Cherokee phoenix. (New Echota [Ga.]) 1828-1829, April 03, 1828, Image 3

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i •? -irp iff ; w • •'• * Mother person ha? been killed at Sumach.— It is to be Wished thkt the officers ol this District were more vigilant and more at tentive to. their duties. Unless they do ■peedily go to work, they will make themselves liable to public reprehension; and these frequent thefts and murders will go to confirm the world in the opinion that e are still savages. We hear it reported, that the General Jovernment has found exceptions in the [Constitution of this Nation, and that the (.Agent has been directed to call a Council (■and point out the errors. It is not our o- ] pinion that the Cherokees will be prohibit- j «d from enforcing their constitution, which Us intended for the Government of their ovvn • people. It is probable that the General » .Government has seen some faults in it ■which the framers unintentionally commit ted, and which is desirable to be rectified. If so, we hope our principal men will not je obstinate, but duly consider the relation | which exists between the United States and the Cherokees, and make such alterations, as they will, after mature consideration, Jiscover to be wrong. Under thehead, Congress, will appear Mr. bods motion in the House of Represen- tives, to inquire, by what authority Col. Kenney took upon himself to depose a Ch ; ef, acknowledged as such by the Creek dians. When we heard of this instance if power exercised by Mr. McKenney, we :ould not but consider it oppressive, umvar- \rantable and despotic, marking the way to ;h< time, when the liberties of the Indians fpwill gradually he taken away from them.— ’tTo this result, many are now aiming. It ;4s true the person who was deposed, is a ^Cherokee, yet we doubt whether there is 3%ny treaty existing between the United St ates and the Creek Indians, which will jgo to vindicate Mr. McKenney, and debar nnv private Cherokee from acting as Secre tary for any oftheir Indian brethren. The ! person in question acted as such, from the commencement of the Creek controversy, ntn 1 was well known in that capacity, in ashington, by Mr. McKenney, and the ecretary of War. Yet no objection was nade by the Executive. If there was any 'eason then existing, that Indians should ot befriend each other in times of emer- ;cncies, why was it not made known?— It is even said, unless we are very much listaken, that large sums of money were fl'ered to this “ impertinent Cherokee” and is associate to purchase their “imperti- lenoe,” or in other words, to present them much, if they would influence the Creek ielegation fo sell their Country. There as no crime then to be interfering with Creeks, on the part of the United States. • e rather think this late assumption of wer by the Agent of the United States ^jfianot be easily defended from the charge ytf inconsistency. We have no evidence that 'this Cherokee lias behaved impertinently. -This we know, that it was owing in a great casure, to his exertions, that the base eaty, called the treaty of the Indian Springs, was abrogated, and another more dvantageous treaty for the Creeks substi- uted, &, thus the U. S. saved from recogniz- g acts obtained by unwarrantable means, if this is impertinence, as Mr. Lumpkin ould no doubt call it, it is a pardonable CONGRESS. SOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. INDIANS. The House then took up the follow- ng resolution, offered yesterday by Mr. WOODS; Resolved, That the President of the United States be, and he hereby is, equested to inform this House, (if jot, in his opinion, incompatible with | e public interest, by what authority ‘homas L. McKenney informed the reek nation of Indians, that no com- mnieation of any sort would be re vived from them, if a certain man re ared to in his letter to the Secretary f war, of the 29th November, 1827. ad any agency in it, or what were the oasons for breaking said individual, nd of depriving him of his authority; pd in what capacity said individual as acting for said Indians; and to mmunicate to this House the agree- ent made with said Indians, referred in said letter to the Secretary of Var, with such information respect- 15 the same ns he may think proper 0 communicate. ■ The resolution having been read— Mr. M’lvne asked for tKe question consideration, which was carried in c affirmative. Mr. Woods said, some misunder- amling seemed to prevail, as to the ljects which he wished to attain by e resolution. It is stated in the re- ort made to the Secretary of War, by Col. M’K<?imey, that he was unable to muice a treaty, or to effect the ob ject of his mission to the Greek lad. ans, until he assumed and exercise 1. the power ot depriving one of the Chiefs, or head-men of the nation m his authority. Alter he had thus in terposed his power, and preventeu that chief from acting lor the nation, he was able to accomplish his object. Mr. Woods went on to say that lie had, on a former occasion, stated that the system pursued by the Govern ment, in regard to the Indians, was one of fraud and perfidy, lie wished to obtain afull statement of the facts in this case. This was not the only in stance of the kind. He thought we had acted towards these people in a manner unbecoming the character of our Government, and contrary to the principles of justice and right. We pretend to negotiate—to make trea ties, and to enter into compacts with the