^ Digitized by the Internet Arciiive in 2007 with funding from IVIicrosoft Corporation http://www.archive.org/details/exilesoffloridaoOOgiddrich ¥ ' '' - # Death of Waxe-"hadjo THE ..'. i EXILES OF FLOEIDA: OR, THE CRIMES COMMITTED BY OUR GOVERNMENT AGAINST THE MAROONS, WHO FLED FROM SOUTH CAROLINA AND OTHER SLAVE STATES, * SEEKING PROTECTION TINDER SPANISH LAWS. BYn JOSHUA R^aiDDINGsj7^5'- 1 // {^(.H " I, 88 commander of the army, pledged the national feith that they should remain under the protection of the United States." Gkneral Jkssup. / COLUMBUS, OHIO: PUBLISHED BY FOLLBTT, FOSTER AND COMPANY. 1858. 9 E^ ■3 V .^17 Qtfo Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1858, BY FOLLETT, FOSTER & CO., In the Clerk'S Office of the District Court of the United States, for the Southern District of Ohio. ^ OlltpO' TO MY CONSTITUENTS, THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE SO LONG HONORED ME WITH THEIR CONFIDENCE, THIS WORK IS RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED. J. R. GIDDINGS. VI, INTKODUCTION. This war was followed by diplomatic efiforts. Florida was purchased ; treaties with the Florida Indians were made and violated ; gross frauds were perpetrated ; dishonorable expedients were resorted to, and another war provoked. During its protracted continuance of seven years, bribery and treachery were practiced towards the Exiles and their allies, the Seminole Indians ; flags of truce were violated ; the pledged faith of the nation was disregarded. By these means the removal of the Exiles from Florida was effected. After they had settled in the Western Country, most of these iniquities were repeated, until they were driven from our nation and compelled to seek an asylum in Mexico. Men who wielded the influence of Government for the consummation of these crimes, assiduously labored to sup- press all knowledge of their guilt; to keep facts from the popular mind ; to falsify the history of current events, and prevent an exposure of our national turpitude. The object of this work is to meet that state of circum- stances; to expose fraud, falsehood, treachery, and other crimes of public men, who have prostituted the powers of Government to the perpetration of murders, at the contem- plation of which our humanity revolts. The Author has designed to place before the public a faithful record of events appropriately falling within the purview of the proposed history; he has endeavored, as far as possible, to do justice to all concerned. Where the action of individuals is concerned, he has endeavored to make them speak for themselves, through official reports, orders, letters, or written evidences from their own hands ; and he flatters himself that he has done no injustice to any person. • CONTENTS PAGE Introduction v CHAPTER I. Circumstances attending the Early History of Slavery in the Colo- nies. Exiles : efforts to restore them , 1 CHAPTER II. Further efforts to restore Exiles 16 CHAPTER III. Hostilities maintained by Georgia ; First Seminole War commenced 28 CHAPTER IV. General Hostilities 46 CHAPTER V. Further efforts of the Government to restore Exiles to servitude ... 57 CHAPTER VI. Further efforts to enslave the Exiles 69 CHAPTER VII. Commencement of the Second Seminole War 97 CHAPTER VIII. Hostilities continued lift CHAPTER IX. Hostilities continued 125 CHAPTER X. The War continued — Peace declared — General Jessup assumes command of the Army 135 VIU CONTENTS. CHAPTER XI. PAQB Greneral Jessup overthrows his own eflforts in favor of Peace 142 CHAPTER XII. The renewal and prosecution of the War 156 CHAPTER XIII. Vigorous prosecution of the War 172 CHAPTER XIV. Great diflSculties interrupt the progress of the War 189 CHAPTER XV. DiflGlculties in enslaving Exiles continued 214 CHAPTER XVI. Further diflSculties in the work of enslaving the ElxileS 224 CHAPTER XVII. Total failure of all eflforts to enslave the Exiles 233 CHAPTER XVIII. Further difficulties in prosecuting the War 251 CHAPTER XIX. Hostilities continued 274 CHAPTER XX. Hostilities continued 284 CHAPTER XXI. Close of the War 308 CHAPTER XXII. History of Exiles continued 317 CHAPTER XXIII. The re-union and final Exodus ^ 323 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. CHAPTER I. CIRCUMSTANCES ATTENDING THE EARLY HISTORY -OF SLAVERY IN THB COLONIES. Settlement of Florida — Boundaries of Carolina — Enslaving Indians — They flee from their Masters — Africans follow the example — Spanish policy in regard to Fugitive Slaves — Carolina demands the surrender of Exiles— Florida refuses — Colony of Georgia establish- ed — Its object — Exiles called Seminolos — Slavery introduced into Georgia — Seminole Indians separate from Creeks — Slaves escape from Georgia — Report of Committee of Safety — Report of General Lee — Treaty of Augusta — Treaty of Galphinton — Singular conduct of Georgia — War between Creeks and Georgia — Resolution of Congress — Treaty of Shoulderbone — Hostilities continue — Georgia calls on United States for assistance — Commissioners sent to negotiate Treaty — Failure — Col. AVillett's mission — Chiefs, head men and Warriors repair to New York — Treaty formed — Secret article " — Extraordinary covenants. Florida was originally settled by Spaniards, in 1558. They were the first people to engage in the African Slave trade, and sought to supply other nations with servants from the coast of Guinea. The Colonists held many slaves, expecting to accumulate wealth by the unrequited toil of their fellow-man. ^ Carolina by her first and second charters claimed a vast extent of country, embracing bt. Augustine and most of Florida. This conflict of jurisdiction soon involved the Colonists in hostilities. The Carolinians also held many slaves. Profiting by the labor of her servants, the people sought to increase their wealth by enslaving the Indians who resided in their lA THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. Ticinity. Hence in the early slave codes of that colony we find reference to '* negro and other slaves." When the boundaries of Florida and South Carolina became established, the Colonists found themselves separated by the terri- tory now constituting the State of Georgia, at that time mostly occupied by the Creek Indians. The efforts of the Carolinians to enslave the Indians, brought with them the natural and appropriate penalties. The Indians soon began to make their escape from service to the Indian country. This example was soon followed by the African slaves, who also fled to the Indian country, and, in order to secure themselves from pur- suit, continued their journey into Florida. We are unable to fix the precise time when the persons thus ex- iled constituted a separate community. Their numbers had become 60 great in 1736, that they were formed into companies, and relied on by the Floridians as allies to aid in the defense of that territory. They were also permitted to occupy lands upon the same t^rms that were granted to the citizens of Spain ; indeed, they in all respects became free subjects of the Spanish crown. Probably to this early and steady policy of the Spanish Government, we may attri- bute the establishment and continuance of this community of Exiles in that territory.* A messenger was sent by the Colonial Government of South Carolina to demand the return of those fugitive slaves who had found an asylum in Florida. The demand was made upon the Governor of St. Augustine, but was promptly rejected. This was the commencement of a controversy which has continued for more than a century, involving our nation in a vast expenditure of blood and treasure, and it yet remains undetermined. The constant escape of slaves, and the difficulties resulting there- from, constituted the principal object for establishing a free colony between South Carolina and Florida, which was called Georgia ^ (1) vide Bancrnft's and HUdreth's Histories of the United States. (2j Vide both HistorieB above cited. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 3 It was thought that this colony, being free, would afford the planters of Carolina protection against the further escape of their slaves from service. These Exiles were by the Creek Indians called *' Seminoles," which in their dialect signifies "runaways," and the term being frequently used while conversing with the Indians, came into almost constant practice among the whites ; and although it has now come to be applied to a certain tribe of Indians, yet it was originally used in reference to these Exiles long before the Seminole Indians had separated from the Creeks. Some eight years after the Colony of Georgia was first establish- ed, efforts were made to introduce Slavery among its people. The ordinary argument, that it would extend the Christian religion, was brought to bear upon Whitfield and Habersham, and the Saltzber- gers and Moravians, until they consented to try the experiment, and Georgia became thenceforth a Slaveholding Colony, whose frontier bordered directly upon Florida ; bringing the slaves of her planters into the very neighborhood of those Exiles who had long been free under Spanish laws. ^ A difficulty arose among the Creek Indians, which event- ually becoming irreconcilable, a chief named Seacoffee, with a large number of followers, left that tribe — at that time resid- ing within the present limits of Georgia and Alabama — and con- tinuing their journey south entered the Territory of Florida, and, under the Spanish colonial policy, were incorporated with the Span- ish population, entitled to lands wherever they could find them un- occupied, and to the protection of Spanish laws.^ From the year 1750, Seacoffee and his followers rejected all Creek authority, refused to be represented in Creek councils, held themselves independent of Creek laws, elected their own chiefs, and in all respects became 'a separate Tribe, embracing the Mickasukies, with whom they united. They settled in the vicinity of the Exiles, associated with them, and a mutual sympathy and respect existing, (1) Vide Schoolcraft's History of Indian Tribes. 4 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. some of their people intermarried, thereby strengthening the ties of friendship, and the Indians having fled from oppression and taken refuge under Spanish laws, were also called Seminoles, or "run- aways." After Georgia became a Slaveholding Colony, we are led to believe the practice of slaves leaving their m.asters, which existed in South Carolina, became frequent in Georgia. But we have no definite information on this subject until about the commencement of the Revolutionary War (1775), when the Council of Safety for that colony sent to Congress a communication setting forth, that a large force of Continental troops was necessary to prevent their slaves from deserting their masters } It was about the first com- munication sent to Congress after it met, in 1776, and shows that her people then sought to make the nation bear the burthens of their slavery, by furnishing a military force sufficient to hold her bondmen in fear ; and if she adheres to that policy now, it merely illustrates the consistency of her people in relying upon the freemen of the North to uphold her system of oppression. General Lee, commanding the military forces in that '-• colony, called the particular attention of Congress to the fact, that slaves belonging to the planters, fled from servitude and sought freedom among the ''Exiles of Florida. ^^ There also yet remained in Georgia many descendants of those ■who, at the establishment of that colony and since that time, had opposed the institution of Slavery. These people desired to testify their abhorrence of human servitude. They assembled in large numbers, in the district of Darien, and publicly resolved as follows : ** To show the world that we are not influenced by any contracted •' or interested motives, but by a general philanthropy for all man- "kind, of whatever climate, language or complexion, we hereby " declare our disapprobation and abhorrence of slavery in America." The public avowal of these doctrines, naturally encouraged slaves to seek their freedom by such means as they possessed. One day's (1) Vide American Archives, Vol. I. Fifth Series : 1852. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. travel would place some of them among friends, and in the enjoy- ment of liberty ; and they were sure to be kindly received and respectfully treated, soon as they could reach their brethren in Florida. Of course many availed themselves of this opportunity to escape from service. The Exiles remained in the undisturbed enjoyment of liberty during the war of the Revolution. The Creeks were a powerful and warlike people, whose friendship was courted during the san- guinary sti'uggle that secured our National Independence. During those turbulent times it would not have been prudent for a master to pursue his slave through the Creek country, or to have brought him back to Georgia if once arrested. The Exiles being thus free from annoyance, cultivated the friend- ship of their savage neighbors ; rendered themselves useful to the Indians, both as laborers and in council. They also manifested much judgment in the selection of their lands for cultivation — loca- ting their principal settlements on the rich bottoms lying along the Appalachicola and the Suwanee Rivers. Here they opened plantr ations, and many of them became wealthy in flocks and herds. Immediately after the close of the war, the authorities of Georgia are said to have entered into a treaty with the Creek Indians, at Augusta, in which it is alleged that the Creeks agreed to grant to that State a large tract of land, and to restore such slaves as were then resident among the Creeks. But we find no copy of this treaty in print, or in manuscript. As early as 1789, only six years after it was said to have been negotiated, Hugh Knox, Secretary of War, in a communication to Congress, declared that no copy of this treaty was then in the possession of Congress ; and it has not been since reprinted. Indeed, it is believed never to have been printed. The diflBculty between Georgia and the Creeks becoming more serious, the aid of the Continental Congress was invoked, for the purpose of securing that State in the enjoyment of what her people declared to be their rights. Congress appointed O THE EXILES OF FLOEIDA. three commissioners to examine the existing causes of difficulty, and if possible to negotiate a treaty with the Creeks that should secure justice to all the people of the United States. Communities, like individuals, often exhibit in early life those characteristics which distinguish their mature age, and become ruling passions when senility marks the downhill of life. Thus Georgia, in her very infancy, exhibited that desire for controlling our National Government which subsequently marked her manhood. Possessing no power under the Constitution to enter into any treaty except by consent of Congress, her Executive appointed three Commissioners to attend and supervise the action of those appointed by the Federal Legislature. The time and place for holding the treaty had been arranged with the Indians by the Governor of Georgia. At Galphinton,^ the place appointed, the Commissioners of the United States met those of Georgia, who presented them with the form of a treaty fully drawn out and ready for signatures, and demanded of the Commissioners of the United States its adoption. This extraordinary proceeding was treated by the Federal Commis- sioners in a dignified and appropriate manner, in their report to Congress. One important provision of this inchoate treaty stip- ulated for the return to the people of Georgia of such fugitive negroes as were then in the Indian country, and of such as might thereafter flee from bondage. Tlic Commissioners appointed by Congress waited at Galphinton (1) This was the residence of George Galphin. an Indian trader, who, in 1773, aided in obtaining a treaty by which the Creek Indians ceded a large tract of land to the British Government. Georgia succeeded the British Government in its title to these lands, by the treaty of peace in 1783 Some fifty years afterwards, the descendants of Galphin petitioned the state of Georgia for compensation, on account of the services rendered by Galphin in obtaining the treaty of 1773. But the Legislature repudiated the claim. The heirs, or rather descendants of Galphin, then applied to Congress, who never had either legal or beneficial interest in the lands obtained by the treaty. The Representatives from Georgia and from the South generally supported the claim. Northern men yielded their objections to this absurd demand, and in 1848 a bill passed both Houses of Congress by which the descendants of Galphin, and their attorneys and agents, obtained from our National Treas- ury $243;871 86. and the term " Galphin " has since become synonymous with '' pecula- tion" upon the public Treasury. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. I several days, and finding only two of the one hundred towns com- posing the Creek tribe represented in the council about to bo held, they refused to regard them as authorized to act for the Creek nation, and would not consent to enter upon any negotiation with them as representatives of that tribe. This course was not in ac- cordance with the ideas of the Commissioners appointed by Georgia. After those of ihQ United States had left, they proceeded to enter into a treaty with the representatives from the two towns, who professed to act for the whole Creek nation. This pretended treaty gave the State of Georgia a large territory; and the eighth article provided, that " the Indians shall restore all *' the negroes, horses and other property, that are or may hereafter " be among them, belonging to the citizens of this State, or to any ** other person whatever, to such person as the governor shall ** appoint. "1 This attempt to make a treaty by the State of Georgia, in direct violation of the articles of Confederation, and to bind the Creek nation by an act of the representatives of only two of their towns, constitutes the first ofiicial transaction of which we have document- ary evidence, in that long train of events which has for seventy years involved our nation in difficulty, and the Exiles of Florida in persecutions and cruelties unequaled under Republican govern- ments. The Commissioners of the United States made report of their proceedings to Congress ; and those of Georgia reported to the governor of that State. ^ Their report was transmitted to the Legislature, and that body, with an arrogance that commands our admiration, passed strong resolutions denouncing the action of the Federal Commissioners, commending the action of those of Georgia, and asserting her State sovereignty in language somewhat bom- bastic. (1) Vide Report of Hugh Knox, Secretary of War, to the President, dated July 6, 1789. American State Papers. Vol. V page 15, where the Treaty is recited in full. . (2) Vide papers accompanying the Report of the Secretary of War, above referred to, marked A, and numbered 1, 2 and 3. P TIIE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 1 »7QA 1 ^^^^ ^^^^ ^^^^ making of this pretended treaty, the Creeks commenced hostilities, murdering the people on the frontiers of Georgia, and burning their dwellings. The Spanish authorities of Florida were charged with fomenting these difficul- ties, and the Congress of the United States felt constrained to interfere.^ The Commissioners previously appointed to form a treaty with the Creeks, were, by a resolution of the Continental Congress, adopted Oct. 26, instructed to obtain a treaty with the Indians which would secure a return of all pris- oners, of whatever age, sex or complexion, and to restore all fugitive slaves belonging to citizens of the United Statesr This resolution was the first act on the part of the Continental Congress in favor of restoring fugitive slaves. It was adopted under the articles of Confederation, before the adoption of our present constitution, and of course constitutes no precedent under our present government ; yet it introduced a practice that has long agitated the nation, and may yet lead to important and even san- guinary results. Without awaiting the action of Congress, the authorities of Georgia, by her agents, entered into another treaty, at a place called *' Shoulderbone," by which the Creeks appear to have acknowledged the violation of the Treaty of Galphinton, and again stipulated to observe its covenants. ^ We have no reliable information as to the number of the Creek towns represented at the making of this third treaty by Georgia. The whole transaction was by the State, in her own name, by her own authority, without consent of Congress, and all papers relating to it, if any exist, would of course be among the manuscript files of that State. It is believed that Georgia never printed any of these treaties ; and we can only state their contents from recitals (1) Vide letter of James ^Vhite to Major General Knox, of the 24th May, 1787. Amer- ican state Papers, Vol. II, Indian AEfaira. (2) American State Papers, Vol V, page 25. (3) Vide Documents accompanying the Treaty of Ne^r York ; Am. State Papers, Vol. I, Afi&iirs. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 9 which we find among the State papers of the Federal Government. It is however certain, that the Creeks denied that any such treaty- had been entered into ; and they continued hostilities, as though no such treaty had been thought of by them. This pretended Treaty of Shoulderbone exerted no more moral influence among the Creeks than did that of Galphinton. The war continued between the people of Georgia and the Creeks. The savages appeared to be aroused to indignation by what they regarded as palpable frauds. Excited at such efforts to impose upon them stipulations degrading to their character, they prosecuted the war with increased bitterness. The natural results of such turpitude, induced Georgia to be one of the first in the sisterhood of States to adopt the Federal Constitution (Aug. 28). Her statesmen expected it to relieve their State from the burthens of the war which then devastated her border. Soon as the Federal Government was organized under the constitution, the authorities of Georgia invoked its aid, to protect her people from the indignation of the Creek Indians. General Washington, President of the United States, at once appointed Commissioners to repair to the Indian country, ascertain the real difficulty, and if able, they were directed to negotiate a suitable treaty, in the name of the United States. The State of Georgia claimed title to the territory ceded by the treaties of Gal- phinton and Shoulderbone ; while the Creeks entirely repudiated them, declaring them fraudulent, denying their validity, and refus- ing to abide by their stipulations. The governor of Georgia placed in the hands of the Commissioners of the United States, a list of property which had been lost since the close of the Revolution by the people of Georgia, for which they demanded indemnity of the Creeks. This list contained the names of one hundred and ten negroes, who were said to have left their masters dur-ing the Revolution, and found an asylum among the Creeks. The Treaty of Galphinton contained a stipulation on the part of the Creeks, to return all prisoners, of whatever age, sex or color, and all negroes 10 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. belonging to the citizens of Georgia, ''then residing with the Greeks y Arrangements had already been made with the chiefs, warriors and principal men of the Creek nation, to meet the Commissioners of the United States at Rock Landing, on the Oconee Hiver. The Commissioners were received by the Indians with great respect and formality; but soon as they learned that the Commissioners were not authorized to restore their lands, they broke off all nego- tiation, promising to remain in peace, however, until an opportu- nity should be presented for further negotiations. The failure of this mission was followed by \}aQ appointment of Col. Willett, an intrepid officer of the Revolution, who was author- ized to proceed to the Creek nation, and, if possible, to induce its chiefs and headmen to repair to New York, where they could nego- tiate a new treaty, without the interference of the authorities or people of Georgia. Col. Willett was successful. He induced the principal chief, McGillivray, the son of a distinguished Indian trader, together with twenty-eight other chiefs and warriors, to come on to New York, for the purpose of forming a treaty with the United States, and settling all difficulties previously existing between Georgia and their nation. On their way to New York, they were received at Philadelphia, by the authorities of that city, with great ceremony and respect. Their vanity was flattered, and every eflfort made to induce them to believe peace with the United States would be important to both parties. At New York they found Congress in session. Here they mingled with the great men of our nation. The " Columbian Order," or "Tammany Society," was active in its attentions. They escorted the delegation to the city, and entertained them with a public dinner; and made McGillivray, the principal chief, a member of their society. In this way, the minds of the Indians were prepared for entering into the treaty which followed. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 11 There was, among the people of the entire nation, an intense anxiety to render every part of the Union satisfied and pleased with the Federal Government, then just formed, as they felt that their only hope of prosperity depended upon a con- tinuance of the federal union. There was also a general sympathy throughout the nation with the slaveholders of the South, who were supposed to have suffered much, by the loss of their servants, during the war of the Revolution ; few people at that time realizing the moral guilt of holding their fellow-men in bondage. While the revolutionary contest was going on, many slaves in the Southern States escaped from the service of their masters, and, under the proclamations of various British commanders, enlisted into the service of his Britannic Majesty ; and having taken the oath of allegiance to the crown of England, Were regarded as Brit- ish subjects. Others escaped with their families, and getting on board British vessels, sailed to the West Indies, where they settled as ''free persons.'^ Thus, while one class of masters had sustained great losses by the enlistment of their slaves, another class had suffered by the escape of their bondmen, through the aid of British vessels ; while a third sustained an equal loss by the escape of their servants to the Seminoles in Florida. These three different interests united in claiming the aid of government to regain possession of their slaves, or to obtain indemnity for their loss. The timely arrival of Mr. Pinckney, secured the insertion of a clause in the Treaty of Paris, providing that his Britannic Majesty should withdraw his troops from all American forts, arsenals, ship- yards, etc., without destroying ordnance or military stores, or "carrying away any negroes or other property of the inhabitants." This provision was regarded by the slaveholders of the South as securing a compensation to all those whose slaves had enlisted in the British army, as well as to those whose slaves had escaped to the British West India Islands by aid of English vessels ; while those whose servants were quietly living with the Seminoles, had 12 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. not been provided for by the treaty of peace. ^ These circumstan- ces rendered the owners of the Exiles more clamorous for the inter- position of the State Government, inasmuch as the federal authority had entirely omitted to notice their interests, while it was supposed to have secured a compensation to the other two classes of claim- ants. ^. It was under these circumstances, that General Washington pro- ceeded to the negotiation of the first treaty, entered into under our present form of government. The chiefs, headmen and warriors of the Creek nation were present at New York : Georgia was also there by her senators and representatives, who carefully watched over her interests ; and General Knox, the Secretary of War, was appointed commissioner to negotiate a treaty, thus to be formed, under the personal supervision of the President. The object of the President was effected, a treaty was formed, and bears date August 1, 1790. It constitutes the title-page of our diplomatic history. This first exercise of our treaty-making power under the constitution, was put forth for the benefit of the Slave interests of Georgia. It surrendered up to the Creeks certain lands, which the authorities of Georgia claimed to hold under the treaty of Galphinton, but retained substantially the stipulation for the surrender of negroes, which had been inserted in that extraor- dinary compact. By the third article of this new treaty, it was stipulated as fol- lows: " The Creek nation shall deliver, as soon as practicable, to the " commanding officer of the troops of the United States stationed " at Rock Landing, on the Oconee River, all citizens of the United *' States, white inhabitants or negroes, who are now prisoners in ** any part of the said nation. And if any such prisoners or ** negroes should not be so delivered, on or before the first day of (1) The reader need not be informed, that these demands of indemnity for slaves were promptly rejected by the English government ; and Jay's Treaty of 1794, svirrendered them ibrerer. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 13 ** June ensuing, the governor of Georgia may empower three ** persons to repair to the said nation, in order to claim and receive ** such prisoners and negroes." Historians have referred to this clause as containing merely a stipulation for the surrender oi prisoners ;^ but the manner in which the term ''negroes^^ stan^wj&nnected in the disjunctive form with that of *' prisoners," would appear to justify, at least to some extent, the subsequent construction put upon it, so far as regarded negroes then resident with the Creeks ; but it certainly makes no allusion to those who were residing with the Seminoles in Florida. It is a remarkable feature of this treaty, that the Creek chiefs, principal men and warriors should, in its first article, profess to act, not only for the Upper and Lower Creek Towns, but for the Seminoles who were in Florida, protected by Spanish laws. They had not been invited to attend the negotiation, had sent no delegate, were wholly unrepresented in the Council ; indeed, so far as we are informed, were wholly ignorant of the objects which had called such a council, and of the fact even that a council was held, or a treaty negotiated. Our fathers had just passed through seven years of war and bloodshed, rather than submit to ^^ taxation without represeiita- Hon ;^^ but this attempt to bind the Seminole Indians to surrender up the Exiles, who were their friends and neighbors, and who now stood connected with them by marriage, and in all the relations of domestic life, without their consent or knowledge, constitutes an inconsistency which can only be accounted for by the desire then prevalent, to gratify and please those who wielded the slaveholding influence of our nation. Another extraordinary feature of this treaty may be found in the secret article, by which the United States stipulated to pay the Creeks fifteen hundred dollars annually, in all coming time. The reason for making this stipulation secret is not to be learned from any documentary authority before the public, and cannot now be (1) Hildreth, in his History of the United States, speaks of in that light. 14 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. accounted for, except from the delicacy which the authorities of our nation then felt in taxing the people of the free States, to pay southern Indians for the return of those Exiles. And it is inter- esting at this day to look back and reflect, that for nearly seventy years the people of the nation have contributed their funds to sus- tain the authority of those slaveholders of Georgia over their bond- men, -while Northern statesmen have constantly assured their constituents, they have nothing to do with that institution. It would be uncharitable to believe, that General Washington was at that time conscious that he was thus precipitatirg our nation upon a policy destined to involve its government in difficulties, whose termination would be uncertain. After the treaty had been agreed to by the parties making it, General Washington met the chiefs, headmen and warriors, as- sembled in the Hall of Representatives, in the presence of members of Congress and a large concourse of spectators. The treaty was publicly read, and to each article the Indians expressed their assent, and signed it in the presence of the people, each receiving from the President a string of wampum. The President then shook hands with each, which concluded the ceremonies of the day. The treaty was transmitted on the following day to the Senate, accompanied by a Message from the President, saying : ** I flatter ** myself that this treaty will be productive of present peace and " prosperity to our Southern frontier. It is to be expected, also, that " it will be the means of firmly attaching the Crocks and neighboring " tribes to the interests of the United States." The President also alluded in his message to the treaty of Galphinton, as containing a stipulation to cede to Georgia certain other lands, which it was believed would be detrimental to the interests! of the Indians, and, therefore, tliat covenant had been disregarded in the " treaty of New York." In another Message to the Senate, on the eleventh of August, the President says: "This treaty may be regarded as " the main foundation of the future peace and prosperity of the *' Southwestern frontier of the United States." THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 15 On the ninth of August, a motion was made in the Senate to refer the treaty to a select committee, which was rejected by a vote often nays to eight yeas; and on the twelfth, it was approved by a vote of fifteen yeas to four nays ; but we have no report of any discussion upon the subject, nor do we know at this day the objec- tions which dictated the votes given against its ratification.^ (1) Vide Annals of Congress, Vol. I, pages 1068-70-74. CHAPTER II. FURTHER EFFORTS TO RESTORE EXILES. Seminoles repudiate Treaty of New York — Attempts to induce Spanish authorities to deliver up the Exiles — Their refusal — Lower Creeks hostile to Treaty — McOillivray — His parentage and character — Georgia hostile to Treaty — Makes war upon Creeks — General Washington announces failure to maintain Peace — General Knox's recommen- dation — Decision of United States Court — Exertions — Combination of various classes of Claimants — Washington finds his influence powerless — Appoints Judge Jay — Fail- ure of claims on England — Condition and habits of Exiles — Effect on Slaves of Georgia — Treaty of Colibain — Commissioners of Georgia leave Council in disgust — Election of the elder Adams — His Administration — Election of Jefferson — His Administration. The long pending difficulties between Georgia and the neiglibor- ing tribes of Indians were now (1791) believed to be permanently settled, and it was thought the new government would proceed in the discharge of its duties without further perplexity. But it was soon found impossible for the Creeks to comply with their stipulations. The Seminoles refused to recognize the treaty, insisting that they "were not bound by any compact, arrangement or agreement, made by the United States and the Creeks, to which they were not a party, and of which they had no notice ; that they were a separate, independent tribe ; that this fact was well known to both Creeks and the United States ; and that the attempt of those parties to declare what the Seminoles should do, or should not do, was insult- ing to their dignity, to their self-respect, and only worthy of their contempt. They therefore wholly discarded the treaty, and repu- diated all its provisions. They resided in Florida, under the jurisdiction of Spanish laws, subject only to the crown of Spain. (16) THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 17 There thej enjoyed that liberty so congenial to savages, as well as civilized men. The Creeks dared not attempt to bring back the Exiles by force, and the Government of the United States was unwilling to invade a Spanish colony for the purpose of recapturing those who had escaped from the bonds of oppression, and had become legally ^ree. 1 7Q9 1 ^^ ^^^^ ^^^^® ^^ affairs, an agent by the name of Seagrove was sent to Florida for the purpose of negotiating with the Spanish authorities for the return of the Exiles. He had been agent to the Creek Indians, and well understood their views in ref»-ard to o the treaty. When he reached Florida, he found the authorities of that Province entirely opposed to the surrender of any subjects of the Spanish crown to slavery. The Exiles were regarded as holding the same rights which the white citizens held ; and it was evident, that the representatives of the King of Spain encouraged both the Seminole Indians and Exiles, to refuse compliance with the treaty of New York.i Nor was the Creek nation united upon this subject. The " lower Qreeks," or those who resided on the southern frontier of Georgia, were not zealous in their support of the treaty ; and it was said that McGillivray, the principal chief of the Creeks, was himself becom- ing unfriendly to the United States, and rather disposed to unite with the Spanish authorities. This man exerted great influence with the Indians. He was the son of an Indian trader, a Scotchman, by a Creek woman, the daughter of a distinguished chief. He had received a good English education ; but his father had joined the English during the Revolution, and he, having been offended by some leading men of Georgia, had taken up his residence with the jidians and become their principal chief, in whom they reposed implicit confidence. e Creeks of the Lower Towns, however, took sides with the Seminoles, in opposing this piratical foray of slave-catchers. The army having penetrated a hundred miles or more into Florida, found itself surrounded with hostile savages. Their supplies were cut off; the men, reduced almost to a state of starvation, were compelled to retrace their steps; and with great loss the survivors reached Georgia. But they robbed those Spanish inhabitants who fell in their way of all their provisions, and left them to suffer for the want of food. Nor were the Georgians satis- fied with taking such provisions as were necessary to support life ; they also took with them a large number of slaves, owned by Spanish masters, with whom they resided.