The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1911-12-30
EA6BS
M ERl@IalNDEANS
1H6,gI
ALBEpI h6Ys6N TesA6aE
KING BAILlp.

The little Puritan colony at Nan.
tucket was aghast at a murder Just
committed within its borders.
A boastIui Ipdian-either drunk or
else relying on The protection Of the
settlers-had spoken evil of the dead
Pokanoket saehem, Massdsoit. Now.
by ancient Indian Law II was mortal
sin to speak III OF the dead. And 1t
was the duty OF the next OF kin" to.
ayenge The words by death.
And, lii this case, the next OF kin.
CHANGED to be the sachem's son and.
successor. Metacomet. known to the
white men as King Philip No one
imagined philip would dare outrage
English laws by .obeyihs so barbarous
a custom. Yet he appeared at Nan.
tucket one day in 1865, slew the In.
dian who had insulted HIS fathers
memory. and returned unpublished to
his own people. This was the sache!h's
first open defiance Of white mems law.
Soon the. laid was red with his deeds.
He was fated to fati as. his first victim
had jsst fallen. beneath the hand OF
an ayeiglng next OF kin"
The Avehaer and His Crime.
Massasolt had been sachem OF the
mighty Pokanoket tribe that owned
all the land from Narragansett Bay to
Massachusetts. He was friendly to
the Pilgrims who landed at Plymouth,
Mass, in 1920. and made a solemn
peace treaty with them. He even
begged them TO give English names
to his two sons, Namsutto and Meta
comet. Accordingly the youths were
renamed Alexander" and Philip"
When Massasoit died Alexander, the
elder son, became sachem. Alexander
was. accused of plotting against the
English and was arrested. Then he
died from = sudden illness and the In
dams declared the white men had
poisoned him.
Philip became sachem. He had a
heritage OF bitter hatred against the
English. Not only, did he believe they
had murdered his brother, but he had
watched with growing dread the way
in which they We're robbibg the In.
dians OF their land. We are wont to
think OF our Puritan ancestors as
sanity folk. In some respects, per-
haps. they were. But in their treat.
ment OF the simple. friendly Indians
their claim to sanctity receives a Sc
we're shock. on one %pretense or an.
other they seized. bought at Ridiculous.
ly cheap price. or otherwise secured
huge tracts OF the savages' land. until
at last PHILIP found himself and his
once mighty tribe cooped up in two
little tongues OF land at Bristol and
Tiyerton, R. |. Yet, for n time, Ph0lp
held firm TO the treaties his father had
made. He lived at Montauk tpro.
-nouneed by the English Mount
Hope9). near Bristol, and ruled his
sadly restricted people as best be
could.
But the old friendly feeling between
white man and Indian was daily merg.
ing into mutual hate and suspicion.
In 1914 a renegade Indian bore word
to the settlers-whether falsely or
truthfully-that Philip was planning
war. The Purltans once forced mat.
tiers to such an isue that Philip found
1t necessary either to tight or lose
what little authority he had left. He
sent the women and children Of his
tribe for protection to his allies, the
Narragansetts. Summoned all his avail.
able warriors. and took the field.
On Sunday. June 30, 1915, Ehile the
inhabitants OF Swansea, not far from
Plymouth, were at church, Philip ard
his band swept down upon the town.
There was a Wholesale killing and
burning. The war was on. Next Philip
attacked the town OF Hadley, but wis
beaten back, 1t is ssId, through the
generalship OF a mysterious white.
Haired man (supposed to William
COTE. the regiclde). who rallied the
~colonists to a brave defense. Soon
aiterward, at the battle OF Bloody
Brook, Philips men slew s%eyenty.three
Puritan soldiers. But while the In,
dians were scalping their victims Eng.
fish achievements came up and
routed them. Philip led his murder.
Gus sayaees through the C~onnecticli
valley. leaving ruin, death and dcsola.
ton In his. path, burning and Stacking
Springfield, NoFthtield and Brookfield
and massacreIhg the Inhabitants Of
outlying hamiets.
The Fate Of, TWO Mighty Tribes.
The colonists. however, rallied gal
lantly, nearly extermlnated his allies
the Earragansetts, and at last ,coopst
Phiiln and HIS remaining followers II
tho swahips near Noun. Hope. They
captured his wife and little son snt
sold them into slavery In the West In
dies, Such of his valiant followers a.
they caught they also sold as slaves
OF tie great tribes OF the PokanoSeti
and Narragansetts combined, less thar
$50 persons were left alive. Philip
WITH a more handful OF men, hid in q
L. - ami ,WN-I