On the twenty sixth the French called the Indians to Council and made them a Present of Goods. On the Indians Return the Half King told Mr. Montour and me he would take an Opportunity to repeat over to Us what the French said to them.
On the twenty-seventh We called the Indians to Council, and cloathed the Two Shawonese according to the Indian Custom, and delivered them up in Council with your Honour’s Speeches, sent by Mr. Patten, which Mr. Montour adapted to Indian Forms as much as was in his Power or mine.
On the twenty-eighth We called the Indians to Council again, and delivered them a large Belt of Black and White Wampum in Your Honour’s and the Governor of Virginia’s Name, by which we desired they might open their Minds to your Honour, and speak from their Hearts and not from their Lips; and that they might now inform your Honour by Mr. Andrew Montour, whom You had chosen to transact Business between You and your Brethren at Ohio, whether that Speech which they sent your Honour by Lewis Montour was agreed on in Council or not, and assured them they might freely open their Minds to their Brethren your Honour and the Governor of Virginia, as the only Friends and Brethren they had to depend on. Gave the Belt.
After delivering the Belt Mr. Montour gave them the Goods left in my Care by your Honour’s Commissioners at Carlisle, and at the same time made a Speech to them to let them know that those Goods were for the Use of their Warriors and Defence of their Country.
As soon as the Goods were delivered the Half King made a Speech to the Shawonese and Delawares, and told them as their Brother Onas had sent them a large Supply of Necessaries for the Defence of their Country, that he would put it in their Care till all their Warriors would have Occasion to call for it, as their Brethren the English had not yet got a strong House to keep such Things safe in.
The Thirty-First A Speech delivered by the Half King in Answer to your Honour’s Speeches on delivering the Shawonese:
“Brother Onas:—We return You our hearty Thanks for the Trouble You have taken in sending for our poor Relations the Shawonese, and with these four Strings of Wampum we clear your Eyes and Hearts, that You may see your Brothers the Shawonese clear as You used to do, and not think that any small Disturbance shall obstruct the Friendship so long subsisting between You and us your Brethren, the Six Nations, Delawares, and Shawonese. We will make all Nations that are in Alliance with Us acquainted with the Care You have had of our People at such a great distance from both You and Us.”—Gave Four Strings of Wampum.
A Speech Delivered by the Half King
“Brethren the Governors of Pennsylvania and Virginia: You desire Us to open our Minds to You and to speak from our Hearts, which we assure You, Brethren, we do. You desire We may inform you whether that Speech sent by Lewis Montour was agreed on in Council or not, Which we now assure You it was in part; but that Part of giving the Lands to pay the Traders’ Debts We know nothing of it; it must have been added by the Traders that wrote the Letter;[38] but we earnestly requested by that Belt, and likewise we now request that our Brother the Governor of Virginia may build a Strong House at the Forks of the Mohongialo, and send some of our young Brethren, their Warriors, to live on it; and we expect our Brother of Pennsylvania will build another House somewhere on the River where he shall think proper, where whatever assistance he will think proper to send us may be kept safe for us, as our Enemies are just at hand, and we do not know what Day they may come upon Us. We now acquaint our Brethren that we have our Hatchet in our Hands to strike the Enemy as soon as our Brethren come to our assistance.”
Gave a Belt and Eight Strings of Wampum.