50 - HISTORY OF OHIO tories was the rule with the builders of the mound. The exceptions were two cremated burials below the floor of the mound, and two individual cremated burials. The communal depositories, peculiar to the Tremper mound, were four in number, consisting of a main depository, located in the east end of the structure, and three smaller ones, in the western end. These communal graves correspond in use, and to some extent in form, to the prepared graves of the Harness, Seip and other mounds of this culture explored, with the distinction that they served to contain, not a single burial or one consisting of the remains of a few individuals, as in the Seip mound, but an unlimited number of burials. The depository was made of fine puddled clay, which after being worked into place was burned. The clay was applied with the hands, imprints of fingers being visible, as were also marks of the digging stick used in tamping down and shaping the sides of the basin. The depository was in the form of a parallelogram, ten feet and three inches long, and five feet wide, with a central depth of six inches. The bottom measured six feet and six inches long by thirteen inches wide, its surface being perfectly flat and level. The grave was filled with human ashes and charred bone to a depth of a little more than one foot ; these ashes however, were very compact, and originally must have been piled high above the rim of the basin. The contents of the depository no doubt represent the remains of hundreds of cremated bodies, indicating the use of the grave f or a long period of time. The floor surrounding the great basin was covered on the south and west sides with fine yellow sand, and on the east and north sides with bits of charcoal and ashes mixed with clay. A comparison of the mortuary customs of the Tremper mound builders with those of the Harness and Seip mounds, shows the great advantage of the communal plan of the former. In the use of individual prepared graves, as in the Harness mound, or in the Seip mound where the graves occasionally were enlarged so as to hold as many as four cremated bodies, the available space soon would be exhausted, while under the communal grave plan, the number of cremations that could be placed in one depository was limited only by the size of. the depository. Additional depositories, moreover, could easily be constructed, making the Tremper mound plan of burial much superior. There is no way of exactly ascertaining the number of dead contained in the four depositories of the Tremper mound. The bulk of ashes and charred bones was computed at twenty-five cubic feet, which, allowing one-fifteenth of a cubic foot to each burial, would represent the cremation of three hundred and seventy-five individuals. No doubt this is far short of the total number of dead cremated, as the floor of the charnel-house was strewn with ashes and fragments of charred human bones. An individual cremated burial was found in the room containing the great cache. This burial appears to have been of considerable importance, as it was placed in the angle formed by the joining of two walls, and a row of small posts placed around it. A second individual cremated burial was found in this room, about two and one-half feet above the floor. With the charred remains was a flint spearpoint, six inches long. A feature peculiar to the Tremper mound was the finding of cremated burials beneath the floor. The two graves were three and one-half feet deep, the floors being the surface of the undisturbed sandstone strata underlying the site. Their dimensions were seven feet long and three feet wide, and seven feet long and five feet wide, respectively. The first grave contained only a small amount of ashes and charred remains, and no artifacts of any kind. The second grave contained, besides the cremated remains, four copper ear ornaments, mica cut into the form of crescents, a mica effigy of the bear, and a small flint spearpoint. A special feature of this grave was a wall of thin slabs of sand- COLONIAL AND REVOLUTIONARY PERIOD - 51 stone at the sides and ends of the grave, completely lining it, and forming a vault-like receptacle, with perpendicular walls. As far as recorded this is the only instance of a regularly laid up wall of stone, constructed by aboriginal man in Ohio. The wall was two and one-half feet high, constructed of flat pieces of sandstone, averaging from one inch to three inches in thickness, and in length from four to twelve inches. What might easily have been confused with the crematories of the mound, were two fireplaces, situated one in each of the more northerly of the tier of rooms at the east end of the mound. One was located in the room where the great cache was found, and was surrounded by an extensive space of level floor, unencumbered by interior posts. The fireplace was three feet in diameter and in the form of a basin, four inches in depth, the earth being burned red for one foot below its base. The basin contained no remains of human bones, but instead charcoal and ashes in great quantities. The fireplace, located in the room with the great depository, was fully four feet in diameter, circular in form, with a basin-like depression at the center, four and one-half inches deep. It was filled with charcoal and the earth beneath burned red for fully one foot in depth. This fireplace showed evidences of having been mended by plastering the sides of the basin with puddled clay. The prominence of the location of these two fireplaces, with respect to the communal deposits of ashes and artifacts, suggests that they may have been dedicated to the sacred fire, which plays so important a part in the ceremonial observances of primitive peoples.8 From the great depth to which the earth beneath them is burned, it would appear that they were in use for a long time ; while the amount of charcoal contained therein would indicate that they were burning at the time the construction of the mound was begun. As is not infrequent in mounds of any culture, the Tremper mound was found to contain intrusive burials. These were placed near the top of the mound uncreinated, and were of a culture entirely different from that of its builders. The communal disposition of the ashes of the dead, as carried out in the Tremper mound, naturally would be accompanied by a similar disposition of the artifacts usually associated with burial. The logical expectation perhaps, would be to find them deposited along with the ashes in the common receptacle ; that is, simply substituting for graves containing individual burials and artifacts, a common grave wherein the ashes and artifacts of an unlimited number of individuals would be placed. Instead of this, however, it was found that separate depositories were provided for each. The great cache of tobacco pipes and associated objects found by Squier & Davis in 1846, in Mound No. 8, Mound City group, Ross County, has been the wonder of archeological research in Ohio until the present time. Few archeologists expected that this great find ever would be equalled, the cache being considered as unique and alone in its class. Owing to the superficial character of the Squier & Davis' explorations at that place, the Mound City tumulus and its remarkable contents have been only indifferently understood ; now, however, the examination of the Tremper mound not only throws the desired light upon the character of the Ross County mound, by duplicating its known features, but even goes so far as greatly to surpass it in point of artifacts found, both as to number and artistic execution. The results of the exploration of the Tremper mound, aside from their bearing upon any phase of Ohio archeology, are exceedingly gratifying; but when they serve further to elucidate the exact nature and purpose of the only mound altogether similar, so far explored, the results are, in effect, two-fold. 8 - The Cherokees believe that a perpetual sacred fire burned beneath the mounds. 52 - HISTORY OF OHIO Two distinct caches of artifacts were found in the Tremper mound ; one, the principal depository for the ornaments and implements of the dead, being very extensive and apparently having served along with the great depository for ashes through a considerable period of time, and the other, evidently deposited all at one time during the construction of the mound. The first, or larger, of these caches, was located in the central one of the three large rooms at the east end of the structure. It occupied a space of about six feet in diameter along the south side of the unused depository, shown as 6, the objects comprising it being placed in a heap. All objects in this cache had been intentionally broken, the supposition being that this was done to avert the likelihood of their being stolen from the great open deposit. The cache of artifacts, as was the cumulation of ashes in the communal grave, was a product of time, doubtless a number of years elapsing between the time it was begun and the final destruction of the building. Despite the natural respect of primitive man for the property of the dead, the beautiful objects placed in the cache would prove a great temptation to the derelict, or to the stranger who might gain access thereto ; so that, to render them undesirable each object was deliberately broken, and the fragments then deposited in the cache. In this respect, as in all others recorded, the Mound City tumulus, Mound No. 8, was similar. The second cache of artifacts was found near the center of the mound, two and one-half feet above the floor line. This secondary cache, so far as known peculiar to the Tremper mound, differed from the large cache in that the objects composing it were unbroken and in perfect condition. This is readily understood, when the position of the cache in the mound is considered. Being within the mound proper, and well above the floor, it clearly had been made after the burning of the structure and durinab the erection of the mound, the objects being de- posited simultaneously and at once covered over, thus averting danger of theft. The feature of the large cache was one hundred and thirty-six tobacco pipes. These pipes were of the so-called platform type, a number of them being carved in the effigy of birds and animals, and the remainder plain. Besides the pipes there were in this cache, among other things, beads, gorgets and boat-shaped objects of copper ; crystals of mica and galenite; ear ornaments of stone ; cones cut from quartz crystals and galena ; ornaments made from jaws of animals and of man; flint cutting implements ; mealing stones ; woven fabrics ; and the large stone disk already mentioned. In addition to the objects enumerated, there were present in the cache many objects made from wood and bone, mostly decomposed or burned. A total of more than five hundred specimens had been placed in this cache. The smaller of the two caches contained nine tobacco pipes, representing the platform type, the tubular and the modified tubular types. Among those of the platform type were several extremely large and fine pipes, made from red Ohio pipestone, the largest and finest ever found in an Ohio mound. The tubular forms likewise are particularly large and fine. In addition to the pipes, this cache contained a pair of the rare type of ear ornaments, made from red Ohio pipestone, and a pierced slate tablet. The sculptural art displayed in the pipes taken from the Tremper mound represents the highest esthetic attainment of the Hopewell culture, and probably never has been surpassed by any people in the stone age period of its existence. The technique displayed in the portrayal of life forms is no less admirable than the apparent faculty of the artist for observing and appreciating the habits and peculiar characteristics of the birds and animals with which he was familiar. The animal and bird forms depicted in the sculptures, comprise fifteen genera of the COLONIAL AND REVOLUTIONARY PERIOD - 53 former and twelve of the latter, the genera in a number of instances, being