on the\npassage from here thither. Due care will be had in selecting such only\nas come within your order, as also to apprise the chiefs and other\nIndians with regard to the claim. The excitement evinced at New Orleans\non the part of the Indians, convinced me of the necessity of this\nmeasure. I think that, between this and Little Rock, I will be enabled\nto persuade them to consent without any resistance on their part.\"\n\nAs stated in this letter, Mr. Collins took passage at Vicksburg with\nLieutenant Reynolds, and agreed to go on with him and his prisoners,\nuntil they could persuade the Indians to separate from their friends and\ncompanions, their wives and children, or until they could obtain a\nmilitary force sufficient to compel the separation. Mr. Reynolds says\nthat the excitement on the part of the Indians at New Orleans, had\nconvinced him of the necessity of this measure; and the only doubt of\nhis perfect sincerity rests on the assertion, that he thought he could,\nwhile on the voyage, induce the Indians to _consent to such separation_.\n\nOn the twenty-seventh, they left Vicksburg for Fort Gibson. While on\ntheir passage, they had full opportunity to deliberate and consult\ntogether as to the best mode of carrying out the plan of transforming\nthis small portion of mankind into property; but the universal laws of\nNature and of Nature's God appeared to conflict with this slave-dealing\ntheory. While on the passage up the river, Mr. Reynolds assembled the\nIndian chiefs and warriors, and laid before them the facts concerning\nthe claim of Watson, and, as he says, \"explained every thing calculated\nto appease them.\" But the result we give in his own words, expressed in\na letter dated at Little Rock, Arkansas, June second, being one week\nafter they left Vicksburg, in which he says: \"They (the Indians) at once\ndemurred: Micanopy taking the lead, saying, it was contrary to the\nexpress words of General Jessup, and would listen to nothing calculated\nto dispossess them of their negroes. Finding them thus determined, I\nprevented any communication with them on the subject until reaching this\nplace, when they were again called together, and I repeated all that had\nbeen mentioned to them before. I told them it was needless to object; my\norders were positive, and must be obeyed. All was of no use; they\nbecame, if anything, more vexed than before, and left me much\nexasperated. Mr. Collins witnessed my exertions to carry out your\ninstructions; indeed, sir, I have been excessively perplexed with these\nIndians and negroes. I see no method in the absence of force by which\npossession of the negroes can be had. The authorities here show a\ndecided inclination to protect the Indians, and there is no doubt every\nattempt will fail on our part. I have in no instance acted with\nduplicity. The statements made, have been as they actually exist.\nThirty-one of the number left at New Orleans are on the official list\nhanded me by Mr. Collins.\"\n\nThe whole party were detained several days at Little Rock in consequence\nof the low stage of water. While waiting here, Collins appears to have\nbecome impatient, and anxious to get possession of the negroes. Indeed,\nfrom the closing remark of Mr. Reynolds's letter, last quoted, we are\nled to suspect that little sympathy existed between Reynolds and this\nagent of the slave-dealer; nor is it unlikely that an officer, bred up\nin the cultivation of a high and chivalrous sense of honor, would feel\nsome repugnance at being constrained to associate with any man employed\nin the business which brought Collins to the Western Country. Knowing,\nhowever, that the Executive of the United States had become in fact a\nparty in this disreputable transaction, he endeavored to manifest at\nleast a respect for those officers of Government who had become\nparticipants in it.\n\nOn the third of June, Lieutenant Reynolds addressed an official letter\nto Samuel C. Roane, Governor of Arkansas, stating the circumstances in\nwhich he was placed. He set forth the claim of the Creeks, and their\nsale to Watson, together with the fact that Collins was then at Little\nRock, anxious to obtain possession of the negroes; that he (Reynolds)\ncould not deliver them to Collins without assistance, and on that\naccount demanded of his Excellency assistance of the civil authority to\naid him in carrying out the policy of the Federal Government.\n\nHere again the workings of the human heart, and the laws of human\nnature, cast insurmountable obstacles in the way of carrying out the\nExecutive designs. True, Arkansas was a slave State, and her Governor\nwas a slaveholder, characterized by that bold and generous nature which\nusually distinguishes the pioneers of the West; but his letter breathes\nsuch a spirit of independence, such a bold and unhesitating regard for\njustice and propriety, that we prefer to let his Excellency speak for\nhimself. The letter is couched in the following language:\n\n\n\"EXECUTIVE OFFICE,\n\n\"_Little Rock_, June 4th, 1838.\n\n     \"SIR: Your note of this day has been duly received, in which you\n     call on me as the Executive of the State of Arkansas to furnish you\n     military force, sufficient to coerce obedience to your instructions\n     to surrender a number of negroes, now with the Seminole Indians\n     under your command; and stating that the Indians manifest a hostile\n     determination not to permit the negroes in question to be\n     surrendered to the agent or attorney of the Creek Indians. I have\n     also examined the copies of the order from the War Department,\n     directed to you on this subject, as well as the schedule of the\n     negroes and letter of attorney, in the possession of Mr. N. F.\n     Collins, the Creek agent or attorney, to receive the negroes in\n     controversy. After due reflection on the subject, I have determined\n     not to afford you any assistance to carry these instructions into\n     effect, and respectfully request of you not to attempt to turn over\n     those negroes to the claimants within the State of Arkansas, and\n     more especially in the neighborhood of Little Rock. And _I require\n     of you to proceed_ with your command of Indians and _negroes_ to\n     their place of destination with the least practicable delay, that\n     the citizens of Little Rock and its vicinity may be relieved from\n     the annoyance of a hostile band of Indians and _savage negroes_.\n\n     \"Without prejudging the claim of the Creek Indians to the negroes,\n     from the nature of things it is wholly impracticable for the\n     claimants to make a proper designation of the negroes claimed.\n     _There are no witnesses here that can identify the negroes_--not\n     even the person setting up the claim. And had the Government\n     intended to dispose of those negroes to the Creek Indians, it\n     should have been done in Florida, and not bring Indians and negroes\n     into Arkansas, the vicinity of their future residence, and then\n     _irritate_ the Indians to madness, and turn them loose on our\n     frontier, where we have no adequate protection--the massacre of our\n     citizens would be the inevitable consequence.\n\n     \"I have just visited the chiefs of your command, and assured them\n     that their negroes should not be taken from them, and they have\n     pledged themselves that their people should go on to their country\n     peaceably. Your immediate departure will insure peace and avert the\n     outrages you had such good cause to expect.\n\n     \"You will transmit this note to the proper Department at Washington\n     as a justification of the course you may pursue in accordance with\n     it.\n\nI am, respectfully,\n\nYour obedient servant,\n\nJNO. G. REYNOLDS, SAM. C. ROANE.\n\n1st Lieut. U. S. M. C., and Disb'g Agent, Ind. Dep't.\"\n\n\n\nThis letter of Governor Roane certainly indicated to Mr. Collins a\nstrong repugnance to the policy adopted by the War Department, and must\nhave convinced him that his mission was, at least, unpopular among men\nremoved from the moral atmosphere in which the Executive appeared to\nlive. We are not informed of its effects upon Mr. Reynolds; but that\ngentleman could not have been very greatly disappointed, as he had\nclearly predicted the failure of all attempts to separate the Indians\nand negroes.\n\nA rise in the Arkansas River enabled them to resume their journey. They\nreached Fort Gibson on the twelfth of June, and both Indians and negroes\nwere turned over to the care of Captain Stephenson, the agent appointed\nto reside with the Western Seminoles. Here Mr. Reynolds and Mr. Collins\nexpected to make a final effort to separate the Indians and negroes, in\norder that the latter might be transported back to that interminable\nslavery which all knew awaited their return to Georgia. For this\npurpose, Lieutenant Reynolds addressed Brigadier General Arbuckle, in\ncommand at Fort Gibson; but, as the correspondence between these\nofficers brought the important mission of Mr. Collins in that Western\nCountry to a close, we will present these letters to the reader.\n\nOn the twelfth of June, the day of his arrival, Lieutenant Reynolds\naddressed General Arbuckle the following note:\n\n     \"GENERAL: I herewith enclose orders, received from the Commissioner\n     of Indian Affairs, for the surrender of a certain number of\n     negroes, belonging to the Seminole Indians, to Mr. N. F. Collins,\n     the attorney appointed by the Creek Delegation which recently\n     visited Washington, which appointment has been ratified by the\n     Department; and feeling myself bound to turn over all in my\n     possession, in obedience to such orders, and the Seminole chiefs\n     and Indians refusing _positively_ to give them up, I have to\n     request the employment of such a force, General, as you may deem\n     _adequate_ for carrying into effect my instructions.\n\nI am, General, very respectfully,\n\nYour obedient servant,\n\nJNO. G. REYNOLDS,\n\n_1st Lieut. U. S. M. C., and Disb'g Agent, Ind. Dept._\n\nGeneral M. ARBUCKLE,\n\nCommanding, etc., Fort Gibson.\"\n\n\n\nGeneral Arbuckle was in command of the military forces of the United\nStates in that Western Country, and of course felt great responsibility\nin regard to maintaining peaceful relations with the Indians of that\nregion. Having maturely reflected upon the communication of Mr.\nReynolds, he returned the following answer:\n\n\n\"HEAD QUARTERS WESTERN DEPARTMENT, THIRD DIVISION,}\n_Fort Gibson_, June 13th, 1838.                       }\n\n     \"SIR: I have received your letter of the 12th instant, with the\n     papers accompanying it, in which you request me to furnish such a\n     force as I deem adequate, to enable you to turn over a number of\n     negroes that were captured by the Creek warriors in Florida, to\n     Nathaniel F. Collins, their attorney.\n\n     \"I have given your application much reflection, and have determined\n     to decline a compliance therewith for the following reasons:\n\n     \"First. The difficulty and uncertainty of identifying the negroes\n     actually captured by the Creek warriors, who are now with their\n     former owners, and in company with a large number of other Indian\n     negroes, and there being no individual of character present (as far\n     as I am informed) who could with certainty designate them.\n     Secondly. The Seminole chiefs positively declare that General\n     Jessup promised that the negroes taken from them by the Creek\n     warriors should be returned; and there is reason to believe that\n     such a promise was made, other than the declaration of the chiefs.\n\n     \"In addition to the above, it is proper that I should state, that\n     the Seminole chiefs, at the council I held with them yesterday,\n     voluntarily pledged themselves to give up the negroes in question,\n     provided the President of the United States should, after being\n     informed of the facts in the case, so decide; yet they state that\n     many of the negroes have died, and that several are claimed to have\n     been captured that were brought in by their owners when they\n     surrendered.\"\n\n\"I am, Sir, very respectfully,\n\nYour obedient servant,\n\nM. ARBUCKLE,\n\n_Brevet Brigadier General, Commanding_.\n\nJ. G. REYNOLDS,\n\n1st Lieut. U. S. M. C., and Disb'g Agent, Ind. Dept.\"\n\n\n\nCollins now gave up all as lost. He appears to have realized, that\nalmost every officer of the army west of Florida, had conspired against\nthis policy of enslaving the Exiles, while he himself seemed to\nentertain no doubt of the honor and rectitude of his own position; and\nin order to do him justice, and render our narrative brief as\nconsistent, we here insert so much of his report to the Commissioner of\nIndian Affairs, drawn up after his return to Alabama, as relates to his\nmission up to the time of leaving Fort Gibson, on his return. It is as\nfollows:\n\n\n\"TUSKOGEE, ALABAMA, July 29, 1838\"\n\n     \"SIR: Immediately after my arrival (about the first of this month),\n     I was taken sick with the fever, from which I am just recovering,\n     which will account for the delay in communicating the result of my\n     mission to procure the Seminole negroes that were to have been\n     turned over to me, as agent of the Creek Indians.\"\n\n     \"I left Washington on the 10th of May, and arrived in New Orleans\n     on the 22d, the day after Lieutenant Reynolds had left there with\n     the Indians and all the negroes, except thirty-two that were\n     detained by the civil authority, at the instance of Love. I did not\n     overtake Reynolds until he arrived at Vicksburg, when, after some\n     exertion, I succeeded in having his order handed to him; and he\n     came ashore, and suggested the probability of his being able to\n     induce the Indians to consent to deliver the negroes willingly\n     (between thirty-five and forty of which, by a comparison of our\n     lists, we found he had in his possession), if I would go on board\n     and proceed up the river with him. This I acceded to, as I was\n     anxious to pursue such a course as would tend, ever so remotely, to\n     conciliate the Indians, and harmonize with the views of the officer\n     in charge. The experience of a day or two however proved that these\n     calculations were erroneous, and I went on to Little Rock, to get a\n     force to coerce their delivery. On our arrival there, Lieutenant R.\n     called upon the acting Governor of Arkansas for assistance; _but\n     from some cause or other_ he refused it, as will be seen by the\n     correspondence forwarded you by Lieutenant R. I then proceeded with\n     the party to Fort Gibson, calculating certainly on being able to\n     obtain the necessary assistance at that place. Lieutenant R., on\n     arriving within three miles of the fort, landed one of the boats,\n     and proceeded with the other (having all the negroes and some\n     Indians) directly to the fort, and made known to General Arbuckle\n     the situation of the affair, and presented him with all the papers.\n     He held a lengthy interview with the Seminole chiefs, in which the\n     various talks and promises of General Jessup were detailed, the\n     number and identity of the negroes denied, and the validity of the\n     whole transaction questioned, etc.; and hence the conclusion, as he\n     had received no order in relation to the negroes, he should not\n     interfere; and directed Lieutenant R. to land them with the\n     Indians. First, however, to conclude the farce, he exacted from\n     each chief separately the promise, _if the President should decide\n     that the negroes should be given up_, that they would deliver them\n     to him. This of course they promised; any explanation or\n     remonstrance urged by me was unavailing.\"\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XVI.\n\nFURTHER DIFFICULTIES IN THE WORK OF ENSLAVING THE EXILES.\n\n     General Gaines in person defends those left at New Orleans--He\n     appeals from the judgment--Effect of appeal--Authorities at\n     Washington informed of difficulties--General Jessup retires from\n     the command--General Taylor succeeds him--He refuses to follow\n     policy of General Jessup--Recognizes no prisoners as slaves--Letter\n     from Adjutant General--He promptly refuses to have any thing to do\n     in Watson's slave-dealing transaction--This indignant answer is\n     received without reply by Department--Other persons claim the\n     Exiles detained at New Orleans--Commissioner driven to the\n     necessity of declaring correct law on the subject--Same as that\n     avowed by General Gaines, by General Taylor, and by Hon. J. Q.\n     Adams--Claim of Colonel Humphreys for slaves--Jessup's\n     answer--Reynolds returns from Fort Gibson to New Orleans--Collins\n     reaches the city same day--Inquires as to the situation of the\n     thirty-one Exiles left there--Is referred to Major Clark--Clark's\n     answer--Collins leaves city in disgust--His Letter to Secretary of\n     War charging Reynolds with misconduct--Exiles remaining at New\n     Orleans are delivered to Reynolds--Are sent to Fort Gibson--Join\n     their friends--All are left however without permanent homes or\n     lands--Intention of the Administration to compel them to unite with\n     the Creeks--They refuse--Cherokees tender them lands--They settle\n     upon Cherokee territory.\n\n\n[Sidenote: 1838.]\n\nAfter the emigrating company of Indians and Exiles had left New Orleans,\nunder charge of Lieutenant Reynolds, Gen'l Gaines assumed upon himself\nthe whole responsibility of defending the thirty-one who remained in\nthat city; for as yet there had been no trial upon the merits of the\ncase, although it was pretty evident that the judge was strongly\nimpressed in favor of re\u00ebnslaving them. The cause was duly brought to a\nhearing, and, after argument and consideration, the court gave judgment\nin favor of the claimants.\n\nThis was no more than had been expected. General Gaines, faithful to his\nown convictions of justice, took an appeal to a higher tribunal; and\nthis appeal rendered it necessary for the court to fix a time within\nwhich the claimants should enter bail for costs and damages, or the\nnegroes would be delivered up to General Gaines by the sheriff.\n\nIn the meantime, the Executive officers at Washington had become\ninformed of the difficulties which had lain across the path of Mr.\nCollins, and felt it to be desirable that the whole matter should be\narranged with as little discussion as possible.\n\nGeneral Jessup retired from the command of the army in Florida on the\nfifteenth of May, and returned to Washington, leaving General Zachary\nTaylor as commander-in-chief of our military forces in that Territory.\nHe had shown himself prompt in the execution of all orders; cool,\ndeliberate, and firm in battle; faithful to his men, to himself and his\ncountry; but, up to this time, he had manifested no particular zeal in\nthe capture of negroes. Indeed, although he had penetrated farther into\nthe Indian Country than any other officer--had fought the bloodiest\nbattles of any commander in Florida, yet he refused to draw any\ndistinctions among his prisoners. With him Indians and negroes were\nequally _prisoners of war_, and entitled to the same treatment. Nor\nwould he listen to men who professed to own the persons whom he\ncaptured, or who had surrendered themselves as prisoners.\n\nThe Administration having been a party in the sale to Watson, determined\nto carry out the slave-dealing arrangement with him; at least so far as\nregarded the thirty-one negroes who yet remained in New Orleans. In\norder to effect this object, it was deemed necessary to have the\nco\u00f6peration and aid of General Taylor. The Adjutant General, therefore,\naddressed him on the subject, enclosing to him the letter of the\nCommissioner of Indian Affairs, dated the ninth of May, addressed to the\nSecretary of War, and heretofore referred to. General Taylor evidently\nthought the honor of the service would be compromited by this\nslave-dealing transaction. He subsequently became President of the\nUnited States; and as the reader will feel anxious to understand\nprecisely the views which he entertained, we give that portion of his\nletter to the Adjutant General which relates to this subject. It is in\nthe following words:\n\n     \"I have the honor to acknowledge your communication of the tenth of\n     May, 1838, accompanied by one of the ninth from the Commissioner of\n     Indian Affairs, addressed to Captain Cooper, Acting Secretary of\n     War, on the subject of turning over certain negroes, captured by\n     the Creek warriors in Florida, to a Mr. Collins, their agent, in\n     compliance with an engagement of General Jessup.\n\n     \"I know nothing of the negroes in question, nor of the subject,\n     further than what is contained in the communication above referred\n     to; _but I must state distinctly for the information of all\n     concerned, that, while I shall hold myself ever ready to do the\n     utmost in my power to get the Indians and their negroes out of\n     Florida, as well as to remove them to their new homes west of the\n     Mississippi_, I CANNOT FOR A MOMENT CONSENT TO MEDDLE WITH THIS\n     TRANSACTION, _or to be concerned for the benefit of Collins, the\n     Creek Indians, or any one else_.\"\n\nThis language was received at the War Department without reproof,\nalthough the Secretary was from South Carolina, bred up in the\nchivalrous doctrines of the Palmetto State. He quietly suffered a\nBrigadier General thus plainly to express his contempt for this\nslave-dealing transaction, in which not only the War Department, but the\nPresident of the United States, was involved. He appears to have been\nwilling to encounter almost any kind of disrespect, rather than call\npublic attention to the subject.\n\nIn the meantime other claims were presented to the Department for those\nExiles, or portions of those, who had been captured by the Creeks.[120]\nGad Humphreys filed with the Secretary of War a list of forty-seven\nslaves who had fled from him in 1830, stating that they had gone to the\nSeminoles, and that a part of them had been sent to Fort Pike.\n\nColonel Humphreys appeared to regard himself as entitled to the\npossession of those people; although by the treaty of Payne's Landing\nthe Seminoles had paid for all slaves residing with them prior to 1832;\nand had been released from all further demands on account of such\nslaves.\n\nColonel Humphreys stated that his claim had been examined by the late\nagent, General Wiley Thompson, and decided _against_ him; but insisted\nthat the decision was wrong, and avowed his ability to show it erroneous\nby proper proof whenever he should have an opportunity, and again\ndemanded that the slaves should be brought back to Florida, where he\ncould present his proof without trouble. This letter was inclosed in one\ndirected to Mr. Downing, Delegate in Congress from Florida, and by him\ntransmitted to the Secretary of War, and by that officer referred to the\nCommissioner of Indian Affairs. Thus driven to the wall, the\nCommissioner of Indian Affairs came out in plain and unmistakable\nlanguage, asserting the doctrine, that the Government held the power and\nconstitutional right to dispose of prisoners taken in war, whatever\ntheir character may be. This doctrine had been eloquently sustained by\nGeneral Gaines, on the trial in New Orleans. It was the doctrine avowed\nby Hon. John Quincy Adams in the House of Representatives, during the\nnext session of Congress; but it called down upon him much abuse in that\nbody, and in the Democratic papers of the country. The Commissioner's\nreport to the Secretary of War set forth in distinct language, that the\nclaims of individuals to slaves were precluded by the action of the\nGovernment in sending these people West; that they had been captured by\nthe army and disposed of by the Executive, and the action of the\nDepartment could not be changed in consequence of individuals claiming\nthem as slaves. In short, he repeated the doctrine advanced by General\nGaines at New Orleans. The report also confirmed the policy of General\nTaylor in disregarding the claims of individuals to persons captured by\nthe army, and was a tacit condemnation of that pursued by General\nJessup, and previously sanctioned by the Secretary of War. This report\nwas passed over to the Secretary.\n\nThat officer (Mr. Poinsett) having received this report, transmitted it\nto Colonel Humphreys. This drew from that gentleman a still more\nelaborate argument in favor of his claim, which occupies nearly four\nheavy pages in documentary form. This was also transmitted to Mr.\nDowning, and by him passed over to the Secretary of War; but we are not\ninformed whether the Secretary of War replied to this second argument or\nnot.\n\nIt is, however, important to the truth of history to notice this\nrecognition of the doctrine by a slave-holding Secretary of War, that\nthe Executive in time of war may separate slaves from their masters, and\nsend them out of the country, without regard to the relation previously\nsubsisting between them and their owners. The principle was thus\nrecognized by Mr. Poinsett, although a citizen of South Carolina, acting\nunder the advice and direction of Mr. Van Buren, a Democratic President\nof the United States.\n\nGeneral Jessup also, in a report to the War Department, declared, that,\nin his opinion, the treaty of Payne's Landing exonerated the Indians\nfrom all claims for slaves which accrued prior to that date, and that\nColonel Humphreys and other claimants could only demand a proportion of\nthe seven thousand dollars allowed by the Indians for slaves then\nresiding among them. This suggestion was obviously just, and was\napproved by the Secretary of War; and we are naturally led to inquire,\nwhy the same obviously just rule was not applied to some hundreds of\nother cases precisely like that of Colonel Humphreys?\n\nIn the meantime, Lieutenant Reynolds having accomplished his mission, so\nfar as the emigration of the captives shipped on board the two boats\nwhich left New Orleans on the nineteenth and twenty-first of May were\nconcerned, returned to that city in order to complete the duties\nassigned him in regard to the thirty-one prisoners who had been detained\nthere by legal sequestration. Collins, faithful to the trust reposed in\nhim, also returned to New Orleans with the full purpose of securing\nthose people as slaves to Watson. They reached the city on the\ntwenty-third, and found the slaves still in the possession of the\nSheriff; as the time assigned by the court within which the plaintiff\nwas to enter bail had not expired.\n\nOn the twenty-fifth of June, Mr. Collins addressed a note to Mr.\nReynolds, inquiring whether there had been any decision of the court\nupon the claim of Love to the Seminole negroes left at that place; and\nwhat number he (Reynolds) was satisfied belonged to the Creek Indians;\nand demanding that such as belonged to them should be delivered to him,\nunder the order of the Commissioner of \"Indian Affairs.\"\n\nMr. Reynolds replied that he understood the case had been dismissed; but\nas he (Reynolds) was then acting under a superior officer (Major Clark),\nhe would refer Mr. Collins to him.\n\nOn the following day, Collins addressed Major Clark on the subject; but\nreceiving no answer, and becoming vexed and disgusted with the business,\nhe left the city on the twenty-seventh for his home in Alabama. In\njustice to Mr. Collins, we let him speak for himself, and quote the\nremainder of his report to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, being\nthat portion which relates to his efforts to get possession of these\nthirty-one Exiles. It reads as follows:\n\n     \"On arriving at New Orleans on my return, I found the\n     representatives of Love had withdrawn their claim against those\n     thirty-two negroes that were left there, thirty-one of which\n     Lieutenant R. expressed himself satisfied belonged to the claim. I\n     addressed a note to Lieutenant R. requesting that such of the\n     negroes as he was satisfied of the identity might be turned over to\n     me; he in turn referred me to Major Clark who was his senior\n     officer, and who had received similar instructions to his own. I\n     had, in company with Lieutenant R. the day before, called upon\n     Major Clark, and learned his determination in relation to the\n     negroes. He did not recognize the validity of his order, inasmuch\n     as 'By order of the Secretary of War' did not precede your\n     signature, and had even the hardihood to state, that, by an\n     examination of the lists, none of those negroes in New Orleans were\n     embraced in the claim I presented, and subsequently ordered\n     Lieutenant Reynolds to send the negroes forthwith to Arkansas.\n     After I saw a settled and determined purpose to thwart me there as\n     well as elsewhere, I left New Orleans on the next day for this\n     place, and since my arrival here, I have learned by a letter from\n     Lieutenant Reynolds, that the negroes were sent off the next day\n     after I left.\"\n\n     \"Captain Morrison I did not see. Not perhaps being as fruitful in\n     expedients as some others of them, he stopped at Fort Jackson, and\n     sent to New Orleans for transportation outfit, etc., and passed the\n     city on his way up, without but few knowing who he was, or anything\n     else in relation to him. I learned indirectly from Major Clark,\n     (who probably did not intend this admission for me,) that he had\n     between twenty and thirty of the negroes on board belonging to this\n     claim.\"\n\n\"I am, sir, with the highest respect,\n\nYours, etc.,\n\nN. F. COLLINS.\n\nC. A. HARRIS, Esq.,\n\nComm'r Indian Affairs, Washington, D. C.\"\n\n\n\nIt is most obvious that Collins believed that the military officers of\nGovernment, who were serving at a distance from Washington, viewed his\nmission with no particular favor, and he evidently retired from New\nOrleans with some degree of indignation.\n\nIn the meantime, the claimant Love, despairing of obtaining the negroes,\nrefused to enter bail for costs and damages, in case the suit should be\ndetermined against him in the higher court, and the sheriff delivered\nthem over to Mr. Reynolds on the same day that Collins left the city. On\nthe next day, Mr. Reynolds wrote the Commissioner of Indian Affairs,\nsaying, \"The thirty-one negroes who were arrested, seized from me and\nlodged in the jail of this city, were last evening surrendered to me.\nThe Creek attorney (N. F. Collins, Esq.) nor any authorized agent being\npresent, and not wishing to detain them at the expense of the\nGovernment, they were immediately embarked and dispatched West, with\ntwenty-five days' provisions, under the charge of Assistant Conductor\nBenjamin, who, to satisfy the Indians, had been left with the negroes at\nthe period of the service of the process; of which fact I informed the\nDepartment at the time.\"\n\nThese thirty-one prisoners who had been thus detained, were now once\nmore under way for their western home. Their hearts appeared to beat\nmore freely as the noble steamer, which bore them on their way to their\nfriends and future homes, cut loose from her moorings and sped her way\ntoward her destined port. On board that happy craft, also, were many\nsmiles and hearty congratulations exchanged among those children of the\nforest, who had been borne along on the tide of ever-varying\ncircumstances. Although helpless and penniless, and apparently\nfriendless, they had almost miraculously escaped the meshes which our\nGovernment and the slave-dealers had spread for their destruction. In\ndue time they reached Fort Gibson, and were delivered over to the care\nof the proper agent, who conducted them to their friends. And now some\nnine hundred Seminoles, and some three to four hundred Exiles, had\nreached the Indian Country; they constituted the first party of that\nnation who, driven from their homes--their native wilds--had consented\nto be taken to a strange land.\n\nThey had been assured by General Jessup and all officers who spoke for\nthe Government, that the treaty of Payne's Landing was to be complied\nwith. To enforce that treaty had been the order of General Jackson.\nGeneral Cass had declared that the _Indians must comply with that\ntreaty_; while, to our Indian agents, he asserted it to be the policy of\nthe Government to _unite the Creeks and Seminoles as one people_.\n\nBut the Indians and Exiles were constantly assured, that they were to\nhave a tract of country set off to their separate use; and when they\nentered into the articles of capitulation with General Jessup, on the\neighteenth of March, 1837, that officer, on behalf of the United\nStates, had stipulated to protect the Indians and \"their allies\" in the\nenjoyment of their lives and property.\n\nBut now the turpitude and guilt of the Executive were revealed. The\norders of the agent directed him to take them on to the territory\nassigned to the Creeks. This would subject them to Creek jurisdiction\nand Creek laws; and they were perfectly conscious that every Exile would\nbe immediately enslaved. Yet there was no country which they could call\ntheir own. The perfidious pretense of enforcing the treaty of Payne's\nLanding, without giving them a separate territory according to the\nsupplemental treaty, now stood exposed in its proper light. Abraham was\na man of influence with his brethren. He had used his utmost efforts to\ninduce them to emigrate. He had been honest. He believed in the\nintegrity of our nation, of its people, its government; but his error\nhad been fatal. The Exiles were in the Western Country, without a home,\nand with no means of support, except the stipulation of Government to\nfurnish them provisions for one year.\n\nIt was at this time, when a Christian government had violated its faith,\nmost solemnly pledged, in order to enslave a people who for ages had\nbeen free, that a Pagan government performed towards the Exiles and\nSeminoles the Christian duty, the hospitality, of furnishing them\ntemporary homes. The Cherokees had volunteered to exert their influence\nwith the Indians and Exiles in favor of peace. They had induced many of\nthem to come into the American camp under flags of truce which had been\nviolated, and their persons seized, held prisoners, and sent West. They\nhad themselves, apparently, been involved in this treachery practiced by\nour Government, and, under these circumstances, they consented to share\ntheir own possessions with the Seminoles and Exiles until further\narrangements were made; they consented to have the Seminoles and Exiles\nsettle on their land for the present, until the Government could be\ninduced to fulfill its most sacred compacts with these victims of\nslaveholding persecutions.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XVII.\n\nTOTAL FAILURE OF ALL EFFORTS TO ENSLAVE THE EXILES.\n\n     Indians and Exiles complain--Government disregards their\n     complaints--Further efforts to enslave Exiles--They fail--General\n     Arbuckle's Report--Collins charges Reynolds with\n     misconduct--Reynolds called on to explain--His reply and\n     proofs--Collins desires claim to be made against Creek\n     Warriors--They refuse to notice it--Political feelings--Watson\n     presents his claim to Congress--Resolution of that body calling for\n     information--Answer--House Doc. 225--Digression--Proceedings on\n     claim before Congress--Its final settlement.\n\n\n[Sidenote: 1838.]\n\nThe Indians and Exiles who had emigrated, now found themselves separated\nat the distance of more than a thousand miles from their brethren in\nFlorida, with whom they could hold no intercourse. They were without a\ncountry--without permanent homes--residing upon the lands of the\nCherokees, at the mere sufferance of that Tribe, whose humanity had been\nawakened, and whose sympathy had been extended to them. Their situation\nand discontent were duly communicated to the Executive; but it appears\nto have been regarded as of too little importance to receive attention.