Lewisburg chronicle. [volume] (Lewisburg, Pa.) 1850-1859, 1851-07-09

thought that was in the heart Of white ant
red men, knew that he and his childrel
had strong desire to live in peace, to b'
their friends, to do no wrong, but to serv'
them in every way to the extent of thei
power. As the Great Spirit was the com
mon Father of all, he wished them to live
together not merely as brothers, as the
children of common parent, but as il
they were joined with one hand, one heart
one body, together: that if i'll was done
to one, all would suffer; and if good was done
to one all would gain. He and his chill
dren, he went on to say, never used the
rifle or trusted to the sword they met
the red man on the broad path of good
faith and good will. They intended to do
no harm and had no fear in their hearts.
They believed that their brothers of the
red race were just, and they were prepared
to trust in their friendship. He then
unfolded the writing of the treaty of
friendship and explained itsclauses one
after the other. 1t recited that from that
day the children of Onas and the ma
tions of the Lenni Lenape should be
brothers to each other-that all paths
should be free and open-that the doors Of
the white men should be open to the red
men, and the doors of the red men should
be open to the white men-that the chill
dren of Onas should not believe any false
reports Of the Lenni Lenape, nor the Len
nj Lenape Of the children of Onas, but
should come and see for themselves as
brothers to brothers, and bury such false
reports in the bottomless pit-that if the
Christians should hear of anything likely
to be of hurt to the Indians, or the Indi-
ans hear anything likely to harm the
Christians, they should run, like true
friends, and let the other know-that if
any son of Onas were to do any harm to
any red skin, or any red skin were to do
any harm to son of Onas, the sufferer
should not offer to right himself, but
should complain to the chiefs and to Onas,
that justice might be declared by twelve
honest men, and the wrong buried il a
pit with no bottom-that the Lenni Le-
nape should assist the white men, and the
white men should assist the Lenni Lenape,
against all such as would disturb them or
do them hurt-and lastly, that both
Christians and Indians should tell their
children of this league and chain of friend
ship, that it should grow stronger and
stronger, and be kept bright and clean,
without rust or spot, while the waters ran
down the creeks and rivers, and while the
sun and moon and stars endured
He then laid the scroll on the ground
What King Taminent replied is not known,
except that in substance he was favorable
to the views of Penn. The sachems re-
ceived his proposal with decent gravity,
and accepted it for themselves and for their
children No oaths, no seals, no official
mummeries were used; the treaty was
ratified on both sides with yea, the only
one, says Voltaire, that the world has
known, never sworn to and never broken.
This scene remained to the two races
who were witnesses and actors in it, an in
heritance of good will and honorable pride
for an entire century. From year to
year, says the venerable historian of the
Six Nations, Heckewelder, the sachems
assembled their children in the woods, in
a shady spot as like as they could find to
that in which the great Omas had conferred
with them, when they would spread cut
his words or speeches on a blanket or
clean piece Of bark and repeat the whole
again and again to their great satisfaction.
In few years Penn, going beyond the
seas and never returning, became to them
a sort of mythical parsonage, they not only
held his memory in great veneration, but
treated the whole body of white men with
more kindness for his sake. To be a fol-
ower of Onas was at all times passport to
heir protection and hospitality.
Nor have his own countrymen been less
indebted or less grateful to the Great
Treaty. To it, and to the strictness with
which its provisiods were maintained by
Penn, is owing that striking fact recorded
" Bancroft that while every colony in
he New World was visited by the horrors
# Indian warfare, no drop of Quaker blood
vas ever shed by red man in Pennsyl-
yania.
1t is humiiiating to the pride Of the
White man to think that one Of his race
hould have been the first to break this !
loble league Of peace. Forty years after {
he famous treaty, and five years after the
leath of Onas, one Of his unworthy chill
|ren murdered the first red man who lost {
lis life in Pennsylvania. The deed was g
ttended with circumstances Of unusual I
AA.:s b,k - ebouo IN a cfriL;uO 1;rbt 4