awares) named themselves, comprised two powerful nations, namely, the Minsi and the Delawares proper. The former occupied the northern part of New Jersey, and a portion of Pennsylvania, and the latter inhabited lower New Jersey, the banks of the Delaware below Trenton, and the whole valley of the Schuylkill. The FIVE NATIONS subjugated them in 1650, and brought them under degrading vassalage. They gradually retreated westward before the tide of civilization, and finally a portion of them crossed the Alleghanies, and settled in the land of the Hurons,' on the Muskingum, in Ohio. Those who remained in Pennsylvania joined the Shawnees, and aided the French against the English, during the French and Indian War. In 1768, they all went over the mountains, and the great body of them became friends of the British during the Revolution. They were at the head of the confederacy of Western tribes who were crushed by Wayne in 1794, and the following year they ceded all their lands on the Muskingum, and seated themselves near the Wabash. In 1819, they ceded those lands also, and the remnant now [1856] occupy a territory north of the Kansas River, near its mouth.

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The MOHEGANS were a distinct tribe, on the Hudson River, but the name was given to the several independent tribes who inhabited Long Island, and the country between the Lenni-Lenapes and the New England Indians. Of this family, the Pequods, inhabiting eastern Connecticut, on the shores of Long Island Sound, were the most powerful. They exercised authority over the Montauks and twelve other tribes upon Long Island. Their power was broken by the revolt of Uncas against his chief, Sassacus, a short time before the appearance of the white people. The Manhattans were seated upon the Hudson, in lower Westchester, and sold Manhattan Island, whereon New York now stands, to the Dutch.s The latter had frequent conflicts with these and other River Indians. The Dutch were generally conquerors. The Mohawks, one of the FIVE NATIONS," were pressing hard upon them, at the same time, and several of the Mohegan tribes were reduced to the condition of vassals of that confederacy. Peace was effected, in 1665, by the English governor at New

York. In the mean while, the English and Narragansets had smitten the Pequods," and the remaining independent Mohegans, reduced to a handful, finally took up their abode upon the west bank of the Thames, five miles below Norwich," at a place still known as Mohegan Plain. Their burial-place was at Norwich, and there a granite monument rests upon the grave of Uncas. The tribe is now almost extinct-"the last of the MoUNCAS' MONUMENT. hicans" will soon sleep with his fathers."

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13 The last known lineal descendant of Uncas, named Mazeon, was buried in the Indian cemetery, at Norwich, in 1827, when the remnant of the Mohegan tribe, then numbering about sixty, were present, and partook of a cold collation prepared for them by a lady of that city. The most noted leaders among the New England Indians known to history, are Massasoit, the father of the renowned King Philip; Caunbitant, a very distinguished captain; Hobomok; Canonicus; Miastonomoh; Ninigret, his cousin; King Philip, the last of the Wampanoags; Canonchet, and AnnaWe shall meet them in future pages.

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The Aboriginals who inhabited the country from Connecticut to the Saco River, were called the NEW ENGLAND INDIANS. The principal tribes were the Narragansets in Rhode Island, and on the western shores of Narraganset Bay ; the Pokonokets and Wampanoags on the eastern shore of the same bay, and in a portion of Massachusetts; the Nipmucs in the center of Massachusetts; the Massachusetts in the vicinity of Boston and the shores southward; and the Pawtuckets in the north-eastern part of Massachusetts, embracing the Pennacooks of New Hampshire. These were divided into smaller bands, having petty chiefs. The Pokonokets, for example, were divided into nine separate cantons or tribes, each having its military or civil ruler, but all holding allegiance to one Grand Sachem. They were warlike, and were continually engaged in hostilities with the FIVE NATIONS, or with the Mohegans. The English and Dutch effected a general peace among them in 1673. Two years afterward [1675], Metacomet (King Philip) aroused most of the New England tribes against the English. A fierce war ensued, but ended in the subjugation of the Indians and the death of Philip, in 1676.1 The power of the New England Indians was then completely broken. Some joined the more eastern tribes, and others took refuge in Canada, from whence they frequently came to the border settlements on errands of revenge. These incursions ceased when the French dominion in Canada ended in 1763. When the Puritans came' [1620], the New England Indians numbered about ten thousand souls; now [1856] probably not three hundred representatives remain; and the dialects. of all, except of the Narragansets, are forgotten.

2

Eastward of the Saco River were the Abenakes. The chief tribes were the Penobscots, Norridgewocks, Androscoggins, and Passamaquoddies. These, with the more eastern tribes of the Micmacs and Etchemins, were made nominal Christians by the French Jesuits; and they were all firm allies of the Most of the French until the conquest of Canada by the English, in 1760.* ABENAKES, except the Penobscots, withdrew to Canada in 1754. A few scattered families of the latter yet [1856] dwell upon the banks of the Penobscot River, and wanderers are seen on the St. Lawrence. Like other New England tribes, they are rapidly fading, and will, doubtless, be extinct before the dawn of another century.

