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3 «0, €WMmm>WMM PSMENIX, AEM INMANS 5 A1¥©€ATE. viIF PRINTEII THE;,PATRONAGE, AND FOIt THE BENEFIT OF THE CHEROKEE NATION, AND DEVOTED TO TIIE CAUSE OF JNDIANS.—E. ECl’DIKCTT, EDITOR. , II. EfBW EOKOTA, WEDNESDAY SEPTEX€BEB 16, 1829. Mi), ieq. ■ V^-PBINTBD WEFtfLY Bt JOHN i\ JVHEELEIt, At $2 60 if paid in Advance, $3 in six jnonths, Or $8 50 if paid at the end of the year. ■ » ■ / To subscribers who can read only the phci olcee language the price will be $2,00 in advance, or #2,50 to bp paid within the .year. . Every subscription 'will be considered a s continued unless subscribers give notice to we contrary before the commencement of a diew year,and all arrearages paid.- ,, Any person procuring six subscribers, find becoming responsible for the payment, 3hall receive a seventh gratis. Advertisements will be inserted at seven ty-^ vc cents per square for the lirst inser tion, antliirty-seveh anTahalf cents for each continuance; longer ones in propor tion. {CP Vlf letters addressed to the Editor, ^st paid,-will receive due attention, OlVy JiTAUO-A h Si if E (S.G.I. POALX*).! T\A7* JIufBAwI Iy4SiJ- 15 ©/IE vITtCTuIoey KTA D^P O’dJBA <v 4o®.l T«“Z TEJ1SO r> D9J,5«)Iv<a.li TCTZ t’t»P T.^0-A TB DOJ^Ko?.I, KT DT-rt O’O.TBJt'l-4c®.I. EZ TB yiV rio.T* o-y.aT d?p o>gjb.i K4^-r. owyz (pCi.n. .ihC5hA(»y, \vp«v* tfe-a 'U’O.JE.l Vlil'JS*, TGTZ TE.SSO-r’ DO" KT.az Dft-' e<*y«v» wair U.IR DOJ^I-i/M. AGENTS FOR THE CHEROKEE IMICEN1X. The follovUng persons arc authorized to receive subscriptions and payments for the Cherokee Phucnix. Messrs. PfiincE h Williams, No. 20 Market St. Boston, Mass. Gsohoe M.iTnACY, Ageat of the A. B. C. F. M. New York. Rev. A. D. Eddy, Canandaigua, N. Y. Thomas Hastings, Utica, N. Y. Pollard & Cokv£;isf!> Richmond, Va. R'* ,r . James Campbell, Beaufort, S'. C. William Moultuie Reid, Charleston, fi. C. Col. George Smith, Statesville, W. T, WilltIm M. Combs, Nashville, Ten. Rev.-Benn'rt Roberts, Pownl, Me. , ; jitr. Tnos,. R. Gold, (an itinerant Gen tleman.) . ". .. . •••,-» ,t. •; Jeremiah Am-,til, Mobile, Ala. Rev. C vru<> Kingsbury, Mayhew'i Cjlioc- fcaw Nation. , C-’.pt, William Rolertson, Augusta, Georgia. Col. James Turk, Bclltffbnte, Ala. From tile National Intelligencer.' ilIF.SF.NT CRISIS IN TIIE CONDITION OF TIIE AMERICAN INDIANS.—NO. I. Gentlemen—Every careful observ er of public affairs must have seen, that a crisis has been rapidly ap proaching,, for several years past, in reference to the condition, relations, tuul prospects of the Indian tribes, in the south-western parts of the United plates, The attention of many of our most intelligent citizens has been fix- qd upon the subject with great inter est. Many others are beginning to in quire.. Several public documents which have recently appeared in the newspapers, serve to awaken curiosi ty aiid to provoke investigation. Still, however, the mass of the community possess but very little in formation on the subject; and, even among the best informed, scarcely a man cau bo found, who is thoroughly acquainted with the questions at issue. Vague-and inconsistent opinions arc a- broad; and however desirous the peo ple may be ,of coming at the truth, the sources of knowledge are not general ly accessible. Some persons think that the Indians have a perfect right to the lands which they occupy, ex cept so far as their original right lias been modified by treaties fairly made, tmil fully understood at the time of signing. But liow far such a modifi cation may have taken place, or whether it has taken place at all, these persons admit themselves to be ignorant. Others pretend, that In dians have no other right to thfcir lands, than that of a tcnajit at, will; that is, thV) right of remaining where they are, till the owners of the laud shall re quire them to remove. It is needless to say, that, in the estimation of such persons, the owners of the lands are the white neighbors of the Indians.— Some people arc puzzled by what is supposed to he a collision between the powers of the general government and the claims of particular States.