[Footnote A: The father of the late Major William Barr, for many years a citizen of Cincinnati.]
The statements of Anthony Shane and of Stephen Ruddell, touching this action, vary in some particulars from that which has been given above, and also from the narrative in McDonald"s Sketches. The princ.i.p.al difference relates to the number of Indians in the engagement, and the loss sustained by them. They report but two killed, and that the Indian force was less than that of the whites. Ruddell states that at the commencement of the attack, Tec.u.mseh was lying by the fire, outside of the tents. When the first gun was heard he sprang to his feet, and calling upon Sinnamatha[A] to follow his example and charge, he rushed forward, and killed one of the whites[B] with his war-club. The other Indians, raising the war-whoop, seized their arms, and rushing upon Kenton and his party, compelled them, after a severe contest of a few minutes, to retreat. One of the Indians, in the midst of the engagement, fell into the river, and in the effort to get out of the water, made so much noise, that it created a belief on the minds of the whites that a reinforcement was crossing the stream to aid Tec.u.mseh.
This is supposed to have hastened the order from Kenton, for his men to retreat. The afternoon prior to the battle, one of Kenton"s men, by the name of McIntire, succeeded in catching an Indian horse, which he tied in the rear of the camp; and, when a retreat was ordered, he mounted and rode off. Early in the morning, Tec.u.mseh and four of his men set off in pursuit of the retreating party. Having fallen upon the trail of McIntire, they pursued it for some distance, and at length overtook him. He had struck a fire and was cooking some meat. When McIntire discovered his pursuers, he instantly fled at full speed. Tec.u.mseh and two others followed, and were fast gaining on him, when he turned and raised his gun. Two of the Indians, who happened to be in advance of Tec.u.mseh, sprung behind trees, but he rushed upon McIntire and made him prisoner. He was tied and taken back to the battle ground. Upon reaching it, Tec.u.mseh deemed it prudent to draw off his men, lest the whites should rally and renew the attack. He requested some of the Indians to catch the horses, but they, hesitating, he undertook to do it himself, a.s.sisted by one of the party. When he returned to camp with the horses, he found that his men had killed McIntire. At this act of cruelty to a prisoner, he was exceedingly indignant; declaring that it was a cowardly act to kill a man when tied and a prisoner. The conduct of Tec.u.mseh in this engagement, and in the events of the following morning, is creditable alike to his courage and humanity. Resolutely brave in battle, his arm was never uplifted against a prisoner, nor did he suffer violence to be inflicted upon a captive, without promptly rebuking it.
[Footnote A: Or Big Fish, the name by which Stephen Ruddell, then fighting with Tec.u.mseh, was called.]
[Footnote B: John Barr, referred to in a preceding note.]
McDonald, in speaking of this action, says:
"The celebrated Tec.u.mseh commanded the Indians. His cautious and fearless intrepidity made him a host wherever he went. In military tactics, night attacks are not allowable, except in cases like this, when the a.s.sailing party are far inferior in numbers. Sometimes in night attacks, panics and confusion are created in the attacked party, which may render them a prey to inferior numbers. Kenton trusted to something like this on the present occasion, but was disappointed; for when Tec.u.mseh was present, his influence over the minds of his followers infused that confidence in his tact and intrepidity, that they could only be defeated by force of numbers."