Indians, while on our part it is lit tle less than a system of fraud and violence. The resolution he had of fered was expressed in the language of the agent himself. He says, in the document referred to, and which had been communicated to this House, that he “ broke him on the spot, by anncuncing, in the name of the Presi dent of the United States, that for the reasons there assigned, no communi cation, of any sort, would be received by the President'if that man had any agency whatever in it.” If the indi vidual who was thus deposed belong ed to the nation, and was one of the chiefs or head-men, he was at a loss to know what right Colonel M'Kenney had to depose him, and to deprive him of his authority to act as the agent of the Indians. He wished to know il the agent of the United States, who assumed this authority, had the sanc tion of the Executive. The resolu tion is merely one of inquiry. It calls on the President to communicate the facts, if not incompatible with the public interest; and to lay before this House the treaty made with these In dians, by Colonel M Kenney. He had seen a copy of what he supposed to be this treaty in the papers of this morning. The subject would, proba bly, he brought before the House in the form of a bill, or in some othei way, & he was desirous to have all the facts properly before the House, that they might be prepared to act upon the subject. Mr. M Lean said it was not be cause he was opposed to the resolu tion itself that he called for the ques tion of consideration, but he was a- ware that it would lead to a protract ed debate, and a useless consumption of time. If his colleague had atten tively read the documents, he would have seen that Colonel M’Kenney said that, being sent by the Govern ment, he had taken on himself the re sponsibility of breaking this vffiief, and he gives his reason for taking this step. Here Mr. M’Lean read an extract from the report of Col. M’Kenney. He had previously given an account of certain persons among the Creeks, who had before interposed; and after demonstrating their cupidity, he broke this man. lie expressly says that he had no authority for this act; why then ask the President, on what au thority this was done? The papers of this morning contained a publica tion of the treaty. The gentleman, therefore; has all the information which he desires. He knew of no good result which could arise from this resolution. Mr. Lumpkin said, without any in quiry into the facts, he had no doubt that the agent, Mr. M Kenney, com plained of, was either one of the imper tinent Cherokees, or a lenegado white man, interfering in what did not con cern them. The agents of the Gene ral Government could never be able to carry their views into effect, or to act with any efficiency, unless they as sume the commanding tone which was properly assumed by Col. M’Kenney on this occasion. Every man who is acquainted with the Indians, knows I hat to do any thing with them, it is necessary to ass ime a decided char acter, and to speak in positive and commanding terms. Col. M’Kenney new he could do nothing unless he did this. He really hoped that the Mouse would never condescend to ap proach the Executive with such lit tle inquiries as the conduct of an In dian Chief- Our humanity, Christian ity, and all the benevolent feelings of uir humanity, are appealed to on all occasions, by those who consume a re at portion of the time of the House, in order to enfor e their opinions on otherp. All that they accomplish, however, is to shew that they do not .idcrsiunu liie character ot mesc lu- liiaus: uml that their efforts and ob jects are only calculated tor sectional and home consumption. Mr. WicKLiki E moved to amend the resolution, by adding the loilow- iug words, winch Mr. AV oods accept ed as a modification 01 the original resolution: ‘ And also, a detailed statement ol the expenses of the several Missions to the Indian tribes sent, under the authority of the Vfai Department, during the years 1826 and 7, specify ing the object of the expenditure, and the persons employed. ” Mr. Woods said the gentleman horn Georgia had stated that the •agents ol the Government must have decision of character, or they would find il inn possible to effect the objects we havt) in view. When the great question respecting the policy to be pursue/! by the Government, 111 relation to tile Indians, shall come before the ilousp, he would he prepared to meet genye- men on the subject of the treatmbnt of Indians; and it would then be de cided whether those who thought with him, in regard to the measures pur sued by our Indian agents, or iliose who entertained the opinions of the gentleman from Georgia, were the true friends of the Indians. The House had been t old by the gentleman, that an agent of the General Govern ment ought to have and exercise the power to depose Indian Ciiefs. Mr. Lumpkin, in explaaation, said he did not contend that agents had a right to depose Indian Chiefs, lie itad said this man was an impertinent, interfering Cherokee, or a w hite re- negado. Mr. Woods said he did not wish to misrepresent what the gentleman had said. Tiie power is claimed to de pose these interfering and impertinent agents—hall' breeds, as they are call ed. Sir, we do not extent to these half breeds any of our privileges—ue do not give them the rights of citizens; we treat them as Indians, but we are frequently told, in the language of complaint, of the influence which these men exercise over the Indians It seems that they have by their in telligence, been able to defeat the designs of the agents of the General Government—not the policy of tne Gove nment itself, but the interested and sectional views which certain gentlemen seem to entertain, lie dis claimed all sectional views. But when our agents & the officers of the Govern ment have darling schemes auU ou jects in view, they are disposed to stop at notiiing which vviii enable them to remove the obstructions in their way. it is time for us to obtain some information ou this subject He had called for this information.