Friends had free and open conferences with the Indians on the subject of their removal, and various other matters; and satisfactory arrangements were made respecting the old settlement, the Indians insisting on Friends’ occupying the farm until they got suitable accommodations, and provender for their stock, at their new settlement.
In one of their conferences, Cornplanter observed:
“Brothers, when your friends first came amongst us, and for a long time after, the white people told us, ‘keep a good watch on those Quakers—they are a cunning, designing people; and under pretence of doing something for you, want to get hold upon you, to make an advantage of you some way or other;’ but of late, finding that all was straight, and no advantage was attempted to be taken, they have left off talking about it.
“Brothers, your young men do not talk much to us, but when they do they speak what is good, and have been very helpful in keeping us from using spirituous liquors.”
Here it may be proper to remark, that in the spring of 1798, an Indian lad of the Tuscarora nation, from near the falls of Niagara, had been taken to Philadelphia, and placed with a Friend in Chester county, to learn the blacksmiths’ business, where he continued till the last spring;—and having acquired a competent knowledge of his trade, and made considerable proficiency in school learning, the Friend with whom he had been instructed, felt such an interest in his welfare, that he accompanied him home to his Indian friends, staid several weeks with him, to see him set up in his business, and assisted him therein.
This Friend, on his return, had now been several weeks at Alleghany, affording the two Indian blacksmiths there, some further instruction in that art. They were very desirous he should tarry longer with them; and an old chief observed, “Friends had now sent on a blacksmith, the best they had ever seen—he knows how to make all things we want.”
Considerable improvement among the Indians at this time was observable, more particularly up the river. Several families had settled about two miles higher up, than where they formerly resided, and had cleared and fenced in about sixty acres of land. Seventeen new houses with shingled roofs, were observed neatly built, with square logs, most of them two stories high, with stone chimneys and glass windows. They had about one hundred head of cattle, thirty horses, and several hundred hogs. And the Indians had opened a road, about twenty miles along the river, and much of it through heavy timber; which was a great work for them.
The committee proceeded from thence to Cattaraugus, and noticed considerable improvement in that settlement. Several of them were building good houses. Their crops of corn were good, and their stock of cattle increased; and, generally speaking, they had declined the use of strong drink. They had divers requests to make to Friends, some of which were granted; especially one, for a set of smith tools and plough irons. While Friends were sitting with the chief warrior, he seemed in a pensive mood, and said he wished to ask them a question, but hesitated. They desired him to say on—It was, “Do the Quakers keep any slaves?”—He was answered in the negative. He said he was very glad to hear it; for if they did, he could not think so well of them as he now did—that he had been at the city of Washington last winter, on business of the nation, and found that many white people kept blacks in slavery, and used them no better than horses.
The committee on their way home had interviews with the Buffalo and Tonewanta Indians, and gave them such advice and encouragement as their situation required. It was satisfactory to observe, from the account of Red Jacket and others of their chiefs, that some improvement was taking place among those Indians.
Our friends at Alleghany built a temporary house at their new settlement this fall, to which they removed, which we shall hereafter call Tunesassa. The land being heavily timbered, much exertion and labour were necessary, to make their situation tolerably comfortable during the first winter.