\n\nBut while the President and the War Department disregarded all\ncomplaints coming from the Seminoles and Exiles, they relaxed no effort\nto secure Watson in the possession of the ninety human beings whom he\nhad purchased of the Creek Indians, at the request of the Executive.\n\nAs the last resort, instructions were sent to General Arbuckle,\ncommanding in the West, to make investigations, and ascertain what more\ncould be done for the re\u00ebnslavement of those people. That officer\nreplied to this communication as follows:\n\n\n\"HEAD QUARTERS 2D DEPARTMENT, WESTERN DIVISION,}\n_Fort Gibson_, Aug. 27th, 1838.                }\n\n     \"SIR: I had the honor, on the 22d instant, to receive your\n     instructions of the 21st ultimo, together with the papers to which\n     they refer. I extremely regret that the United States is liable to\n     suffer loss in consequence of the Creek warriors having sold, and\n     received pay, for the negroes they captured from the Seminole\n     Indians in Florida; and these negroes having been imprudently\n     returned to the possession of their former owners at New Orleans,\n     and brought to this place, with two hundred or more other negroes\n     belonging to the Seminoles. Owing to these transactions, it would\n     be extremely difficult, if not impossible, to identify at most but\n     few of them; and from the present position of this case, it is not\n     probable _that one of the negroes will be obtained except by\n     force_. For further information in relation to this subject, I beg\n     leave to refer you to my letter to Captain Armstrong, Acting\n     Superintendent of the Western Territory, of this date, a copy of\n     which is herewith enclosed. I shall do all in my power to prevent\n     loss to the Government, and will at an early period have the honor\n     to advise you of the measures taken in the case.\"\n\n\"I have the honor to be, Sir, with great respect,\n\nYour obedient servant,\n\nM. ARBUCKLE,\n\n_Brevet Brig. Gen'l, U. S. A._\n\nHon. J. R. POINSETT,\n\nSecretary of War.\"\n\n\n\nThe letter to Captain Armstrong, Superintendent of the Western\nTerritory, was as follows:\n\n\n\"HEAD QUARTERS 2D DEPARTMENT, WESTERN DIVISION,}\n_Fort Gibson_, Aug. 27, 1838.                  }\n\n     \"SIR: I received by the last mail, from the honorable the Secretary\n     of War, a communication under date of the 21st ultimo, on the\n     subject of the negroes captured by the Creek warriors, together\n     with a letter from the Commissioner of Indian Affairs to the\n     Secretary of War, under date of the 19th ultimo, relating to this\n     subject, copies of which are herewith enclosed. All other papers or\n     transactions in relation to this matter, it is presumed, you are\n     apprized of. It will be seen by the communication first referred\n     to, that it was not known at Washington, at the date of that\n     letter, that the Creek warriors had been paid for the negroes. That\n     circumstance, however just to the warriors and proper, so far as\n     you have had an agency in the affair, will increase the difficulty\n     of obtaining the negroes, as it is believed the Creek warriors will\n     not now give themselves any trouble to have the negroes delivered\n     to the individuals to whom they sold them. And notwithstanding the\n     pledge of the Seminole chiefs to me, to surrender the negroes in\n     the event the Government should so require (after reconsidering\n     their claim to them), I do not believe they will comply with their\n     promise, with the knowledge that the negroes are to be taken from\n     this country as the servants of a white man. Finally, as the\n     Seminoles are greatly under the influence of their negroes, there\n     is scarcely a hope that the captured negroes will be surrendered\n     without the application of force (which is not required); and, in\n     that event, it is not probable they could be had, as they would no\n     doubt run away the moment they are informed a military force is to\n     be employed to take them. And in such case, it is believed, they\n     would be assisted, when necessary, by most of the Seminoles, and by\n     all the Seminole and Creek negroes; and if the captured negroes\n     could be placed in the possession of the Creek agent, he would not\n     detain them a moment without he had a suitable guard for that\n     purpose. I am therefore of the opinion, that the best means that\n     can now be resorted to, to prevent loss to the United States, is,\n     if possible, to induce the Seminoles to refund, from their annuity,\n     the sum paid to the Creek warriors for the negroes, and the\n     interest on the same until paid. I will be much gratified if you\n     can visit this post in six or eight days, when the Seminole chiefs\n     can be assembled here, with the object of inducing them to agree to\n     the measure proposed, or such other as may be deemed advisable. In\n     the event that it may not be convenient for you to be at this post\n     at an early period, I request that you will favor me with your\n     views on the subject of this communication by the return of mail.\"\n\n\"I am, Sir, with much respect,\n\nYour obedient servant,\n\nM. ARBUCKLE,\n\n_Brevet Brig. Gen'l, U. S. A._\n\nCapt. W. ARMSTRONG,\n\nActing Sup't W. Ter., Choctaw Agency.\"\n\n\n\nThis correspondence might well have concluded the efforts of the\nExecutive to deliver these ninety Exiles to the slave-dealer. It were\nunnecessary to say, that General Arbuckle's labors in this behalf proved\nuseless. He had foretold such failure in his letter to the War\nDepartment. In January, 1837, the Creek warriors captured these people,\nand for almost two years the influence of the Executive had been exerted\nto enslave them; but a series of incidents, unequaled in real life, had\nconstantly succeeded each other, preventing the consummation of this\nintended crime; yet the slave power was inexorable in its demands.\n\nThese circumstances failed to convince the President that it was useless\nfor the Executive of a great nation to contend against the plainest\ndictates of justice; against those convictions of right which dwell in\nthe breast of every human being who has not extinguished the moral\nfeelings of his nature.\n\nCollins having returned to his plantation in Alabama, deliberately, drew\nup and transmitted his report to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs,\nwhich we have heretofore quoted. But when he was subsequently informed\nthat the thirty-two Exiles who were in the hands of the Sheriff at New\nOrleans had, on the day of his leaving that city, been delivered over to\nReynolds, and sent West, his indignation was further excited, and he\nimmediately wrote the Commissioner of Indian Affairs again more\ndistinctly charging the officers engaged in the emigration of these\npeople with bad faith. He wrote as follows:\n\n\n\"MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA, Aug. 8, 1838.\n\n     SIR: Since writing you a week since, I have understood that\n     Lieutenant Reynolds has informed you that on his arrival in New\n     Orleans the negroes that were detained there had been surrendered\n     to him, and that, in consequence of my not being there, they were\n     sent off to, etc. After seeing so much duplicity and management as\n     has been manifested by the officers with whom I have recently had\n     intercourse, particularly Lieutenant R., I am not surprised at the\n     above statement. Lieutenant R. is well apprised that the negroes\n     had been turned over to him while I was in New Orleans; and it is\n     also susceptible of proof that during my stay there arrangements\n     were privately making to charter a boat to transport them. After I\n     learned this, I purposely threw myself in his way; but he said not\n     a word to me in relation to the negroes, until I addressed him the\n     note which is herewith enclosed. After receiving his answer, I, in\n     his presence, addressed the enclosed copy to Major Clark; but\n     before I had procured a messenger to carry it to Major C.,\n     Lieutenant R., after being a short time absent from the room,\n     returned, and informed me he had seen the Sheriff, and he had\n     refused to turn over the negroes to him, which rendered it, as I\n     conceived, unnecessary to send the note to Major C. After my return\n     home, he wrote that (the next day after I left it seems) the\n     Sheriff reviewed his decision, and a _second time_ turned them over\n     to Lieutenant R.; and as he states in his letter to me, that Major\n     Clark _ordered them to proceed forthwith to Arkansas_. Why was it\n     necessary, then, for me to have been there, since he had yielded\n     everything to his senior officer, and that officer he knew had\n     determined not to respect the order he had received, and had\n     determined (as his previous statement and subsequent conduct prove)\n     to send them forthwith to Arkansas? It is about such a subterfuge\n     as the Sheriff turning the negroes and withholding them after my\n     letter to Major C. was seen, and then turning them over again after\n     it was known I had left. It is due Lieutenant R. to observe, that\n     he stated to me the Sheriff had told him a lie. I know not what\n     object he could have had in view in doing so.\n\n     \"I remained in New Orleans four days, in which time I became\n     convinced from the maneuvering that was evinced that nothing would\n     be gained by a longer stay, and as the sickly season was\n     approaching, I left with the conviction that the Sheriff would\n     alter his decision as soon as I left there.\n\n\"I am, with the highest respect, sir,\n\nYours, etc.,\n\nN. F. COLLINS,\n\n_Agent Creek Warriors_.\"\n\nC. A. HARRIS, Esq.,\n\nCommissioner Indian Affairs.\n\n\n\nIt is worthy of notice that this agent of a slave-dealer should thus\naddress, to one of the Executive Departments of this august nation,\ncomplaints against the sworn officers of our Government; but it is still\nmore worthy of note that the War Department should call on its\nauthorized and sworn agents to respond to complaints coming from such a\nsource. Copies of Collins's two letters were immediately enclosed to\nLieutenant Reynolds, accompanied by a letter from Commissioner Harris,\nof which we give a copy:\n\n\n\"WAR DEPARTMENT,                           }\n_Office of Commissioner of Indian Affairs_,}\nAugust 27, 1837.                           }\n\n     \"SIR: I enclose copies of two letters from N. F. Collins, Esq.,\n     (one of the twenty-ninth ultimo and the other of the eighteenth\n     instant,) in relation to the negroes which you were directed to\n     turn over to him as the agent of the Creeks. From these papers, and\n     from other information received here, it would seem there has been\n     great disregard, if not a violation, of the orders of the War\n     Department in this matter. I trust you will be able to make such\n     explanations of your conduct as will relieve you from censure--_a\n     prompt answer is desired_.\n\n     \"It may not be amiss to inform you that, when on duty in the Indian\n     Department, you are bound to obey the orders of no military\n     officer, unless you have been placed under his direction. Captain\n     Morrison is the only army officer authorized to control your\n     movements.\"\n\n\"Very, etc.,\n\nC. A. HARRIS, _Commissioner_.\n\nLieut. J. G. REYNOLDS.\"\n\n\n\nThese intimations to Lieutenant Reynolds of _censure_, and the distinct\ncall for _explanations_, could be neither misinterpreted nor\nmisunderstood; and, although the complaints and charges had been\npreferred not merely by a man in private life, but by an individual\nwhose very employment as an assistant slave-dealer had rendered him\nodious and infamous among honorable men, yet this officer who had fought\nunder the flag of his country, and was ready at any moment to peril his\nlife in the support of his country's honor, was now constrained to meet\ncharges coming from an infamous source. The surprise of Lieutenant\nReynolds at this procedure was expressed in the following letter:\n\n     /* \"NEW ORLEANS, Sept. 20, 1838. */\n\n     \"SIR: Your letter, dated twenty-seventh ultimo, enclosing copies of\n     two communications received at your office from Mr. N. F. Collins,\n     the Creek attorney, came to hand on the tenth instant. I was\n     surprised at being called upon to answer for 'my conduct' toward\n     Mr. Collins, as also the Department for disregarding its orders.\n     Indeed, sir, I have been, in my own estimation, too faithful a\n     servant in the special department in which it was the pleasure of\n     General Jessup to assign, and you to continue, me, to make a\n     defense to the allegations advanced by Collins. At the time of Mr.\n     Collins's departure from this city, he did not evince that\n     virulence of feeling that he has thought proper to express in his\n     letter; on the contrary, he was then apparently under the full\n     conviction that I had done all that was possible to aid him, and\n     carry out the orders received in relation to the negroes in\n     question. What object could I possibly have in wishing\n     clandestinely, and in the very face of orders, to send those\n     negroes to Arkansas? Had Mr. Collins been here, sir, so far as I\n     was concerned, he should have had the negroes upon _identity_. I\n     enclose papers, sir, from various gentlemen to disprove the\n     assertion of Mr. Collins, 'that the negroes were in my possession\n     during the time he was here;' on the contrary, they did not come\n     into my hands until some time after his departure. It is true, I\n     have frequently referred to Major Clark for advice in matters\n     relative to my official situation. It was on account of the high\n     regard I have of his character as a gentleman, and an officer of\n     long standing and experience, and whose integrity stands\n     preeminently and deservedly high.\n\n\"I have the honor to be, sir, very respectfully,\n\nYour obd't servant,\n\nJNO. G. REYNOLDS,\n\n_U. S. M. C. Disb. Agent, Ind. Dep't._\n\nC. A. HARRIS,\n\nCom. Ind. Affairs, Washington City, D. C.\"\n\n\n\nWe have too little space in this work to copy official papers to any\nconsiderable extent. Those which accompanied Lieutenant Reynolds's reply\nwere--\n\nFirst. A full statement of facts from Sheriff Buisson, showing that the\nthirty-one prisoners, who had been in his charge, were not turned over\nto Major Clark until the twenty-eighth of June, 1838.\n\nSecond. A full statement of facts by George Whitman, owner of the\nsteamboat, who contracted to carry the prisoners West.\n\nThird. A similar statement by Major Clark of the facts that came within\nhis knowledge, accompanied by a copy of a communication from Jno. C.\nCasey, Acting Seminole Agent.\n\nAll these statements showed that Lieutenant Reynolds had strictly obeyed\nhis orders; and whether they proved satisfactory to the War Department\nor not, we are unable to state. It is, however, believed, that no\nfurther proceedings were had in relation to the conduct of that officer.\n\nMr. Collins, finding that he possessed some influence with the War\nDepartment, on the eighteenth of October, wrote the Commissioner of\nIndian Affairs, saying, \"I have now to request that, should General\nArbuckle be unable to comply with the instructions I understand he has\nreceived, (which from my knowledge of the Indian character I have no\ndoubt he will,) this claim may be laid before the agent who may be\nappointed to investigate the claims of the Creeks with the necessary\ndocuments; that it may be examined and reported on by him.\"\n\nIn answer to this letter, Mr. Crawford, Acting Commissioner of Indian\nAffairs, replied, stating that General Arbuckle had, on the\ntwenty-eighth of September, informed the Department that the negroes\ncould only be obtained by military force. Mr. Crawford also assured Mr.\nCollins that General Arbuckle had been instructed to act in concert with\nCaptain Armstrong for the purpose of obtaining a treaty with the Indians\nby which provisions for this claim would be made; and that the necessary\npapers had been transmitted to those gentlemen to enable them to act\nwith a correct understanding of the subject.\n\nBut the Creek Indians appear to have become impressed with the opinion,\nthat the whole proceeding was either unjust or dishonorable, and they\nwholly refused to participate any further in the transaction.\n\nThe Exiles and Indians were now living on the Cherokee lands. The Creeks\nwould have nothing further to do with Watson, nor with the United\nStates, in regard to the _captured_ negroes. The Seminole Indians showed\nno disposition to surrender them to slavery, and the Exiles themselves\nexhibited no intention of going voluntarily into bondage. General\nArbuckle advised against the employment of military force to effect that\nobject; and to all present appearances these ninety Exiles had, through\na train of mysterious incidents, been preserved from bondage. The\nFlorida War had become unpopular; and Watson, the purchaser of the\nsupposed slaves, had warm personal friends among the Whigs of Georgia.\nThey were quite willing to subject Mr. Van Buren to any degree of odium\nin their power. Watson, therefore, sent his petition to Congress, asking\nindemnity for the loss of slaves whom he had purchased of the Creeks at\nthe instance, and by the recommendation, of the Executive officers of\nGovernment.\n\nIn order to sustain the claim of Watson, it was necessary to place the\nfacts attending this transaction before the House of Representatives.\nFor this purpose a resolution was adopted, on the twenty-eighth of\nJanuary, 1839, calling on the Secretary of War for \"such information as\nwas to be found in his office touching the capture of negroes and other\nproperty from the hostile Indians, during the present war in Florida.\"\n\nIn answer to this resolution, the Secretary of War, on the\ntwenty-seventh of February, made report, embracing one hundred and\ntwenty-six pages of printed matter. It was numbered H. Doc. 225, and\nordered to be printed. From that document much information has been\nobtained in regard to the capture and emigration of this first party of\nIndians and Exiles to the Western Country.\n\nThe result of this speculation in human flesh is so essential to a\ncorrect appreciation of the whole transaction, that we deem it proper to\ngive, in this connection, the proceedings of Congress upon that subject;\nalthough it may appear to be rather a digression from the chronological\nnarration of events which constitute the subject of our history.\n\nIt will be recollected that the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, in his\nletter to the Secretary of War, dated the first of May, 1838, suggests\nthat it might create agitation, were the Department to ask Congress for\nan appropriation of money to carry these Exiles to Africa, or for any\nother disposition of them; that, to suppress all discussion in Congress\nupon the subject of slavery, gag-resolutions and gag-rules had been\nadopted at each session since 1835. It was under the operation of these\nrules that the advocates of slavery expected to pass a bill to indemnify\nWatson for his loss in failing to enslave these Exiles.\n\n[Sidenote: 1839.]\n\nDuring the summer of 1839, the document, No. 225, above referred to, was\nprinted. According to the practice of that day, few, even of the members\nof Congress, examined these documents. A copy of this, however, was\nplaced on file, with Watson's petition and other papers, as evidence on\nwhich his claim rested.\n\nAt the commencement of the next session, the Author of this work, being\na member of the House of Representatives, was placed upon the committee\nof Claims; at the head of which was Hon. David Russel, of Washington\nCounty, New York, a man of great industry, integrity and ability; always\nindependent, according to the general views of that day, and upright in\nthe discharge of official duties. Hon. William C. Dawson, of Georgia,\nwas also a member of that committee, and appeared to take much interest\nin this claim. He was a man of much suavity of manner; one of that class\nof Southern statesmen who felt it necessary to carry every measure by\nthe influence of personal kindness, and an expression of horror at all\nagitation of the slave question, under the apprehension that it might\ndissolve the Union.\n\nMr. Dawson was anxious to get this claim of Watson through Congress,\nand, not expecting the Chairman of the committee on Claims to favor its\npassage, requested the Author to examine and give support to it. It was\nthat examination which gave him the first information as to the real\ncause of the Florida War. After a full and thorough investigation, he\nassured Mr. Dawson that he would be constrained to oppose the passage of\nany bill giving indemnity to Watson. At that time it was the usual\npractice for the committee on Claims to leave all petitions asking pay\nfor slaves, or which involved the question of slavery, without reporting\nupon them, lest they should cause agitation. There being no prospect of\nobtaining from the committee a favorable report, the case was at the\nnext session of Congress referred to the committee on Indian Affairs,\nwho reported in its favor, providing for the payment of the full sum\nwhich Watson gave the Creeks, and interest thereon from the time of the\ncontract up to the time of passing the bill.\n\n[Sidenote: 1841.]\n\nThis bill was placed on the calendar, and in 1841 the Author endeavored\nto call attention to it, in a speech made in the House of\nRepresentatives on the \"Florida War.\" This led some members to examine\nit; and some of them, more independent than others, declared their\nhostility to its passage.\n\nIn the Twenty-eighth Congress, the Author, having become obnoxious to\nthe slaveholders, was removed from the committee on Claims,[121] and\nWatson's petition was again referred to that committee, in order that it\nshould receive the prestige of its influence; but it was reported upon\nlate, and was so low on the calendar that it was not reached during that\nCongress.\n\n[Sidenote: 1848.]\n\n[Sidenote: 1849.]\n\nIn the Thirty-first Congress, Mr. Daniels, Chairman of the committee on\nClaims, reported it in February. But General Crowell, of Trumbull\nCounty, Ohio, being on the committee, opposed its passage, and caused a\npostponement for that session; and at the next session it was, after a\nshort discussion, passed over without any final action upon it.\n\nAt the Thirty-second Congress, the committee on Claims was yet more\nfavorably constituted for the slave interest--Mr. Sacket, of New York,\nand Mr. Rantoul, of Massachusetts, being the only two members upon it\nwho openly resisted the slave power. Mr. Edgerton, of Ohio, Mr. Seymour,\nof Connecticut, and Mr. Curtis, of Pennsylvania, being Northern\nDemocrats, remained silent during the discussion of this claim. It was\nhowever again reported by the Chairman, Mr. Daniels, of North Carolina,\nat an early day, and a full determination to carry it through was\nmanifested by the slaveholders.\n\nBoth of the great political parties were at that time (1852) endeavoring\nto suppress all agitation of the slave question. Southern men,\nparticularly, were horrified at every appearance of discussion in\nrelation to the \"pecculiar institution;\" and they hoped to pass this\nbill without even an examination of its merits before the House. But the\nopponents of slavery were not idle. Efforts were privately made to call\nattention of gentlemen to this claim, that they might examine its merits\nbefore it came up for discussion; and on looking into it, a number of\nmembers prepared to oppose its passage.\n\n[Sidenote: 1852.]\n\nAfter one or two postponements, it came on for discussion on the\ntwentieth of February, 1852. Mr. Sacket, of New York, met the case at\nonce, in a speech which showed that he had studied it very thoroughly,\nand understood it perfectly. He insisted that slaves were not _plunder_,\nand did not come within the contract of General Jessup, which gave to\nCreeks the \"plunder\" they might capture. 2d. That the whole transaction\nwas one of _speculation_ on the part of Watson, inasmuch as the report\nset forth that the negroes were worth at least sixty thousand dollars,\nwhile he paid only fourteen thousand and six hundred dollars--being less\nthan one-fourth their value, evidently taking upon himself all risk of\ntitle and possession. 3d. That the officers of Government had no\nauthority to involve the nation in this slave-dealing transaction. 4th.\nThat those officers were not the Government, and could not bind the\npeople to pay their funds for human flesh.\n\nMr. Abercrombie, of Alabama, was in favor of the claim. He declared that\nhe was in Florida at the time of this contract, and knew all about it,\nand that it was well understood that the term \"plunder\" did include\nslaves.\n\nMr. Daniels, Chairman of the committee, felt called on by the effort of\nMr. Sacket to speak early in the discussion. He insisted that General\nJessup, the Commissioner of Indian Affairs and Secretary of War, fully\nunderstood the case; that it was understood by the parties that the term\n\"plunder\" _did_ include slaves; that Watson was drawn into this matter,\npartly, to relieve the Government from the transaction in which it had\nbecome involved. He insisted that the negroes captured were _slaves_ of\nthe Seminoles; but when inquired of on that point, could only say, that\nofficers engaged in the Florida War had spoken of them as such. He was\nmuch embarrassed by interrogatories propounded to him by Mr. Stanton, of\nOhio, and other gentlemen.\n\nMr. Mace, of Indiana, a Democrat, took a short and comprehensive view of\nthe case. He, nor any other man could tell whether these negroes were\nslaves or freemen. On the part of the officers of Government, there was\nnot a single impulse of humanity manifested in regard to these people;\nbut all their endeavors were put forth to _enslave_ them. He was\nentirely opposed to the bill.\n\nHon. John W. Howe, of Pennsylvania, would never give his vote in favor\nof regarding men, and women, and children, as _plunder_. He commented\nwith much force upon the contract, and the documentary evidence before\nthe House, and would maintain the humanity of all prisoners captured in\nwar. He sustained the position of General Gaines, that they were\nprisoners of war.\n\nOn the tenth of March the bill came up again for consideration, when Mr.\nJohnson, of Georgia, advocated its passage in a very elaborate speech.\nHe differed from Mr. Sacket, Mr. Howe, and those who opposed the bill,\nmostly upon the great question--insisting that slaves were _property_\nunder our Federal Constitution; that the people captured by the Creek\nIndians were not possessed of any rights; that they were to be regarded\nas mere chattels: indeed, this point lay at the foundation of the entire\ndiscussion. He however sought to add strength to the claim by reading\nletters from Mr. Crawford, Commissioner of Indian Affairs, and from Mr.\nPoinsett, Secretary of War, to show that they sympathized with the\nslave-dealer, and were desirous that this bill should pass.\n\nMr. Welch, of Ohio, in few words, declared his conviction that these\nnegroes were prisoners of war, to be treated as such, and not to be\nregarded as slaves or chattels.\n\nMr. Evans, of Maryland, thought it difficult to understand the case, but\nwould adopt the views of Judge Iverson, of Georgia; that gentleman had\nbeen a member of the House of Representatives, and his statements could\nbe relied upon. He read a long affidavit showing the recollections of\nMr. Iverson, and, as the United States had the _property in possession_,\nhe would vote for the bill.\n\nMr. Stuart, of Michigan, now a Democratic Senator, thought the\nGovernment had been in great difficulty in getting these Seminoles to go\nWest; they would not go without the negroes, many of whom had\nintermarried with the Seminoles. By the treaty which General Jessup\nmade, in 1837, our Government was bound to send the negroes West, and\nhaving done so, was bound to pay Watson for his loss.\n\nMr. Skelton, of New Jersey, a Democrat, recognized no power in this or\nany other government to treat prisoners of war as _slaves_. The\ndiscussion had become interesting, and, in some degree, constituted an\nagitation of the slave question; and as the committee rose without\ntaking a vote upon the bill, Mr. Orr, of South Carolina, moved a\nresolution precluding further debate upon it; but the House adjourned\nwithout taking a vote on the resolution.\n\nThe case came up again on the tenth of April, when a resolution to close\ndebate in one hour was adopted. The House then resolved itself in\ncommittee; and Mr. Bartlett, of Vermont, a Democrat, took the position\nthat the Government, nor its officers, had power to enter into any\nagreement with Indians or white men, by which they should enjoy any\nprivilege, or receive any compensation, not authorized by law; that the\ncontract between General Jessup and the Creeks was of no validity, but\nabsolutely void; and every transaction touching the enslavement of the\nExiles was without authority, and of no effect.\n\nMr. Walsh, of Maryland, insisted that the Indian tribes were not\nnations, and ought not to be treated as such; that it was not incumbent\non the friends of the bill to show that slavery existed among the\nSeminoles; if they lived within a slave State, they might hold slaves;\nthat the Government had the right to enslave the negroes when captured.\n\nMr. Sweetzer, of Ohio, Democrat, denied the authority of General Jessup\nto make any contract for the services of the Creek warriors other than\nthe law had provided; nor could he have authority to make any\nstipulation as to the disposal of prisoners when captured.\n\nMr. Southerland, of New York, a Whig, thought the question of slavery\nwas not necessarily involved in this case; that the United States,\nhaving sent the negroes West, were bound to indemnify Watson for his\nloss.\n\nMr. Daniels, by the rules of the House, had one hour to reply, after the\nexpiration of the time for closing debate. He attempted to reply to some\nof the arguments offered against the bill, but advanced no new position.\nAt the expiration of his speech the vote was taken, and the bill\nreported to the House as agreed to in committee. The previous question\nwas then called, and under its operation the bill passed--seventy-nine\nmembers voting in favor of its passage, and fifty-three against it.\n\nOne member from the slave States, Williamson R. W. Cobb, of Alabama,\nvoted against the bill. All the other members from the slave States\nvoted for it; and were aided by the votes of members from the free\nStates, as follows:\n\nFrom _New Hampshire_: Harry Hibbard--1.\n\n_Massachusetts_: Wm. Appleton, Zeno Scudder--2.\n\n_New York_: Abram M. Schemmerhorn, James Brooks, Gilbert Dean, F. S.\nMartin, Abram P. Stevens, Joseph Southerland--6.\n\n_Connecticut_: Collins M. Ingersoll--1\n\n_New Jersey_: R. M. Price--1.\n\n_Pennsylvania_: Joseph R. Chandler, Thomas Florence, Joseph H. Kuhns,\nJoseph McNair, Andrew Packer, John Robbins, Thomas Ross--7.\n\n_Ohio_: John L. Taylor--1.\n\n_Indiana_: Sam'l W. Parker, Richard W. Thompson--2.\n\n_Michigan_: E. S. Penniman, Charles E. Stuart--2.\n\n_Iowa_: Lincoln Clark, Bernard Henn--2.\n\n_California_: Joseph W. McCorkle--1. In all the free States twenty-five.\n\nThe vote against the bill was given by the following members, from the\nfree States:\n\nFrom _Maine_: E. K. Smart, Israel Washburn, jr.--2.\n\n_New Hampshire_: Jared Perkins, Amos Tuck--2.\n\n_Massachusetts_: Orrin Fowler, Z. Goodrich, Horace Mann--3.\n\n_New York_: Henry Bennet, George Briggs, John G. Floyd, Timothy Jenkins,\nDaniel F. Jones, Preston King, William Murray, Joseph Russel, Wm. A.\nSacket, W. W. Snow, Hiram S. Wallbridge, John Wells--12.\n\n_New Jersey_: Charles Skelton, N. T. Stratton--2.\n\n_Vermont_: Thomas W. Bartlett, James Meacham--2.\n\n_Connecticut_: Charles Chapman--1.\n\n_Pennsylvania_: James Allison, John L. Dawson, James Gamble, Galusha A.\nGrow, John W. Howe, Thomas M. Howe, Milo M. Dimmick, Thaddeus\nStevens--8.\n\n_Ohio_: Nelson Barrere, Joseph Cable, Alfred P. Edgerton, J. M. Gaylord,\nAlex. Harper, Wm. F. Hunter, John Johnson, Eben Newton, Edson B. Olds,\nCharles Sweetzer--10.\n\n_Indiana_: Samuel Brenton, John G. Davis, Graham N. Fitch, Thomas A.\nHendricks, Daniel Mace--5.\n\n_Illinois_: Wyllis Allen, R. S. Molony--2.\n\n_Wisconsin_: James D. Doty, Solomon Durkee, Ben. C. Eastman--3.\n\nThese fifty-two members, with Mr. Cobb, of Alabama, made up the entire\nopposition to the bill in the House of Representatives. In the Senate\nthere was very little opposition to its passage; and after thirteen\nyears, the people of the United States paid for the slaves whom Watson\nbought on speculation, but of whom he failed to obtain possession. The\nNorthern advocates of the bill justified their support of it more\ngenerally upon the principle, that our officers sent the negroes West,\nand thereby rendered it difficult, if not impossible, for Watson to\nobtain possession of them; and they insisted that, in refunding to\nWatson his money, they did not pay him for human flesh, but for the\nmoney he had paid out at the instance of federal officers. This vote\nclosed the controversy in regard to General Jessup's contract, to give\nthe Creek warriors such _plunder_ as they might capture from the enemy.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XVIII.\n\nFURTHER DIFFICULTIES IN PROSECUTING THE WAR.\n\n     Emigrants under Captain Morrison--Feeling among the Regular\n     Troops--They detest the practice of catching Negroes--Another party\n     Emigrate--Still further Emigration--Situation of the Exiles--Deep\n     depravity of the Administration--General McComb's Treaty--His\n     general order--Peace cheers the Nation--Citizens of Florida return\n     to their homes--Administration congratulates its friends--More\n     murders perpetrated--Planters flee to villages for\n     protection--Massacre of Colonel Harney's party--Indians seized at\n     Fort Mellon--Exiles refuse to participate in those massacres--They\n     would make no Treaty--Administration paralyzed--Report of Secretary\n     of War--Its character--Barbarous sentiments of Governor\n     Reid--Resolution of Legislature of Florida in favor of employing\n     blood-hounds--Original object in obtaining them--The effort proves\n     a failure--General Taylor retires from command of Army--Is\n     succeeded by General Armistead.\n\n\nWe now resume our chronological narration of events connected with the\nExiles of Florida, during the year 1838.\n\nOn the fourteenth of June, Captain Morrison arrived at New Orleans from\nTampa Bay in charge of some three hundred Indians and thirty negroes, on\ntheir way to the West; he having been assigned to that particular duty.\nThese Indians and Exiles had most of them come to Fort Jupiter by advice\nof the Cherokees, and surrendered under the capitulation of March, 1837.\nAt the time they reached New Orleans, Lieutenant Reynolds was absent\nwith his first emigrating party; and the thirty-one negroes left at New\nOrleans were at that time in the hands of the Sheriff. Captain Morrison\nfelt it his duty to hasten the emigration of those whom he had in\ncharge, and on the sixteenth, he left that city with his prisoners for\nthe Indian Country without waiting the return of Lieutenant Reynolds. On\nreaching Fort Gibson, he delivered them over to the officer acting as\nSeminole Agent for the Western Country, and they soon rejoined their\nfriends who were located on the Cherokee lands.