^ (1) The claims of these ancient Spanish inhabitants for indemnity against those robber- ies, have been pressed upon the consideration of Congress for the last twentj'-fiTe years, and •were recently pending before the Court of Claims. When the bill for their relief was under discussion before the House of Representatives, in 1843, Hon. John Quincy Adams pre- sented a list of some ninety slaves, for the loss of whom the owners claimed compensa- tion from the United States. But the discussions which arose on private bills were not at that time reported ; and neither this exhibit, nor the speech of Mr. Adams, are to be found in the Congressional Debates of that day. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 31 The people, and the authorities of Georgia, were greatly incensed at the Creek Indians, who had assisted the Seminoles in defending themselves; and the Governor of that State demanded of the chiefs a surrender of those individuals who had thus offended against the sovereignty of that commonwealth. The chiefs refused to deliver up their brethren, and the Governor complained to the President of this disregard of slaveholding comity by the Creeks. The Federal authorities [.ppear to have felt very little interest in the matter, and Georgia determined to redress her own grievances. The Legislature of that State, deeming their interests neglected by the Federal Government, passed resolutions declaring the occupa- tion of Florida essential to the safety and welfare of their people, whether Congress authorized it or not ; and they passed an act for raising a force " to reduce St. Augustine and punish the Indians. ^^ Under this declaration of war by the sovereign power of Georgia, another army was raised. Hunters, trappers, vagabonds, and men of desperate fortunes, were collected from that State, from East Tennessee, and from other Southern States, to the number of five hundred; and Florida was again invaded. This expedition was more successful, in some respects, than the first. They burned two or three of the smaller Seminole towns, destroyed several cornfields that had been planted by the Exiles, and drove back to Georgia large herds of cattle, which they had stolen from the negroes ; yet the principal object of the Expedition failed : They were unable to capture an individual, or family, of the Exiles. There were no Spanish inhabitants in that part of Florida from whom they could capture slaves, and they were compelled to return without human victims, but with the loss 'of several individuals of their own party. Thus, after a struggle of more than two years (ending May, 1813), the State of Georgia found itself unable to conquer Florida or the Seminoles, or to capture the Exiles. Further prosecution of the war was given up, the troops were withdrawn from Amelia Island, and peace was restored. This extraordinary proceeding, on the part of Georgia, appears 32 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. to have excited very little attention at the time ; probably in con- sequence of the more important operations that were then being carried forward, upon our Northern and Northwestern frontiers. Harrison at Tippecanoe, and at Maumee ; and Scott and Van Eens- selaer at Queenston, and along the Niagara frontier, were gallantly confronting the British army, aided by powerful allies from the various neighboring tribes of savages; and so greatly was the attention of the people of the Northern States absorbed in these operations, that they were scarcely conscious of the slave-catching forays carried on by the State of Georgia. Indeed, during these operations, the public men of that State were among the most vehement advocates for a strict consti'uction of the Federal Con- stitution, and for maintaining the American Union. These transactions upon our Southern frontier, called attention of British Ministers to the Seminoles and the Exiles. A hostile fleet entered Chesapeake Bay, under Lord Cochrane, who issued a proclamation inviting all persons (meaning slaves), who desired to emigrate from the United States, to come with their families on board his Britannic Majesty's ships of war; assuring them of the privilege of entering his Majesty's naval service, or of settling with their families, as free persons, in either of the British West India Islands. This proclamation was widely circulated, and spread very general consternation along our South- ern seaboard : it gave the slaveholders of Georgia occasion to look to their own protection, and to secure the fidelity of those bondmen who yet remained in the service of their masters.^ Two British sloops of war and some smaller vessels suddenly appeared in Appalachicola Bay, where they landed a body of troops, (1) Many slaves actually fled from their masters and found an asylum on board British vessels. Some sixty, belonging to a planter named Forbes, who resided in Georgia, left his plantation and took shelter on board the ship commanded by Lord Cochrane. They were transported to Jamaica, where they settled and lived as other free people. After the resto- ration of peace, Forbes sued his Lordship, before the British courts, for damages sustained by the loss of the.<;e slaves. The case elicited much learning in regard to the law of ."Slavery, and, next to that of Sommerset, may be regarded as the most important on that subject ever litigated before an English court. Negro A"bTa"ham. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 33 under Lieut. Colonel Nichols, of the British Army, for the purpose of lending support and protection to the Exiles and their Indian allies. He opened communications with them, furnished them with arms and ammunition, and soon drew around him a considerable force of Indians as well as negroes. His encampment was on the east side of the Appalachicola River, some thirty miles above its mouth. In November, he completed a strong fort on the bank of that stream. Some eight pieces of heavy ordnance were mounted upon its walls, and its magazine was well stored with the material of war.^ It was evidently intended as a defense against the forays of slave-catchers, who were not expected to bring with them heavy artillery. The plan was well conceived. Even the plundering expeditions au- thorized by the State of Georgia, would have been unable to make any impression on this fortification. But neither Nichols, nor the Exiles, appear to have anticipated the employment of the United States navy in a piratical work, discarded by most Christian nations and people, and allowed to be carried on only upon the African coast. The British fleet withdrew from the coast of Georgia, and the slaveholders of that State were relieved, for a time, from those apprehensions of slave insurrection which had been excited by the proclamation of Lord Cochrane. In the meantime the Treaty of Ghent was ratified, and peace restored to the country. In that treaty the interests of Slavery (1) " Monette," in his " History of the Valley of the Mississippi," saj's Woodbine erected this fort in the summer of 1816 ; and such were the representations made before the Com- mittee appointed in 1819, to investigate the conduct of General Jackson, in taking possess- ion of Florida. But the reader will notice the Letter of General Gaines, hereafter quoted, which bears dato on the 14th May, 1815, and officially informed the Secretary of War that " negroes and outlaws have taken possession of a Fort on the Appalachicola River." This was more than a year before the time of erecting the fort, according to " Monette." The parapet of the fort was said to be fifteen feet high and eighteen thick, situated upon a gentle cliff, with a fine stream emptying into the river near its base, and a swamp in the rear, which protected it from the approach of artillery by land. On its walls were mounted one thirty-two pounder, three twenty-four pounders, two nine pounders, two six pounders, and one brass five and a half inch howitzer. Vide Official Report of Sailing- Master Loomis. 3 d4 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. had not been forgotten ; and the same stipulations were inserted, in regard to the withdrawal of his Majesty's troops and navy, "without taking or carrying away any negroes or other property "of the citizens," which characterized the treaty of 1782. The owners of slaves who had fled from service under the proclamation of Lord Cochrane, now determined to obtain compensation for their loss. This general feeling again aroused the cupidity of those whose fathers had once claimed to own those Exiles, who fled from Geor^ gia some thirty or forty years previously. In the spring of 1815, Colonel Nichols and his troops withdrew from Florida, leaving the fort, with its entire armament and maga- zine of military stores, in the possession of the Exiles, who resided in the vicinity. Their plantations extended along the river several miles, above and below the fort.^ Many of them possessed large herds of cattle and horses, which roamed in the forests, gathering their food, both in summer and winter, w^ithout expense or trouble to their owners. The Pioneer Exiles from South Carolina had settled here long before the Colony of Georgia existerd. Several generations had lived to manhood and died in those forest-homes. To their descend- ants it had become consecrated by " many an oft told tale " of early adventure, of hardship and suffering ; the recollection of which had been retained in ti*adition, told in story, and sung in their rude lays. Here were the graves of their ancestors, around whose memories were clustered the fondest recollections of the human mind. The climate was genial. They were surrounded by exten- sive forests, and far removed from the habitations of those enemies of freedom who sought to enslave them ; and they regarded them- selves as secure in the enjoyment of liberty. Shut out from the cares and strifes of more civilized men, thoy were happy in their own social solitude. So far from seeking to injure the people of (1) This is the official account of Sailing-Master Loomis, who commanded the naval ex- pedition subsequently sent to reduce this fortress. " Monette," in his History of the Valley of the Mississippi, says, " Near the Fort the fields werefine^ and extended along the river nearly _^/i;y miles,^^ THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. JRI tbe United States, they were only anxious to be exempt, and en- tirely free from all contact witli our population or Government; while they faithfully maintained their allegiance to the Spanish crown. Peace with Great Britain, however, had left our army without active employment. A portion of it was stationed alono" our Southern frontier of Georgia, to maintain peace with the Indians. The authorities and people of Georgia maintained social and friendly relations with the officers and men of the army. By means of Indian spies, the real condition of the Exiles was also ascertained and well understood. What means were used to excite the feelings or prejudices of the military officers against these un- offending Exiles, is not known at this day. Most of the officers commanding in the South were, however, slaveholders, and proba- bly felt a strong sympathy with the people of Georgia in their indignation against them, for obtaining and enjoying liberty without permission of their masters. General Gaines, commanding on the Southern frontier of Geor- gia, making Fort Scott his head-quarters, wrote the Secretary of War (May 14), saying, "certain negroes and outlaws have taken *' possession of a fort on the Appalachicola River, in the Territory "of Florida." He assured the Secretary, that he should keep watch of them. He charged them with no crime, imputed to them no hostile acts. He was conscious that they had taken possession of the fort solely for their own protection ; but he styled them negroes, which, in the language of that day among slaveholders, was regarded as an imputation of guilt ; and outlaw was supposed to be a proper term with which to characterize those who had fled from bondage and sworn allegiance to another government. ^ (1) The reader will at once see, that these people were as much under the protection of Spain, as the fugitive slaves now in Canada are under the protection of British laws. They were as clearly Spanish subjects as the latter are British subjects. By the law of nations, Spain had the same right to permit her black subjects to occupy " Blount's Fort," that the Queen of England has to permit Fort Maiden to be occupied by her black subjects. The only distinction between the two cases is, Spain was weak and unable to maintain her na- tional honor, and national rights ; while England has the power to do both. OT THE EXILES OP FLORIDA. For more than a year subsequently to the date of this letter, General Gaines made the Exiles a subject of frequent communica tion to the War Department. In this official correspondence, he at all times spoke of them as "runaways," "outlaws," "pirates," ''murderers," etc.; but in no instance did he charge them with any act hostile to the United States, or to any other people or government. Of these communications the Exiles were ignorant. They con- tinued in peaceful retirement, cultivating the earth, and gaining a support for themselves and families. In the autumn of 1815, they gathered their crops, provided for the support of the aged and infirm, as well as for their children. They carefully nursed the sick ; they buried their dead ; they lived in peace, and enjoyed the fruits of their labor. The following spring and summer found them in this enviable condition. While the Exiles living on the Appalachicola were thus lolo.j . /. 1 . . . pursumg the even tenor of their ways, plans were ripenmg among the slaveholders and military officers of our army for their destruction. A correspondence was opened by the Secretai-y of War with General Jackson, who commanded the Southwestern Military District of the United States, holding his head-quarters at Nashville, Tennessee. Various letters and communications passed between those officers in regard to this "Negro Fort," as they called it. Power is never more dangerous than when wielded by military men. They usually feel ambitious to display their own prowess, and that of the troops under their command ; and no person can read the communications of General Gaines, in regard to the Exiles who had gathered in and around this fort, without feeling conscious that he greatly desired to give to the people of the United States an example of tlie science and power by which they could destroy human life.^ (1) Vide the Tolaminons Correspondence on this subject contained in Ex. Doc. 119, 2d Seesion, XYth Congress. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 37 At length, on the sixteenth of May, General Jackson wrote General Gaines, saying, " I have little doubt of the fact, that this " fort has been established by some villains for the purpose of ** rapine and plunder, and that it ought to be blown up, regardless ** of the ground on which it stands; and if your mind shall have ** formed the same conclusion, destroy it and return the stolen ** negroes and property to their rightful owners." ^ Without attempting to criticise this order of General Jackson, we must regard a fort thus situated, at least sixty miles from the border of the United States, as a most singular instrument for the purpose of " rapine," or plundering our citizens. Nor could Gen- eral Jackson have entertained any apprehensions from those who occupied the fort. The entire correspondence showed them to be refugees, seeking only to avoid our people ; indeed, his very order shows this, for he directs General Gaines to return the ''stolen negroes to their rightful owners." The use of opprobrious epithets is not often resorted to by men in high ofiicial stations : yet it is difficult to believe, that General Jackson supposed these negroes to have been stolen ; for, neither in the official correspondence on this subject, nor in the papers accompanying it, embracing more than a hundred documentary pages, is there a hint that these negroes were ^'stolen,^^ or that they had committed violence upon any person, or upon the property of any person whatever. They had sought their own liberty, and the charge of stealing themselves, was used like the other epithets of ** outlaws," ^' pirates" and " murderers," to cast opprobrium upon the character of men who, if judged by their (1) Perhaps no portion of our national liistory exliibits such disregard of international law, as this unprovoked invasion of Florida. For thirty years, the slaves of our Southern States have been in the habit of fleeing to the British Provinces. Here they are admitted to all the rights of citiz-enship, in the samfl manner as they were in Florida. They vote and hold office under British laws ; and when our Government demanded that the English Ministry should disregard the rights of these people and return them to slavery, the British Minister contemptuously refused even to hold correspondence with our Secretary of State on a subject so abhorrent to every principle of national law and self-respect. Our Govern- ment coolly submitted to the scornful arroganc9 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. love of liberty or their patriotism, would now occupy a position not less honorable in the history of our country than is assigned to the patriots of 1776. Nor is it easy to discover the rule of international law, which authorized the Executive of the United States, or the ofl5cers of our army, to dictate to the crown of Spain in what part of his ter- ritory he should, or should not, erect fortresses ; or the constitu- tional power which they held for invading the territory of a nation at peace with the United States, destroy a fort, and consign its occupants to slavery. But those were days of official arrogance on the one hand, and popular submission on the other. The Exiles, or their ancestors, had once been slaves. They now were cultiva- ting the richest lands in Florida, and possessed wealth ; they were occupying a strong fortress. Many slaves during the recent war had escaped from their masters, in Georgia, and some were sup- posed to be free subjects of Spain, living in Florida; and if the Exiles were permitted to enjoy their plantations and property in peace, it was evident that the institution in adjoining States would De in danger of a total overthrow. These facts were apparent to General Jackson, as well as to General Gaines and the slaveholders of Georgia. General Gaines only awaited permission from his superior to carry out the designs of the slaveholders, who had become alarmed at the dangers to which their " peculiar institution" was subjected. Upon the receipt of the order above quoted, he detailed Lieut, Col. Clinch,^ of the regular troops, with his regiment and five hundred friendly Creek Indians, under Mcintosh, their principal chief, to carry out the directions of General Jackson. Colonel Clinch was directed to take with him two pieces of artillery, for the purpose of cannonading the fort if necessary.^ This commencement of the first Seminole war was, at the time, (1) Hon. Duncan L. Clinch. He left the service in 1841, and was subsequently a Mem ber of Congress for several years, and died in 1852. (2) War was thus waged against Spain, by Executive authority, without consulting Congress : and no member of that body uttered a protest, or denunciation of the act. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. Olf unknown to the people of the United States. It was undertaken for the purposes stated in General Jackson's order, to " blow up the fort, and return the negroes to their rightful owners.'^ His- torians have failed to expose the cause of hostilities, or the barbar- ous foray which plunged the nation into that bloody contest which cost the people millions of treasure and the sacrifice of hundreds of human lives. It was July before the arrangements were fully made by Colonel Clinch and his savage allies for descending the river, with suitable artillery and supplies, to accomplish the object of their mission.^ The Creeks, having entered into the treaties of New York and Colerain, by which they bound themselves, twenty years previously, to return those Exiles who fled from Georgia, and having failed to perform those stipulations, now cheerfully united' with the American army in this first slave-catching expedition undertaken by the Fed- eral Government. Of these movements the Exiles had been informed by their neighbors, the friendly Creeks ; for, among the Lower Creeks, were individuals who at all times sympathized with them, and kept them informed of the measures adopted for their destruction. All the families living on the river and in the vicinity of the fort, fled to it for protection. They had no idea of the advantages arising from scientific warfare; they believed their fortification impregnable. Colonel Nichols had erected it for the purpose of affording them protection, and they had no doubt of its eflSciency for that pur- pose. Such were the delays attending the journey, in consequence of diflSculties in transporting heavy guns and provisions, that the (1) In Ex. Doc. No. 119, 2d Session. XVth Congrress, may be found the official corres- pondence between the War Department and General Jackson ; al?o that between General Jackson and General Gaines, together with the orders of each, as well as the correspond- ence between the Secretary of the Navy and Commodore Patterson ; and the order of the latter officer to Sailing-Master Loomis ; and the final report of Sailing-Master Loomis and General Clinch. In none of those papers is there any act of hostility mentioned or refer- red to as having been commirted by the Exiles, or the Seminole Indians, prior to their reaching the vicinity of the Fort. 40 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. troops did not reach the vicinity of the fort until the twenty-fourth of July. In the meantime, Commodore Patterson, in pursuance of orders from the naval department, had detailed Sailing-Master Loomis, with two gun-boats, to assist in carrying out the order of General Jackson.^ On the twenty-fourth of July, Colonel Clinch commenced a reconnoisance of the fort. On the twenty-fifth, he cleared away the brush and erected a battery, and placed upon it two long eighteen- pounders, and commenced a cannonade of the fortress. At the time of this investment, there were about three hundred Exiles in the fort, including women and children, besides thirty-four Seminole Indians :^ yet in the official report of Colonel Clinch, he makes no mention of his fire being returned ; nor does he say that any of his men were killed or wounded by the occupants of the fort. On the twenty-sixth of July, Sailing-Master Loomis, with his command, reached a point on the river some two miles below the fort. Colonel Clinch met him at that place, for consultation, and informed him that his fire had thus far proved ineffectual, and that a nearer approach of artillery by land would be difficult.^ Judging from the language used in his official dispatch, Sailing- Master Loomis must have entertained some feelings of distrust towards Colonel Clinch, as they evidently separated in bad temper : yet no officer in the service of the United States ever exhibited greater prudence in his preparations, or more firmness in battle, than Colonel Clinch. He was, however, a man of kind and humane feelings, and high notions of honor. It has been supposed by many of his friends, that he shrank from the perpetration of the outrage which he had been detailed to commit.^ (1) Hildreth states that three gan-boats were detailed on that oooasion ; but the report of Sailing-Master Loomis speaks only of tuw. (2) Hildreth states the number to hayo been about three hundred, partly Indians and partly negroes. (3) Monotte says this expedition was undertaken by Col. Clinch upon his own responsi- bility, to enable some boats laden with provisions to pass up the river. A strange misap- prehension of tacts, as shown by official documents. (4) At this confereuoe, Sailing-Master Loomis informed Colonel Clinch that, on the day THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 41 On the morning of the twenty-seventh, Loomis, with his boats, ascended the river and cast anchor opposite the fort, while Colonel Clinch and the Creek Indians took positions so as to cut off retreat hy land. The cannonade was resumed, and the land and naval forces of the United States were engaged in throwing shot and shells for the purpose of murdering those friendless Exiles, those women and children, who had committed no other offense than that of having been born of parents who, a century previously, had been held in bondage. Mothers and children now shrieked with terror as the roar of cannon, the whistling of balls, the explosion of shells, the war-whoops of the savages, the groans of the wounded and dying, foretold the sad fate which awaited them. The stout- hearted old men cheered and encouraged their friends, declaring that death was to bo preferred to slavery. The struggle, however, was not protracted. The cannon balls not taking effect upon the embankments of earth, they prepared their furnaces and commenced the fire of hot shot, directed at the principal magazine. This mode proved more successful. A ball, fully heated, reached the powder in the magazine. The small size of the fort, and the great number of people in it, rendered the explosion unusually fiital. Many were entirely buried in the ruins, others were killed by falling timbers, while many bodies were torn in pieces. Limbs were separated from bodies to which they had been attached, and death, in all its horrid forms, was visible within that doomed fortress.^ Of three hundred and thirty-four souls within the fort, two hun- previous, while a party of his men were on shore, they were fired on by Indians and one man killed. This was the first and only act of hostility against oar troops. It was com- mitted by Indians, not by Exiles; but it was subsequently seized upon and published as a justification for carrying out General Jackson's oi-der, bearing date more than two months prior to the occurrence, directing General Gaines to destroy the fort and return the negroes to slavery. (1) Monette says, "The scene in the fort wa:3 horrible beyond description. Nearly the whole of the inmates were involved in indiscriminate destruction ; not one-sixth of the whole escaped. The cries of the wounded, the groans of the dying, with the shouts and yells of the Indians, rendered the scene horrible beyond description.^^ 42 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. dred and seventy were instantly hilled ; while of the sixty who remained, only three escaped without injury. ^ Two of the survi- vors — one negro and one Indian — were selected as supposed chiefs of the allied forces within the fort. They were delivered over to the Indians who accompanied Colonel Clinch, and were massacred within the fort, in the presence of our troops ; ^ but no report on record shows the extent of torture to which they were subjected. We have no reliable information as to the number who died of their wounds. They were placed on buaid the gun-boats, and their wounds were dressed by the surgeons ; and those who recovered were afterwards delivered over to claimants in Georgia. Those who were slightly wounded, but able to travel, were taken back with Colonel Clinch to Georgia and delivered over to men who claimed to have descended from planters who, some three or four generations previously, owned the ancestors of the prisoners. There could be no proof of identity, nor was there any court authorized to take testimony, or enter decree in such case ; but they were deliv- ered over upon claim, taken to the interior, and sold to different planters. There they mingled with that mass of chattelized human- ity which characterizes our Southern States, and were swallowed up in that tide of oppression which is now bearing three millions of human beings to untimely graves. Sailing-Mastor Loomis informed the Naval Department, through Commodore Patterson, that the value of the property captured in the fort was "not less than two hundred thousand dollars." He also stated that a portion of this property was " delivered over by *' Colonel Clinch to the Indians who had accompanied him, on the '* express agreement that they should share in the plunder^'* Another portion of property was held by Colonel Clinch, as neces- sary for the use of the troops. A list of the articles thus taken is (1) Vide Official Report of Sailing-Master Loomis, Ex. Doc. 119 : 2d Se.'s. XVth Cong. (2) Some years since, the author wrote a short sketch of the general ^las.sacre, but omitted this point as too revolting to the feelings of humanity, and too disgraceful to the American arms, to be laid before the popular mind in such an article ; and he would most gladly have omitted it in this work, could he have done so consistently with his duty to the public. THE EXILES OP FLOIIIDA. 43 given in the report : it embraces spades, shovels, pickaxes, swords, sword-belts, pistols and muskets. The remainder of the prop- erty was taken on board the gun-boats, and held subject to the order of the Secretary of the Navy.^ The Governor of Florida demanded, in the name of '* his Most Christian Majesty the king of Spain," possession of the property thus captured in the fort ; denying the right of either our army or navy to invade the territory of Spain, and take and carry away property from its fortifications. To this claim Sailing-Master Loomis replied, that the property did not belong to the Spanish crown, but to the Exiles, who were in possession of it, from whom it was taken by conquest. This correspondence between his Excellency the Governor of Florida and the Commander of the two gun-boats, was duly transmitted to our Government at Washington, and may now be found in our National Archives.^ Some twenty-two years subsequent to the capture of this proper- ty, and the massacre of those who were in possession of it, a bill was reported in the House of Ilepresentatives,^ granting five thou- sand dollars to the officers, marines and sailors who constituted the crews of those gun-boats, as compensation for their gallant services. Whether the honorable Chairman of the Naval Committee who reported the bill, or any member of the House who voted for it, was aware of the true character of tlwj services rendered, is a matter of doubt ; but the bill passed without opposition, became a law, and the people of the United States paid that bonus for the perpetration (1) Monette says that three thousand stands of arms and six hundred barrels of powder were destroyed by the explosion. This is probably somewhat of an exaggeration. We have no fact to warrant the assertion, that there was any addition made to the stores left by Col. Nichols, when hu delivered the fort to the Exiles. The same author states, that one magazine, containing one hundred and sixtj' barrels of powder, was left unharmed by the explosion ; but no mention of such fact is found in the Official Report, by Sailing- Master Loomis. (2) Vide Documents before the Committee of Congress appointed to investigate the cause of General Jackson's invasion of Florida: XVth Congress, 2d Session. (3) This bill was reported by Mr. Ingham of Connecticut, Chairman of the Committee on Naval Affairs. 44 THE EXILES OP FLORIDA. of one of the darkest crimes which stains the history of any civil- ized nation. 1 The official correspondence connected with this massacre was called for by resolution, adopted in the House of Representatives, and was communicated to that body at the second session of the fifteenth Congress. But no action appears to have been proposed in regard to it ; nor does it appear that public attention was at that time particularly called to this most wanton sacrifice of human life. In this massacre, nearly every Exile resident upon the Appa- lachicola River, including women and children, perished or was reenslaved. Their homes were left desolate ; their plantations, and their herds of cattle and horses, became the property of those who first obtained possession of them. Probably one- third of all the Exiles at that time resident in Florida, perished in this massacre, or were reenslaved by Colonel Clinch ; yet the atrocious character of the transaction appears to have attracted very little attention at the time. General Jackson was popular as a military officer, and the Administration of Mr. Madison was regarded with general favor. No member of Congress protested against the transaction, or made known its barbarity to the people ; while the ablest mem- bers taxed their ingenuity, and brought all their rhetoric to bear, in vindication of those concerned in the outrage. ^ While Mr. Clay and others severely condemned the technical invasion of Florida, as an act of hostility toward the King of Spain, they omitted all reference to this wanton massacre of the Exiles : nor have we been able to learn that any member even intimated that the bloody Seminole war of 1816-17 and 18, arose from efforts of our Government to sustain the interests of Slavery ; or that our troops were employed to murder women and children because their ancestors had once been held in bondage, and to seize and (1) Vide Statutes enacted at 2d Session, XXVIth Congress. The author was then a member of the House of Representatives, but had not learned to watch the movements of slaveholders and " their allies," so closely as subseiiuent experience taught him would be useful. (2) Vido Speeches of Hon. George Poindexter and others on the Seminole War, in 1819. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 45 carry back to toil and suffering those who escaped death in that barbarous massacre. The ofl&cers of Government, and historians of that day, appear to have avoided all reference to the fact, that the people thus murdered had been far longer in the wilder ness than were the children of Israel ; that they were contending for that Liberty which is the rightful inheritance of every human being. Indeed, more than twenty years elapsed after this massacre, before a distinguished Philanthropist gave to the public the first intimation that such a people as the Exiles had existed.^ (1) Hon. William Jay, of New York, published his Views of the action of the Federal Government in 1837. CHAPTER lY. GENERAL HOSTILITIES. The Troops along the Florida frontier become active — The Exiles on Suwanee and Withlacoochee prepare for War — General Gaines's representation of their numbers — Depredations committed during the Spring and Summer of 1817 — Massacre of Lieutenant Scott and his party — Its Effect upon the Country — Congress not con- sulted as to this War — General Gaines authorized to invade Florida — General Jacksoa ordered to the Field — Mr. Monroe assumes the Duties of President — His Cabinet — Character of Congress — Public Sentiment in regard to discussion of Subjects connected with Slavery — General Jackson concentrates his Army at Fort Scott — Proceeds to Mickasukie — Battle — Destruction of the Town — Marches to St. Marks — Indian Chiefs decoyed on board a Vessel — Hanged by order of General Jack.