Hopothlayohola, the great red chief,
turning from McIntosh as if disdaining him, addressed the
commissioners of the Government:
"Our great father, your head chief at Washington, sent us a talk by
you, which is pleasant to hear, because it promises the red man
much--his friendship, his protection, and his help; but in return for
this he asks of us much more than we are willing to give even for all
his promises. The white man's promises, like him, are white, and bring
hope to the red man; but they always end in darkness and death to him.
"The Great Spirit has not given to the red man, as He has to the white
man, the power to look into the dark, and see what to-morrow has in
its hand; but He has given him the sense to know what experience
teaches him. Look around, and remember! Away when time was young, all
this broad land was the red man's, and there was none to make him
afraid. The woods were wide and wild, and the red deer, and the bear,
and the wild turkey were everywhere, and all were his. He was great,
and, with abundance, was happy. From the salt sea to the Great River
the land was his: the Great Spirit had given it to him.
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