represented by several species. In the pipes of the plain type, the graceful forms of both bases and bowls, and the bi-lateral symmetry of the specimens, is such as to attract attention and compel admiration. In 1846 Squier & Davis found a cache in Mound No. 8, Mound City group, which they describe as follows : "Intermixed with much ashes, were found not far from two hundred pipes, 9 carved in stone, many pearl and shell beads, numerous discs, tubes, etc., of copper, and a number of other ornaments of copper, covered with silver, etc.; etc. The pipes were much broken up, some of them calcined by the heat, which had been sufficiently strong .to melt copper, masses of which were found fused together in the center of the basin. A large number have nevertheless been restored, at the expense of much labor and no small amount of patience." I never have had the pleasure of seeing the collection of pipes taken from Mound No. 8 and now in the Blackmore Museum at Salisbury, England. However, from the cuts and description of the broken specimens, in "Ancient Monuments of the Mississippi Valley" and in the catalog of the Blackmore Museum, I am satisfied that the breaking was not due to fire, but that they were broken intentionally when placed in the cache, exactly • as were the pipes in the Tremper mound. Stone broken by ,heat has a different appearance from stone broken by a blow from a heavy instrument ; as to the copper being melted, I am satisfied that Squier & Davis confused the adhesion of copper pieces, due to oxidation, with what they mistook for fusion by fire, which they state was "sufficiently strong to melt copper." This condition of copper pieces firmly adhering through corrosion, was found in the Tremper mound, associated with the pipes. The same condition was quite noticeable in the Harness and Seip mounds and is found in practically all mounds where a number of copper pieces are placed together. In the Harness mourid numbers of ear ornaments were united through corrosion, suggesting their fusion" by fire; but on the contrary, the charred remains of the cremated dead placed over them, had protected the ear ornaments from any contact with the fire kindled as the final ceremony. The. Seip mound gave many more examples of the fusing of .copper pieces by corrosion. In one instance large copper plates were so united that they could not be separated ; in another a copper plate could not be detached from a crescent of copper partly covering it ; and yet none of these specimens had been subjected to the action of fire. BUILT BY SAME PEOPLE The data given by Squier & Davis in their explorations of the Mound City group, is not sufficient to make available for comparison the manner in which the objects were deposited in the cache, but the similarity of the sculptured pipes from the two mounds and the stone from which they were carved, seems to be proof conclusive that they were made by peoples having the same mortuary customs. and were placed in the cache in the same way. For instance, the heron eating a fish, found by. Squier & Davis is. almost an exact duplicate of one from the Tremper mound, as is also the otter with a fish in its mouth, although this specimen was mistaken by Squier.& Davis .for the manitus, a water animal whose habitat is Florida. In fact all the animal sculptures from the Mound City group, with the exception of the elk, were duplicated in the Tremper mound and in addition the following sculptures were found : gray. fox; porcupine, dog, deer; rabbit and mink. 9 - The collection of Squier & Davis was purchased by Mr. Blackmore for his, Museum at Salisbury, England. The number of pipes secured in mound No. 8-as recorded in the Museum's printed catalog, known as !Tlint Chips," is only 95. 54 -HISTORY OF OHIO While the art shown in the Tremper Mound pipes in general is superior to the Mound City specimens, both as to sculpture of the various animal and bird forms and in their fidelity to nature, the technique in both instances is strikingly similar.
The Tremper mound site is not so large as the Mound City group site, but the protecting earthwork surrounding it is similar. The unfortunate lack of detailed information concerning the mounds in the Mound City group, explored by Squier & Davis, makes impossible a comparison of the disposal of the dead by the Tremper and Mound City peoples.
Squier & Davis state that the great cache in Mound No. 8 was placed upon a sacrificial altar "intermixed with much ashes," and from their statement that "the pipes were much broken—some of them calcined by heat, which had been sufficiently strong to melt copper," we must infer that they believed that a great fire had been kindled upon the altar. These same conditions obtained in the Tremper mound and while we have proof that the building covering the site was destroyed by fire, I am sure that no fire was especially kindled upon the cache itself. Although objects made of bone, wood and cloth were found in a charred state, the fire was not sufficient to melt the crystals of lead found in the cache, nor in any way to injure the broken pipes or stone gorgets.
Taking everything into consideration it would not be surprising to find that the Mound City peoples, after erecting their mounds, migrated down the Scioto and formed a new settlement on the site of Tremper mound. At any rate, if not the same people or parts of the same people, the builders of the two sites must have been very closely related.
RESUME
A brief resume of the exploration of the Tremper mound shows the following outstanding features, which, it is believed, add materially to the fund of information concerning the great Hopewell culture of prehistoric inhabitants of Ohio, and which, it is hoped, will prove to be an important chapter in the history of the aboriginal peoples of the Ohio valley :
The mound marks the site of a sacred structure, wherein its builders cremated their dead, deposited the ashes in communal receptacles, made similar disposition of the personal artifacts of the dead, and observed the intricate ceremonies incident to funeral rites.
The builders of the Tremper mound had arrived at a cultural stage where united or communal effort in great part replaced individual endeavor, and in so doing had reached a plane of efficiency probably not equalled by any other people in the stone age period of its development. This fact is attested most strongly by their burial customs, in which by the use of communal depositories for cremated remains and personal artifacts, they effected a plan for the disposal of the dead unhampered by the limitations of the Seip mound and Harness mound plans, the next highest noted in the Ohio mounds. In these latter mounds, individual graves soon exhausted the available floor space, while in the Tremper mound plan, burial was limited only by the size of the communal depositories, the number of which, moreover, easily could be increased if needed.
The high development of sculptural art by the builders of the Tremper mound is a most striking feature of their versatility. While artistic achievement is not always an index to the culture status of a people, the fact that in this respect they probably surpassed any other strictly stone age people, is significant, and taken together with other pertinent facts, places them very well along toward the upper stages of barbarism, with civilization waiting but a short distance away. The great number of admirably executed carvings of birds, animals and other life forms, taken from the mound, many of which would be worthy
COLONIAL AND REVOLUTIONARY PERIOD - 55
the efforts of the modern workman, cannot but excite wonderment and admiration for the primitive artists of prehistoric Ohio.
The finding of large fireplaces, showing evidences of very long continued use and significantly located with respect to the communal deposits of ashes and artifacts, seems to indicate the use of sacred fires, so important an adjunct of ceremonial and religious observances among the early peoples of the old world. The great depth to which the earth below these fireplaces was burned suggests that they were kept perpetually burning, while the charred contents indicate that the fires were extinguished only when the earth composing the mound was heaped over them.
Of scarcely less impoitance than the exploration of the Tremper mound, per se, is the light it sheds on the Great Mound City group, of northern Ross County.. Owing to the methods employed by Squier & Davis in examining the mounds of this group, in 1846, their character and purpose have remained until now matters of surmise. The plan employed by these early explorers was the sinking of shafts into the tops of the mounds, and from the limited area of a mound and its base thus exposed, to draw conclusions as to its character as a whole. In this way, Mound No. 8, of the group, from which was taken a great cache of pipes and other objects very similar to the Tremper mound cache, was described by them as covering a great sacrificial altar, on which had been kindled intense fires, resulting in the breaking up of the specimens deposited thereon.
The conditions found in Mound No. 8 were exactly duplicated in the Tremper mound, but the complete examination of the latter showed that the conclusions drawn from the partial exploration by Squier & Davis were not warranted ; in short, it is strikingly evident that the two mounds in their character and purpose were entirely similar, and that their builders were closely related. So similar indeed are the mounds and their contents, that it would not be surprising to find, if not already proven, that the builders of the Mound City group migrated southward through the Scioto Valley, and constructed the Tremper mound and earthwork. Thus are forged several important links in the chain of evidence as to the existence and career of this most advanced of stone age peoples. We find them extending from Mound City, where their skill as builders and artists has been the wonder and admiration of archaeologists, southward to the Ohio River, where at the Tremper mound site, they reached the highest point of their development so far noted.
The life story of this people, as told in the Tremper mound, certainly is one of the highly interesting chapters in the history of primitive civilization. No primitive people has shown such skill and perseverance in wresting from nature the raw materials needed for their purposes, nor such versatility in fashioning these materials into finished products. The most striking phase of this perhaps, is the manner in which with only the simplest of tools, the stone for their making was quarried from the hills and the realistic portrayals of bird and animal life, sculptured in full relief and finished in minutest detail, were effected. In the records preserved in the mound we find a vivid picture of the strength and persistence of the forces underlying human development, and urging it against all odds, toward a higher plane of development.
CHAPTER IV
THE STRUGGLE FOR THE OHIO COUNTRY
EXPEDITION OF CELORON TO OHIO COUNTRY IN 1749
Roland Michel Barrin, Marquis de la Galissoniere, a French naval officer and from 1747 to 1749, governor-general of Canada, was born in 1693 and died in 1756. He was a captain in the navy when he was appointed governor-general. He was not only a soldier but a student, a naturalist and a statesman. His comparatively brief administration in Canada was marked by intelligent activity and the conception of wise policies for the future development of French interests in America. He planned the chain of forts extending up the valley of the St. Lawrence through the region of the Great Lakes and down the valley of the Mississippi ; equipped and sent forth the expedition of Celoron ; and urged the settlement of the Ohio valley by 10,000 French peasants. In the midst of activities and alluring projects he was recalled to France in 1749. He did not return to America. In 1756 he defeated the British fleet under Admiral Byng and died later the same year.