«on — The .(\rmy movea upon Suwanee — Its Situation — Exiles prep.are for a decisive Battle — Severe Conflict — GeneralJackson takes the Town — Captures Indian Women and Children — Burns the Villages of that region - Returns to Pensacola — Capture and Trial of Arbuthnot and Ambrister — Their Execution — luvsision of Florida condemned by some of our Statesmen, and vindicated by others. The nation having been precipitated into war (1816), the Officers of Government, and the army, at once became active in carrying it on. Orders were sent to General Gaines, exhorting him to vigilance, caution and promptitude. He was on the south- em frontier of Georgia, where it was naturally supposed the first blow, in retaliation for the massacre of Blount's Fort, would fall. His scouts were constantly on the alert, his outposts strengthened, and his troops kept in readiness for action. The Seminole Indians had lost some thirty men, who had inter- married with the Exiles, and were in the fort at the time of the massacre. They entertain the opinion that the souls of their mur- dered friends are never at rest while their blood remains unavenged; (46) THE EXILES OP FLORIDA. 47 nor could it be supposed that the Exiles would feel no desire to visit retributive justice upon the murderers of their friends. Long did this desire continue, in the minds of the surviving Exiles, until, many years subsequently, their vengeance was satiated, their hands were stained, and their garments saturated, in the blood of our troops. The surviving Exiles had their principal remaining settlements upon the Suwauee and Withlacoochee rivers, and in the Mickasukie towns. These settlements were on fertile lands, and were now relied upon to furnish provisions for their support during hostilities. Savages are usually impetuous ; but the Exiles were more deliberate. Colonel Clinch had returned to Georgia ; Sailing-Master Loomis was at Mobile Bay, and no ch'cumstances demanded immediate action. They gathered their crops, obtained arms and ammunition from British and Spanish merchants, and made every preparation for hostilities. During the summer and autumn of 1816, Gen- eral Gaines reported slight depredations on the frontiers of Georgia, but in February, 1817, he reported that larger bodies of Indians were collecting in some of their villages ; and in one of his letters he stated that seven hundred negroes were collected at Suwanee, and were being daily drilled to the use of arms. This number of fighting men would indicate a larger population of Exiles than is warranted by subsequent information. 101TT During the Spring and Summer, both parties were lolT.J . . _ m a state of preparation — of const« nei;rots of the mountains," who 'nee fled from service, but have maintained their bberty so long that they cannot be identified, and are therefore admitted to be free. 72 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. justice or moral suasion. He was an officer of great popularity, however, and it is not unlikely that his views had greater weight with those who followed him in official life, than their intrinsic merits entitled them to. It is certain that his policy of removing the Indians and Exiles from Florida, was subsequently adopted by him while President, and has continued to be the cherished object with most of his successors in that office. The controversy between the State of Georgia and the Creeks had been settled at Indian Springs. In the treaty entered into at that place, the United States had held the Creek Nation responsi- ble for the action of the Seminoles, under the plea that they were a part of the Creek Nation. Having obtained two hundred and fifty thousand dollars from the Creeks in this way, to satisfy the slave claimants of Georgia, the Executive now suddenly became satisfied that the Seminoles were a distinct and independent tribe, and he prepared to treat with them as such. Commissioners were appointed for that purpose, and efi<3rts made to collect their chiefs, warriors and principal men, in order to carry out this object. Suspicious of the objects which prompted this proposal, the In- dians were unwilling to meet the commissioners. Kunners were sent to the different bands, and eventually some thirty or forty were collected. These were declared by the commissioners to represent a majority of the Seminole tribe, and (Sept. 18) they proceeded to form the treaty of " Camp Moultrie." The letter of instructions, from the Secretary of War, was specific on one point only. The commissioners were directed to so ar- range the treaty as to constrain the Indians to settle within the territory south of Tampa Bay, excluded from the coast on all sides by a strip of country at least fifteen miles in width. This would have taken from them their most fertile lands on the Su- wanee River, the Appalachicola River, and in the vicinity of the Mickasukie Lake. Some six chiefs, who had taken possession of the plantations which had been opened and cultivated by the Exiles murdered at "Blount's Fort," refused to sign the treaty. They THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 7B wore, however, prevailed upon to agree to the treaty, when it had been so modified as to give them each a reservation t)f fertile lands, to meet their own necessities. By agreeing to these stipulations, the commissioners obtained their signatures to the treaty — the United States guaranteeing to the Indians peaceable possession of the country and reservations assigned them. They also covenanted to ''take the Florida In- *' dians under their care and patronage, and afford them pro- " TECTiox AGAINST ALL PERSONS WHATSOEVER," and to ''restrain *' and prevent all white persons from hunting, settling, or other- ** wise intruding, upon said lands." They also agreed to pay the Indians six thousand dollars in cattle and hogs, furnish them with provisions to support them one year, and pay them five thousand dollars annually for twenty years. But one great object of the treaty was embraced in the seventh Article, which was expressed in the following languacie : " The chiefs and warriors aforesaid, for themselves and tribes, " stipulate to be active and vigilant in preventing the retreating " to, or passing through, the district, or country assigned them, of " any absconding slave, or fugitives from justice ; and they further *' agree to use all necessary exertions to apprehend and deliver " the same to the agent, wiio shall receive orders to compensate " them agreeably to the trouble and expense incurred." It is worthy of note, that the commissioners, acting "under in- structions of the Secretary of War, now assured the Seminoles that they had been a separate and independent tribe more than a century ; while other commissioners, acting under instructions from the same Secretary, only twenty months previously, insisted that the Seminoles were, at that time, a part of the Creek tribe ; and on that assumed fact, the Creeks were held responsible for the value of such slaves as left their masters during the Revolution and prior to 1802, and took up their residence with the Seminoles. But -these contradictory positions appeared to be necessary to sustain the slave interest. 74 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. It may be remarked that from the signing of this treaty, there was no longer«any controversy between our Government and the Creeks in relation to fugitive slaves. That quarrel was transferred to the Seminoles; and now, after thirty-four years have passed away, and many millions of treasure have been expended, and thousands of human lives sacrificed, at the moment of writing these incidents, our army is actively employed in carrying on the contest which arose, and for more than the third of a century has been almost constantly maintained, for the recapture and return of these people ; and although our members of Congress from the free States had witnessed the long and expensive contest, and the vast sacrifice of blood and treasure, which had been squandered in efforts to regain possession of the Exiles ; yet we do not find any objection to have been raised or protest uttered against this new treaty, in either branch of our National Legislature. Indeed, so far as we have information on the subject, the appropriations for carry- ing it into effect were cheerfully made, without objection. This compact drew still more closely the meshes of the federal power around the Exiles. The United States now held what is called in slaveholding parlance the " legal title " to their bones and sinews, their blood and muscle, while the Creek Indians were vested with the entire beneficial interest in them. But neither the United States nor the Creek Indians had been able to reduce them to possession. The white settlements were, however, gradually extending, and the territory of the Seminoles was diminishing in proportion ; and it was easy to foresee the difficulties with which they were soon to be surrounded. By the treaty, many of their cultivated fields, and most of the villages, which they had recently defended with so much bravery, were given up to the whites, and those who had so long occupied them, were compelled to retire still further into the interior, and commence new improvements. A few Exiles remained with the chiefs who held reservations upon the Appalachicola. Those who remained, however, were persons who had become connected by THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 75 marriage with the Indians belonging to those small bands, from whom they were unwilling to separate. To this treaty some writers have traced the causes which produc- ed the recent "Florida War." They attribute to its stipulations that vast sacrifice of treasure, and of national reputation, which lias rendered that territory distinguished in history. With that war, our present history is connected only so far as the Exiles were con- cerned in its prosecution ; but it would appear difficult for any historian to overlook the important fact that obtaining possession of fugitive slaves constituted the moving consideration for this treaty, and the primary cause of both the first and second Seminole wars. Most of this year was occupied in removing the Indians to their new territory. They also suffered severely for the want of food, and the attention of both Indians and officers of Government appears to have been occupied with these subjects. In the autumn, Mr. Adams was elected President. But his policy was in part unfavorable to the Exiles. Removals from office under his administration were limited. If an officer were removed, it was not until after it had been ascertained that just cause existed for the removal. This policy continued nearly every man in office who had been connected with the Indian Department under the former xldministration. Colonel Gad Humphreys had been appointed Agent for the Seminoles as early as 1822. He was a resident of Florida, and a slaveholder, deeply interested in main- tainino- the institution ; but so far as his official acts have come before the public, he appears to have performed his duty with a good degree of humanity. Indeed, such were his efforts in behalf of justice to the oppressed, that he became obnoxious to Southern men, and was eventually removed from office on that account. William P. Duval was also continued in the office of Governor, and ex-officio Superintendent of Indian Affairs for the Territory of Florida. He was also a slaveholder, and resident of the territory ; but even Southern men found little cause to complain of his devo- tion to liberty or justice. He, and many other officers, appear to 76 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. have supposed the first important duty imposed on them, consisted in lending an efficient support to those claims for slaves which were constantly pressed upon them by unprincipled white men. Early as the twenty-fifth of January, Governor Duval, acting Superintendent of Indian Affairs for the Territory, wrote Colonel Humphreys, giving him general directions in regard to the course which he should pursue in all cases where fugitive slaves were claimed. " On the subject (said he) of runaway slaves among ** the Indians, within the control of your agency, it will be proper *' in all cases, where you believe the owners can identify the slaves, ** to have them taken, and delivered over to the Marshal of East *' Florida, at St. Augustine, so that the Federal Judge may inquire ** into the claim of the party, and determine the right of property. "But in all cases where the same slave is claimed by a white " person and an Indian, if you believe the Indian has an equitable ** claim to the slave, you are directed not to surrender the slave, ** except by the order of the Hon. Joseph L. Smith, Federal Judge "residing at St. Augustine; and in that case, you will attend •' before him, and defend the right of the Indian, if you believe he ** has right on his side." In all these cases, the slave or colored man, whether bond or free, was to be treated in the same manner as a brute. He was permitted to say nothing upon the subject of his own right to liberty. His voice was silenced amidst the despotism with which he was surrounded. No law was consulted. The belief of a slaveholding Agent decided the fate of the person claimed. Those who claimed to own their fellow men, would always find persons to testify to their claims, and it was in vain for an Indian to attempt litigation with a slaveholding white man before a slaveholding Judge. ^ The Exiles were not the property of the Indians in any sense. {!) It is an interesting fact, that the doctrine recently avowed by the Supreme Court of the United States, that " black men have no rights wh'ch white men are bound to respect,'''' ■was recognized and practiced upon in Florida, more than thirty years since, by the officers of Government. THE EXILES OP FLORIDA. 77 The Indians did not claim to own them. Under the rule pre- scribed, if a white man could get one of the Exiles within his power, he could at any time prove some circumstance that would entitle him to claim some negro ; when he proved this, the law of Florida presumed every colored man to be a slave, unless he could prove his freedom. This, no Exile could do; and, when seized, they were uniformly consigned to bondage. The only safety for the Exile was, to entirely avoid the whites, who were not permitted to enter the territory except upon the written permit of some officer. The slave- catchers, therefore, had recourse to the practice of describing certain black persons, in the Indian country, as their slaves, and demanding that the Agent should have them seized and delivered to him. But the Agent, knowing these claims to be merely fictitious in some instances, paid no attention to them. The claimants, intent on obtaining wealth by catching negroes, and sell- ing them as slaves, complained of the Agent to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, who, on the eighth of February (1827), wrote the Agent, reproving him for his remissness in failing to capture and return fugitive slaves, saying: "Frequent complaints have " been made to the Department, respecting slaves claimed by the " citizens of Florida, which are in possession of the Indians ; all "which have been acted on here, in issuing such orders to you as " it was expected would be promptly obeyed; * * * and that " these proceedings would be followed by the proper reports to the *' Department. Nothing satisfactory has been received^ 1 GOP -\ '^^^^ ^^ Indian Bureau, at Washington, took upon itself the responsibility of deciding particular cases, upon the ex 'parte testimony which the claimants presented ; and the commissioner concluded his letter by a peremptory order to Colonel Humphreys, directing him to capture and deliver over two slaves, said to be the property of a Mrs. Cook. To this order the Agent replied in the language of dignified rebuke. After stating that one of the slaves had been captured 78 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. by the Indians, and given up, he says : '^ but they will not, I ap- ** prebend, consent further to risk their lives in a service which has ** always been a thankless one, and has recently proved so to one " of their most respected chiefs, who was killed in an attempt to *' arrest a runaway slave." ^ The love of liberty is universal. We honor the individual who gives high evidence of his attachment to this fundamental right, with which God has endowed all men, and we applaud him who manfully defends his liberty, whether it be a Washington with honors clustering upon his brow, or the more humble individual who defends his liberty in Florida, by slaying the man who attempts to deprive him of it. But these views were not recognized by the agents of our Government. While the Department at Washington supposed the Agent to have neglected his duty, the Superintendent of Indian Affairs for the territory supposed the Agent had been quite too faithful to 1 ftO" n ^^® slaveholders. On the twentieth of March he wrote Colonel Humphreys, saying, " Many slaves belonging to ** the Indians are now in possession of the white people. ** These slaves cannot be obtained for their Indian owners without ** a lawsuit ;" and he then directed the Agent to submit the claim, in all cases where there was an Indian claimant, to the chiefs for decision. In these contests between barbarians and savages, concerning the rights which they claimed to the bodies of their fellow men, the Exiles had no voice. They well understood that the rapacity of the slave claimants was unbounded and inexorable ; they therefore endeavored to avoid all contact with the whites, and to preserve their freedom by affording the piratical slave-catchers no oppor- tunity to lay hands on them. These demands for negroes alleged to be among the Indians, continued to excite the people of Florida and to perplex the officers (1) Vide Executive Documents, No. 271, 2d Session XXVth Congress. I THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 79 of Government, threatening the most serious results,^ and contin- ually enhancing the dangers of the Exiles. The troops at Fort King were called on to aid in the arrest of fugitive slaves ; but their efforts merely excited the ridicule and contempt of both Indians and negroes. These circumstances be- coming known to the slaves of Florida, naturally excited them to discontent; and while their masters were engaged in eflforts to arrest negroes to whom they had no claim, their own servants in whom they had reposed every confidence, suddenly disappeared and became lost among the Exiles of the interior. The white peo- ple became irritated under these vexations. Their indignation against the Indians was unbounded. The Agent, Colonel Hum- phreys, gave a vivid description of their barbarity, in a letter to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs.^ But remonstrances with the Indian Department appeared to have no effect. Peremptory orders for the arrest and delivery of slaves continued to reach the Agent. These orders he could not carry into effect, as he could 1 QOfi n ^^'"'"^"f^ ^^ hYGQ adequate to the arrest of the fugitives. Governor Duval began to regard the Agent as remiss in his efforts, and so reported him to the War Department. Some of the most wealthy Seminoles had purchased slaves of the white people, and for many years, perhaps we may say for generations, had been slaveholders. They held their slaves in a state between that of servitude and freedom ; the slave usually living with his own family and occupying his time as he pleased, paying his master annually a small stipend in corn and other vegetables. This class of slaves regarded servitude among the whites with the greatest degree of horror. The owners of fugitive slaves, or men who pretended to have lost slaves, when able, would seize and hold those belonging to the Indians. The Indians being ignorant of legal proceedings, were unable to obtain compensation from those who thus robbed them (1) Captain Sprague, of the United States Armj', so states, in his History of the War. (2) Vide Letter of the Agent, dated sixth of March, 1827. 80 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. of what the slaveholders termed property. This practice became so common that, on the seventeenth of April, many of the chiefs and warriors assembled at the Agency, and made their protest to the Agent, declaring that "many of their negroes, horses, cattle, *' etc., were in the hands of the white people, for which they were *' unable to obtain compensation." Contrary to the treaty of Camp Moultrie, white men were at that time in the Indian country searching for slaves, and the chiefs demanded of the Agent the reason why the white people thus violated the treaty to rob the Indians ? The Agent could only reply, that the white men were there by permission given them by the Secretary of War.^ So flagrant were these outrages upon the Indians and negroes, that Colonel Brooke, of the United States Army, at that time com- manding in Florida, took upon himself the responsibility of address- ing the Agent, advising him not to deliver negroes to the white men, unless their ^'■claims were made clear and satisfactory y^ The District Judge of the United States for the Territory, also wrote Colonel Humphreys, giving his construction of the rules adopted by the Indian Bureau. He thought, in no case, should a negro be delivered up, where the Indians claimed him, until proofs had been made and title established before judicial authority. ^ No law was looked to as the rule by which officers of Govern- ment were to be controlled in their official duties. The opinun, the judgment, of the individual constituted his rule of action. During the nineteenth century, perhaps no despotism has existed among civilized nations more unlimited, or more unscrupulous, than that exercised in Florida, from 1823 to 1843. This state of affairs determined the Exiles not to he arrested by white men. Thus, when Governor Duval ordered a compensation for a slave claimed by Mrs. Cook, to be retained from their annui- (1) Vide Minutes of Talk held at Seminole Agency, with Treskal, Mathia, and other Chiefs. Ex. Doc. 271, 1st Sess. XXIV th Congre.ss. (2) Vide Lotter of Col. Brooke to Col. Humphreys, 6 May, 1828, contained in the above cited Document. (3) Vide Letter of Judge Smith, May 10, 1828, contained in same Document. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 81 ties, the chiefs held a talk with the Agent, and assured him that the " man was born among the Seminoles, and had never been out of the nation.^- ^ These demands for negroes increased in number ; and the whites became more and more rapacious, and the Indians more and more indignant, until hostilities appeared inevitable. The Agent, from long association with the Indians and his knowledge of facts, nat- urally sympathised with them. He assembled a number of the chiefs at the Agency, and suggested to them the absolute necessity of submitting to the white people ; and for the purpose of avoiding further difficulties, advised them to emigrate west of the Mississippi, or, rather, to send a delegation to examine the country ; and, as an inducement, offered to accompany their chiefs and warriors on such a tour. To this proposition a few of them consented, and the Agent notified the Department of the fact.^ It was easy to see that, under the existing state of affairs, hostil- ities could not long be avoided. Up to the period of which we are speaking, the action of our Government had been dictated by those who sought to uphold and encourage Slavery ; nor could it be ex- pected that this long-established policy would be suddenly changed, unless such change were peremptorily demanded by the people. There was apparently but one course to be pursued under this policy — that was the removal of the Indians from Florida. This plan had been recommended by General Jackson ten years previ- ously, and he now being President, had an opportunity of carrying out his proposed policy. To effect this purpose, it would be neces- sary to negotiate a treaty by which the Indians should consent to abandon Florida and remove west of the Mississippi. It had long been the policy of those who administered the Gov- ernment, to select Southern men to act in all offices in which the I institution of slavery was likely to be called in question. From the (1) Vide Statement of John Hick, 15 August, 1828. Ex. Doc. 271, before quoted, 1 <2) Vide Letter of Gad Humphreys, Oct. 20, 1828. It probably was the first time the proposition was submitted to the Seminoles. 82 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. time General Washington sent Colonel Willett to ascertain facts in regard to the controversy between the State of Georgia and the Creek Indians, in 1789, to the period of which we are now speak- ing, no Northern man was appointed to any office which required his personal attention to the situation of the Exiles.^ 1 QQo n ^" accordance with this practice, General Cass, acting as Secretary of War, appointed Colonel James Gadsden, of South Carolina, to negotiate the treaty of Payne's Landing. By the preamble of this treaty, the Seminoles stipulated that eight of their principal chiefs should visit the Western country, " accompa- nied hy their faithful interpreter , Abraham,''^ (an Exile, and a man of great repute among both Exiles and Indians,) and should they be satisfied with the character of the country, and of the favorable disposition of the Creeks to reunite with the Seminoles as one peo- ple, they would, in such case, agree to the stipulations subsequently contained in said treaty. The first article merely makes an exchange, by the Seminoles, of lands in Florida for an equal extent of territory, west of the Mis- sissippi, adjoining the Creek Nation. The second article provides compensation for the improvements, and specifically stipulates, that Abraham and Cudjoe (two Exiles who acted as interpreters) should receive, each, two hundred dollars. The third provides for the distribution of blankets and frocks among them. The fourth article provides for certain annuities, etc. The fifth merely stipulates the manner in which the personal property of the Seminoles shall be disposed of in Florida, and the same articles supplied them in their new homes at the West. The sixth is in the following language : ' ' The Seminoles, being " anxious to be relieved from the repeated vexatious demands for " slaves and other property, alleged to have been stolen and de- (1) Even Mr. Adams, when President, continued in office those men who had been placed there by his predeceeeors. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 83 " stroyed by them, so that they may remove to their new homes *' unembarrassed, the United States stipulate to have the same ** properly investigated, and to liquidate such as may be satisfac- " torily established, provided the amount does not exceed fourteen *' thousand dollars." The seventh article stipulates that a portion of the Indians should remove in 1833, and the remainder in 1834. Two leading features of this treaty attract the attention of the reader. The first is the removal of the Seminoles ; second, their reunion with the Creeks. The Creeks, having paid the slavehold- ers of Georgia for their loss of Exiles, had permitted the subject to rest in silence, and, so far as we are informed, no formal claim had yet been asserted by the Creeks to seize and bold the Exiles as slaves ; but it is evident that the negotiators of this treaty intended to place the Seminoles, when settled in their western homes, within the power, and under the jurisdiction, of the Creeks. Yet it was well known that, from the time of their separation, in 1750, up to the signing of this treaty, they had disagreed and, at times, had been in open war with each other. General Cass, the Secretary of War, as well as the President, must have known that Mcintosh, the principal chief of the Creeks, had accompanied Colonel Clinch, with five hundred warriors, when he invaded Florida for the pur- pose of massacreing the Exiles at " Blount's Fort," in 1816 ; that the Creeks shared in that massacre, and had publicly tortured and murdered one Indian and one negro, whom they styled chiefs. It is difficult to believe that any man could expect them to live togeth- er in peace, with the recollection of those scenes resting on the mind; nor has any explanation yet been given, nor reason assigned, for the anxiety of our officers to place the Seminoles within the power of the Creeks, except a desire to enslave the Exiles. Abraham, who acted as interpreter, had been born among the Seminoles. His parents had fled from Georgia, and died in their forest-home. He appears to have been a man of unusual influence- with his more savage friends ; and although he insisted on emigrar ^4 ^ THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. ting to the West, in opposition to many of his brethren, yet he has to this day maintained a high reputation among his people. Cudjoe was less known, and, subsequently, was less conspicuous than Abraham ; indeed, we know but little of him. But the experi- ence of Abraham, nor the learning of Cudjoe, could detect that vague use of language which was subsequently seized upon for justifying the fraud perpetrated under this treaty. In the preamble, it was stipulated that the Seminoles were to send six of their confidential chiefs to view the western country ; and if they were satisfied with the country, etc. The Seminoles supposed the pronoun they had relation to the Tribe ; while General Jackson construed it to refer to the chiefs sent West. If they were satisfied, he held the Tribe bound to emigrate at all events ; and his efforts were, therefore, directed to satisfying the chiefs who went to view the country. But the leading men of the Seminoles became suspicious of the design of the Creeks to enslave the Exiles, before their delegation left Florida, and publicly expressed their suspicion.^ The President appears to have determined on securing the emigration of the Indians at all hazards and at any sacrifice. For that purpose he appointed commissioners to go west and obtain from the Seminole delegation, while yet in the western country, and absent from the tribe, an acknowledgment that the country was suitable for a residence, and that the Creeks were anxious to unite with them as one people. This was to be obtained before the Seminole delegation should return to Florida, or make report to their nation, or give the Tribe an opportunity to judge or act upon the subject. His object was accomplished (March 28). The commis- sioners obtained an " additional treaty,^^ signed by the Seminole delegation sent West, without any authority from their Na- tion to enter into any stipulation ; nor had the commissioners, on the |)art of the United States, authority to form any treaty whatever : yet (1) Vide Sprague'8 History of the Florida War. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 85 this additional treaty, as it was called, after reciting some of the stipulations contained in that of Payne's Landing, declares "that '* the chiefs sent to examine the country ai-e well satisfied with it;" and then stipulates, ** that the Seminole Indians shall emigrate to " it so soon as the United States shall make the necessary prepara- **tions." There was also another provision in this additional treaty of vast importance to the Exiles ; it designated and assigned to the Seminoles a certain tract of country, giving its metes and bounds, to the ''separate use of the Seminoles forever." Their agent. Major Phagan, appears to have been willing and capable of performing his part in this diplomatic intrigue. We have no knowledge of the means used to obtain this additional treaty, nor the bribery by which it was secured; but it is known that the chiefs, before they went West, expressed their dislike of reuniting with the Creeks; that when they returned, they denied having agreed to settle under Creek jurisdiction; it is also certain that the additional treaty stipulates that the Seminoles shall have their lands separate from the Creeks. When they returned, their agent, Major Phagan, represented them as having stipulated for the positive removal of the Seminoles. The chiefs denied it, and insisted they had understood their author- ity as extending only to an examination of the country, and to report the result to the Nation. They requested that the chiefs, head-men and warriors be assembled to hear their report, and to express their own determination. But the agent refused to call such council, and assured them that their homes and heritage were already sold, and that nothing now remained for them to do but to prepare for removal. The people of Alachua County, Florida, feeling indignant at the determination of the Seminoles to remain in that Territory, addressed a protest to the President of the United States, declaring that the Seminoles did not capture and return the fugitive slaves who fled to the Indian country, according to their stipulations in the treaty of Camp Moultrie, but rather aflforded protection to them. They 86 THE EXILES OF ELORIDA. further stated that while the Seminoles remained in the country no slaveholder could enjoy his property in peace. This protest was signed by ninety of the principal citizens of said county, and for- warded to the President. This statement aroused the ire of the President, who at once indorsed on the back of the petition an order, to the Secretary of War to " inquire into the alleged facts, and if found to be true, to ** direct the Seminoles to prepare to remove West and join the " Creeks.'^ The order was characteristic of the author. He waited not for the approval or ratification of any treaty ; with him the whole depended upon the alleged fact of the Seminoles failing to bring in fugitive slaves — not upon treaty, nor upon the ratification of treaties. 1 1 8Q1 1 '^^^^ Senate of the United States was subsequently called on by the President to approve the treaty after the lapse of nearly two years from its date. This was done, and the President by his proclamation immediately declared it in force. It was said by public ofiicers, then in Florida, that had the Seminole delegation been permitted to give an unbiased opinion to their people, there would not have been a man in the Nation willing to migrate.^ The whole Nation became indignant at this treatment, and such was the feeling against the agent that he deemed it prudent to retire from the agency. General Wiley Thompson was appointed to succeed him. General Clinch was appointed to the command of the troops, and every preparation was made to insure the speedy removal of the Indians and Exiles west of the Mississippi. In the meantime, the Creeks learning that a tract of country was, by the additional treaty, agreed to be set off to the separate use of the Seminoles, saw clearly the influence which Abraham had exer- cised in the matter, and, fearing their own designs for obtaining slaves would be defeated through their principal chiefs, addressed a (1) Vide Documents relating to the Florida War, 1st Session, XXIYth Congress. (2) Vide Sprague's History of the Florida War. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 87 protest to the Hop. Lewis Cass, then Secretary of War, remonstra- ting against the policy of giving the Scminoles a separate country. These chiefs were sagacious men, who had attained distinction with the Creeks by their manifestation of superior intelligence. Two of them, Rolley Mcintosh and Chilley Mcintosh, sons of a Scotch trader who lived with the Indians, had been educated, and were regarded as among the able politicians of the day. They, together with "Toshatchee Mieco " and "Lewis," urged the propriety of uniting the two tribes as one people, without any separate organi- zation. The next day they addressed another letter to Secretary Cass, giving additional reasons and arguments why the Seminoles should not have separate lands. ^ The President had already adopted the policy of compelling the Seminoles to unite under one government with the Creeks : and this stipulation for separate lands was introduced into the " ad- " ditional treaty," by commissioners who were not fully informed of the President's views. This compact, entered into at Fort Gib- son, erroneously called an "additional treaty," was known to be void : neither the Seminole chiefs nor the United States commis- sioners had authority to negotiate any treaty whatever ; and this stipulation, for holding separate lands by the Seminoles, appears to have been totally disregarded by the Executive, as will more fully appear hereafter. Another circumstance had induced the Creeks to remain silent in regard to the Exiles. By the treaty of Indian Spring, they had placed at the President's disposal ^250,000, out of which the slaveholders of Georgia were to be paid for slaves and property lost prior to 1802. The commissioners appointed to make the examination found but $109,000 due the claimants under this stipulation, leaving in the hands of the President $141,000 belong- ing to the Creeks. This, however, was claimed by the slave- holders, in addition to the amount allowed by the treaty. To obtain this money the slaveholders sent their petition to Congress. (1) Vide Ex. Doc. 271, XXIVth Congress, 1st Sessiou. pages 43 and 44. 