The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1912-02-15
EAicBS
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.RS M
ALEEpT n SDN IERhDHe
MqNrosB.

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M,lNTosH
Is an Indian he was a gallant
chief. As seotehhar he was q
canny hnancier. AS half Scotch. halt
Indian. he was an dhtnitiEated scbund-I
rel So writes one commentator
about Chief William Mcintosh Of the
Creek Nation, an inspired CRATER
VINO. In the end, paid for his dishon.
testy with his. life. Mcintosh was the
ison Of 4 Scottish soldier who mar
ried The daughter Of a Creek chief.
Their son. in early manhood, became
war chief OF the Creeks. When the
majority Of his mothers Snaticne sid
cd With the British in the war Of 1879
Mcintosh rallied n large party Of
braves to the United States standard
and led them yaliantly against the al.
lies Of the British in several battles
Of tile war. He even attacked and de
stroyed sub-tribe OF hostile Greeks,
200 strong. and was in the foremost
rank Of the American army IN the bat:
tie Of ihe "Iorsestoer at the TGllaE
poosa river, where Gen. Andrew jack
son finally crushed Red Eagles Creek
army
a Chiefs Mistake.
All this won for McIptosh the trust
and gratitude OF the government even
while ii led many OF his fellow In
dams to curse him as. a traitor. But
be had already risen too high among.
the Creeks to be overthrow by such
accusations. He had, a year before
the war, earned by one act a reppta-
ton for patriotism It had happened
in this way: In 1906 millions of acres
Of Greek Indian land had been handed,
over by the goyerament to- the state
Of Georgia. McIntc;h pointed out to
the Creeks that few moresnch trans
fers Of their territory would leave
them homeless. HaSing thus aroused
their fears, he drafted a law in Sll--.
which they promptly passed In tile
nations" General Council-making it
an effense punishable by death for a
Creek to sell any Of the land that still
remained. The memory of the part
Mcintosh had played in framing this
law now stood him iii good stead. Lat
er the same law was to prove his
death warrant.
After the Greek war the government.
confiscated much OF the "hostile's"
territory. In 1861 the citizens OF
Georgia had a treaty drawn up grant
ing them stfll more Indian land Nc
lntosh was secretly bribed to agree
to the treaty and to use his influence
in its behalf. Either forgetting the
death penalty he himself had pro.
posed, or else thinking himself too
strong to heed it. he readily Joined In
the plot to cheat his people ont OF
their territory. According to ancient
custom no treaty could be ratified
without the whole nations Consent
Mcintosh controlled barely one-tenth
ofthe needfui votes. But the commits.
siohers told him the q eeks at large
wsTs snfticiehtly well represented by
himself and his immediate followers.
81 '2lcIntns6 and his adherents signed
me document and II forthwith went
int6 eject although 1t was against
tbs direct wishes OF nine.tenths Of the
C,raeks
iNtcIntoSh list. popularity by this
move hut he managed to eyade puns
tsl.nent at his fellow c6untfymen's
hands. This SO emboldened him that
he decided 10 earn a little more easy
money. In 1923 he tried TO cede one
more tract Of Creek land to the gov.
eminent The Creeks merely met and
re.enacted his own earlier law making
such ofrense punishable by death.
rhg Reward of Traitor.
san thinking himself safe. Mcintosh
codsented FOR a HE price, to sign an,
other treaty cedlng to Georgian com.
n,issionets nearly MI the remaining