Those who explore with satisfaction the realm of what might have been will find the recommendation of Galissioniere to establish a colony of 10,000 French peasants in the midst of the Ohio country an interesting theme for speculation. If it had not prevented the English from becoming the dominant power in North America, it certainly lies within the sphere of probability that it would have materially changed the character of the population northwest of the Ohio River. It might have made the French element there numerically as dominant as it is today in Montreal and Quebec.
But the suggestion of the French governor-general was not adopted and the reality which we have here to consider is the expedition to the Ohio country of Pieree-Joseph Celoron, sieur de Blainville, or as he himself expressed it, "Celoron, knight of the Royal and Military Order of St. Louis, Captain, commanding a detachment, sent down the Beautiful River by the orders of M. the Marquis de la Galissioniere, governor-general of all New France and of the country of Louisiana."
The development of the fur trade in the region of the Ohio valley and the Great Lakes and commerce with the Indian tribes, together with a gradual appreciation of the value of the lands for colonization purposes, led to the final struggle for their possession by the English and the French. These two powerful nations had long been the traditional rivals of Europe. Their wars had reddened many battle fields and many pages of history. On the continent they were now at peace, but conflicting claims of territory in the new world were preparing the way for a renewal of the conflict in the wilderness of America. England claimed the territory as far north as the Great Lakes ; France claimed it as far south as the Ohio and the land drained by its southern tributaries. The Ohio country was therefore the prize for which the rival powers were contending.
The French, as we shall presently see, claimed the disputed territory by virtue of possession and the treaties of Riswick, Utrecht and Aix-la-Chapelle. It was to re-assert their rights to this vast territory, to take formal possession of it in the name of their king, to warn English traders to withdraw from the Ohio valley, to influence the Indians to trade exclusively with the French and to learn and report to his government the attitude of the native tribes that the knightly Celoron
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58 - HISTORY OF OHIO
embarked on this arduous journey down the Ohio, up the Miami and down the Maumee in the summer and autumn of the year 1749.
There are many faithful and interesting word pictures of the Ohio —the "Oyo," the "La Belle Riviere" in the days of Celoron—and no attempt will be made here to compete with them. In any event much must be left to the imagination of the reader. From the rapids and sparkling tributary streams of its upper course, it grew in volume and majestic and unruffled sweep as it pursued its winding course around what is now the southern boundary of Ohio. Its waters were clear and pure and deep and dark, unmixed with the yellow soil of cultivated fields and uncontaminated by the refuse from cities and thousands of manufacturing plants. On its banks in unbroken rank stood the primeval forests, dense and dark, shedding eternally their sombre shadows on its gliding waters. The Indian villages on its banks were few and far between, and over most of its course brooded the primal solitude, broken at intervals by the song of a bird, the cry of a wild animal and the subdued sound of lapping oars as an Indian canoe glided swiftly by over the rippling waters. In the wider stretches of the river, under a clear sky, the sunlight fell in shimmering beauty by clay and the placid moon looked up in reflected glory from an inverted starry sky through the lonesome night.
Here nature revealed herself in generous proportions. "The venerable woods," the undulating hills and the river itself, stretching away in great curves and majestic vistas—all united in a picture of mysterious and awe-inspiring grandeur that must have impressed even the rudest spirit that came within the range of its mystic power. Doubtless its peculiar charm was felt by Celoron, but his rigid conception of duty prevented sentimental musings or lapses from that ceaseless vigilance which fidelity to his prescribed mission and never absent danger enjoined and enforced.
His detachment, as he states, was "composed of one captain, eight subaltern officers, six cadets, one chaplain, twenty soldiers, one hundred and eighty Canadians and about thirty Indians," making in all 246. M. de Contrecoeur was second in command.
The chaplain was Father Bonnecamps, geographer of the expedition, who took and recorded the latitude and longitude at various places and prepared a map showing the course o f the journey and designating Indian villages, tributaries of the Ohio and other points that he considered worthy of note. He too kept a journal which is published in the "Jesuit Relations" and reproduced with the journal of Celoron in volume xxix of the "Publications of the Ohio Archeological and Historical Society." 1
With the equipment of the expedition were a number of leaden plates, each eleven inches long, seven and one-half inches wide and one-eighth of an inch thick, with inscriptions in French on one side and on the reverse the name of the artist, Paul de Brosse. The inscription, as we shall see, recited that Celoron, commander of a detachment sent by the governor-general of Canada, took possession of the Ohio in the name of the French king. These plates were evidently prepared before the expedition started, leaving on each a blank to be filled with the designation of the point where it was buried and the date. These were to serve as landmarks of the French territory and as testimonials of the authority by which it was claimed.
Celoron in his "Journal" described the progress of the expedition
1 - The Journal of Celoron, as translated by Father Andrew Arnold Lambing, and originally published in the second volume of the "Catholic Historical Researches," now extremely rare and long out of print, is also reproduced, together with the Journal of Father Bonnecamps and a paper on this expedition by O. H. Marshall, in a separate publication by the Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Society and entitled "Expedition of Celoron to the Ohio Country in 1749." References to this publication on succeeding pages will be made by an abbreviated title— "Expedition of Celoron."
COLONIAL AND REVOLUTIONARY PERIOD - 59
from La Chine to "Chatakuin," the stream that flows into Lake Erie opposite Lake Chautauqua. Here he arrived July 16, 1749, thirty-one days after leaving La Chine. In the earlier portion of the journey many difficulties were encountered in the navigation of the St. Lawrence, especially at the rapids. On June 17, a boat capsized and one soldier was drowned. This was the only life lost in the entire journey of exploration—a remarkable testimonial to the efficiency of the commander of the expedition.
Celoron, after landing at the mouth of the stream that he calls the Chataquin, proceeded over a road that he had made to Lake Chautauqua (Chataquin). Here he tarried for a time to repair his canoes and rest his men. By July 22 he reached the outlet of the lake, a stream which he also called the Chatakuin. It is Conewango Creek which connects Lake Chautauqua with the Allegheny River at the town of Warren, Pennsylvania. As the expedition proceeded, the Indians fled from their villages, and it was apparent that they had been led to believe that it was the object of the French government to make war upon them, destroy their homes and dispossess them of their possessions. This attitude of the natives alarmed Celoron, as one object of the expedition had been to impress them favorably toward the French government. He therefore called a council of his officers on July 25. It was decided to send Lieutenant Chabert de Joncaire, 2 a half breed Iroquois, and five Indians to assure the natives that no injury was intended ; that it was the design of their leader ""to treat with them of good things and to explain to them the sentiments of their father, Onontio."
After the departure of Joncaire and the Indians, Celoron proceeded with great difficulty down Conewango Creek. The water of the stream in many places was so shallow that the boats could not be floated until the supplies were unloaded. Over some of the riffles the empty boats were moved onward with difficulty. On July 29, they entered the Alleghany River, which Celoron called in his "Journal" the Beautiful River (La Belle Riviere) and here with formal ceremony he deposited the first leaden plate and took possession of the country in the name of the French king. Following is a translation of the record of the ceremony and the inscription on the leaden plate :
"In the year one thousand seven hundred and forty-nine, we Celoron, Knight of the Royal Military Order of St. Louis, Captain commanding a detachment sent by the orders of M. the Marquis de la Galissoniere, Governor-General of New France, on the Beautiful River, otherwise called the Oyo, 3 accompanied by the principal officers of our detachment, buried at the foot of a red oak, on the southern bank of the river Oyo and of Kanaougon, 4 and at 42̊ 5' 23" 5 a leaden plate, with this inscription thereon engraven
INSCRIPTION.
"In the year 1749, in tlfe reign of Louis the XV, King of France, we, Celoron, commander of the detachment sent by M. the Marquis de la Galissoniere, Governor-Geheral of New France, to reestablish peace in some villages of these Cantons, have buried this plate at the confluence of the Ohio and the Kanaaiagon, the 29th of July, for a monument of the renewal of possession which we have taken of the said river Ohio, and of all those which fall into it, and of all the territories on both sides as far as the source of the said rivers, as the preceding Kings of France have possessed or should possess them, and as they are
2 - For sketch of Joncaire and his father, see "Expedition of Celoron," p. 62. 3 - The Oyo (Ohio) then included both the Alleghany and the Ohio. ' 4 - Another name for Conewango Creek. 5 - “This observation." like most of the others by Bonnecamps, is said to be incorrect.
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maintained therein by arms and by treaties, and especially by those of Riswick, Utrecht and of Aix la Chapelle 6 have moreover affixed to a tree the arms of the King. In testimony whereof, we have drawn up and signed the present written record. Made at the entrance of the Beautiful River, the 29th of July, 1749. All the officers signed."