8« THJ EXILES OF FLORIDA. The subject was referred to a committee, of which Mr. Gilmer, of Georgia, was Chairman. The committee made a very elaborate report, setting forth that the claimants had an equitable right to this money as an indemnity "/or the loss of the offspring which the *' Exiles loould have home to their masters had they remained in *' bondage,'^ and it is among the inexplicable transactions of that day, that the bill passed, giving the money to those claimants without the uttering of a protest, or the statement of an objection, by any Northern representative or senator. The Creeks now having paid the full amount stipulated in the treaty, and being robbed of the $141,000, to compensate the slave- ^ holders for children who had never been born, were excited to madness. They believed themselves to hold the beneficial interest in the bodies of the Exiles, and determined to obtain possession of them.^ They immediately sent a delegation to the Seminoles to demand possession of the Exiles as their slaves. While the Creeks were thus demanding possession of the refu- gees, the Executive of the United States and his ofl&cers were endeavoring to compel them to go West, where the Creeks could, without opposition, lay hands upon them and enslave them. The six Seminole chiefs holding reservations upon the Appa- lachicola River owned some slaves, and with those slaves some of the Exiles had intermarried. Each chief, by the terms of the treaty of Camp Moultrie, was permitted to name the men who (1) The Author, while serving in Congress in 1847-8 was. by the Speaker, placed upon the committee of Indian Affairs. While serving on that committee, the Creek Indians applied for the return of this money wh'ch had belonged to them, but had been wrongfully paid over by Congress to the slaveholders of Georgia, some fourteen years previously. Tho case was referred to the Author, as sub-committee, who reported that the money, in justice, in equity, and in law, belonged to the Indians ; that its payment to the slaveholders was unjust and wrong, and that it ought to be paid to the Indians. The report was con- firmed, and the money p»id to the Indians. The justice of the cause was so obvious that it met with no opposition, and by the vote of both Houses it now stands acknowledged and declared that this sum of $141,000 was taken from the pockets of the laboring men of our Nation, and paid to those slaveholders for imaginary slave children who were never horn ; nor have we been able to learn that an objection was raised, or protest uttered, by any Northern member of Congress. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 89 were to reside with him, and such chief became responsible for the conduct of the persons thus named ; while the United States stipulated to "afford the chiefs and their people protection against *' all persons whatsoever. ^^ The white settlements had extended to the vicinity of these res- ervations, and the Exiles and Seminole slaves living on them were more immediately exposed to the rapacity of the whites than were those in the interior of the territory. The mania for obtaining slaves by piratical violence, seems to have reached a point almost incredible to the people of the free States. E-con-chattimico was one of the chiefs whose reservation lay on the west side of the river. He had long been highly respected by the whites. He owned some twenty slaves, who were residing with him in a state of partial freedom — paying him an annual stipend of provisions for their time, and holding such property as they could acquire. Connected with these slaves, and with some of the Indians on the Reser- vation, were about an equal number of Exiles, who had never known slavery, but whose ancestors, in former generations, had toiled in bondage. Unwilling to separate from their intimate friends and connexions, they had, as stated in a former chapter, come here to occupy, with E-con-chattimico and his friends, one of the extensive plantations which had been occupied by their brethren who fell at Blount's Fort, in 1816. The chief had named them as his friends, and a record of the fact had been deposited in the office of the Commissioner of Indian Affairs ; and for their conduct E-con-chattimico was responsible, under the treaty of " Camp Moultrie ;" while, by the same instrument, the faith of the nation had been solemnly pledged " to protect them against all persons whatsoever. ^^ The piratical slave-dealers of Georgia looked upon these people, both Exiles and slaves, with strong desire to possess them. One of these fiends in human shape, named Milton, residing in Colum- bus, Georgia, professed to have purchased them from a Creek 90 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. Indian. The claim was presented to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, and by him referred to Judge Cameron, of the United States District Court in Florida, for examination. The chief being a man of influence and respected by the whites, found friends to espouse his cause. The claimant began to doubt his success under such circumstances, and proposed to withdraw his claim ; but so flagrant was its fraudulent character, that Judge Cameron felt it his duty to report upon it, showing it to be void.^ This report was duly transmitted to the proper department at "Washington, and the Old Chief, with his people, once more reposed in apparent security. It has been alleged, that men who so far paralyze their own moral sensibilities as to rob their fellow-men of their labor, their liberty, their manhood, and hold them in degrading bondage, can not entertain any clear conceptions of right and wrong. However this may be, it is certain that men who deal in slaves, are ever regarded, even by slaveholders, as destitute of moral sentiment. In this case, Milton, finding that Judge Cameron had reported the claim to be fraudulent and void, professed to sell his interest in these people to certain other slaveholders, of Columbus. These men provided themselves with chains, and fetters, and bloodhounds, and all the paraphernalia of regular slave-dealers upon the African coast, and descending the river in a steamboat, intended to surprise their victims before any notice should be given of their approach. But some friendly white, who had learned the intentions of the pirates, had whispered to the aged chief the danger which threat- ened his people. They were soon armed, and prepared to defend themselves or die in the attempt. The desperadoes landed upon the Reservation ; but finding the people armed, and ready to receive them in a becoming manner, they retired into the country and alarmed the settlers, by proclaiming that E-con-chattimico had armed his people and was about to make war upon the whites. The news flew in all directions; troops were mustered into service; (1) Vido Opinion of Judge Cameron, pages 35 and 36 of Doc. 271, last quoted. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 91^ an army was organized and marched to the Reservation, and the proper officer sent, with a white flag, to demand the object and in- tentions of the chief, in arming his people. The old man was most indignant that his honor should be impugned in such manner. He fully explained the cause which induced his people to convene, and assume a hostile attitude towards those who had come to rob them of their liberty. The officers, who sympathized with the pirates, were sustained by military force. They assured the old man that no persons should be allowed to injure him or his people ; that the country was alarmed, and the public mind could only be pacified by a sur- render of his arms and ammunition. To this proposition he was constrained to yield. They took his arms and ammunition, and left him defenseless. They remained undisturbed, however, during the night ; but the next morning the slave-hunters returned, fully armed. They seized every negro residing upon the Keservation, includins: both Exiles and the slaves of E-con-chattimico, and, fast- ening the manacles upon their limbs, hurried them off to Georgia, where they were sold into interminable bondage.* ^ They, and their ancestors, had enjoyed a hundred years of freedom ; but they were suddenly precipitated into all the sufferings and sorrows of slavery, and now toil in chains, or have departed to that land where slavery is unknown. E-con-chattiraico petitioned Congress for indemnity, but obtained no redress. Neither the President, nor the Secretary of "War, manifested any interest in maintaining our most solemn treaty obliga- tions with the Indians, or attempted any redress for their violation. Disheartened and broken down in spirits, E-con-chattimico yielded * Note.— When the author, in 1841, denounced this transaction, in the House of Repre- sentatives, and spoke of these slave-catchers as Pirates, Hon. Mark A. Cooper, of Georgia, boeame indignant at the denunciation ; — said he was well acquainted with the men who seized and enslaved these people ; that they were honorable men, and that he took them by the hand almost daily while at home. (1) The statement of these facts may be found in Ex. Document, 1st Sess. XXIVth Congress. 91^ THE EXI .iES OF FLORIDA. to General Jackson's orders, emigrated to the western country, and spent the remainder of his days in poverty and want. Nor were the piracies of the white people confined to the crime of kidnapping Exiles. They robbed the Indians and Exiles of horses, cattle and money. A chief named Blunt also held a reservation on the river, under the treaty of Camp Moultrie. He had some friends among the Exiles who preferred to occupy, with him, one of the plantations left destitute by the murder of the people at " Elount's Fort," in 1816. He too had named his friends and become responsible for their conduct, and relied upon the pledged faith of the nation to protect them. Some desperadoes, said to have come from Georgia, entered his plantation, robbed him of a large amount of money, and carried away all the negroes living on the Reserve. Another chief named Walker, also residing on a reservation, with some slaves and Exiles, discovered that a notorious slave-catcher from Georp;ia, named Douglass, and some associates, were hanorinpj around his plantation, with the apparent intention of capturing and enslaving the colored people. Warned by the outrage committed upon E-con-chattimico and his people, both Indians and negroes collected together, armed themselves, and determined to resist any violence that should be offered them. When the piratical Georgians approached, they fired upon them. Finding the people armed and determined to resist, the man- stealers retreated and disappeared. Feeling they were in danger, Walker wrote the Agent of the Seminoles, caUing for protection, according to the stipulations of the treaty of Camp Moultrie. In his letter he says, "Are the free negroes (Exiles), and negroes "belonging to this town (slaves), to be stolen away publicly in •* the face of law and justice — carried off and sold to fill the pockets ** of those worse than land pirates?" This appeal was in vain. The Agent paid no attention to it. The kidnappers were vigilant and watchful, and when their victims THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 98 supposed themselves safe, they stole upon them, seized them, and hurried them off to the interior of Alabama, and sold them into slavery. The scenes so often witnessed upon the slave coast of Africa became common in Florida; while Georgia, and Alabama, and Florida, afforded a class of men in no respect superior in morals to those outlaws and pirates who pursue the foreign slave trade. The dangers threatening the Exiles now became imminent. They saw clearly they were to be enslaved, or compelled to resort to arms in defense of their liberties. Their entire influence was exercised to prevent emigration, as they feared that would subject them to Creek jurisdiction and enslavement. These objections were made known to the Department at Wash- ington by the Agent of the Seminoles, Wiley Thompson, who, in plain and unmistakable language, informed the Commissioner of Indian Affliirs, that the principal objection to removing West which operated upon the minds of the Seminoles arose from the claim of the Creeks to those people who had fled from Georgia prior to 1802, and extending back to the commencement of the Revolutionary War. He assured the Department, that if the Semi- noles were compelled to remove West, these descendants of the Exiles would be enslaved by the Creeks, and if they remained in Florida, they would be enslaved by the whites. He told the Department in plain language, that many of those negroes who had been born and raised among the Indians had been enslaved by the people of Flor- ida and of Georgia, and were then held in bondage.^ Among other officers who espoused the cause of humanity at that period, so interesting to the Exiles, was the veteran General Clinch. He was a man of great probity of character. One of the most gal- lant officers in the service was at the time in actual command of the troops in Florida. He had long been acquainted with the Indians, and no man perhaps better understood the character of the Exiles. He had twenty years before commanded the troops at the massacre (1) Vide Ex. Doc., 1st Sess. XXIVth Congress, page 104. m THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. of "Blount's Fort," and well understood the persecutions to which the Exiles had been subjected. In strong language, he pointed out the wrong about to be perpetrated upon them, as well as upon the Seminoles. He informed the Secretary of War, in direct and posi tive language, that if the Seminoles and their " negro allies" were sent West, the negroes would he enslaved by the Creeks.^ Hon. John H. Eaton, Governor of Florida, a warm personal and political friend of the President, in whom it was believed the Exec utive reposed great confidence, also wrote the department, delineating the wrongs about to be perpetrated upon these colored people, who for several generations had resided with the Seminoles. These and other officers of Government united in the opinion, that these '' negroes, ^^ as they were generally called, exerted a con- ta-oUing influence over the Indians, and that it would be in vain to attempt the removal of the Indians under these circumstances. To these remonstrances, the Hon. Secretary of War, General Cass, replied, with apparent determination to remove the Indians at any expense of blood, of treasure, and of national reputation. The appeals made to the justice of our Government were stigmatized " as the promptings of b. false philanthropy f^ and our agents and officers were directed to inform the Seminoles, in peremptory Ian guage, that they must emigrate to the western country. Laboring under the delusion that official station would add a con trolling influence to his language. General Cass transmitted to the Indian Agent a speech, addressed to the Seminoles and their allies, in which he endeavored to persuade them to emigrate and join the Creeks, and subject themselves to Creek authority. The Seminoles and their friends listened to the speech with that respectful atten- tion which would be expected from men who knew their lives and liberties were in danger. It was at one of these consultations, in the presence of their Agent, that " Osceola," at that time a young warrior, attracted attention by saying, " this is the only treaty I will ever make with (1) Vide his letter at length in the Document last quoted. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 95 ''the whites ;^^ at the same time drawing his knife and striking it forcibly into the table before him.^ It was at this period that abandoned white men conceived the plan of buying negroes from Seminoles while in a state of intoxica- tion, and selling them to the white people. If they could get an Indian drunk, they could of course obtain from him a bill of sale of any negro they pleased, whether the Indian had any title to him or not. This plan of separating the Seminoles from their colored friends, it was thought would conduce to their removal. Applications to enter the Indian Territory for the purpose of pur- cliasiiig slaves were referred by the Secretary of War to the Com- missioner of Indian Affairs, and by the latter oflficer to the Attorney General Felix Grundy, who gravely reported, that' he " saw no good " reason why the white people should not be permitted to buy slaves " of the Indians;" and the President having considered the matter, ordered permission to be granted for that purpose. Officers who were in Florida saw at once that this policy would kindle the smothered indignation of the Indians and Exiles into a flame. The Agent of the Seminoles, refusing to obey the orders thus given, remonstrated against the policy in a letter addressed to the head of the Department, in which he says : " The remark in " your letter that it is not presumed the condition of these negroes " (the Exiles) would be worse than that of others in the same sec- " tion of country is true ; yet you will agree that the same remark ** would apply to you, to me, or to any other individual of the " United States, as we should, if subjected to slavery, be in the "precise condition of other slaves." So general and so great was the indignation excited by this order for establishing a commerce in human flesh with drunken Seminoles, that it was soon after countermanded ; yet the immediate emigra- tion of the Indians was urged with increased earnestness, although the Department of War was informed by nearly every officer in the military and Indian service of Florida, that they could not be in- (1) Vide Sprague's Florida War. 96 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. duced to emigrate, so long as the Exiles should be regarded as in danger of being subjected to Creek authority. But the stern decree had gone forth that " the Indians should prepare to emigrate West and join the Greeks ;' ' and the necessary preparations were hurried forward both in the Military and Civil Departments of Government. The Exiles and Seminoles saw clearly the terrible alternative to which they were soon to be driven, and they turned their attention to active preparations for the con- flict. Their crops were carefully secured ; their cattle driven far into the interior; and their women and children removed from the frontier to places of safety. They omitted no opportunity of securing powder and lead ; and while associating with the white people, they manifested a bold contempt and dislike for them, which gave gloomy forebodings of the future. i CHAPTER VII. COMMENCEMENT OF THE SECOND SEMINOLE WAR. The number of Exiles in Florida — Spanish Maroons — Seminole Slaves — Osceola — His Parentage — His Character — His Wife— Her Parentage and sad Fate — Imprisonment of Osceola — His Release — He swears Vengeance against Mr. Thompson — Decree of General Council — Fate of Charley E. Mathler — Osceola and followers seek the life of Thompson — Lay in wait near Fort King — Fate of Mr. Thompson and Lieut. Smith — Of the Sutler and his Clerks — General Clinch orders Major Dade to Fort King — The Major seeks a faithful Guide — Engages the Services of Louis, a Slave — His Learning and Character — He meditates the Massacre of Dade and his men — Councils with the Exiles — Arranges the plan of Massacre, and informs them of the time — Exiles and Indians rendezvous in Wahoo Swamp — Dade's Approach — The preparation — The Massacre — Osceola and Louis — The Exiles and Indians again meet in the Swamp for the nght — Digression — Incidents. The number of Exiles at the coramencement of the Second Semi- nole War, has been variously estimated. Probably their whole number, including women and children, was not less than twelve hundred. To these may be added the slaves belonging to the Seminoles, estimated at two hundred, making a population of four- teen hundred blacks. Most of the slaves lived with the Exiles, separate and apart from their masters, paying a certain quantity of vegetables annually, for the partial freedom which they enjoyed. There were many half-breeds, however, some of whom resided with the Indians, and others were located with the Exiles. The Spanish population called the Exiles " Maroons," after a cla.ss of free negroes who inhabit the mountains of Cuba, Jamaica, and other West Indian islands. Indeed, some of the Maroons of 7 (97) yH THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. Cuba appear to have found their way to Florida,^ and many of the Exiles passed from that Territory to the West India Islands. Many officers of Government appear to have known or cared little for these people, while others manifested much intelligence and hu- manity in regard to them. We have already noticed the efforts of Mr. Thompson, the Indian Agent, of Colonel Clinch, and of Colonel Eaton, in behalf of the Exiles, who had long resided in Florida. During the summer, the Indians committed various depredations upon the white people, such as stealing horses and killing cattle ; but the first open hostilities occurred on the twenty-eighth of De- cember, when two important and bloody tragedies took place, which left the country no longer in doubt as to the actual existence of war. A young and gallant warrior, named Osceola, was the principal actor in one of these scenes. He was the son of an Indian trader, a white man, named Powell. His mother was the daughter of a Seminole chief. He had recently married a woman said to have been beautiful. She was the daughter of a chief who had married one of the Exiles ; but as all colored people by slaveholding laws are said to follow the condition of the mother, she was called an African slave. Osce- ola was proud of his ancestry. He hated slavery, and those who practiced the holding of slaves, with a bitterness that is but little understood by those who have never witnessed its revolting crimes. He visited Fort King, in company with his wife and a few friends, for the purpose of trading. Mr. Thompson, the Agent, was present, and, while engaged in business, the wife of Osceola was seized as a slave. Evidently having negro blood in her veins, the law pronounced her a slave ; and, as no other person could show title to her, the pirate who had got possession of her body, was sup- posed of course to be ker owner. (1) Licutenat Reynolds, while conducting the first party of emigrants West, in 1841, found among the Exiles persons who posst'ssed so much Spanish blood, that he offered fco leave them at New Orleans, and some of them accepted the offer. He left them in that city, and they probably now pass for Spaniards. TUB EXILES OP FLORIDA. 99 Osceola became frantic with rage, but was instantly seized and placed in irons, while his wife was hurried away to slaveholding pollution.^ He remained six days in irons, when, General Thomp- son says, he became penitent, and was released. From the moment when this outrage was committed, the Florida War may be regarded as commenced. Osceola swore vengeance upon Thompson, and those who assisted in the perpetration of this indignity upon himself, as well as upon his wife, and upon our com- mon humanity. The Exiles endeavored to stimulate the Indians to deeds of valor. In general council, they decreed that the first Seminole who should make any movement preparatory to emigration, should suffer death. Charley E. Mathler, a respected- chief, soon after fell a victim to this decree. Osceola commanded the party who slew him. He had sold a portion of his cattle to the whites, for which he had received pay in gold. This money was found upon his person when he fell. Osceola forbadfe any one touch- ing the gold, saying it was the price of the red man's blood , and with his own hands he scattered it in different directions as far as he was able to throw it. But his chief object appeared to have been the death of General Thompson. Other Indians and Exiles were preparing for other important operations ; but Osceola seemed intent, his whole soul was absorbed, in devising some plan by which he could safely reach Mr. Thompson, who was the object of his vengeance. . He, or some of his friends, kept constant watch on the movements of Thompson, who was unconscious of the danger to which he was exposed. Osceola, steady to his purpose, refused to be diverted from this (1) Vide account of this transaction by M. M. Cohen, given in the Quarterly Anti-Sla- very Magazine, vol. II, page 419. Mr. Thompson, the Agent, in his letter to the Commis- sioner of Indian Affairs, bearing date soon after, says : " Powell used such language, that I was constrained to order him into irons." Mr. Spnqjue, in his history of the Florida War, reiterates the statement of Mr. Thompson. But neither Sprague, nor Thompson, nor any other person who was present, it is believed, has ever denied the relation which Mr. Cohen has given. 100 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. favorite object. Thompson was at Fort King, and there were but few troops to protect that fortress. But Indians seldom attempt an escalade, and Osceola sought an opportunity to take it by surprise. With some twenty followers, he lay secreted near the fort for days and weeks, determined to find some opportunity to enter by the open gate, when the troops should be off their guard. Near the close of December, a runner brought him information that Major Dade, with his command, was to leave Fort Brooke on the twenty-fifth of that month, and that those who intended to share in the attack upon that regiment, must be at the great " Wahoo Swamp," by the evening of the twenty-seventh. This had no effect whatever upon Osceola. No circumstance could withdraw him from the bloody purpose which filled his soul. On the twenty-eighth, in the afternoon, as he and his followers lay near the road leading from the fort to the house of the sutler, which was nearly a mile distant, they saw Mr. Thompson and a friend approaching. That gentleman and his companions had dined, and, on taking their cigars, he and Lieut. Smith, of the SeCond Artillery, had sallied forth for a walk, and to enjoy conversation by them- selves. At a signal given by Osceola, the Indians fired. Thompson fell, pierced by fourteen balls; Smith received about as many. ^ The shrill war-whoop followed the sound of the rifles, and alarmed the people at the fort. The Indians immediately scalped their victims, and then hastened to the house, where Mr. Rogers, the sutler, and two clerks, were at dinner. These three persons were instantly massacred and scalped. The Indians took as many valuable goods as they could carry, and set fire to the building. The smoke gave notice to those in the fort of the fate that had befallen the sutler and his clerks. But the condition in which the commandant found his troops, forbade his sending out any considerable force to ascertain the fate of Thompson and his companion. Near nightfall, a few daring spirits proceeded up the road to the hommock, and brought (1) Sprague's History of the Florida War. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 101 the bodies to the fort; but Osceola and his followers had hastened their flight, not from fear of the troops, but with the hope of join- ing their companions at Wahoo in time to engage in scenes of more general interest. General Clinch had foreseen that hostilities were unavoidable, and, as early as the fifteenth of November, had sought to increase the number of troops at Fort King by such reinforcements as could be spared from other stations. For this purpose, he ordered Major Dade, then at Fort Brooke, near Tampa Bay, to prepare his com- mand for a march to Fort King. The distance was one hundred and thirty miles, through an unsettled forest, much diversified with swamps, lakes and horn mocks. No officer nor soldier could bo found who was acquainted with the route, and a guide was indis- pensable : yet men competent to the discharge of so important a trust were rarely to be found, for the lives of the regiment might depend upon the intelligence and fidelity of their conductor. At this point in our history, even before the commencement of general hostilities, we are led to the acquaintance of one of the most romantic characters who bore part in the stirring scenes of that day. On making inquiry for a suitable guide, the attention of Major Dade was directed to a colored man named Louis. He was the slave of one of the old and respectable Spanish families, named Pacheco, who resided in the vicinity of Fort Brooke. Major Dade applied to the master, Antonio Pacheco, for information concerning his slave, and was assured that Louis, then near thirty years of age, was one of the most faithful, intelligent, and trustworthy men he had ever known. He had also been well bred, was polite, ac- complished, and learned. He read, wrote, and spoke, with facility, the Spanish, French, and English languages, and spoke the Indian, and was perfectly familiar with the route to Fort King, having fre- quently traveled it. Pleased with the character and appearance of Louis, Major Dade entered into an agreement with the master for his services in con- ducting the troops through the forest to Fort King, at the rate of 102 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. twenty-five dollars per month, and stated the time at which the ser- vice was to commence. The contract was made in the presence of Louis, who listened attentively to the whole arrangement, to which he of course gave his own consent. Louis Pacheco was too enlightened to smother the better sympa- thies of the human heart. He was well informed, and understood the efforts that were making to reenslave his brethren, the Exiles. With many of them he had long been acquainted ; he had witnessed the persecutions to which they had been subjected, the outrages heaped upon them, and now saw clearly the intention to subject them to slavery among the Creeks. He had spent his own life thus far in servitude, and, although his condition was regarded with envy by the plantation servants around him, he yet sighed for freedom. Blessed with an intellect of no ordinary mould, he reflected deeply upon his condition, and determined upon his course. Hos- tilities had not yet commenced, and he was in the daily habit of conversing with Indians, and often with Exiles. He was well acquainted with the character of each, and knew the men to whom he could communicate important information with safety. To a few of the Exiles, men of integrity and boldness, he imparted the facts that Dade, with his troops, would leave Fort Brooke about the twenty-fifth of December, for Fort King, and that he, Louis, was to act as their guide ; that he would conduct them by the trail leading near the Great Wahoo Swamp, and pointed out the proper place for an attack.^ This information was soon made known to the leading and active Exiles, and to a few of the Seminole chiefs and warriors. The Ex- iles, conscious that the war was to be waged on their account, were anxious to give their friends some suitable manifestation of their prowess. They desired as many of the Exiles capable of bearing arms as could assemble at a certain point in the Great Wahoo Swamp, to meet them there as early as the twenty-seventh of De (1) Vido Testimony accompanying Pacheco's Petition to Congress for indemnity. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 103 cember, armed, and prepared to commence the war by a proper demonstration of their gallantry. Information was sent to Osceola and his followers, inviting them to be present. They were lying secreted near Fort King, too intent upon the death of Thompson to turn their eyes for a moment fi-om their victim. Plowever, many other chiefs and warriors assembled at the time and place designated, in order to witness what they supposed would be the first scene in the great drama about to be acted. Their spies detached for that purpose, arrived at their ren- dezvous almost hourly, bringing information of the commencement of Dade's march, the number of men forming his battalion, and their places of encampment each night. In the evening of the twenty-seventh, their patrols brought word that Dade and his men had arrived within three miles of the point at which they intended to attack them. Of course every prepara- tion was now made for placing themselves in ambush at an early hour, along the trail in which it was expected the troops would pass. The scouts reported that precisely one hundred and ten men consti- tuted the force which they expected to encounter, and the official report fully confirms the accuracy of their intelligence. The Ex- iles looked to the coming day with great intensity of feeling. More than two hundred years since, their ancestors had been piratically seized in their own country, and forcibly torn from their friends — from the land of their nativity. For a time they submitted to de- grading bondage ; but more than a century had elapsed since they fled from South Carolina, and found an asylum under Spanish law in the wilds of Florida. There their fathers and mothers had been buried. They had often visited their graves, and mourned over the sad fate to which their race appeared to be doomed. For fifty years they had been subjected to almost constant persecution at the hands of our Government. The blood of their fathers, brothers and friends, massacred at " Blount's Fourt," was yet unavenged. They had seen individuals from among them piratically seized and en- slaved. Their friends, residing with E con-chattimico and with 104 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. Walker, had been openly and flagrantly kidnapped, and sold into interminable servitude, where they were then sighing and moaning in degrading bondage. In looking forward, they read their intended doom, clearly written in the slave codes of Florida and the adjoin- ing States, which could only be avoided by their most determined resistance. If they behaved worthy of men in their condition, their influence with their savage allies would be confirmed, and they would be able to control their action on subsequent occasions. Every con- sideration, therefore, tended to nerve them to the work of death which lay before them. In the meantime, their victims were reposing at only four or five miles distant in conscious security. Their encampment had been selected according to military science. The men and officers were encamped in scientific order. Their guards were placed, their patrols sent out, and every precaution taken to prevent surprise. They had seen service, and cheerfully encountered its hardships, privations and dangers, but had no suspicion of the fate that awaited them on the coming day. At early dawn, the men were paraded, the roll called, and the order for regulating the day's march given. They were then dis- missed for breakfast, and at eight o'clock, resumed their march, and proceeded on their way in the full expectation of reaching their des- tination by the evening of that day. But the insidious foe had been equally vigilant. They had left their island encampment with the first light of the morning, and each had taken his position along the trail in which the troops were expected to march, but at some thirty or forty yards distant. Each man was hidden by a tree, which was to be his fortress during the expected action. A few rods on the other side of the trail lay a pond of water, whose placid surface reflected the glittering rays of the morning sun. All was peaceful and quiet as the breath of summer. Unsuspicious of the hidden death which beset their pathway, the troops entered this defile, and passed along until their rear had come THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 105 within the range of the enemies' rifles, when, at a given signal, each warrior fired, while his victim was in full view and unprotected. One-half of that ill-fated band, including the gallant Dade, fell at the first fire. The remainder were thrown into disorder. The ofii- cers endeavored to rally them into line ; but their enemy was unseen, and ere they could return an effective shot, a second discharge from the hidden foe laid one-half their remaining force prostrate in death. The survivors retreated a short distance toward their encampment of the previous night, and, while most of the Exiles and Indians were engaged in scalping the dead and tomahawking those who were disabled, they formed a hasty breastwork of logs for their de- fense. They were, however, soon invested by the enemy, and the few who had taken shelter behind their rude defenses were over- come and massacred by the Exiles, who conversed with them in English, and then dispatched them.