— He wished to know who tins man was. Was he a Creek Chief? li as he a Cherokee; or a white renagado?- There is no evidence before us on the subject. We have not even a state ment of the reasons which induced the agent of our Government to exercise this extraordinary power. He sup posed the individual was a chief, or head man of the Creek Indians, or at least recognized by them as such: and that he could not be deprived of his authority in this way by our agent. Whenever we are unable, said Mr. W. to effect our wishes by making use of the authority possessed by the Indi an chiefs, we exercise our power & de prive them oftheir authority & influ ence over their nation. The Indians themselves have been compelled to break and turn out the corrupt chiefs whom we had brought over to our in terests, & they have put in their places intelligent young men, who are able to meet our agents, and to resist their plans. Yes, sir, they complain loudly of the influence which these young men have acquired by their intelligence and, they complain that the Govern ment has interfered with their policy by endeavoring to civilize the Indians. VVe have even heard on this floor, that the policy of the government in edu cating the Indians, and teaching them the arts of husbandry, and furnishing them with the means of living by agri culture, was an interference with the rights of our own citizens. He said he would not pursue the sub ject farther. The treaty which he had seen in the paper of this morning pleased him. It was better than he could have expected, when obtained by such means. But this is no justi fication of the means employed. He wished <0 know if we were still, with out inquiry or examination, to pursue ff’is ionise and snnetion Ibis monkey of justice. As far as it depended ou him, said Mr. W. he would expose it ile would, to the extent ot his leeui anilities, lend his aid to break down ihe whole system, whii h is proilut ti\e of, and at tiie same time sustained by, so uiuch fraud and injustice. Mr. Thompson enquired if the res olution caiJed for the name of the per son dismissed, and his foimcr place of esalence. Mr. Woods replied'in the negative. Mr. Thompson suggested an a- mendment to that purpose. Mr. Woods accepted the amend ment as a modification. Mr. Willi ans of N. C. said he saw no practical effect which could result ordered, respectable community.— tins sui.e 01 1 bin.s, ana with sucli . prospect beloie them, Governor ffoisylii has issued a proclaim 1 n, 1 no object oi winch is obvi us it is to breah up Ibis tribe chive them u- way alter the Greeks to the wile, r- ncss, crush every elloi t towards cr.i!*- zillion, and destroy all the hopes of improvement winch have thus fur been entertained 111 behalf of this in jured people.-—cV. JK. uai. «idv. Tom the resolution. The treaty was published, and nothing more could he altered. H c moved to lay the resolution on the table—Ayes 70—Noes 54. The resolution was then laid on the table. FOR Tim CHEROKEE PHOENIX. Officers, under any Government, are intended toperfoim the duties for which they were created. The la borer should he worthy of his hire.— Malevolent motives are sometimes as cribed, to the undeserving of such censure, when in tiie honesty 01 mi.id, they find it a duty to complain ol pub lic servants. The Marshals of this Nation were appointed in lieu of our light horse Companies, who it was be lieved, would render more and exact service to our country. This calcu lation has lost its power <0 delude the people any longer. Our Marshals are asleep on the wati h tower, and have no disposition to awake from their slumbers, unless it be at the approach of our Legislative Cm 11 il. to get their forty ddllais for services expected of them hut not rendered They are like drones in a Bee-hive, useless to the Nation. The duties of the officers as required ol tin m, arc- contained in a law passed 11th Nov 1824 viz: “The several Marshals, Sheriffs Constables, shall take . ognizance ot every violation of law within their respective hounds of dist ricts, and to give information of, and bring to jus tice. according to law, such person or persons so offending; and should any of the aforesaid officers neglect to bring to justice any transgressor of law after having been duly informed of such trangression, such officers, upon conviction before any of the district courts, shall be subject to pay a fine, to be assessed by the court, the fine not to exceed one hundred dollars, and not less than five dollars and the officer or officers so neglecting, shall be subject to be removed from office, at the discretion of the National Coun cil ” The Marshal of Chattooga, instead of attend! g to his duties within his bounds, is living at his e; so in Chick- amauga District. 