\n\nIt may not be improper to state, that, in several of our recent\nchapters, we have quoted from official documents pretty freely, for the\nreason that many living statesmen, as well as many who have passed to\ntheir final rest, were deeply involved in those transactions, and we\ndesired to make them speak for themselves as far as the documents would\nenable us to do so. But as we have narrated most of the scenes involving\nindividuals in transactions of such deep moral turpitude, we hope to be\nmore brief in our future history.\n\nWhen General Taylor assumed the command of the army, there was a feeling\nof deep disgust prevalent among the regular troops at the practice of\nseizing and enslaving the Exiles.\n\nWe have already noticed the fact, that the citizens of Florida supposed\nthe war to have been commenced principally to enable them to get\npossession of negroes whom they might enslave. Indeed, they appear not\nto have regarded it as material, that the claimant should have\npreviously owned the negro. If they once obtained control of his person,\nhe was hurried into the interior of Georgia, Alabama, or South Carolina,\nwhere he was sold and held as a slave. And the Florida volunteers, while\nnominally in service, appear to have been far more anxious to catch\nnegroes than to meet the enemy in battle.\n\nThis feeling was so general among the people and troops of Florida, that\nGeneral Call, Governor of the Territory, recommended to the Secretary of\nWar that military expeditions should be fitted out for the purpose of\ngoing into the Indian Country, in order to capture negroes, who, when\ncaptured, _should be sold, and the avails of such sales applied to\ndefray the expenses of the war_.\n\nIt is easy to see that this feeling would lead the regular troops to\nentertain great contempt for the volunteers of Florida; and a\ncorresponding feeling of hostility would arise on the part of such\nvolunteers toward the regular troops.\n\nThese feelings operated upon President Jackson in ordering the\nwithdrawal of General Scott; and General Jessup sought to appease this\nhostility by obeying the dictates of the slave power. Indeed, whatever\nappears like a violation of pledged faith, or bears the evidence of\ntreachery on the part of General Jessup, may probably with great justice\nbe attributed to the popular sentiment of the Territory. He had\nassiduously captured, and delivered over to bondage, hundreds of persons\nwhom he had most solemnly covenanted to \"_protect in their persons and\nproperty_.\"\n\nGeneral Taylor discarded this entire policy. His first efforts were to\nmake the Indians and Exiles understand that he sought their emigration\nto the Western Country, for the advancement of their own interest and\nhappiness. Owing to these circumstances there was scarcely any blood\nshed in Florida while he had command. The army was no longer employed to\nhunt and to chase down women and children, who had been reared in\nfreedom among the hommocks and everglades of that Territory.\n\nThere were yet remaining several small bands of Indians upon the\nAppalachicola River, and in its vicinity. Most of the Exiles who had a\nfew years previously resided with these bands, had been captured by\npirates from Georgia, and taken to the interior of that State and sold,\nas the reader has been already informed. Those of E-con-chattimico's and\nof Blunt's and of Walker's bands were nearly all kidnapped; but of the\nnumber of Exiles who remained with the other remnants of Indian Tribes,\nresident upon the Appalachicola River, we have no reliable information.\nWe are left in doubt on this point, as General Taylor drew no\ndistinctions among his prisoners; he neither constituted himself nor his\nofficers a tribunal for examining the complexion or the pedigree of his\ncaptives. He denied the right of any citizen to inspect the people\ncaptured by the army under his command, or to interfere in any way with\nthe disposal of his prisoners. He repaired to the Apalachee towns with\na small force about the first of October. Neither the Indians nor Exiles\nmade any resistance; nor did they oppose emigration. They readily\nembarked for New Orleans on their way westward. Their emigration was not\ndelayed in order to give planters an opportunity to examine the negroes.\nUnder the general term of \"Apalachees,\" two hundred and twenty persons\nwere quietly emigrated to the Western Country; but, as we have already\nstated, how many of them were negroes, we have no information. These\npeople were also delivered over to the agent, acting for the Western\nIndians, and settled with their brethren upon the Cherokee lands.\n\nGeneral Taylor now entered upon a new system for prosecuting the war, by\nestablishing posts and manning them, and by assigning to each a\nparticular district of country, over which their scouts and patroles\nwere to extend their daily reconnoisances.\n\n[Sidenote: 1839.]\n\nSmall parties of Indians and negroes occasionally came in at different\nposts, and surrendered under the articles of capitulation of March,\n1837; and, on the twenty-fifth of February, one hundred and ninety-six\nIndians and _negroes_ were embarked at Tampa Bay for the Western\nCountry. But the proportion of negroes, compared with the whole number,\nis not stated in any official report. General Taylor, in his\ncommunications, speaks of them as _prisoners_, and occasionally uses the\nterms \"Indians and negroes\".\n\nThus, in less than a year, General Taylor shipped more than four hundred\nprisoners for the Western Country without bloodshed. These prisoners\nwere also delivered over to the Indian Agent of the Western Country, and\nimmediately reunited with their brethren already located on the Cherokee\nlands. There were, at that time, a colony of more than sixteen hundred\nof these people living upon the territory assigned to the Cherokees.\nThey were without homes, or a country of their own: whereas the\nGovernment had constantly held out to them the assurance that, if they\nemigrated West, they should have a country assigned to their _separate\nuse_, on which they could repose in safety.\n\nAt this point in our history, Mr. Van Buren's administration exhibited\nits deepest depravity. Since the ratification of the supplemental treaty\nof 1833, the Executive, through all its officers, had assured the\nIndians and Exiles that they should enjoy its full benefits, by having a\nterritory set off to their separate use, where they could live\nindependent of Creek laws. Under these assurances they had received the\npledged faith of the nation, that they should be _protected_ by the\nUnited States in their persons and property.\n\nWith these pledges, and with these expectations, a weak and friendless\npeople had emigrated to that western region; and when thus separated\nfrom their friends and country, with the slave-catching vultures of the\nCreek Nation watching and intending to make them their future victims,\nthe President deliberately refused to abide by either the treaty or the\narticles of capitulation. He left them unprotected, without homes, and\nwithout a country which they could call their own. True, many of them\nhad been betrayed, treacherously seized and compelled to emigrate; but\nthis was done in violation of the existing treaty and pledged faith of\nthe nation, which they were constantly assured should be faithfully\nobserved; and these circumstances enhanced the guilt of those who\nwielded the Executive power to oppress them.\n\nMajor General McComb arrived in Florida (May 20) for the purpose of\neffecting a new treaty with the Seminoles upon the basis of _permitting\nthem to remain in their native land_. The war had been waged with the\nintent and for the purpose of compelling the Indians to emigrate West\nand settle with the Creeks, and become subject to the Creek laws. It had\ncontinued three years at a vast expenditure of treasure and of national\nreputation. Many valuable lives had also been sacrificed; and, although\nsome two thousand Indians and Exiles had emigrated West, not one Exile\nhad settled in the Creek Country, or become subject to Creek laws. Some\nhundreds had been enslaved and sold in Florida, Georgia, Alabama and\nSouth Carolina; but a remnant of that people, numbering some hundreds,\nyet maintained their liberties against all the machinations and efforts\nof Government to re\u00ebnslave them.[122]\n\nThe vast expenditure of national treasure had called forth severe\nanimadversion in Congress; while the entire policy of the slave power\nforbid all explanation of the real cause of this war, and of the objects\nfor which its prosecution was continued.\n\nThus, while the nation was involved in a most expensive and disastrous\ncontest for the benefit of slavery, the House of Representatives had\nadopted resolutions for suppressing all discussion and all agitation of\nquestions relating to that institution.\n\nGeneral Scott, a veteran officer of our army, had exhausted his utmost\nscience; had put forth all his efforts to conquer this indomitable\npeople; or rather to subdue the love of liberty, the independence of\nthought and of feeling, which stimulated them to effort; but he had\nfailed. The power of our army, aided by deception, fraud and perfidy,\nhad been tried in vain. General Jessup, the most successful officer who\nhad commanded in Florida, had advised peace upon the precise terms which\nthe allies demanded at the commencement of the war; and General McComb,\nCommander-in-Chief of the army of the United States, was now\ncommissioned to negotiate peace on those terms. But the first difficulty\nwas to obtain a hearing with the chiefs who remained in Florida, in\norder to enter upon negotiations touching a pacification. To effect this\nobject, recourse was had to a negro, one of the Exiles who knew General\nTaylor, and in whom General Taylor confided. At the request of General\nMcComb, this man was dispatched with a friendly message to several\nchiefs, requesting them to come into the American Camp for the purpose\nof negotiation. His mission proved successful. A Council of several\nchiefs, and some forty head men and warriors, was convened at Fort King,\non the sixteenth of May, 1839, and the terms of peace agreed upon; but\nno treaty appears to have been drawn up in form. On the eighteenth of\nMay, General McComb, at Fort King, his head-quarters, issued the\nfollowing general orders:\n\n\n\"HEAD QUARTERS OF THE ARMY OF THE UNITED STATES,}\n_Fort King, Florida_, May 18, 1839.             }\n\n     \"The Major General, commanding in chief, has the satisfaction of\n     announcing to the army in Florida, to the authorities of the\n     Territory, and to the citizens generally, that he has this day\n     terminated the war with the Seminole Indians by an agreement\n     entered into with Chitto-Tustenuggee, principal chief of the\n     Seminoles and successor to Arpeika, commonly called Sam. Jones,\n     brought to this post by Lieutenant Colonel Harney, 2d Dragoons,\n     from the southern part of the peninsula. The terms of the agreement\n     are--that hostilities immediately cease between the parties; that\n     the troops of the United States and the Seminole and Mickasukie\n     chiefs and warriors, now at a distance, be made acquainted with the\n     fact, that peace exists, and that all hostilities are forthwith to\n     cease on both sides--the Seminoles and Mickasukies agreeing to\n     retire into a district of country in Florida, below Pease Creek,\n     the boundaries of which are as follows: viz, beginning at the most\n     southern point of land between Charlotte Harbor and the Sanybel or\n     Cooloosahatchee River, opposite to Sanybel Island; thence into\n     Charlotte Harbor by the southern pass between Pine Island and that\n     point along the eastern shore of said harbor to Toalkchopko or\n     Pease Creek; thence up said creek to its source; thence easterly to\n     the northern point of Lake Istokopoga; thence along the eastern\n     outlet of said lake, called Istokopoga Creek, to the Kissimee\n     River; thence southerly down the Kissimee to Lake Okeechobee;\n     thence south through said lake to Ecahlahatohee or Shark River;\n     thence down said river westwardly to its mouth; thence along the\n     seashore northwardly to the place of beginning; that sixty days be\n     allowed the Indians, north and east of that boundary, to remove\n     their families and effects into said district, where they are to\n     remain until further arrangements are made under the protection of\n     the troops of the United States, who are to see that they are not\n     molested by intruders, citizens or foreigners; and that said\n     Indians do not pass the limits assigned them, except to visit the\n     posts, which will be hereafter indicated to them. All persons are,\n     therefore, forbidden to enter the district assigned to the Indians\n     without written permission of some commanding officer of a military\n     post.\"\n\n\"By command of the General: ALEXANDER McCOMB,\n\n_Major General Commanding_.\n\nEDMOND SHRIVER,\n\nCaptain and A. A. General.\"\n\n\n\nThe country now again rejoiced at what the people regarded as the\nrestoration of peace. By the terms agreed upon, the Indians retained as\nlarge a territory in proportion to the number left in Florida as was\nheld by them at the commencement of the war.\n\nThe people of Florida had originally petitioned General Jackson for the\nforcible removal of the Indians, because they would not seize and bring\nin their fugitive slaves. They had protested against peace upon any\nterms that should leave the negroes, whom they claimed, in the Indian\nCountry. These citizens of Florida had long since been driven from their\nhomes and firesides by the enemy whom they so much despised; and they\nnow desired peace. The Indians and Exiles were also anxious to cultivate\ncorn and potatoes for the coming winter, and were glad to be able to do\nso in peace.\n\nThus, the people of Florida, as they supposed, in perfect safety,\nreturned to their plantations, and resumed their former habits of life.\nAnd the political party in possession of the Government, congratulated\nthemselves and the country upon the fortunate conclusion of a war which\nhad involved them in difficulties that were inexplicable.\n\nBut this quiet continued for a short time only. Early in July, travelers\nand express-riders were killed by small parties of Indians; plantations\nwere attacked and the occupants murdered; buildings burned and crops\ndestroyed; families fled from their homes, leaving all their property,\nin order to assemble in villages in such numbers as to insure safety to\ntheir persons; and the Florida War again raged with accumulated horrors.\nAs an illustration of the manner in which it was carried on, we quote\nthe following:\n\n\n\"ASSISTANT ADJUTANT GENERAL'S OFFICE, ARMY OF THE SOUTH,}\n_Fort Brooke, East Florida_, July 29, 1839.             }\n\n     \"SIR: It becomes my painful duty to inform you of the assassination\n     of the greater part of Lieutenant Colonel Harney's detachment, by\n     the Indians, on the morning of the 23d instant, on the\n     Coloosahatchee River, where they had gone, in accordance with the\n     treaty at Fort King, to establish a trading-house. The party\n     consisted of about twenty-eight men, armed with Colt's rifles; they\n     were encamped on the river, _but unprotected by defenses of any\n     kind_, and, it is said, without sentinels. The Indians, in large\n     force, made the attack before the dawn of day, and before reveill\u00e9;\n     and it is supposed that thirteen of the men were killed, among whom\n     were Major Dalham and Mr. Morgan, sutlers. The remainder, with\n     Colonel Harney, escaped, several of them severely wounded. It was a\n     complete surprise. The Commanding General, therefore, directs that\n     you instantly take measures to place the defenses at Fort Mellon in\n     the most complete state of repair, and be ready at all times to\n     repel attack, should one be made. No portion of your command will,\n     in future, be suffered to leave the garrison except under a strong\n     escort. The detachment will be immediately withdrawn. Should Fort\n     Mellon prove unhealthy, and the surgeon recommend its abandonment,\n     you are authorized to transfer the garrison, and reinforce some of\n     the neighboring posts.\n\n\"I am, Sir,\n\nGEO. H. GRIFFIN,\n\n_Assistant Adjutant General_.\n\nLieutenant W. K. HANSON,\n\nCommanding at Fort Mellon.\"\n\n\n\nThe Indians killed ten men belonging to the military service, and eight\ncitizens, employed by the sutlers; while Colonel Harney and fourteen\nothers escaped. The Indians obtained fourteen rifles, six carbines, some\nthree or four kegs of powder, and about three thousand dollars worth of\ngoods.\n\nLieutenant Hanson, commanding at Fort Mellon, on receiving the order\nwhich we have quoted, seized some thirty Indians at that time visiting\nFort Mellon, and sent them immediately to Charleston, South Carolina;\nwhence they were embarked for the Indian Country, west of Arkansas,\nwhere they joined their brethren, who still resided upon the Cherokee\nTerritory.\n\nIn these transactions, the Exiles who remained in Florida appear to have\ntaken no part, at least so far as we are informed. They labored to\nobtain the treaty of peace; but such was the treachery with which they\nhad been treated, that they would not subject themselves to the power of\nthe white people, and were not of course present at the treaty; nor were\nthey recognized by General McComb as a party to the treaty, or in any\nway interested in its provisions. Indeed, we are led to believe that\nGeneral McComb adopted the policy on which General Taylor usually\npracticed, of recognizing no distinctions among prisoners or enemies.\n\nThe Administration appeared to be paralyzed under this new demonstration\nof the power and madness of the Seminoles. At the commencement of the\nwar, some officers had estimated the whole number of Seminoles at\nfifteen hundred, and the negroes as low as four hundred. They had now\nsent some two thousand Indians and negroes to the Western Country; and\nyet those left in Florida, renewed the war with all the savage barbarity\nwhich had characterized the Seminoles in the days of their greatest\npower. Indeed, they exhibited no signs of humiliation.\n\nThe Secretary of War, Mr. Poinsett, a South Carolinian, probably exerted\nmore influence with the President in regard to this war than any other\nofficer of Government. His predecessor, General Cass, had treated the\nExiles as mere chattels, having \"no rights.\" He had advised the\nemployment of Creek Indians, giving them such negroes as they might\ncapture; he had officially approved the contract made with them by\nGeneral Jessup. After he left the office, his successor, Mr. Poinsett,\napproved the order purchasing some ninety of them on account of\nGovernment. He had advised Watson to purchase them; had done all in his\npower to consign them to slavery in Georgia. He was, however,\nconstrained to make an official report upon the state of this war, at\nthe opening of the first session of the Twenty-sixth Congress, which\nassembled on the first Monday of December, 1839.\n\nThat report, when considered in connection with the events which gave\ncharacter to the Florida War, constitutes a most extraordinary paper.\nNotwithstanding all the difficulties which he had encountered in his\nefforts to enslave the Exiles, to prevent at least ninety of them from\ngoing West, and the complaints of the Seminoles who had emigrated to the\nWestern Country, at finding themselves destitute of homes and of\nterritory on which to settle, he made no allusion to their troubles; nor\ndid he give any intimation of the difficulties arising on account of the\nExiles; nor did he even intimate that such a class of people existed in\nFlorida.\n\n[Sidenote: 1840.]\n\nHe declared the result of General McComb's negotiation had been the loss\nof many valuable lives. \"Our people (said he) fell a sacrifice to their\nconfidence in the good faith and promises of the Indians, and were\nentrapped and murdered with all the circumstances of cruelty and\ntreachery which distinguish Indian warfare. * * * The experience of the\nlast summer brings with it the painful conviction, that the war must be\nprosecuted until Florida is freed from these ruthless savages. Their\nlate, cruel and treacherous conduct is too well known to require a\nrepetition of the revolting recital; it has been such as is calculated\nto deprive them of the sympathy of the humane, and convince 'the most\npeaceable of the necessity of _subduing them by force_.\"\n\nIt appeared necessary to raise the cry of treachery and cruelty against\nthe Indians and Exiles. They had no friend who was acquainted with the\nfacts, that could call attention of the nation to the treachery which\nhad been practiced on them by the order, and with the approval, of the\nSecretary of War. No man was able to say how many fathers and mothers\nand children were, by the influence of that officer, consigned to a fate\nfar more cruel than that which awaited the men, under Colonel Harney, at\nColoosahatchee.\n\nIn his report the Secretary most truly remarked: \"If the Indians of\nFlorida had a country to retire to, they would have been driven out of\nthe Territory long ago; but they are hemmed in by the sea, and must\ndefend themselves to the uttermost, or surrender to be transported\nbeyond it.\" And he might well have added: _When they shall be thus\ntransported, they will have no country--no home_. Indeed, the whole\nreport shows that he relied on physical force to effect an extermination\nof the Indians and their allies; he looked not to justice, nor to the\npower of truth, for carrying out the designs of the Executive.\n\nMen in power appear to forget that justice sits enthroned above all\nhuman greatness; that it is omnipotent, and will execute its appropriate\nwork upon mankind. Thus, while the people of Florida and Georgia had\nprovoked the war, by kidnapping and enslaving colored men and women, to\nwhom they had no more claim than they had to the people of England;\nwhile they had sent their petition to General Jackson, asking him to\ncompel the Indians to seize and bring in their negroes, and had\nprotested against the peace negotiated by General Jessup, in 1837;--Mr.\nReid, Governor of Florida, in an official Message to the Territorial\nLegislature, in December, 1839, used language so characteristic of those\nwho supported the Florida War, that we feel it just to him and his\ncoadjutors to give the following extract:\n\n\"The efforts of the General and Territorial Governments to quell the\nIndian disturbances which have prevailed through four long years, have\nbeen unavailing, and it would seem that the prophecy of the most\nsagacious leader of the Indians will be more than fulfilled; the close\nof the fifth year will still find us struggling in a contest remarkable\nfor magnanimity, forbearance and credulity on the one side, and ferocity\nand bad faith on the other. We are waging a war with beasts of prey;\nthe tactics that belong to civilized nations are but shackles and\nfetters in its prosecution; we must fight 'fire with fire;' the white\nman must, in a great measure, adopt the mode of warfare pursued by the\nred man, and we can only hope for success by continually harrassing and\npursuing the enemy. If we drive him from hommock to hommock, from swamp\nto swamp, and penetrate the recesses where his women and children are;\nif, in self-defense, we show as little mercy to him as he has shown to\nus, the anxiety and surprise produced by such operations will not fail,\nit is believed, to produce prosperous results. It is high time that\nsickly sentimentality should cease. 'Lo, the poor Indian!' is the\nexclamation of the fanatic, pseudo-philanthropist; 'Lo, the poor white\nman!' is the ejaculation which all will utter who have witnessed the\ninhuman butchery of women and children, and the massacres that have\ndrenched the Territory in blood.\n\n\"In the future prosecution of the war, it is important that a generous\nconfidence should be reposed in the General Government. It may be that\nmistakes and errors have been committed on all hands; but the peculiar\nadaptation of the country to the cowardly system of the foe, and its\ninaptitude to the operations of a regular army; the varying and often\ncontradictory views and opinions of the best informed of our citizens,\nand the embarrassments which these cases must have produced to the\nauthorities at Washington, furnish to the impartial mind some excuse, at\nleast, for the failures which have hitherto occurred. It is our duty to\nbe less mindful of the past than the future. Convinced that the present\nincumbent of the Presidential Chair regards with sincere and intense\ninterest the afflictions we endure; relying upon the patriotism, talent\nand sound judgment of the distinguished Carolinian who presides over the\nDepartment of War, and confident in the wisdom of Congress, let us\nprepare to second, with every nerve, the measures which may be devised\nfor our relief. Feeling as we do the immediate pressure of\ncircumstances, let us exert, to the extremest point, all our powers to\nrid us of the evil by which we are oppressed. Let us, by a conciliatory\ncourse, endeavor to allay any unkindnesses of feeling which may exist\nbetween the United States army and the militia of Florida, and by union\nof sentiment among ourselves, advance the happy period when the\nTerritory shall enjoy what she so much needs--a long season of peace and\ntranquillity.\"\n\nPerhaps no vice is more general among mankind than a desire to represent\nourselves, and our country and government, to mankind and to posterity\nas just and wise, whatever real truth may dictate. Surely, if General\nJessup's official reports be regarded as correct, the people of Florida\nshould have been the last of all who were concerned in that war, to\nclaim the virtue of magnanimity or forbearance, or to charge the\nSeminoles or Exiles with ferocity or bad faith. The expression that \"_it\nis high time that sickly sentimentality should cease_,\" manifests the\nideas which he entertained of strict, equal and impartial justice to all\nmen.\n\nThis message was an appropriate introduction to the legislative action\nwhich immediately succeeded its publication. It was that legislative\nbody which first gave official sanction to the policy of obtaining\nblood-hounds from Cuba to aid our troops in the prosecution of this war.\nOf this atrocious and barbarous policy much has been said and written,\nand its authorship charged upon various men and officers of Government.\nAt the time of the transaction, it was represented that the blood-hounds\nwere obtained for the purpose of trailing the Indians, and historians\nhave so stated;[123] but for various reasons, we are constrained to\nbelieve they were obtained for the purpose of trailing _negroes_. It was\nwell known that these animals were trained to pursue _negroes_, and\n_only_ negroes. They would no more follow the track of a white man than\nthey would that of a horse or an ox. It was the peculiar scent of the\nnegro that they had been trained and accustomed to follow. No man\nconcerned in obtaining these animals, could have been ignorant that they\nhad, in all probability, never seen an Indian, or smelt the track of\nany son of the forest.\n\nEvery slaveholder well understood the habits of those ferocious dogs,\nand the manner of training them, and could not have supposed them\ncapable of being rendered useful in capturing Indians. The people of\nFlorida appear to have been stimulated in the commencement and\ncontinuance of this war solely by a desire to _obtain slaves_, rather\nthan to _fight Indians_; and while acting as militia or as individuals,\nthey were far more efficient in capturing negroes and claiming those\ncaptured by other troops than in facing them on the field of battle. Nor\ncan we resist the conviction, that catching _negroes_ constituted, in\nthe mind of General Jessup, the object for which those animals were to\nbe obtained. Such was evidently his purpose when he wrote Colonel\nHarney, as quoted in a former chapter, \"If you see Powell (Osceola),\ntell him that I intend to send exploring and surveying parties into\nevery part of the country during the summer; and that I shall send out\nand take _all the negroes who belong to white people, and he must_ not\nallow the Indians or Indian negroes to mix with them. Tell him I am\nsending to Cuba for blood-hounds to trail them, and I intend to hang\nevery one of them who does not come in.\"\n\nWe cannot close our eyes to the fact, that General Jessup intended the\nblood-hounds to be used in catching \"the negroes belonging to the white\npeople,\" as he said. Those white people were mostly slaveholders of\nFlorida; those who proposed in the legislative assembly of that\nterritory the obtaining of the animals, and adopted a resolution\nauthorizing their purchase. They did not wait for the President to act,\nnor for the \"Secretary of War,\" whom the Governor of Florida\ncharacterized as \"that distinguished _Carolinian_\" on whose judgment and\npatriotism the people of Florida so much relied.[124]\n\nBy resolution, Colonel Fitzpatrick was \"authorized to proceed to\nHavana, and procure a kennel of blood-hounds, noted for tracking and\npursuing negroes.\" He was fortunate in his mission. He not only obtained\nthe animals, but he accomplished the journey, and reached St. Augustine\nas early as the sixth of January, 1840, with a reinforcement for the\narmy of the United States of thirty-three blood-hounds well trained to\nthe work of catching negroes. They cost precisely one hundred and\nfifty-one dollars seventy-two cents, each, when landed in Florida. He\nalso procured five Spaniards who were accustomed to using the animals in\ncapturing negroes; and as the dogs had been trained to the Spanish\nlanguage, they would have been useless under the control of persons who\ncould only speak the dialect of our own country.\n\nThe very general error that existed throughout the country, at the time\nof this transaction, arose from a misapprehension of the facts. There\nhad been much said in regard to these blood-hounds before they were\nactually obtained. When the report of the War Department, under the\nresolution of the House of Representatives of the twenty-eighth of\nJanuary, 1839, was published, containing the letter of General Jessup\naddressed to Colonel Harney, which we have quoted, many members of\nCongress appeared indignant at what they regarded as a stain upon our\nnational honor in obtaining and employing blood-hounds to act in concert\nwith our troops and our Indian allies in this war. Party feelings ran\nhigh, and southern members of Congress, who were acting with the Whig\nparty, were willing to seize upon any circumstance that would reflect\ndiscreditably upon the then existing Administration.\n\nOn the twenty-seventh day of December, 1839, the Hon. Henry A. Wise, a\nmember of the House of Representatives from Virginia, addressed a letter\nto the Secretary of War, inquiring as to facts relating to the\nemployment of blood-hounds in aid of our troops.[125]\n\nTo this letter Mr. Poinsett, the Secretary of War, replied on the\nthirtieth of December, as follows:\n\n\n\"WAR DEPARTMENT, December 20, 1839.\n\n     \"SIR: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of\n     the twenty-seventh instant, inquiring into the truth of the\n     assertion made by the public papers, that the Government had\n     determined to use blood-hounds in the war against the Florida\n     Indians; and beg to assure you it will give me great pleasure to\n     give you all the information on this subject in possession of the\n     Department.\n\n     \"From the time I first entered upon the duties of the War\n     Department, I continued to receive letters from officers commanding\n     in Florida, as well as from the most enlightened citizens in that\n     Territory, urging the employment of blood-hounds as the most\n     efficient means of terminating the atrocities daily perpetrated by\n     the Indians on the settlers in that Territory. To these proposals\n     no answer was given, until in the month of August, 1838, while at\n     the Virginia Springs, there was referred to me, from the\n     Department, a letter, addressed to the Adjutant General by the\n     officer commanding the forces in Florida (General Taylor), to the\n     following effect:\n\n\n\"HEAD QUARTERS ARMY OF THE SOUTH,}\n_Fort Brooke_, July 28, 1838.        }\n\n     \"SIR: I have the honor to inclose you a communication this moment\n     received, on the subject of procuring blood-hounds from the Island\n     of Cuba to aid the army in its operations against the hostiles in\n     Florida. I am decidedly in favor of the measure, and beg leave to\n     urge it as the only means of ridding the country of the Indians,\n     who are now broken up into small parties that take shelter in\n     swamps and hommocks, making it impossible for us to follow or\n     overtake them without the aid of such auxiliaries. Should this\n     measure meet the approbation of the Department, and the necessary\n     authority be granted, I will open a correspondence with Mr.\n     Evertson on the subject, through Major Hunt, Assistant Quarter\n     Master at Savannah, and will authorize him, if it can be done on\n     reasonable terms, to employ a few dogs with persons who understand\n     their management.\n\n     \"I wish it distinctly understood, that my object in employing dogs\n     is only to ascertain where the Indians can be found, not to worry\n     them.\n\n\"I have the honor to be, sir,\n\nYour obedient servant,\n\nZ. TAYLOR,\n\n_Brev. Brig. Gen. U. S. A. Commanding_.\n\nGeneral R. JONES,\n\nWashington, D. C.\"\n\n\n\n\"On this letter I indorsed the following decision, which was\ncommunicated to General Taylor: 'I have always been of opinion that dogs\n_ought_ to be employed in this warfare to protect the army from\nsurprises and ambuscades, and to track the Indian to his lurking place;\nbut supposed if the General believed them to be necessary, he would not\nhesitate to take measures to secure them. The cold-blooded and inhuman\nmurders lately perpetrated upon helpless women and children by these\nruthless savages, render it expedient that every possible means should\nbe resorted to, in order to protect the people of Florida, and to enable\nthe United States forces to follow and capture or destroy the savage and\nunrelenting foe. General Taylor is therefore authorized to procure such\nnumber of dogs as he may judge necessary: it being expressly understood\nthat they are to be employed to track and discover the Indians, not to\nworry or destroy them.'\n\n\"This is the only action or correspondence, on the part of the\nDepartment, that has ever taken place in relation to the matter. The\nGeneral took no measures to carry into effect his own recommendation,\nand this Department has never since renewed the subject. I continue,\nhowever, to entertain the opinion expressed in the above decision. I do\nnot believe that description of dog, called the blood-hound, necessary\nto prevent surprise or track the Indian murderer; but still I think that\nevery cabin, every military post, and every detachment, should be\nattended by dogs. That precaution might have saved Dade's command from\nmassacre, and by giving timely warning have prevented many of the cruel\nmurders which have been committed by the Indians in middle Florida. The\nonly successful pursuit of Indian murderers that I know of, was, on a\nlate occasion, when the pursuers were aided by the sagacity of their\ndogs. These savages had approached a cabin of peaceful and industrious\nsettlers so stealthily, that the first notice of their presence was\ngiven by a volley from their rifles, thrust between the logs of the\nhouse; and the work of death was finished by tomahawking the women,\nafter tearing from them their infant children, and dashing their brains\nout against the door posts.