Page:The History of the American Indians.djvu/255

 An Account of the Cheerake Nation. 243

the army with great honour. Soon after, the magazine took fire, which was not far from where he was confined, and though the centinels bade him make off to a place of fafety, as all the people were running to avoid danger from the explofion of the powder and (hells, yet he fquatted on his belly upon the floor, and continued in that pofition, without the lead hurt : feveral blamed his rafhnefs, but he told them, that experience had convinced him, it was the mod probable means to avoid imminent danger. This incident difplayed the philofopher and foldier, and after bearing his misfortunes a confiderable time with great conftancy, hap pily for us, he died in confinement, though he deferved a much bet ter fate. In the firft year of his fecretarylhip I maintained a correfpond- ence with him ; but the Indians becoming very inquifitive to know the contents of our marked large papers, and he fufpecting his memory might fail him in telling thole cunning fifters of truth, a plaufible ftory, and of being able to repeat it often to them, without any variation, he took the morteft and fafeft method, by telling them that, in the very fame manner as he was their great fecretary, I was the devil's clerk, or an accurfed one who marked on paper the bad fpeech of the evil ones of darknefs. Accordingly, they forbad him writing any more to fuch an ac curfed one, or receiving any of his evil-marked papers, and our corre- fpondence ceafed. As he was learned, and poflefled of a very fagacious penetrating judgment, and had every qualification that was requifite for his bold and difficult enterprize, it is not to be doubted, that as he wrote a Cheerake dictionary, defigned to be publifhed at Paris, he likewife fet down a great deal that would have been very acceptable to the curious, and ferviceable to the reprefentatives of South-Carolina and Georgia ; which may be readily found in Frederica, if the manufcripts have had the good fortune to efcape the defpoiling hands of military power.

When the weftern Cheerake towns loft the chief fupport of their impe rial court, they artfully agreed to inform the Englifh traders, that each of them had opened their eyes, and rejected the French plan as a wild fcheme, inconfiftent with their interefts, except great Telliko, the metropolis of their late empire, which they faid was firmly refolved to adhere to the French propofals, as the fureft means of promoting their welfare and happinefs. Though the inhabitants of this town were only dupes to the reft, yet for

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