Some time in the spring of 1793, Tec.u.mseh and a few of his followers, while hunting in the Scioto valley on the waters of Paint creek, were unexpectedly attacked by a party of white men from Mason county, Kentucky. The circ.u.mstances which led to this skirmish were the following. Early in the spring of this year, an express reached the settlement in Mason, that some stations had been attacked and captured on Slate creek, in Bath county, Kentucky, and that the Indians were returning with their prisoners to Ohio. A party of thirty-three men was immediately raised to cut off their retreat. These were divided into three companies, of ten men each;--Simon Kenton commanding one,--Baker another, and James Ward the third. The whole party crossed the Ohio river at Limestone, and aimed to strike the Scioto above the mouth of Paint creek. After crossing this latter stream, near where the great road from Maysville to Chillicothe now crosses it, evening came on, and they halted for the night. In a short time they heard a noise, and a little examination disclosed to them that they were in the immediate vicinity of an Indian encampment. Their horses were promptly taken back some distance and tied, to prevent an alarm. A council was held,--captain Baker offered to go and reconnoitre, which being agreed to, he took one of his company and made the examination. He found the Indians encamped on the bank of the creek, their horses being between them and the camp of the whites. After Baker"s report was made, the party determined to remain where they were until near daylight the next morning; and then to make an attack in the following manner. Captain Baker and his men were to march round and take a position on the bank of the stream, in front of the Indian camp: captain Ward was to occupy the ground in the rear; and captain Kenton one side, while the river presented a barrier on the fourth, thus guarding against a retreat of the Indians. It was further agreed that the attack was not to commence until there was light enough to shoot with accuracy. Before Kenton and Ward had reached the positions they were respectively to occupy, the bark of a dog in the Indian camp was heard, and then the report of a gun. Upon this alarm, Baker"s men instantly fired, and captains Kenton and Ward, with their companies, raising the battle cry, rushed towards the camp. To their surprise, they found Baker and his men in the rear, instead of the front of the Indians, thus deranging the plan of attack, whether from design or accident is unknown. The Indians sent back the battle cry, retreated a few paces, and treed. It was still too dark to fire with precision, but random shots were made, and a terrible shouting kept up by the Indians. While the parties were thus at bay, Tec.u.mseh had the address to send a part of their men to the rear of the Kentuckians for the horses; and when they had been taken to the front, which was accomplished without discovery, the Indians mounted and effected their escape, carrying with them John Ward, the only one of their party who was shot. This individual, a white man, had been captured when three-years old, on Jackson, one of the tributaries of James river, in Virginia. He had been raised by the Indians, among whom he had married, and reared several children. He was the brother of James Ward, one of the leaders of this expedition, and died of his wound a few days after the engagement, as was subsequently ascertained.
No Indian was killed in this skirmish, and but one of the Kentuckians, Jacob Jones, a member of Baker"s detachment. No pursuit of the Indians was made from this point, nor did they prove to be the same party who had been engaged in the attack upon the Slate creek station.[A]
[Footnote A: For the foregoing details of this little expedition, the author is indebted to captain James Ward, of Mason county, Kentucky, who commanded one of the detachments on this occasion.]
In McDonald"s Sketches, it is stated that "three Indians were killed in this action; and that when fired upon by their a.s.sailants, they dashed through the creek, and scattered through the woods, like a flock of young partridges."
On these points, the worthy author of the "Sketches" has undoubtedly been misinformed. The Indians lost but one man, John Ward; and after having treed, maintained their ground until they had adroitly obtained possession of their horses, and then succeeded in making their escape, carrying off not only the wounded man, but also the women and children who were with them when attacked. This we learn from authorities before us, on which reliance may be placed.[A] By one of these, it appears that there were but six or seven warriors in the party; and, that when the attack was made, Tec.u.mseh called out to them that the women and children must be defended, and it was owing to his firmness and influence that the a.s.sailants were kept at bay until the horses of his party were secured, and the necessary arrangements made for a hasty retreat.
[Footnote A: Anthony Shane. Stephen Ruddell.]
After this engagement, it is not known that Tec.u.mseh was a party to any warlike movement, until the summer of the following year. He returned to the waters of the Miami, and spent his time in hunting, for which he had a great fondness, and in which he was generally more successful than any other member of his tribe.
After general Wayne a.s.sumed the command of the north-western army, he caused a fort to be built on the spot where the unfortunate defeat of his predecessor, general Arthur St. Clair, had occurred. This fort was named Recovery.
