In their replies to Friends, the chief warrior observed:—“You still continue to speak the same language to our nation, and we believe your views towards us are the effects of pure friendship, and a desire for our welfare; and although we have fallen short in fulfilling your former advices, we are still encouraged to follow your counsel, and to pursue the path you have set before us. We hope you will continue to have patience towards us, as Indians cannot adopt all these habits that you recommend at once; but we are convinced that industry in cultivating our lands, is the only method by which we can receive lasting benefits, and we are determined to pursue it—and we hope we shall still continue to make a gradual advancement.”
During the winter and spring of 1810, the Indian women at Alleghany gave increasing attention to spinning. Some elderly females, who had acquired sufficient knowledge, and being anxious to promote this valuable art, took the superintendence of the young girls, and this season they spun sufficient to make one hundred and twenty yards, part of which was woollen, and manufactured into blankets.
Some small premiums were offered to such of the men as should sow spring wheat, which had a stimulating effect; and sixteen or seventeen individuals availed themselves of the offer.
The Indians purchased four yoke of oxen, which enabled them to do more ploughing—and during the course of the season many of the young men inclined to hire to work for other Indians, a practice which had not been common among them. This, however, was in part produced by the embargo system which was now in operation, and had an effect to reduce the price of skins and furs, so as to render hunting not worth pursuing as an object of profit.
Red Jacket, and three other chiefs of the Seneca nation, visited Philadelphia this year, and Friends had a satisfactory interview with them. Red Jacket in his remarks, stated:
“I am unable to express the thankfulness I feel for the many acts of kindness your society have shown to us; particularly when that old gentleman, (pointing to an elderly Friend present,) and many others now no more, attended at our treaties. And I am happy in observing your disposition to pursue the same track of conduct your fathers observed towards Indians, now they are removed to the world of spirits.”
Some implements of husbandry were furnished to the Tuscarora Indians, residing on the Seneca reservation near Buffalo; and the situation of the Delaware Indians residing on the Cattaraugus reservation claiming the sympathy of Friends, as being the remnant of a scattered tribe who formerly inhabited the parts along the river Delaware, and who for many years lived on terms of sincere friendship and reciprocal acts of kindness with the early settlers, while the country was then a wilderness; it was believed right to make them an offer of purchasing a tract of land in the neighbourhood of Cattaraugus, provided they would live on, and occupy it. Although the offer was not accepted they gratefully acknowledge the kindness of Friends, and their answer on this occasion strongly excites our sympathy for the destiny of this once great and powerful nation.
“Our nation, say they, seem as if they were scattered over the whole world; and we have been desirous, for many years past, of getting together, and have now fully concluded to leave the country of the Senecas. The land you propose giving us here, if we could take it on our backs and set it down in the neighbourhood of our nation to the westward, we should be very thankful for; but we don’t feel satisfied to remain in this country, and have concluded certainly to leave it as soon as we can.”
Considerable progress was made this season by the Cattaraugus Indians. Many of them enclosed fields separately, and had plentiful crops of corn; and as an incitement to this plan of farming, small premiums had been offered by Friends. And as a further encouragement, to accommodate the Indians, preparations were made to erect grist and saw-mills on the tract of land belonging to Friends, whereby they could have their grinding done, and be furnished with boards to enable them to build better houses.
In the beginning of the year 1811, the Indian women at Alleghany manifested a much earlier attention to the spinning business; and before the time they usually began, had sufficient spun for one hundred and sixty yards of cloth. Near one half of their women by this time, had acquired some knowledge of this business; and though they had heretofore, for the most part, attended to it at the house of employment, many of them now procured wheels of their own, and attended to it at their own houses. Four of them within two years had spun yarn for about one hundred and twenty-five yards; and two others, in the last season, had spun and wove themselves twenty-one yards of linsey.