— Others do not sec that there is any hardship in bringing the Indians under (lie laws of the Slates, in the neigh borhood of which they live; or, as the phrase is, within the limits of which they live. Some consider it the greatest kindness that can bo done to" the Indians to remove them, evert without their consent and against their will, to a country where, as is supposed, they will be in a con dition more favorable to their happi ness. O.hcrs think, that if they are compelled to remove, their circum stances will be in all respects worse than at present, and that, suffering under a deep sense of injury, and con sidering themselves crushed by the strong arm of physical force, they will become utterly dispirited, and sink rapidly to the lowest degradation and to final extinction. So great a diver sity of opinion is principally owing to want of correct information. It is my intention, Messrs. Editors, to fur nish, in a few numbors of moderate length, snch materials, ns will enable every dispassionate and disinterested man to determine where the right of the case is. In the mean lime, T would observe, that the people of the United States owe it to themselves, and to mankind, to fotm a correct judgment in this mat ter. The questions have forced them selves up >n us, as a nation:—What is to become cf the Indians? Have they any rights? If they have, What are these rights? and how are they to be secured? These questions must re ceive a practical answer; and that very soon. What the answer shall he, is a subject of the deepest concern to the country. The number of individuals to he nffeeJed by the course now to be pur sued, is very great. It is computed, that there are within our national lim its more than 300.000 Indians; some say 500,000; and, in the south-wes tern States, the tribes whose imme diate . removal is in contemplation, have an aggregate population of more than GO,000. The interests of all these people are implicated, in any measure to be taken respecting them. The character cf our government, and of our country, may be deeply in volved. Most certainly an indelible stigma will be fixed upon us, if, in the plenitude of our power, and in the pride of our superiority, we shall be guilty of manifest injustice to our weak and defenceless neighbors.— There arc persons among us, not ig norant, nor prejudiced, nor under the bias of private interest, who seriously apprehend that there is danger of our national character being most unhap pily affected, before the subject shall be fairly iU test. If these individuals are misled by an erroneous view of facts, or by the adoption of false prin ciples, a free discussion will relieve their minds. . It should be remembered, by our rulers as Well as others, that this con troversy (for it lias assumed the form of a regular controversy) will ulti mately be well understood by the whole civilized world. No subject, not even war, nor slavery, nor the na ture of free institutions, will bo more thoroughly canvassed. The voice of mankind will be pronounced upon it; a voice, which will not he drowned by the clamor of ephemeral parties, nor silenced by the paltry considera tions of private interest. Such men ns the Baron Humboldt and the l)uc de Broglie, on the continent of Europe, and a host of other statesmen, and orators, and powerful writers, there and in Great Britain, will not be great-* ly influenced, in decidirtg. a grav^ question of public morality, by the ex citements of an election, or the selfish views of some little portions of f *l»e American community. Any couise of measures in regard to the Indians, which is clearly fair, and generous, and benevolent, will command life warm and decided approbation of in telligent men, not only in the preseit ago, but in all succeeding times. And with equal confidence it may be said, if, in the language of Mr. Jeffer son, the people of the United States should “feel power, and forget right;” if they should resemble a powerful' man, who, abounding in wealth ofevey ry kind, and assuming the office (jt law-giver and judge, first declares himself to be the owner of his poor neighbor’s little farm, and then ejects the same neighbor as a troublesome incumbrance; if, with land enough, now in the undisputed possession of the whites, to sustain ten times our present population, we should compel the remnants of tribes Ho leave the places which", received ly inheritance from their fathers and never alienated, they have long regarded as their per manent homes; if, when asked to ex plain the treaties, whim we first pro posed, then solemnly Executed, and have many times ratified, we slam mer, and prevaricate, (ind finish by stultifying, not merely ourselves, but the ablest and wisest statesmen, whom our country has yet produced: and if, in pursuance of a narrow and selfish policy, we should at this day, in a time of profound peace and great na tional prosperity, amidst all our pro fessions of magnanimity and benevo lence, and in (lie blazing light of the nineteenth century, deice away these remnants of tribes, in such a manner, and under such auspices, as to ensure destruction; if all this should hereaf ter appear to be a fair statement ol' the case; then the sentence of an in dignant world will be uttered in thun ders, which will roll and reverberate for ages after (be present actors in human affairs shall have passed away. If (be people of the United States will imitate the ruler who coveted Na both’s vineyard, the world will assu redly place them by the side of Na both’s oppres or. Impartial history will not ask them whether they will feci gratified arid honored by such an association. Their consent to the ar rangement will not beneeessaiy. The motions of the earth in Us orbit are not more certain. It has been truly said, that the character which a nation sustains, in its intercourse with a great communi ty of nations, is of more value than any other of its public possessions.