WE now come to consider the most interesting, in many respects, of all the aboriginal tribes of North America, called IROQUOIS by the French. The prefix "Huron" was given, because that people seemed, by their language, to form

a part of the IROQUOIS nation, and like them, were isolated in the midst of the ALGONQUINS, when discovered by the Europeans. The great body of the IROQUOIS Occupied almost the whole territory in Canada, south-west of the Ottowa River, between Lakes Ontario, Erie and Huron; a greater portion of the State of New York, and a part of Pennsylvania and Ohio along the southern shores of Lake Erie. They were completely surrounded by the ALGONQUINS, in whose southern border in portions of North Carolina and Virginia, were the Tuscaroras and a few smaller Iroquois tribes.' The Hurons occupied the Canadian portions of the territory, and the land on the southern shore of Lake Erie, and appeared to be a distinct nation; but their language was found to be identical with that of the Iroquois. The Hurons consisted of four smaller tribes, namely, the Wyandots or Hurons proper, the Attiouandirons,' the Eries, and the Andastes. The two latter tribes were south of the lake, and claimed jurisdiction back to the domains of the Shawnees."

Those "Romans of the Western World," the FIVE NATIONS, or IROQUOIS proper, formed a confederacy composed of the Seneca, Cayuga, Onondaga, Oneida, and Mohawk tribes, all occupying lands within the present State of New York. They fancifully called their confederacy the Long House. The eastern door was kept by the Mohawks; the western by the Senecas; and the Great Council fire was with the Onondagas, at the metropolis, or chief village, near the present city of Syracuse. The French, as we have observed, gave them the name of Iroquois; the ALGONQUINS called them Mingoes. At what time the confederacy was formed, is not known. It was strong and powerful when the French discovered them, in 1609, and they were then engaged in bloody wars with their kinsmen, the Wyandots."

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1 The Southern Iroquois were the Tuscaroras, Chowans, Meherrins, and Nottoways. The three latter were upon the rivers in lower Virginia, called by their respective names, and were known under the general title of Tuscaroras.

2 Neutral Nation. When the Hurons and FIVE NATIONS were at war, the Attiouandirons fled to the Sandusky, and built a fort for each of the belligerents when in that region. But their neutrality did not save them from internal feuds which finally dismembered the tribe. One party joined the Wyandots; the other the Iroquois.

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4 Mingoes, Minquas, and Maquas, were terms more particularly applied to the Mohawk tribe, who called themselves Kayingehaga, “possessors of the flint." The confederation assumed the title of Aquinuschioni, “united people;" or as some say, Konoshioni, “cabin builders.”

5 The time of the formation of the confederation is supposed to have been at about the year 1539. According to their own tradition, it was about two generations before the white people came to trade with them. Clarke, in his history of Onondaga county, has given, from the lips of an old chief of the Onondaga tribe, that beautiful legend of the formation of the great confederacy, which forms the basis of Longfellow's Indian Edda, "HI-A-WAT-HA." Centuries ago, the story runs, the deity who presides over fisheries and streams, came from his dwelling-place in the clouds, to visit the inhabitants of earth. He was delighted with the land where the tribes that afterward formed the confederacy, dwelt; and having bestowed many blessings on that land, he laid aside his Divine character, and resolved to remain on earth. He selected a beautiful residence on the shore of Te-ungk-too (Cross lake), and all the people called him Hi-a-wat-ha, "the wise man." After a while, the people were alarmed by the approach of a ferocious band of warriors from the country north of the great lakes. Destruction seemed inevitable. The inhabitants thronged around the lodge of Hi-a-wat-ha, from all quarters, craving his wise advice in this hour of great peril. After solemn meditation, he told them to call a grand council of all the tribes. The chiefs and warriors from far and near, assembled on the banks of Lake Oh-nen-ta-ha (Onondaga). The council-fire blazed three days before the venerable Hi-a-wat-ha arrived. He had been devoutly praying, in silence, to the Great Spirit, for guidance. Then, with his darling daughter, a virgin of twelve years, he entered his white canoe, and, to the great joy of the people, he appeared on the Oh-nen

year 1649, the FIVE NATIONS resolved to strike a final and decisive. blow against their western neighbors, and, gathering all their warriors, they made a successful invasion of the Wyandot, or Huron country. or Huron country. Great numbers of the Wyandots were slain and made prisoners, and the whole tribe was dispersed. Some of the fugitives took refuge with the Chippewas; others fled to Quebec, and a few were incorporated into the Iroquois confederacy. Yet the spirit of the Wyandots was not subdued, and they claimed and exercised sovereignty over almost the whole of the Ohio country. They had great influence among the ALGONQUIN tribes,' and even as late as the treaty of Greenville, in 1795, the principal cession of lands in Ohio to the United States was made by the Wyandot chiefs in council. They, too, are reduced to a mere remnant of less than five hundred souls, and now [1856] they occupy lands on the Neosho River, a chief tributary of the Arkansas.