^ Only two individuals beside Louis, the guide, made their escape. Their gallant commander, his officers and soldiers, whose hearts had beat high with expecta- tion in the morning, at evening lay prostrate in death ; and as the sable victors relaxed from their bloody work, they congratulated each other on having revenged the death of those who, twenty years previously, had fallen at the massacre of "Blount's Fort." The loss of the allied forces was — three killed and five wounded. After burying their own dead, they returned to the island in the swamp long before nightfall. To this point, they brought the spoils of victory, which were deemed important for carrying on the war. Night had scarcely closed around them, however, when Osceola and his followers arrived from Fort King, bringing intelligence of the death of Thompson and Lieutenant Smith, together with the sutler and his two clerks. There, too, was Louis, the guide to Dade's command. He was now free 1 He engaged in conversation with his sable friends. Well knowing the time and place at which the attack was to be made, he had professed necessity for stopping by I (1) Vide Statement of Tustenuggee, a Seminole Chief, who was present, and whose ac- count of this massacre is given in Sprague's History of the Florida War. 106 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. the way-side before entering the defile ; thus separating himself from the troops and from danger. Soon as the first fire showed him the precise position of his friends, he joined them ; and swearing eter- nal hostility to all who enslave their fellow men, lent his own efforts in carrying forward the work of death, until the last individual of that doomed regiment sunk beneath their tomahawks. The massacre of the unfortunate Dade and his companions, and the murder of Thompson and his friends, at Fort King, occurred on the same day, and constituted the opening scenes of the second Seminole War. 1 817 1 ^^^ bespeak the indulgence of the reader, while we di- gress from the chronological narration of events which fol- lowed consecutively upon this opening of the second Seminole War, in order to give a short sketch of some incidents which occurred in Congress, and were connected with the employment of Louis, and his subsequent service with the enemy. Twelve years after the massacre of Dade's command, Antonio Pacheco presented his petition to Congress, setting forth that he had been the owner of a valuable slave named Louis ; that he hired him as guide to Major Dade to conduct his command from "Fort Brooke " to "Fort King;" that at the time of Dade's defeat, Louis had been captured hy the Indians, and by them had been subse- quently surrendered to Major General Jessup, and by that ofiicer sent to the Indian country, west of the Mississippi, whereby he became lost to his owner, who, therefore, prayed Congress to grant him full indemnity for his loss. Among the proofs accompanying this petition was a letter from General Jessup, setting forth that, after Louis had been employed to act as guide, he had kept up a correspondence with the "Semi- nole negroes," informing them of the intended march of Major Dade, etc. He also represented Louis as a man of extraordinary intellect and learning, declaring that he regarded him as a danger- ous man ; that he would have had him tried and hanged, instead of sending him West, if he had found leisure to att-es a Letter to Wild Cat, Osceola, and others — Difficulty with Creek Warriors — General Order — General Jessup'R policy — Creek Warriors discharged — Capture of King Phillip — His message to Wild Cat — Influence of Cherokees — Wild Cat bears plume, etc., from Osceola to GeH' eral Jessup, proposing to negotiate — Jessup Fends back answer — Wild Cat, Osceola and Exiles come in to Fort Peyton — Are betrayed — Seized as prisoners — Imprisoned at San Augustine — Wild Cat escapes — Thrilling Narrative — Cherokee Delegation induce Mic- anopy, Cloud and others to visit General Jessup — They too are seized, and one hundred Exiles captured — Extraordinary conduct of General Jessup — Cherokees leave in disgust. By the articles of capitulation, entered into on the sixth of March (1837), the second Seminole War had been terminated. General Jessup so regarded it, and so declared it. The Exiles and Indians so regarded it, and some eight hundred came in under it and registered their names for emigration, in good faith. The people of Florida regarded it in that light, and remonstrated against it. They declared it a treaty of peace ; but complained of its terms, for the reason that it gave up the slaves whom they claimed to own. Learning this dissatisfaction to exist among the slaveholders of Florida, General Jessup expressed, in his correspondence, an inten- tion of making an arrangement with the chiefs, by which the slaves belonging to the citizens of Florida, captured during the war, (156) THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 157 should be given up. Why those claimed by the citizens of Florida should be given up, and those escaped from Georgia and Alabama remain free, he has failed to show ! Why those who escaped, or, as he expresses it, were captured during the war, should be return- ed, and those who escaped or had been captured the day previous to the commencement of hostilities, should not be returned, he has not explained ; but he soon announced, that he had made an ar- rangement with the chiefs to deliver up these persons; and at once set the army at work to restore them. This restoration of slaves, of itself, constituted a renewal of the war. It had caused the first Seminole war, in 1816 : it had caused this second Seminole war, and General Jessup was himself conscious that such interference with the Exiles would induce a renewal of hostilities. That class of Exiles was numerous; they constituted a portion of the "allies" for whose safety he had solemnly pledged the. faith of Govern- ment. It were useless for the friends of the then existing Admin- istration to say, that General Jessup made an arrangement with the Indian chiefs for delivering up these people. The Exiles were the persons interested in their own safety, for which they had fought. No chiefs had authority to sell them, or to deliver them over to interminable bondage. But the reader will inquire, with what particular chiefs was this arrangement made? When, and where was it made ? What were its terms ? The only an- swers, so far as we are informed, are to be found in the interroga- tories propounded to Osceola and other chiefs, when they were captured, at Fort Peyton, on the twenty-first of October following. General Jessup's first written interrogatory was, "Are they (the *' chiefs) prepared to deliver up the negroes taken from the citizens? ** Why have they not surrendered them already, as promised hy " Go-IIadjo, at Fort KingV^ Here he merely claimed a promise from Co-Hadjo, an obscure chief, who was not a party to the capit- ulation — did not sign it, and, so far as we are informed, was not present when it was entered into. 158 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. But, to show that no obligation whatever rested on the chiefs in this matter, his next interrogatories were, " Have the chiefs of the *' Nation held a Council in relation to the subjects of the talk at " Fort King? What chiefs attended that Council, and what was ** their decision ? " These questions seem to admit, that Co-Hadjo had merely promised to lay the subject before the chiefs in Council; and here we find the reasons, on the part of General Jessup, for not laying the arrangement before the people : yet, under these circumstances, that officer charges bad faith upon the Indians and Exiles, in renewing the war. The Exiles possessed no means of informing the American people, and other nations, as to these facts, or of maintaining their honor against this charge of having violated their plighted faith. In renewing hostilities, General Jessup appears to have fully determined on carrying out the designs of General Jackson, in 1816, when he directed General Gaines to "destroy the fort, and return the slaves to their owners. ^^ From this time forward, he lent his energies, and the power of the army, to the object of cap- turing and returning slaves. He also deemed it necessary to change the mode of prosecuting the war, and to make it a series of forays for the capture and enslavement of the Exiles. He had, the previous year, entered into a contract with the Creek Indians, by which he stipulated to pay them a large pecuni- ary compensation, and to allow them to hold all the plunder (negroes) whom they might capture, as property. He now evi- dently believed that such inducements, held out to the Florida militia, would have an effect to stimulate them to greater effort. On the eleventh of June, he wrote Colonel Warren, saying, " There is no obligation to spare the property of the Indians ; they ** have not spared that of the citizens. Their negroes, cattle and ** horses, as well as other property which they possess, will belong ** to the corps by which they are captured," The same orders were communicated to the Commandants of other posts, and to the militia from other States ; and the system THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 159 by which the negroes and other property were to be distributed among the captors, was prescribed in a letter to Colonel Heilman, declaring the field officers entitled to three shares, the company officers to receive two shares, and the non-commissioned officers and soldiers one share each. These arrangements were, of course, all duly certified to the War Department, and approved, and thereby became acts of the Administration. The letters of General Jessup, written during the summer and autumn of 1837, to Colonel Crowell, at Fort Mitchell, Alabama ; to Colonel Mills, of Newmansville, Florida ; to Thomas Craghill, Esq., of x\labama; to Captain David S. Walker, Captain Bonneville and Captain Armstrong ; ^ all show, conclusively, that the war was to be conducted by the organization of slave-catching forays, in which the troops were expected to penetrate the Indian Country for the purpose of capturing negroes. During the sickly season no active operations against the allies could be carried on, and the time was occupied in preparing for the more vigorous prosecution of hostilities, so soon as the un- healthy months should be passed. In order to carry out these forays, the Indians residing west of the Mississippi were applied to for assistance. The Choctaws and Delawares furnished many indi- viduals whose low moral development did not prevent their engaging in the proposed piratical expeditions, for seizing and enslaving their fellow-men ; but of the precise number of individuals thus furnish- ed, we have no authentic information. The Cherokees however appear to have rejected a proposition which, to them, appeared incompatible with the civilization of that tribe ; they evidently felt deep sympathy for their brethren, the Seminoles, as well as for the Exiles They agreed to furnish a delegation who should, in a friendly manner, visit the Seminoles, state to them the condition of the Western Country, and advise them in good faith to emigrate. At that period John Ross was acting as principal chief of the Cherokee Nation. He was the son of a wealthy white man, who (1) These Letters may be found in Ex. Doc. 226, 3d Sess. XXVth Congress. 160 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. had long been engaged as an Indian trader. His mother was a Cherokee. Ross had been educated ; had seen the advantages of civilization, and of Christianity, and was at the time, and had long been engaged, in promoting civilization among his own people. It will readily be supposed, that the feelings of such a man would revolt at a proposition for his people to engage in the capture and enslavement of any portion of the human family. The correspond- ence between Ross and the Secretary of War is interesting, and its perusal would well compensate the curious reader.^ This delegation from the Cherokees consisted of some twelve of their most influential men. They bore with them an address from Ross, written with great ability and sincerity. Among other things, he assured the Seminoles that they might confide in the justice and honor of the United States. ^ This address was directed to Mican- opy, Osceola and Wild Cat, the three most powerful and warlike chiefs among the Seminoles. The Creek warriors had engaged to serve until the Seminoles were conquered ; but after the death of Captain Moniac, and their other friends who fell in the Great Wahoo Swamp, they had shown a disposition rather to avoid danger than to catch negroes ; and it was deemed proper to discharge them. But diJ0&culties intervened in regard to the division of the negroes claimed to have been cap- tui'ed by them, while acting in concert with our troops. Some ninety negroes had been captured, in whose bones and muscles, blood and sinews, seven hundred Creek warriors claimed an inter- est; while the Tennesseeans, and other troops, had been in the field acting with the Creeks at the time of capture ; and the Creeks could, in equity, claim only a pro rata interest. General Jessup however met the difiiculty with promptness, and, to put an end to all future strife and discontent, he issued the following : (1) This Correspondence may be found in the 8th voL Ex. Doc, 2d Sess. XXVth Cong., No. 285. (2) Of this declaration he had subsequent cause to repent, and most eloquently he ex- pressed his mortification, in a letter to the Secretary of AVar. Vide his Letter of Jan. 2, 1838, in the Document last quoted. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 161 "ORDER No. 175. Tampa Bat, Sept. 6, 1837. "1. The Seniinolo negroes captured by the army, will be taken " on account of Government and held subject to the orders of the *' Secretary of War. " 2. The sum of eight thousand dollars will be paid to the Creek ** chiefs and warriors by whom they were captured, or who were *' present at their capture, in full for their claims; the amount to " be apportioned among the battalions in proportion to the numbers " respectively taken by each, viz : To the first battalion, five thou- *' sand seven hundred dollars ; to the second battalion, two thou- *• sand dollars ; and to the spy battalion, three hundred dollars. "3. To induce the Creeks to take alive, and not destroy, the *• negroes of citizens who had been captured by the Seminoles, a '* reward was promised them for all they should secure. They ** have captured and secured thirty-five, who have been returned to " their owners. 2^ he owners have paid nothing, but the promise " to the Indians must be fulfilled. The sum of twenty dollars will " be allowed them for each, from the public funds. "4. Lieutenant Frederick Searle is charged with the execution " of this order. He will cause accounts to be made, in the name " of the United States, and receipts taken from the Indians in full, ** for £.11 claims to the negroes, both of the Seminoles and citizens. *' Lieutenant Searle will call on the Commanding General for funds *• to enable him to comply with this order. *' 5. Until further orders, the Seminole negroes will remain at ** Fort Pike, Louisiana, in charge of the Assistant Quarter-Master " at New Orleans, and in custody of the Commanding Officer of *• the post. They will be fed and clothed at the public expense.'* This order was reported to the Secretary of War, and on the seventh of October was approved and became the act of the Execu- tive ; and the people of the nation became the actual owners of these ninety slaves, so far as the Executive could bind them to the ownership of human flesh. 11 162 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. Such was, undoubtedly, the view of General Jessup, who, on the fourteenth of September, wrote the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, saying, "The Seminole negro prisoners are now the pro/9er^3/ o/" ** the puhlic. I have promised Abraham the freedom of his family, "if he prove faithful to us; and I shall surely hang him if he be "not faithful."! This refinement in cruelty by which the life and liberty of a man and his family is held out as a bribe to induce him to prove traitor to his own kindred and nation, or to be hanged, and his family en- slaved in case of refusal, appears worthy a place in the history of our Government, in order that our successors may have a correct idea of its administration. The intention to enslave Abraham's wife, who was an Indian woman and had been the wife of the former chief of the nation, and now the wife of the principal chief of the Exiles, exhibits a total disregard of the feelings and sympathies of the human heart, as well as of the prejudices and condition of both Exiles and Seminoles. These Exiles were at Fort Pike, near New Orleans, where we will leave them for the present, to pursue our narrative of events which were transpiring in Florida. On the ninth of September, General Jessup wrote Lieutenant Searle, as follows: " You will muster the Creek regiment out of " service, and honorably discharge them. Then you will pro( eed " to New Orleans, and obtain funds to pay the Creeks for the cap- " tured negroes. The chiefs and warriors who were actually in the " field at the time of the capture of negroes are alone to receive any *' part of the sum allowed. Those who remained in camp and did ** not march are to receive nothing. " You will examine the prisoners at ' Fort Pike,' (the ninety " Exiles,) and cause an accurate description to be taken of them, " specifying their names, ages, height, sex, and such other particu- " lars as you may deem important. They must all be comfortably " clothed, at the public expense, immediately, by the Assistant (1) These facts may all be found officially recorded in Ex. Doc. 78, 2d Sess. XXVth Con- gress, and Ex. Doc. 225, 3d Sess. XXVtb Congress. TUB EXILES OF FLORIDA. 163 " Quarter-Master at New Orleans, who will keep them properly -clad." It would appear that some difficulty arose with the Choctaw and Delaware warriors, who had expected to receive higher wages than the law allowed for serving in the army. Such had been done with the Creeks, and undoubtedly had been promised the Choctaws and Delawares. To quiet these discontents. General Jessup wrote Colonel Davenport, on the seventh of November, saying, " I regret ** the circumstance to which you refer. The importance of fulfill- " ing all our engagements with the Indians with the most scrupu- '* lous good faith, is unquestionable. To dismiss them now, might " not only cost us another campaign, but may cause us difficulties *' on our western border. We must retain them at all hazards. I ** wish you to assure them, that our laws do not authorize the pay- " ment of the sum stipulated; but that the enemy has a large ** property, consisting of ponies, cattle and negroes, and that I will " pay them for all the cattle they take, and they will be paid ffty ** dollars for every negro. * * * Represent to them also, that *' our country is just, and if they will serve well, I will take their " chiefs to Washington, and represent their case to the Great Coun- " cil (Congress), and I have no doubt they will get all that has *' been promised them." He also wrote Captain Armstrong of the Choctaw agency, and Captain Bonneville, commanding the Choc- taw warriors, encouraging the Indians to faithful effort in order to obtain negroes. Some of the Georgia volunteers appeared anxious to know defi- nitely the terms on which they were to expose their lives in these slave-catching forays ; and a letter was addressed to Brigadier Gen- eral C. H. Nelson, commanding the Georgia volunteers, by J. A. Chambers, aid to General Jessup, saying, " We have not the order " book with us at this moment ; but the General directs me to say, ** that all Indian property captured belongs to the capturers." On the same day, General Hernandez of the Florida militia, found moans to secure King Phillip, an aged chief, who lived some 164 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. distance south of San Augustine, with eleven others of his tribe. It may be regarded as somewhat unfortunate, that history has failed to give us the particulars of this capture. The subsequent conduct of General Hernandez may lead the reader to look back upon this incident of the war with some desire to know the manner of King Phillip's capture ; to understand whether it was peaceful or hostile ; and' whether any, and how many, white men, and how many In- dians and Exiles, fell in the conflict ? But we must pass over these particulars, as we have no authentic account concerning them. General Jessup, when called on to report to the Secretary of War as to violations of the flag of truce, merely remarks, incidentally, that King Phillip and his companions were captured by General Hernandez. Phillip had long been regarded as a chief of influence among the Seminoles. Finding himself a prisoner, he became anxious to see, and converse with, some of his friends ; and General Hernan- dez, at his request, gave permission for one of the prisoners to carry this talk to his family, inviting them to come and visit him in his captivity. The message was faithfully delivered to his oldest son, already known to the reader as "Wild Cat." He had been an active warrior at the massacre of Dade's battalion ; had been sub- sequently elevated to the dignity of a chief; had visited General Jessup, under the articles of capitulation of March, 1837, and at that time delivered up " Louis " as his slave, demanding his trans- portation West under those articles; and when he learned the intention of General Jessup to deliver up a portion of the Exiles to slavery, ho left Fort Brooke, and again swearing vengeance upon the enslavers of mankind, became one of the most active warriors in the Seminole Nation. The Cherokee Delegation had reached the Indian country. The address of John Ross was directed to Wild Cat and Osceola, as two of the principal Seminole chiefs. They were together, and received the talk of Ross, the Cherokee chief, assuring them of the integrity and honor of the United States. After due consideration, THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 165 it was determined that Wild Cat should comply with the filial obli- gations due to his aged father, bearing with him the peace token of Osceola, consisting of a neatly wrought bead pipe, together with a beautiful white plume, to be presented to General Hernandez, as the assurance of Osceola's pacific desires. Co-Hadjo, another chief, bore a similar message and emblems. These were received by General Hernandez, who communicated immediate information thereof to General Jessup. They were propositions for negotiating a peace, forwarded at the special request and advice of the Cherokee Delegation, who were active in their efforts to stop the effusion of blood, and restore harmony between our nation and the Seminoles. By direction of General Jessup, Hernandez returned various presents to Osceola by Co-Hadjo, say- ing, that General Jessup and himself would be glad to hold a con- ference with them. The same assurances and presents were given to Wild Cat, who also became the messenger between General Jes- sup and General Hernandez on the one hand, and his brethren on the other. With the hope of effecting an arrangement beneficial to his friends and to mankind, Wild Cat left San Augustine with the promise to return in ten days. Punctual to the day, he returned with the very satisfactory assu- rance, that Osceola, and one hundred Indians and as many Exiles, were on their way toward San Augustine, for the purpose of enter- ing upon negotiations. With the intention of hastening their arri- val, and manifesting an earnest desire for peace. General Hernan- dez proceeded, with Wild Cat and other friendly Seminoles, to meet the advancing chiefs, some twenty miles south-west of San Augus- tine, at a place called "Pelican Creek." Here he learned that Osceola would join them at evening. General Hernandez left a quantity of provisions with them, and, desiring them to select their encampment for the next day (Oct. 22) somewhere near Fort Pey- ton, at which place he would meet them with a proper escort, left them, and returned to San Augustine. They accordingly encamped the next day near Fort Peyton, situated seven miles south-west from 166 THE EXILES OP FLORIDA. San Augustine. They approached their encampment with great formality : Osceola and other chiefs bearing white flags, expecting to meet a suitable escort under General Hernandez, with the well- understood intentions of entering upon diplomatic negotiations with that grave dignity for which the Indian is so much distinguished. These flags were kept flying in their encampment through the night and the next moniing. At ten o'clock (Oct. 23), General Hernandez, accompanied by bis staflT and by most of General Jessup's staff, in full dress, met them as had been promised, with the apparent purpose of escorting them to head-quarters at San Augustine. After the ordinary salu- tations had been exchanged, instead of preparing to march, General Hernandez, from a written paper signed by General Jessup, read the following questions addressed to Osceola : '* Are you prepared " at once to deliver up the negroes taken from the citizens ? Why ** have you not surrendered them already, as promised by Co-Hadjo ** at Fort King? Have the chiefs of the nation held a council on " this subject ?" 1 Osceola exhibited the most perfect astonishment at hearing these questions propounded at such a moment. He appeared, however, instantly to comprehend his situation. Turning to Co-Hadjo, he said to him in his own dialect, "You must answer; I am choked," at the same time exhibiting unusual emotion for an Indian chief.^ (1) The interrogatories were embraced in a paper, of which the following is a copy: "memoranda op specific questions to be addressed to OSCEOLA. " Ascertain the object of the Indians in coming in at this time. Also their expectations. Are they prepared to deliver up the negroes taken fi om the citizens, at once ? Why have they not surrendered them already, as promi.sed by Co-IIadjo at Fort King ? Uave the chiefs of the nation held a Council in relation to the talk at Fort King ? What chiefs at- tended that Council, and what was their determination ? Have the chiefs sent a messenger with the decision of the Council? Have the principal chiefs Micanopy, Jumper, Cloud and Alligator sent a messenger ? and if so, what is their message ? "Why have not those chiefs come themselves ? " (Signed) THOS. S. JESSUP, Major General Commanding, " San Augcswnb, August 21st, 1837." (2) From the first and second interrogatories, the reader will see that General Jessup was fully conscious, that the attempt to deliver over those negroes to slavery who were THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 167 At this moment, by a concerted signal, armed troops at once surrounded the whole encampment, gathered rapidly in upon the occupants, made prisoners of them, and at once disarmed them. They were then marched to San Augustine, and closely imprisoned in the ancient castle of that city. There was about an equal num- ber of Exiles captured, at this violation of our plighted faith ; they were, however, sent to Tampa Bay for safe keeping. Wild Cat, having been made the instrument for betraying Osce- ola and other friends, felt great indignation at what he regarded as the perfidy practiced upon him and his brethren, and determined to escape from his imprisonment so soon as an opportunity should offer. But he was imprisoned in the Castle of San Augustine, whose gray walls, lofty turrets, battlements and Catholic chapel, must have presented to the young warrior a spectacle in striking contrast with the rude huts in which he was accustomed to lodge, in the interior of the Territory. We prefer letting him tell the story of his escape, which we copy from the works of one who was then serving in our army.^ Said Wild Cat : claimed by the citizens of Florida, had been the sole cause for renewing the war. He dic- tated the first and most important interrogatory propounded to Osceola — "^re you pre- pared at once to deliver up the negroes taken from the citizens? ^^ But the second shows an important fact which had, so far as we have information, been kept from the public : The words, " Why have they not already surrendered them, as promised by Co- Had jo at Fort King?" This shows that the arrangement reported by him to have been made with the chiefs, was made with Co-IIadjo only. It will be recol- lected, that after the articles of capitulation, in March, when the people of Florida began to demand their negroes. General Jessup said he would endeavor to make an arrange- mnnt with the chiefs for delivering up those negroes who had been captured during the war. After th« protest of the people of Florida had been addressed to the Secretary of War, against the peace, unless they were to get their negroes, and the public meeting held at San Augustine, which expressed the same views, he reported that he had made such arrangement with the chiefs; but with how many, or with which particular rA/>/5, was unknown until tliis interrogatory disclosed the fact, that it was made with one obscure chief only. And whether he were intoxicated, or sober, at the time he attempted to act without any authority, to consign hundreds of his fellow-beings to slavery, without their knowledge or consent, does not appear. But every reader at once propounds the question, What ivere the terms of that arrangement? If it existed, it should have been reported verbatim to the War Department, and made known to the public. (1) Capt. Sprague, of the Regular service. 168 THE EXILES OP FLORIDA. ** We were in a small room, eighteen or twenty feet square. All *' the light admitted was through a hole (embrasure) about eighteen ** feet from the floor. Through this we must effect our escape, or ** remain and die with sickness. A sentinel was constantly posted " at the door. As we looked at it from our bed, we thought it " small, but believed that, could we get our heads through, we " should have no further or serious difficulty. To reach the hole ** was the first object. In order to effect this, we from time to time " cut up the forage bags allowed us to sleep on, and made them *• into ropes. The hole I could not reach when upon the shoulder "of my companion ; but, while standing upon his shoulder, I ** worked a knife into a crevice of the stone- work as far as I could ** reach, and upon this I raised myself to the aperture, when I *' found that, with some reduction of person, I could get through " In order to reduce ourselves as much as possible, we took medi- " cine five days. Under the pretext of being very sick, we were *• permitted to obtain the roots we required. For some weeks we " watched the moon, in order that, on the night of our attempt, it " should be as dark as possible. At the proper time we com- " menced the medicine, calculating on the entire disappearance of " the moon. *' The keeper of this prison, on the night determined upon to " make the effort, annoyed us by frequently coming into the room, " and talking and singing. At first we thought of tying him and " putting his head in a bag, so that, should he call for assistance, *• he could not be heard. We first, however, tried the experiment " of pretending to be asleep, and, when he returned, to pay no " regard to him. This accomplished our object. He came in and " went immediately out ; and we could hear him snore, in the ** immediate vicinity of the door. I then took the rope we had " secreted under our bed, and, mounting on the shoulder of my " comrade, raised myself upon the knife worked into the crevice of " the stone, and succeeded in reaching the embrasure. Here I ** made fast the rope, that my friend might follow me. I then THE EXILES OV FLORIDA. 169 " passed through the hole a sufficient length of it to reach the *' ground upon the outside (about fifty feet), in the ditch : I had •' calculated the distance when going for roots. With much diffi- ** culty I succeeded in getting my head through, for the sharp *' stones took the skin off my breast and back. Putting my head " through first, I was obliged to go down head foremost until my " feet were through, fearing every moment the rope would break. " At last, safely on the ground, I awaited with anxiety the arrival ** of my comrade. I had passed another rope through the hole, •' which, in the event of discovery, Talmeco- Hadjo was to pull, as " a signal to me upon the outside that he was discovered, and could " not come. As soon as I struck the ground, I took hold of the " signal for intelligence from my friend. The night was very dark. " Two men passed near me, talking earnestly, and I could see them " distinctly. Soon I heard the struggle of my companion, far " above roe ; he had succeeded in getting his head through, but his " body would come no farther. In the lowest tone of voice, I " urged him to throw out his breath and then try; soon after, he " came tumbling down the whole distance. For a few moments I " thought him dead. I dragged him to some water close by, which '* restored him ; but his leg was so lame he was unable to walk. I " took him upon my shoulder to a scrub, near town. Daylight •■'was just breaking: it was evident we must move rapidly. I " caught a mule in the adjoining field, and, making a bridle of my " sash, mounted my companion. The mule we used one day; but " fearing the whites would track us, we felt more secure on foot in •* the hommock, though moving very slowly. Thus we continued ** our journey for five days, subsisting on berries, when I joined my " band, then assembled on the head-waters of the Tomoka River, " near the Atlantic coast. I gave my warriors the history of my *' capture and escape, and assured them that they should be satis- " fied njy capture was no trick of my own, and that I would not ** deceive them." 170 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. While Wild Cat and his friends were imprisoned at San Augus- tine, the Cherokee Delegation had been actively engaged in exer- tions to induce other chiefs and warriors to come in, for the purpose of ascertaining what negotiations could be effected with General Jessup in favor of peace. Their objects were of the most humane character. Anxious to stop the further shedding of human blood, they had come a thousand miles upon this errand of mercy. After great effort, Micanopy, the most important chief in the Nation, Choud, Toskogee, and Nocose Yoholo, agreed to accom- pany a portion of the Cherokee Delegation to General Jessup's camp, for the purpose of negotiation, or rather to ascertain whether further negotiation were practicable. They were accompanied by about seventy-five Indians and forty Exiles. They approached the American camp under a flag of truce, that emblem of peace, which is recognized as such by all civilized nations, and treated with respect. They reached General Jessup's camp on the third of December, in company with a part of the Cherokee Delegation, and confided themselves to the power of the commanding ofiiccr, trusting to the honor of our nation. They were received with apparent respect and good faith, and remained in camp under the expectation of further negotiation; of which there was much said, and frequent conversations held. After a few days spent in this way, the Seminole chiefs and warriors were unsuspectingly seized, disarn>ed, made prisoners, hurried on board a steamboat, and sent to San Augustine as pris- oners of war. As the Cherokees saw this violation of the flag, they were struck "with astonishment, and began to remonstrate against an act which, to them, appeared an outrage upon the rules of civilized warfare, and which involved them in its guilt. Finding remonstrance of no avail, they requested permission of General Jessup to converse with the Seminoles, in order to assure them that they, the Cherokees, had acted in good faith, and were in no degree cognizant of the fraud THE EXILES OP FLORIDA. 171 practiced upon the Seminoles, or implicated in the discreditable violation of the flag of truce. This privilege, however, was denied them. Feeling indignant, and conscious that the Seminoles would charge them wiih complicity, in this violation of faith, they next demanded that tlieir principal chief should have an opportunity, in the pres- ence of such officer or officers as General Jessup may appoint, to see the Seminoles, and explain to them that the Cherokees had in no respect participated in the perfidy practiced upon them. To enforce this request, they stated to General Jessup that, if the Seminoles were sent West, they would thereby become neighbors to the Cherokees, and, if they believed the Cherokee Delegation to have participated in this transaction, they would never forget it, but would thereafter be hostile to them. General Jessup at length consented to permit the chief of the Cherokees to explain these facts to the Seminoles, in the presence of himself and officers ; but would not suffer any other member of the delegation to attend him.