In the summer of 1794, an attack was made upon it by a numerous body of Indians, among whom was Tec.u.mseh. They were accompanied by a British officer, and some artillerists, furnished with fixed ammunition, suited to the calibre of some field pieces which the Indians had taken from general St. Clair, at the time of his defeat.[A] In referring to this attack and the movements of general Wayne, Withers, in his "Chronicles of Border Warfare," says:
"Before the troops marched from fort Washington, it was deemed advisable to have an abundant supply of provisions in the different forts in advance of this, as well for the support of their respective garrisons, as for the subsistence of the general army, in the event of its being driven into them, by untoward circ.u.mstances. With this view, three hundred pack horses, laden with flour, were sent on to fort Recovery; and as it was known that considerable bodies of the enemy were constantly hovering about the forts, and awaiting opportunities of cutting off any detachments from the main army, major McMahon, with ninety riflemen under captain Hartshorn, and fifty dragoons under captain Taylor, was ordered on as an escort. This force was so large as to discourage the savages from making an attack, until they should unite their several war parties, and before this could be effected, major McMahon reached the place of his destination.
"On the 30th of July, as the escort was about leaving fort Recovery, it was attacked by a body of one thousand Indians, in the immediate vicinity of the fort. Captain Hartshorn had advanced only three or four hundred yards, at the head of the riflemen, when he was unexpectedly beset on every side. With the most consummate bravery and good conduct, he maintained the unequal conflict, until major McMahon, placing himself at the head of the cavalry, charged upon the enemy, and was repulsed with considerable loss. Major McMahon, captain Taylor and cornet Torrey fell, upon the first onset, and many of the privates were killed or wounded. The whole savage force being now brought to press on captain Hartshorn, that brave officer was forced to try and regain the fort; but the enemy interposed its strength to prevent this movement.
Lieutenant Drake and ensign Dodd, with twenty volunteers, marched from the fort, and forcing a pa.s.sage through a column of the enemy, at the point of the bayonet, joined the rifle corps at the instant that captain Hartshorn received a shot which broke his thigh. Lieutenant Craig being killed, and lieutenant Marks taken prisoner, lieutenant Drake conducted the retreat; and while endeavoring for an instant to hold the enemy in check, so as to enable the soldiers to bring off their wounded captain, himself received a shot in the groin, and the retreat was resumed, leaving captain Hartshorn on the field.
"When the remnant of the troops came within the walls of the fort, lieutenant Michael, who had been detached at an early period of the battle by captain Hartshorn to the flank of the enemy, was found to be missing, and was given up as lost; but while his friends were deploring his unfortunate fate, he and lieutenant Marks, who had been taken prisoner, were seen rushing through the enemy from opposite directions, towards the fort. They gained it safely, notwithstanding they were actively pursued, and many shots fired at them. Lieutenant Marks had got off by knocking down the Indian who held him prisoner; and lieutenant Michael had lost all of his party but three men."
[Footnote A: For this fact see general Harrison"s Address on the 50th Anniversary of the first settlement of Ohio.]
The official letter of general Wayne giving an account of this action, places the loss of the whites at twenty-two killed and thirty wounded.
"The enemy," continues the report, "were soon repulsed with great slaughter, but immediately rallied and reiterated the attack, keeping up a very heavy and constant fire, at a more respectable distance, for the remainder of the day, which was answered with spirit and effect by the garrison, and that part of major McMahon"s command that had regained the fort. The savages were employed during the night (which was dark and foggy,) in carrying off their dead by torchlight, which occasionally drew a fire from the garrison. They nevertheless succeeded so well, that there were but eight or ten bodies left on the field, and those close under the influence of the fire from the fort. The enemy again renewed the attack on the morning of the first inst., but were ultimately compelled to retreat with loss and disgrace from that very field, where they had upon a former occasion, been proudly victorious."
Tec.u.mseh fought in the decisive battle between the American troops under general Wayne, and the combined Indian forces, which occurred on the 20th of August, 1794, near the rapids of the Miami of the lakes. It is not known whether he attended the council, the evening previous to the engagement, in which the advice of Little Turtle, the Miami chief, was overruled by the influence of the Shawanoe chief, Blue Jacket. The former was opposed to giving battle on the following day; the latter in favor of it. As a _brave_ of distinction, Tec.u.mseh took the command of a party of Shawanoes in the engagement, but had no partic.i.p.ation in the plan of the attack, or the mode of carrying it into execution. At the commencement of the action, he was in the advance guard with two of his brothers. After fighting for some time, in attempting to load his rifle, he put in a bullet before the powder, and was thus unable to use his gun. Being at this moment pressed in front by some infantry, he fell back with his party until they met another detachment of Indians.
