Page:The History of the American Indians.djvu/351

 An Account of the Choktah Nation. 339

and agreed to fend a peremptory mefiage to the French, ordering them, forthwith, to defift from their bloody politics, otherwife the river mould carry their blood down to Mobille, and tell that garrifon, their own treachery was the fole occafion of it, by mifchievoufly endeavouring to foment a civil war between them, as they boafted they had done among the foolifh Choktah. With much regret they laid afide their fcheme, and were forced openly to v/ipe away the memory of every thing which had before given them offence \ and to include all indifcriminately in the treaty of friendmip, as all had only one fire. This proved a mortifying ftroke to the French on fundry accounts : and during the continuance of this diftracted fcene, if any Britim governor of capacity and public fpirit, had properly exerted himfelf, they muft have withdrawn to Mobille, without any poflibility of ever returning. For the enmity would foon have advanced to a moil implacable hatred, as in the cafe of the Chik- kafah and French : but fuch a conduct was incompatible with the private views of fome among us.

As the fmall-pox broke out in our camp, when we got nigh to the Muf- kohge country, and detained the Indians there till they recovered, I fet off without them for Charles-town. By the benefit of the air, and their drink ing a ftrong decoction of hot roots, they all recovered. A Choktah warrior of Yahfhoo-town, humoroufly told me afterwards, that ookka boomeh, " the bitter waters," meaning fpirituous liquors, cured fome people, while it killed others. He, by the advice of one of the Englifh traders, ad- miniftered it in pretty good dofes to feven of his children in the fmall- pox, which kept out the corrupt humour, and in a fhort time perfectly cured each of ^hem, he faid, without the leaft appearance of any dangerous fymptoms j whereas the diforder proved very mortal to the- young people in the neighbourhood, who purfued a different courfe of phy- fic. As mod of the Indian traders are devotees of Bacchus, their mate- ria medica confifts of fpirituous liquors, compounded with ftrong herbs and roots, of which they commonly have a good knowledge : and I have obferved thofe who have left off the trade, and refide in the Britim fettle- ments, to give their negroes for an anti-venereal, a large dofe of old Ja maica and qualified mercury mixt together, which, they fay, the blacks cheerfully drink, without making a wry face, contrary to their ufage

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