70 or 80 miles from the seat of justice of the district of which he is an officer. The Marshal of Cooscwattee has taken a journey towards the west, to the Arkansas ,or to the Texas, and we do not know whether he is still in the land of the living or not. But it is needless to particularize any farther. Thieves are again rising in con tempt of half breed officers, in spite of our Marshals, and Sheriffs, and Con stables. May the next Legislature notice their indolence, and discount their wages. If we wish to have our property secure, and criminals punish ed, our wishes will be unrealized, so long as these officers remain in neglect of duty, and adhere to the policy of picking money flora the National pocket without rendering the requir ed service. I may be excused in the opinion that the Light horse Compa nies were the host and most efficient officers for vigilance, and were better adapted to keep down the thieves of the country, and to inflict punish ment on their naked backs. But fine times now for rogues. OAKFUSKIE. Jjistressing Shipreck.—In the ,/cuJt nal uu iJuiiC, 01 the 18th December we find ihe following particular of the distressing shipreck of the Amer ican hiig Lydia, Capt. Sylvia, bound to this port from Cork.—,V. T. Jldv. , Havre, 18th Dec.—The crew of this vessel, to the number of 36, ar rived this morning, by the Jean Bap tiste, Capt. Auburt, who took tin in oil’at sea the 28th November. The statement of Capt. Sylvia is subjoined. The Lydia sailed, from Cork on the 13th October for New-York. 1Gi li was overtaken by a storm which split his sails. O11 31st another storm, in which the mainmast was carried a- way, the pumps choked, and two of the best hands disabled. 4th Nov. fell in with ship Corinthian, of Baltic more, bound to Lima, who refused us _ all succor, though informed that each one on board was reduced to ah ounce of laid bread per 21 hours — Fortunately the s: me day fell in v. itli •the French ship Panurga, from Charleston to Havre, from whom we received some sails, and a few provis ions. When we reached the 63 deg. of long, the mate was no longer able to work. 13th Nov. spoke brig Ospray from Salem hound to Boston freni Gibraltar, from whom we received a little oread and flour. 21st lost our other most, and (lie vessel became unmanageable. Every body being exhausted by fatigue and want, des pair was visible in every face, the provisions were exhausted—a dog then served for our food for three days; this last resource consumed, and fa mine staring 11s in the face, all I ho Is were turned to another horrible re source. The exhausted & miserable wretches whose strength had foiled them, became the victims of these who could yet work at the pumps !! * In this desperate situation, Heaven sent to our relief on the evening of the 2Sth, the French brig Jean llaptisldi, which restored hope to our worn out. spirits. About was sent to us. and two of our passengers returned in her to communicate to the commander' our frightful situation. M. Aubert said he was bound from Charleston to Havre, and would take us all on board. —we were 36—but when, in spite of the rough weather, the women and children were safely transported to the French brig, the captain said that having a long route yet before him, he could not burden hiuiself with so many people, but would scud provis ions and sails to those left on hoard. The boat returned with this news, and a scene of terrible despair ensued. The separation of mothers from chil dren, and brother from brother, seem ed more terrible than death itself; and as the brig prepared to make sail, the most pierei ig cries of despair wore ut tered from both vessels. The generous Frenchman, touched by the scene, and listening rather to the dic tates of human nature than of pru dence, (since he only had on hoard die necessary allowance for his own crew,) resolved to receive all in his vessel; and each sailor emulating the exam ple of his captain, shared with the shipwrecked sufferers his bottle and his bread. To this generous devoted ness do we owe our existence. Jl Second Troup.—Iiis Excellency Coventor Forsyth, of Georgia, ap pears to possess a full portion of the spirit of his predecessor, in the office of chief magistrate of the above men tioned state. It is well known that the Cherokee Indians in the state of Georgia, have made such advances in civilization and the arts, as to have established over themselves a regular form of government, with tribunals of justice &c. and that they are making rapid advances in every species of im provement in civilized life. Among other things they have established ?•■ bools, and a printing press and bid fair, in a short time, to become a well Judge'Breckenhridge in reprimand ing a criminal, among other hard names, called him a scoundrel. Tiie prisoner replied. “Sir, T am not sir great a scoundrel as your honor * takes me to be.”—“Put your words closer together,” replied the Judge. AGENTS FOR THE CHEROKEE PHCEN1X. Application has been maile to a number of Gentlemen, in different parts of the Unit ed States, toacl as Agents for this work; We hoar, as yet, of only the following w ho* have consented. Hf.np.y Hii 1., Eso. Treasurer of the A; B. C. F. M. Boston, Mass. Georgf M. Tkacy, Agent oflhe A. Br C. F. M. New York. Pollard &. Converse, Richmond, Va„ Rev. James Campbell, Beaufort, S. C, Col. George Smith, Statesville, W. T„ Besides the above; Mr. Thus. R. Goi an itinerant Gentleman, residing lately iu Troy, N. Y. has rendered u< much service, and will ad iu wtUre a* our Agejjt v