—- Our diplomatic agents have uniformly declared, during the whole period of our national history, in their discus sions with the agents of foreign po w ers, that we offer to others the same justice which we ask from them.— And though, in times of national ani mosity, or when the interests of dif ferent communities clash with each other, there will be iruituai reproach es and rccrimiiirilion?, and every na tion will, in its turn, be charged with unfairness or iijustice, still, among nations, as among individuals, theie is a difference between the precious and the vile; find that nation will undoubt edly, in the long course of years, be most prosperous and most respected, which most sedulously cherishes a character for fair dealing, and even generosity, in all its transactions. There is a higher consideration ■tilt The great Arbiter of nations never fails to lake cognizance of na tional delinquencies. No sophistry can elude his scrutiny; no array of platjsible arguments, or of smooth, hut hollow’ professiens, can bias his judg ment; and he lips at his disposal most abundant meant of executing his de cisions. He ha$, in many forms, mid with awful solemnity, declared his abhorrence of oppression in every shape; and especially of injustice per petrated against the weak by the strong, when strength is in fact made the only rule of action. The people of the United Stales are not altogeth er guiltless, in regard to their treat ment of the aborigines of this contin ent; but they cannot as yet be charg ed with any systematic legislation on this subject, inconsistent with the plainest principles of moral honesty. At least, l am not aware of any proof by which such a charge could be sus tained. Nor do I, in these prelimina ry remarks, attempt to characterize measures now in contemplation. But it is very clear, that our government and our people should' be extremely cautious, lest, in judging between our selves and llie Indians, and carrying our own judgment into effect w ith a strong hand, wc incur the displeasure of the Most High. Some very judi cious and considerate men in our country think that our public function aries should slop where they are; that, in the first place, we should humble ourselves before God and the world, that we have done so much to destroy the Indians, and so little to save them; and that, before another step is taken, there should' he (he most thorough deliberation, oa the part of all our constituted authorities, lest w’c act in such a manner as to ex pose ourselves to the judgments .of Heaven. I would have omitted this topic, if I could suppose that a majority of readers would regard its introduction as a matter of course, or ns no affec tation of rhetorical embellishment.— In my delibeiate opinion, it is more important, and should be more heed ed, than all other considerations relat ing to the subject; and the people of the United States will (ind it so, if they should unhappily think themselves above the obligation to “do justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with their God.” I close this introductory number, by stating what seems to be the present controversy between the whites and the Indian tribes of the south-western States: I say the whiles, (that is our country generally,) because certain positions are taken by the government of the United States, and ceitain claims are made by the State of Georgia, and certain other claims by the States of Alabama and Mississip pi. The Indians do not admit the va lidity of any of these positions or claims; and if they have a perfect o- riginal title to the lands they occupy, which title they have never forfeited nor alienated, their rights cannot be affected by the charters of Kings, nor by the acts of provincial Legislatures, nor by the compacts of neighboring States, nor by the mandates ol the Executive branch of our national go vernment. The simple question is: “Have the Indian tribes, residing as separate communities in the neighborhood of the Whites, n permanent title to the territory, which they inherited from their fathers, which they have