Tec.u.mseh urged them to stand fast and fight, saying if any one would lend him a gun, he would show them how to do it. A fowling-piece was handed to him, with which he fought for some time, until the Indians were again compelled to give ground. While falling back, he met another party of Shawanoes, and although the whites were pressing on them, he rallied the Indians, and induced them to make a stand in a thicket.
When the infantry pressed close upon them, and had discharged their muskets into the bushes, Tec.u.mseh and his party returned their fire, and then retreated, until they had joined the main body of the Indians below the rapids of the Miami.[A]
[Footnote A: Anthony Shane.]
In this memorable action, which gave victory to the American arms, and humbled the north-western Indians, William Henry Harrison and Tec.u.mseh were for the first time opposed to each other in battle. They were both young, and indeed nearly the same age, and both displayed that courage and gallantry which ever afterwards signalized their brilliant and eventful lives.
CHAPTER IV.
Tec.u.mseh"s skill as a hunter--declines attending the treaty of Greenville in 1795--in 1796 removed to Great Miami--in 1798 joined a party of Delawares on White river, Indiana--in 1799 attended a council between the whites and Indians near Urbana--another at Chillicothe in 1803--makes an able speech--removes with the Prophet to Greenville, in 1805--the latter commences prophecying--causes the death of Teteboxti, Patterson, Coltes, and Joshua--governor Harrison"s speech to the Prophet to arrest these murderers--effort of Wells, the U.S. Indian agent, to prevent Tec.u.mseh and the Prophet from a.s.sembling the Indians at Greenville--Tec.u.mseh"s speech in reply--he attends a council at Chillicothe--speech on that occasion--council at Springfield--Tec.u.mseh princ.i.p.al speaker and actor.
In the spring of the year 1795, Tec.u.mseh was established on Deer creek, near where Urbana now stands, and engaged in his favorite amus.e.m.e.nt of hunting. This was more as a pastime than a matter of business. The love of property was not a distinguishing trait of his character; on the contrary, his generosity was proverbial among his tribe. If he acc.u.mulated furs, they, or the goods which he received in return for them, were dispensed with a liberal hand. He loved hunting because it was a manly exercise, fit for a _brave_; and, for the additional reason, that it gave him the means of furnishing the aged and infirm with wholesome and nourishing food. The skill of Tec.u.mseh in the chase has already been adverted to. While residing on Deer creek, an incident occurred which greatly enhanced his reputation as a hunter. One of his brothers, and several other Shawanoes of his own age, proposed to bet with him, that they could each kill as many deer, in the s.p.a.ce of three days, as he could. Tec.u.mseh promptly accepted the overture. The parties took to the woods, and at the end of the stipulated time, returned with the evidences of their success. None of the party, except Tec.u.mseh, had more than twelve deer skins; he brought in upwards of thirty--near three times as many as any of his compet.i.tors. From this time he was generally conceded to be the greatest hunter in the Shawanoe nation.
In the course of the summer of this year, 1795, he commenced raising a party of his own, and began to style himself a chief. He did not attend the treaty of Greenville, held by general Wayne, on the 3d of August, 1795, with the hostile Indians, but after its conclusion, Blue Jacket paid him a visit on Deer creek, and communicated to him the terms on which peace had been concluded.
Tec.u.mseh remained at this place until the spring of 1796, when he removed with his party to the Great Miami, near to Piqua, where they raised a crop of corn. In the autumn he again changed his place of residence, and went over to the head branches of White Water, west of the Miami, where he and his party spent the winter; and in the spring and summer of 1797, raised another crop of corn.
