ingratiated himself into the esteem of the Six Nations. He lived at the place since named from him, upon the north bank of the Mohawk, about forty miles from Albany. Here he had an elegant seat, and would often entertain several hundreds of his red friends, and share all in common with them. They so much respected him, that, notwithstanding they had the full liberty of his house, yet they would take nothing that did not belong to them. The better to rivet their esteem, he would, at certain seasons, accommodate himself to their mode of dress, and, being a widower, took as a kind of companion a sister of Brant, by the name of Molley. He had received honors and emoluments from the British government, and the Indians received also, through his agency, every thing which, in their opinion, conduced to their happiness. Hence it is not strange that they should hold in the greatest reverence the name of their "great father," the king, and think the few rebels who opposed his authority, when the revolution began, most ungratefully wicked, and unworthy all mercy. Sir William died in 1774, about a year before the battle of Bunker's Hill. The Butlers, John and Walter, whose names are associated with the recollection of the horrid barbarities upon Cherry-valley and Wyoming, lived at Caughnewaga, four miles southeasterly from the village of Johnson, and upon the same side of the Mohawk. In 1775, in a letter to the Oneidas, our chief subscribes himself "secretary to Guy Johnson." This was early in the summer of that year, and hence he was immediately from England. Colonel Guy Johnson was son-in-law of Sir William. The letter was found in an Indian path, and was supposed to have been lost by the person who was intrusted with it. It was in the Mohawk language, the translation of which commences thus: "Written at Guy Johnson's, May, 1775. This is your letter, you great ones or sachems. Guy Johnson says he will be glad if you get this intelligence, you Oneidas, how it goes with him now, and he is now more certain concerning the intention of the Boston people. Guy Johnson is in great fear of being taken prisoner by the Bostonians. We Mohawks are obliged to watch him constantly," &c. After this, Brant accompanied Guy Johnson when he fled to Canada. The two Butlers were also in the train. Being now in a place of safety, and the means in their hands, plots of destruction were put in execution in rapid succession. Having had some disagreement with Johnson, Brant came again to the frontiers. Some of the peaceable Mohawks had been confined, to prevent their doing mischief, as were some of the Massachusetts Indians in Philip's war. Brant was displeased at this, for he said, if the distant Indians should come down, they would destroy them indiscriminately with the whites. He was accompanied by a band of seventy or eighty warriors, who in their rambles visited Unadilla, where they assembled the inhabitants, and told them that they stood in need of provisions, and if they did not give them some, they should take it by force; a refusal, therefore, would have been worse than useless. Brant further observed, "that their agreement with the king was strong, and that they were not such villains as to break their covenant with him." General Herkimer marched up to Unadilla, in July, with three hundred and eighty men, where he found Brant with one hundred and thirty of his warriors. Here he had an interview with him, in which he held the following language:-"That the Indians were in concert with the king, as their fathers and grandfathers had been. That the king's belts were yet lodged with them, and they could not falsify their pledge. That General Herkimer and the rest had joined the Boston people against their king. That the Boston people were resolute, but the king would humble them. That Mr. Schuyler, or general, or what you please to call him, was very smart on the Indians at the treaty at German Flatts; but was not, at the same time, able to afford them the smallest article of clothing. That the Indians had formerly made war on the white people all united; and now they were divided, the Indians were not frightened." Colonel Cox, who accompanied Herkimer, said, if war was his determination, the matter was ended. Brant then spoke to his warriors, and they shouted, and ran to their place of encampment, seized their arms, fired several guns, and, after giving the war-whoop, returned in warlike array. General Herkimer then told Brant he did not come to fight, and the chief motioned for his men to be quiet. Perhaps, as a worthy author observed upon a transaction in Philip's war, it is better to omit the cause of the conduct of Herkimer, than too critically to inquire into it. His men vastly outnumbered the. Indians, and his authority was ample; but his motives were no doubt pure, and his courage must not now be called in question, as will appear from what is to be related. To put the most favorable construction upon his neglecting to break down the power of Brant, is to suppose that he was impressed with the belief that the Indians would not join with the English in committing hostilities; if this were the case, he too late discovered the error of his judgment. After the general had said that he did not come to fight, Brant, with an air of importance, said, "If your purpose is war, I am ready for you." A tempest, which came up suddenly, separated the parties, and each retired peaceably. This is said to be the last talk held by any of the Americans with the Six Nations, previous to hostilities, except with the Oneidas; all, except a very few, of whom remained neutral. Towards the autumn of this year, (1777,) Brant was under the direction of General St. Leger, who detached him with a considerable body of warriors for the investment of Fort Stanwix. Colonel Butler was commander-in-chief, with a band of tories. The inhabitants in the valley of the Mohawk determined to march for the relief of Colonel Ganesvoort, who commanded the fort, which they did, in two regiments, with General Herkimer at their head. As is usual with militia,. they marched in great disorder, and when the general ordered scouting parties to march, as security against surprise, upon the flanks of the main body, they accused him with cowardice, which, most unwarrantably, had more influence upon his mind