After the ceremony of burying the leaden plate, a delegation of Indians arrived from the nearby Village of Kanaougon. Their fears had been dispelled by the reports brought by Joncaire of the good intentions of Celoron and his followers, and they came to invite him to visit their village. They were treated kindly and Celoron "made them drink a draught of the milk 7 of Onontio 8 and gave them tobacco." As he passed their village they fired a salute in his honor which he returned. He invited them to come to the Village of Cut Straw, where he would address them on behalf of "their father Onontio." The women brought him "presents of corn and squashes" for which he gave them in return "little presents." He learned that it had been the intentions of the Indians to flee at his approach and that Joncaire had much difficulty in dissuading them.
As soon as Celoron arrived in the Village of Cut Straw 9 the chief came to his tent to welcome him. To the speech which they delivered to him he made a reply in like spirit. He then read to them the speech prepared by Galissoniere in which it was explained that the land which they inhabited belonged to the French. "Pay serious attention, my children," said he, "to the message which I send you. Listen to it well ; follow it, it is the means of always seeing your villages under a beautiful and serene sky. I expect from you an answer worthy of my true children. You will see suitable marks which I have fixed along the Beautiful River, which will prove to the English that this land belongs to the French." In conclusion, he said :
"I am surprised, my children, to see raised in your village a cabin destined to receive English traders. If you look upon yourselves as my children you will not continue this work ; far from it you will destroy it, and will no longer receive the English in your homes."
On the day following, July 31, Celoron and his officers received from the villages of Ganaouskon and of Ghinodiagon an answer thanking him for having "opened their eyes and ears." "My father," said they, "you have told us that some little birds had given you word that a house was being built for the English, and that if we suffered them to do so, they would shortly raise here a considerable establishment for driving us away, because they would render themselves masters of our lands." They promised to use this house, not for the English traders, but "for a recreation place for the youth." They promised also not to touch the arms of the king which Celoron had "planted on the river and which will prove to the English that they have no right to this country."
Celoron proceeded down the river and on August 2d he spoke to the Indians in the name of Galissoniere, explaining the right of France to the lands in the valley and warning them against the English. He concluded as follows :
"Depute next spring some person of your nation with your old men to come and see me, and you will see by the reception I will give you how much I love you and that I seek only to do you good and to free you from the yoke of the English which they still wish to impose on you. I will give you traders who will supply all your wants and put you in such state as not to regret those whom I remove from your land. These lands which you possess you will always be masters of."
6 - The inscription on the plate ends here. 7 - Brandy. 8 - The Huron translation of Montmagny (Great Mountain) afterward applied by the Indians to every Governor-General of Canada. 9 - On the Alleghany River six miles below Warren, Pennsylvania.
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The Indians answered the speech in a plea so well timed and appropriate that it is here repeated in full:
"My father, we pray you have pity on us, we are young men who cannot answer you as old men would. What you have said has opened our eyes and given us courage. We see that you labot only for our good, and we promise you to entertain no other sentiments than those of our uncles, the Five Nations, with whom you seem pleased. Consider, my father, the situation in which we are placed. If you compel the English to retire, who minister to our wants, and ,in particular the blacksmith, who mends our guns and our hatchets, we shall be forced to remain without succor and be exposed to the danger of dying of hunger and misery on the Beautiful River. Have pity on us, my father, you cannot at present minister to our wants, let us have, during this winter, or at least till we go hunting, the blacksmith and some one who can aid us.. We promise you that by spring the English shall retire."
Celoron scarcely knew what to say in reply. He did not make them a definite promise but told them that he "would make an arrangement which would best suit their interests and the interests of their 'father Onontio." "I confess," said he, "that their reply embarrassed me very much. I made them a little present and induced them to keep the promise which they had given me."
As he continued his journey down the river the Indians in most of the small villages fled to the woods. Occasionally an English trader or blacksmith living in their midst did likewise.
Later he passed the mouth of the River aux Boeufs or French Creek, went down the Ohio about nine miles and buried the second leaden plate "opposite a native mountain and near an immense stone upon which certain figures are rudely enough carved." The large stone with the carving is still an object of interest, but the drifting ice and sand in high water through the centuries is gradually wearing away the rude legend that has borne no definite message to those who have attempted to decipher it.
Arriving at Chartier's town he fell in with six English soldiers, on their way to Philadelphia with about 50 horses and 150 bales of furs. He notified them in writing to leave the territory. He did not take possession of the furs, although he warned them that his government would do so if they came again.
It was from this point that he wrote to the British governor, Hamilton, of Pennsylvania, asking him to forbid-his people in the future to trade with the Indians on the River Beautiful.
The expedition stopped at the Village of Written Rock, inhabited by Iroquois Indians under the leadership of a woman who was regarded as the queen of her people. She is spoken of in the "Journal" as an aged woman. She is known in legend and song as Alequippa. The Indians here, as in many other villages, fled to the woods at the approach of the French troops, and the English traders who remained were given notice to withdraw from this territory. This notice they promised to heed.
As Celoron approached Chiningue (Logstown), "one of the most considerable villages on the Beautiful River," he met a canoe with two Indians who had come to determine if possible the purposes of the expedition. He "received them with kindness and had them drink a cup of the milk of their father Onontio"—considered by the Indians "as the greatest mark of friendship that one could make them." His suspicions having been aroused as to the intentions of the Indians, he ordered that four guns in each of his canoes should be loaded with powder only and eight with powder and bullets. The latter were not to be fired in salute but were to be reserved for "eventualities." The Indians fired their salute from guns loaded with bullets, a custom that seemed to prevail with the tribes of the south. Celoron ordered them to cease firing thus or he would fire upon them. Two French flags and a British flag were seen waving in the village. By his order the British flag was cut down.
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The inhabitants of this village were Iroquois, Chaunanous (Shawnees) and Loups. There were a number of indications that they were not kindly disposed toward the French. However, realizing that they were not strong enough to cope with the force led by Celoron they presented their felicitations and expressed ,their desire to obey his wishes. With fine dissimulation they said, "We thank the Master of Life for having preserved you on a route so long and so difficult as that which you have made." As was suspicioned then and fully verified afterwards, their sincere hope was that the Great Spirit might convey Celoron and his French outfit to the happy hunting ground by the most expeditious route possible. There were a number of speeches and professions of sincere friendship on the part of the Indians with responses for the most part in similar strain by Celeron, interspersed occasionally with notes of warning. In one of his speeches he said :
"If I ever had such designs as you imagine, or such as the evil-minded have told you, I would have concealed my expedition from you, as that was easy for me to do, and I would not have arrived so peaceably at your village as I have done. I know how to make war, and those who have made war with us ought to know it, too, so I can not act the part of a deceiver."
The final response of the Indians was overflowing with good will and friendship for Father Onontio, but concluded with a plea that the English might remain in the village until the French could send traders and artisans to take their places. Here as elsewhere on the journey, evidence was found that the English had made themselves agreeable and in a measure necessary to the convenience and comfort of the natives.
Sickness now appeared in the expeditionary forces. There was considerable disappointment in finding buffaloes less plentiful than had been represented. Deer were comparatively numerous, however, and the hunters brought in a goodly supply of venison.
On the morning of August 13th, the expedition proceeded and, after crossing the boundary line between Pennsylvania and what afterward became Ohio, it halted at the mouth of the "River Kanonuara to the south of the Beautiful River," to deposit the third leaden plate. The Kanonuara has not been positively identified, but is believed to be the modern Wheeling Creek. The statement of the depositing of the plate reads as follows :
"The year 1749, we, Celoron, Knight of the Royal and Military Order of St. Louis, and Captain commanding a detachment sent by the orders of Monsieur the Marquis de la Galissoniere, Governor-General of Canada, upon the Beautiful River, accompanied by the principal officers of our detachment, have buried at the foot of a large elm tree at the entrance of the river and upon the southern bank of the Kanonuara, which empties itself at the east of the river Oyo, a leaden plate, and have attached to a tree in the same spot, the arms of the King. In testimony whereof we have drawn up and signed, along with Messrs. the officers, the present official statement, at our camp, the 13th of August, 1749."
Without any incidents worthy of note, Celoron continued his voyage to the mouth of the River Yenanguekouan (Muskingum) which he reached on the 15th. Here he deposited the fourth leaden plate with the usual ceremonies. The official statement recorded in his "Journal" reads as follows :
"The 15th of August, 1749, we, Celoron, Knight of the Royal and Military Order of St. Louis, Captain commanding a detachment sent by the orders of Monsieur the Marquis de la Galissoniere, Governor-General of Canada, upon the Beautiful River, otherwise called the River Oyo, accompanied by the principal officers of our detachment, have buried at the foot of a maple tree, which forms a triangle with a red oak and an elm tree, at the entrance of the river Jenuanguekouan, 10 at the
10 - Spelled Yenanguekonan on map of Bonnecamps.
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western bank of that river, a leaden plate, and have attached to a tree on the same spot, the arms of the King. In testimony whereof we have drawn tip and signed the present official statement, along with Messrs. the officers at our camp, the 15th of August, 1749."
This was the only plate 11 buried in what afterward became Ohio soil. In 1798, almost half a century after its burial, it was discovered by some boys who were bathing in the river at the mouth of the Muskingum. The water had washed the earth away from around it and it projected from the river bank below the surface. It was dislodged and found to be a leaden plate stamped with words that had no meaning to those who found it. They did not realize its historic value and cut a large portion of it away to melt into bullets. The remnant of the plate afterwards passed into the hands of Caleb Atwater, who sent it to Governor Clinton. The latter presented it to the Antiquarian Society of Massachusetts, in the library of which it is now preserved.