In the year 1798, the Delawares, then residing in part, on White river, Indiana, invited Tec.u.mseh and his followers, to remove to that neighborhood. Having accepted this invitation, and made the removal, he continued his head quarters in the vicinity of that nation for several years, occupied in the ordinary pursuits of the hunter-life--gradually extending his influence among the Indians, and adding to the number of his party.
In 1799, there was a council held about six miles north of the place where Urbana now stands, between the Indians and some of the princ.i.p.al settlers on Mad River, for the adjustment of difficulties which had grown up between these parties. Tec.u.mseh, with other Shawanoe chiefs, attended this council. He appears to have been the most conspicuous orator of the conference, and made a speech on the occasion, which was much admired for its force and eloquence. The interpreter, Dechouset, said that he found it very difficult to translate the lofty flights of Tec.u.mseh, although he was as well acquainted with the Shawanoe language, as with the French, which was his mother tongue.[A]
[Footnote A: James Galloway, of Xenia.]
We next hear of Tec.u.mseh, under circ.u.mstances which show the confidence reposed in him by the white settlers on the frontier.
In the month of April, 1803, Thomas Herrod, living sixteen miles north-west of Chillicothe, was shot, tomahawked, and scalped, near his own house. The Indians were suspected of having committed this deed; a wanton and cruel retaliation was made upon one of them, (guiltless no doubt of that particular crime,) and the settlement in the Scioto valley and north-west of it, was thrown into a state of much excitement. The Indians fled in one direction and the whites in another. For the purpose of ascertaining the facts in the case, and preventing further hostilities, several patriotic citizens of Chillicothe mounted their horses, and rode into the Indian country, where they found Tec.u.mseh and a body of Indians. They disavowed all knowledge of the murder of Herrod, and stated, explicitly, that they were peaceably inclined, and disposed to adhere to the treaty of Greenville. Tec.u.mseh finally agreed to return with the deputation from Chillicothe, that he might in person, give similar a.s.surances to the people of that place. He did so, and a day was fixed on, when he should make an address upon the subject. A white man, raised among the Indians, acted as interpreter. Governor Tiffin opened the conference.
"When Tec.u.mseh rose to speak," says an eyewitness, "as he cast his gaze over the vast mult.i.tude, which the interesting occasion had drawn together, he appeared one of the most dignified men I ever beheld.
While this orator of nature was speaking, the vast crowd preserved the most profound silence. From the confident manner in which he spoke of the intention of the Indians to adhere to the treaty of Greenville, and live in peace and friendship with their white brethren, he dispelled, as if by magic, the apprehensions of the whites--the settlers returned to their deserted farms, and business generally was resumed throughout that region."[A] This incident is of value, in forming an estimate of the character of this chief: it exhibits the confidence reposed in him by he white inhabitants on the frontier. The declaration of no other Indian could thus have dissipated the fears of a border war, which then pervaded the settlement.
[Footnote A: Colonel John M"Donald.]
Some time during this year, a stout Kentuckian came to Ohio, for the purpose of exploring the lands on Mad River, and lodged one night at the house of captain Abner Barrett, residing on the head waters of Buck creek. In the course of the evening, he learned with apparent alarm, that there were some Indians encamped within a short distance of the house. Shortly after hearing this unwelcome intelligence, the door of captain Barrett"s dwelling was suddenly opened, and Tec.u.mseh entered with his usual stately air: he paused in silence, and looked around, until at length his eye was fixed upon the stranger, who was manifesting symptoms of alarm, and did not venture to look the stern savage in the face. Tec.u.mseh turned to his host, and pointing to the agitated Kentuckian, exclaimed, "a big baby! a big baby!" He then stepped up to him, and gently slapping him on the shoulder several times, repeated with a contemptuous manner, the phrase "big baby! big baby!" to the great alarm of the astonished man, and to the amus.e.m.e.nt of all present.[A]
[Footnote A: James Galloway.]