\n\n\"Are these ruthless savages to escape and repeat such scenes of blood,\nbecause they can elude our fellow citizens in Florida, and our regular\nsoldiers, and baffle their unaided efforts to overtake or discover them?\nOn a late occasion, three of our estimable citizens were killed in the\nimmediate neighborhood of St. Augustine, and one officer of\ndistinguished merit mortally wounded. It is in evidence, that these\nmurders were committed by two Indians, who, after shooting down the\nfather and beating out the son's brains with the butts of their rifles,\nupon hearing the approach of the volunteers, retired a few yards into\nthe woods and secreted themselves, until the troops returned to town\nwith the dead bodies of those who had been thus inhumanly and wantonly\nbutchered.\n\n\"It is to be regretted that this corps had not been accompanied with one\nor two hunters, who, with their dogs, might have tracked the\nblood-stained footsteps of those Indians; have restored to liberty the\ncaptives they were dragging away with them, and have prevented them from\never again repeating such atrocities; nor could the severest casuist\nobject to our fellow citizens in Florida resorting to such measures, in\norder to protect the lives of their women and children.\"\n\n\"Very respectfully,\n\nYour most obedient servant,\n\nJ. R. POINSETT.\n\nHon. HENRY A. WISE,\n\nHouse of Representatives.\"\n\n\nIt is no part of our present duties to comment on the code of morals\nwhich the Secretary of War had adopted. He undoubtedly felt, that\nneither the Indians nor negroes \"possessed any rights which white men\nwere bound to respect.\" He was not, he could not, have been ignorant of\nthe cold-blooded massacre of nearly three hundred Exiles and Indians at\nBlount's Fort, in 1816; nor of the manner in which the present war had\nbeen brought on; nor of the objects for which it was prosecuted; nor\ndoes it appear possible that he, a large slaveholder of South Carolina,\ncould have expected these blood-hounds would follow the trail of\nIndians. But we must bear in mind that he had been exceedingly vexed\nwith the indomitable resistance of the Exiles. They appeared perfectly\ndetermined not to be enslaved, and that determination had given him much\ntrouble; and he must have foreseen the defeat of his party in the next\nPresidential contest, should all these facts become known to the public.\nWith these feelings, he was prepared to apply almost any epithets to the\nIndians, as the friends and allies of a people to whose real character\nhe dared not publicly allude, although they were occasioning the\nAdministration so much trouble.\n\nHaving shown that no blood-hounds had been previously employed, he\nproceeded to argue the propriety of employing them in future, by\nadopting the policy proposed by the Legislature of Florida, who, as we\nhave already seen, had taken measures to obtain them some twenty days\nprior to the date of this communication.\n\nThe Secretary of War thus exonerated himself and the Federal Executive\nfrom the responsibility of employing blood-hounds, on the thirtieth of\nDecember; and the animals arrived in Florida, under charge of Colonel\nFitzpatrick, just one week _subsequently_ to that date.\n\nOne feature was most obvious, in the commencement and prosecution of\nthis war: we allude to the very respectful, almost obsequious obedience\nof the Executive to the popular feeling in favor of slavery, in every\npart of the country where that institution existed. This war had been\ncommenced at the instance of the people of Florida. General Jessup\nattempted to change the articles of capitulation which he had signed,\nwhen the people of Florida protested against peace, unless attended by a\nrestoration of slaves; and now, when the popular voice of the nation had\nparalyzed the Executive arm in regard to obtaining blood-hounds, the\npeople of Florida, in their Legislature, took up the subject and carried\nthe policy into practice, so far as to obtain the animals; but that\nwould be of no use unless they could be employed by the army of the\nUnited States. Preparatory to this adoption of the purchase made by the\nLegislature of Florida, Mr. Poinsett had argued the propriety of their\nemployment, in his letter to Mr. Wise; and twenty-six days afterwards,\nhe wrote General Taylor as follows:\n\n\n\"WAR DEPARTMENT, Jan'y 26, 1840.\n\n     \"SIR: It is understood by the Department, although not officially\n     informed of the fact, that the authorities of the Territory have\n     imported a pack of blood-hounds from the Island of Cuba. And I\n     think it proper to direct, in the event of those dogs being\n     employed by any officer or officers under your command, that their\n     use be confined altogether to tracking the Indians; and in order to\n     insure this, and to prevent the possibility of their injuring any\n     person whatever, that they be muzzled and held with a leash while\n     following the track of the enemy.\n\n\"Very respectfully,\n\nYour most obedient servant,\n\nJ. R. POINSETT.\n\nBrig. Gen'l Z. TAYLOR,\n\nCom'd'g Army of the South, Florida.\"\n\n\n\nFrom the commencement of this war, the officers of our army had found it\nnecessary to employ persons who could communicate with the Indians in\ntheir own tongue. This was usually done through negroes, who could\nsafely approach both Exiles and Indians; they were, in fact, the only\nclass of persons who could safely go from our posts to those of the\nenemy. No Indians could do it unless by arrangement made through those\nnegroes; inasmuch as Creeks, Chickasaws and Choctaws were employed to\nact with our troops in hunting down the Seminoles, who shot those\nCreeks, Choctaws and Chickasaws, when opportunity permitted, with just\nas little ceremony as they did white men.\n\nWhen those negroes visited the Seminoles, they were supposed to convey\nto them as accurate intelligence in regard to our troops, as they\nbrought back respecting the enemy's forces; they were, therefore,\nsupposed to have put their brethren, the Exiles, upon their guard in\nrespect to the blood-hounds. Understanding perfectly the nature and\n_education_ of those animals, it does not appear very extraordinary to\nus that the Exiles remained for a time in the interior, where neither\nblood-hounds nor civilized troops were accustomed to penetrate. This\npolicy of the Exiles rendered useless the whole expenditure of money and\nhonor, made in the purchase of blood-hounds and Spaniards, with a view\nto their capture.\n\nBut the animals had been obtained, and authority given to our officers\nto employ them. The Spaniards attended them. The dogs were attached to\ndifferent regiments, and fed liberally on bloody meat; young calves were\nprovided, and driven with each scouting party, to supply food for them.\nThe Spaniards were supplied with a sufficient number of assistants to\nkeep the dogs in their leashes. Thus provided, several parties, composed\nof regular troops, militia, Indians, Spaniards, dogs and calves, started\nfor the interior. Their marches continued in some instances for days\nbefore they found even the track of an enemy; but when they found\nfoot-prints of Indians, and the dogs were looked to with confidence to\nlead on the warlike host, while some more humble officer, following the\ncanine leaders, Spaniards and Indians, was expected to bear aloft the\nglorious stars and stripes, as they engaged in deadly conflict with the\nwily foe;--lo! just at that moment, when all hearts were palpitating;\nwhile hope was at its height; when the stern resolve clothed each brow\nwith the dark scowl of battle, the dogs were blithe and frolicsome, but\npaid no more attention to the tracks of the Indians than to those of the\nponies on which they sometimes rode.\n\nThis grand experiment for closing the Florida War was now pronounced a\n_dead failure_; and the use of dogs, and calves, and Spaniards, was\ndiscarded; and the whole affair served no other purpose than to bring\nodium upon the Administration, and ridicule upon the officers who\nproposed the employment of blood-hounds to act as allies of the American\narmy.\n\nGeneral Taylor, having had command of the army in Florida nearly two\nyears, and the sickly season having commenced, requested to be relieved\nfrom that responsible station. His request was granted, and he left\nFlorida for his plantation in Louisiana. Brevet Brigadier General\nArmistead, by order of the War Department, assumed the position from\nwhich General Taylor retired.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIX.\n\nHOSTILITIES CONTINUED.\n\n     Presidential Election of 1840--The War discussed as one of the\n     issues--Effect on the Election--Publication of Jay's View--Action\n     of the Executive paralyzed--Spanish Indians--Destruction of Indian\n     Key--Troops inactive--Allies commit new depredations--New\n     Expedient--Its failure--Chiefs invited to Fort King--Exiles refuse\n     to treat--Massacre of Lieutenant Sherwood and party--Melancholy\n     fate of Mrs. Montgomery--White men disguised as Indians--Murder of\n     Cora Tustenuggee--Order of Secretary of War--Letter to General\n     Armistead--Bribery of Indians--Mr. Thompson's Bill--Discussion of\n     the causes of the War in Congress--Enemy find protection in large\n     swamps--Their renewed depredations--General distress--People of\n     Florida again driven from their homes--Employed in public\n     service--Their Slaves employed--They become interested in\n     continuing the War.\n\n\n[Sidenote: 1840.]\n\nThe Presidential election of this year was conducted differently from\nany that had preceded it. The opponents of Mr. Van Buren arraigned him\nbefore the people for his extravagance in the expenditure of the public\ntreasure, and the immense losses which the nation sustained by the\ndefault and irresponsibility of officers appointed by him. It\nconstitutes an era in our political history, from which we date the\npractice of calling directly upon the people to pass judgment of\ncondemnation upon the action of our National Executive. Every honorable\nmeans was resorted to for the purpose of exposing the errors of the\nAdministration during the previous four years.\n\nAmong the subjects made prominent before the country, was that of the\nextravagant expenditures in prosecuting the \"Florida War.\" Speeches were\nmade in Congress exposing the various practices by which the people's\nmoney was squandered in that unfortunate conflict; the policy of\nattempting to compel the Indians to emigrate, and the cruelty practiced\ntowards them, were commented on with severity. These speeches were\nprinted in pamphlet form, and sent to the people in vast numbers: but\nthe real cause of the war, the deep depravity of that policy which\nsought the enslavement of the Exiles, was not mentioned; nor does it\nappear that any member of Congress was conscious, even, that such a\npeople as the Exiles was living in Florida.[126] But, nevertheless, it\nis quite certain that this war proved one of the principal causes of Mr.\nVan Buren's defeat; and, during the pendency of the election, these\ncomplaints paralyzed the action of the Executive.\n\nAnother cause operated to call public attention to the war. Hon. William\nJay, of New York, published a small book upon the action of our\nGovernment in regard to slavery. It was a work of much merit, and,\ncoming from the pen of one so intimately associated with the best\ninterests of the country, it exerted an influence upon the public mind.\nIt had been published some two or three years; but at the time of which\nwe are writing, it attracted attention in most of the free States, and\ngave public men to understand that their official acts were to be made\nknown to coming generations.\n\nThe intimate relation which this war bore to slavery, rendered every\nmovement in regard to it dangerous to the Executive character, and\ncaused our army to be almost inactive for several months; but the\nallies, driven to desperation, prepared to wreak their vengeance on\nevery white person who should venture within their reach. A small band,\ncomposed of Spanish negroes and Indians, among whom were said to be some\nmaroons from Cuba, resided far down in the Peninsula of Florida. They\nwere called Spanish Indians, and had remained neutral up to the period\nof which we are speaking; but finding their brethren driven from their\nown possessions, and compelled to encroach upon the territory so long\noccupied by themselves, they took up arms against the United States.\nEvery vessel that happened to be wrecked upon their coast was plundered,\nand the crews massacred.\n\nOn the morning of the seventh of August, a number of these people, said\nto have been led on by Spanish maroons, crossed over to a small island\ncalled \"Indian Key,\" situated at some twenty miles distant from the main\nland, and attacked the dwellings, burned the storehouses, and destroyed\nmost of the property belonging to the inhabitants. There were but four\nor five families resident on the island. Of these, Dr. Perrine, a man of\nsome distinction, was murdered in his own house; but, by his valor, he\nenabled the other members of his family to escape, amid the darkness of\nnight. The allies obtained much plunder, but found no powder, which was\nsaid to have been the principal object of the foray.\n\nDuring the summer and autumn, our troops in Florida were inactive. The\nseason was sickly, and the officers and men lay supinely in their\nencampments. The enemy felt secure in their strong-holds--sallying forth\nin occasional forays, murdering the people, and plundering the\nsettlements with impunity. The Administration appeared astonished at the\naudacity with which a few Indians and negroes hurled defiance at our\narmy and the nation. The expedient of employing savages to assist in the\nwar had failed; the more questionable policy of employing blood-hounds,\nhad not only failed, but was supposed by many to reflect discredit upon\nthe army and nation. Nearly five thousand troops were kept in Florida,\nmaintained at vast expense; but they could neither conquer the Indians,\nnor even protect the white people. Under these circumstances, the\nExecutive saw but one resource; of that he availed himself. By his\ndirection, twelve Seminole and Mickasukie Indians, who had emigrated\nWest, were induced by sufficient pecuniary considerations to leave their\nfamilies in the Western Country and return to Florida, for the purpose\nof persuading the Indians and Exiles to emigrate. Thus, after four years\nof war and constant expenditure of blood and treasure, the President\ndiscovered that moral power is greater and stronger than physical\nviolence.\n\nBut this discovery came too late. He could no longer do justice to those\nfathers and mothers and children who had been slain, nor to those who\nhad been enslaved; who had been taken far into the interior, sold and\ntransferred from hand to hand like brutes. They had passed from\nExecutive control. The crime now stained our national escutcheon, and no\neffort could wash it out. The very means which he adopted to close the\nwar, operated to prolong it. These Seminoles and Mickasukies informed\ntheir brethren of their own condition, of the manner in which they were\ntreated, and the violations of faith on the part of our Government in\nnot giving them a territory for their separate use, as stipulated in the\ntreaty, and constantly represented to them by our officers; that they\nwere without a home and without a country, residing on Cherokee lands,\nunder Cherokee protection, to prevent the Creeks from enslaving their\nfriends, the Exiles. Many officers at the time doubted their desire to\ninduce the emigration of their brethren.[127]\n\nThey, however, obtained an interview between the Commanding General and\ntwo Seminole chiefs at Fort King. The chiefs were attended by some forty\nwarriors, who remained in that vicinity four or five days, receiving\nfood and articles of clothing from the United States; but they suddenly\ndisappeared, and it was believed they originally came with hostile,\nrather than pacific, intentions. When it was found they had left\nclandestinely, the troops attempted to follow them, but were unable to\nfind any traces of their flight.\n\nWhile these things were transpiring, the army lay idle in their\nquarters; neither the Executive, nor the Secretary of War, nor the\nCommanding General, knowing what to do.\n\nThe Exiles learned from the Seminoles and Mickasukies, who visited them\nfrom the West, that many of their brethren who surrendered under the\narticles of capitulation, had been re\u00ebnslaved, in violation of our\nplighted faith; and they refused to hold further intercourse with the\nagents of our Government. To them there appeared but one\nalternative--victory or death; and they greatly preferred the latter to\nslavery. Taking their families far into the interior, they hastened to\nrenew the war with vigor and energy.\n\nA party of some thirty Indians and Exiles were lurking about Micanopy,\nwhen, on the twenty-eighth of December, Lieutenant Sherwood, Lieutenant\nHopson, Sergeant Major Carrol, and ten privates of the 7th Infantry,\nleft Micanopy for the purpose of escorting Mrs. Montgomery, wife of a\nLieutenant of that regiment, through the forest to Watkahoota, eight\nmiles distant. The lady was on horseback, while others of the party rode\nin a wagon drawn by mules, and some marched on foot. The enemy having\nobserved their movements, preceded them to a hommock, about four miles\nfrom Micanopy, where they secreted themselves, and awaited the approach\nof Mrs. Montgomery and party. When they were fairly within the hommock,\nthrough which the road passed, they were fired upon, and two privates\nfell dead. The war-whoop was raised, and the little party found\nthemselves confronted by savages. Lieutenant Sherwood is said to have\nrallied his escort with promptness. Mrs. Montgomery, attempting to get\ninto the wagon, was shot dead. Sherwood very discreetly retreated to the\nopen forest, and dispatched Lieutenant Hopson to Micanopy for a\nreinforcement. Knowing the impossibility of retreating from Indians, and\nconscious that they gave no quarter, he bravely determined to defend\nhimself or die on the field. But his assailants numbered three times as\nmany warriors as he had. They out-flanked and surrounded his ill-fated\nparty, all of whom with himself fell victims to that policy which had\nbrought this war, with all its crimes, upon our nation.\n\nWe cannot withhold our sympathy from those patriotic men who enter the\npublic service expecting to act in an honorable sphere in favor of just\nmeasures; but who are often made the instruments of injustice, and their\nlives sacrificed to the spirit and policy of oppression. Our officers\nand soldiers, serving in this Florida War, were duly conscious of the\ndishonorable employment in which they were engaged; that they were daily\nsubjected to dangers and death for the purpose of enabling the people of\nFlorida to seize men and women, and sell them into interminable bondage.\nOfficers and men who would cheerfully meet danger and death upon the\nfield of honorable warfare in defense of freedom, were compelled to meet\ndeath in all its various and revolting forms in Florida to uphold\noppression, to sustain an institution which they abhorred; nor can we\nwonder that the consciousness of these facts should have created a\nfeeling of hostility between our regular troops and the slaveholders of\nFlorida, who were constantly charging them with inefficiency and want of\nenergy in the capture of negroes. This feeling ran so high that the\nwhite men of Florida were charged with disguising themselves as Indians,\nand actually committing murders and robberies upon mail carriers and\nexpress riders, in order to continue hostilities and keep up the\nwar.[128] This feeling greatly increased the embarrassment of the\nExecutive.\n\nA chief named \"Cora Tustenuggee,\" after due consultation with the\ninterpreters sent to induce him to emigrate, concluded to surrender, and\ngo West. He collected his band, numbering about one hundred in all.\nAmong them were some half breeds, descendants of the pioneer Exiles.\nThey had intermarried with Indians of this band, and were treated as\nIndians. While on their way to one of our posts, near Palaklikaha Lake,\nthey were fired upon by a party at dragoons who were said to have been\nconscious of the intentions of the Indians. This supposed violation of\nfaith was greatly aggravated by the subsequent wanton murder of the\nchief, after he and his band had quietly submitted as prisoners. These\npeople were immediately sent to Tampa Bay, and then embarked for the\nWestern Country, where they joined their brethren, still resident on the\nCherokee lands, and under Cherokee protection.\n\nThe Presidential election being past, the Executive felt more\nuntrammeled; and Mr. Poinsett, Secretary of War, resisting the\ninstruction which he might have drawn from four years of unfortunate\nexperience, appears to have determined to leave this Florida War in as\nunpromising condition as he found it. He sent instructions to the\nCommanding General to renew the war with whatever force he could bring\ninto the field.\n\nIt is a somewhat singular fact, that when the Secretary understood, and\nthe country was fully informed, that he would leave the Department on\nthe fourth of March, he wrote the commanding officer on the eighteenth\nof February, thirteen days prior to his own political dissolution,\nsaying, \"The Department entertains the well-grounded hope that you will\nbe able to bring the war to a close upon the terms required by the\ntreaty of Payne's Landing, and by the _interests and feelings of the\npeople of Florida_.\"\n\nThe reader must be aware that the _feelings and interests_ of the people\nof Florida _required_ the capture and enslavement of the Exiles; for\nwhich the Secretary of War had so long labored, and which appeared to be\nhis ruling passion--\"strong in the hour of his political death.\"\n\nTo effect this object, recourse was had to the bribery of certain\nchiefs. Money was now offered certain influential men of the Seminoles\nand Exiles to induce them to exert their influence with their friends to\nemigrate. It was reported that slaves who had but a few years since left\ntheir masters, and intermarried with the Seminoles, dare not surrender,\nknowing that slavery awaited such act. Without them, their relatives and\nconnexions would not remove. It was therefore proposed that Congress\nshould make an appropriation for the purpose of purchasing such Exiles;\nyet the bill making it was general in its provisions, granting a hundred\nthousand dollars to be expended by the Secretary of War for the\nsubsistence and _benefit_ of certain chiefs and warriors of the Seminole\nIndians who wished to emigrate. The subsistence of such emigrants was\nprovided for in other bills; but the _benefits_ for which this money was\nto be expended was to purchase the pretended interest of certain white\nmen to individual Exiles whom they claimed as property.\n\nBy thus disguising the real intention and object of the bill, it was\nevidently expected it would pass without scrutiny, under the rules which\nprohibited the discussion of all questions involving the subject of\nslavery. The better to carry out this design, Hon. Waddy Thompson of\nSouth Carolina, a Whig member of the House of Representatives, but fully\nsympathizing with the Executive in his policy of conducting the war in\nthe manner \"_required by the interests and feelings of the people of\nFlorida_,\" was regarded as the proper agent to introduce the bill and\nsuperintend its passage.\n\n[Sidenote: 1841.]\n\nThe information found in the public documents had awakened previous\ninvestigation; and when this bill came up for action (Feb. 9), the\npolicy of this war, with the causes which led to its commencement, were\nexposed. Every effort was made by slaveholding members to prevent the\npublic discussion of this subject. They insisted that the gag-rules, as\nthey were called, prohibiting the discussion of slavery, forbid this\nexposure; but the presiding officer (Mr. Clifford of Maine) adhering to\nthe parliamentary law, decided that an examination of the causes which\nled to the war was legitimate, and the discussion proceeded.\n\nThis discussion was published and widely circulated among the people;\nand is supposed to have given to the public the first information\ntouching the real causes of the war.[129]\n\nThe bill passed by a large majority; and the report of the Secretary of\nWar the next year, showing the expenditures of his department, exhibited\nthe manner in which the money appropriated and entrusted to his care was\nexpended. Another bill, however, making an appropriation of more than a\nmillion of dollars for suppressing Indian hostilities in Florida was\npassed, giving to the War Department all the powers desired for bribery,\nand tempting Indian chiefs to emigrate to the Western Country.\n\nBy reference to the map of Florida, it will be perceived that the great\nswamps, extensive everglades, hommocks, ponds and lakes, which spread\nover that Territory, must present great difficulties in the progress of\ntroops embodied in military force; while a small party, following the\nfootsteps of their leader, would pass over, around or through them with\nfacility. The Great Okefenoka Swamp, lying on the south line of Georgia\nand the northern portion of Florida, afforded a retreat for small\nparties of Indians and Exiles, from which they sallied forth and\ncommitted depredations upon the people of southern Georgia, murdering\nfamilies, burning buildings and devastating plantations. The swamps\nbordering on the Withlacoochee, the Great Wahoo Swamp, and other\nfastnesses on the western portion of the Peninsula, gave shelter to\nother bands, who, in like manner, wreaked their vengeance upon the\ninhabitants of that portion of the Territory. So also the Big Cypress\nSwamp, lying farther south, afforded shelter for others, who laid waste\nthe settlements along the St. John's River, and in the vicinity of the\nAtlantic Coast. From these, and numerous other strong-holds, the Indians\nand their allies came forth in small bands, spreading devastation and\ndeath throughout the Territory and the southern portion of Georgia.\n\nThe people of Florida who had sought this war, and protested against\npeace except on such terms as would secure them in the exercise of that\noppression which they deemed so necessary to their happiness, now felt\nthe full force of that appropriate penalty which some philosophers\nbelieve attaches to every violation of the law of righteousness. Some\ndied by the hands of the very individuals whom they had oppressed, and\nwhom they again sought to enslave; others were again driven from their\nhomes, unable even to obtain food; their wives and children receiving\nrations from the public stores, and subsisting by the charity of the\nUnited States.\n\nBut this condition of things superinduced another most extraordinary\nfeature of this war. Our officers, and the Executive, naturally feeling\nsome degree of sympathy for a people thus driven from their homes, on\nwhom the evils of war fell with so much force, extended to them every\naid in their power. Some were employed in the Commissary's Department;\nsome as contractors for transporting provisions; and others as\nattendants upon the army in all the various departments of service, so\nnumerous in a time of war. Even the slaves who remained in the service\nof their masters were employed by the officers as guides, interpreters\nand employees at high wages. In this manner they earned for their owners\nfar more than they could by labor upon plantations. This system was\ncarried so far, that the war actually afforded to many greater profits\nthan they could acquire in any other way; and consequently it became a\nmatter of interest with such men to prolong hostilities, and they were\nsaid to exert all their influence to effect that object.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XX.\n\nHOSTILITIES CONTINUED.\n\n     General Harrison assumes the duties of Chief Executive--Much\n     expected of him--His sudden death--His successor--Political\n     feeling--General Armistead retires--Is succeeded by General\n     Worth--Instructions to General Worth--He discharges all unnecessary\n     employees--Halec Tustenuggee--General Worth's attempt to capture\n     him--Wild Cat--His character and adventures--General Worth sends\n     message to him--He and some companions come in--His manner and\n     bearing--Meets his daughter--Interesting scene--Is seized by\n     Colonel Childs--Placed in irons and sent to New Orleans--General\n     Worth orders his return--Meets him at Tampa Bay--Arrangements--Wild\n     Cat sends messengers to his friends--Sympathy for him--Chief\n     Micco--He brings in his people--Wild Cat's band comes in--He is\n     released from his irons--Meets his friends--His wife and\n     child--General Jessup's policy as to Exiles--Consults Wild\n     Cat--Hospetarche and Tiger-tail--Otulke comes in--Hospetarche is\n     suspicious--Wild Cat brings him in--Army suffers from\n     sickness--General change of policy from that adopted at the\n     commencement of the War--Army reduced--Wild Cat visits\n     Tiger-tail--Singular adventure--Embarkation of Emigrants--Parting\n     scene between Wild Cat and General Worth--The Emigrants reach Fort\n     Gibson and join their friends--Wild Cat's position in his new home.\n\n\n[Sidenote: 1841.]\n\nOn the fourth of March, General Harrison was inaugurated President of\nthe United States. Much was expected of him in regard to the war. The\nWhigs had condemned it throughout the Presidential struggle, and it was\nanticipated that he would bring it to a successful and honorable\ntermination; but before he even entered upon the consideration of this\nsubject, he was called from this to another sphere of existence, and was\nsucceeded by the then Vice President, John Tyler, of Virginia. Nor is it\neasy to see what great reform General Harrison could have effected in\nregard to this war, had he lived to complete his term of service. The\npolicy of so directing the energies of the Federal Government as to\nsupport the interests of slavery, had long existed; he was not expected\nto make any substantial changes in that respect. But whatever may have\nbeen his designs, he had no opportunity to carry them into effect; and\nMr. Tyler, after coming into office, soon ceased to enjoy the confidence\nof the Whig party, who generally declared themselves no longer\nresponsible for his acts.\n\nThe new Administration soon identified itself with this war by the\nfollowing order:\n\n\n\"ADJUTANT GENERAL'S OFFICE,\n_Washington City_, May 19, 1841.\"\n\n     \"SIR: Brigadier General Armistead, being about to relinquish the\n     command of the Florida Army, as you will see by the instructions\n     communicated to him of this date, of which a copy is herewith\n     enclosed; as the officer next in rank, you will relieve him and\n     assume the command accordingly.\n\n     \"I am directed, by the Secretary of War, to advise you of the\n     earnest desire of the Department to terminate, as speedily as\n     possible, the protracted hostilities in Florida, and to cause the\n     most perfect protection and security to be given to the frontiers,\n     and to those citizens who may be disposed to penetrate the country,\n     for lawful purposes of trade or settlement. For the attainment of\n     these important objects, you are considered as being clothed with\n     all the powers of a commander in the field, under the laws and\n     regulations of the army.\n\n     \"It is expected the troops under your command will be kept in a\n     perfect state of discipline, and that you make such disposition of\n     them as to be in readiness to meet any contingency that may all for\n     active and energetic movements, the execution of which is left\n     entirely at your own discretion.\n\n     \"If you should deem it indispensable for the protection of the\n     frontier, the President directs that you make a requisition upon\n     the Governor of Florida for militia, not exceeding one regiment,\n     which, if called out, you will cause to be mustered into the\n     service of the United States, in the manner prescribed by the\n     regulations, for any period authorized by the constitution and\n     laws.\n\n     \"The Secretary of War, placing, as he does, entire confidence in\n     your ability and patriotism, desires me to say, that every possible\n     aid and support will be afforded to enable you to bring to a close\n     this protracted and most embarrassing war.\"\n\n     \"As the commander of Florida, you will exercise a sound discretion\n     in the use of the means placed at your disposal; and while these\n     should be employed with the greatest efficiency, the Secretary of\n     War directs that you will, consistently with the primary object in\n     view, diminish, in a spirit of sound economy, all unnecessary\n     drains upon the Treasury, by discharging all persons employed in a\n     civil capacity whose services you shall not deem indispensable to\n     the duties of your command, and by regulating and reducing as far\n     as practicable all other expenses, in accordance with the just\n     expectations of the Government and the country.\n\n\"I am, Sir, your obedient servant,\n\n(Signed) R. JONES, _Adjutant General_.\n\nCol. J. W. WORTH,\n\n8th Infantry, Tampa, Florida.\"\n\n\n\nGeneral Worth now applied himself, with commendable zeal, to the work\nassigned him. His first object was to discharge all employees not\nnecessary to the operations of the army, and in every department to\ncurtail the expenditures as far as possible; thereby rendering the war\nunprofitable to those who had been seeking to prolong it. Early in June\nhe issued the following order:\n\n\n\"HEAD QUARTERS, ARMY OF THE SOUTH,}\nNo. 1.] _Fort King_, June 8, 1841.    }\n\n     \"I. Hereafter no expenditures of money will be made on account of\n     barracks-quarters, or other buildings at temporary posts, except\n     for such slight covering as may be indispensably necessary for the\n     protection of the sick and security of the public stores, without\n     previous reference to, and authority obtained from, head-quarters.\n\n     \"II. All safe-guards or passports granted to Indians prior to this\n     date, are hereby revoked. Any Indian presenting himself at any\n     post, will be seized and held in strict confinement, except when\n     commanding officers may, in the exercise of sound discretion, deem\n     it advisable to send out an individual runner to communicate with\n     others.\n\n     \"III. When the garrisons are not too much reduced by sickness,\n     detachments will be sent out as often as once in seven days, or\n     more frequently if circumstances indicate a necessity, to scour and\n     examine in all directions to the distance of eight or ten miles.\n\n     \"IV. All restraints heretofore imposed upon district commanders, in\n     respect to offensive field operations, are hereby revoked; on the\n     contrary, the utmost activity and enterprise is enjoined. District\n     commanders will give instructions to commanders of posts\n     accordingly.\n\n     \"V. Brief reports of the operations carried on under the foregoing\n     orders, setting forth the strength of the detachments, and by whom\n     commanded, with such observations as may be deemed useful or\n     interesting to the service, will be made to district commanders on\n     the 10th, 20th, and last of every month, by whom they will be\n     transmitted to these head-quarters.\n\n\"By order of Colonel WORTH:\n\n(Signed) G. WRIGHT,\n\n_Capt. 8th Infantry, and A. A. A. General_.