The full text of the inscription was not recorded by Celoron or Bonnecamps but from the official statement already quoted, the text of the inscriptions on other plates and the assertion of Celoron that "the inscription is always the same," the writer has undertaken to supply, with the aid of the remnant of the plate left, the full inscription. The result is found on the accompanying illustration. It can not vary materially from the original and it is believed to be practically identical with it.
At the close of the ceremonies incident to the burial of the fourth leaden plate, the expedition resumed. the descent of the river. About three-fourths of a mile below the mouth of the Muskingum, Father Bonnecamps took observations and recorded the latitude as 39̊ 36' and the longitude 81̊ 20' west of Paris.
On the 16th a delay in embarking was occasioned by the failure of some French and Indian hunters to return early in the morning. They had been in the woods all night. On the 17th the expedition passed two fine rivers, tributaries of the Ohio, whose names were unknown to them.
On the 18th a heavy rain hindered the voyage for a few hours. Later in the day the mouth of the Chinodaistan 12 (Kanawha) was reached. Here the fifth leaden plate was buried as recorded in the "Journal" of Celoron :
"The year 1749, We, Celoron, Knight of the Royal and Military Order of St. Louis, Captain, commanding a detachment sent by the orders of Monsieur the Marquis de la Galissoniere, Governor-General of Canada; upon the Beautiful River, otherwise called L'oyo, accompanied by the principal officers of our detachment, have buried at the foot of an elm tree, upon the southern bank of the L'oyo, and the eastern bank Chinodaista, a leaden plate, and have attached to a tree in the same spot the arms of the King. In testimony whereof, we have drawn up the present official statement, and which we have signed along with Messrs. the officers at our camp, the 18th of August, 1749."
11 - A comparison of the texts of the plates found shows some variations and slight inaccuracies in orthography. The artist, Paul de Brosse, like Celoron himself, had evidently not taken first prize in spelling words of his native tongue and was somewhat careless, as the variations in the text of the inscriptions indicate. Caleb Atwater, Governor Clinton and others were led for years to suppose that the leaden plate found at the mouth of the Muskingum had originally been buried at the mouth of French Creek on the site of the old Indian village, Venango. They were led to this conclusion by the similarity of the words "Yenangue" and "Venango." The fact is, as the Journal of Celoron shows, that "Yenangue" is only part of the name of the river, the concluding portion of which, "konan" undoubtedly was carried over to the beginning of the next line, completing the word "Yenanguekonan," the name given to what is now the Muskingum River.
12 - "Parkman is mistaken in his statement that Celoron calls this river the Chinodahichetha, although that is the spelling on the plate. In describing this river in his Journal, Celoron says: "This river bears canoes for forty leagues without meeting rapids, and takes its rise near Carolina. The English of that government come that way to ply their trade on the beautiful river."
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This plate was found in March, 1846, by a little son of John W. Beale, while playing on the banks of the river. The story of its discovery is given at length in "The Olden Times," vol. i, pages 238-241. There is therefore no doubt in regard to the inscription, as it is still very distinctly legible. In relating the discovery of the plate the writer makes the following comment on the inscription :
"The French is none of the purest, and the accent, apostrophes and punctuation are wanting, except that the circumflex is placed over the initial 0 in Oyo the first time that word occurs, while the I's, though capitals, are invariably dotted, and the capital O's are of the old black letter form, like a P reversed."
On the 19th the expedition was again delayed by heavy rains that flooded the river bottom and compelled Celoron to move his camp to higher ground. On the 20th, under fairer skies, he continued his voyage.
He seems to have been apprehensive of trouble with the Indians at the Village of St. Yotoc (Scioto), or Sinhioto as Father Bonnecamps calls it, and well he might be for this was the stronghold of the Shawnee Indians, variously called by Celoron and Bonnecamps, Channanous, Chaouanons, Chaouanous, Chaouenous, Chaouonous, Chauenons and Chavenois.
After proceeding a few leagues, Celoron saw a solitary man standing on the shore. He found it to be a Loup Indian "returning from a war waged on the Chien Nation," in which he and his compatriots seem to have gotten the worst of it. For sixteen days he had been traveling without food supply or ammunition. Celoron treated him kindly and gave him supplies sufficient to last until he could reach his home at Chiningue. From him Celoron learned that St. Yotoc was a village of from 80 to 100 cabins. At 3 o'clock the boats moved down the river again.
On the 21st the Indians accompanying the expedition came to Celoron and told him that they feared to approach St. Yotoc because it was a large village and the inhabitants would probably be excited and hostile as a result of the stories that had doubtless been carried to them of the hostile intentions of the French. A council of officers was held and Celoron despatched Joncaire, two loyal and faithful chiefs, Ceganeis Kassin and Saetaguinrale, and three Abenaki chiefs, to visit St. Yotoc. Monsieur de Minerville, at his own request, was permitted to accompany this detachment.
After distributing ammunition to his men and appealing to them to account themselves as soldiers in case of an Indian attack, Celoron again took up his journey and moved down the river about ten miles, when he saw approaching a canoe carrying seven or eight men and a white flag. It was Monsieur de Joncaire with seven Indians, both Chanenois and Iroquois. He landed with them.
Noting that the Indians who came with Joncaire were considerably disturbed in mind, he asked the reason for this and was told that the tribes of St. Yotoc were greatly frightened and that when they saw Joncaire and his detachment approaching they fired at them. Three bullets passed through their flag. When the detachment landed at St. Yotoc they were conducted to the council-house. When they were explaining the peaceful mission of the expedition, an Indian arose, declared that the French were deceiving their hearers and that they were coming to destroy the Indians at St. Yotoc and their families. This fiery speech aroused the young warriors, who rushed to arms and declared that these Frenchmen should be killed and that the approaching canoes should be ambushed and destroyed. They were about to lay violent hands on the strangers, when an Iroquois chief rose in the council, quieted the excited braves and averted the threatening storm. When the violent warriors had been silenced by the eloquent speaker, he promised to accompany Joncaire as an evidence of his faith that the French intended no harm. To further
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satisfy the Indians of the village, they were permitted to retain M. Minerville and his Indians as hostages.
After a period of silence on the part of the Indians that Joncaire had brought with him from the village, the Iroquois chief arose and thus addressed Celoron :
"My father, you behold before you young men without intelligence, who were on the point of embroiling the land in turmoil forever. Look on us in pity and show no resentment for what we have done. When you arrive at our village our old men will testify their sorrow for the fault they have committed. For the last two months we have been like drunken men, by reason of the false reports which were brought to us by the villages through which you have passed."
Celoron answered him thus :
"I do not know what you wish to say to me when I shall have arrived at St. Yotoc. I shall make inquiry and see what I shall have to do. I know you have come to meet me with good dispositions. You would have done wisely in bringing back the Indians who were with M. de Joncaire. You may go back to your village, I will go there in a little time. You will give notice to the young men that they must dispense with saluting me according to their custom." Celoron then gave the chief and those with him a drink and sent them away. Joncaire reported that he knew these Indians were badly disposed and much frightened. They had constructed a stone fort, strongly built and in good condition, for their defense. This information caused Celoron to reflect seriously on the situation with which he was confronted. We perhaps can not do better at this point than to let this valiant French captain tell the story as reported in his official "Journal" and literally translated by Father Andrew Arnold Lambing :
"I was aware of the weakness of my detachment ; two-thirds were recruits who had never made an attack, and who, on first seeing the Indians of my detachment, had taken flight. It was not in my power to choose others, and notwithstanding the recommendations made by M. the Marquis de la Galissoniere when setting out for Quebec, to give me picked men, they paid no regard to them there. In fine, there was no other course left me to pursue than to continue my voyage without provisions, having my canoes unfit for service, without pitch or bark. I reembarked, prepared for whatever might happen. I had excellent officers and about fifty men on whom I could rely. At a quarter-of-aleague's distance from the village I was descried. The salutes began immediately, and those Indians discharged well nigh a thousand gunshots. I knew the powder had been gratuitously furnished them by the English. I landed opposite to the village and had a return salute fired. The chiefs and the old men crossed the river and came to me with flags and pipes of peace ; they had the grass cut in order to make seats for us, and invited me to sit down along with the officers. They led back with them Sieur de Minerville and the Indians whom they had retained. As we were about sitting down about eighty men crossed over, armed and accoutred as warriors. I ordered my detachment under arms. These eighty men lined a hedge about twenty paces from us, and leaned on their guns. I told the chief that I was astonished at the manoeuvres of these harebrained creatures, and that if they did not move out of that immediately I would fire upon them. He answered me that they did not come with any bad intention, but merely to salute us again, and that they should retire since it displeased me. This they did immediately, firing their guns in the air, which were only loaded with blank cartridges. Pipes were then presented to me and to all the officers. After this ceremony a Chaouenous chief arose and complimented me upon my arrival. I told them that I would speak to them tomorrow in my tent where I would light the governor's fire. They answered me that they had in their village a council cabin where they would hear me, if I repaired thither with all my officers, with regard to what I had to say to them on the part of
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their father Onontio. I refused their demand, and said it was their place to come to me to hear what I had to say to them. They being much displeased it would have been a great imprudence to go to their village, so I held firm to this point and brought them round to my views. They returned to their village. We posted guards, and the rounds were kept up during the whole night very scrupulously by the officers. It is to be remarked that since to the inhabitants of this village, composed for the most part of Chavenois and Iroquois of the Five Nations, there were added more than thirty men from the Sault St. Louis, and waste had destroyed the abundance of game, the cheap merchandise which the English furnished was a very seducing motive for them to remain attached to the latter. The son of Arteganukassin 13 is there, and neither his father nor myself could succeed in taking him away. Besides the men from the Sault St. Louis, there are also some from the lake of the Two Mountains, some Loups from the Miami, and nearly all the nations from the territory of Enhault. 14 All these taken together were no better than Chavenois, who are entirely devoted to the English. The 23d I sent them word by Monsieur de Joncaire to come to my camp to hear the words of their father. At first they refused to come, saying that it was in the council cabin they should be spoken to. I answered by saying that it was the duty of children to come and find their father where he wished to light his fire. After some parleying they came to my camp and made their excuse in these terms :
" 'Speech of the Indians of St. Yotoc to M. de Celoron, with four belts of wampum, the 23d of August, 1749:
" 'My father, we are ashamed to appear before you after the excesses we committed yesterday with regard to those whom you sent us. We are in despair, we ask pardon of you for it, and of our brethren, and we beseech you to forget this great mistake. The sorrow we feel for it gives us hope that you will pardon us.'