^ The Seminoles were sent to San Augustine ; and that portion of the Cherokees who had accompanied them to General Jessup's camp, at once refused all further efforts to restore peace, and re- turned to their homes ; leaving, however, some four or five of their brethren in the Seminole country, who, ignorant of the occurrences just related, continued to urge other Seminoles to make peace upoa such terms as they believed just — assuring them that the Ameri- cans demanded nothing more. (1) This statement is taken entirely from the Letters of John Ros", chief of the Chero- kees, to the Secretary of War. In these letters, he relates the whole transaction with great force and apparent candor, and, in the name of the Cherokee Nation, boldly arraigns the War Department for this treachery, practiced by a Christian nation towards a people called hoiithens. These letters may be found at length in Ex. Doc. 327, 2d Sess. XXVth Cong., vol. 8. CHAPTER XIII VIGOROUS PROSECUTION OF THE WAR. General Za«hary Taylor — His character and past service — His expedition — Battle of Okechobee — Hia loss — Returns to Withlacoochee — Repudiates the work of catching Slaves — Exiles delivered over to bond ige — Regular Troops despise such Employment — Indian prisoners indignant at the outrages perpetrated against the Exiles — Separated from Exiles — Are sent to Charleston— Kxiles to Tompa Bay — Further efiforts to re-en- elave Exiles — General Jessup moves South — Skirmish of Loca Hatchee — Erects Fort Jupiter — Is persuaded to propose peace on ba. that they had gone to the Seminoles, and that a part of them had been sent to Fort Pike. Colonel Humphreys appeared to regard himself as entitled to the possession of those people ; although by the treaty of Payne's Landing the Seminoles had paid for all slaves residing with them prior to 1832 ; and had been released from all further demands on account of such slaves. Colonel Humphreys stated that his claim had been examined by the late agent, General Wiley Thompson, and decided against him ; but insisted that the decision was wrong, and avowed his ability to show it erroneous by proper proof whenever he should have an op- portunitj", and again demanded that the slaves should be brought back to Florida, where he could present his proof without trouble. This letter was inclosed in one directed to Mr. Downing, Delegate in Congress from Florida, and by him transmitted to the Secretary of War, and by that officer referred to the Commissioner of Indian Af- fairs. Thus driven to the wall, the Commissioner of Indian Affairs came out in plain and unmistakable language, asserting the doc- trine, that the Government held the power and constitutional right to dispose of prisoners taken in war, whatever their character may be. This doctrine had been eloquently sustained by General Gaines, on the trial in New Orleans. It was the doctrine avowed by Hon. John Quincy Adams in the House of Representatives, during the next session of Congress; but it called down upon him much abuse in that body, and in the Democratic papers of the country. The Commissioner's report to the Secretary of War set forth in distinct language, that the claims of individuals to slaves were precluded by the action of the Government in sending these people West ; that they had been captured by the army and disposed of by the Executive, and the action of the Department could not be changed in consequence of individuals claiming them as slaves. In short, he repeated the doctrine advanced by General Gaines at New Orleans. The report also confirmed the policy of General Taylor in disregarding the claims of individuals to persons 228 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. captured by the army, and was a tacit condemnation of that pur- sued by General Jessup, and previously sanctioned by the Secre- tary of War. This report was passed over to the Secretary. That officer (Mr. Poinsett) having received this report, trans- mitted it to Colonel Humphreys. This drew from that gentleman a still more elaborate argument in favor of his claim, which occupies nearly four heavy pages in documentary form. This was also transmitted to Mr. Downing, and by him passed over to the Secre- tary of War ; but we are not informed whether the Secretary of War replied to this second argument or not. It is, however, important to the truth of history to notice this recognition of the doctrine by a slave-holding Secretary of War, that the Executive in time of war may separate slaves from their masters, and send them out of the country, without regard to the relation previously subsisting between them and their owners. The principle was thus recognized by Mr. Poinsett, although a citizen of South Carolina, acting under the advice and direction of Mr. Yan Buren, a Democratic President of the United States. General Jessup also, in a report to the War Department, declared, that, in his opinion, the treaty of Payne's Landing exonerated the Indians from all claims for slaves which accrued prior to that date, and that Colonel Humphreys and other claimants could only demand a proportion of the seven thousand dollars allowed by the Indians for slaves then residing among them. This suggestion was obvi- ously just, and was approved by the Secretary of War ; and we are naturally led to inquire, why the same obviously just rule was not applied to some hundreds of other cases precisely like that of Colonel Humphreys? In the meantime. Lieutenant Reynolds having accomplished his mission, so far as the emigration of the captives shipped on board the two boats which left New Orleans on the nineteenth and twen- ty-first of May were concerned, returned to that city in order to complete the duties assigned him in regard to the thirty-one priso- ners who had been detained there by legal sequestration. Collins, THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 229 faithful to the trust reposed in him, also returned to New Orleans with the full purpose of securing those people as slaves to Watson. They reached the city on the twenty-third, and found the slaves still in the possession of the Sheriff; as the time assigned by the court within which the plaintiff was to enter bail had not expired. On the twenty-fifth of June, Mr. Collins addressed a note to Mr. Reynolds, inquiring whether there had been any decision of the court upon the claim of Love to the Seminole negroes left at that place ; and what number he f Reynolds) was satisfied belonged to the Creek Indians ; and demanding that such as belonged to them should be delivered to him, under the order of the Commissioner of " Indian Affairs." Mr. Reynolds replied that he understood the case had been dis- missed ; but as he (Reynolds) was then acting under a superior officer (Major Clark), he would refer Mr. Collins to him. On the following day, Collins addressed Major Clark on the sub- ject ; but receiving no answer, and becoming vexed and disgusted with the business, he left the city on the twenty-seventh for his home in Alabama. In justice to Mr. Collins, we let him speak for himself, and quote the remainder of his report to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, being that portion which relates to his efforts to get possession of these thirty-one Exiles. It reads as follows : ** On arriving at New Orleans on my return, I found the repre- " sentativcs of Love had withdrawn their claim against those thirty- '* two negroes that were left there, thirty-one of which Lieutenant R. " expressed himself satisfied belonged to the claim. I addressed a ** note to Lieutenant R. requesting that such of the negroes as he ** was satisfied of the identity might be turned over to me ; he in " turn referred me to Major Clark who was his senior officer, and ** who had received similar instructions to his own. I had, in com- " pany with Lieutenant R. the day before, called upon Major Clark, ** and learned his determination in relation to the negroes. He did '* not recognize the validity of his order, inasmuch as * By order 230 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. '* of the Secretary of War * did not precede your signature, and ** had even the hardihood to state, that, by an examination of the " lists, none of those negroes in New Orleans were embraced in " the claim I presented, and subsequently ordered Lieutenant Eey- ** nolds to send the negroes forthwith to Arkansas. After I saw a *' settled and determined purpose to thwart me there as well as ** elsewhere, I left New Orleans on the next day for this place, and *' since my arrival here, I have learned by a letter from Lieutenant ** Reynolds, that the negroes were sent off the next day after I left. " Captain Morrison I did not see. Not perhaps being as fruitful " in expedients as some others of them, he stopped at Fort Jack- **son, and sent to New Orleans for transportation outfit, etc., and ** passed the city on his way up, without but few knowing who he *' was, or anything else in relation to him. T learned indirectly "from Major Clark, (who probably did not intend this admission " for me,) that he had between twenty and thirty of the negroes on *' board belonoring to this claim. " I am, sir, with the highest respect, " Yours, etc., " C. A. Harris, Esq., N. F. COLLINS. " Comm'r Indian Afifairs, Washington, D. C." It is most obvious that Collins believed that the military officers of Government, who were serving at a distance from Washington, viewed his mission with no particular favor, and he evidently retired from New Orleans with some degree of indignation. In the meantime, the claimant Love, despairing of obtaining the negroes, refused to enter bail for costs and damages, in case the suit should be determined against him in the higher court, and the sheriff delivered them over to Mr. Reynolds on the same day that Collins left the city. On the next day, Mr. Reynolds wrote the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, saying, "The thirty-one negroes ** who were arrested, seized from me and lodged in the jail of this " city, were last evening surrendered to me. The Creek attorney *• (N. F. Collins, Esq.) nor any authorized agent being present, THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 231 " and not wishing to detain them at the expense of the Government, *' they were immediately embarked and dispatched West, with •' twenty-five days' provisions, under the charge of Assistant Con- '* ductor Benjamin, who, to satisfy the Indians, had been left with " the negroes at the period of the service of the process; of which ** fact I informed the Department at the time." These thirty-one prisoners who had been thus detained, were now once more under way for their western home. Their hearts ap- peared to beat more freely as the noble steamer, which bore them on their way to their friends and future homes, cut loose from her moorings and sped her way toward her destined port. On board that happy craft, also, were many smiles and hearty congratulations exchanged among those children of the forest, who had been borne along on the tide of ever-varying circumstances. Although help- less and penniless, and apparently friendless, they had almost miraculously escaped the meshes which our Government and the slave-dealers had spread for their destruction. In due time they reached Fort Gibson, and were delivered over to the care of the proper agent, who conducted them to their friends. And now some nine hundred Seminoles, and some three to four hundred Exiles, had reached the Indian Country ; they constituted the first party of that nation who, driven from their homes — their native wilds — had consented to be taken to a strange land. They had been assured by General Jessup and all officers who spoke for the Government, that the treaty of Payne's Landing was to be complied with. To enforce that treaty had been the order of General Jackson. General Cass had declared that the Indians must comply loith that treaty; while, to our Indian agents, he asserted it to be tlie policy of the Government to unite the Creeks and Seminoles as one people. But the Indians and Exiles were constantly assured, that they were to have a tract of country set off to their separate use ; and when they entered into the articles of capitulation with General Jessup, on the eighteenth of March, 1837, that officer, on behalf 232 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. of the United States, bad stipulated to protect the Indians and " their allies'' in the enjoyment of their lives and property. But now the turpitude and guilt of the Executive were revealed. The orders of the agent directed him to take them on to the terri- tory assigned to the Creeks. This would subject them to Creek jurisdiction and Creek laws ; and they were perfectly conscious that every Exile would be immediately enslaved. Yet there was no country which they could call their own. The perfidious pre- tense of enforcing the treaty of Payne's Landing, without giving them a separate territory according to the supplemental treaty, now stood exposed in its proper light. Abraham was a man of influence with his brethren. He had used his utmost efforts to induce them to emigrate. He had been honest. He believed in the integrity of our nation, of its people, its government ; but his error had been fatal. The Exiles were in the Western Country, without a home, and with no means of support, except the stipulation of Govern- ment to furnish them provisions for one year. It was at this time, when a Christian government had violated its faith, most solemnly pledged, in order to enslave a people who for ages had been free, that a Pagan government performed towards the Exiles and Seminoles the Christian duty, the hospitality, of furnishing them temporary homes. The Cherokees had volunteered to exert their influence with the Indians and Exiles in favor of peace. They had induced many of them to come into the Ameri- can camp under flags of truce which had been violated, and their persons seized, held prisoners, and sent West. They had them- selves, apparently, been involved in this treachery practiced by our Government, and, under these circumstances, they consented to share their own possessions with the Seminoles and Exiles until further arrangements were made ; they consented to have the Semi- noles and Exiles settle on their land for the present, until the Gov- ernment could be induced to fulfill its most sacred compacts with these victims of slaveholding persecutions. CHAPTER XVII. TOTAL FAILURE OF ALL EFFORTS TO ENSLAVE THE EXILES. Indians and Exiles complain — Government disregards their complaints — Further efforts to enslave Exiles — They fail — General Arbuckle's Report — Collins charges Reynolds with misconduct — Reynolds called on to explain — Ilis reply and proofs — Collins de- sires claim to be made against Creek Warriors — They refuse to notice it — Political feelings — Watson presents his claim to Congress — Resolution of that body calling for information — Answer — House Doc. 225 — Digression — Proceedings on claim before Congress — Its final settlement. The Indians and Exiles who had emigrated, now found them- 1 8Q8 1 ^^^^'^^ separated at the distance of more than a thousand miles from their brethren in Florida, with whom they could hold no intercourse. They were without a country — without permanent homes — residing upon the lands of the Cherokees, at the mere sufferance of that Tribe, whose humanity had been awa- kened, and whose sympathy had been extended to them. Their situation and discontent were duly communicated to the Executive ; but it appears to have been regarded as of too little importance to receive attention. But while the President and the War Department disregarded all complaints coming from the Seminoles and Exiles, they relaxed no effort to secure Watson in the possession of the ninety human beings whom he had purchased of the Creek Indians, at the request of the Executive. As the last resort, instructions were sent to General Arbuckle, commanding in the West, to make investigations, and ascertain (233) 234 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. wbat more could be done for the reenslavement of those people. That officer replied to this communication as follows : "Head Quarters 2d Department, Western Division, ? Furt Gibson, Aug. 27tli, 1838. j " Sir : I had the honor, on the 22d instant, to receive your in- *• structions of the 21st ultimo, together with the papers to which ** they refer. I extremely regret that the United States is liable to ** suffer loss in consequence of the Creek warriors having sold, and " received pay, for the negroes they captured from the Seminole *' Indians in Florida ; and these negroes having been imprudently *' returned to the possession of their former owners at New Orleans, " and brought to this place, with two hundred or more other ne- ** groes belonging to the Seminoles. Owing to these transactions, it " would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, to identify at most ** but few of them ; and from the present position of this case, it is " not probable that one of the negroes will be obtained except by ** force. For further information in relation to this subject, I beg *' leave to refer you to my letter to Captain Armstrong, Acting ** Superintendent of the Western Territory, of this date, a copy of " which is herewith enclosed. I shall do all in my power to pre- ** vent loss to the Government, and will at an early period have *' the honor to advise you of the measures taken in the case. "I have the honor to be, Sir, with great respect, " Your obedient servant, "xM. AKBUCKLE,, "Hon. J. R. Poinsett, Brevet Brig. GenH, U. S. A. " Secretary of War." The letter to Captain Armstrong, Superintendent of the Western Territory, was as follows : " Head Quarters 2d Department, Western Division, ) Fo7t Gibson, Aug. 27, 1838. > *' Sir : I received by the last mail, from the honorable the Sec- " retary of War, a communication under date of the 21st ultimo, *' on the subject of the negroes captured by the Creek warriors, ** together with a letter from the Commissioner of Indian iVffairs to THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 235 ** the Secretary of War, under date of the 19th ultimo, relating to " this subject, copies of which are herewith enclosed. All other " papers or transactions in relation to this matter, it is presumed, *• you are apprized of. It will be seen by the communication first " referred to, that it was not known at Washington, at the date of " that letter, that the Creek warriors had been paid for the negroes. ** That circumstance, however just to the warriors and proper, so ** far as you have had an agency in the affair, will increase the ** diflBculty of obtaining the negroes, as it is believed the Creek *' warriors will not now give themselves any trouble to have the " negroes delivered to the individuals to whom they sold them. " And notwithstanding the pledge of the Seminole chiefs to me, to *' surrender the negroes in the event the Government should so ** require (after reconsidering their claim to them), I do not be- ** lieve they will comply with their promise, with the knowledge " that the negroes are to be taken from this country as the servants " of a white man. Finally, as the Seminoles are greatly under the " influence of their negroes, there is scarcely a hope that the cap- *' tured negroes will be surrendered without the application of force ** (which is not required) ; and, in that event, it is not probable ** they could be had, as they would no doubt run away the moment ** they are informed a military force is to be employed to take them. ** And in such case, it is believed, they would be assisted, when ** necessary, by most of the Seminoles, and by all the Seminole and " Creek negroes ; and if the captured negroes could be placed in " the possession of the Creek agent, he would not detain them a ** moment without he had a suitable guard for that purpose. I *' am therefore of the opinion, that the best means that can now be ** resorted to, to prevent loss to the United States, is, if possible, *' to induce the Seminoles to refund, from their annuity, the sum " paid to the Creek warriors for tlie negroes, and the interest on '• the same until paid. I will be much gratified if you can visit " this post in six or eight days, when the Seminole chiefs can be *' assembled here, with the object of inducing them to agree to the 236 THE EXILES OP FLOBIDA. « " measure proposed, or such other as may be deemed advisable. ** In the event that it may not be convenient for you to be at this ** post at an early period, I request that you will favor me with " your views on the subject of this communication by the return of " mail. " I am, Sir, with much respect, " Your obedient servant, " M. ARBUCKLE, " Capt. W. Armstrong, Brevet Brig. Gen'l, V. S. A. "Acting Sup't W. Ter., Choctaw Agency." This correspondence might well have concluded the efforts of fche Executive to deliver these ninety Exiles to the slave-dealer. It were unnecessary to say, that General Arbuckle's labors in this be- half proved useless. He had foretold such failure in his letter to the War Department. In January, 1837, the Creek warriors cap- tured these people, and for almost two years the influence of the Executive had been exerted to enslave them ; but a series of inci- dents, unequaled in real life, had constantly succeeded each other, preventing the consummation of this intended crime ; yet the slave power was inexorable in its demands. These circumstances failed to convince the President that it was useless for the Executive of a great nation to contend against the plainest dictates of justice ; against those convictions of right which dwell in the breast of every human being who has not extinguished the moral feelings of his nature. Collins having returned to his plantation in Alabama, deliberately drew up and transmitted his report to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, which we have heretofore quoted. But when he was sub- sequently informed that the thirty-two Exiles who were in the hands of the Sheriff at New Orleans had, on the day of his leaving that city, been delivered over to Reynolds, and sent West, his indigna- tion was further excited, and he immediately wrote the Commis- sioner of Indian Affairs again more distinctly charging the officers engaged in the emigration of these people with bad faith. Ho wrote as follows ; THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 237 " Montgomery, Alabama, Aug. 8, 1838. *' Sir : Since writing you a week since, I have understood that * Lieutenant Eeynolds has informed you that on his arrival in New * Orleans the negroes that were detained there had been surren- * dered to him, and that, in consequence of my not being there, * they were sent off to, etc. After seeing so much duplicity and * management as has been manifested by the officers with whom ' I have recently had intercourse, particularly Lieutenant R., I am * not surprised at the above statement. Lieutenant E.. is well ' apprised that the negroes had been turned over to him while I ' was in New Orleans ; and it is also susceptible of proof that * during my stay there arrrangements were privately making to * charter a boat to transport them. After I learned this, I pur- * posely threw myself in his way ; but he said not a word to me in * relation to the negroes, until I addressed him the note which is * herewith enclosed. After receiving his answer, I, in his presence, ' addressed the enclosed copy to Major Clark ; but before I had * procured a messenger to carry it to Major C, Lieutenant R., ' after being a short time absent from the room, returned, and in- * formed me he had seen the Sheriff, and he had refused to turn * over the negroes to him, which rendered, it, as I conceived, un- ' necessary to send the note to Major C. After my return home, ' he wrote that (the next day after I left it seems) the Sheriff rc- ' viewed his decision, and a second time turned them over to Lieu- ' tenant R. ; and as he states in his letter to me, that Major Clark ' ordered them to proceed forthivith to Arkansas. Why was it ' necessary, then, for me to have been there, since he had yielded * everything to his senior officer, and that officer he knew had de- ' termined not to respect the order he had received, and had de- * termined (as his previous statement and subsequent conduct * prove) to send them forthwith to Arkansas ? It is about such a ' subterfuge as the Sheriff turning the negroes and withholding 4them after my letter to Major C. was seen, and then turning them over again after it was known I had left. It is due Lieu- 238 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. ** tenant R. to observe, that he stated to me the Sherlflf had told " him a lie. I know not what object he could have had in view in "doing so. " I remained in New Orleans four days, in which time I became " convinced from the maneuvering that was evinced that nothing " would be gained by a longer stay, and as the sickly season was •' approaching, I left with the conviction that the Sheriff would alter *' his decision as soon as I left there. " I am, with the highest respect, sir, "Yours, etc., " C. A. Haeris, Esq , N. F. COLLINS, "Commissioner Indian Affairs. Agetit Creek Warriors.^' It is worthy of notice that this agent of a slave-dealer should thus address, to one of the Executive Departments of this august nation, complaints against the sworn officers of our Government ; but it is still more worthy of note that the War Department should call on its authorized and sworn agents to respond to complaints coming from such a source. Copies of Collins's two letters were immediately enclosed to Lieutenant Reynolds, accompanied by a letter from Commissioner Harris, of which we give a copy : " War 1)ep.\rtme\t, ) Office of Commissioner of Indian Affairs, \ August 27, 1837. ) " Sir : I enclose copies of two letters from N. F. Collins, Esq., ** (one of the twenty-ninth ultimo and the other of the eighteenth ** instant,) in relation to the negroes which you were directed to ** turn over to him as the agent of the Creeks. From these papers, " and from other information received here, it would seem there has ** been great disregard, if not a violation, of the orders of the War " Department in this matter. I trust you will be able to make " such explanations of your conduct as will relieve you from cen- *' sure — a prompt answer is desired, "It may not be amiss to inform you that, when on duty in the " Indian Department, you are bound to obey the orders of no mili- ** tary officer, unless you have been placed under his direction. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 239 " Captain Morrison is the only army officer authorized to control ** your movements. " Very, etc., " Lieut. J. G. Reynolds. C. A. HARRIS, Commissioner." These intimations to Lieutenant Reynolds of censure, and the distinct call for explanations, could bo neither misinterpreted nor misunderstood ; and, although the complaints and charges had been preferred not merely by a man in private life,- but by an individual whose very employment as an assistant slave-dealer had rendered him odious and infamous among honorable men, yet this officer who had fought under the flag of his country, and was ready at any moment to peril his life in the support of his country's honor, was now constrained to meet charges comino; from an infamous source. The surprise of Lieutenant Reynolds at this procedure was ex- pressed in the following letter : " New Orleans, Sept. 20, 1838. *' Sir : Your letter, dated twenty-seventh ultimo, enclosing ** copies of two communications received at your office from Mr. N. *'F. Collins, the Creek attorney, came to hand on the tenth in- ** stant. I was surprised at being called upon to answer for ' my "conduct' toward Mr. Collins, as also the Department for disre- ** garding its orders. Indeed, sir, I have been, in my own estima- " tion, too faithful a servant in the special department in which it ** was the pleasure of General Jessup to assign, and you to con- ** tinue. me, to make a defense to the allegations advanced by Col- "lins. At the time of Mr. Collins's departure from this city, he ** did not evince that virulence of feeling that he has thought proper '* to express in his letter; on the contrary, he was then apparently *' under the full conviction that I had done all that was possible to •* aid him. and carry out the orders received in relation to the " negroes in question. What object could I possibly have in wish- " ing clandestinely, and in the very face of orders, to send those " negroes to Arkansas? Had Mr. Collins been here, sir, so far ad 240 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. ** I was concerned, he should have had the negroes upon identity. *' I enclose papers, sir, from various gentlemen to disprove the asser- "tion of Mr. Collins, 'that the negroes were in mj possession du- *' ring the time he was here ;' on the contrary, they did not come ** into my hands until some time after his departure. It is true, I ** have frequently referred to Major Clark for advice in matters " relative to my official situation. It was on account of the high " regard I have of his character as a gentleman, and an officer of ** long standing and experience, and whose integrity stands pre- -eminently and deservedly high. " I have the honor to be, sir, very respectfully, " Your obd't servant, " JNO. G. REYNOLDS, " C. A. Harris, U. S. M. C. JDiob. Agent, Ind. DepH. " Com. Ind. Affairs, Washington City, D. C. We have too little space in this work to copy official papers to any considerable extent. Those which accompanied Lieutenant Reynolds's reply were — First. A full statement of facts from Sheriff Buisson, showing that the thirty-one prisoners, who had been in his charge, were not turned over to Major Clark until the twenty-eighth of June, 1838. Second. A full statement of facts by George Whitman, owner of the steamboat, who contracted to carry the piisoners West. Third. A similar statement by Major Clark of the facts that came within his knowledge, accompanied by a copy of a communi- cation from Jno. C. Casey, Acting Seminole Agent. All these statements showed that Lieutenant Reynolds had strictly obeyed his orders ; and whether they proved satisfactory to the War Department or not, we are unable to state. It is, however, believed, that no further proceedings were had in relation to the conduct of that officer. Mr. Collins, finding that he possessed some influence with the War Department, on the eighteenth of October, wrote the Com- missioner of Indian Affairs, saying, " I have now to request that, THB EXILES OP FLORIDA. 241 " should General Arbuckle be unable to comply with the instruc- " tions I understand he has received, (which from my knowledge ** of the Indian character I have no doubt he will,) this claim may '• be laid before the agent who may be appointed to investigate the *• claims of the Creeks with the necessary documents ; that it may "be examined and reported on by him." In answer to this letter, Mr. Crawford, Acting Commmissioner of Indian Affairs, replied, stating that General Arbuckle had, on the twenty-eighth of September, informed the Department that the negroes could only be obtained by military force. Mr. Crawford also assured Mr. Colhns that General Arbuckle had been instructed to act in concert with Captain Armstrong for the purpose of obtain- ing a treaty with the Indians by which provisions for this claim would be made ; and that the necessary papers had been transmit- ted to those gentleman to enable them to act with a correct under- standing of the subject. But the Creek Indians appear to have become impressed with the opinion, that the whole proceeding- was either unjust or dishon- orable, and they wholly refused to participate any further in the transaction. The Exiles and Indians were now living on the Cherokee lands. The Creeks would have nothing further to do with Watson, nor with the United States, in regard to the captured negroes. The Seminole Indians showed no disposition to surrender them to slavery, and the Exiles themselves exhibited no intention of going voluntarily into bondage. General Arbuckle advised against the employment of a military force to effect that object ; and to all present appearances these ninety Exiles had, through a train of mysterious incidents, been preserved from bondage. The Florida War had become un- popular ; and Watson, the purchaser of the supposed slaves, had warm personal friends among the Whigs of Georgia. They were quite willing to subject Mr. Van Buren to any degree of odium in their power. Watson, therefore, sent his petition to Congress, ask- ing indemnity for the loss of slaves whom he had purchased of the 16 242 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. Creeks at the instance, and by the recommendation, of the Execu- tive ojfficers of Government. In order to sustain the claim of Watson, it was necessary to place the facts attending this transaction before the House of Rep- resentatives. For this purpose a resolution was adopted, on the twenty-eighth of January, 1839, calling on the Secretary of War for ** such information as was to be found in his office touching the ** capture of negroes and other property from the hostile Indians, *• during the present war in Florida." In answer to this resolution, the Secretary of War, on the twen- ty-seventh of February, made report, embracing one hundred and twenty-six pages of printed matter. It was numbered H. Doc. 225, and ordered to be printed. From that document much information has been obtained in regard to the capture and emigration of this first party of Indians and Exiles to the Western Country. The result of this speculation in human flesh is so essential to a correct appreciation of the whole transaction, that we deem it proper to give, in this connection, the proceedings of Congress upon that subject ; although it may appear to be rather a digression from the chronological narration of events which constitute the subject of our history. It will be recollected that the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, in his letter to the Secretary of War, dated the first of May, 1838, suggests that it might create agitation, were the Department to ask Congress for an appropriation of money to carry these Exiles to Africa, or for any other disposition of them ; that, to suppress all discussion in Congress upon the subject of slavery, gag-resolutions and gag-rules had been adopted at each session since 1885. It was under the operation of these rules that the advocates of slavery expected to pass a bill to indemnify Watson for his loss in failing to enslave these Exiles. During the summer of 1839, the document, No. 225, above referred to, was printed. According to the practice of that day, few, even of the members of Congress, examined these THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 243 documents. A copy of this, however, was placed on file,' with Watson's petition and other papers, as evidence on which his claim rested. At the commencement of the next session, the Author of this work, being a member of the House of Representatives, was placed upon the committee of Claims ; at the head of which was Hon. David Russel, of Washington County, New York, a man of great industry, integrity and ability ; always independent, according to the general views of that day, and upright in the discharge of ofl&cial duties. Hon. William C. Dawson, of Georgia, was also a member of that committee, and appeared to take much interest in this claim. He was a man of much suavity of manner ; one of that class of Southern statesmen who felt it necessary to carry every measure by the influence of personal kindness, and an expression of horror at all agitation of the slave question, under the apprehension that it might dissolve the Union. Mr. Dawson was anxious to get this claim of Watson through Congress, and, not expecting the Chairman of the committee on Claims to favor its passage, requested the Author to examine and give support to it. It was that examination which gave him the first information as to the real cause of the Florida War. After a full and thorough investigation, he assured Mr. Dawson that he would be constrained to oppose the passage of any bill giving in- demnity to Watson. At that time it was the usual practice for the committee on Claims to leave all petitions asking pay for slaves, or which involved the question of slavery, without reporting upon them, lest they should cause agitation. There being no prospect of obtaining from the committee a favorable report, the case was at the next session of Congress referred to the committee on Indian Affairs, who reported in its favor, providing for the payment of the full sum which Watson gave the Creeks, and interest thereon from the time of the contract up to the time of passing the bill. lR/11 1 ^^^^ ^^^^ ^^^ placed on the calendar, and in 1841 the Author endeavored to call attention to it, in a speech made 244 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. in tlie House of Representatives on the " Florida War." This led some members to examine it ; and some of them, more independent than others, declared their hostility to its passage. In the Twenty-eighth Congress, the Author, having become ob- noxious to the slaveholders, was removed from the committee on Claims,^ and Watson's petition was again referred to that commit- tee, in order that it should receive the prestige of its influence ; but it was reported upon late, and was so low on the calendar that it was not reached during that Congress. 