\"\n\n\n\nHalec Tustenuggee was regarded as the most active and vindictive of the\nhostile chiefs. Among his followers were some forty Indian warriors and\nten or twelve Exiles capable of bearing arms. They and their families,\nnumbering in all some two hundred souls, were supposed to be somewhere\nin the neighborhood of Lake \"Fonee-Safakee,\" among the extensive swamps\nand hommocks of that region. Some few of this band had surrendered and\ngone West. Among those who came in to Fort Jupiter for the purpose of\nemigrating, were several Exiles who had been born in that region, and\nhad ever been connected with this small tribe. Some of those who had\npreviously surrendered, were retained as guides and interpreters, with\nthe expectation that they might be made useful in persuading their\nfriends to emigrate also. It was thought very desirable to capture this\nband, if possible; and guides, and interpreters, and scouts were sent in\nevery direction, where it was supposed they might be discovered, in\norder to open a communication with them. At length it was reported that\na trail had been discovered leading to one of their favorite haunts,\nwhere it was believed they might be found.\n\nWe cannot better exhibit the dangers which constantly beset the Exiles\nwho remained hostile, or the vigilance with which they and their friends\nwatched for their own safety, than by giving a short account of Colonel\nWorth's expedition for the capture of this small party, which we copy\nfrom Sprague's History of the Florida War. Says that author:\n\n\"The negro guides, recently of the band, represented it as his favorite\nresort from its seclusion, where he held his green corn dances and\ncouncils. Measures were at once adopted to follow it up. Colonel Worth,\nwith one hundred men of the 2d Infantry, accompanied by Lieutenant\nColonel Riley and Major Plympton, together with Captain B. L. Beall's\ncompany 2d Dragoons, and forty men of the 8th Infantry, in command of\nFirst Lieutenant J. H. Harvil, moved from Fort King for Fort McClure or\nWarm Spring; thence, under the guidance of Indian negroes, to the\nneighborhood of the lake. At midnight, on the night of the tenth, the\nswamp was reached; the troops having marched forty-four miles. To\nsurprise the Indian camp just at break of day, was the only chance of\nsuccess. The guides represented it to be on the opposite side of the\nswamp, five or six miles through. The horses were picketed, and the\nbaggage left with a small guard on the margin of the swamp. The soldier\ncarried only a musket and his ammunition; the officers a rifle or sword.\nQuietly and resolutely the command moved, confident of success. The\nwater became colder and deeper at every step; halts were frequently\nmade to extricate the officers and soldiers from the mud. The night was\ndark, which added to the dismal gloomy shadows of a cypress swamp. The\ncommand could only follow by the splashing of water, and the calm but\nfirm intonations of the word of command. The negroes in advance,\nfollowed closely by the most hardy and active, guided these two hundred\nmen to what was believed to be the stronghold of the enemy. Every hour\nand step confirmed this conviction. The advance reached the opposite\nside just before the break of day. Anxiously they awaited and greeted\nevery officer and soldier as he emerged from the swamp, covered with mud\nand water. Day broke; when silently the command was given--'Fall in!'\nEleven officers and thirty-five privates were present. Occasionally a\nstraggler would arrive, and report those in the rear as coming. The\nIndian huts, by the gray dawn of morning (twenty-four in number), could\nbe discerned through the scrub, which separated the white and red man,\nthree hundred yards distant. At this hour the Indian around his camp\nfire feels secure. From the number of huts, and their location, they\noutnumbered the assailants. To await the arrival of the entire force,\nthe day would be far advanced; and discovery was a total defeat. It was\ndetermined with the number present to make a vigorous assault, and, if\noutnumbered, to rely upon those in the rear. Each man reprimed his\nmusket, and cautiously, on his hands and knees, worked his way through\nthe dense undergrowth to within a few yards of the cluster of huts and\ntemporary sheds. Not a word was uttered. Eagerly each man grasped his\nmusket, anxious for the first whoop, when he would be rewarded for his\ntoil. A musket was discharged to arouse the inmates, and meet them on\ntheir retreat. It sent back its dull heavy reverberation, causing\ndisappointment and chagrin. Not a human being occupied the huts, or was\nupon the ground.\"\n\nLarge fields of corn were before them; they had been carefully\ncultivated, and gave incontestable proof that the allies had just left.\nThis place had been the temporary residence of a strong force; but\ntheir patrols had discovered the approach of our troops, and\ncommunicated information to the party in time to enable them, with their\nwives and children, to escape from danger.\n\nThe officers and soldiers looked about a while with wonder, and then\ncommenced the work of destroying the cabins and crops, which being\neffected, they retraced their steps to head-quarters, fully satisfied\nthat a disciplined army was not adapted to the work of surprising\nIndians and Exiles.\n\nPerhaps no act or policy of General Worth contributed so much to the\nfavorable prosecution of the war, as his treatment of Coacoochee, or\nWild Cat, as he was more recently called. This extraordinary personage\nbecame conspicuous in 1841. During the entire war he deeply sympathized\nwith the Exiles--was always attended by some of his more dusky friends,\nin whose welfare he took a deep interest; nor has he yet forsaken them.\nEven at the time of writing this narrative, he is supposed to be with\nthem; and a short notice of some of his more than romantic experience in\nthis war may interest the reader in the fortunes of a man who may yet\nfill a large space in the history of our country.\n\nHe was the son of King Philip, a Seminole chief of some reputation. He\nis now (1857) about fifty years of age; five feet eight inches in\nheight; well proportioned; exhibiting the most perfect symmetry in his\nphysical form. His eye is dark, full and expressive; and his countenance\nyouthful and pleasing. His voice is clear, soft and musical; his speech\nfluent; his gestures rapid and violent. His views are always ingenious\nand clearly expressed; and he never fails to infuse all his measures\nwith spirit, and to exert a controlling influence over his followers. He\nwas born near Ahapopka Lake, where he resided at the commencement of the\nFlorida War; but soon after sought a more secure retreat in the large\nswamps, near Fort Mellon and Lake \"Okechobee.\" His band at that time\nnumbered some two hundred souls, among whom were several families of\nExiles. In these sable warriors he is said to have reposed much\nconfidence. He accompanied them at the massacre of Major Dade and his\nbattalion in December, 1835. Here he formed his acquaintance with Lewis\nPacheco, who acted as guide to Major Dade. Lewis is said to have\nattended him, and to have shared in every battle in which Wild Cat\nparticipated, until the capitulation of 1837. After that capitulation\nhad been agreed to, he visited General Jessup's camp with the apparent\nintention of emigrating West. He brought in some of his friends, among\nwhom was Lewis Pacheco, whom he claimed as his slave, and declared that\nhe had captured him at Dade's massacre. Lewis, being a negro, was placed\nwithin the stockade at Tampa Bay, but Wild Cat of course went among his\nfriends in the vicinity. When he found that General Jessup was violating\nthe articles of capitulation, and delivering over to slavery those\nExiles who were claimed by the people of Florida, instead of securing\nthem in their lives and property, for which the faith of the nation had\nbeen pledged, he became indignant, and insisted that every Indian and\nExile who was enjoying his liberty, should leave the encampment where\nthey were receiving food and raiment from the United States, and flee to\ntheir own homes. Micanopy, one of the most wealthy and influential\nchiefs, refused, and expressed his determination to emigrate. Wild Cat\nand Osceola (Powell), two young and daring chiefs, came to the tent of\nMicanopy, at midnight, and compelled him, at the peril of his life, to\nleave and flee to the Indian country. He did so, and with him every\nIndian and Exile, who was outside the stockade at Tampa Bay, made their\nescape.\n\nAt the battle of Fort Mellon, on the eighth of February, 1837, he is\nsaid to have commanded two hundred warriors, many of whom were Exiles.\nHe was at the battle of \"Okechobee,\" on the twenty-fifth of December,\n1837; the severest battle ever fought in Florida. Nearly all his\nwarriors were with him. He was posted on the left of the Indian line,\noccupying the hommock, when General Taylor approached. He declared that\nnot an Indian gave way until the charge of Colonel Foster, although he\nsaid the fire of our men \"sent a stream of bullets among his warriors.\"\nHe stated the whole loss of the allied forces in that memorable\nconflict to be thirteen killed and nineteen wounded, being less than\none-fourth of General Taylor's loss.\n\nHis father (King Philip) being imprisoned at St. Augustine in 1838,\nnaturally felt desirous that his son should go with him to the Western\nCountry, where he knew he must emigrate. He sent out a confidential\nfriend with a message to Wild Cat, inviting him to come and see him.\nGeneral Jessup also sent assurances of his perfect safety, if he wished\nto come and visit his father. The messenger found him, and faithfully\ndelivered the message which his father sent. There were also other\nIndians and Exiles going to Fort Peyton, under the peaceful invitation\nand assurance of safety which General Jessup sent them. Wild Cat left\nhis band; and, arrayed in his best robes, bearing a white flag, went\nwith them and was betrayed, through the agency of General Hernandez,\ninto the power of General Jessup, as we have heretofore shown. He was\nimprisoned in the castle at St. Augustine with his friend Talmas-Hadjo.\nAccustomed to roam in the forests at will, and enjoy the free air of\nHeaven, this confinement bore down their spirits and affected their\nphysical health. He and his friend Talmas-Hadjo made their escape, an\naccount of which was given in a former chapter.\n\nHis father remained with the other prisoners--was sent to Charleston;\nand subsequently died on his passage to Fort Gibson in 1837, with the\nfirst party of emigrants under Lieut. Reynolds.\n\nWild Cat now became one of the most active warriors in Florida. With his\nfollowers, he repaired to the Okefenoke Swamp, and, encamping in its\nfastnesses, sallied forth, as occasion permitted, and spread death and\ndevastation in the southern settlements of Georgia. From thence he\nreturned south, and committed constant depredations both east and west\nof the St. John's. In 1840, his daughter, an interesting girl of twelve\nyears of age, fell into the hands of our troops, in a skirmish near Fort\nMellon. This was regarded as a most fortunate circumstance, as it would\nbe likely to procure an interview with the father. Micco, a sub-chief\nand friend of Wild Cat, was dispatched with a white flag, on which were\ndrawn clasped hands in token of friendship, with a pipe and tobacco. He\nfound Wild Cat, and delivered the message of the Commanding General,\nrequesting an interview. Wild Cat agreed to come in, and gave Micco a\nbundle of eight sticks, denoting the days which would elapse before he\nappeared in camp. Micco returned, and made his report.\n\nOn the fifth of March, Wild Cat was announced as approaching the\nAmerican camp with seven of his trusty companions. He came boldly within\nthe line of sentinels, dressed in the most fantastic manner. He and his\nparty had shortly before killed a company of strolling theatrical\nperformers, near St. Augustine, and, having possessed themselves of the\nwardrobe which their victims had with them, he now decorated himself and\nfollowers in the most grotesque style. He approached the tent of General\nWorth, calm and self-possessed, and shook hands with the officers. He\naddressed the Commanding General in fluent and dignified language,\nsaying, he had received the talk and white flag sent him; that, in\npursuance of the invitation, he had come to visit the American camp with\npeaceful intentions; that, relying upon the good faith of the officer in\ncommand, he had entrusted himself to their power, in order to promote\nthe designs of peace which had been tendered him. The dignity of his\nmanner, the gracefulness of his gestures, the musical intonations of his\nvoice, the blandness of his countenance, won the sympathy, and commanded\nthe attention, of all around him.\n\nAt this moment his little daughter escaped from the tent, where it was\nintended she should remain until General Worth should feel that the\nproper time had arrived for him to present her to her father. With the\nfeelings and habits of her race, she presented him musket balls and\npowder, which she had by some means obtained and secreted until his\narrival. On seeing his child, he could no longer command that dignity of\nbearing so much the pride of every Indian chief. His self-possession\ngave way to parental emotions; the feelings of the father gushed forth;\nhe averted his face and wept.\n\nHaving recovered his self-possession, he addressed Colonel Worth,\nsaying, \"The whites dealt unjustly by me. I came to them, when they\ndeceived me. I loved the land I was upon; my body is made of its sands.\nThe Great Spirit gave me legs to walk over it; eyes to see it; hands to\naid myself; a head with which I think. The sun, which shines warm and\nbright, brings forth our crops; and the moon brings back the spirits of\nour warriors, our fathers, our wives and children. The white man comes;\nhe grows pale and sickly; why can we not live in peace? They steal our\nhorses and cattle, cheat us, and take our lands. They may shoot us--may\nchain our hands and feet; _but the red man's heart will be free_. I have\ncome to you in peace, and have taken you all by the hand. I will sleep\nin your camp, though your soldiers stand around me thick as pine trees.\nI am done: when we know each other better, I will say more.\"\n\nGeneral Worth assured him of the good faith with which he should be\ntreated; that the feelings which he had expressed were honorable to him\nand to his people; that the emotions manifested on seeing his child,\nwere highly creditable to him as a father; assured him that his child\nshould not be separated from him; that the American officers and\nsoldiers highly respected the parental affection which he had exhibited.\nHe then entered upon a consultation with him concerning the best mode of\nobtaining a peace.\n\nWild Cat spoke with great sincerity; frankly stated the condition and\nfeelings of this people; stated the friendly attachment between the\nExiles and Indians; said that they would not consent to be separated;\nthat nothing could be done until their annual assemblage in June, to\nfeast on the green corn; that, hard as the fate was, he would consent to\nemigrate, and would use his influence to induce his friends to do so.\n\nAfter remaining four days in camp, he and his companions left,\naccompanied by his little daughter, whom he presented to her mother on\nreaching his own encampment.\n\nPrompt to his engagement with General Worth, he returned on the tenth\nday after his departure. He stated that he could do nothing until June;\nbut expressed his desire to see General Armistead, the former commander,\nwho was yet at Tampa Bay. With that officer he also made arrangements to\ndo whatever was in his power to induce his friends to emigrate.\n\nThere appears no good evidence on which to doubt the sincerity of Wild\nCat; yet it appears that General Armistead, before leaving Florida,\nordered Colonel Childs, commanding at Fort Pearce, to seize Wild Cat, if\nhe should come within his power, with such followers as should attend\nhim, and send them to Tampa Bay for emigration. General Armistead\nretired to Washington soon after issuing this order, leaving General\nWorth in command.\n\nOn the twenty-first of May, Wild Cat and his brother, together with an\nuncle, a brother of his father King Philip, and twelve other Indians and\nthree Exiles, came into Fort Pearce, where Colonel Childs was in\ncommand. Wild Cat and his friends had reposed perfect confidence in the\nhonor and good faith of General Worth. He had been betrayed by General\nHernandez, acting under General Jessup's orders; had been imprisoned,\nand suffered much; but from the manner and bearing of General Worth, he\nhad been led to repose the most implicit confidence in his sincerity.\nColonel Childs, however, punctilious in his obedience to orders, at once\nseized and sent him and his companions in irons to Tampa Bay, where they\nwere immediately placed on board a transport and sent to New Orleans, en\nroute for Fort Gibson. The people of Florida heartily approved this\ntransaction, feeling that the Territory was now rid of one of its most\ndangerous foes.\n\nGeneral Worth soon learned the manner in which Wild Cat had been again\nseized as a prisoner, in violation of the pledged faith of Government.\nMortified and chagrined, he at once dispatched a faithful officer, with\nexplicit directions, to bring Wild Cat and his friends back to Florida\nat the earliest moment at which he should be able. The officer found\nthem at New Orleans, and forthwith started with them on his return to\nTampa Bay.\n\nThis measure of General Worth, though bold, and in direct opposition to\nthe popular sentiment of Florida, probably tended as much to the\npacification of that Territory as any movement during the war.\n\nGeneral Worth set out to meet the distinguished chief, and reached Tampa\nBay on the third of July. The next day he went on board the ship, where\nhe met Wild Cat and his companions; they were yet in irons. As they met\nupon the deck, the General took him cordially by the hand; assured him\nof his sincere friendship; of the mistake by which he had been arrested;\nbut assured him, that so great was his renown as a warrior, and such\nwere the fears which the people entertained of him, that, as commanding\nGeneral, he was constrained to hold him a prisoner.\n\nPerhaps nothing so touches the vanity of a savage as an expression of\nhis greatness; and the consummate policy of General Worth was never more\napparent than in the manner of his treating this savage chief. After\nrecounting the devastation and death which Wild Cat had scattered\nthroughout the Territory, he told him, with great emphasis, that he had\nthe power to put an end to the war. He then told him he was at liberty\nto select five of his most trusty friends, and send them to his band\nwith such a message as would inform them of the precise state of facts,\nto name the time necessary to gather his band, and have them at Fort\nBrooke; that, if they failed to come in at the appointed time, he and\nhis followers, who should remain with him, should be _hanged_.\n\nWild Cat listened with emotion; most of his followers wept. After\nGeneral Worth had closed his remarks, he arose, and, with great force of\neloquence and truth, portrayed the wrongs to which he and his friends\nhad been subjected. He then added, that they had fought the white people\nbravely, had killed many, but they were too numerous and too strong for\nthem to contend with; that they were compelled to submit. Then, in\nconclusion, he said he would send out his friends, and do what he could\nto induce his band to surrender, for emigration.\n\nWhile he was speaking, the hour of twelve arrived, and an armed ship\nlying in port, opened her ports and commenced firing a national salute,\nin honor of the day. Wild Cat stopped, and, turning to General Worth,\ninquired the cause. It was explained to him, and he readily contrasted\nhis own situation and that of his friends, who were sitting around him\nin irons, with the condition of the freemen to whom they were prisoners.\n\nAfter he had concluded his remarks, he gathered around him his friends,\nand, having consulted with them, he selected his five messengers, one of\nwhom was taken from the Exiles, and the other four from the Indians. The\nfive messengers were brought together, and he addressed them in their\nown language, apparently with deep emotion; but when he came to inform\nthem of the message they were to deliver to his wife and child, the\nfeelings of the husband and father again overpowered him: he turned\naside and wept; and such was the deep and thrilling interest which\npervaded those around him, that the hardy sailors who had long been\naccustomed to danger, and the soldier who had become familiar with death\nin its various forms, were melted to tears. The sympathy became general;\nand all present seemed to acknowledge the reality of those holy\naffections of the human heart which God has implanted deep down in its\ncore and center. Silence pervaded the whole assemblage. The order was\ngiven by General Worth in a low and solemn voice to remove the fetters\nfrom the limbs of the five messengers. It was done quietly, and all\nlooked on with interest. After the irons had been taken from their\nlimbs, and all was prepared for their departure, Wild Cat shook hands\nwith each as they passed over the side of the ship. To the last he\nhanded a silk handkerchief and a breast-pin, saying, \"give them to my\nwife and child.\"\n\nThe time which Wild Cat had voluntarily set for their return, was forty\ndays. The band was supposed to be on the Kissimee or St. John's River;\nand much interest was felt by all in the result. They greatly feared\nthat delay might take place in finding and communicating with them.\nOfficers and soldiers participated in the excitement; and the messengers\nwere instructed by them to inform the commanding officer at that post,\nif any great delay should occur.\n\nThe success of this mission was regarded as the turning point of the\nFlorida War, and in its perfect success all felt a deep interest; as it\nwas believed that his example would be followed by other chiefs of\nsufficient influence to bring this long protracted war to a close.\n\nThe officers visited Wild Cat and his friends, on board the ship, daily,\nand endeavored to cheer them by constantly expressing their confidence\nin the fidelity of the messengers. He endeavored to surmount the anxiety\nand apprehension which his situation naturally brought to his mind; but\nhis care-worn countenance and anxious manner showed the corroding\nsolicitude which he felt.\n\n\"Old Micco,\" the Indian chief who at first induced Wild Cat to come in\nto Fort Cummings, was at Tampa Bay at the time the messengers left. He\nwas aged, but continued active. He had been the confidential friend of\nKing Philip, the father of Wild Cat, and was now the warm friend of the\nson. He volunteered to accompany the messengers, assuring Wild Cat that\nhe would himself return in ten days with such tidings as he should be\nable to gather in that time.\n\nThe old man, faithful to his engagement, on the tenth day appeared at\nTampa Bay with six warriors and a number of women and children, and\nreported that others were on their way. The return of Micco with such\nintelligence cheered his followers and friends, and gave to our officers\nand soldiers confidence in the entire success of the plan; but the chief\ncontinued to exhibit gloom, and at times he evinced despondency of\nspirits.\n\nIn the meantime, his people continued to arrive daily, and in less than\nthirty days, his entire band were encamped at Tampa Bay. He had\ninformed General Worth of the precise number of his warriors by\ndelivering to him a bundle containing one stick for each warrior. On the\nlast day of July, it was found that the number of warriors, including\nExiles, exactly corresponded with the number of sticks.\n\nWhen informed that his warriors were all in, he resumed his natural\ncheerfulness; his countenance became lighted up with hope and\nintelligence; his bearing was lofty and independent. Several officers\nwent on board to congratulate him. He was warmly greeted. He now,\nturning to the officer of the guard, in a tone of confident assurance,\nrequested that his irons might be removed, and he permitted to address\nhis warriors, as he said, \"like a man.\" His shackles were taken off; and\nhe then dressed himself in a manner which he deemed fitting the\noccasion. His turban was of crimson silk, from which three ostrich\nplumes were gracefully suspended; his breast was covered with glittering\nsilver ornaments; his many-colored frock was fastened around his waist\nby a girdle of red silk, into which was thrust his scalping knife,\nenclosed in its appropriate scabbard. Red leggins and ornamented\nmoccasins completed his attire. He was attended on shore by several\nofficers, who took seats with him in the boat. As they approached the\nshore, and he saw his friends who had gathered at the landing to greet\nhim, his heart seemed to swell with emotion; but gathering himself for\nthe occasion he became dignified and haughty in his deportment, and as\nhe stepped on shore be waived his hand, beckoning them all to stand\nback. They impulsively obeyed; and raising his form to its utmost height\nhe sent forth a shrill war-whoop, which reached every ear in the\nvicinity, as the announcement of his freedom. A hearty response at once\ncame back from every warrior of the band. The crowd simultaneously\nopened to the right and left, when, without noticing the presence of any\nperson, he at once proceeded to the head-quarters, where he met General\nWorth, whom he saluted in the most respectful manner. He then turned to\nhis people and addressed them, stating the arrangement with General\nWorth, thanking them for so cheerfully coming to him, declared they\nwere now at peace with the white people. He then inquired for his wife\nand child, who had remained silent spectators of the whole scene. They\nat once came forward, and as he saw them, the feelings of the husband\nand father again overcame him for an instant; but resuming his lofty\ndemeanor he mingled again with those faithful and tried followers, who\nhad so often stood beside him in times of peril.\n\nSuch were the fortunes, and such the character, of one of those\nchieftains whom the incidents of the Florida War brought into public\nnotice. He is now introduced to the reader, and will continue to receive\noccasional attention until the close of our narrative, and perhaps he\nmay again appear in the future history of the people to whose trials and\npersecutions we are now directing attention.\n\nWe have felt this sketch due to the cause of truth, inasmuch as during\nthe war, and even up to the present day, public newspapers have spoken\nof Wild Cat as a cruel and vindictive savage. His efforts in behalf of\nfreedom have been represented by public officers as crimes, and he has\nbeen held up to the public as an unprincipled brigand. We would judge\nhim, as we would all others, by his acts.\n\nWild Cat's band, now convened at Tampa Bay, had been previously\ndiminished by emigration. It now numbered seventy-eight warriors,\nsixty-four women and forty-seven children--making in all one hundred and\neighty-nine souls. We have no official statement of the number of Exiles\nwho surrendered with this band. We suppose, however, from the warm\ninterest which Wild Cat always took in behalf of the Exiles, that more\nwould have flocked to his standard than to those of other chiefs; but we\nhave no evidence that such was the fact. Probably the Exiles constituted\nabout one-sixth of the band--that being the proportion of Exiles who\naccompanied him to Fort Cummings, and were seized with him by Colonel\nChilds. Indeed, we have had no official data by which to determine the\nproportion of Exiles who constituted the several parties that\nsurrendered after General Jessup left the army. No subsequent commander\nin Florida appears to have drawn distinctions as to the color of his\nprisoners. They were all reported as _Seminoles_, and the term \"negro\"\noccurred only incidentally in their official reports, when speaking of\nthe class of interpreters and agents who were employed; nor do we find\nthat General Worth made any effort to send any of his prisoners into\nslavery. So far as we are informed, like General Taylor, he treated them\nall as _prisoners of war_, entitled to the same rights, the same\nrespect, and the same attentions, agreeably to the doctrine advanced by\nGeneral Gaines at New Orleans.\n\nGeneral Worth appears to have felt authorized to send every Exile who\nsurrendered, to the Western Country. If any of them were claimed by the\nslaveholders of Florida, he directed the proofs of ownership to be taken\nand the value of the negro estimated, and then, without waiting for\nfurther contest, the negro was treated as other prisoners, and sent West\nwith his Seminole friends, leaving the Government to pay for the slave\nor not, as the Executive and Congress should determine.[130]\n\nIt was this policy which enabled General Worth to conduct the war with\nso much greater success than his predecessors. It enabled him to avail\nhimself of all the influence of Wild Cat, now exerted in favor of\nemigration; while General Jessup, by delivering over the Exiles to\nslavery, had induced the same chief to exert absolute violence to\nprevent emigration.[131]\n\nGeneral Worth, having secured the friendship and co\u00f6peration of Wild\nCat, entered into consultation with him as to the best method of\ncarrying out his plan of peaceful surrender of the Indians and Exiles,\nand their emigration West. Those in the eastern part of the Territory,\nunder Hospetarche and Tiger-tail and Sam Jones, were bitterly opposed to\nemigration. They determined, in council, to kill any messenger sent to\nthem for the purpose of persuading them to surrender, or any one who\nshould attempt to leave them for the purposes of emigration.\n\nNotwithstanding this determination, some three or four families,\nnumbering in all about twenty souls, made their escape (Aug. 10), and,\nthough closely pursued, reached the military post on Pease Creek, and\nwere sent to Tampa Bay, where they joined Wild Cat's band. Otulke, a\nbrother of Wild Cat, lived in the vicinity of those people who had\nbecome so indignant, and it was deemed important to inform him of Wild\nCat's determination to go West. The chief had also a younger brother,\nnow with the band at Tampa Bay, who volunteered to perform the hazardous\nduty of carrying a message to Otulke. Much solicitude was felt for his\nsafety, but he accomplished his mission successfully. Otulke, with some\nsix warriors and their families, obeyed the call, and came to Tampa Bay\nand joined the party destined for emigration.\n\nOtulke also brought a message from Hospetarche, an aged chief, the head\nof a small band numbering nearly one hundred souls. He was said to be\neighty-five years of age; but was yet active, and possessed great\nenergy. He sent a message to Wild Cat that he, too, was coming in to see\nhim. He was from the \"Great Cypress Swamp,\" whose inhabitants were\nregarded as very treacherous, and altogether destitute of integrity.\n\nA few days after Otulke arrived, Hospetarche sent a boy with a white\nflag to Tampa Bay, saying, he was old and fatigued, and wanted whisky\nand provisions to enable him to reach Fort Brooke. These were sent him;\nbut the next day another message of the same character was received, and\ncomplied with. This practice continued for five days. And such was the\ndesperate character of the old chief, that none of the friendly Indians\ndared go out to meet him, particularly as they learned that he was\nattended only by warriors; they believed he was intent on hostility\nrather than peace, and they feared him.\n\nWild Cat had been absent for some days. When he returned, he ascertained\nthe situation of Hospetarche, with whom he had long been acquainted. The\nnext morning he dressed himself in his gayest attire, and, taking his\nrifle, mounted his favorite horse, which had been brought to Tampa Bay\nby his followers.\n\nThe officers who witnessed his departure, declared that the noble animal\nexhibited evidence of having recognized his master. No sooner had Wild\nCat mounted, than he began to champ his bit and paw the earth, as if\nimpatient to bear forth his rider to the hunting grounds. Wild Cat,\nsitting upon his spirited horse, shook hands with General Worth and the\nother officers, and then dashed into the forest; and before sunset,\nreturned with his venerable friend, Hospetarche, and eighteen warriors.\n\nAfter they arrived, they were treated kindly, but placed under a strong\nguard. They sent confidential friends however to their homes, who in a\nfew days returned, bringing with them the women and children of the\nwhole band. There were now at Tampa Bay nearly three hundred prisoners\nready for emigration, including Exiles, supposed to be about sixty in\nnumber.\n\nWhile General Worth was thus successful in his efforts to induce the\nIndians and their allies peacefully to emigrate, he was pained to\nwitness the sufferings to which his army were subjected. As an\nillustration of the sacrifice which our nation made in this effort to\nenslave the Exiles, we would state, that the 1st regiment of Infantry,\nunder Colonel Miller, came to Florida in 1838, and left in August, 1841.\nIt numbered some six hundred men, and during the three years of its\nresidence in Florida, one hundred and thirty-five soldiers and six\ncommissioned officers died of sickness. This we believe to be nothing\nmore than the average loss of the troops who served in that war, in\nproportion to the time of service. The official reports for July, 1841,\nshowed two thousand four hundred and twenty-eight men on the sick list,\nunfit for duty, being considerably more than one half of the whole army.\n\nA few Indians and Exiles, from various bands, occasionally arrived at\nTampa Bay, and joined the emigrating party. Throughout the different\nfamilies, they appeared to believe that General Worth was acting in good\nfaith. The whole character of the war had undergone a change. It had\noriginally been commenced and prosecuted for the purpose of re\u00ebnslaving\nExiles: now that object, so far as they could discover, appeared to have\nbeen given up. Exiles and Indians were treated alike. Wild Cat, their\nmost active and popular chief, and the leading Exiles with him, were\nacting with sincerity in favor of emigration. The war was in fact\nsuspended, for the adoption of a more pacific policy, which seemed to\npromise success.\n\nTiger-tail was yet inexorable and inveterate. He was said to have\nmurdered his own sister for proposing to surrender; yet a small party\nfrom his band escaped to Tampa Bay, and were protected. A few other\nIndians and Exiles were captured without bloodshed; and such were the\nprospects of returning peace, that by the commencement of September,\nGeneral Worth informed the War Department that the 3d regiment of\nArtillery could be spared from the service in Florida; and that he\nhoped, within a month, to discharge the 4th and 5th Infantry, and the 3d\nDragoons.\n\n[Illustration: Thlocklo Tustenuggee. (Tiger Tail.)]\n\nWild Cat visited Tiger-tail in his retreat, which was regarded as a most\nhazardous undertaking. With six followers he started on a visit to this\nbarbarous chief. He reached the vicinity of his camp near nightfall, but\ndeemed it prudent not to approach at that late hour of the day. He and\nhis friends fearing discovery, bivouacked in a grove, supposing they had\nnot been noticed by any one. In the darkness of the night, they heard\nslight movements near them. Wild Cat suspected it was the wary chief,\npreparing to massacre himself and friends. He boldly called out,\nannouncing his own name, and telling Tiger-tail not to come upon him\nlike a coward, by stealth, but to speak frankly, or come up boldly to\na personal conflict. Tiger-tail, surprised and astonished at this\ncourse, commenced conversation. Wild Cat, referring to their former\nfriendship, avowed his desire to renew the attachment; or, if Tiger-tail\ninsisted on fighting, then he would meet him in a manner becoming a bold\nwarrior. The ferocity of Tiger-tail gave way. They agreed to meet next\nday, when a long consultation was held. The savage chief gave assurances\nof his peaceful disposition, and promised to reflect upon the propriety\nof emigrating. Wild Cat also sent to other chiefs messages, assuring\nthem of his intention to emigrate; that his band, and that of\nHospetarche, with individuals from other villages, were at Tampa Bay\nwith the intention of soon embarking for the Western Country.