"Sir,
"I feel myself under the necessity of representing to your Honor, that from the consideration of the great importance of having a missionary resident among the Indians, and that from the knowledge I have long had of Mr. Davenport Phelps, and my particular acquaintance with his family and connexions, I have been earnestly desirous that he might be ordained to that office. To this end, the Winter before last I wrote the Honorable Sir John Johnson, who communicated my wishes, and those of the other chiefs, in this respect, to his Lordship the Bishop of Quebec. No determinate answer was given, and in consequence the subject thus remained till the Summer past, when, on my return from Lower Canada, at Kingston, in a conversation with his Lordship, he was pleased to express the utmost readiness to do what was incumbent on him to carry what was desired into effect—manifesting a cheerful willingness to examine Mr. Phelps, in order to his ordination.
"Thus circumstanced, I requested Mr. Phelps to accompany me to Newark, [FN] to offer himself for examination; but to my great disappointment found, that previous to our arrival his Lordship had sailed for Quebec. I was, Sir, however, surprised to learn, that he had left information pointedly against the expected examination; which, though then to me mysterious, I more fully understand since the arrival of his Excellency Governor Hunter, at that place, who has told me that he had been informed that Mr. Phelps had been at the head of a mob in the province. This charge, replete with odium, I have good evidence to believe was originally made by Mr. White, Attorney General, and as long ago as 1795. I must acknowledge, Sir, that it is unaccountable in my mind how a charge of this nature, made by one whose duty it is to prosecute seditious practices, should remain unnoticed until so late a period, and then be suggested, as I have too much reason to believe, to defeat a purpose earnestly desired by many friends to the cause of religion and morality."
[FN] Formerly a town on the Niagara—now called Niagara.
"I cannot, in justice to truth, omit to observe that the proposal of Mr. Phelps's being ordained to the church did not originate with him, (nor has it since been solicited by him,) but by myself and others of respectability, who have long known his virtues and abilities; who have an indubitable claim to the honor of having defended this country against the King's enemies; and whose loyalty and discernment cannot with decency be disputed. If, however, a charge of this nature be proved, I shall remain silent. If not, I humbly conceive justice and humanity require that due reparation be made.
"Your Honor's love of justice makes me confident of your best advice, and wise interference in this affair.
"I cannot but farther observe, that, considering the nature and circumstances of this affair, I have a right to expect that Mr. White, or whoever else has made this charge, be called on to prove it without delay. I shall be much obliged by your answer to this by the bearer. I have the honor to be, &c."
It is manifest from this letter, that the government were entertaining political objections to the candidate. The conduct of the Attorney-General, however, would not stand the scrutiny to which the Mohawk was disposed to subject it. Nothing could be more apparent than that the charge was either frivolous, or adduced as a pretext, or that the Attorney General had been remiss in the performance of his own official duty. The Indians still adhered to Mr. Phelps; and such was the strength of their attachment to him, that Captain Brant subsequently prepared a formal memorial to the Lord Bishop, setting forth his excellent qualities—his talents, his virtues, and his loyalty—and urging his ordination, "as their choice had been, and still was, fixed on him, in preference to any other." [FN] But every effort to obtain the ordination of Mr. Phelps from the English prelate was fruitless, and the attention of Captain Brant was thereupon directed to the Episcopal Church of the United States, through the interposition of General Chapin, the American Indian Agent residing at Canandaigua, and Colonel Aaron Burr. Mr. Phelps, the candidate for orders, visited the city of New-York, and was the bearer of the following letter to Colonel Burr upon the subject:—