Timothy Pickering Quotes
WHEREAS, in the late war between Great-Britain and the United States of America, a body of the Oneida and Tuscorora and the Stockbridge Indians, adhered faithfully to the United States, and assisted them with their warriors; and in consequence of this adherence and assistance, the Oneidas and Tuscororas, at an unfortunate period of the war, were driven from their homes, and their houses were burnt and their property destroyed: And as the United States in the time of their distress, acknowledged their obligations to these faithful friends, and promised to reward them: and the United States being now in a condition to fulfill the promises then made: the following articles are stipulated by the respective parties for that purpose
See {612285} also for the specific payments to the Indians. The other tribes of the Iroquois nation had allied themselves with the English. See {583726}. Only the Oneida joined the colonist cause. At the end of the war, the other Iroquois tribes were run out of the country and they escaped to Canada. The Oneida, in contrast, were rewarded by the Federal government and integrated into New York State society.
Timothy Pickering, 1745-1829, U. S. Congressman & Senator (Federalist, MA), Postmaster General, Secretary of War, Secretary of State, Treaty between the United States and the Oneida, Tuscorora and Stockbridge Indians, 1794
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The purpose was to persuade the Iroquois Indians to stay neutral in the coming conflict with England. Iroquois had traditionally traded peaceably & on many occasions the colonists & Iroquois had fought against the French and other Indians. The colonists appealed to their strong sense of fairness--{610960}. A Mohawk chief, Joseph Brant, had traveled to England and been educated there. He persuaded 5 of the Iroquois tribes to join the obvious winner—England. Only the Oneida joined the revolutionists. The result was a civil, fratricidal war of not only white, but also of Iroquois who had been at peace with each other since any could remember. When the colonists won, the Oneida were warmly embraced and participated in colonial life and activities. (A little over 200 years later the average earnings of the Indian in New York State exceeded that of the average white.) The other 5 Iroquois tribes however were driven from their traditional lands. They fled with Joseph Brant to English Canada.
The rationale for paying these Indians was given in the beginning of the treaty. See {612283}. In addition the treaty provided for the Federal government to build a flour mill and a saw mill and provide technical staff to operate and maintain them. In an interesting gesture the Federal government rebuilt a church that had been the house of worship for some Oneida Presbyterians. The English and the other Iroquois had burned the church to the ground. See {621968}. This is one of the few times in history, and certainly the first time, that the Federal government constructed a church for a particular sect. The other tribes of the Iroquois nation had allied themselves with the English. See {583726}. Only the Oneida joined the colonist cause. At the end of the war, the other Iroquois tribes were run out of the country and they escaped to Canada. The Oneida, in contrast, were rewarded by the Federal government and integrated into New York State society.
There is disagreement amongst historians as to whether or not the atrocities attributed to the retreating British troops were actually true. There are two other possibilities. First, this report was made only a week after the battle itself and less than that since the alleged atrocities would take place as the British retreated. There were certainly all kinds of rumors with information passed from person to person with no modern means of documentation. The Provisional Congress may have sincerely thought that all the events occurred but they may have been the result of inadvertent exaggeration. Then there is the possibility that in order to fire up the Americans to join the war, some or all of the atrocity reports were deliberately fabricated. It would only take two or three delegates to agree on such a strategy and they could “confirm” each other’s accounts of the happenings. Of course it might all be true. However, as the British retreated to Boston where they had reinforcements, they did not have a lot of time for malicious atrocities. All along the route, Minutemen, local farmers and townspeople continued the attack against the British. By the time the British soldiers reached Boston, 73 British solders were dead and 174 more were wounded. In war truth does not have the respect that it usually does. See {626632}.
Hull surrendered a few days later.
This speech was officially prepared and read to the six Indian tribes of the Iroquois Nation. The purpose was to persuade the Iroquois Indians to stay neutral (see {583726}) in the coming conflict with England. The Iroquois had traditionally traded peaceably with the colonists and on many occasions the colonists and the Iroquois had fought against the French and other Indians. Unfortunately, a Mohawk chief, Joseph Brant, had traveled to England and been educated there. He, following the conventional wisdom of the day persuaded most of the Iroquois tribes to join the obvious winner—England—and fight on their side. Only the Oneida tribe resisted Brant’s advice, and joined the revolutionists. The result was a civil, fratricidal war of not only white, but also the Iroquois Indians who had been at peace with each other since any could remember. When the colonists won, the Oneida were warmly embraced and participated in New York and other colonial life and activities. The relationship was so good that a little over 200 years later the average earnings of the Indian in New York State exceeded that of the average white man. The other 5 Iroquois tribes however were attacked and driven out of their traditional territories and they fled with Joseph Brant to English Canada where they have not yet fully recovered their important place in the society.
