The Sun, seeing them all assembled, said: "You have had time to reflect on the proposition I made you; and so I imagine you will soon set forth the best means how to get rid of your bad neighbours without hazard." The Sun having done speaking, the oldest rose up, saluted his Chief after his manner, and said to him:
"We have a long time been sensible that the neighbourhood of the French is a greater prejudice than benefit to us: we, who are old men, see this; the young see it not. The wares of the French yield pleasure to the youth; but in effect, to what purpose is all this, but to debauch the young women, and taint the blood of the nation, and make them vain and idle? The young men are in the same case; and the married must work themselves to death to maintain their families, and please their children. Before the French came amongst us, we were men, content with what we had, and that was sufficient: we walked with boldness every road, because we were then our own masters: but now we go groping, afraid of meeting thorns, we walk like slaves, which we shall soon be, since the French already treat us as if we were such. When they are sufficiently strong, they will no longer dissemble. For the least fault of our young people, they will tie them to a post, and whip them as they do their black slaves. Have they not already done so to one of our young men; and is not death preferable to slavery?"
Here he paused a while, and after taking breath, proceeded thus:
"What wait we for? Shall we suffer the French to multiply, till we are no longer in a condition to oppose their efforts? What will the other nations say of us, who pass for the most ingenious of all the Red-men? They will then say, we have less understanding than other people. Why then wait we any longer? Let us set ourselves at liberty, and show we are really men, who can be satisfied with what we have. From this very day let us begin to set about it, order our women to get provisions ready, without telling them the reason; go and carry the Pipe of Peace to all the nations of this country; make them sensible, that the French being stronger in our neighbourhood than elsewhere, make us, more than others, feel that they want to enslave us; and when become sufficiently strong, will in like manner treat all the nations of the country; that it is their interest to prevent so great a misfortune; and for this purpose they have only to join us, and cut off the French to a man, in one day and one hour; and the time to be that on which the term prefixed and obtained of the French Commandant, to carry him the contribution agreed on, is expired; the hour to be the quarter of the day (nine in the morning;) and then several warriors to go and carry him the corn, as the beginning of their several payments, also carry with them their arms, as if going out to hunt: and that to every Frenchman in a French house, there shall be two or three Natchez; to ask to borrow arms and ammunition for a general hunting-match, on account of a great feast, and to promise to bring them meat; the report of the firing at the Commandant's, to be the signal to fall at once upon, and kill the French: that then we shall be able to prevent those who may come from the old French village, (New Orleans) by the great water (Missisippi) ever to settle here."
He added, that after apprising the other nations of the necessity of taking that violent step, a bundle of rods, in number equal to that they should reserve for themselves, should be left with each nation, expressive of the number of days that were to precede that on which they were to strike the blow at one and the same time. And to avoid mistakes, and to be exact in pulling out a rod every day, and breaking and throwing it away, it was necessary to give this in charge to a person of prudence. Here he ceased and sat down: they all approved his counsel, and were to a man of his mind.
The project was in like manner approved of by the Sun of the Apple: the business was to bring over the Grand Sun, with the other petty Suns, to their opinion; because all the Princes being agreed as to that point, the nation would all to a man implicitly obey. They however took the precaution to forbid apprising the women thereof, not excepting the female Suns, (Princesses) or giving them the least suspicion of their designs against the French.
The Sun of the Apple was a man of good abilities; by which means he easily brought over the Grand Sun to favour his scheme, he being a young man of no experience in the world, and having no great correspondence with the French: he was the more easily gained over, as all the Suns were agreed, that the Sun of the Apple was a man of solidity and penetration; who having repaired to the Sovereign of nation, apprised him of the necessity of taking that step, as in time himself would be forced to quit his own village; also of the wisdom of the measures concerted, such as even ascertained success; and of the danger to which his youth was exposed with neighbours so enterprising; above all, with the present French Commandant, of whom the inhabitants, and even the soldiers complained: that as long as the Grand Sun, his father, and his uncle, the Stung Serpent, lived, the Commandant of the fort durst never undertake any thing to their detriment; because the Grand Chief of the French, who resides at their great village (New Orleans,) had a love for them: but that he, the Grand Sun, being unknown to the French, and but a youth, would be despised. In fine, that the only means to preserve his authority, was to rid himself of the French, by the method, and with the precautions projected by the old men.
The result of this conversation was, that on the day following, when the Suns should in the morning come to salute the Grand Sun, he was to order them to repair to the Sun of the Apple, without taking notice of it to any one. This was accordingly executed, and the seducing abilities of the Sun of the Apple drew all the Suns into his scheme. In consequences of which they formed a council of Suns and aged Nobles, who all approved of the design: and then these aged Nobles were nominated heads of embassies to be sent to the several nations; had a guard of Warriors to accompany them, and on pain of death, were discharged from mentioning it to any one whatever. This resolution taken, they set out severally at the same time, unknown to the French.
Notwithstanding the profound secrecy observed by the Natchez, the council held by the Suns and aged Nobles gave the people uneasiness, unable as they were to penetrate into the matter. The female Suns (Princesses) had alone in this nation a right to demand why they were kept in the dark in this affair. The young Grand female Sun was a Princess scarce eighteen: and none but the Stung Arm, a woman of great wit, and no less sensible of it, could be offended that nothing was disclosed to her. In effect, she testified her displeasure at this reserve with respect to herself, to her son; who replied, that the several deputations were made, in order to renew their good intelligence with the other nations, to whom they had not of a long time sent an embassy, and who might imagine themselves slighted by such a neglect. This feigned excuse seemed to appease the Princess, but not quite to rid her of all her uneasiness; which, on the contrary, was heightened, when, on the return of the embassies, she saw the Suns assemble in secret council together with the deputies, to learn what reception they met with; whereas ordinarily they assembled in public.
At this the female Sun was filled with rage, which would have openly broke out, had not her prudence set bounds to it. Happy it was for the French, she imagined herself neglected: for I am persuaded the colony owes its preservation to the vexation of this woman rather than to any remains of affection she entertained for the French, as she was now far advanced in years, and her gallant dead some time.