18J.» 1 ^^ *^® Thirty-first Congress, Mr. Daniels, Chairman of the committee on Claims, reported it in February. But General Crowell, of Trumbull County, Ohio, being on the commit- tee, opposed its passage, and caused a postponement for that session ; and at the next session it was, after a short discussion, passed over without any final action upon it. At the Thirty-second Congress, the committee on Claims was yet more favorably constituted for the slave interest — Mr. Sacket, of New York, and Mr. Rantoul, of Massachusetts, being the only (1) Hon. Elisha Whittlesey, the predecessor of Mr. Giddings, long and ably presided over the committee on Claims. lie was a man of untiring industry ; and when he found it necessary to report on a slave case, in 1835, he wrote the Ilegister of the Treasury, inquir- ing if slaves had ever been paid for by the United States as property. The reply stated they had not; and the committee reported adversely to the case, although it was one of the strongest character possible. Francis Larche, living near New Orleans, owned a horse, cart and slave. The day before the battle below that city, in 181i, they were impressed into the service ; and while thus held by the United States authorities, on the day of the battle, the horse and slave were killed by cannon shot, and Larche petitioned Congress for compen- sation for the loss of his slave. Mr. Whittlesey drew up an able report refusing such com- pensation. At the commencement of the Twenty-seventh Congress, Mr. Giddings was placed at the head of that committee ; but, being obnoxious to the advocates of slavery, he was removed from that position at the commencement of the Twenty-eighth Congress ; yet there seemed to be an impression that his successor should be taken from Ohio, and Hon. Joseph Vance was made Chairman. He was a man at that time somewhat advanced in life, and not ac- customed to legal investigations. Cases which required research, were usually consigned to some subordinate member of the committee. It was while he was acting as Chairman, that this case of Watson was first reported upon favorably by the committee on Claims, although it had never before been regarded by that committee as entitled to any encour- THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 245 two members upon it who openly resisted the slave power. Mr. Edgerton, of Ohio, Mr. Seymour, of Connecticut, and Mr. Curtis, of Pennsylvania, being Northern Democrats, remained silent during the discussion of this claim. It was however again reported by the Chairman, Mr. Daniels, of North Carolina, at an early day, and a full determination to carry it through was manifested by the slaveholders. Both of the great political parties were at that time (1852) en- deavoring to suppress all agitation of the slave question. Southern men, particularly, were horrified at every appearance of discussion in relation to the " pecculiar institution ; " and they hoped to pass this bill without even an examination of its merits before the House. But the opponents of slavery were not idle. Efforts were privately made to call attention of gentlemen to this claim, that they might examine its merits before it came up for discussion ; and on looking into it, a number of members prepared to oppose its passage. After one or two postponements, it came on for discus- sion on the twentieth of February, 1852. Mr. Sacket, of New York, met the case at once, in a speech which showed that he had studied it very thoroughly, and understood it perfectly. He insisted that slaves were not plunder, and did not come within the contract of General Jessup, which gave to Creeks the " plun- der" they might capture. 2d. That the whole transaction was one of speculation on the part of Watson, inasmuch as the report set forth that the negroes were worth at least sixty thousand dollars, . while he paid only fourteen thousand and six hundred dollars — being less than one-fourth their value, evidently taking upon him- self all risk of title and possession. 3d. That the officers of Gov- ernment had no authority to involve the nation in this slave-dealing transaction. 4th. That those officers were not the Government, and could not bind the people to pay their funds for human flesh. Mr. Abercrombie, of Alabama, was in favor of the claim. He declared that he was in Forida at the time of this contract, and 246 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. knew all about it, and that it was well understood that the term "plunder" did include slaves. Mr. Daniels, Chairman of the committee, felt called on by the effort of Mr. Sacket to speak early in the discussion. He insisted that General Jessup, the Commissioner of Indian Affairs and Sec- retary of War, fully understood the case ; that it was understood by the parties that the term ''plunder" did include slaves; that Watson was drawn into this matter, partly, to relieve the Govern- ment from the transaction in which it had become involved. He insisted that the negroes captured were slaves of the Seminoles ; but when inquired of on that point, could only say, that officers engaged in the Florida War had spoken of them as such. He was much embarrassed by interrogatories propounded to him by Mr. Stanton, of Ohio, and other gentlemen. Mr. Mace, of Indiana, a Democrat, took a short and comprehen- sive view of the case. He, nor any other man could tell whether these negroes were slaves or freemen. On the part of the officers of Government, there was not a single impulse of humanity mani- fested in regard to these people ; but all their endeavors were put forth to enslave them. He was entirely opposed to the bill. Hon. John W. Howe, of Pennsylvania, would never give his vote in favor of regarding men, and women, and children, as plun- der. He commented with much force upon the contract, and the documentary evidence before the House, and would maintain the humanity of all prisoner captured in war. He sustained the posi- tion of General Gaines, that they were prisoners of war. On the tenth of March the bill came up again for consideration, when Mr. Johnson, of Georgia, advocated its passage in a very elaborate speech. He differed from Mr. Sacket, Mr. Howe, and those who opposed the bill, mostly upon the great question — insist- ing that slaves were property under our Federal Constitution ; that the people captured by the Creek Indians were not possessed of any rights ; that they were to be regarded as mere chattels : in- deed, this point lay at the foundation of the entire discussion. He THB EXILES OF FLORIDA. 247 however sought to add strength to the claim by reading letters from Mr. Crawford, Commissioner of Indian Affairs, and from Mr. Poin- sett, Secretary of War, to show that they sympathized with the slave-dealer, and were desirous that this bill should pass. Mr. Welch, of Ohio, in few words, declared his conviction that these negroes were prisoners of war, to be treated as such, and not to be regarded as slaves or chattels. Mr. Evans, of Maryland, thought it diflBcult to understand the case, but would adopt the views of Judge Iverson, of Georgia; that gentleman had been a member of the House- of Representatives, and his statements could be relied upon. He read a long affidavit showing the recollections of Mr. Iverson, and, as the United States had the property in possession, he would vote for the bill. Mr. Stuart, of Michigan, now a Democratic Senator, thought the Government had been in great difficulty in getting these Seminoles to go West ; they would not go without the negroes, many of whom had intermarried with the Seminoles. By the treaty which General Jessup made, in 1837, our Government was bound to send the negroes West, and having done so, was bound to pay Watson for his loss. Mr. Skelton, of New Jersey, a Democrat, recognized no power in this or any other government to treat prisoners of war as slaves. The discussion had become interesting, and, in some degree, consti- tuted an agitation of the slave question ; and as the committee rose without taking a vote upon the bill, Mr. Orr, of South Carolina, moved a resolution precluding further debate upon it ; but the House adjourned without taking a vote on the resolution. The case came up again on the tenth of April, when a resolution to close debate in one hour was adopted. The House then resolved itself in committee ; and Mr. Bartlett, of Vermont, a Democrat, took the position that the Government, nor its officers, had power to enter into any agreement with Indians or white men, by which they should enjoy any privilege, or receive any compensation, not authorized by law ; that the contract between General Jessup and 248 THE EXILES OP FLORIDA. the Creeks was of no validity, but absolutely void ; and every transaction touching the enslavement of the Exiles was without au- thority, and of no effect. Mr. Walsh, of Maryland, insisted that the Indian tribes were not nations, and ought not to be treated as such ; that it was not incumbent on the friends of the bill to show that slavery existed among the Seminoles ; if they lived within a slave State, they might hold slaves; that the Government had the right to enslave the negroes when captured. Mr. Sweetzer, of Ohio, Democrat, denied the authority of Gen- eral Jessup to make any contract for the services of the Creek warriors other than the law had provided; nor could he have authority to make any stipulation as to the disposal of prisoners when captured. Mr. Southerland, of New York, a Whig, thought the question of slavery was not necessarily involved in this case ; that the United States, having sent the negroes West, were bound to indemnify Watson for his loss. Mr. Daniels, by the rules of the House, had one hour to reply, after the expiration of the time for closing debate. He attempted to reply to some of the arguments offered against the bill, but ad- vanced no new position. At the expiration of his speech the vote was taken, and the bill reported to the House as agreed to in com- mittee. The previous question was then called, and under its operation the bill passed — seventy-nine members voting in favor of its passage, and fifty-three against it. One member from the slave States, Williamson R. W. Cobb, of Alabama, voted against the bill. All the other members from the slave States voted for it ; and were aided by the votes of members from the free States, as follows : From New Hampshire: Harry Hibbard — 1. Massachusetts: Wm. Appleton, Zeno Scudder — 2. New York: Abram M. Schemmerhorn, James Brooks, Gilbert Dean, F. S. Martin, Abram P. Stevens, Joseph Southerland — 6. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 249 Connecticut: Collins M. IngersoU — 1 New. Jersey : R. M. Price — 1. Pennsylvania : Joseph R, Chandler, Thomas Florence, Joseph H. Kuhns, Joseph McNair, Andrew Packer, John Bobbins, Thomas Ross — 7. Ohio: JohnL Taylor— 1. Indiana: Sam'l W. Parker, Richard W. Thompson — 2. Michigan: E. S. Penniman, Charles E. Stuart — 2. Iowa: Lincoln Clark, Bernard Iknn — 2. California: Joseph W. McCorkle — 1. In all the free States twenty-five. The vote against the bill was given by the following members, from the free States : From Maine: E. K. Smart, Israel Washburn, jr. — 2. New Hampshire : Jared Perkins, Amos Tuck — 2. Jfassachusetts : Orrin Fowler, Z. Goodrich, Horace Mann — 3. New York : Henry Bennet, George Briggs, John G. Floyd, Timothy Jenkins, Daniel F. Jones, Preston King, William Mur- ray, Joseph Russel, Wm. A. Sacket, W. W. Snow, Hiram S. Wall- bridge, John Wells— 12. New Jersey: Charles Skelton, N. T. Stratton — 2. Vermont: Thomas W. Bartlett, James Meacham — 2. Connecticut: Charles Chapman — 1. Pennsylvania: James Allison, John L. Dawson, James Gam- ble, Galusha A. Grow, John W. Howe, Thomas M. Howe, Milo M. Dimmick, Thaddeus Stevens — 8. Ohio: Nelson Barrere, Joseph Cable, Alfred P. Edgerton, J. M. Gaylord, Alex. Harper, Wm. F. Hunter, John Johnson, Eben Newton, Edson B. Olds, Charles Sweetzer — 10. Indiana : Samuel Brenton, John G. Davis, Graham N. Fitch, Thomas A. Hendricks, Daniel Mace — 5. Illinois: Wyllis Allen, R. S. Molony— 2. Wisconsin: James D. Doty, Solomon Durkee, Ben. C. Easfc- man — 3. 250 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA These fifty-two members, with Mr. Cobb, of Alabama, made up the entire opposition to the bill in the House of Representatives. In the Senate there was very little opposition to its passage ; and after thirteen years, the people of the United States paid for the slaves whom Watson bought on speculation, but of whom he failed to obtain possession. The Northern advocates of the bill justified their support of it more generally upon the principle, that our officers sent the negroes West, and thereby rendered it difficult, if not impossible, for Watson to obtain possession of them ; and they insisted that, in refunding to Watson his money, they did not pay him for human flesh, but for the money he had paid out at the in- stance of federal officers. This vote closed the controversy in regard to General Jessup's contract, to give the Creek warriors such plunder as they might capture from the enemy. CHAPTER XYIII. FURTHER DIFFICULTIES IN PROSECUTING THE WAR. Emigrants under Captain Morrison — Feeling among the Regular Troops — They detest the practice of catching Negroes — Another party Emigrate — Still further Emigration — Situation of the Exiles —Deep depravity of the Administration — General McComb's Treaty — His general order — Peace cheers the Nation — Citizens of Florida return to their homes — Administration congratulates its friends — More murders perpetrated — Planters flee to Tillages for protection — Massacre of Colonel Harney's party — Indians seized at Fort Mellon — Exiles refuse to participate in these massacres — They would make no Treaty — Administration paralyzed — Report of Secretary of War — Its charac- ter—Barbarous sentiments of Governor Reid — Resolution of Legislature of Florida in favor of employing blood-hounds — Original object in obtaining them — The effort proves a failure — General Taylor retires from command of Army — Is succeeded by General Armistead. We now resume our chronological narration of events connected with the Exiles of Florida, during the year 1838. On the fourteenth of June, Captain Morrison arrived at New Orleans from Tampa Bay in charge of some three hundred Indians and thirty negroes, on their way to the West ; he having been assigned to that particular duty. These Indians and Exiles had most of them come to Fort Jupiter by advice of the Cherokees, and surrendered under the capitulation of March, 1837. At the time they reached New Orleans, Lieutenant Reynolds was absent with his first emigrating party ; and the thirty-one negroes left at New Orleans wore at that time in the hands of the Sheriff. Cap- tain Morrison felt it his duty to hasten the emigration of those whom he had in charge, and on the sixteenth, he left that city with (251) 252 • THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. his prisoners for the Indian Country without waiting the return of Lieutenant Reynolds. On reaching Fort Gibson, he delivered them over to the officer acting as Seminole Agent for the Western Country, and they soon rejoined their friends who were located on the Chero- kee lands. It may not be improper to state, that, in several of our recent chapters, we have quoted from official documents pretty freely, for the reason that many living statesmen, as well as many who have passed to their final rest, were deeply involved in those transac- tions, and we desired to make them speak for themselves as far as the documents would enable us to do so. But as we have narrated most of the scenes involving individuals in transactions of such deep moral turpitude, we hope to be more brief in our future history. When General Taylor assumed the command of the army, there was a feeling of deep disgust prevalent among the regular troops at the practice of seizing and enslaving the Exiles. W^e have already noticed the fact, that the citizens of Florida supposed the war to have been commenced principally to enable them to get possession of negroes whom they might enslave. Indeed, they appear not to have regarded it as material, that the claimant should have previously owned the negro. If they once obtained control of his person, he was hurried into the interior of Georgia, Alabama, or South Carolina, where he was sold and held as a slave. And the Florida volunteers, while nominally in service, appear to have been far more anxious to catch negroes than to meet the ene- my in battle. This feeing was so general among the people and troops of Flori- da, that General Call, Governor of the Territory, recommended to the Secretary of War that military expeditions should be fitted out for the purpose of going into the Indian Country, in order to cap- ture negroes, who, when captured, should be sold, and the avails of such sales applied to defray the expenses of the war. It is easy to see that this feeling would lead the regular troops to entertain great contempt for the volunteers of Florida ; and a cor- THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 253 responding feeling of hostility would arise on the part of such volunteers toward the regular troops. These feelings operated upon President Jackson in ordering the withdrawal of General Scott; and General Jessup sought to ap- pease this hostility by obeying the dictates of the slave power. Indeed, whatever appears like a violation of pledged faith, or bears the evidence of treachery on the part of General Jessup, may probably with great justice be attributed to the popular sentiment of the Territory. He had assiduously captured, and delivered over to bondage, hundreds of persons whom he had most solemnly covenanted to ''protect in their persons and property. ^^ General Taylor discarded this entire policy. His first efforts were to make the Indians and Exiles understand that he sought their emigration to the Western Country, for the advancement of their own interest and happiness. Owing to these circumstances there was scarcely any blood shed in Florida while he had command. The army was no longer employed to hunt and to chase down women and children, who had been reared in freedom among the hom mocks and everglades of that Territory. There were yet remaining several small bands of Indians upon the Appalachicola River, and in its vicinity. Most of the Exiles who had a few years previously resided with these bands, had been captured by pirates from Georgia, and taken to the interior of that State and sold, as the reader has been already informed. Those of E-con-chattimico's and of Blunt's and of Walker's bands were nearly all kidnapped; but of the number of Exiles who remained with the other remnants of Indian Tribes, resident upon the Appalachi- cola River, we have no reliable information. We are left in doubt on this point, as General Taylor drew no distinctions among his prisoners ; he neither constituted himself nor his officers a tri- bunal for examining the complexion or the pedigree of his cap- tives. He denied the right of any citizen to inspect the people captured by the array under' his command, or to interfere in any way with the disposal of his prisoners. He repaired to the Apala- 254 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. chee towns with a small force about the first of October. Neither the Indians nor Exiles made any resistance ; nor did they oppose emigration. They readily embarked for New Orleans on their way westward. Their emigration was not delayed in order to give planters an opportunity to examine the negroes. Under the general term of '* Apalachees," two hundred and twenty. persons were quietly emigrated to the Western Country ; but, as we have already stated, how many of them were negroes, we have no infor- mation. These people were also delivered over to the agent, acting for the Western Indians, and settled with their brethren upon the Cherokee lands. General Taylor now entered upon a new system for prosecuting the war, by establishing posts and manning them, and by assigning to each a particular district of country, over which their scouts and patroles were to extend their daily reconnoisances. Small parties of Indians and negroes occasionally came in at dif- ferent posts, and surrendered under the articles of capitulation of ^ March, 1837; and, on the twenty-fifth of February, one hundred and ninety-six Indians and negroes were embarked at Tampa Bay for the Western Conntry. But the proportion of negroes, compared with the whole number, is not stated in any official report. General Taylor, in his communications, speaks of them as prisoners, and occasionally uses the terms "Indians and negroes." Thus, in less than a year. General Taylor shipped more than four hundred prisoners for the Western Country without bloodshed. These prisoners were also delivered over to the Indian Agent of the Western Country, and immediately reunited with their brethren already located on the Cherokee lands. There were, at that time, a colony of more than sixteen hundred of these people living upon the territory assigned to the Cherokees. They were without homes, or a country of their own : whereas the Government had constantly held out to them the assurance that, if they emigrated West, they THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 255 should have a country assigned to their separate use, on which they could repose in safety. At this point in our history, Mr. Van Buren's administration exhibited its deepest depravity. Since the ratification of the sup- plemental treaty of 1833, the Executive, through all its oflBcers, had insured the Indians and Exiles that they should enjoy its full benefits, by having a territory set off to their separate use, where they could live independent of Creek laws. Under these assurances they had received the pledged faith of the nation, that they should be protected by the United States in their persons and property. With these pledges, and with these expectations, a weak and friendless people had emigrated to that western region ; and when thus separated from their friends and country, with the slave-catch- ing vultures of the Creek Nation watching and intending to make them their future victims, the President deliberately refused to abide by either the treaty or the articles of capitulation. He left them unprotected, without homes, and without a country which they could call their own. True, many of them had been betrayed, treacher- erously seized and compelled to emigrate ; but this was done in violation of the existing treaty and pledged faith of the nation, which they were constantly assured should be faithfully observed ; and these circumstances enhanced the guilt of those who wielded^ the Executive power to oppress them. Major General McComb arrived in Florida (May 20) for the purpose of effecting a new treaty with the Seminoles upon the basis of permitting them to remain in their native land. The war had been waged with the intent and for the purpose of compelling the Indians to emigrate West and settle with the Creeks, and become subject to the Creek laws. It had continued three years at a vast expenditure of treasure and of national reputation. Many valuable lives had also been sacrificed ; and, although some two thousand Indians and Exiles had emigrated West, not one Exile had settled in the Creek Country, or become subject to Creek laws. Some hundreds had been enslaved and sold in Florida, Georgia, Alabama 256 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. and South Carolina ; but a remnant of that people, numbering some hundreds, yet maintained their liberties against all the machina- tions and efforts of Government to reenslave thera.^ The vast expenditure of national treasure had called forth severe animadversion in Congress ; while the entire policy of the slave power forbid all explanation of the real cause of this war, and of the objects for which its prosecution was continued. Thus, while the nation was involved in a most expensive and dis- astrous contest for the benefit of slavery, the House of Representa- tives had adopted resolutions for suppressing all discussion and all agitation of questions relating to that institution. General Scott, a veteran ofi&cer of our army, had exhausted his utmost science ; had put forth all his efforts to conquer this indomi- table people ; or rather to subdue the love of liberty, the independ- ence of thought and of feeling, which stimulated them to effort ; but he had failed. The power of our army, aided by deception, fraud and perfidy, had been tried in vain. General Jessup, the most successful ofiicer who had commanded in Florida, had advised peace upon the precise terms which the allies demanded at the com- mencement of the war; and General McComb, Commander-in- Chief of the army of the United States, was now commissioned to negotiate peace on those terms. But the first difiiculty was to obtain a hearing with the chiefs who remained in Florida, in order to enter upon negotiations touching a pacification. To effect this object, recourse was had to a negro, one of the Exiles who knew General Taylor, and in whom General Taylor confided. At the request of General McComb, this man was dispatched with a friendly message to several chiefs, requesting them to come into the American Camp for the purpose of negotiation. His mission proved successful. A Council of several chiefs, and some forty head men and warriors, was convened at Fort King, on the sixteenth (1) There is little doubt that the real number of Exiles was unknown to General Jack- on, or to General Cass, at the commencement of the war. They appear to have regarded their number far less than it was estimated, during the first Seminole War of 1818. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 257 of May, 1839, and the terms of peace agreed upon ; but no treaty appears to have been drawn up in form. On the eighteenth of May, General McComb, at Fort King, his head-quarters, issued the following general orders : "Head Quarters of the Army op the Umted States, ) Fort King, Ftoriia, May 18, 1839. j " The Major General, commanding in chief, has the satisfaction ' of announcing to the army in Florida, to the authorities of the ' Territory, and to the citizens generally, that he has this day ter- ' minated the war with the Seminole Indians by an agreement * entered into with Chitto-Tustenuggee, principal chief of the Sem- * inoles and successor to Arpeika, commonly called Sam. Jones, * brought to this post by Lieutenant Colonel Harney, 2d Dragoons, * from the southern part of the peninsula. The terms of the 'agreement are — that hostilities immediately cease between the * parties ; that the troops of the United States and the Serai- ' nole and Mickasukie chiefs and warriors, now at a distance, be ' made acquainted with the fact, that peace exists, and that all hos- * tilities are forthwith to cease on both sides — the Seminoles and * Mickasukies agreeing to retire into a district of country in Flori- * da, below Pease Creek, the boundaries of which are as follows : * viz, beginning at the most southern point of land between Char- * lotte Harbor and the Sanybel or Cooloosahatchee River, opposite * to Sanybel Island ; thence into Charlotte Harbor by the southern ' pass between Pine Island and that point along the eastern shore * of said harbor to Toalkchopko or Pease Creek ; thence up said ' creek to its source ; thence easterly to the northern point of Lake * Istokopoga ; thence along the eastern outlet of said lake, called ' Istokopoga Creek, to the Kissimee River ; thence southerly down ' the Kissimee to Lake Okeechobee ; thence south through said ' lake to Ecahlahatohee or Shark River ; thenee down said river * westwardly to its mouth ; thence along the seashore northwardly ' to the place of beginning ; that sixty days be allowed the In- * dians, north and east of that boundary, to remove their families 17 258 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. " and effects into said district, where they are to remain until further ** arrangements are made under the protection of the troops of the " United States, who are to see that they are not molested by in- ** truders, citizens or foreigners ; and that said Indians do not pass " the limits assigned them, except to visit the posts, which will be ** hereafter indicated to them. All persons are, therefore, forbid- " den to enter the district assigned to the Indians without written " permission of some commanding ofl&cer of a military post. «» By command of the General : " ALEX AND ER McCOMB, ]\Iajor General Commanding. "Kdmond Shriveb, " Captain and A. A. General." The country now again rejoiced at what the people regarded as the restoration of peace. By the terms agreed upon, the Indians retained as large a territory in proportion to the number left in Florida as was held by them at the commencement of the war. The people of Florida had originally petitioned General Jackson for the forcible removal of the Indians, because they would not seize and bring in their fugitive slaves. They had protested against peace upon any terms that should leave the negroes, whom they claimed, in the Indian Country. These citizens of Florida had long since been driven from their homes and firesides by the enemy whom they so much despised ; and they now desired peace. The Indians and Exiles were also anxious to cultivate corn and potatoes for the coming winter, and were glad to be able to do so in peace. Thus, the people of Florida, as they supposed, in perfect safety, returned to their plantations, and resumed their former habits of life. And the political party in possession of the Government, congratulated themselves and the country upon the fortunate con- clusion of a war which had involved them in difiiculties that were inexplicable. But this quiet continued for a short time only. Early in July, travelers and express-riders were killed by small parties of Indians; plantations were attacked and the occupants murdered ; buildings THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 259 burned and crops destroyed ; families fled from their homes, leaving all their property, in order to assemble in villages in such numbers as to insure safety to their persons; and the Florida War again raged with accumulated horrors. As an illustration of the manner in which it was carried on, we quote the following : "Assistant Adjutant General's Office, Army of the South, ? Fort Brooke, East Florida, July 29, 1839. 3 " Sir : It becomes my painful duty to inform you of the assas- " sination of the greater part of Lieutenant Colonel Harney's ** detachment, by the Indians, on the morning of the 23d instant, *• on the Coloosahatchee River, where they had gone, in accordance ** with the treaty at Fort King, to establish a trading-house. The " party consisted of about twenty-eight men, armed with Colt's "rifles; they were encamped on the river, hut unprotected hy '* defenses of miy hind, and, it is said, without sentinels. The ** Indians, in large force, made the attack before the dawn of day, ** and before reveille ; and it is supposed that thirteen of the men ** were killed, among whom were Major Dalham and Mr. Morgan, ** sutlers. The remainder, with Colonel Harney, escaped, sev- ** eral of them severely wounded. It was a complete surprise. ** The Commanding General, therefore, directs that you instantly ** take measures to place the defenses at Fort Mellon in the most " complete state of repair, and be ready at all times to repel attack, " should one be made. No portion of your command will, in ** future, be suffered to leave the garrison except under a strong ** escort. The detachment will be immediately withdrawn. Should " Fort Mellon prove unhealthy, and the surgeon recommend its ** abandonment, you are authorized to transfer the garrison, and " reinforce some of the neighboring posts. "I am, Sir, GEO. H. GRIFFIN, « Lieutenant W. K. Hanson, Assistant Adjutant General. " Commanding at Fort Mellon." The Indians killed ten men belonging to the military service, and eight citizens, employed by the sutlers ; while Colonel Harney 260 THE EXILES OF FLOKIDA. and fourteen others escaped. The Indians obtained fourteen rifles, six carbines, some three or four kegs of powder, and about three thousand dollars worth of goods. Lieutenant Hanson, commanding at Fort Mellon, on receiving the order which we have quoted, seized some thirty Indians at that time visiting Fort Mellon, and sent them immediately to Charles- ton, South Carolina ; whence they were embarked for the Indian Country, west of Arkansas, where they joined their brethren, who still resided upon the Cherokee Territory. In these transactions, the Exiles who remained in Florida appear to have taken no part, at least so far as we are informed. They labored to obtain the treaty of peace ; but such was the treachery with which they had been treated, that they would not subject themselves to the power of the white people, and were not of course present at the treaty ; nor were they recognized by Gen- eral McComb as a party to the treaty, or in any way interested in its provisions. Indeed, we are led to believe that General McComb adopted the policy on which General Taylor usually practiced, of 'recognizing no distinctions among priso»ers or enemies. The Administration appeared to be paralyzed under this new demonstration of the power and madness of the Seminoles. At the commencement of the war, some officers had estimated the whole number of Seminoles at fifteen hundred, and the negroes as low as four hundred. They had now sent some two thousand Indians and negroes to the Western Country ; and yet those left in Florida, renewed the war with all the savage barbarity which had character- ized the Seminoles in the days of their greatest power. Indeed, they exhibited no signs of humiliation. The Secretary of War, Mr. Poinsett, a South Carolinian, proba- bly exerted more influence with the President in regard to this war than any other officer of Government. His predecessor, General Cass, had treated the Exiles as mere chattels, having "no rights.