"Answer of Monsieur de Celoron to the Indians of St. Yotoc, the same day :
" 'My children, no one could be more astonished than I was when I learned by the canoe which came to me, the reception which you had given to the chiefs whom I sent to you, to announce my arrival, and to tell you that I came to bring you the word of your father Onontio. They had gone to quiet you with all the signs capable of proving to you that I only came to your village in a peaceful manner. This sign so honorable for all the other tribes was not so for you ; so you fired on them ; and not content with that, you have shown more deference for the word of a wicked man in your village, who is a hypocrite, than you did for mine. I was the more surprised, since believing for a long time that the Chavenous were men of courage, they have showed themselves too smart on this occasion in insulting those who were sent to them. What is then become of that good spirit, Chavenous, which you had, when, ten years ago, Monsieur de Longueil passed by here on his way to the Chuachias. You came out to meet him, and you showed him in every way the kindness of your hearts. A company of young men also volunteered to accompany him, yet he did not give you notice of his coming. But at that time you had a French heart, and today you let it be corrupted by the English who dwell among you continually, and who, under pretext of ministering to your wants, seek only to ruin you. Reflect on these just rebukes I am making you, and have no confidence in those bad people who will turn out, if you do not be on your guard, the ruin of your nation.
" 'With four belts of wampum you stuffed my throat on my arrival. I had no need of this sort of medicine. The heart of the governor is always kind towards his children, but as you stand in need of a stronger
13 - This chief unknown to translator. 14 - Location of this territory unknown.
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proof of this, by these belts of wampum I dispel all your evil dispositions. The pardon which you solicit for your fault, and the sorrow which you seem to have for it, constrain me to pardon you. Be wiser for the future. As you ask me, I bury this unhappy affair, and I will ask your father Onontio not to keep any remembrance of it. I invite you to reject all the deceitful talk which may be addressed to you, and I invite you in future to hear well the speech of your father Onontio, which I bring to you.'
"Speech of M. the General to the Indians of the Village of St. Yotoc, brought by M. de Celoron with a belt, the 23d of August, 1749:
" 'My children, the friendship I entertain for you, although far away, has induced me to send M. de Celoron to open your eyes and disclose to you the projects which the English are forming in your regard, and that of the territories also which you inhabit. Undoubtedly you are not aware of the establishments that they are thinking of making there which tend to nothing short of your ruin. They conceal from you their idea, which is to build on your territories forts sufficiently strong to destroy you, if I would allow them to do so. I ought then as a kind father who loves his children tenderly, and who, though far away from them, always thinks of their good, to give them notice of the danger which threatens them. You know, my children, that they omitted nothing in the last war I had with them to induce you to declare against me. Happy for you that you did not listen to them, and I am thankful to you for it. Others let themselves be drawn away, I have pardoned some of them, persuaded that they will be more prudent for the future, and will no more listen to these evil spirits who seek only to trouble the land. But to shield you completely from their seduction I have sent to summon them to withdraw immediately from off my territories wherein they never had a right to enter, the kings of France and England having agreed in the treaties of peace, that the English should never come for trade or aught else upon the Beautiful River. I did not wish to employ force on this occasion ; though I had the right to have them pillaged, I notified them peacefully to pay attention ; if another time misfortune befall them, they have only themselves to blame. For you, my children, remain quiet in your wigwams and do not enter into the contentions I may have with the English ; I will take care for all that may be for your advantage. I invite you to come and see me next year. I shall then give you marks of my friendship, and shall put you in such a state as not to regret those whom I remove from my territories. I shall afford you all the assistance which you have a right to look for from a kind father who loves you and will not let you want for anything. Those who will bring you this assistance will not invade your lands nor drive you away from them ; on the contrary, I have given them orders to maintain you therein, and your interests and mine shall always be the same.
" 'A belt.
" ‘For the two years that I have been in the country I have been entirely taken up in finding out the interests of my children, and all that could be of advantage to them. I have learned with regret the affair which transpired between you and the Illinois ; as you are equally my children and I have the heart of a father for you, I charge M. de Celoron whom I send into the villages of the Beautiful River, to carry my speech, and to present you with this belt on my part in order to induce you to become reconciled with your brethren the Illinois. I have taken the same steps with them, having despatched to the commander of that post an order to speak with them on my part, and to tell them to remain quiet. I hope, my children, that you, one and all, will hear my speech with pleasure, and that you will strive to live in peace and harmony as my real and true children. I do not enter into the subject of your quarrel, I am even ignorant as to who is the aggressor ; but no matter how that may be, it is his place to make the necessary advances for a reconciliation, and the offended party should forget the injury received. I shall be
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much obliged to them for so doing, and the more so as I seek only to procure them that which is most advantageous.'
"Whilst we were in council a Chanenous entered with a very frightened look and told the chief that all the nations of Detroit (or the narrows) were coming to fall upon them, and that whilst I was amusing them, they were going to see their villages destroyed. I saw that the Indians were excited ; I asked the cause of it, and having learned it, I calmed their fear and so encouraged them that the council was interrupted but for a short time. After having explained to them the intentions of M. the General, I gave them a cup to drink. They went back to their village. As soon as they were gone, I sent M. de Joncaire to get information with regard to the news that had just arrived. It was not long till he came back and reported to me that it was three Ontarios who had arrived at a village in the territory at a distance of ten leagues from St. Yotoc, and that couriers had set out immediately to bring us the news ; that the Ontarios would not arrive for two days. I conjectured that they were the couriers that M. de Sabrinois sent me to give me notice of the dispositions of the people of Detroit.
"The 24th. The Indians hesitated, after having raised some difficulties, to come and give their answer in the French camp, but seeing that I persisted with firmness in my manner, they came, and here is their answer very badly explained, their interpreter being very ignorant :
" 'Answer of the Indians of St. Yotoc, to the speech of M. the General, the 24th of August, 1749, with six belts of wampum :
" 'My father, we come to tell you that we have listened to the speech of our father Onontio, with great pleasure, that all he has told to us is true and intended for our good, and that we ourselves and our brethren who are here present will conform to it, having but one and the same mind. By these belts of wampum we assure our father Onontio that all who dwell in our village will no more play an evil part and will no longer listen to bad talk. My father, we render you our thanks for wishing to reconcile us with our brethren, the Illinois. We promise you to labor at bringing this about. That speech has afforded much pleasure to our entire village. My father, by these belts of wampum we thank you for the manner in which you have spoken to us ; we encourage you to continue your route, and to animate all your children, so that the land may be at peace for us Chananaous, and we assure you that we shall labor henceforth only in what is right.'
"The 25th. I had all the chiefs assemble, and bestowed on them a present on the part of M. the General, and urged them to keep the promise they had given me. A little while after I summoned the English traders to appear and commanded them to withdraw, making them feel that they had no right to trade or aught else on the Beautiful River. I wrote to the governor of Carolina, whom I fully apprised of the danger his traders would expose themselves to, if they returned there. I was ordered to do this in my instructions, and even to plunder the English, but I was not strong enough for that, the traders having established themselves in the village and being well sustained by the Indians, I would be only undertaking a task which would not have succeeded, and which would only have redounded to the disgrace of the French. The Ontarios, sent by M. de Sabrinois, arrived and brought me two letters in which he informed me that there was nothing in what M. La Naudiere had told me with regard to the dispositions of the Indians of Detroit ; that it was rather the contrary ; for notwithstanding several efforts made by M. Longueuil and himself to urge them to march, they had constantly refused. I gave the couriers some provisions, which were at present very much stinted, and I wrote to M. de Sabrinois and besought him to keep twenty canoes in reserve for me at the foot of the narrows, with provisions for my detachment, against the beginning of October.