\n\nTiger-tail insisted on seeing Alligator, a Seminole chief, who emigrated\nin 1837, saying, if Alligator would come back and advise him to go West,\nhe would comply with such advice. A messenger was accordingly sent West\nto bring Alligator to Florida.\n\nIn the meantime, Wild Cat declared to General Worth that he desired to\nsee his own people on their way; and assigned as the reason for such\ndesire, that Indians were a restless people, and could not be long kept\ninactive, with no employment for either body or mind. The advice was\nreceived by General Worth with respect, and he at once gave orders to\nprepare for the journey. Transports had been employed, and were then in\nwaiting. The women and children were engaged in cracking corn, to serve\nas food for their journey. Amid all the cares which surrounded him,\nGeneral Worth endeavored to make both Indians and Exiles comfortable,\nand render them cheerful. They were a wronged and persecuted people,\nabout to leave their homes, their native country, and go to a distant\nregion, of which they were ignorant. Driven from the graves of their\nfathers, they were about to be separated from scenes which had been\nfamiliar to them from childhood.\n\nOf those who had come in for emigration, fifteen had died. Wild Cat\ndetailed from his band seven, and Hospetarche detailed ten warriors,\nwho, with their families, making some eighty souls in all, were to\nremain with General Worth for a while in order to exert what influence\nthey could with their friends in favor of emigrating to the West. The\nnumber who actually embarked was little more than two hundred and fifty,\nexclusive of fourteen Mickasukies, who persisted in drawing their\nrations, and in all things being separated from the others. Some fifty\nExiles are supposed to have been among those who embarked, and two of\nthe seventeen families who remained at Tampa Bay were of mixed blood.\nThe emigrants were all on board the transports, when General Worth and\nstaff paid them a last visit. The scene was said to be affecting.\nHospetarche, venerable for his years, sat in silence, resting his head\nupon his hands, and looking back upon his native land. He appeared\ndisqualified for holding conversation with any one, and none appeared\nwilling to disturb his seeming melancholy reflections. The women--both\nExiles and Indians--were weeping and sighing, unrestrained by that\ndignity so much cultivated by savages of the other sex. The\nwarriors--black and red--were solemn and silent. This appeared to give\nWild Cat pain. He stood upon the quarter deck with his sub-chiefs around\nhim. As General Worth was about to take leave, \"I am looking (said Wild\nCat) at the last pine tree of my native land. I am about to leave\nFlorida for ever; and I can say that I have never done anything to\ndisgrace the land of my birth. It was my home: I loved it as I loved my\nwife and child. To part from it, is like separating from my own kindred.\nBut I have thrown away the rifle; I have shaken hands with the white\nman, and I look to him for protection.\" He then addressed General Worth,\nthanked him for all his kindness and confidence; and on behalf of his\npeople he expressed a high sense of gratitude for the humanity and\nfriendship extended to them. Then extending his hand to the General he\nbade him farewell. General Worth, in taking leave, expressed the hope\nthat they would have a pleasant journey, and find themselves happy in\ntheir western homes. They parted; the anchor was hauled up, the sails\nhoisted; and the unhappy emigrants soon cast their last lingering look\nupon the long-loved scenes of their childhood.\n\nThey were hurried on their way as rapidly as wind and steam could propel\nthe ships in which they embarked. They made a short stay at New Orleans;\nand in two weeks from the time they left Tampa Bay, they landed at Fort\nGibson, and were conducted to the settlement made by their brethren who\nhad previously emigrated. Here Wild Cat found himself in a new sphere.\nRespected and beloved by his followers for his gallant bearing; his\nundoubted courage; his devotion to the interests of his people; his\ntruth and justice--distinguished above all others of his tribe by his\nwarlike exploits, he was qualified and prepared to enter upon the trying\nscenes which awaited his future life.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXI.\n\nCLOSE OF THE WAR.\n\n     Delegation from Emigrants return to Florida--Their efforts in favor\n     of Peace--Pacific indications--Troops discharged--Indians and\n     Negroes surrender--Foray of Captain Wade--Waxe Hadjo\n     surrenders--Massacre at Mandarin--People of Georgia and Florida\n     dissatisfied with General Worth--They insist on furnishing\n     Troops--Gen. Worth refuses to employ Militia--General McDonald and\n     Volunteers from Georgia take the field--Demand the withdrawal of\n     the Regular Troops--They are withdrawn--Call for\n     Provisions--General Worth refuses to furnish them--Militia\n     disband--Tustenuggee Chapco surrenders--More Troops\n     discharged--General Worth states the number of Enemy, and\n     recommends cessation of Hostilities--Propositions rejected by\n     Executive--Battle with Halec Tustenuggee--His character--His\n     capture--He and his people sent West--President reconsiders General\n     Worth's advice--Adopts the proposed policy--General Worth calls\n     Council--Terms of Peace agreed upon--General Order--General Worth\n     retires--War ended--Its object--Its cost--Number of lives\n     sacrificed--Character of Indians and Exiles who remained in\n     Florida.\n\n\n[Sidenote: 1841.]\n\nOn the fourteenth of October, Alligator, with two other chiefs, and one\nof the leading Exiles, named James, reached Fort Brooke, on their return\nfrom the Western Country. They came at the request of General Worth to\nexert their influence with Tiger-tail and others in favor of emigration.\nThe next day they left for the interior, and after an absence of seven\ndays returned with Tiger-tail. The General held several conversations\nwith him, and kindly expressed his sympathy for the Indians, explaining\nhis own situation and duty, and advising the Indians to emigrate as\ntheir best policy. Tiger-tail, after remaining in camp four days,\nreturned for his band; and friendly Indians were dispatched by General\nWorth to Sam Jones and other chiefs to induce them also to come in. Some\nthirty Indians deserted Halec Tustenuggee (Nov. 10), and came to Fort\nBrooke. The appearance of Indians and Exiles was so pacific that the\nCommanding General discharged from further service in Florida five\ncompanies of dragoons, who were ordered to the western frontier. The\nIndians and Exiles who remained at Fort Brooke when Wild Cat and his\nparty left for the West, were active in their endeavors to induce their\nother friends to emigrate. In these efforts they were at least partially\nsuccessful. Small parties from the bands of Tiger-tail and\nNethloke-Mathla arrived occasionally, and with the apparent consent of\nthose chiefs; but Tiger-tail himself appeared suspicious and wary. He\nwould not come in then, but promised to do so at some future day. The\ninfluence of most of the Exiles now remaining in Florida was exerted in\nfavor of emigration. It is believed that nearly every family of pure\nExile blood had left; that the last of that class had departed with Wild\nCat, particularly all of the descendants of those pioneers who remained\nunconnected with the Indians by marriage. There were yet remaining a few\nwho had more recently fled from their masters in Florida and Georgia.\nThey dared not trust themselves within the power of our troops, lest\nthey should be reconsigned to slavery. They exerted a strong influence\nwith the Indians against emigration. There were also, in almost every\nband and small village of Indians, Exiles who had intermarried with\nIndian families. They could not well separate from their family\nconnexions, and therefore refused to surrender for emigration, until\nthose relatives would go with them. By the twentieth of November,\nfifty-two warriors and a hundred and ten women and children--making in\nall one hundred and sixty-two people--were gathered from the bands of\nTiger-tail and Nethloke-Mathla; some thirty of whom were Exiles,\nintermarried with the Indians and half-breeds.\n\nCaptain Wade made a foray into the Indian Country, and captured some\nsixty-five Indians and Exiles of two different bands, by surprise, and\nwithout bloodshed. They were mostly women and children, and were at\nonce sent forward to Tampa Bay for emigration.\n\nAbout the close of November, \"Waxe-Hadjo,\" a young chief from the\nCypress Swamp, with seventeen warriors and more than thirty women and\nchildren--some ten or twelve of whom were half-breeds, descendants of\nExiles and Seminoles--surrendered, and were sent to Fort Brooke for\nemigration.\n\nWhile everything thus wore the appearance of peace, and all were\nregarding the war as near its close, a small settlement of white people,\nat a place called Mandarin, twenty-two miles from Jacksonville, was\nassailed in open day, and five of the people murdered. This attack was\nconducted by a small party of Indians, less than twenty in number, who\nhad come from the interior, and in a stealthy manner approached this\nsettlement, committed the murders, and retired before any troops could\nbe brought to the scene of slaughter.\n\nNear the close of the year, the authorities of Georgia and Florida gave\nevidence of their dissatisfaction of the manner in which General Worth\nwas conducting the war. The militia of neither Florida nor Georgia were\ncalled on to participate in the war. No opportunities were afforded them\nof seizing negroes and selling them into slavery; none but the regular\nsutlers were permitted to encamp with or near the troops; in short, the\nwar, as then conducted, afforded them but little profit. General Worth\nhad encouraged the return of the people to their homes and plantations,\nand very few of them now drew rations from the public stores for their\nsupport. He had discharged citizens and their slaves from public\nemployment, and the war was carried on without permitting the people, or\npoliticians of Georgia or Florida, to interfere or dictate the manner of\nits prosecution.\n\nThis proceeding of General Worth greatly excited the people and\nExecutive of Georgia, who insisted upon furnishing militia to carry on\nthe war. The Secretary of War referred the matter at once to General\nWorth, and a most interesting and amusing correspondence followed\nbetween the Executive of Georgia and the Commanding General. The latter\nrefusing to call for militia from that State, they were mustered without\nhis authority, and he was requested by Governor McDonald to withdraw the\nUnited States forces from the Georgia frontiers.\n\nAs there was then no enemy near that State, and no danger to the\ninhabitants, he removed the troops, and the Georgia militia were ordered\nby the Governor to take their place. They did so with the confident\nexpectation that General Worth would furnish rations and hospital\nsupplies and arms from the United States stores. But he refused to do\nthis, and the gallant militia of that State immediately retired to their\nhomes in order to dine.\n\nThe correspondence on this subject continued until May, 1842, and shows\nthe skillful management of individuals to get up alarms in regard to the\nsupposed presence of hostile Indians, and thereby manifest the necessity\nof posting troops in certain localities, where there had probably never\nbeen an enemy. To give importance to these counterfeited alarms, letters\nwere written, and presentments were made by Grand Juries. The Delegate\nfrom the Territory of Florida demanded of the Executive the employment\nof militia for the protection of the frontier, and that such militia be\nauthorized to act independently of the Commanding General.\n\nHon. John C. Spencer, Secretary of War, replied, that the Department\ncould see no particular advantage to be derived from such a division of\nthe duties of the Commanding General; and, as he had no doubt General\nWorth would do whatever was proper, he referred the whole matter to his\nconsideration.\n\nHad General Jessup, in 1836 and '37, adopted the policy which guided\nGeneral Worth; had he sent his prisoners to the Western Country without\npermitting the militia, or the people of Florida, to seize and enslave\nthose whom he had engaged to protect and defend, there is little doubt\nthat the war would have been closed during the time he was employed in\nFlorida.\n\nDuring the last days of December, Tustenuggee Chopco, a sub-chief, and\nabout seventy followers, consisting of warriors, women and children, a\nproportion of whom were Exiles and half-breeds, surrendered near the\nGreat Cypress Swamp, and were also sent to Fort Brooke for emigration.\n\n[Sidenote: 1843.]\n\nAt the commencement of this year several more companies of troops were\ndischarged, the number of the enemy being so far diminished as to render\ntheir presence useless.\n\nOn the fifth of February, some three hundred and fifty Indians and\nExiles were embarked at Tampa Bay for the Western Country. They in due\ntime reached Fort Gibson, and took up their residence with those who had\ngone before them, and were still residing upon the lands of the\nCherokees.\n\nOn the fourteenth of February, General Worth addressed the Commanding\nGeneral of our army, at Washington City, a communication, giving a\ndetailed statement of the number of Indians yet remaining in\nFlorida--amounting in all to three hundred, according to the best\ninformation he had been able to obtain. He also stated the impossibility\nof capturing these individuals, scattered as they were over a vast\nextent of country, and advising that they be dealt with, henceforth, in\na peaceful manner; and that at least five-sixths of the troops then\nemployed in Florida be withdrawn, and an equal proportion of the\nexpenses of the war be curtailed. He proposed sending a portion of those\nfriendly Indians who remained at Fort Brooke, among the hostiles, to\ncontinue with them, and exert what influence they could in favor of\npeace and of emigration; with the assurance, that no further hostilities\nwould be prosecuted by the United States while the Indians remained\npeaceful.\n\nThe proposition, however, was rejected by the Executive; and General\nWorth continued to carry forward the work which he had prosecuted thus\nfar with such signal success. He dismissed more troops from service in\nFlorida; discharged employees in the various departments under his\ncommand, and made such retrenchments as he was able to effect, without\ndetracting from the efficiency of the public service.\n\nOn the sixteenth of April, the troops fell in with Hallec Tustenuggee,\nwho, with some seventy warriors of his own and other bands, was encamped\nupon an island in the Great Wahoo Swamp, and after an irregular fight of\ntwo hours, routed them. The loss was slight on both sides. Our troops\nhad one man killed, and four wounded; the allies three wounded, whom\nthey carried from the field. This was the last battle fought in the\nFlorida War. The Indians scattered in various directions, and in that\nway evaded pursuit.\n\nHalec Tustenuggee was a most skillful warrior: bold and daring in his\npolicy, yet capable of dissimulation and treachery. He had been the\nobject of pursuit for two years. His unceasing vigilance had enabled him\nto bid defiance to civilized troops. He was now nearly destitute of\npowder and provisions, and, as an alternative, professed a desire for\npeace. He came into the American camp boldly, shook hands with General\nWorth, and proclaimed his pacific purpose. His professions were treated\nwith great apparent respect. He wanted provisions for his band. They\nwere encamped within three miles of General Worth's head-quarters, and\nwere fed at public expense. And when the whole band had come within the\nlines, for the purpose of attending a feast, they were secured as\nprisoners, and immediately sent to Tampa Bay for emigration; and, on the\nfourteenth of July, this entire band, consisting of one hundred and\ntwenty persons, embarked for Fort Gibson, by way of New Orleans. They\nreached their destination in safety; and most of them took up their\nresidence with their brethren, the Seminoles; while others joined the\nCreeks.\n\nThe Federal Executive, having more maturely considered the suggestions\nof General Worth, at length concluded to accede to his propositions for\na pacification with the remaining hostiles in Florida. That officer,\nhaving secured Halec Tustenuggee and his band, and sent them West, now\ndispatched his messengers to those small bands of hostiles which\nremained, inviting them to hold a council and enter into an arrangement,\nbased upon the condition, that the allies should remain in the southern\nportion of the Peninsula of Florida, confined to certain limits, and\nabstain from all acts of aggression upon their white neighbors.\n\nMost of these small bands sent chiefs, or sub-chiefs, to attend the\ncouncil; and terms of peace were agreed to, and the following General\nOrder was issued:\n\n\n\"ORDER,} HEAD QUARTERS NINTH MILITARY DEPARTMENT,}\nNo. 28.} _Cedar Key, Florida_, August 14, 1843.  }\n\n     \"It is hereby announced, that hostilities with the Indians within\n     this Territory have ceased. Measures are taken to pass the few\n     remaining Indians within certain limits--those in the far south\n     immediately; those west of the Suwanee in a few days, who,\n     meantime, there is every reasonable assurance, will conduct\n     inoffensively if unmolested in their haunts. The lands thus\n     temporarily assigned, as their planting and hunting grounds, are\n     within the following boundaries, to wit: From the mouth of\n     Talockchopco, or Pease Creek, up the left bank of that stream to\n     the fork of the southern branch, and, following that branch, to the\n     head or northern edge of Lake Istokpoga; thence down the eastern\n     margin of that lake to the stream which empties into the Kissimee\n     River, following the left bank of the said stream and river to\n     where the latter empties into Lake Okeechobee; thence down, due\n     south, through said lake and everglades to Shark River, following\n     the right bank of that river to the Gulf; thence along the Gulf\n     shore (excluding all islands between Punta Rosa and the head of\n     Charlotte's Harbor) to the place of beginning.\n\n     \"The foregoing arrangements are in accordance with the instructions\n     of the President of the United States.\n\n\"By order of Col. WORTH:\n\nS. COOPER, _A. A. General_.\"\n\n\n\nMost of the troops were now withdrawn from Florida. General Worth\nretired from the command, and the Florida War was supposed to have\nended. It had been commenced with a determination to re\u00ebnslave the\nExiles. That object was, in part, attained. More than five hundred\npersons were seized and enslaved, between the first of January, 1835,\nand the fourteenth of August, 1843. Probably one half of them had been\nborn free; the others had themselves escaped from slavery. To effect\nthis object, forty millions of dollars were supposed to have been\nexpended. Eighty thousand dollars was paid from the public treasury for\nthe enslavement of each person, and the lives of at least three white\nmen were sacrificed to insure the enslavement of each black man. The\ndeterioration of our national morality was beyond estimate, and the\ndisgrace of our nation and government are matters incapable of\ncomputation. The suffering of the Indians and Exiles amidst such\nprolonged persecution, such loss of lives and property, we cannot\nestimate. The friends and families who were separated, the number of\nthose who were made wretched for life, the broken hearts, we will not\nattempt to enumerate. Nearly one half of the whole number were consigned\nto the moral death of slavery, and many to that physical death which was\ndreaded far less than slavery. After wandering in the wilderness thrice\nforty years, they fell under the oppression, the persecution, the power\nof a mighty nation, which boasts of its justice, its honor, and love of\nliberty. We lament the sad fate of those who died in that struggle; but\nwith deeper anguish, and far keener mortification, we deplore the\nunhappy lot of those who were doomed to drag out a miserable existence,\namidst chains and wretchedness, surrounded by that moral darkness which\nbroods over the enslaved portion of our fellow-beings in the Southern\nStates.\n\nThere are yet remaining in Florida a few descendants of the pioneer\nExiles. They are intermarried with the bands of \"Billy Bowlegs,\" and of\n\"Sam Jones,\" sometimes called Aripeka; they are now mostly half-breeds,\nand are rapidly becoming amalgamated with the Indian race.\n\nBesides these, there are a number of Spanish Refugees, or colored people\nwho fled from Spanish masters and took up their residence with those\ncalled \"Spanish Indians.\" These did not engage in the war until 1840:\nnor did they then engage in any of the battles with our army; they\ncontented themselves with plundering ships wrecked on their coast, and\nthe foray upon Indian Key. They refused to send delegates to the council\nsummoned by General Worth, to establish terms of pacification. They live\nindependent of the white people, subsisting mostly on fish and the\nnatural products of the soil, holding very little intercourse with\neither white men or other Indians. Descendants of Exile parents, they\nhave the complexion and appearance of pure Spaniards; but they are\nrapidly blending with the Indians, and forming a mixed race.\n\nThese different bands, remaining in Florida, and aggregating into a\ndistinct people, have on several occasions since 1843, given evidence of\nimplacable hostility to the whites. And at the time of writing this\nnarrative, they are engaged in open war; while the Government of the\nUnited States is endeavoring to secure peace in the same manner and upon\nthe same terms on which General Worth obtained it, in 1843. Their future\nhistory may, hereafter, occupy the pen of some other historian.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXII.\n\nHISTORY OF EXILES CONTINUED.\n\n     Character of Abraham--His knowledge of the Treaty of Payne's\n     Landing--Its stipulations--General Jessup's assurances--Confirmed\n     by other Officers of Government--Disappointment of Exiles on\n     reaching Western Country--They refuse to enter Creek\n     jurisdiction--Creeks disappointed--General Cass's policy of\n     reuniting Tribes--Agent attempts to pacify Exiles--Hospitality of\n     Cherokees--Discontent of all the Tribes--Seminoles loud in their\n     complaints--Hostilities apprehended--Conduct of Executive--Agents\n     selected to negotiate another Treaty--Treaty stipulations--Attempts\n     to falsify history--Executive action unknown to the people.\n\n[Sidenote: 1844.]\n\n\nThe Exiles were now all located on the Cherokee lands, west of the State\nof Arkansas. They had been removed from Florida at great expense of\nblood and treasure; but they were yet free, and the object of the\nAdministration had not been attained. Conscious of the designs of the\nCreeks, the Seminoles and Exiles refused to trust themselves within\nCreek jurisdiction. They were tenants at will of the Cherokees, whose\nhospitality had furnished them with temporary homes until the Government\nshould fulfill its treaty stipulations, in furnishing them a territory\nto their separate use.\n\nAbraham was, perhaps, the most influential man among the Exiles. He had\nbeen a witness and interpreter in making the treaty of Payne's Landing,\nand had dictated the important provision in the supplemental treaty; he\nhad exerted his influence in favor of emigration; to him, therefore, his\npeople looked with more confidence than to any other individual. In all\nhis intercourse with our officers, he had been assured of the intention\nto fulfill those treaties; and when he found the Government hesitating\non that point, he became indignant, and so did others of his band. But\nhe could only express his indignation to the Agent appointed to\nsuperintend their affairs and supply their wants. These complaints were\nmade known to the Indian Bureau, at Washington; but they were unheeded,\nand the Exiles and their friends lived on in the vain hope that the\nAdministration would at some day redeem the pledged faith of the nation,\nand assign them a territory for their separate use, where they could\nlive independent of the Creeks, as they had done for nearly a century\npast.\n\nNor is it easy for men at this day to appreciate that feeling which so\nstubbornly sought their enslavement; we can only account for this\nunyielding purpose, from the long-established practice of so wielding\nthe power and influence of the nation as best to promote the interests\nof slavery. It is certain, that it would have cost the United States no\nmore to set off to the Exiles and Seminole Indians a separate territory,\non which they could live free and independent, than it would to\nconstrain them to settle on the Creek lands, and subject them to Creek\nlaws, and Creek despotism, and Creek servitude.\n\nGeneral Jackson, in 1816, had ordered Blount's Fort to be destroyed and\nthe negroes returned to those who owned them. To effect this latter\nobject, in 1822, he proposed to compel the Seminole Indians to return\nand reunite with the Creeks. If at any time there were other reasons for\nthe frauds committed upon the Exiles and Indians--for the violations of\nthe pledged faith of the nation--it is hoped that some of the officers\nwho acted a prominent part in those scenes of treachery and turpitude,\nor their biographers, will yet inform the public of their existence.\n\nSettled, as the Seminoles and Exiles now were on the Cherokee lands, all\nparties concerned were necessarily dissatisfied. The Creeks were\ndisappointed, and greatly dissatisfied at not having the Exiles in their\npower, and charged our Government with bad faith in not delivering that\nextraordinary people into their hands. The Cherokees had assured the\nSeminoles and Exiles that our Government would deal honorably with them,\nand would faithfully carry out the treaty of Payne's Landing, with the\nproviso contained in the supplemental treaty; and they were now greatly\ndissatisfied at the refusal of the Executive to observe this solemn\nstipulation; while the Seminoles and Exiles were indignant at the\ndeception, fraud and perfidy practiced upon them.\n\nComplaints against the Government now became general among all these\ntribes. All had been deceived; all had been wronged; and all became loud\nin their denunciations of the Government. This feeling became more\nintense as time passed away. It was in vain that our Indian agents and\nmilitary officers at the West endeavored to quiet this state of general\ndiscontent. The newspapers of that day gave intimations of difficulties\namong the Indians at the West; they stated, in general terms, the danger\nof hostilities, but omitted all allusion to the cause of this\ndisquietude.\n\nThe Executive appeared to be paralyzed with the difficulties now thrown\nin his way. He urged upon the Indian agents and military officers to use\nall possible efforts to suppress these feelings of hostility, which now\nappeared ready to burst forth upon the first occasion; coolly insisting\nthat, at some future day, the Seminoles and Exiles would consent to\nremove on to the Creek territory.\n\nAt length the danger of hostilities became so imminent, that the\nExecutive deemed it necessary to enter upon further negotiation in order\nto effect the long cherished purpose of subjecting the Exiles to Creek\njurisdiction and consequent slavery. To effect this object it was\nnecessary to select suitable instruments. Four Indian Agents, holding\ntheir offices by the Executive favor, were appointed to hold a Council\nwith their discontented tribes, and if possible to negotiate a new\ntreaty with them. It is somewhat singular that no statesman, no person\nfavorably known to the public, or possessing public confidence, was\nselected for so important a service.\n\n[Sidenote: 1845.]\n\nOf course any treaty formed under such circumstances and by such agents\nwould conform to the Executive will. The treaty bears date on the\ntwenty-fifth of January; and we insert the preamble and those articles\nwhich have particular relation to the subject matter of which we are\nspeaking. They are as follows:\n\n     \"Articles of a Treaty made by Wm. Armstrong, P. M. Butler, James\n     Segan and Thomas S. Judge, Commissioners in behalf of the United\n     States, of the first part; the Creek Tribe of Indians of the second\n     part, and the Seminole Indians of the third part:\"\n\n     \"WHEREAS, It was stipulated in the fourth article of the Creek\n     Treaty of 1833, that the Seminoles should thence forward be\n     considered a constituent part of the Creek nation, and that a\n     permanent and comfortable home should be secured for them on the\n     lands set apart in said treaty as the country of the Creeks; and\n     whereas, many of the Seminoles have settled and are now living in\n     the Creek Country, while others, constituting a large portion of\n     the tribe, have refused to make their homes in any part thereof,\n     assigning, as a reason, that _they are unwilling to submit to Creek\n     laws and Government, and that they are apprehensive of being\n     deprived by the Creek authorities of their property_; and whereas,\n     repeated complaints have been made to the United States Government,\n     that those of the Seminoles who refuse to go into the Creek Country\n     have, without authority or right, settled upon lands secured to\n     other tribes, and that they have committed numerous and extensive\n     depredations upon the property of those upon whose lands they have\n     intruded:\"\n\n     \"Now, therefore, in order to reconcile all difficulties respecting\n     location and jurisdiction; to settle all disputed questions which\n     have arisen, or may hereafter arise, in regard to rights of\n     property; and, especially, to preserve the peace of the frontier,\n     seriously endangered by the restless and warlike spirit of the\n     intruding Seminoles, the parties to this treaty have agreed to the\n     following stipulations:\"\n\n     \"ARTICLE 1. The Creeks agree that the Seminoles shall be entitled\n     to settle in a body, or separately, as they please, in any part of\n     the Creek Country; that they shall make their own town regulations,\n     subject, however, to the general control of the Creek Council in\n     which they shall be represented; and, in short, that no distinction\n     shall be made between the two tribes in any respect, except in the\n     management of their pecuniary affairs; in which neither shall\n     interfere with the _other_.\"\n\n     \"ART 2. The Seminoles agree that those of their tribe who have not\n     done so before the ratification of this treaty, shall immediately\n     thereafter remove to, and permanently settle in, the Creek\n     Country.\"\n\n     \"ART. 3. It is mutually agreed by the Creeks and Seminoles that all\n     contested cases between the two tribes, concerning the right of\n     property growing out of sales or transactions that may have\n     occurred previous to the ratification of this treaty, shall be\n     subject to the decision of the President of the United States.\"\n\nThe leading feature of this treaty, is a studied effort to make no\nallusion to the Exiles, or to recognize their existence in any way.\nGeneral Jessup, in the articles of capitulation, had expressly\nstipulated for the protection of the persons and property of the\n\"allies\" of the Seminoles; but for half a century efforts had been made\nto exclude them from the page of our national history, and never was\nthat policy more strikingly illustrated than in this treaty.\n\nAs heretofore stated, the Seminoles were said to own some forty slaves;\nbut the Author has been unable to find any hint or intimation that any\none of those slaves was claimed by the Creeks: yet efforts were made to\nfalsify the truth of history by representing the four or five hundred\nExiles now living with the Seminoles to be slaves to their friends and\n\"_allies_.\"\n\nThe next extraordinary feature of the treaty, is the recital of the\n_Creek_ treaty as binding upon the Seminoles, when they had been no\nparty to it, nor even had knowledge of its existence.\n\nBut the third article is that on which both Exiles and Seminoles appear\nto have relied. Thinking the President would do justice; feeling\nthemselves subject to the power of the Executive, and pressed on all\nsides to accede to terms of pacification, they signed the treaty as the\nbest alternative that lay before them.\n\nIn accordance with the past policy of the Administration, this treaty\nwas withheld from publication. It was of course submitted to the Senate\nin secret session for approval. It was then amended, and still kept from\nthe public for nearly two years after its negotiation.\n\n     NOTE.--At the session of Congress, 1845-6, a bill containing, among\n     many other things, an appropriation to carry out this treaty, was\n     reported by the committee on Ways and Means, of the House of\n     Representatives. The treaty itself yet lay concealed in the office\n     of the Secretary of the Senate, where it had been ratified in\n     secret session, and not a member of the House of Representatives\n     had seen it, unless it was the Chairman of the committee of Ways\n     and Means, or other confidential friends of the Executive, to whom\n     it was given for personal examination.\n\n     The bill was printed, and the Author seeing this provision,\n     determined to know something of the treaty, before voting money to\n     carry it into effect. For this purpose, he called on one of the\n     Senators from Ohio (Hon. Thomas Corwin), to get a copy of the\n     treaty. Mr. Corwin went with him to the office of the Secretary of\n     the Senate, and after much inquiry, and passing from one clerk to\n     another, a copy was obtained.\n\n     When the bill came up for discussion, inquiry was made as to the\n     treaty, its character and object. No member appeared to have any\n     knowledge of it, save the Chairman of the committee of Ways and\n     Means, (Mr. McKay of North Carolina). The Author of this work\n     endeavored to give the House some idea of its origin, and, in the\n     course of his remarks, referred to the manner in which the State of\n     Georgia had been implicated in the persecution of the Exiles. This\n     reference to the State of Georgia awakened the ire of Mr. Black, a\n     Representative from that State, who advanced toward the Author with\n     uplifted cane, as if to inflict personal chastisement, and quite a\n     _sc\u00e8ne_ followed, which at the time created some sensation in the\n     country.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXIII.\n\nTHE REUNION AND FINAL EXODUS.\n\n     Difficulties in effecting a reunion of Tribes--Its objects--Exiles\n     and Seminoles move on to Creek Lands--They settle in separate\n     Villages--Creeks demand Exiles as Slaves--Exiles arm\n     themselves--They flee to Fort Gibson--Demand protection of the\n     United States--General Arbuckle protects them--Reports facts to\n     Department--Administration embarrassed--Call on General Jessup for\n     facts--He writes General Arbuckle--Reports facts to the\n     President--President hesitates--Refers question to Attorney\n     General--Extraordinary opinion of that Officer--Manner in which Mr.