than the safety of his army. A catastrophe ensued, which, though not so momentous in that day, as was that of Lothrop in 1676, nor so complete a victory on the part of the Indians, yet it was a severe fight, in which two hundred Americans were slain. The place of attack was selected by Brant or Butler, and was a ravine of a broad bottom, nearly impassable, except a rough track covered with logs of from twelve to fifteen feet in length, laid transversely, which extended across it. General Herkimer arrived at this place about two hours before mid-day, August 6th. He might reasonably have expected an ambush, but his first intimations of the vicinity of an enemy were the terrifying yells of the Indians, and the still more lasting impressions of their rifles. The advanced guard were all cut off. Such as survived the first fire were hewn down with the tomahawk. The fatal causeway was semicircular, and Brant and his forces occupied the surrounding heights. These are the principal events in the battle of Oriskana. A surgeon, Dr. Moses Younglove, was taken prisoner in this battle, and after his return from captivity, he wrote a poem upon the affair, from which we extract the following: "The time and place of our unhappy fight, Their painted bodies hideous to the eye- Their slaughter weapons brandish'd in their hands." Running down from every direction, they prevented the two regiments from forming a junction, one of them not having entered the causeway; and a part of the assailants fell upon those without, and the remainder upon those within it. The former fared worse than the latter, for in such cases a flight has almost always been a dismal defeat. It was now the case. The other regiment, hemmed in as they were, saw, in a moment, that To fight, or not to fight, was death. They therefore, back to back, forming a front in every direction, fought like men in despair. This, Dr. Younglove thus forcibly depicts : "Now, hand to hand, the contest is for life, With bay'net, tom'hawk, sword, and scalping knife: Now more remote the work of death we ply, And thick as hail the show'ring bullets fly; Full many a hardy warrior sinks supine; Yells, shrieks, groans, shouts and thund'ring volleys join; The dismal din the ringing forest fills, The sounding echo roars along the hills." All who have travelled, even within a few years, in this part of the State of New York, cannot but well remember the "Corduroy" roads. Such was the road over the memorable ravine. The poet thus presents to our view the attacking parties : "Of two departments were the assailing foes; Their ebon locks in braid, with paint o'erspread; He thus speaks of the tories : "These for the first attack their force unite, They torture man and beast, with barbarous rage, And Butler is noticed as follows: "O'er them a horrid monster bore command, With such bravery did they fight in this forlorn condition, that the Indians began to give way; and, but for a reinforcement of tories, under Major Watson, they would have been entirely dispersed. reinforcement is thus characterised by the surgeon:— "The second was a renegado crew, Who arm and dress as Christian nations do, This The sight of this reinforcement greatly increased the rage of the Americans. It was composed of the very men who had left that part of the country at the commencement of the war, and were held in abhorrence for their loyalty to the king. The fight was renewed with vigor, and the reinforcement fought also with bravery, until about thirty of their number were killed. Major Watson, their leader, was wounded and taken prisoner, but left upon the battle-ground. In the meantime, General Herkimer had got forward to the fort an express, which informed Colonel Ganesvoort of his situation. He immediately detached Colonel Marinus Willet with two hundred and seven men, who succeeded in rescuing the remnant of this brave band from destruction. He beat the enemy from the ground, and returned to the fort with considerable plunder. Such were the events of the battle of Oriskana. * Dr. Gordon says the tories and Indians got into a most wretched confusion, and fought one another; and that the latter, at last, thought it was a plot of the whites on both sides, to get them into that situation, that they might cut them off. General Herkimer died of a wound which he received in this fight. Near its commencement, he was severely wounded in the leg, and his horse was killed. He directed his saddle to be placed upon a little knoll, and resting himself upon it, continued to issue his orders. On being advised to remove to a place of greater safety, he said, "NoI will face the enemy;" and, adds the historian of Tryon county, “in this situation, and in the heat of the battle, he very deliberately took from his pocket his tinder-box, and lit his pipe, which he smoked with great composure." The Indians, as well as the Americans, suffered dreadfully in this fight. And our poet writes, "Such was the bloody fight-and such the foe Our smaller force return'd them blow for blow; And conquest wav'ring seem'd from side to side." Brant's loss being about one hundred men; we are inclined to think the loss of the Indians exaggerated in these lines : Not half the savages return'd from fight; They to their native wilds had sped their flight." The Senecas alone lost thirty, and the tories about one hundred. The regiment which fled suffered severely, but would have suffered still more, had not their pursuers been apprised of the desperate case of their fellows engaged in the ravine, which caused them to abandon the pursuit. The commanding officer, Colonel Cox, was killed, and the command devolved upon Lieutenant Colonel Campbell and Major Clyde, who conducted the retreat. The scene in the night following the battle is thus strikingly presented by Dr. Younglove, the eye-witness : "Those that remained a long encampment made, In vengeance for their num'rous brothers slain, A fellow pris'ner from the sentries drew; The guards before received their chief's command, And for him supplicate with earnest cries. I saw the general slowly passing by; The sergeant on his knees, with tearful eye, Implor'd the guards might wrest him from their hands, Since now the troops could awe their lessen'd bands. With lifted cane the gen'ral thus replies, While indignation sparkles from his eyes:- |