Being exceedingly warlike, the FIVE NATIONS made hostile expeditions against the New England Indians in the East, the Eries, Andastes, and

ta-ha. A great shout greeted him, and as he landed and walked up the bank, a sound like a rushing wind was heard; a dark spot, every moment increasing in size, was descending from the clear sky. Fear seized the people; but Hi-a-wat-ha stood unmoved. The approaching object was an immense bird. It came swiftly to earth, crushed the darling daughter of Hi-a-wat-ha-was itself destroyed, but the wise man was unharmed. Grief for his bereavement prostrated him in the dust for three days. The council anxiously awaited his presence. At length he came the subject of the peril from invaders was discussed, and after deliberating a day, the venerable Hi-a-wat-ha arose and said:

"Friends and Brothers-You are members of many tribes and nations. You have come here, many of you, a great distance from your homes. We have met for one common purpose-to promote one common interest, and that is, to provide for our mutual safety, and how it shall best be accomplished. To oppose these foes from the north by tribes, singly and alone, would prove our certain destruction. We can make no progress in that way. We must unite ourselves into one common band of brothers; thus united, we may drive the invaders back; this must be done, and we shall be safe.

"You, the MOHAWKS, sitting under the shadow of the 'Great Tree,' whose roots sink deep into the earth, and whose branches spread over a vast country, shall be the first nation, because you are warlike and mighty.

"And you, ONEIDAS, a people who recline your bodies against the 'Everlasting Stone,' that can not be moved, shall be the second nation, because you give wise counsel.

"And you, ONONDAGAS, who have your habitation at the 'Great Mountain,' and are overshadowed by its crags, shall be the third nation, because you are greatly gifted in speech, and mighty in war.

And you, CAYUGAS, a people whose habitation is the 'Dark Forest,' and whose home is everywhere, shall be the fourth nation, because of your superior cunning in hunting.

"And you, SENECAS, a people who live in the Open Country,' and possess much wisdom, shall be the fifth nation, because you understand better the art of raising corn and beans, and making cabins.

"You, five great and powerful nations, must unite and have but one common interest, and no foe shall be able to disturb or subdue you. If we unite, the Great Spirit will smile upon us. Brothers, these are the words of Hi-a-wat-ha—let them sink deep into your hearts. I have said it."

They reflected for a day, and then the people of the "Great Tree," the "Everlasting Stone," the "Great Mountain," the "Dark Forest," and the "Open Country," formed a league like that of the Amphyctioni of Greece. The enemy was repulsed, and the FIVE NATIONS became the terror of the Continent. Then Hi-a-watha said, I am

"The Great Master of Breath calls me to go. I have patiently waited his summons. ready-farewell!"

Myriads of singing voices burst upon the ears of the multitude, and the whole air seemed filled with music. Hi-a-wat-ha, seated in his white canoe, rose majestically above the throng, and as all eyes gazed in rapture upon the ascending wise man, he disappeared forever in the blue vault of heaven. The music melted into low whispers, like the soft summer breeze; and there were pleasant dreams in every cabin of the FIVE NATIONS on that blessed night. 3 Page 22.

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Miamies in the West,' and penetrated to the domains of the Catawbas' and Cherokees' in the South. They subjugated the Eries in 1655, and after a contest of twenty years, brought the Andastes into vassalage. They conquered the Miamies and Ottawas in 1657, and made incursions as far as the Roanoke and Cape Fear Rivers to the land of their kindred in dialect, the Tuscaroras, in 1701. Thirty years afterward, having been joined by the Tuscaroras, and the name of the confederacy changed to that of the SIX NATIONS, they made war upon the Cherokees and Catawbas.' They were led on by Hi-o-ka-too, a Seneca chief. The Catawbas were almost annihilated by them, after a battle of two days. So determined were the FIVE NATIONS to subdue the southern tribes, that when, in 1744, they ceded a part of their lands to Virginia, they reserved a perpetual privilege of a war-path through the territory.

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In the year 1712, the Tuscaroras having been signally defeated by the Carolinians, came northward, and in 1714 joined the FIVE NATIONS. From that time the confederacy was known as the SIX NATIONS. They were generally the sure friends of the English and inveterate foes of the French."

They were all friends of the British during the Revolution, except a part of the Oneidas, among whom the influence of the Rev. Samuel Kirkland" was

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6 Page 168. 10 Samuel Kirkland was one of the most laborious and self-sacrificing of the earlier missionaries, who labored among the tribes of the SIX NATIONS. He was born at Norwich, Connecticut, in December, 1741. He was educated at Dr. Wheelock's school, at Lebanon, where he prepared for that missionary work in which he labored forty years. His efforts were put forth chiefly among