neither forfeited nor sold, and which they now occupy?” For the examination of this ques tion, let the,case of a single tribe or nation be considered; for nearly the same principles are involved in the claims of all the IudRrti nations The Cherokees contend that their nation lias been in possession of their present territory from time immemo rial; that neither the King ol Great Britain, nor the early settlers of Geor gia, nor the State of Georgia, alter the revolution, nor the United States since the adoption of their constitu tion, have acquired any title to the soil, or any sovereignty over tho ter ritory, and that the titlo to the soil and sovereignty over the territory have been repeatedly guaranteed to the Cherokees, ns a nation, by the United States, in treaties which are now binding on both parties. The government of the United Slates alleges, as appears by a letter from the Secretary of War, dated April 18, 1529, that Great Britain, previous to tho revolution, “churned entire sove reignly within the limits of what con stituted the thirteen United States; that alilhe rights of sovereignty which Great Britain had within said Stales- became vested in said .States res pectively,. as a consequence of the Declaration of Independence, and the treaty of 1783;” Himt the Cherokees were merely “permitted to reside on their lands by the United States; that this permission is not to be construed so as to deny to Georgia the exercise of sovereignty; and that the United States has no power to guarantee any thing more than a right of possession, till the Stale of Georgia should see tit to legislate for the Cherokees, and dispose of them as she should judge expedient, without any control Ironi the gcneial government.” This is a summary of the positions taken by the Secretary of War; and, t,bough not aH of them expressed in bis own language, they are in strict accordance with the tenor of his let* ter. In my next number, I shall proceed to inquire—“What right have the Cherokees to the lands which they occupy?” In the mean time, permit me to uSrf' the signature of that upright legisla# tor and distinguished philanthropist, WILLIAM PENNi From tlw New York Observer THE INDIANS. We invite the attention of out rend" ers to tho article on our last page ref lalitig to the Indians. The Writer iri evidently well acquainted with- his subject and well able to do it justice, if tiie future numbers of the serine should be what we ante ipate, We shall transfer them regularly to our co* lumns, (hat our readers may bo coin'd thoroughly acquainted with the whole argument, h is a subject of imfnersC interest, not only as connected with tbf welfare of the Indians, but in its bearing upon the character of cur c il* izens and our government. Let net the Georgians, let not the government of the United Stages, dream that they can drive these poor people from tliciit country, or gull them into the belief that it is not theirs, and that such in iquity can he bid. The eyes of the nation, the eyes cf (lie civilized world arc upon them. The Indian has a friend in the heart of every honest man, and if he is made to suffer, the voice of millions will utter the cry of indignation, and call down the vem ger.noe of Heaven upon the oppressor, Wc do not intend here to anticipate the argument of the essays, but the great points of the case arc perfectly clear and they ought to lip Vcpt con* stoutly in view. We then, 1. It is clear that 259 years ago, the Indians were in the undisputed possession of (he whole territory now included within the limits of the Unit ed Slates—that tliev had the right of sovereignty—and the power to defend their lights—and every thing else ne cessary to constitute a complete and perfect title to the country. 2. It is clear llrt the Cherokees and the other southern tribes have now all the rights which they ever had, except those which they have volim L taiilv surrendered. The claim recently set up bv the Georgians, that these (lilies forfeited their country on account of the part which they took in the Revolutionary war, and lliat they have ever smed been tenants at will, liable to he or dered off at a moment’s warning, is too extravagant, too ridiculous, to re* quire serious refutation. To say no thing of its ini rinsie absurdity, it is enough that the Indians never so un derstood 1 lie matter, and lliat the Georgians know that the Indians nev er understood it so. What ever may he the language of any treaty, there fore, (and there is none w hich can he tortured into any thing like this,) it is impudent, it is knavish to urge 6iich 9 claim. 3. Tt is clear that when the tndianj were In power they treated the white man kindly. Columbus relates in l.io first vrflj