The whites had constantly encroached on the Cherokee land which was too large for any reasonable patrolling by the Indians themselves. The Federal government persuaded the Cherokee to sign a treaty by which the Indians would give up their title to the larger part of their land. The most important quid pro quo was that the Federal Government would protect the remainder of the Cherokee land from incursion by whites or even other Indians. However, whites who coveted the land started to encroach and build farms and ranches. The Federal government was reluctant to use American soldiers against American citizens and was looking for a way out. However, the Cherokee chiefs were reminding them of their obligation. The state governments were less concerned about Federal treaties, and Georgia passed a law that said that all the Cherokee land must be governed by State Law contrary to the Treaty which gave the Cherokee total sovereignty. But the Feds were not anxious to have a showdown with the states on this issue. Whites, with the connivance of the state governments and the support of some Federal Officials offered to amend the treaty with the Cherokee. The whites would pay the Indians fair market value for their land in the East. The Federal Government would provide equal amount of land in the Indian Territory of Oklahoma, then a territory. The Feds would assist with the relocation and provide troops to protect the Cherokee from thieves and raiders—whites and Indians, and would guarantee that the Cherokee would be completely sovereign in the new land. The chief’s did not want to renegotiate the old treaty—they just wanted it enforced. The Supreme Court ruled in their favor, but President Jackson, ignored the ruling and forced the Cherokee onto the Trail of Tears for Oklahoma and the whites took over the valuable Cherokee land.
Brant had an English style Missionary education and was an Anglican, belonging to the Church of England. During the American Revolution, he persuaded most of the Iroquois tribes to fight for the British against the revolutionary colonists. However, the Oneida tribe was not persuaded and joined the rebel side. A few New England Presbyterian missionaries had targeted the Oneida people, and when that tribe chose the “wrong” side, Brant believed that the reason was their different religious point of view. After the Revolution, Brant and his Iroquois followers were driven out of their American lands and escaped to Canada, while the Oneida were given complete title to their lands by George Washington.
During the American Revolution, the Iroquois sided with the British, aiding them militarily and other ways. The revolutionaries responded by attacking and destroying most of the Iroquois who retreated to British Canada.
Warren was killed shortly thereafter at the Battle of Bunker Hill.
This argument, condemned by many Englishmen, was essentially, it is moral to do whatever you God made you able to do a principle that was refuted in Christianity, Judiasm and most other religions. See {620562} for Clinton’s history of white encouragement of Indian scalping.
More and more whites had been encroaching on land of the Chickasaw Reservation which the United States was bound to protect. However, soldiers fighting whites was politically unpalatable and the Government came up with the idea of providing land West of the Mississippi as a new reservation in exchange for the existing reservation. The Indians expenses of moving would be paid and they would be given generous provisions in the new lands. The U. S. negotiators were surprised when the translator for the Chickasaw negotiators made this speech which was then reported to the President and Congress. Andrew Jackson was strongly in favor of Indian Removal and he had forced other tribes out of their lands. Eventually the Government upped the ante and agreed to pay the Chickasaw the large sum of $3 million to move and they Chickasaw realized that if they did not accept, they would be removed as other tribes had been, The promised payment was delayed over Congressional arguments over appropriations but eventually the Chickasaw were paid.
This is a particularly good historical quotation describing the state of the Native Americans and the different policies that had been adopted before and after the American Revolution. The President candidly admits there were unexpected consequences to American efforts after the Revolution and that some of the original objectives for the Indians had not been successful. He states some of the problems and notes the challenge ahead to resolve them equitably. After Adams was succeeded by Andrew Jackson, the new President and the forces he represented decided that the land and sovereignty over the land for America was more important than the other objectives which had not been successfully met very often. The age of rank discrimination and Indian removal began.
1st Earl of Chatham. The speech was given in the midst of the American Revolution.
The Iroquois were among the most sophisticated of the North American Indian Tribes. They also were highly assimilated into the American society. In the next decades, they would switch their political position when New York State provided better legal guarantees for Iroquois land than the Federal Government. By the end of the 20th Century, led by the Iroquois, the Indian residents of New York State had the same level of earnings as the white man—and that was with NO INDIAN GAMING.
- Born: July 17, 1745
- Died: January 29, 1829
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Timothy Pickering was a politician from Massachusetts who served in a variety of roles, most notably as the third United States Secretary of State under Presidents George Washington and John Adams. He also represented Massachusetts in both houses of Congress as a member of the Federalist Party. In 1795, he was elected a member of the American Philosophical Society.