In the early part of the year 1805, a portion of the Shawanoe nation, residing at the Tawa towns on the headwaters of the Auglaize river, wishing to re-a.s.semble their scattered people, sent a deputation to Tec.u.mseh and his party, (then living on White river,) and also to a body of the same tribe upon the Mississiniway, another tributary of the Wabash, inviting them to remove to the Tawa towns, and join their brethren at that place. To this proposition both parties a.s.sented; and the two bands met at Greenville, on their way thither. There, through the influence of Laulewasikaw, they concluded to establish themselves; and accordingly the project of going to the Auglaize was abandoned.
Very soon afterwards, Laulewasikaw a.s.sumed the office of a prophet; and forthwith commenced that career of cunning and pretended sorcery, which enabled him to sway the Indian mind in a wonderful degree, and win for himself a name on the page of history. A concise notice of his prophetical achievements is subjoined. While it serves to display his individual character and endowments, it also presents an interesting and instructive phase of aboriginal character.
It happened about this time that an old Shawanoe, named Penagashega, or the Change of Feathers, who had for some years been engaged in the respectable calling of a prophet, fell sick and died. Laulewasikaw, who had marked the old man"s influence with the Indians, adroitly caught up the mantle of the dying prophet, and a.s.sumed his sacred office. He changed his name from Laulewasikaw, to Tenskwautawau,[A] meaning the Open Door, because he undertook to point out to the Indians the new modes of life which they should pursue. In the month of November, of this year, he a.s.sembled a considerable number of Shawanoes, Wyandots, Ottaways and Senecas, at Wapakonatta, on the Auglaize river, when he unfolded to them the new character with which he was clothed, and made his first public effort in that career of religious imposition, which, in a few years, was felt by the remote tribes of the upper lakes, and on the broad plains which stretch beyond the Mississippi. At this time nothing, it is believed, was said by him in regard to the grand confederacy of the tribes, for the recovery of their lands, which shortly afterwards became an object of ambition with his brother; and, in the furtherance of which he successfully exerted his power and influence, as a prophet. In this a.s.semblage he declaimed against witchcraft, which many of the Indians practised and still more believed. He p.r.o.nounced that those who continued bewitched, or exerted their arts on others, would never go to heaven nor see the Great Spirit. He next took up the subject of drunkenness, against which he harangued with great force; and, as appeared subsequently, with much success. He told them that since he had become a prophet, he went up into the clouds; that the first place he came to was the dwelling of the Devil, and that all who had died drunkards were there, with flames issuing out of their mouths. He acknowledged that he had himself been a drunkard, but that this awful scene had reformed him. Such was the effect of his preaching against this pernicious vice, that many of his followers became alarmed, and ceased to drink the "fire-water," a name by which whiskey is significantly called among the Indians. He likewise, declaimed against the custom of Indian women intermarrying with white men, and denounced it as one of the causes of their unhappiness. Among other doctrines of his new code, he insisted on a community of property--a very comfortable regulation for those, who like himself, were too indolent to labor for the acquisition of it. A more salutary and rational precept, and one which he enforced with considerable energy, was the duty of the young, at all times and under all circ.u.mstances, to support, cherish and respect the aged and infirm.
He declaimed with vehemence against all innovations in the original dress and habits of the Indians--dwelt upon the high claims of the Shawanoes to superiority over other tribes, and promised to all his followers, who would believe his doctrines and practice his precepts, the comforts and happiness which their forefathers enjoyed before they were debased by their connection with the whites. And finally proclaimed, with much solemnity, that he had received power from the Great Spirit, to cure all diseases, to confound his enemies, and stay the arm of death, in sickness, or on the battle field.
[Footnote A: In the remaining pages of this work this person will be called the Prophet, the name by which he is most generally known.]
Such is the superst.i.tious credulity of the Indians, that this crafty impostor not only succeeded for a time, in correcting many of the vices of his followers, but likewise influenced them to the perpetration of outrages upon each other, shocking to humanity. If an individual, and especially a chief, was supposed to be hostile to his plans, or doubted the validity of his claim to the character of a prophet, he was denounced as a witch, and the loss of reputation, if not of life, speedily followed. Among the first of his victims were several Delawares,--Tatepocoshe (more generally known as Teteboxti,) Patterson, his nephew, Coltos, an old woman, and an aged man called Joshua. These were successively marked by the Prophet, and doomed to be burnt alive.
