Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

f* cwy CHEROKEE PHOJNIX. VOL. I. NEW ECHOTA, WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 17, 1828. NO. 29. EDITED BY ELIAS BOUDINOTT. PRINTED WEEKLY BY ISAAC H. HARRIS, FOR THE CHEROKEE NATION. At $2 50 if paid in advance, $3 in six months, or $3 50 if paid at the end of tfie year. To subscribers who can read only the Cherokee language the price will be $2,00 iki advance, or $2,50 to be paid within the year. Every subscription will be considered as continued unless subscribers give notice to the contrary before the commencement of a new year. Any person procuring six subscribers, and becoming responsible for,the payment, shall receive a seventh gratis. Advertisements will be inserted at seven ty-five cents per square for the first inser tion, and thirtyrsevqn and a half cents for each continuance; longer ones in propor tion. i CP All letters addressed to the Editor, post paid, will receive due attention. OWy Iif Jt D IiSiJEC*GJT. V0ALX6t>.I T.'Mfl* V-V* JIirfBAU I-4ot>.I. bsjie juicstuioey kta d^p o’ojb.j fc-4<».l, TGTZ TEiMO-J'’ D0.J>S>c®I-cri).J. TCTZ tfLP Tdao«A TB D0J»5M)I‘0®a, KT d?4 o’ojb.i F4<>5)Ji. djj>%<*>ez tb yw D0J*«)P'<»a, 0-yjlT D^P O^ejEU ewyz o»a,R aht5iia<»y, wp*v» d?-o OP0JBU I»4i»a TCTZ TEiSSOMr 5 DO" JJSxHfriSUL KTJIZ D£P ytv (fill O’SUB.A" IMR DOJiScSH-oi).*. AGENTS FOR THE CHEROKEE PHCENIX. The following persons are authorized to receive subscriptions and payments for the Cherokee Phoenix. Henry Hill, Esq. Treasurer of the A B. C. F. M. Boston, Mass. George M. Tracy, Agent of the A. B C. F. M. New York. Rev. A. D. Edhy, Canandaigua, N. Y. Thomas Hastings, Utica, N. Y. Pollard & Converse, Richmond, Va. Rev. James Campbell, Beaufort, S. C. William Moultrie Reid, Charleston, S. C. Col. George Smith, Statesville, W. T. William M. Combs, Nashville Ten. Rev. Bennet Roberts—Powal Me. Mr. Thos. R. Gold, (an itinerant Gen tleman.) Jeremiah Austil, Mobile Ala. [continued.] WASHINGTON AND THE CHERO- KEES. My Children of the Cherokee Nation! attend!—In a former interview soon after your arrival, esteeming you the representation of your whole nation, I received you with open arms gnd an hearty welcome. I then referred you to communicate freely all you had to say to General Knox the Secretary of War, and I am glad to learn that you have fully disclosed all the things which you had in your hearts to say; and he has reported the same to me. I am highly satisfied with the confi dence you repose in me, and in the United States as your friends and pro tectors. We shall indeed rejoice in being the instruments of the Great Master of Breath, to impart to you and your whole Nation, all the happiness of which your situati«i will admit. To teach you to cultivate the earth and to raise your own bread as we do ours —to raise cattle—to teach your chil dren such arts as shall be useful to them, and to lead you by degrees from one information to another, in order not only to better your situation on this earth, but by enabling your minds to form a more perfect judgment of the great works of nature, to lead you ‘to a more exalted view of the Great Fa ther of the Universe. Rest therefore upon the United States, as your great security against nil injury. But in order to receive the. good de signed for you, it will be your duty .upon all occasions to be peaceable— to be kind to the whites—and above all, not to indulge resentment upon a- ny supposed injury, but rather apply to the United States or their Agent for redress. My Children*--Yon have mentioned something about your past grievances. We too have had causes of complaint on our parts, but we are desirous of burying deep under ground all past evils. We will now consider the treaty made at Holstein, near the mouth of French Broad, on the second day of July last, as llie bond of our union.— Adhere to that treaty on your part, as we shall do on ours. You have asked whether we have authorized Governor Blount to make that treaty, he being a Carolinian? In answer to your question we tell you now that Governor Blount is the Agent of the United States, and that he will always speak truly to you, and you must depend upon what he shall say to you on our behalf. Respect him therefore and love him for my sake, and 1 will answer that he shall conduct himself as your friend. When he shall send lo you that he is ready to run the lines according to the treaty, attend to what he shall say and repair to him immediately. It is very important to you as well as the whites that the boundary should be known so that no bad people tres pass in future on your gsounds. My Children—Attend to me now, for I shall reply direnly to the objects which you have communicated as the cause ofj our journey. You ask, firstly, that you should have a greater sum each year for your lands than was stipulated in the treaty of Holstein. Governor Blount told you truly that he could not give more than one thou sand dollars yearly for the lands you relinquished; because lie was limited to that sum. But my Children, as you have re quested five hundred dollars more, and as the United States and myself are desirous of affording you every proof of our friendship, we comply with your request; and you shall according ly, receive suitable goods to the a- mount of one thousand five hundred dollars, yearly. lou ask, secondly, that you should take with you goods to the amount of one year’s allowance. This request is also granted, and you shall have the goods accordingly. \ou ask, thirdly, that the white people who have settled to the south-' ward ol the new line which divides the waters ol the Tennessee from those running into Little River, should, be removed. I answer that the people shall be removed as soon as the line is run. You ask, fourthly, that a person shall be sent, to reside in your nation who shall he your Counsellor and pro tector, in behalf of the United States. I shall also comply with your re quest in this instance, and I nave ac cordingly appointed this Gentleman, Leonard Shaw ipresenting