\n     Mason was placed in office--Exiles return to their\n     Village--Slaveholders dissatisfied--Slave-dealer among the\n     Creeks--His offer--They capture near one hundred Exiles--They are\n     delivered to the Slave-dealer--Habeas Corpus in Arkansas--Decision\n     of Judge--Exiles hurried to New Orleans and sold as Slaves--Events\n     of 1850--Exiles depart for Mexico--Are pursued by\n     Creeks--Battle--The Exiles continue their journey--They settle near\n     Santa Rosa--The fate which different portions of the Exiles\n     met--Incidents which occurred after their settlement in\n     Mexico--Conclusion.\n\n[Sidenote: 1846.]\n\n\nThe Creeks and Seminoles had been separated for nearly a century. They\nhad most of that time lived under separate governments. Each Tribe had\nbeen controlled by their own laws; and each had been independent of the\nother. They had often been at war with each other; and the most deadly\nfeuds had been engendered and still subsisted among them. To unite them\nwith the Creeks, and blot the name of \"Seminole\" from the page of their\nfuture history, in order to involve the Exiles in slavery, had long been\na cherished object with the administration of our Government. It was now\nfondly hoped, that that object would be accomplished without further\ndifficulty.\n\nBut at no period had the Seminole Indians regarded the Exiles with\ngreater favor than they did when removing on to the territory assigned\nto the Creeks. Although many of them had intermarried with the\nSeminoles, and half-breeds were now common among the Indians; yet most\nof the descendants of the pioneers who fled from South Carolina and\nGeorgia maintained their identity of character, living by themselves,\nand maintaining the purity of the African race. They yet cherished this\nlove of their own kindred and color; and when they removed on to the\nCreek lands, they settled in separate villages: and the Seminole Indians\nappeared generally to coincide with the Exiles in the propriety of each\nmaintaining their distinctive character.\n\nDuring the summer and autumn both Indians and Exiles became residents\nwithin Creek jurisdiction; and the Executive seemed to regard the trust\nheld under the assignment made at Indian Spring, twenty-four years\npreviously, as now fulfilled. Regarding the Creeks as holding the\nequitable or beneficial interest in the bodies of the Exiles, under the\nassignment from their owners to the United States, and they being now\nbrought under Creek jurisdiction, subject to Creek laws, the Executive\nfelt that his obligations were discharged, and the whole matter left\nwith the Creeks.\n\nThis opinion appears also to have been entertained by the Creek Indians;\nfor no sooner had the Exiles and Seminoles located themselves within\nCreek jurisdiction, than the Exiles were claimed as the legitimate\nslaves of the Creeks. To these demands the Exiles and Seminoles replied,\nthat the President, under the treaty of 1845, was bound to hear and\ndetermine all questions arising between them. The demands were,\ntherefore, certified to the proper department for decision. But this\nsetting in judgment upon the heaven-endowed right of man to his liberty,\nseemed to involve more personal and moral responsibility than was\ndesirable for the Executive to assume, and the claims remained\nundecided.\n\nThe Creeks became impatient at delay; they were a slaveholding people,\nas well as their more civilized but more infidel brethren, of the slave\nStates. The Exiles, living in their own villages in the enjoyment of\nperfect freedom, had already excited discontent among the slaves of the\nCreek and Choctaw Tribes, and those of Arkansas. The Creeks appeared to\nfeel that it had been far better for them to have kept the Exiles in\nFlorida, than to bring them to the Western Country to live in freedom.\nYet their claims under the treaty of 1845, thus far, appeared to have\nbeen disregarded by the President; they had been unable to obtain a\ndecision on them; and they now threatened violence for the purpose of\nenslaving the Exiles, unless their demands were peacefully conceded.\n\nThe Exiles, yet confident that the Government would fulfill its\nstipulations to protect them and their property, repaired in a body to\nFort Gibson, and demanded protection of General Arbuckle, the officer in\ncommand. He had no doubt of the obligation of the United States to lend\nthem protection, according to the express language of the articles of\ncapitulation entered into with General Jessup, in March, 1837. He,\ntherefore, directed the whole body of Exiles to encamp and remain upon\nthe lands reserved by the United States, near the fort, and under their\nexclusive jurisdiction, assuring them that no Creek would dare set foot\nupon that reservation with intentions of violence towards any person.\nAccordingly the Exiles, who yet remained free, now encamped around Fort\nGibson, and were supported by rations dealt out from the public stores.\n\nSoon as he could ascertain all the facts, General Arbuckle made report\nto the War Department relative to their situation, and the claims which\nthey made to protection under the articles of capitulation, together\nwith the rights which the Creeks set up to re\u00ebnslave them.\n\nThis state of circumstances appears to have been unexpected by the\nExecutive. Indeed, he appears from the commencement to have under-rated\nthe difficulties which beset the enslavement of a people who were\ndetermined upon the enjoyment of freedom; he seems to have expected the\nnegroes, when once placed within Creek jurisdiction, would have yielded\nwithout further effort. But he was now placed in a position which\nconstrained him either to repudiate the pledged faith of the nation, or\nto protect the Exiles in their _persons and property_, according to the\nsolemn covenants which General Jessup had entered into with them.\n\nYet the President was disposed to make farther efforts to avoid the\nresponsibility of deciding the question before him. General Jessup had\nentered into the articles of capitulation, and the President appeared to\nthink he was competent to give construction to them; he therefore\nreferred the subject to that officer, stating the circumstances, and\ndemanding of him the substance of _his undertaking_ in regard to the\narticles of capitulation with the Exiles.\n\nGeneral Jessup appears to have now felt a desire to do justice to that\nfriendless and persecuted people. Without waiting to answer the\nPresident, he at once wrote General Arbuckle, saying, \"The case of the\nSeminole negroes is now before the President. By my proclamation and the\nconvention made with them, when they separated from the Indians and\nsurrendered, _they are free_. The question is, whether they shall be\nseparated from the Seminoles and removed to another country; or be\nallowed to occupy, as they did in Florida, separate villages in the\nSeminole Country, west of Arkansas? The latter is what _I promised\nthem_. I hope, General, you will prevent any interference with them at\nFort Gibson, until the President determines whether they shall remain in\nthe Seminole Country, or be allowed to remove to some other.\"\n\nGeneral Arbuckle, faithful to the honor of his Government, continued to\nprotect the Exiles. He fed them from the public stores, not doubting\nthat the Executive would redeem the pledge of the nation given by\nGeneral Jessup, its authorized agent. But the President (Mr. Polk)\nhimself a slaveholder, with his prejudices and sympathies in favor of\nthe institution, did not understand the articles of capitulation\naccording to the construction put upon them by General Jessup; he\nappears, therefore, to have called on the General for a more explicit\nreport of facts. In reply to this call, he reported, saying, \"At a\nmeeting with the three Indian chiefs, and the negro chiefs, Auguste and\nCarollo, I stipulated to recommend to the President to grant the Indians\na small tract of country in the south-eastern part of the Peninsula; but\nit was distinctly understood that the negroes were to be separated from\nthem at once, and sent West, whether the Indians were permitted to\nremain in Florida or not. With the negroes, it was stipulated that they\nshould be sent West, as a part of the Seminole nation, and be _settled\nin a separate village, under the_ PROTECTION OF THE UNITED STATES.\" In\nanother letter, addressed to the Secretary of War, he says: \"A very\n_small portion_ of the Seminole negroes who went to the West, were\nbrought in and surrendered by their owners, under the capitulation of\nFort Dade. Over these negroes the Indians have all the rights of\nmasters; but all the other negroes, making more than _nine-tenths of the\nwhole number_, either separated from the Indians and surrendered to me,\nor were captured by the troops under my command. I, as commander of the\narmy, and in the capacity of representative of my country, _solemnly\npledged the national faith that they should not be separated, nor any of\nthem sold to white men or others_, but be allowed to settle and remain\nin separate villages, UNDER THE PROTECTION OF THE UNITED STATES.\"\n\nBut even with these explicit statements before him, the President\nappears to have been unable to form an opinion; and he referred the\nmatter to the Attorney General, Hon. John Y. Mason, of Virginia, who had\nbeen bred a slaveholder, and fully sympathized with the slave power. He,\nhaving examined the whole subject, delivered a very elaborate opinion,\nembracing seven documentary pages;[132] but concluding with the opinion,\nthat although the Exiles were entitled to their freedom, the Executive\n_could not interfere in any manner to protect them_, as stipulated by\nGeneral Jessup, but must leave them to retire to their Towns in the\nIndian Territory, where _they had a right to remain_.\n\n[Sidenote: 1848.]\n\nWe should be unfaithful to our pledged purpose, were we to omit certain\nimportant facts connected with this opinion of the Attorney General.\nNathan Clifford, of Maine, was appointed Attorney General of the United\nStates in 1846, soon after the report of General Arbuckle concerning the\nsituation of the Exiles reached Washington. The subject was before the\nPresident more than two years. This delay we cannot account for, unless\nit were to save Mr. Clifford (being a Northern man) from the\nresponsibility of deciding this question, involving important interests\nof the slaveholding portion of our Union. In 1848 Mr. Clifford was\nappointed Minister to Mexico, and Hon. Isaac Toucey, of Connecticut, was\nappointed Attorney General. But he, too, was from a free State, and it\nwould throw upon him great responsibility were he constrained to act\nupon this subject. Were he to decide in favor of the Exiles, it might\nruin his popularity at the South; and if against them, it would have an\nequally fatal effect at the North.\n\nUnder these circumstances, recourse was had to an expedient. Before Mr.\nToucey entered upon the discharge of his official duties, Mr. Mason,\nhimself a slaveholder, was appointed to discharge the duties _ad\ninterim_. He entered the office, wrote out the opinion referred to, and\nthen resigned the office and emoluments to Mr. Toucey; having decided no\nother question, nor discharged any other duty, than this exercise of\nofficial influence for the enslavement of the Exiles.\n\nThe President affirmed the principles decided by the Attorney General,\nand the Exiles were informed that they _had the right to remain in their\nvillages, free from all interference, or interruption from the Creeks_.\nThey had no other lands, no other country, no other homes. Many of their\nfamilies were connected by marriage with the Seminoles. They and the\nSeminole Indians had, through several generations, been acquainted with\neach other; they had stood beside each other on many a battle field.\nSeminoles and Exiles had fallen beside each other, and were buried in\nthe same grave; they had often sat in council together, and the Exiles\nwere unwilling to separate from their friends. Wild Cat and Abraham and\nLouis, and many leading men and warriors of the Exiles and Seminoles,\nhaving deliberated upon the subject, united in the opinion, that the\nExiles should return to their villages and reside upon the lands to\nwhich they were entitled.\n\nIn accordance with this decision, they returned to their new homes,\nresumed their habits of agriculture, and for a time all was quiet and\npeaceful; but their example was soon felt among the slaves of Arkansas,\nand of the surrounding Indian tribes. Nor is it to be supposed that the\nholders of slaves in any State of the Union, would be willing to admit\nthat so large a body of servants could, by any effort, separate from\ntheir masters, for a century and a half maintain their liberty, and\nafter so much effort to re\u00ebnslave them, be permitted to enjoy liberty in\npeace.\n\nHundreds of them had been seized in Florida and enslaved. The laws of\nslave States presumed every black person to be a slave; and it was\nevident, that if they could once be subjected to the will of some white\nman, the laws of Arkansas would enable him to hold them in bondage.[133]\n\nAn individual, a slave-dealer, appeared among the Creeks and offered to\npay them one hundred dollars for each Exile they would seize and deliver\nto him; he stipulating to take all risk of title.[134]\n\n[Sidenote: 1849.]\n\nThis temptation was too great for the integrity of the Creeks, who were\nsmarting under their disappointment, and the defeat of their long\ncherished schemes, of re\u00ebnslaving the Exiles. Some two hundred Creek\nwarriors collected together, armed themselves, and, making a sudden\ndescent upon the Exiles, seized such as they could lay their hands upon.\nThe men and most of the women and children fled; but those who had arms\ncollected, and presenting themselves between their brethren and the\nCreeks who were pursuing them, prepared to defend themselves and\nfriends.[135] The Creeks, unwilling to encounter the danger which\nthreatened them, ceased from further pursuit, but, turning back, dragged\ntheir frightened victims, who had been already captured, to the Creek\nvillages, and delivered them over to the slave-dealer, who paid them the\nstipulated price.\n\n[Sidenote: 1850.]\n\nThe Seminole Agent, learning the outrage, at once repaired to the\nnearest Judge in Arkansas, and obtained a writ of habeas corpus. The\nExiles were brought before him in obedience to the command of the writ,\nand a hearing was had. The Agent showed the action of General Jessup;\nthe sanction of the capitulation of March, 1837, by the Executive; the\nopinion of the Attorney General, and action of the President, deciding\nthe Exiles to be free, and in all respects entitled to their liberty.\nBut the Judge decided that the Creeks had obtained title by virtue of\ntheir contract with General Jessup; that neither General Jessup, nor the\nPresident, had power to emancipate the Exiles, even in time of war; that\nthe Attorney General had misunderstood the law; that the title of the\nCreek Indians was legal and perfect; and they, having sold them to the\nclaimant, his title must be good and perfect.[136]\n\nNo sooner was the decision announced, than the manacled victims were\nhurried from their friends and the scenes of such transcendent crimes\nand guilt. They were placed on board a steamboat, and carried to New\nOrleans. There they were sold to different purchasers, taken to\ndifferent estates, and mingling with the tide of human victims who are\nseptennially murdered upon the cotton and sugar plantations of that\nState, they now rest in their quiet graves, or perhaps have shared the\nmore unhappy fate of living and suffering tortures incomparably worse\nthan death.\n\nThe year 1850 was distinguished by a succession of triumphs on the part\nof the slave power. While the President and his Cabinet, and members of\nthe Senate and of the House of Representatives, were seeking the passage\nof the Fugitive Slave Law; while slaveholders and their northern allies\nappeared to be aroused in favor of oppression within the States of our\nUnion, their savage coadjutors of the Indian territory were equally\nactive.\n\nThere yet remained some hundreds of Exiles in that far-distant territory\nunsubdued, and enjoying liberty. They had witnessed the duplicity, the\ntreachery of our Government often repeated, toward themselves and their\nfriends--they had, most of them, been born in freedom--they had grown to\nmanhood, had become aged amidst persecutions, dangers and death--they\nhad experienced the constant and repeated violations of our national\nfaith: its perfidy was no longer disguised; if they remained, death or\nslavery would constitute their only alternative. One, and only one, mode\nof avoiding such a fate remained--that was, to leave the territory, the\njurisdiction of the United States, and flee beyond its power and\ninfluence.\n\nMexico was _free_! No slave clanked his chains under its government.\nCould they reach the Rio Grande? Could they place themselves safely on\nMexican soil, they might hope yet to be free. A Council was held. Some\nwere connected with Seminoles of influence. Those who were intimately\nconnected with Indian families of influence, and most of the\nhalf-breeds, feeling they could safely remain in the Indian territory,\npreferred to stay with their friends and companions. Of the precise\nnumber who thus continued in the Indian Country, we have no certain\ninformation;[137] but some three hundred are supposed to have determined\non going to Mexico, and perhaps from one to two hundred concluded to\nremain with their connexions in the Indian Country.\n\nAbraham had reached a mature age; had great experience, and retained\ninfluence with his people. Louis Pacheco, of whom we spoke in a former\nchapter, with his learning, his shrewdness and tact, was still with\nthem, and so were many able and experienced warriors. Wild Cat, the most\nactive and energetic chief of the Seminole Tribe, declared his\nunalterable purpose to accompany the Exiles; to assist them in their\njourney, and defend them, if assailed. Other Seminoles volunteered to go\nwith them. Their arrangements were speedily made. Such property as they\nhad was collected together, and packed for transportation. They owned a\nfew Western ponies. Their blankets, which constituted their beds, and\nsome few cooking utensils and agricultural implements, were placed upon\ntheir ponies, or carried by the females and children; while the\nwarriors, carrying only their weapons and ammunition, marched,\nunencumbered even by any unnecessary article of clothing, prepared for\nbattle at every step of their journey.\n\nAfter the sun had gone down (Sept. 10), their spies and patrols, who had\nbeen sent out for that purpose, returned, and reported that all was\nquiet; that no slave-hunters were to be seen. As the darkness of night\nwas closing around them, they commenced their journey westwardly. Amid\nthe gloom of the evening, silent and sad they took leave of their\nwestern homes, and fled from the jurisdiction of a people who had\ncenturies previously kidnapped their ancestors in their native homes,\nbrought them to this country, enslaved them, and during many generations\nhad persecuted them. Many of their friends and relatives had been\nmurdered for their love of liberty by our Government; others had been\ndoomed to suffer and languish in slavery--a fate far more dreaded than\ndeath. At the period of this exodus, their number was probably less than\nat the close of the Revolution.\n\nWhen the slaveholding Creeks learned that the Exiles had left, they\ncollected together and sent a war party in pursuit, for the purpose of\ncapturing as many as they could, in order to sell them to the\nslave-dealers from Louisiana and Arkansas, who were then present among\nthe Creeks, encouraging them to make another piratical descent upon the\nExiles for the capture of slaves.\n\nThis war party came up with the emigrants on the third day after leaving\ntheir homes. But Wild Cat and Abraham, and their experienced warriors,\nwere not to be surprised. They were prepared and ready for the conflict.\nWith them it was death or victory. They boldly faced their foes. Their\nwives and children were looking on with emotions not to be described.\nWith the coolness of desperation, they firmly resolved on dying, or on\ndriving back the slave-catching Creeks from the field of conflict. Their\nnerves were steady, and their aim fatal. Their enemies soon learned the\ndanger and folly of attempting to capture armed men who were fighting\nfor freedom. They fled, leaving their dead upon the field; which is\nalways regarded by savages as dishonorable defeat.[138]\n\nThe Exiles resumed their journey, still maintaining their warlike\narrangement. Directing their course south-westerly, they crossed the Rio\nGrande, and continuing nearly in the same direction, they proceeded into\nMexico, until they reached the vicinity of the ancient but now deserted\ntown of Santa Rosa.[139] In that beautiful climate, they found a rich,\nproductive soil. Here they halted, examined the country, and finally\ndetermined to locate their new homes in this most romantic portion of\nMexico. Here they erected their cabins, planted their gardens, commenced\nplantations, and resumed their former habits of agricultural life. There\nthey yet remain. Forcibly torn from their native land, oppressed,\nwronged, and degraded, they became voluntary Exiles from South Carolina\nand Georgia. More recently exiled from Florida and from the territory of\nthe United States--they are yet _free_! After the struggles and\npersecutions of a hundred and fifty years, they repose in comparative\nquiet under a government which repudiates slavery. To the pen of some\nfuture historian we consign their subsequent history.\n\nBefore taking leave of the reader, we would call his attention to a\nreview of the fate which attended different portions of the Exiles, and\nto a few further incidents, for some of which we have only newspaper\nauthority; but from all the circumstances we have no doubt they actually\ntranspired.\n\nOf the Exiles and their descendants, twelve were delivered up at the\ntreaty of Colerain in 1796, and consigned to slavery; two hundred and\nseventy were massacred at Blount's Fort in 1816; thirty were taken\nprisoners--these all died of wounds or were enslaved. At the different\nbattles in the first Seminole War in 1818, it is believed that at least\nfour hundred were slain, including those who fell at Blount's Fort.\n\nIn the Second Seminole War, probably seventy-five were slain in battle,\nand five hundred were enslaved; and at least seventy-five were seized by\nthe Creek Indians, in 1850, and enslaved. Probably a hundred and fifty\nconnected with the Seminoles now reside in the Western Country, and will\nsoon become amalgamated with the Indians; while three hundred have found\ntheir way to Mexico, and are free.[140] Making, in all, thirteen\nhundred and fifty souls; being some hundreds less than was reported by\nthe Officers of Government, in 1836. This discrepancy is accounted for\nby the fact, that the Exiles captured by individual enterprise, and by\nthe Georgia and Florida militia, were never officially reported to the\nWar Department, and we have no reliable data on which we can fix an\nestimate of the number thus piratically enslaved. There are also a few\nyet in Florida, not included in the above estimate.\n\n[Sidenote: 1852.]\n\nAs to their present situation, we can give the reader but little further\ninformation. In the summer of 1852, Wild Cat suddenly appeared among his\nfriends, the Seminoles, who yet remained in the Indian Country. His\nappearance excited surprise among the Creeks. They at that time\nmaintained a guard, composed of mounted men: these were at once put in\nmotion for the purpose of arresting this extraordinary chieftain. But\nwhile they were engaged in looking for him, he and a company of\nSeminoles, attended by a number of Exiles and black persons, previously\nheld in bondage by the Creeks, were rapidly wending their way towards\ntheir new settlement.[141]\n\nThis visit of Wild Cat to the Western Country occasioned much excitement\nin that region, as well as astonishment at Washington, and constituted\nthe occasion of a protracted correspondence between the War Department\nand our Military Officers and Indian Agents of that country. Wild Cat\nwas denounced as a \"pirate\"--\"_robber_\"--\"OUTLAW;\" and nearly all the\nopprobrious epithets known to our language were heaped upon him, for\nthus aiding his fellow men to regain those rights to life and liberty\nwith which the God of Nature had originally endowed them.\n\nDuring the year 1852, while our commissioners, appointed to establish\nthe boundary between the United States and Mexico, were engaged in the\ndischarge of their official duties, a small party of armed men was in\nattendance for their protection. Some eight of these were said to have\nbeen engaged in patroling the country, when they fell in with Wild Cat\nand a portion of this band of Exiles, who were at all times prepared for\nfriends or foes. The whites were made prisoners without bloodshed, and\ntaken to their village. A council was called. Abraham was yet living,\nand the white men declared that he was regarded as a ruling prince by\nhis people. They were evidently suspicious of the intentions of our men;\nbut upon inquiry and consideration, they became satisfied that no\nhostile intentions had brought our friends to that country; they were\naccordingly treated with becoming hospitality, and dismissed. These\nbrief statements appeared in some of the newspapers of that day, which\nconstitutes our only authority for stating them.\n\n[Sidenote: 1853.]\n\nComplaints were subsequently made through the Texan newspapers, that\nslaves escaped from that region of country and found an asylum in\nMexico, on the other side of the Rio Grande; and intimations were thrown\nout that a party of volunteers, without authority from the United\nStates, were about to visit the settlement, which thus encouraged slaves\nto seek their freedom. The suggestion was so much in character with the\nslaveholders of Texas, that it excited attention among those who were\naware of the settlement of Exiles in the region indicated. It was\nbelieved that those men who were about to visit Wild Cat and Abraham and\nLouis and their companions, for the purpose of seizing and enslaving\nmen, would find an entertainment for which they were not prepared.\n\nSome few months subsequently, a brief reference was made in the\nnewspapers of Texas to this expedition, giving their readers to\nunderstand that it had failed of accomplishing the object intended, and\nhad returned with its numbers _somewhat diminished_ by their conflict\nwith the blacks.\n\nAs was naturally expected, after the lapse of some six months, great\ncomplaint was heard through the public press of Indian depredations\nupon the frontier of Texas. Plantations were said to be destroyed;\nbuildings burned; people murdered, and slaves carried away. This foray\nwas said to have been made by Camanche Indians, led on by Wild Cat. He\nappears yet ready to make war upon all who fight for slavery; and many\nof the scenes which were enacted in Florida, will most likely be again\npresented on our south-western frontier, where the same causes exist\nwhich formerly existed in Florida, and the same effects will be likely\nto follow.\n\n\n\nTypographical errors corrected by the etext transcriber:\n\nGeneral Call at Talahasse=> General Call at Tallahasse {pg 125}\n\nvisited Fort Mellen=> visited Fort Mellon {pg 141}\n\nAny inteference with the negroes=> Any interference with the negroes {pg\n147}\n\nMembers of familes=> Members of families {pg 174}\n\nprefering to have them=> preferring to have them {pg 195}\n\narrrangements were privately making=> arrangements were privately making\n{pg 237}\n\nActing Commmissioner=> Acting Commissioner {pg 241}\n\nto those gentleman to enable them=> to those gentlemen to enable them\n{pg 241}\n\nhe was in Forida at the time=> he was in Florida at the time {pg 245}\n\nall prisoner captured in war=> all prisoners captured in war {pg 246}\n\nThis feelng was=> This feeling was {pg 252}\n\nbetrayed, treachererously=> betrayed, treacherously {pg 255}\n\nThis Message was=> This message was {pg 263}\n\nthat Territoy=> that Territory {pg 282}\n\noutnumbered the asssailants=> outnumbered the assailants {pg 289}\n\ndisppointment and chagrin=> disappointment and chagrin {pg 289}\n\ndied of sicknes=> died of sickness {pg 303}\n\nsense of gatitude=> sense of gratitude {pg 306}\n\nwere sacrified=> were sacrificed {pg 315}\n\nBlount's Fourt=> Blount's Fort {pg 318}\n\n       *       *       *       *       *\n\n\nFOOTNOTES:\n\n[1] Vide Bancroft's and Hildreth's Histories of the United States.\n\n[2] Vide both Histories above cited.\n\n[3] Vide Schoolcraft's History of Indian Tribes.\n\n[4] Vide American Archives, Vol. I. Fifth Series: 1852.\n\n[5] This was the residence of George Galphin, an Indian trader, who, in\n1773, aided in obtaining a treaty by which the Creek Indians ceded a\nlarge tract of land to the British Government. Georgia succeeded the\nBritish Government in its title to these lands, by the treaty of peace\nin 1783. Some fifty years afterwards, the descendants of Galphin\npetitioned the State of Georgia for compensation, on account of the\nservices rendered by Galphin in obtaining the treaty of 1773. But the\nLegislature repudiated the claim. The heirs, or rather descendants of\nGalphin, then applied to Congress, who never had either legal or\nbeneficial interest, in the lands obtained by the treaty. The\nRepresentatives from Georgia and from the South generally supported the\nclaim. Northern men yielded their objections to this absurd demand, and\nin 1848 a bill passed both Houses of Congress by which the descendants\nof Galphin, and their attorneys and agents, obtained from our National\nTreasury $243,871 86, and the term \"Galphin\" has since become synonymous\nwith \"peculation\" upon the public Treasury.\n\n[6] Vide Report of Hugh Knox, Secretary of War, to the President, dated\nJuly 6, 1789. American State Papers. Vol. V. page 15, where the Treaty\nis recited in full.\n\n[7] Vide papers accompanying the Report of the Secretary of War, above\nreferred to, marked A, and numbered 1, 2 and 3.\n\n[8] Vide letter of James White to Major General Knox, of the 24th May,\n1787. American State Papers, Vol II, Indian Affairs.\n\n[9] American State Papers, Vol. V, page 25.\n\n[10] Vide Documents accompanying the Treaty of New York; Am. State\nPapers, Vol. I, Indian Affairs.\n\n[11] The reader need not be informed, that these demands of indemnity\nfor slaves were promptly rejected by the English government; and Jay's\nTreaty of 1794, surrendered them forever.\n\n[12] Hildreth, in his History of the United States, speaks of in that\nlight.\n\n[13] Vide Annals of Congress, Vol. I, pages 1068-70-74.\n\n[14] Vide Correspondence on this subject between Seagrove and the War\nDepartment. American State Papers, Vol. V, pages 304-5, 320, 336, 387,\nand 392.\n\n[15] American State Papers, \"Indian Affairs.\" Vol. II, p. 306.\n\n[16] Vide talk of principal Chief at Treaty of Colerain.\n\n[17] Vide Annals of Congress of that date.\n\n[18] Vide papers accompanying the Treaty of Colerain. American State\nPapers, Vol. I, \"Indian Affairs.\"\n\n[19] Vide the papers accompanying this Treaty when submitted to the\nSenate. They are collected in the second volume of American State\nPapers, entitled \"Indian Affairs.\" They will afford much interesting\nmatter as to the doctrines of \"State Rights\" and Nullification, which it\nis unnecessary to embrace in this work.\n\n[20] Vide Annals of IVth Congress, 2d Session\n\n[21] The claims of these ancient Spanish inhabitants for indemnity\nagainst these robberies, have been pressed upon the consideration of\nCongress for the last twenty-five years, and were recently pending\nbefore the Court of Claims. When the bill for their relief was under\ndiscussion before the House of Representatives, In 1843, Hon. John\nQuincy Adams presented a list of some ninety slaves, for the loss of\nwhom the owners claimed compensation from the United States. But the\ndiscussions which arose on private bills were not at that time reported;\nand neither this exhibit, nor the speech of Mr. Adams, are to be found\nin the Congressional Debates of that day.\n\n[22] Many slaves actually fled from their masters and found an asylum on\nboard British vessels. Some sixty, belonging to a planter named Forbes,\nwho resided in Georgia, left his plantation and took shelter on board\nthe ship commanded by Lord Cochrane. They were transported to Jamaica,\nwhere they settled and lived as other free people. After the restoration\nof peace, Forbes sued his Lordship, before the British courts, for\ndamages sustained by the loss of these slaves. The case elicited much\nlearning in regard to the law of Slavery and, next to that of Sommerset,\nmay be regarded as the most important on that subject ever litigated\nbefore an English court.\n\n[23] \"Monette,\" In his \"History of the Valley of the Mississippi,\" says\nWoodbine erected this fort in the summer of 1816; and such were the\nrepresentations made before the Committee appointed in 1819, to\ninvestigate the conduct of General Jackson, in taking possession of\nFlorida. But the reader will notice the Letter of General Gaines,\nhereafter quoted, which bears date on the 14th May, 1815, and\n_officially_ informed the Secretary of War that \"_negroes and outlaws\nhave taken possession of a_ FORT ON THE APPALACHICOLA RIVER.\" This was\nmore than a year before the time of erecting the fort, according to\n\"Monette.\"\n\nThe parapet of the fort was said to be fifteen feet high and eighteen\nthick, situated upon a gentle cliff, with a fine stream emptying into\nthe river near its base, and a swamp in the rear, which protected it\nfrom the approach of artillery by land. On its walls were mounted one\nthirty-two pounder, three twenty-four pounders, two nine pounders, two\nsix pounders, and one brass five and a half-inch howitzer. Vide Official\nReport of Sailing-Master Loomis.\n\n[24] This is the official account of Sailing-Master Loomis, who\ncommanded the naval expedition subsequently sent to reduce this\nfortress.\n\n\"Monette,\" in his History of the Valley of the Mississippi, says, \"_Near\nthe Fort the fields were fine_, and extended along the river nearly\n_fifty miles_.\"\n\n[25] The reader will at once see, that these people were as much under\nthe protection of Spain, as the fugitive slaves now in Canada are under\nthe protection of British laws. They were as clearly Spanish subjects as\nthe latter are British subjects. By the law of nations, Spain had the\nsame right to permit her black subjects to occupy \"Blount's Fort,\" that\nthe Queen of England has to permit Fort Malden to be occupied by her\nblack subjects. The only distinction between the two cases is, Spain was\nweak and unable to maintain her national honor, and national rights;\nwhile England has the power to do both.\n\n[26] Vide the voluminous Correspondence on this subject contained in Ex.\nDoc. 119, 2d Session, XVth Congress.\n\n[27] Perhaps no portion of our national history exhibits such disregard\nof International law, as this unprovoked invasion of Florida. For thirty\nyears, the slaves of our Southern States have been in the habit of\nfleeing to the British Provinces. Here they are admitted to all the\nrights of citizenship, in the same manner as they were in Florida. They\nvote and hold office under British laws; and when our Government\ndemanded that the English Ministry should disregard the rights of these\npeople and return them to slavery, the British Minister contemptuously\nrefused even to hold correspondence with our Secretary of State on a\nsubject so abhorrent to every principle of national law and\nself-respect. Our Government coolly submitted to the scornful arrogance\nof England; but did not hesitate to invade Florida with an armed force,\nand to seize the faithful subjects of Spain, and enslave them.