The tragedy was commenced with the old woman. The Indians roasted her slowly over a fire for four days, calling upon her frequently to deliver up her charm and medicine bag. Just as she was dying, she exclaimed that her grandson, who was then out hunting, had it in his possession. Messengers were sent in pursuit of him, and when found he was tied and brought into camp. He acknowledged that on one occasion he had borrowed the charm of his grandmother, by means of which he had flown through the air, over Kentucky, to the banks of the Mississippi, and back again, between twilight and bed-time; but he insisted that he had returned the charm to its owner; and after some consultation, he was set at liberty. The following day, a council was held over the case of the venerable chief Tatepocoshe, he being present. His death was decided upon after full deliberation; and, arrayed in his finest apparel, he calmly a.s.sisted in building his own funeral pile, fully aware that there was no escape from the judgment that had been pa.s.sed upon him. The respect due to his whitened locks, induced his executioners to treat him with mercy. He was deliberately tomahawked by a young man, and his body was then placed upon the blazing f.a.ggots and consumed. The next day, the old preacher Joshua, met a similar fate.
The wife of Tatepocoshe, and his nephew Billy Patterson, were then brought into the council house, and seated side by side. The latter had led an irreproachable life, and died like a Christian, singing and praying amid the flames which destroyed his body. While preparations were making for the immolation of Tatepocoshe"s wife, her brother, a youth of twenty years of age, suddenly started up, took her by the hand, and to the amazement of the council, led her out of the house. He soon returned, and exclaiming, "the devil has come among us, (alluding to the Prophet) and we are killing each other," he reseated himself in the midst of the crowd. This bold step checked the wild frenzy of the Indians, put an end to these cruel scenes, and for a time greatly impaired the impostor"s influence among the Delawares.
The benevolent policy of the governor of Indiana Territory (William Henry Harrison,) towards the Indian tribes, had given him much influence over them. Early in the year 1806, and so soon as he had heard of the movements of the Prophet, and the delusion of the Delawares in regard to witchcraft, he sent a special messenger to them with the following speech. Had it reached them a little earlier, it would probably have saved the life of the aged Tatepocoshe.
"My Children:--My heart is filled with grief, and my eyes are dissolved in tears, at the news which has reached me. You have been celebrated for your wisdom above all the tribes of red people who inhabit this great island. Your fame as warriors has extended to the remotest nations, and the wisdom of your chiefs has gained for you the appellation of grandfathers, from all the neighboring tribes. From what cause, then, does it proceed, that you have departed from the wise counsels of your fathers, and covered yourselves with guilt? My children, tread back the steps you have taken, and endeavor to regain the straight road which you have abandoned. The dark, crooked and th.o.r.n.y one which you are now pursuing, will certainly lead to endless woe and misery. But who is this pretended prophet, who dares to speak in the name of the Great Creator? Examine him. Is he more wise or virtuous than you are yourselves, that he should be selected to convey to you the orders of your G.o.d? Demand of him some proofs at least, of his being the messenger of the Deity. If G.o.d has really employed him, he has doubtless authorized him to perform miracles, that he may be known and received as a prophet. If he is really a prophet, ask of him to cause the sun to stand still--the moon to alter its course--the rivers to cease to flow--or the dead to rise from their graves. If he does these things, you may then believe that he has been sent from G.o.d.
He tells you that the Great Spirit commands you to punish with death those who deal in magic; and that he is authorized to point them out.
Wretched delusion! Is then the Master of Life obliged to employ mortal man to punish those who offend him? Has he not the thunder and all the powers of nature at his command?--and could he not sweep away from the earth a whole nation with one motion of his arm? My children: do not believe that the great and good Creator of mankind has directed you to destroy your own flesh; and do not doubt but that if you pursue this abominable wickedness, his vengeance will overtake and crush you.