Page:The History of the American Indians.djvu/287

 An Account of the Mufkohge Nation. 275

alike true, as appeared both by divine writ, and the united confent of every ancient nation. He faid, people were ordered to watch and pray, I therefore could not be ruled by the fcripture, for why did I go to bed fo foon, and leave all that trouble to him. I told him, I witlied he might by prayer, obtain a calm compofnre of mind. He faid, I was the caufe of all his uneafinefs, by inducing him, con trary to his over night's bloody dream, to lie fo near thofe wolfifh fa- vages. Then, in an angry panic, he curfed me, and faid, he mould not that night have prayed there, only that the devil tempted him to be lieve my damned lies, and fin againft the divine intimations he had re ceived juft before.

Within half a day's ride of Augufta, I met the gentlemen who were ap pointed to meet certain head-men of the Mufkohge, to run a line, be tween Georgia and the Mufkohge country. The fuperintendant's deputy before-mentioned, accompanying them ; I then informed him of the bad fituation of the Indian trade, both in the Chikkafah, and Mufkohge na tions The caufe thereof The dangerous policy of having reconciled thofe jarring warlike favages the ill difpofition of the latter toward us, and that it was the opinion of all the traders (one excepted) that nothing, but their hot war with the Choktah, prevented them from executing their mif- chievous intentions againft us. I faid this to the commifTary before the feveral gentlemen j but his conduct, and that of his brother officer in the Chikkafah country, were no way correfpondent to the advice. While he benefited the ungrateful Mufkohge, and gave them a plea to injure the traders, he was free from perfonal danger, from the red quarter; but one night at camp, after the line had been, at the friendly and artful perfnafions of G. G. Efq-, run above twenty miles beyond the fouthern limits agreed upon, he almoft fatally experienced the effects of their revengeful temper ; which cannot be retrained when they imagine themfelves really injured, and afterwards infulted : for as he was chiding a noted warrior with iharp language, the favage leaped up, feized the other's gun, cocked, and prefented it againft his breaft ; but luckily he could not difcharge it, as it was double- tricker'd, contrary to the model of their fmooth-bored guns. The public prints, however, echoed the fuccefs of our directors of Indian affairs, on this important occafion; though it was entirely owing to the abilities and

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