\n\n[28] Hon. Duncan L. Clinch. He left the service in 1841, and was\nsubsequently a Member of Congress for several years, and died in 1852.\n\n[29] War was thus waged against Spain, by Executive authority, without\nconsulting Congress; and no member of that body uttered a protest, or\ndenunciation of the act.\n\n[30] In Ex. Doc. No. 119, 2d Session, XVth Congress, may be found the\nofficial correspondence between the War Department and General Jackson;\nalso that between General Jackson and General Gaines, together with the\norders of each, as well as the correspondence between the Secretary of\nthe Navy and Commodore Patterson; and the order of the latter officer to\nSailing-Master Loomis; and the final report of Sailing-Master Loomis and\nGeneral Clinch. In none of these papers is there any act of hostility\nmentioned or referred to as having been committed by the Exiles, or the\nSeminole Indians, prior to their reaching the vicinity of the Fort.\n\n[31] Hildreth states that _three_ gun-boats were detailed on that\noccasion; but the report of Sailing-Master Loomis speaks only of _two_.\n\n[32] Hildreth states the number to have been about three hundred, partly\nIndians and partly negroes.\n\n[33] Monette says this expedition was undertaken by Col. Clinch upon his\nown responsibility, to enable some boats laden with provisions to pass\nup the river. A strange misapprehension of facts, as shown by official\ndocuments.\n\n[34] At this conference, Sailing-Master Loomis informed Colonel Clinch\nthat, on the day previous, while a party of his men were on shore, they\nwere fired on by Indians and one man killed. This was the first and only\nact of hostility against our troops. It was committed by _Indians_, not\nby _Exiles_; but it was subsequently seized upon and published as a\njustification for carrying out General Jackson's order, bearing date\nmore than two months prior to the occurrence, directing General Gaines\nto destroy the fort and return the negroes to slavery.\n\n[35] Monette says, \"The scene in the fort was horrible beyond\ndescription. _Nearly the whole of the inmates were involved in\nindiscriminate destruction; not one-sixth of the whole escaped. The\ncries of the wounded, the groans of the dying, with the shouts and yells\nof the Indians, rendered the scene horrible beyond description._\"\n\n[36] Vide Official Report at Sailing-Master Loomis, Ex. Doc. 119: 2d\nSess. XVth Cong.\n\n[37] Some years since, the author wrote a short sketch of the general\nMassacre, but omitted this point as too revolting to the feelings of\nhumanity, and too disgraceful to the American arms, to be laid before\nthe popular mind in such an article; and he would most gladly have\nomitted it in this work, could he have done so consistently with his\nduty to the public.\n\n[38] Monette says that three thousand stands of arms and six hundred\nbarrels of powder were destroyed by the explosion. This is probably\nsomewhat of an exaggeration. We have no fact to warrant the assertion,\nthat there was any addition made to the stores left by Col. Nichols,\nwhen he delivered the fort to the Exiles. The same author states, that\none magazine, containing one hundred and sixty barrels of powder, was\nleft unharmed by the explosion; but no mention of such fact is found in\nthe Official Report, by Sailing-Master Loomis.\n\n[39] Vide Documents before the Committee of Congress appointed to\ninvestigate the cause of General Jackson's invasion of Florida: XVth\nCongress, 2d Session.\n\n[40] This bill was reported by Mr. Ingham of Connecticut, Chairman of\nthe Committee on Naval Affairs.\n\n[41] Vide Statutes enacted at 2d Session, XXVIth Congress. The author\nwas then a member of the House of Representatives, but had not learned\nto watch the movements of slaveholders and \"their allies,\" so closely as\nsubsequent experience taught him would be useful.\n\n[42] Vide Speeches of Hon. George Poindexter and others on the Seminole\nWar, in 1819.\n\n[43] Hon. William Jay, of New York, published his Views of the action of\nthe Federal Government in 1887.\n\n[44] Monette says Arbuthnot sent word to the Negroes and Indians,\nnotifying them of the approach of General Jackson; but the official\nreport of that Officer shows that his advance guard was daily engaged in\nskirmishing with the Indians.\n\n[45] Vide General Jackson's Official Report of this battle, Ex. Doc.\n175, 2d Session XVth Congress.\n\n[46] Williams, in his History of Florida, states that three hundred and\nforty Negroes again rallied after the first retreat, and fought their\npursuers, until _eighty_ of their number, were killed on the field.\n\"Monetta\" also states the same fact; but General Jackson, in all his\nReports, evidently avoided, as far as possible, any notice of the\nExiles, as a people. Indeed such was the policy of the Administration,\nand of its officers, and of all slaveholders. They then supposed, as\nthey now do, that slavery must depend upon the supposed ignorance and\nstupidity of the colored people; and scarcely an instance can be found,\nwhere a slaveholder admits the slave to possess human intelligence or\nhuman feeling; indeed, to teach a slave to read the Scriptures, is\nregarded as an offense, in nearly every slave State, and punishable by\nfine and imprisonment.\n\n[47] Various names have been given this Fort. The author, having\nheretofore adopted that of \"Blount's Fort,\" prefers to continue that\nname. It was equally known, however, as the \"Negro Fort,\" and as \"Fort\nNichols.\"\n\n[48] The people of the free States should understand, that almost every\nquestion touching slavery which has arisen between our Government and\nthat of England, the latter has yielded, since the formation of Jay's\nTreaty in 1795.\n\nThe payment for slaves who were shipwrecked on board the Comet, the\nEncomium, and the Enterprise, and found freedom by being landed on\nBritish soil, constitute rare instances in which slaveholdlng arrogance\nhas proved successful in the arts of diplomacy. The case of the Creole\nconstitutes another admirable illustration of successful effrontery. In\nthis case, the slaves took possession of the ship, guided it to Nassau,\na British Island, went on shore and became free. The officers of the\nslave ship demanded that the British authorities should seize the\nnegroes, and return them to the ship. They refused. Daniel Webster,\nSecretary of State, became the voluntary Agent, Attorney and Solicitor,\nfor the slave dealers, who should have been hanged, instead of receiving\nthe encouragement of our Government. But the subject was submitted to\nthe umpirage of a man, said to have once lived in Boston, who,\nprincipally upon the authority of Mr. Webster, decided that the people\nof the British government should pay the slave dealers for these parents\nand children; and after fifteen years of continued effort, the money was\nobtained.\n\n[49] Vide Letter from the Secretary of War to Messrs. Plckens and\nFlournoy, August 8, 1820. Am. State Papers, Vol. VI, p. 249.\n\n[50] Vide Letter of the Secretary of War to Gen. Flournoy, of the 19th\nof October, 1820. Ibid, 250.\n\n[51] Vide Papers transmitted to Congress, in connection with the Treaty\nof \"Indian Spring.\" Am. State Papers, \"Indian Affairs,\" Vol. I, No. 174.\n\n[52] Ibid.\n\n[53] Ibid. Letter of Instructions contained in the papers referred to on\npreceding page.\n\n[54] Vide Report of Commissioner on this subject; also, the Report of\nWm. Wirt, Attorney General of the United States, to whom the President\nreferred the subject. \"Opinions of the Attorney General,\" 1822. Mr. Wirt\nstates the price paid for those slaves was from two to three times their\nreal value.\n\n[55] Vide Reports of Committee XVIIth Congress, 2d Session, No. 125.\n\n[56] Vide Am. State Papers, Vol. VI, pages 411, 412. It will be observed\nthat General Jackson discarded the term \"_maroon_,\" used by Penieres, as\nthat in Jamaica, signifies \"_free negroes_ of the mountains,\" who once\nfled from service, but have maintained their liberty so long that they\ncannot be identified, and are therefore admitted to be free.\n\n[57] It is an interesting fact, that the doctrine recently avowed by the\nSupreme Court of the United States, that \"_black men have no rights\nwhich white men are bound to respect_,\" was recognized and practiced\nupon in Florida, more than thirty years since, by the officers of\nGovernment.\n\n[58] Vide Executive Documents, No. 271, 2d Session XXVth Congress.\n\n[59] Captain Sprague, of the United States Army, so states, in his\nHistory of the War.\n\n[60] Vide Letter of the Agent, dated sixth of March, 1827.\n\n[61] Vide Minutes of Talk held at Seminole Agency, with Treskal, Mathla,\nand other Chiefs. Ex. Doc. 271, 1st Sess. XXIVth Congress.\n\n[62] Vide Letter of Col. Brooke to Col. Humphreys, 6 May, 1828,\ncontained in the above cited Document.\n\n[63] Vide Letter of Judge Smith, May 10, 1828, contained in same\nDocument.\n\n[64] Vide Statement of John Hick, 15 August, 1828. Ex. Doc. 271, before\nquoted.\n\n[65] Vide Letter of Gad Humphreys, Oct. 20, 1828. It probably was the\nfirst time the proposition was submitted to the Seminoles.\n\n[66] Even Mr. Adams, when President, continued in office those men who\nhad been placed there by his predecessors.\n\n[67] Vide Sprague's History of the Florida War.\n\n[68] Vide Documents relating to the Florida War, 1st Session, XXIVth\nCongress.\n\n[69] Vide Sprague's History of the Florida War.\n\n[70] Vide Ex. Doc. 271, XXIVth Congress, 1st Session, pages 43 and 44.\n\n[71] The Author, while serving in Congress in 1847-8 was, by the\nSpeaker, placed upon the committee of Indian Affairs. While serving on\nthat committee, the Creek Indians applied for the return of this money\nwhich had belonged to them, but had been wrongfully paid over by\nCongress to the slaveholders of Georgia, some fourteen years previously.\nThe case was referred to the Author, as sub-committee, who reported that\nthe money, in justice, in equity, and in law, belonged to the Indians;\nthat its payment to the slaveholders was unjust and wrong, and that it\nought to be paid to the Indians. The report was confirmed, and the money\npaid to the Indians. The justice of the cause was so obvious that it met\nwith no opposition, and by the vote of both Houses it now stands\nacknowledged and declared that this sum of $141,000 was taken from the\npockets of the laboring men of our Nation, and paid to those\nslaveholders for _imaginary slave children who were never born_; nor\nhave we been able to learn that an objection was raised, or protest\nuttered, by any Northern member of Congress.\n\n[72] Vide Opinion of Judge Cameron, pages 35 and 36 of Doc. 271, last\nquoted.\n\n[73] NOTE.--When the author, in 1841, denounced this transaction, in the\nHouse of Representatives, and spoke of these slave-catchers as\n_Pirates_, Hon. Mark A. Cooper, of Georgia, became indignant at the\ndenunciation;--said he was well acquainted with the men who seized and\nenslaved these people; that they were _honorable men_, and that he took\nthem by the hand almost daily while at home.\n\n[74] The statement of these facts may be found in Ex. Document, 1st\nSess. XXIVth Congress.\n\n[75] Vide Ex. Doc., 1st Sess. XXIVth Congress, page 14.\n\n[76] Vide his letter at length in the Document last quoted.\n\n[77] Vide Sprague's Florida War.\n\n[78] Lieutenant Reynolds, while conducting the first party of emigrants\nWest, in 1841, found among the Exiles persons who possessed so much\nSpanish blood, that he offered to leave them at New Orleans, and some of\nthem accepted the offer. He left them in that city, and they probably\nnow pass for Spaniards.\n\n[79] Vide account of this transaction by H. M. Cohen, given in the\nQuarterly Anti-Slavery Magazine, vol. II, page 419. Mr. Thompson, the\nAgent, in his letter to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, bearing date\nsoon after, says: \"Powell used such language, that I was constrained to\norder him into irons.\" Mr. Sprague, in his history of the Florida War,\nreiterates the statement of Mr. Thompson. But neither Sprague, nor\nThompson, nor any other person who was present, it is believed, has ever\ndenied the relation which Mr. Cohen has given.\n\n[80] Sprague's History of the Florida War.\n\n[81] Vide Testimony accompanying Pacheco's Petition to Congress for\nindemnity.\n\n[82] Vide Statement of Tustenuggee, a Seminole Chief, who was present,\nand whose account of this massacre is given in Sprague's History of the\nFlorida War.\n\n[83] These Speeches may be found in the Congressional Globe, 2d Sess.\nXXXth Congress.\n\n[84] Sprague's History of the War.\n\n[85] Osceola, though a fierce and gallant warrior, entertained high\nnotions of honor; and, although a savage, he was punctilious on those\npoints, and finally fell a victim to the treachery of those calling\nthemselves _civilized_ men.\n\n[86] Francis P. Blair, who is yet living, (1868.)\n\n[87] Vide Ex. Doc., 2d Sess. XXVth Congress, No. 78, pages 558-9.\n\n[88] His vindication before the court was triumphant, and he was\nhonorably acquitted from all censure.\n\n[89] Sprague, in his History of the Florida War, says there were _two\nhundred negro warriors_ in this battle; that their women and children\nwere a short distance in their rear, mounted on their ponies, and ready\nto flee, if their husbands, brothers and fathers had been compelled to\nretreat.\n\n[90] General Jessup was undoubtedly somewhat ignorant as to the history\nof the Exiles. Speaking of Abraham, that officer says: \"He is married to\nthe wife of the former chief of the Nation; is a good soldier, and an\n_intrepid leader_. He _is the negro chief_, and the most cunning and\nintelligent negro we have here; _he claims to be free_.\"\n\n[91] General Jessup _subsequently_ reported his determination to\n_separate the negroes, or Exiles, from the Indians_. He therefore\nstipulated for _their safety_, and, at the same time, agreed that the\n_slaves_ of the Indians should accompany their owners, and not be\nseparated from them. These facts will appear as we proceed in our\nhistory.\n\n[92] Vide these articles at length, Ex. Doc. 225, 3d Sess. XXVth\nCongress.\n\n[93] General Jessup at all times practiced upon this principle. When\n\"Louis,\" the guide who planned the defeat and massacre of Major Dade,\nbecame a prisoner and Wild Cat claimed to have captured him, General\nJessup disregarded the claim of Pacheco, the owner, and sent the negro\nWest; and, in other instances, he kept those known to have been slaves\nas guides, and, at a proper time, sent them to the Western Country, as\nfreemen. He even bribed negroes to act as guides to his army by\npromising them liberty, and carried out such arrangement.\n\n[94] Vide this Memorial at length, Ex. Doc. 225, 3d Sess. XXVth\nCongress.\n\n[95] All these communications may be found at length in the Fifth Vol.\nEx. Doc., 3d Session XXVth Congress. But these arrangements made with\nthe chiefs are supposed to have rested entirely in parole. No copy of\nany such agreement has been found by the Author, who is fully of opinion\nthat it does not exist in any authentic form.\n\n[96] Vide Ex. Doc. 225, 3d Sess. XXVth Congress.\n\n[97] These Letters may be found in Ex. Doc. 225, 3d Sess. XXVth\nCongress.\n\n[98] This Correspondence may be found in the 8th vol. Ex. Doc., 2d Sess.\nXXVth Cong., No. 285.\n\n[99] Of this declaration he had subsequent cause to repent, and most\neloquently he expressed his mortification, in a letter to the Secretary\nof War. Vide his Letter or Jan. 2, 1839, in the Document last quoted.\n\n[100] These facts may all be found officially recorded in Ex. Doc. 78,\n2d Sess. XXVth Congress, and Ex. Doc. 225, 3d Sess. XXVth Congress.\n\n[101] The Interrogatories were embraced in a paper, of which the\nfollowing is a copy:\n\n     \"MEMORANDA OF SPECIFIC QUESTIONS TO BE ADDRESSED TO OSCEOLA.\n\n     \"Ascertain the object of the Indians in coming in at this time.\n     Also their expectations. _Are they prepared to deliver up the\n     negroes taken from the citizens, at once?_ Why have they not\n     surrendered them already, as promised by Co-Hadjo at Fort King?\n     Have the chiefs of the nation held a Council in relation to the\n     talk at Fort King? What chiefs attended that Council, and what was\n     their determination? Have the chiefs sent a messenger with the\n     decision of the Council? Have the principal chiefs Micanopy,\n     Jumper, Cloud and Alligator sent a messenger? and if so, what is\n     their message? Why have not those chiefs come themselves?\n\n\"(Signed) THOS. S. JESSUP, _Major General Commanding_.\n\n\"SAN AUGUSTINE, _August 21st, 1837_.\"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n[102] From the first and second interrogatories, the reader will see\nthat General Jessup was fully conscious, that the attempt to deliver\nover those negroes to slavery who were claimed by the citizens of\nFlorida, had been the sole cause for renewing the war. He dictated the\nfirst and most important interrogatory propounded to Osceola--\"_Are you\nprepared at once to deliver up the negroes taken from the citizens?_\"\n\nBut the second shows an important fact which had, so for as we have\ninformation, been kept from the public: The words, \"Why have they not\nalready surrendered them, as promised by _Co-Hadjo at Fort King_?\" This\nshows that the arrangement reported by him to have been made with the\nchiefs, was made with Co-Hadjo only. It will be recollected, that after\nthe articles of capitulation, in March, when the people of Florida began\nto demand their negroes, General Jessup said he would endeavor to make\nan arrangement with the chiefs for delivering up those negroes who had\nbeen _captured during the war_. After the protest of the people of\nFlorida had been addressed to the Secretary of War, against the peace,\nunless they were to get their negroes, and the public meeting held at\nSan Augustine, which expressed the same views, he reported that _he had\nmade such arrangement with the chiefs_; but with how many, or with which\nparticular _chiefs_, was unknown until this interrogatory disclosed the\nfact, that it was made with one obscure chief only. And whether he were\nintoxicated, or sober, at the time he attempted to act without any\nauthority, to consign hundreds of his fellow-beings to slavery, without\ntheir knowledge or consent, does not appear. But every reader at once\npropounds the question, _What were the terms of that arrangement?_ If it\nexisted, it should have been reported verbatim to the War Department,\nand made known to the public.\n\n[103] Capt. Sprague, of the Regular service.\n\n[104] This statement is taken entirely from the Letters of John Ross,\nchief of the Cherokees, to the Secretary of War. In these letters, he\nrelates the whole transaction with great force and apparent candor, and,\nin the name of the Cherokee Nation, boldly arraigns the War Department\nfor this treachery, practiced by a Christian nation towards a people\ncalled heathens. These letters may be found at length in Ex. Doc. 327,\n2d Sess. XXVth Cong., vol. 8.\n\n[105] Vide letter of General Taylor to Commissioner of Indian Affairs,\nEx. Doc. 225, 3d Sess. XXVth Congress.\n\n[106] Mr. Sprague says there were three hundred Indian and negro\nwarriors engaged in this battle, and that their loss was ten Indians and\none negro killed, and eleven wounded; showing a great disparity between\ntheir loss and General Taylor's.\n\n[107] In 1848, General Taylor was the Whig candidate for President of\nthe United States; and so little was the history of this war known to\nour statesmen or politicians, that it is believed no newspaper, or stump\norator, or advocate of his election, ever related or referred to this\nmost gallant act of his life. He had himself, during the war, exhibited\nno particular sympathy in the work of catching and enslaving negroes; on\nthe contrary, he had expressed his detestation of that policy. Of course\nthe slave power, not willing to make open war upon him, had permitted\nhis name to rest without connecting it with the performance of any\nbrilliant or humane acts. The casuist may say, that he ought not to have\nserved in such a war, and that no gallantry displayed in such a cause\nought to reflect credit upon any man. But General Taylor, like other\nmen, should be judged by the times, the customs, the morality of the age\nin which he lived.\n\n[108] Vide Ex. Doc., 2d Sess. XXVth Congress, No. 225.\n\n[109] Vide General Jessup's letter to General Arbuckle, 8 Vol. Ex. Doc.,\n2d Sess. XXVth Congress.\n\n[110] Vide General Jessup's letter to Commissioner of Indian Affairs,\nEx. Doc. 225, above referred to.\n\n[111] This is the view which General Jessup gives of the transaction,\nEx. Doc., 8th Vol., 3d Sess. XXVth Congress\n\n[112] Vide Report of General Jessup to the Secretary of War, Ex. Doc.,\n3d Sess. XXVth Congress.\n\n[113] These facts may all be found in the 4th, 5th, 7th, 8th, 11th &\n12th vols. of Ex. Doc., 2d Sess. XXVth Congress; the letters of Ross and\ncorrespondence of General Jessup, and official reports, occupying\nseveral hundred pages.\n\n[114] Horace Everett, who was many years a Representative in Congress,\nan ardent Whig, and constant opponent of Jackson and Van Buren. After\nthe report of the Secretary of War in answer to his resolution had been\nreceived, Mr. Everett made a speech on the subject, exposing the manner\nin which the war had been conducted, and intimated that it was more\nimmediately connected with the support of slavery than it ought to be.\nBut while he was careful to say nothing exceptionable to the slave\ninterest, he certainly entitled himself to the honor of being the first\nmember who assailed the war, and the first to hold the Administration\nresponsible for the manner in which it was prosecuted. The speech may be\nfound at length in the Appendix to the Congressional Globe of that\nsession.\n\n[115] Vide Letter of Commissioner of Indian Affairs to Secretary of War,\n9th May, 1838. Ex. Doc. 225, 2d Sess. XXVth Congress.\n\n[116] Major Zantzinger, like many other officers, appears to have\nthought that every negro must have a master, and he called these Exiles\nthe property of the Seminoles, although the Agent for that Tribe had\nreported a few years previously, that the number of slaves owned by them\ndid not exceed _forty_.\n\n[117] Vide Watson's Petition and proofs, in support of his claim,\npresented to Congress--1st Sess. XXVIth Cong.--now on file in the office\nof the Clerk of the House of Representatives.\n\n[118] Vide Watson's Statement of facts in this case, on file with the\nabove papers.\n\n[119] Several years after this transaction, the Author happened to meet\nthis war-worn veteran, and as the old hero recounted this incident of\nhis life with warm and glowing eloquence, his eye kindled, his\ncountenance lighted up with pleasure, and he spoke of it with more\napparent satisfaction than he ever referred to his most brilliant\nmilitary achievement.\n\n[120] Vide Letter of Major Isaac Clark to Commissioner of Indian\nAffairs, Sept. 18, 1838. Ex. Doc. 225, 3d Sess. XXVth Congress.\n\n[121] Hon. Elisha Whittlesey, the predecessor of Mr. Giddings, long and\nably presided over the committee on Claims. He was a man of untiring\nindustry; and when he found it necessary to report on a slave case, in\n1835, he wrote the Register of the Treasury, inquiring if slaves had\never been paid for by the United States as property. The reply stated\nthey had not; and the committee reported adversely to the case, although\nit was one of the strongest character possible. Francis Larche, living\nnear New Orleans, owned a horse, cart and slave. The day before the\nbattle below that city, in 1814, they were impressed into the service;\nand while thus held by the United States authorities, on the day of the\nbattle, the horse and slave were killed by cannon shot, and Larche\npetitioned Congress for compensation for the loss of his slave. Mr.\nWhittlesey drew up an able report refusing such compensation.\n\nAt the commencement of the Twenty-seventh Congress, Mr. Giddings was\nplaced at the head of that committee; but, being obnoxious to the\nadvocates of slavery, he was removed from that position at the\ncommencement of the Twenty-eighth Congress; yet there seemed to be an\nImpression that his successor should be taken from Ohio, and Hon. Joseph\nVance was made Chairman. He was a man at that time somewhat advanced in\nlife, and not accustomed to legal investigations. Cases which required\nresearch, were usually consigned to some subordinate member of the\ncommittee. It was while he was acting as Chairman, that this case of\nWatson was first reported upon favorably by the committee on Claims,\nalthough it had never before been regarded by that committee as entitled\nto any encouragement.\n\n[122] There is little doubt that the real number of Exiles was unknown\nto General Jackson, or to General Cass, at the commencement of the war.\nThey appear to have regarded their number far less than it was\nestimated, during the first Seminole War of 1818.\n\n[123] Captain Sprague's History of the Florida War so represents the\nsubject.\n\n[124] Not having the Statutes of Florida before us, we make this\nstatement on the authority of Captain Sprague.\n\n[125] We have no copy of Mr. Wise's letter, and have never seen the\nletter itself; but we state the fact that he wrote the Secretary of War\nby authority of that officer, who says in the letter quoted, \"I have the\nhonor to acknowledge the receipt of _your letter of the 27th inst._,\ninquiring,\" _etc._\n\n[126] The Author was at that time a member of the House of\nRepresentatives. He had then no conception of the real objects of this\nwar: indeed, it had long been the practice for members to say nothing on\nthe subject of slavery; and it was equally the practice for newspapers\nto print nothing on that delicate subject, as it was called. Of course\nthe people knew very little concerning it.\n\n[127] Captain Sprague, in his history of the Florida War, says, \"The\ntruth, when made known to the Indians who remained in Florida,\nconstituted the strongest argument why they should not emigrate. Had\nthey (says that author) been kept in ignorance, better results might\nhave been anticipated; but what they gathered from the honest\nconfessions and silence of their brothers tended to make them venerate\nwith more fidelity and increased love the soil which they had defended\nwith heroic fortitude for five consecutive years.\"\n\n[128] Captain Sprague, in his history, declares, that it was proven in\ntwo instances that white men, disguised as Indians, actually committed\ndepredations and murdered white people.\n\n[129] This first speech had been carefully prepared by the Author of\nthis work, and contained little more than a collation of facts from\npublic documents. It was made with the design of testing the application\nof the gag rules more than for the purpose of exposing the character of\nthe war. Hon. John Q. Adams, Wm. Slade, and the Author, often consulted\nwith each other as to the best means for inducing the House to repeal\nthose obnoxious rules. The Author suggested the plan of alluding to\nslavery while publicly discoursing matters with which it was\nincidentally connected. Mr. Adams and Mr. Slade insisted that the Author\nshould try his plan. Aware that appropriations for this war would be\ncalled for, he prepared this speech, showing the causes of the war; and\nwhen the bill above referred to came before the House, he proceeded to\ntest his plan. He was frequently called to order, and great excitement\nwas produced; but he succeeded in delivering the speech. When he was\nthrough, a southern member replied, declaring that the gag-rules may as\nwell be repealed as kept in force, if they permitted such discussions.\nThe position was evidently correct, and those disgraceful rules were\nrepealed by the next Congress.\n\n[130] This statement is founded upon the authority of Captain Sprague.\nIt is however certain, that many of the claimants actually received\ncompensation from the public treasury for the loss of their slaves. The\npower to pay for them was assumed by Executive officers, under the\nappropriation act of March, 1841, without reference to Congress.\n\n[131] Captain Sprague, in his history, enters into a somewhat lengthened\napology for this practice of General Worth, by saying, the negroes were\nthe most active and vindictive of the hostile forces; that, from the\npeculiar situation of the country, ten negroes could keep it in a state\nof constant alarm; that many of them had intermarried with the Seminoles\nand become identified with them, had acquired their habits, and would\nhave been useless to their owners had they been delivered to them; that\nthe negro would have remained in service but a few days, when he would\nhave again taken to the swamps and hommocks, when he could elude\npursuit, and would have been more vindictive than before.\n\n[132] Vide opinions of the Attorney Generals, from 1838 to 1851, page\n1944, Senate Doc. 55. It is a singular fact that, in the whole of this\nelaborate opinion, no allusion is made to the real condition of the\nExiles; nor would any person suspect, from reading it, that the Attorney\nGeneral had any knowledge of the claim which the Creeks preferred.\nAlthough he quotes the clause in the articles of capitulation, which\nexpressly and emphatically declares that \"Major General Jessup, in\nbehalf of the United States, agrees that the Seminoles _and their\nallies, who come in and emigrate, shall be protected in their lives and\nproperty_;\" yet he appears never to have conceived the idea that such a\nstipulation could impose any duties upon our Government in favor of\nnegroes; nor does he attempt to define the meaning of this most explicit\ncovenant.\n\n[133] Under this law, which is general in all slave States, free colored\ncitizens of nearly every free State of the Union have been seized and\nenslaved, and are now toiling in chains.\n\n[134] Hon. R. W. Johnson, a Representative from Arkansas, spoke of this\nwretch as having come from Louisiana; but from manuscript letters on\nfile in the War Department, the Author is led to think he came from\nFlorida, and had previously participated in kidnapping Exiles in that\nTerritory.\n\n[135] The Author, being unable to obtain a publication of the documents\nshowing these facts, states them upon the best authority he possesses.\nDuring the discussions upon what is called the Indian Appropriation Bill\nfor 1852, in the House of Representatives of the United States, the\nfollowing colloquial debate occurred, and is now cited as a part of the\nevidence on which these facts are stated. It will be found in the\nCongressional Globe of 1852, vol. 24, part 3d, pages 1804, 1805:\n\n     \"Mr. GIDDINGS. I rise for a different purpose than that of\n     expressing my approbation of the amendment which has just been\n     read. I ask the especial attention of gentlemen to some\n     interrogatories which I desire to propound for the purpose of\n     obtaining information; and that the information may go to the\n     country, I will observe, that I desire to have the experience of\n     the able Chairman of the committee on Indian Affairs (Mr. Johnson\n     of Arkansas), to obtain this intelligence. According to reliable\n     information which I received in the summer of 1850, these Creek\n     Indians, to whom attention has been turned, with force and\n     violence, seized from seventy to one hundred free persons of color\n     in the Indian Territory, or at least those claiming to be free, and\n     enslaved, sold and transported them to the State of Louisiana,\n     where they are now in servitude as slaves. I will state that this\n     was done in violation of the treaty entered into in 1845, and in\n     subversion of our solemn faith, entered into with these negroes\n     during the Seminole War, in 1837. The official information upon\n     this subject is in the Indian Department, where it has been\n     received; and from which that we have not been able to obtain any\n     intelligence by resolution, although a resolution for that purpose\n     has been in my desk since the first day of the session. The\n     questions I desire to propound to those gentlemen are--First, Is it\n     a fact that those persons of color were seized and sold into\n     slavery; and, second, by what claim of right or pretended title did\n     these Creek Indians enslave and sell those people?\n\n     \"Mr. JOHNSON. I have no official knowledge in the matter at all.\n     Then as to the knowledge I have obtained incidentally, I do know\n     that there has been a great contest in relation to a portion of\n     these Creek Indian negroes; I do know that the matter has been\n     looked into here in the Executive Departments; I do know that the\n     matter has never been before the House at all, unless it has\n     strangely escaped my notice; I know it has not been before my\n     committee; I know the Attorney General of the United States has\n     declared his opinion as to the title of these negroes: I think\n     there were seventy of them, though it might have been more or less.\n     So, then, I have no official information on the subject to which\n     the gentleman alludes.\n\n     \"Some two or three years ago, I know of a contest going on about\n     the title to these negroes, and that it was decided that they\n     belonged to those Indians. They had established themselves in a\n     free town, which they maintained with force and arms. There were\n     heavy disturbances existing there in the Indian nation, amounting\n     at times almost to civil war: I believe before it was done with, it\n     was quite civil war. I know they were taken; but what was done with\n     them, I do not know. They were taken, and carried out of the\n     nation, with the design of holding them as property, when they\n     could not hold them in the nation on account of the disturbance\n     which they created. I know the decision of the Attorney General of\n     the United States, as to the title to these negroes; and that is\n     the whole statement in regard to the matter as far as I can give\n     it.\"\n\n\n\n[136] The Author has written many letters, and made frequent efforts, to\nobtain a copy of the record of this writ, if any had been kept, and the\nproceedings, together with the opinion of the Judge thereon, but has not\nsucceeded. The statement, therefore, rests on the verbal reports,\ncurrent at the time in the Indian Country, and communicated to the\nAuthor by individuals who happened to be there at the time.\n\n[137] The Author has been unable to obtain official data of the number\nof Exiles who remained in the Indian Country.\n\n[138] The Author has been compelled to rely on verbal reports received\nfrom individuals for these facts. He also understood Mr. Johnston, the\nRepresentative from Arkansas, in the debate referred to in a former\nnote, to say distinctly, that the Creeks pursued the Exiles, and that a\n_battle was fought_, but he was unable to state particulars.\n\n[139] Vide Official Report of Major Emory, in regard to the boundary\nline between the United States and Mexico. He states the location of\nWild Cat and the Seminole Indians, but omits all reference to the\nExiles.\n\n[140] This number has been increased by fresh arrivals from the Indian\nCountry, since 1850.\n\n[141] Vide Manuscript Letters now on file in the Indian Bureau at\nWashington.","title":"The Exiles of Florida: or, The crimes committed by our government against the Maroons, who fled from South Carolina and other slave states, seeking protection under Spanish laws.","tradition":"philosophy-ethics","translated_text":null,"word_count":115341}