him at the same time,) to return with you and reside in the Nation. He is a man of knowledge, and is desirous of being serviceable 4© you in teaching; you and your children useful arts. Is he ac ceptable to you? and will you protect and comfort him and follow his ad vice? You have asked, fifthly, that wo shall make no settlements at the Mus cle Shoals on the Tennessee. Be assured my Children, we shall not make any settlements at that place, which we understand to be the hunt ing grounds of several of the southern Nations, without their consent. It is however proper that you'should agree among yourselves about your own boundaries, so that there be no dispute in future on that account. It is proper also that you should un derstand that the United States have stipulated by treaty with the Chicka- saws, to establish a post at the Occo- chappo or Bear’s Creek below the Muscle Shoals. This 'ground the Chickas&ws stated as solely belonging to them. They asserted this at tne treaty of Hopewell, when a considera ble part of your Nation was present, and it was not denied on-your part. And lastly it is proper that you should know, that the *bject of the United States, is not to mike a settle ment there for the purpoie of hunting or clearing your lands, bit to prevent bad white people from diing it, and that you may obtain goodscheaply un der the protection of the United States. It. is the Genera! Government who will be present there and not a disorderly set of people. But notwith standing that these are tie objects of the United States, yet a trading post will not be established there if it be disagreeable to the red people. Con sult therefore among yourselves and with your neighbours, when you get back to your nation, and let me know your wishes on this subject. You have asked, sixthly, for two In terpreters, who shall be sworn to com municate all things faithfully which shall pass between the United States and your Nation; and you have point ed out James Carey, vho is present, as a proper person for «e Interpreter, and after your return you will let Governor Blount know whom your Nation will choose for tie other. In conformity therefore to your re quest, I appoint Jamei Carey one In terpreter and leave it to the Nation to nominate the other. I have ordered that you should be well clothed yourselvei; and that you should also earry home some clothing for your families besides other person al presents of Medals a»d Rifles, which you have received. I have besides ordered personal presents of a similar nature to be pro vided and sent by Mr. Shaw to be de livered in the name of the United States to the Little Turkey, the Badger, the Dragging Canoe, John Watts, Katakiskee, the Hanging Maw, the Breath, the Boots, the Black Fox, the Thigh, the Glass, and Dick of the look out Mountain who I learn are the principal Chiefs of your Nation. You will understand that all these presents are in addition to the annual allowance to your Nation, which al lowance is the public property, and to be distributed in the most fair manner upon your arrival at home in the pres ence of the Little Turkey and your other great Chiefs. And I am sorry you have been detained here so long, but the Great Spirit above having cov ered the waters with ice and the ground with snow our vessels nor wag gons could not pass, nor could your goods be transported, this you have seen and will be able to declare to your people. You haveijmentioned one Bowles, who has caused disturbances among the Creeks—my Children, believe what I say to you concerning that man —he is an impostor and a deceiver and means no good either to the white or red people and therefore ought not to be suffered to reside among the In dians. My Children—You may be told when you get back to your Nation, if you ligve not, heard it already, that battle has been fought between the white people, and the hostile Indians living at the Miama Towns and on the Wabash north west of the Ohio, and such others as they could draw to their aid; and that our people were beaten with considerable loss; and you may be told too by some of these Indians, who probably may visit your nation, that this dispute has arisen from at tempts of ours to take away their lands. That a battle has been fought; that we have lost many men and were oblig ed to retreat at that time is true. But that the dispute is about land is false. We neither claim nor do we want to possess any land beyond the boundary, which has been established between us and those Nations of Indians whose right itjwas to fix it, and who did it by three different treaties. All we have asked and all we require is that our frontier people may live undisturbed in their persons and properties; and these dispositions have been commu nicated to them in various messages I and by every means in our power, be fore we marched any forces against them, and even after they had at dif ferent times between the close of the war with Great Britain and the march of the troops under General Harmen killed wounded and carried into cap tivity, one thousand live hundred of our people and more than two thou sand of our Horses. This iny Children is the truth, you have it from my own mouth; and I will not deceive you. But hearken fur ther to my words—though we were unsuccessful in the last battle from causes which are not necessary to mention, yet if these unfriendly Indi ans do not now come forward and make peaee with this country on the terms I have mentioned and which are the terms of equity and justice, the for.ee that will be sent against them in future will be able to cut them off from the face of the earth. Losing an hundred a thousand or even ten thousand men would not be missed in this country. But such a loss would destroy the whole of these Indian Nations which are at war with us. Look through the streets of Phila delphia, and behold the number of people! and what are these when compared with the whole number in the United States? Why not more than one leaf is to the whole number of those which grow on a tree. Had