"The 26th. I set out at ten in the morning from St. Yotoc ; all the Indians were under arms and fired a salute when I passed before the
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village. The 27th of August I arrived at the White River 15 about six in the evening. I knew that at a distance of three leagues in the country there were cabins of my friends, and that influenced me to pass the night in this place. The 28th, I sent M. Devillier and my son to these cabins in order to tell those Indians to come and speak with me. They brought them back with them, and I induced them to come with me to the Village of the Demoiselle, whither I was going to bring the word of their father Onontio. They gave their consent and asked (to be permitted) to remain till the next day in order to have time to prepare for the journey. There are in this village two cabins of Sonontouans. It is the policy of these nations to have always along with them some (other Indians) who serve as a hostage. I induced one of these Sonontouans who spake Miami very well, to come with me to the Demoiselle, for I had need of him, having no interpreter, though I had to treat with these people on matters of importance.
"The 29th. I wrote to M. Raimond, captain and commander among the Miamis, and besought him to send me the so-called royal interpreter with as many horses as he possibly could, to transport our baggage over a portage of fifty leagues. The 30th the Indians of the White River having arrived, I embarked to gain the Rock River, 16 and at the entrance I had a leaden plate buried, and the arms of the King attached to a tree, of which I drew up an official statement.
"Official statement of the sixth leaden plate, buried at the entrance of the Rock River, the 31st day of August, 1749:
" The year 1749, we, Celoron, Knight of the Royal and Military Order of St. Louis, Captain, commanding a detachment sent by the orders of M. the Marquis de la Galissoniere, Governor-General of Canada, upon the Beautiful River, otherwise called the Ohio, accompanied by the principal officers of our detachment, have buried at the point formed by the right bank of the Ohio and the left bank of Rock River, a leaden plate, and have attached to a tree the arms of the King. In testimony whereof, we have drawn up and signed with Messrs. the officers, the present official statement.'
"The inscription is always the same.
"7th September. This done, I embarked owing to the scarcity of water in this river, it took thirteen days in ascending it."
On the 12th, the Miamis of the Village of the Demoiselle, having learned that Celoron and his followers were to arrive among them, sent four chiefs to meet him. They took pipes of peace to assure him of their good intentions. The water in the Great Miami .was low at this season of the year and about one-half of Celoron's party proceeded by land. The commander himself rode in one of the boats: He was informed of the arrival of the emissaries and at once landed and went through the ceremony of smoking the pipe of peace. Celoron first accepted it. It was then passed to the "officers and the Canadians who," according to the. "Journal," "worn out for a smoke, would have wished that the ceremony had continued longer." Camp was here pitched for the night, the messengers were entertained and on the following day accompanied the expedition.
On the 13th the French arrived at the Village of the Demoiselle. The powerful chieftain of the Miamis who ruled at this village was called by the French La Demoiselle (the young lady) probably in compliment as a bid for his favor. The British called him Old Britain, doubtless in
15 - Doubtless the. Little Miami River. In the Journal of Bonnecamps, under date of August 28, is found this statement: "We encamped at the mouth of Riviere Blanche (White River), where we found a small band of Miamis with their chief, named le Baril (the Barrel). They had established themselves there a short time before and formed a village of seven or eight cabins a league distant from the river. Monsieur de Celoron requested them to accompany him to the Village of la Demoiselle, and they promised to do so."
16 - The Great Miami River.
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recognition of his loyalty to their interests. While the chief was partial to the British he wished to hold the favor of both parties. He was one of the very early diplomatists and politicians of the Ohio country. He accepted presents from the British and the French and professed allegiance to both.
The Village of the Demoiselle, or Pickawillany, was located on the Great Miami near the mouth of Loromie Creek. Bonnecamps declared it an unimportant village but other writers considered it one of the strongholds of the Miami confederacy. Certain it is that both the English and the French considered it important and were eager to control it.
Here Celoron awaited the interpreter he had requested of M. de Raimond. In the meantime he sought to learn from their chiefs whether or not the Miamis would be willing to remove to their ancient village of Quiskakon 17 (probably located on or near the present site of Fort Wayne, Indiana). They did not seem opposed to the proposal. One of the objects of Celoron's expedition was to effect this removal in order that these Miamis might be closer to Detroit and more directly under the control of the French.
Two English traders found in this village were promptly ordered away by Celoron. Others who had spent the summer there had departed earlier with their effects, probably having been warned of the approach of the French.
Celoron waited in vain for the interpreter promised him, until the 17th. He then concluded to wait no longer, but to proceed at once, with the aid of an Iroquois interpreter, who conversed readily in the Miami language. A council was called and the Miami chiefs of the two villages of the Baril and the Demoiselle assembled to hear the message of Celoron. He showed them fine presents which he explained were sent by the governor-general of Canada, and read the following speech which had been brought by him from "M. the General" to be delivered to them :
"My children : The manner in which I behave toward you, despite all you have done to the French whom I sent you to maintain your wives and your children, ought to be a sufficient proof of the attachment which I have for you and the sincerity of my feelings. I forget what you have done to me, and I bury it in the depth of the earth in order to never more remember it, convinced that you have acted only at the instigation of a people whose policy is to trouble the land and destroy the good disposition of those with whom they have relations, and who avail themselves of the unhappy ascendancy which you have let them get over you. They make you commit faults and they incite you to an evil course without their seeming to have any part in it, in order to ruin you in my estimation.
"It is then to enlighten you that I send you my message ; listen carefully to it, and pay attention to it, my children ; it is the word of a father that loves you, and in whose eyes your interests are dear. I extinguish by these two belts of wampum the two fires which you lighted during the last two years, both at the Rock River and at White River. I extinguish them in such a way that not a single spark can escape."
A belt to the Demoiselle and to the Baril.
"My children : I have just told you that these are belts of wampum with which I extinguish the fires that you lighted, both at Rock River and at White River. By these belts I lift you from your mats and I lead you by the hand in order to bring you to Quiskakon, where I light your fire and make it more enduring than ever. It is in this country, my children, that you will enjoy a perfect peace, and where I will be ever at hand to give you marks of my friendship ; it is in this country, my children, that you will enjoy the pleasures of life, it being the place where repose the bones of your ancestors, and those of M. de Vincennes, whom you loved so much and who always governed you in such a way that your
17 - Spelled also Kiskakon.
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affairs were ever in good order. If you have forgotten the counsels which he gave you, these ashes shall recall to you the memory of them ; the bones of your fathers suffer from your estrangement. Have pity on the dead who call you back to your village.
"Follow, along with your wives and your children, the chief whom I will send to bring you my message, and who will again light your fire at Quiskakon in such a manner that it shall no more be extinguished. I will afford you all the assistance which you have a right to expect from my friendship, and remember, my children, that I am doing for you what I have never done for any other nation."
Another speech with four belts of wampum for the Demoiselle, and two for the Baril :
"By these belts of wampum I set a boundary to all passages which lead to the Beautiful River, so that you go there no more, and that the English who are the ringleaders of every evil work may no longer approach this land, which belongs to me. I open for you at the same time an easy road to lead you to Kiskacon, where I will light your fire. I break off all trade with the English, whom I have notified to retire from off my territories ; and if they come back there again they will have reason to be sorry for it."
Two belts of wampum to the Demoiselle, and two to the Baril.
"My children : When you shall have done what I have demanded of you, and which is only for your own advantage, I invite you to come to see me next year, and to receive from myself special marks of my friendship. I have extended the same invitation to all your brethren of the Beautiful River, and I hope that you will, one and all, have courage enough to respond to this invitation, as you ought ; and in order to begin to give you a proof of my friendship, I send these presents to clothe your wives and your children. I add to them gunpowder and bullets, so that they may supply themselves more easily on the journey which you are going to make to Quiskacon. Abandon the land where you are ; it is injurious to you, and avail yourselves of what I do for you."
The council over, every one retired. They carried away the presents to their village where they assembled to deliberate on their answer.
The 18th. About 9 a. m. they came to give their answer.
Answers of the Demoiselle, chief of Miamis, established at the Rock River and of the Baril, established at White River, the 18th of September, 1749, with pipes of peace :
"It is an ancient custom among us when one speaks of agreeable affairs to present, first of all, pipes. We earnestly entreat you to listen to us. We are going to answer what you have asked of us. This pipe is a token of the pleasure which we have in smoking with you, and we hope to smoke the very same pipe with our father next year."
A belt.
"My father : Yesterday, we listened with pleasure to your speech. We have seen clearly that you are come only on a good mission. We have none other but good answers to give you. You have made us recall to memory the bones of our forefathers, who mourn to see us in this place, and who remind us continually of it. You have made us a good road to return to our ancient home, and we thank you for it, my father, and we promise you to return thither immediately after the coming spring. We thank you for the kind words which you have addressed us. We see clearly that you have not forgotten us. Be convinced that we will labor to deal fairly with the Chauanones. We still remember the good advice which M. de Vincennes gave us. My father, you have to treat with people without spirit, and who are, perhaps, unable to answer you as well as you hoped ; but they will tell you the truth, for it is not from the lips that they speak to you, but from the bottom of their heart. You have bid us reflect seriously upon what you told us. We have done so, and we shall continue to do so during the whole winter. We hope to have the pleasure of making you a good speech this spring if the hunting is
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abundant. We will correct our faults, and we assure you, my father, that we will not listen to evil counsel, and that we will pay no attention to the rumors we hear at present."
