Page:The History of the American Indians.djvu/273

 An Account of the Mufkohge Nation* 261

in a ftrong native hatred to the Britifti Americans, which being hereditary, muft of courfe increafe, as faft as they increafe in numbers ; unlefs we give them fuch a fevere lefTon, as their annual hoftile conduct to us, has highly deferved fmce the year 1760. I fhall now fpeak more explicitly on this very material point.

By our fnperintendant's ftrange purfuit of improper meafures to appeafe the Mufkohge, as before noticed, the watchful French engaged the irritated Great Mortar to infpire his relations to cut off fome of our traders by fur- prife, and follow the blow at the time the people were ufually employed in the corn-fields, left our party mould ftop them, in their intended bloody ca reer. They accordingly began their hoftile attack in the upper town of the nation, except one, where their mifchievous red abettor lived : two white people and a negroe were killed, while they were in the horfe- pen, preparing that day to have fet off with their returns to the Englifli fettlements. The trader, who was furly and ill-natured, they chopped to pieces, in a moft horrid manner, but the other two they did not treat with any kind of barbarity ; which {hews that the worft people, in their worft actions, make a diftinction between the morally virtuous, and vicious. The other white people of that trading houfe, happily were at that time in the woods ; they heard the favage platoon, and the death, and war- whoop, which fufficiently warned them of their imminent danger, and to feek their fafety by the beft means they could. Some of them went through the woods after night, to our friend towns ; and one who happened to be near the town when the alarm was given, going to bring in a horfe, was obliged to hide himfelf under a large fallen tree, till night came on. The eager favages came twice, pretty near him, imagining he would chufe rather to depend on the horfe's fpeed, than his own : when the town was engaged in dividing the fpoils, his wife fearing (he might be watched, took a confiderable fweep round, through the thickets, and by fear ch ing the place, and making fignals, where me expected he lay concealed, fortunately found, him, and gave him provifions to enable him to get to our fettlements,' and then returned home in tears : he arrived fate at Augufta, though exceedingly torn with the brambles, as his fafety required him to travel through unfrequented tracts. In the mean while, the favages having by this inflamed their greedy thirft for blood, fet off fwiftly, and as they darted 3 aJong

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