you travelled to this place by land, in stead of coming by water, you would have been an eye witness of the truth of this observation, and even then you would not have seen half the extent of the United States which are now join ed together and will act as one man, and all must resent what is done to a part. I mention these matters to you my Children and friends, that all bad Indians may be acquainted with it and know what must be the consequence of waging an unjust war against the United States, or injuring the proper ty.of any of its citizens. My Children—There are several other matters, which General Knox the Secretary of War will speak about to you in my behalf and which you must attend to. But I shall subscribe my name to this talk which shall be written in your book, in order to be preserved a- mong you as a witness of our transac tions together, and to which you may have recourse in future. This book you will sacredly pre serve and not suffer any thing to be written therein, but in tile presence of the United States or their Agent who is Governor Blount, and under him Mr. Shaw. In this book the treaty between the United States and the Cherokees will be written together with your speech es here, and this answer thereto. Besides this manner of recording our proceedings, I confirm all I have said to you in your own method, by a White Belt as the emblem of the puri ty of our hearts towards you. I shall also in answer to the Messa ges and Belts brought by you, send particular Messages and Belts by Mr. Shaw to the Creeks, the Choctaws and the Chickasaws—I consider their interest and the interest of the United States as the same, and shall accord ingly treat them as our firm friends and children. Given under my hand at the city of Philadelphia this third of February in the year of our Lord one thousand se veil hundred and ninety two.' GO. WASHINGTON. From the National Gazette. Extract from the second volume of Dr. Goodman's American Natural History. THE BEAVER. The general-aspect of the Beaver at first view would remind one of a large rat, and seen at a little distance, it might be readily mistaken for the common rnusk-rat. But the greater size of the beaver, the thickness and breadth of its head, and its horizontal ly flattened, broad and scaly tail, ren der it impossible to mistake it for any other creature when closely examin ed. In its movements, both on shore and in the water, it also closely re sembles the musk-rat, having the same quick step, and swimming with great er vigor aud celerity, either on the surface, or in the depths of the wa ter. In a state of captivity or insultation, the beaver is a quiet or rather stupid animal, about as much intelligence as a tamed badger or any other quadrup ed which can learn to distinguish its feeder, come when called, or grow familiar with the inmates of the house where it is kept. It is only i/f»£ state of nature that the beaver displays any of those singular modes of acting which have sp long rendered the spe cies celebrated: these may be sum med up in a statement of the manner in which they secure a sufficient depth of water to prevent it from being fro zen to the bottom, and their mode of constructing the huts in which they they pass the winter. They are not particular in the site they select for the establishment of their dwellings hut if in a lake or pond, where a dam is not required, they are careful to build where the water is sufficiently deep. In stand ing water, however, they have not the advantage afforded by a current for the transportation of their supplies of wood, which, when they build on a running stream, is always cut higher up than the place of their residence, and floated down. The materials used for the construc tion of their dams are the trunks and branches of small birch, mulberry, willow, poplar, &c. They begin to cut down their timber for building early in the summer, but their edi fices are not commenced unlil about the middle or latter part of August, and are not completed until the be ginning of the cold season. The strength of their teeth and their per severance in this work may be fairly estimated by the size of the trees they cut down. Dr. Best informs us that he has seen a mulberry tree, eight inches in diameter, which had been gnawed down by the beaver.— We were shown, while on the banks of the Little Miami river, several stumps of trees, which had evidently been felled by these animals, of at least five or six inches in diameter.— These are cut in such a manner as to fall into the water, and then floated towards the site of the dam or dwel lings. Small shrubs, &c. cut at a distance from the water, they drag with their teeth to the stream, and then launch and tow them to the place of deposit. At a short distance above a beaver dam the number of trees which have been cut down appears truly surprising, and the regularity of the stumps which are left, might lead persons unacquainted with the habits of our animal to believe that the clear-* ing was the result of industry. The fighre of the dam varies accor ding, to circumstances. Should the current be very gentle, the dam is carried nearly straight across; but when the stream is swiftly flowing, it is uniformly made with a considerable curve, having the convex part opposed to the current. Along with the trunks and branches of trees they intermin gle mud and stones, to give greater security, and when dams have been long disturbed and frequently repair ed, they acquire great solidity, and their power of resisting the pressure of water and icc is greatly increased by the willow, birch, &c. occasional ly taking root, and eventually growing up into something of a regular hedge. The materials used in constructing the dams are secured solely by the resting of the branches, &c. against the bottom, and the subsequent accu mulation of mud, and stones, by the force of the stream or by the indus try of the beavers. In various parts of the western country, where beavers are entirely unknown except by tradi tion, the dams constructed by their