Answer to the Demoiselle and the Baril in the same council, by M. de Celoron
"I have listened to you, my children, and I have weighed well your words. Whether you may not have understood me, or that you feign not to have done so, you do not answer to what I asked of you. I proposed to you on the part of your father Onontio, to come with me to Kiskakon to light there your fire and to build up your wigwam, but you put off doing so till next spring. I would have been delighted to be able to say to your father Onontio that I had brought you back. That would have caused him great pleasure on account of the interest he takes in all that concerns you. You give me your word that you will return there at the end of the winter. Be faithful then to your promise. You have assured him of this, because he is much stronger than you, and if you be wanting to it, fear the resentment of a father, who has only too much reason to be angry with you, and who has offered you the means of regaining his favor."
Answer to Celoron's speech by the Demoiselle and the Baril
"My father, we shall be faithful in carrying out the promise that we have made you, and at the end of the winter we shall betake ourselves to our ancient habitation, and if the Master of Life favors our hunting, we hope to be able to repair our past faults ; so be convinced that we do not speak from the end of our lips but from the bottom of the heart. We could not at present return whither you would have us go, for the season is too far advanced."
At the conclusion of the council, Celoron detained some of the older chiefs and warriors to determine whether the promise to return to Ouiskakon had been made in good faith. He was assured that they would certainly return in the spring and that the only thing that prevented their return at once was the lateness of the season and the fact that no cabins were built for them. La Demoiselle even promised that he would personally go at once with Celoron to Ouiskakon. However, when the interpreter Rios finally arrived at the village he had a misunderstanding with the old chief, who would have no further conference with the French. He, however, renewed his promise to Celoron to return to Quiskakon next spring.
On the 20th the French broke camp, burned their boats and other property that they could not carry overland., and started northward over the portage to the Miami of the lakes (the Maumee).
Father Bonnecamps thus describes this portion of the journey :
"Our journey by land was only five clays. We were divided into four brigades, each commanded by two officers. We marched in single file, because the narrowness of the path would not permit us to do otherwise. The road was passable, but we found it quite tedious. In my estimation, the journey from la Demoiselle's to the. Miamis might cover thirty-five leagues. Three times we crossed Riviere a la Roche ; but here it was only a f eeble brook, which ran over a few feet of mud. A little more than half-way, we began to skirt the river of the Miamis, which was on our left. We found therein large crabs in abundance. From time to time we marched over vast prairies, where the herbage was sometimes of extraordinary height. Having reached Monsieur Raimond's post, we bought pirogues and provisions ; and, on the afternoon of the 27th, we set out, en route for Detroit."
On the 29th, the expedition arrived at Ouiskakon, at this time in command of M. Raimond. This post is named on the map of Bonnecamp Fort les Miamis, and declared by him to be in very bad condition—"most of the palisades decayed and fallen into ruin." Within were eight miserable huts, "which only the desire of making money could render endurable." The French here numbered twenty-two, almost all of whom
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were afflicted with the ague. The commandant was not satisfied with the location and wished to move the fort to the bank of the St. Joseph's, about two and one-half miles distant. Father Bonnecamps did not have time to view the proposed site but drew a plan for the works which he left with M. Raimond.
On the 20th, Celoron summoned Cold Foot, a Miami chief established at Quiskakon, and in the presence of his officers and the commandant stated what he had said at the council in the Village of the Demoiselle, the assurances of friendship that he had received and the promises that the Miamis of this village would move hither the coming spring. After listening attentively, Cold Foot arose and said :
"I hope I am deceived, but I am sufficiently attached to the interests of the French to say that the Demoiselle is a liar. It is the source of all my grief to be the only one who loves you and to see all the nations of the south let loose against the French."
On the 27th the expedition set out to reach the lake. The canoes furnished were not sufficient to carry all the men, and a portion of them went forward through the forests bordering on the river. They reached Lake Erie October 5th and Detroit the day following. The Indians had access to firewater and were so generally intoxicated that Celoron had to wait two days for their arrival.
On the 9th he embarked for his return, reaching Point Pelee, where he spent the night. After an uneventful voyage over the lake he reached Niagara, which he left on the 22d. He sailed along the southern shore of Lake Ontario and arrived at Fort Frontenac on the 6th of November. He reached Montreal four days later. Here he remained two days, after which he sailed down the St. Lawrence to Quebec and reported to the governor-general of Canada the Marquis de la Jonquiere, who had succeeded Galissoniere to this important office.
In the concluding part of this report Celoron bore testimony that almost everywhere in the long journey he found the Indians favorable to the British. A few excerpts from this report will emphasize this conclusion better than a paraphrase :
"All that I can say is, that the nations of these localities are very badly disposed towards the French, and are entirely devoted to the English. I do not know in what way they could be brought back. If violence were to be used, they would be notified of it, and would take to flight. * * * If our traders were sent there for traffic, they could not sell their merchandise at the same price as the English sell theirs, on account of the many expenses they would be obliged to incur. Moreover, I think it would be dangerous to make any easier conditions with the nations who inhabit the Beautiful River, than those made at the other posts. Detroit, Miamis, and the rest would abandon our ancient posts and perpetuate the nations on the Beautiful River, who are within the grasp of the English government. However, some persons have been sent there these last years ; but there were fewer English then, and they had not so much credit as they have today ; and, if the French traders will tell the truth, they will agree that their profits will prove just as trade made with the English by the exchange of furs. The raccoons, the otters and the pecos 18 command a very low price in England, while with us they are very high ; and, besides, only these furs are known to come from that quarter, but never beavers ; this last is given in exchange to the English. A solid establishment would be useful in the colony, 19 but there are a great many inconveniences in being able to sustain it, on the score of the difficulties of the ways for transporting provisions and the other suitable
18 - The translator is unable to identify this animal. 19 - By "colony" Celoron doubtless referred to the Ohio country, the border of which he had hastily explored, though at that time it certainly had few of the characteristics of a colony--much less of a French colony. He probably had in mind the recommendation of Galissoniere to establish a colony of 10,000 French peasants in the valley of the Ohio.
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requisites. I am in doubt as to the feasibility of the undertaking without incurring enormous expenses."
In equally informing language Father Bonnecamps, when the expedition had reached the Riviere a la Roche, 20 recorded his impressions and conclusions :
"This Beautiful River—so little known to the French, and, unf ortunately, too well known to the English—is, according to my estimate, 181 marine leagues from the mouth of the Yjadakoin (or Tjadakoin) to the entrance of Riviere a la Roche. In all this distance, we have counted twelve villages established on its banks ; but if one penetrate into the small continent enclosed between lake Erie and the Ohio, one will find it, according to what has been told us, much more populous. We have been specially told of a certain village situated on the River Kaskaske, in which, we are assured, there are nearly 800 men. Each village, whether large or small, has one or more traders, who have in their employ engages for the transportation of peltries. Behold, then, the English already far within our territory; and, what is worse, they are under the protection of a crowd of savages whom they entice to themselves, and whose number increases every day. Their design is, without doubt, to establish themselves there ; and, if efficacious measures be not taken as soon as possible to arrest their progress, we run very great risk of seeing ourselves quickly driven from the upper countries, and of being obliged to confine ourselves to the limits which it may please those gentlemen to prescribe to us."
This journey, extending over about three thousand miles, was a notable one when we consider the difficulties attending it and the time it was made. The account in the Journal of Celoron if not especially graphic is a truthful presentation of conditions on the Ohio River one hundred and seventy-five years ago, long before a permanent white settlement was made at Marietta. The Indians, while they still possessed the Ohio Country, had felt in almost every village, the influence of contact with white traders and artisans. They had acquired a desire for articles of use and ornament which had been brought to them from the Atlantic coast colonies. Clothing, cooking utensils, axes, tomahawks, knives, guns, and numerous dazzling trinkets were taken in exchange for furs. Intoxicating drinks were eagerly sought and wrought havoc wherever they were dispensed. Blacksmiths were in demand to repair their guns and other implements of iron and steel. New desires and appetites had been fostered by the English who ministered to them so successfully that they had won the favor and dependence of the Indians of the Ohio Valley in the middle of the eighteenth century.
Socially the English could not surpass the French in winning native favor. The former, as a rule, were not willing to meet the Indian on the level of equality. Nevertheless they seemed at this time to live rather peaceably in the villages where they plied their trade and not infrequently took unto themselves Indian wives to while away monotony in the wilderness, but -it was chiefly through economic influences that they had gained their ascendancy.
It is rather remarkable that less than a decade later conditions should be reversed and the favor of the Indian tribes should shift from the British to the French when the clash of arms between these two traditional foes should be transferred to America.
THE EXPEDITION OF CHRISTOPHER GIST
Some confusion results in the early history of the territory northwest of the Ohio River and the states formed therefrom through the use of the same name to designate different organizations, persons, places and events. We have two Ohio companies, two treaties at Fort
20 - The Great Miami. |