Letterbook Copy

Speech of Red Jacket to Timothy Pickering

Red Jacket makes speech to Colonel Pickering. Red Jacket complains about compensation received for land.

1790

11

25

document is not complete

Red Jacket

heap of dogs

Colonel Butler

Doctor Benton

Oliver Phelps

Tioga

Niagra

Buffalo Creek

treaty

land

dollars

hogs

1790112540001

1

Abstract of the proceedings of Col: Timothy Pickering
at the Council-fire held at Tioga, Nov: 25: th 1790-
(Speech of Red-Jacket to Col Pickering)
Brother.-

Now you begin to hear of the situation

of our lands- Mr. Phelps and Doctor Benton came on
to rake open His fire again at Canedefago. After they
come there, Mr Phelps passed on to Niagra and
went with his dear old friend Colonel Butler, whom he met at
[undecipherable] Colonel Butler ask him of his intentions-
He said he came to kindle a fire at Canedefago
Then Colonel Butler told him that Canedefago was not
a fit place at which to kindle a fire and that our old
custom was to kindle a fire at our own [undecipherable]. Colonel
Butler told him that he thought he must build a fire at
Buffaloe-creek, and if he did, that he believed he should
attend the treaty. Mr. Phelps expressed his fears, that if he
held the treaty there he should meet some difficulty.-
Then T. Billy and Gajeagayonh [Heap of dogs] went to Cane=
=defago, took Mr Phelps by the hand, and led him to our
council-fire at Buffaloe-creek. All those people here know
what speech Wm Phelps sent us (then pointing to the Farmers
Brother, Billy and others; said)- They went to Candefago
what the business was-They all know, and Mr [undecipherable]]
that Mr {helps help up a long paper, with a seal as big as
my hand. When he opened his mind to us, we took it hard.
We wanted to keep a large piece of land; but it was not in
our power. Mr. Street (pointing to him on the bench) you
know very well a treaty was held all night to fix the bounda
ry, and the price of the land. Those men (Mr. Smith, The Farmer's
brother, Meil, Little Billy, Heap of dogs, [undecipherable] place, and
were then know very well the proposal was that Mr. Phelps
[undecipherable] give us ten thousand dollars for the purchase and five
thousand dollars annual rent. That was the agreement made
that night. The bargain was not finished till morning and
just as we went out of the house the sun arise-Then we sought
for persons to draw the writings-
the persons chosen were Mr. Kirt,
Fund, Colmer, Butler and Cuhta & Bruni. Mr. Street was not hen
present. After this, tho the bargain being completed, Mr Street took our
papers with him to Niagra. and last summer a year ago, we
came to Canadaqui expecting to receive ten thousand dollars, but
then we found we have but five thousand to receive-When we
discovered the fraud we had a mind to apply to Congress to see if this matter could not be rectified. For when we took the money
and shared it, everyone here knows that we had but about a dol-
lar a piece. for all that country. Mr Street!-you very well know
that all that all that our lands came to was but the price of a few hogs heads
of [undeipherable] taken by the men stand by who stand by (looking round [undecipherable]


James Deans

Deposition