[688] William Bartram, who traveled through their country in 1776, says (Travels in North America, p. 483): "The Cherokees in their dispositions and manners are grave and steady, dignified and circumspect in their deportment; rather slow and reserved in conversation, yet frank, cheerful, and humane; tenacious of the liberties and natural rights of man; secret, deliberate, and determined in their councils; honest, just, and liberal, and always ready to sacrifice every pleasure and gratification, even their blood and life itself, to defend their territory and maintain their rights."
[689] Hon. J. C. Calhoun, Secretary of War, under date of March 29, 1824, in a communication addressed to the President to be laid before the United States Senate, alludes to the provision contained in the treaty of 1791 and says: "In conformity to the provisions of this article the various utensils of husbandry have been abundantly and constantly distributed to the Cherokee Nation, which has resulted in creating a taste for farming and the comforts of civilized life."
[690] May 30, 1820.
[691] Letter of Hon. J. C. Calhoun Secretary of War, March 29, 1824. In this letter Mr. Calhoun says: "Certain benevolent societies in the year 1816 applied for permission to make establishments among the Cherokees and other southern tribes, for the purpose of educating and instructing them in the arts of civilized life. Their application was favorably received. The experiment proved so favorable, that Congress, by act of March 3, 1819, appropriated $10,000 annually as a civilization fund, which has been applied in such a manner as very considerably to increase the extent and usefulness of the efforts of benevolent individuals and to advance the work of Indian civilization."
[692] The eight districts into which the nation was at this time divided were, Chickamauga, Chatooga, Coosawatee, Amohee, Hickory Log, Etowah, Taquoe, and Aquohee.
[693] The census of the nation east of the Mississippi, taken in 1835, exhibited the following facts:
| Cherokees. | Slaves. | Whites intermarried with Cherokees. | Total. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| In Georgia | 8,946 | 776 | 68 | 9,790 |
| In North Carolina | 3,644 | 37 | 22 | 3,703 |
| In Tennessee | 2,528 | 480 | 79 | 3,087 |
| In Alabama | 1,424 | 299 | 32 | 1,755 |
| Aggregate | 16,542 | 1,592 | 201 | 18,335 |
[694] In addition there was ceded by this treaty for the location of other Indian tribes all the Cherokee domain in Indian Territory lying west of 96°, containing by actual survey 8,144,772.35 acres or 12,726 square miles.
[695] And a fractional square mile comprising 374 acres.
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