*' He had advised the employment of Creek Indians, giving them such negroes as they might capture ; he had officially approved the THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 261 contract made with them by General Jessup. After he left the oflfice, his successor, Mr. Poinsett, approved the order purchasing some ninety of them on account of Government. He had advised Watson to purchase them ; had done all in his power to consign them to slavery in Georgia. He was, however, constrained to make an official report upon the state of this war, at the opening of the first session of the Twenty-sixth Congress, which assembled on the first Monday of December, 1839. That report, when considered in connection with the events which gave character to the Florida War, constitutes a most extraordinary paper. Notwithstanding all the difficulties which he had encoun- tered in his efforts to enslave the Exiles, to prevent at least ninety of them from going West, and the complaints of the Seminoles who had emigrated to the Western Country, at finding themselves des- titute of homes and of territory on which to settle, he made no allusion to their troubles ; nor did he give any intimation of the difficulties arising on account of the Exiles ; nor did he even inti- mate that such a class of people existed in Florida. He declared the result of General McComb's negotiation had been the loss of many valuable lives. ** Our people " (said he) fell a sacrifice to their confidence in the good faith and " promises of the Indians, and were entrapped and murdered with " al' the circumstances of cruelty and treachery which distinguish *' Indian warfare. * * * The experience of the last summer ** brings with it the painful conviction, that the war must be prose- *' cuted until Florida is freed from these ruthless savages. Their ** late cruel and treacherous conduct is too well known to require a " repetition of the revolting recital ; it has been such as is calcula- ** ted to deprive them of the sympathy of the humane, and convince " the most peaceable of the necessity of suhduing them hy force. ^^ It appeared necessary to raise the cry of treachery and cruelty against the Indians and Exiles. They had no friend who was acquainted with the facts, that could call attention of the nation to the treachery which had been practiced on them by the order, 262 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. and witb the approval, of the Secretary of War. No man was aWe to say how many fathers and mothers and children were, by the influence of that officer, consigned to a fate far more cruel than that which awaited the men, under Colonel Harney, at Coloosahatchee. In his report the Secretary most truly remarked : "If the In- " dians of Florida had a country to retire to, they would have been ** driven out of the Territory long ago ; but they are hemmed in ** by the sea, and must defend themselves to the uttermost, or sur- " render to be transported beyond it." And he might well have added : When they shall he thus transported, they will have no country — no home. Indeed, the whole report shows that he relied on physical force to effect an extermination of the Indians and their allies ; he looked not to justice, nor to the power of truth, for carry- ing out the desio-ns of the Executive. Men in power appear to forget that justice sits enthroned above all human greatness ; that it is omnipotent, and will execute its appropriate work upon mankind. Thus, while the people of Florida and Georgia had provoked the war, by kidnapping and enslaving colored men and women, to whom they had no more claim than they had to the people of England ; while they had sent their peti- tion to General Jackson, asking him to compel the Indians to seize and bring in their negroes, and had protested against the peace negotiated by General Jessup, in 1837; — Mr. Reid, Governot of Florida, in an official Message to the Territorial Legislature, in December, 1839, used language so characteristic of those who sup- ported the Florida War, that we feel it just to him and his coadju- tors to give the following extract : •' The efforts of the General and Territorial Governments to quell " the Indian disturbances which have prevailed through four long *' years, have been unavailing, and it would seem that the prophecy ** of the most sagacious leader of the Indians will be more than * • fulfilled ; the close of the fifth year will still find us struggling in ** a contest remarkable for magnanimity, forbearance and credulity *' on the one side, and ferocity and bad faith on the other. We THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 203 ** are waging a war with beasts of prey ; the tactics that belong to ** civilized nations are but shackles and fetters in its prosecution; ** we must fight ' fire with fire ; ' the white man must, in a great ** measure, adopt the mode of warfare pursued by the red man, and ** we can only hope for success by continually harrassing and pur- " suing the enemy. If we drive him from hommock to hommock, ** from swamp to swamp, and penetrate the recesses where his " women and children are ; if, in self-defense, we show as little *' mercy to him as he has shown to us, the anxiety and surprise ** produced by such operations will not fail, it is believed, to pro- *' duce prosperous results. It is high time that sickly sentimen- " tality should cease. * Lo, the poor Indian ! ' is the exclamation " of the fanatic, pseudo-philanthropist ; * Lo, the poor white man ! ' *' is the ejaculation which all will utter who have witnessed the *' inhuman butchery of women and children, and the massacres that " have drenched the Territory in blood. " In the future prosecution of the war. It is important that a *' generous confidence should be reposed in the General Govern- *' ment. It may be that mistakes and errors have been committed ** on all hands; but the peculiar adaptation of the country to the " cowardly system of the foe, and its inaptitude to the operations ** of a regular army ; the varying and often contradictory views and ** opinions of the best informed of our citizens, and the embarrass- ** ments which these cases must have produced to the authorities at ** Washington, furnish to the impartial mind some excuse, at least, " for the failures which have hitherto occurred. It is our duty to " be less mindful of the past than the future. Convinced that the '* present incumbent of the Presidential Chair regards with sincere " and intense interest the afflictions we endure ; relying upon the •* patriotism, talent and sound judgment of the distinguished Caro- ** linian who presides over the Department of War, and confident •• in the wisdom of Congress, let us prepare to second, with every '* nerve, the measures which may be devised for our relief. Feel- " ing as we do the immediate pressure of circumstances, let us exert, •264 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. " to the extremest point, all our powers to rid us of the evil by " which we are oppressed. Let us, by a conciliatory course, en- *' deavor to allay any unkindnesses of feeling which may exist *' between the United States army and the militia of Florida, and " by union of sentiment among ourselves, advance the happy period " when the Territory shall enjoy what she so much needs — a long " season of peace and tranquillity." Perhaps no vice is more general among mankind than a desire to represent ourselves, and our country and government, to mankind and to posterity as just and wise, whatever real truth may dictate. Surely, if General Jessup's official reports be regarded as correct, the people of Florida should have been the last of all who were concerned in that war, to claim the virtue of magnanimity or for- bearance, or to charge the Seminoles or Exiles with ferocity or bad faith. The expression that *' it is high time that sickly sentimen- tcdity should cease, ^^ manifests the ideas which he entertained of strict, equal and impartial justice to all men. This Message was an appropriate introduction to the legislative action which immediately succeeded its publication. It was that legislative body which first gave official sanction to the policy of obtaining blood-hounds from Cuba to aid our troops in the prosecu- tion of this war. Of this atrocious and barbarous policy much has been said and written, and its authorship charged upon various men and officers of Government. At the time of the transaction, it was represented that the blood-hounds were obtained for the purpose of trailing the Indians, and historians have so stated ; ^ but for various reasons, we are constrained to believe they were obtained for the purpose of trailing negroes. It was well known that these animals were trained to pursue negroes, and only negroes. They would no more follow the track of a white man than they would that of a horse or an ox. It was the peculiar scent of the negro that they had been trained and accustomed to follow. No man concerned in obtaining these animals, could have been ignorant that they had, in (1) Captain Spra^ae's History of the Florida War so represents the subject. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 265 all probability, never seen an Indian, or smelt the track of any son of the forest. Every slaveholder well understood the habits of those ferocious dogs, and the manner of training them, and could not have sup- posed them capable of being rendered useful in capturing Indians. The people of Florida appear to have been stimulated in the com- mencement and continuance of this war solely by a desire to obtain slaves, rather than to Jight Indians ; and while acting as militia or as individuals, they were far more efficient in capturing negroes and claiming those captured by other troops than in facing them on the field of battle. Nor can we resist the conviction, that catching negroes constituted, in the mind of General Jessup, the object for which those animals were to be obtained. Such was evidently his purpose when he wrote Colonel Harney, as quoted in a former chap- ter, *'If you see Powell (Osceola), tell him that I intend to send " exploring ^nd surveying parties into every part of the country '* during the summer ; and that I shall send out and take all the " negroes who belong to white people, and he must not allow the *' Indians or Indian negroes to mix with them. Tell him I am *' sending to Cuba for blood-hounds to trail them, and I intend to **hang every one of them who does not come in." We cannot close our eyes to the fact, that General Jessup in- tended the blood- hounds to be used in catching *' the negroes belong- ing to the white people," as he said. Those white people were mostly slaveholders of Florida ; those who proposed in the legisla- tive assembly of that territory the obtaining of the animals, and adopted a resolution authorizing their purchase. They did not wait for the President to act, nor for the " Secretary of War," whom the Governor of Florida characterized as *' that distinguished Carolinian " on whose judgment and patriotism the people of Florida so much relied.^ By resolution, Colonel Fitzpatrick was " authorized to proceed \\) Not having the Statutes of Florida before us, we make this statement on the author- ity of Captain Sprague. 266 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. " to Havana, and procure a kennel of blood-hounds, noted for ** tracking and pursuing negroes." He was fortunate in his mis- sion. He not only obtained the animals, but he accomplished the journey, and reached St. Augustine as early as the sixth of Janu- ary, 1840, with a reinforcement for the army of the United States of thirty-three blood-hounds well trained to the work of catching negroes. They cost precisely one hundred and fifty-one dollars seventy-two cents, each, when landed in Florida. He also pro- cured five Spaniards who were accustomed to using the animals in capturing negroes ; and as the dogs had been trained to the Spanish language, they would have been useless under the control of per- sons who could only speak the dialect of our own country. The very general error that existed throughout the country, afc the time of this transaction, arose from a misapprehension of the facts. There had been much said in regard to these blood-hounds before they were actually obtained. When the report of the War Department, under the resolution of the House of Representatives of the twenty-eighth of January, 1839, was published, containing the letter of General Jessup addressed to Colonel Harney, which we have quoted, many members of Congress appeared indignant at what they regarded as a stain upon our national honor in obtaining and employing blood-hounds to act in concert with our troops and our Indian allies in this war. Party feelings ran high, and southern members of Congress, who were acting with the Whig party, were willing to seize upon any circumstance that would reflect discredit- ably upon the then existing Administration. On the twenty-seventh day of December, 1839, the Hon. Henry A. Wise, a member of the House of Representatives from Virginia, addressed a letter to the Secretary of War, inquiring as to facts relating to the employment of blood-hounds in aid of our troops.^ (1) We have no copy of Mr. Wise's letter, and have never seen the letter itself; but we Btate the fact that he wrote the Secretary of War by authority of that officer, who says in the letter quoted, '■ I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your letter oj the 27th inst,, inquiring," etc. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 267 To this letter Mr. Poinsett, the Secretary of War, replied on the thirtieth of December, as follows : "War Department, December 30, 1839. •' Sir : I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your let- '• ter of the twenty-seventh instant, inquiring into the truth of the *• assertion made by the public papers, that the Government had " determined to use blood-hounds in the war against the Florida In- ** dians ; and beg to assure you it will give me great pleasure to ** give you all the information on this subject in possession of the ** Department. *' From the time I first entered upon the duties of the War De- " partment, I continued to receive letters from officers commanding *' in Florida, as well as from the most enlightened citizens in that ** Territory, urging the employment of blood-hounds as the most " efficient means of terminating the atrocities daily perpetrated by ** the Indians on the settlers in that Territory. To these proposals ** no answer was given, until in the month of August, 1838, while " at the Virginia Springs, there was referred to me, from the De- *' partment, a letter, addressed to the Adjutant General by the offi- " cer commanding the forces in Florida (General Taylor), to the *' following effect : " Head Quarters Armt of the South, \ Fort Brooke, July 28, 1838. 5 " Sir : I have the honor to inclose you a communication this moment received, on the subject of procuring blood-hounds from the Island of Cuba to aid the army in its opeia- tions against the hostiles in Florida. I am decidedly in favor of the measure, and beg leave to urge it as the only means of ridding the country of the Indians, who are now- broken up into small parties that take shelter in swamps and hommocks, making it im- possible for us to follow or overtake them without the aid of such auxiliaries. Should this measure meet the approbation of the Department, and the necessary authority be granted, I will open a correspondence with Mr. Evertscn on the subject, through Major Hunt, As sistant Quarter Ma.ster at Savannah, and will authorize him, if it can be done on reasona- ble terms, to employ a few dogs with persons who understand their management. " I wish it distinctly understood, that my object in employing dogs is only to ascertaia where the Indians can be found, not to worry them. " I have the honor to be, sir, " Your obedient servant, " Z. TAYLOR, " General R. Jones, Brev. Brig. Gen. U. S. A. Ccmmanding. " Washington, D. C." 268 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. ** On this letter I indorsed the following decision, which was " communicated to General Taylor : ' I have always been of opin- ** ion that dogs ought to be employed in this warfare to protect the " army from surprises and ambuscades, and to track the Indian to " his lurking place; but supposed if the General believed them to ** be necessary, he would not hesitate to take measures to secure ** them. The cold-blooded and inhuman murders lately perpetra- ** ted upon helpless women and children by these ruthless savages, " render it expedient that every possible means should be resorted "to, in order to protect the people of Florida, and to enable the " United States forces to follow and capture or destroy the savage *' and unrelenting foe. General Taylor is therefore authorized to *' procure such number of dogs as he may judge necessary : it be- "ing expressly understood that they are to be employed to track ** and discover the Indians, not to worry or destroy them.' ** This is the only action or correspondence, on the part of the *' Department, that has ever taken place in relation to the matter. " The General took no measures to carry into effect his own recom- *• mendation, and this Department has never since renewed the sub- " ject. I continue, however, to entertain the opinion expressed in **the above decision. I do not believe that description of dog, * ' called the blood-hound, necessary to prevent surprise or track the " Indian murderer ; but still I think that every cabin, every mili- ** tary post, and every detachment, should be attended by dogs. " That precaution might have saved Dade's command from massa- *' ere, and by giving timely warning have prevented many of the " cruel murders which have been committed by the Indians in mid- " die Florida. The only successful pursuit of Indian murderers that "I know of, was, on a late occasion, when the pursuers were aided *' by the sagacity of their dogs. These savages had approached a " cabin of peaceful and industrious settlers so stealthily, that the "first notice of their presence was given by a volley from their "rifles, thrust between the logs of the house; and the work of " death was finished by tomahawking the women, after tearing from TIIK EXILES OF FLORIDA. 269 ** them their infant children, and dashing their brains out against *' the door posts. " Are these ruthless savages to escape and repeat such scenes of *' blood, because they can elude our fellow citizens in Florida, and " our regular soldiers, and baffle their unaided efforts to overtake •'or discover them? On a late occasion, three of our estimable *' citizens were killed in the immediate neighborhood of St. Augus- " tine, and one officer of distinguished merit mortally wounded. It "is in evidence, that these murders were committed by two In- " dians, who, after shooting down the father and beating out the " son's brains with the butts of their rifles, upon hearing the ap- " proach of the volunteers, retired a few yards into the woods and ** secreted themselves, until the troops returned to town with the *' dead bodies of those who had been thus inhumanly and wantonly ** butchered. ** It is to be regretted that this corps had not been accompanied ** with one or two hunters, who, with their dogs, might have tracked "the blood-stained footsteps of these Indians; have restored to " liberty the captives they were dragging away with them, and have "prevented them from ever again repeating such atrocities; nor " could the severest casuist object to our fellow citizens in Florida " resorting to such measures, in order to protect the lives of their " women and children. *'Very respectfully, " Your most obedient servant, "J. R. POINSETT. « Hon. Henrt a. Wise, *' House of Representatives." It is no part of our present duties to comment on the code of morals which the Secretary of War had adopted. He undoubtedly felt, that neither the Indians nor negroes "possessed any rights which white men were bound to respect." He was not, he could not, have been ignorant of the cold-blooded massacre of nearly three hundred Exiles and Indians at Blount's Fort, in 1816; nor of the manner in which the present war had been brought on ; nor of the 270 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. objects for which it was prosecuted ; nor does it appear possible that he, a large slaveholder of South Carolina, could have expected these blood-hounds would follow the trail of Indians. But we must bear in mind that he had been exceedingly vexed with the indom- itable resistance of the Exiles. They appeared perfectly determined not to be enslaved, and that determination had given him much trouble ; and he must have foreseen the defeat of his party in the next Presidential contest, should all these facts become known to the public. With these feelings, he was prepared to apply almost any epithets to the Indians, as the friends and allies of a people to whose real character he dared not publicly allude, although they were occasioning the Administration so much trouble. Having shown that no blood-hounds had been previously employ- ed, he proceeded to argue the propriety of employing them in future, by adopting the policy proposed by the Legislature of Florida, who, as we have already seen, had taken measures to obtain them some twenty days prior to the date of this communi- cation. The Secretary of War thus exonerated himself and the Federal Executive from the responsibility of employing blood-hounds, on the thirtieth of December ; and the animals arrived in Florida, under charge of Colonel Fitzpatrick, just one week subsequently to that date. One feature was most obvious, in the commencement and prose- cution of this war : we allude to the very respectful, almost obse- quious obedience of the Executive to the popular feeling in favor of slavery, in every part of the country where that institution ex- isted. This war had been commenced at the instance of the people of Florida. General Jessup attempted to change the articles of capitulation which he had signed, when the people of Florida pro- tested against peace, unless attended by a restoration of slaves; and now, when the popular voice of the nation had paralyzed the Executive arm in regard to obtaining blood-hounds, the people of Florida, in their Legislature, took up the subject and carried the THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 271 policy into practice, so far as to obtain the animals ; but that would be of no use unless they could be employed by the army of the United States. Preparatory to this adoption of the purchase made by the Legislature of Florida, Mr. Poinsett had argued the pro- priety of their employment, in his letter to Mr. Wise ; and twenty- six days afterwards, he wrote General Taylor as follows : "War Department, Jan'y 26, 1840. ** Sir : It is understood by the Department, although not offi- " cially informed of the fact, that the authorities of the Territory " have imported a pack of blood-hounds from the Island of Cuba. ** And I think it proper to direct, in the event of those dogs being *' employed by any officer or officers under your command, that •* their use be confined altogether to tracking the Indians ; and in ** order to insure this, and to prevent the possibility of their injur- ** ing any person whatever, that they be muzzled and held with a ** leash while following the track of the enemy. " Very respectfully, " Your most obedient servant, "J. R. POINSETT. "Brig. Gen'l Z. Taylor, " Com'd'g Army of the South, Florida." From the commencement of this war, the officers of our army had found it necessary to employ persons who could communicate with the Indians in their own tongue. This was usually done through negroes, who could safely approach both Exiles and Indians ; they were, in fact, the only class of persons who could safely go from our posts to those of the enemy. No Indians could do it unless by arrangement made through those negroes; inasmuch as Creeks, Chickasaws and Choctaws were employed to act with our troops in hunting down the Seminoles, who shot those Creeks, Choctaws and Chickasaws, when opportunity permitted, with just as little cere- mony as they did white men. When those negroes visited the Seminoles, they were supposed to convey to them as accurate intelligence in regard to our troops, 272 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. as they brought back respecting the enemy's forces ; they were, therefore, supposed to have put their brethren, the Exiles, upon their guard in respect to the blood-hounds. Understanding per- fectly the nature and education of those animals, it does not appear very extraordinary to us that the Exiles remained for a time in the interior, where neither blood-hounds nor civilized troops were accus- tomed to penetrate. This policy of the Exiles rendered useless the whole expenditure of money and honor, made in the purchase of blood-hounds and Spaniards, with a view to their capture. But the animals had been obtained, and authority given to our officers to employ them. The Spaniards attended them. The dogs were attached to different regiments, and fed liberally on bloody meat ; young calves were provided, and driven with each scouting party, to supply food for them. The Spaniards were supplied with a sufficient number of assistants to keep the dogs in their leashes. Thus provided, several parties, composed of regular troops, militia, Indians, Spaniards, dogs and calves, started for the interior. Their marches continued in some instances for days be- fore they found even the track of an enemy ; but when they found foot-prints of Indians, and the dogs were looked to with confidence to lead on the warlike host, while some more humble officer, follow- ing the canine leaders, Spaniards and Indians, was expected to bear aloft the glorious stars and stripes, as they engaged in deadly conflict with the wily foe; — lo ! just at that moment, when all hearts were palpitating ; while hope was at its height ; when the stem resolve clothed each brow with the dark scowl of battle, the dogs were blithe and frolicsome, but paid no more attention to the tracks of the Indians than to those of the ponies on which they sometimes rode. This grand experiment for closing the Florida War was now pronounced a dead failure ; and the use of dogs, and calves, and Spaniards, was discarded ; and the whole affiiir served no other purpose than to bring odium upon the Administration, and ridicule THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 273 upon the officers who proposed the employment of blood-hounds to act as allies of the American army. General Taylor, having had command of the army in Florida nearly two years, and the sickly season having commenced, request- ed to be relieved from that responsible station. His request was granted, and he left Florida for his plantation in Louisiana. Bre- vet Brigadier General Armistead, by order of the War Department, assumed the position from which General Taylor retired. 18 CHAPTER XIX. HOSTILITIES CONTINUED. Presidential Election of 1840 — The War discussed as one of the issues — EfiFect on the Election — Publication of Jay's View — Action of the Executive paralyzed — Spanish Indians — Destructiofi of Indian Key — Troops inactive — Allies commit new depreda- tions — New Expedient — Its failure — Chiefs invited to Fort King — Exiles refuse to treat — Massacre of Lieutenant Sherwood and party — Melancholy fate of Mrs. Mont- gomery — White men disguised as Indians — Murder of Cora Tustenuggee — Order of Secretary of War — Letter to General Armistead — Bribery of Indians — Mr. Thompson's Bill— Discussion of the causes of the War in Congress — Enemy find protection in large Bwamps — Their renewed depredations — General distress — People of Florida again driven from their homes — Employed in public service — Their Slaves employed — They become interested in continuing the War. The Presidential election of this year was conducted differently from any that had preceded it. The opponents of Mr. Van Buren arraigned him before the people for his ex- travagance in the expenditure of the public treasure, and the immense losses which the nation sustained by the default and irre- sponsibility of officers appointed by him. It constitutes an era in our political history, from which we date the practice of calling directly upon the people to pass judgment of condemnation upon the action of our National Executive. Every honorable means was resorted to for the purpose of exposing the errors of the Adminis- tration during the previous four years. Among the subjects made prominent before the country, was that of the extravagant expenditures in prosecuting the *' Florida War." Speeches were made in Congress exposing the various practices (274) THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 275 by which the people's money was squandered in that unfortunate conflict; the policy of attempting to compel the Indians to emigrate, and the cruelty practiced towards them, were commented on with severity. These speeches were printed in pamphlet form, and sent to the people in vast numbers : but the real cause of the war, the deep depravity of that policy which sought the enslavement of the Exiles, was not mentioned ; nor does it appear that any member of Congress was conscious, even, that such a people as the Exiles was living in Florida.^ But, nevertheless, it is quite certain that this war proved one of the principal causes of Mr. Van Buren's defeat; and, during the pendency of the election, these complaints paralyzed the action of the Executive. Another cause operated to call public attention to the war. Hon. William Jay, of New York, published a small book upon the action of our Government in regard to slavery. It was a work of much merit, and, coming from the pen of one so intimately associated with the best interests of the country, it exerted an influ- ence upon the public mind. It had been published some two or three years ; but at the time of which we are writing, it attracted attention in most of the free States, and gave public men to under- stand that their ofiicial acts were to be made known to coming generations. The intimate relation which this war bore to slavery, rendered every movement in regard to it dangerous to the Executive charac- ter, and caused our army to be almost inactive for several months ; but the allies, driven to desperation, prepared to wreak their ven- geance on every white person who should venture within their reach. A small band, composed of Spanish negroes and Indians, among whom were said to be some maroons from Cuba, resided far down in the Peninsula of Florida. They were called Spanish Indians, (1) The Author was at that time a member of the House of Representatives. He had then no conception of the real objects of this war : indeed, it had long been the practice for members to say nothing on the subject of slavery ; and it was equally the practice for newspapers to print nothing on that delicate subject, as it was called. Of course the people knew very little concerning it. 276 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. and had remained neutral up to the period of which we are speak- ing ; but finding their brethren driven from their own possessions, and compelled to encroach upon the territory so long occupied by themselves, they took up arms against the United States. Every vessel that happened to be wrecked upon their coast was plundered, and the crews massacred. On the morning of the seventh of August, a number of these people, said to have been led on by Spanish maroons, crossed over to a small island called " Indian Key," situated at some twenty miles distant from the main land, and attacked the dwellings, burned the storehouses, and destroyed most of the property belong- in o- to the inhabitants. There were but four or five families resident o on the island. Of these. Dr. Perrine, a man of some distinction, was murdered in his own house ; but, by his valor, he enabled the other members of his family to escape, amid the darkness of night. The allies obtained much plunder, but found no powder, which was said to have been the principal object of the foray. During the summer and autumn, our troops in Florida were inactive. The season was sickly, and the officers and men lay su- pinely in their encampments. The enemy felt secure in their strong- holds — sallying forth in occasional forays, murdering the people, and plundering the settlements with impunity. The Administration appeared astonished at the audacity with which a few Indians and negroes hurled defiance at our army and the nation. The expedi- ent of employing savages to assist in the war had failed ; the more questionable policy of employing blood-hounds, had not only failed, but was supposed by many to reflect discredit upon the army and nation. Nearly five thousand troops were kept in Florida, main- tained at vast expense ; but they could neither conquer the Indians, nor even protect the white people. Under these circumstances, the Executive saw but one resource ; of that he availed himself. By his direction, twelve Seminole and Mickasukie Indians, who had emigrated "West, were induced by sufficient pecuniary considera- tions to leave their families in the Western Country and return to THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 2T7 Florida, for the purpose of persuading the Indians and Exiles to emigrate. Thus, after four years of war and constant expenditure of blood and treasure, the President discovered that moral power is greater and stronger than physical violence. But this discovery came too late. He could no longer do justice to those fathers and mothers and children who had been slain, nor to those who had been enslaved ; who had been taken far into the interior, sold and transferred from hand to hand like brutes. They had passed from Executive control. The crime now stained our national escutcheon, and no effort could wash it out. The very means which he adopted to close the war, operated to prolong it. These Seminoles and Mickasukies informed their brethren of their own condition, of the manner in which they were treated, and the violations of faith on the part of our Government in not giving them a territory for their separate use, as stipulated in the treaty, and constantly represented to them by our oflficers ; that they were without a home and without a country, residing on Cherokee lands, under Cherokee protection, to prevent the Creeks from enslaving their friends, the Exiles. Many officers at the time doubted their desire to induce the emigration of their brethren.^ They, however, obtained an interview between the Commanding General and two Seminole chiefs at Fort King. The chiefs were attended by some forty warriors, who remained in that vicinity four or five days, receiving food and articles of clothing from the United States ; but they suddenly disappeared, and it was believed they originally came with hostile, rather than pacific, intentions. When it was found they had left clandestinely, the troops attempted to follow them, but were unable to find any traces of their flight. (1) Captain Sprague, in bis histor}' of the Florida War, says, "The truth, when made known to the lud ans who remained in Florida, constituted the strongest argument why they should not. emigrate. Had they (says that author) been kept in ignorance, better re- sults might have been anticipated ; but what they gathered from the honest confessions and silence of their brothers tended to make them venerate with more fidelity and in- creased love the soil which they had defended with heroic fortitude for five consecutive years." 278 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. While these things were transpiring, the army lay idle in their quarters ; neither the Executive, nor the Secretary of War, nor the Commanding General, knowing what to do. The Exiles learned from the Seminoles and Mickasukies, who visited them from the West, that many of their brethren who sur- rendered under the articles of capitulation, had been reenslaved, in violation of our plighted faith; and they refused to hold further intercourse with the agents of our Government. To them there appeared but one alternative — victory or death ; and they greatly preferred the latter, to slavery. Taking their families far into the interior, they hastened to renew the war with vigor and energy. A party of some thirty Indians and Exiles were lurking about Mieanopy, when, on the twenty-eighth of December, Lieutenant Sherwood, Lieutenant Hopson, Sergeant Major Carrol, and ten privates of the 7th Infantry, left Mieanopy for the purpose of escorting Mrs. Montgomery, wife of a Lieutenant of that regiment, through the forest to Watkahoota, eight miles distant. The lady was on horseback, while others of the party rode in a wagon drawn by mules, and some marched on foot. The enemy having observed their movements, preceded them to a hommock, about four miles from Mieanopy, where they secreted themselves, and awaited the approach of Mrs. Montgomery and party. When they were fairly within the hommock, through which the road passed, they were fired upon, and two privates fell dead. The war-whoop was raised, and the little party found themselves confronted by savages. Lieu- tenant Sherwood is said to have rallied his escort with promptness. Mrs. Montgomery, attempting to get into the wagon, was shot dead. Sherwood very discreetly retreated to the open forest, and dispatched Lieutenant Hopson to Mieanopy for a reinforcement. Knowing the impossibility of retreating from Indians, and conscious that they gave no quarter, he bravely determined to defend himself or die on the field. But his assailants numbered three times as many war- riors as he had. They out-flanked and surrounded his ill-fated THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 279 party, all of whom with himself fell victims to that policy which had brought this war, with all its crimes, upon our nation. We cannot withhold our sympathy from those patriotic men who enter the public service expecting to act in an honorable sphere in favor of just measures ; but who are often made the instruments of injustice, and their lives sacrificed to the spirit and policy of oppres- sion. Our officers and soldiers, serving in this Florida War, were duly conscious of the dishonorable employment in which they were engaged ; that they were daily subjected to dangers and death for the purpose of enabling the people of Florida to seize men and women, and sell them into interminable bondage. Officers and men who would cheerfully meet danger and death upon the field of honorable warfare in defense of freedom, were compelled to meet death in all its various and revolting forms in Florida to uphold op- pression, to sustain an institution which they abhorred ; nor can we wonder that the consciousness of these facts should have created a feeling of hostility between our regular troops and the slaveholders of Florida, who were constantly charging them with inefficiency and want of energy in the capture of negroes. This feeling ran so high that the white men of Florida were charged with disguising themselves as Indians, and actually committing murders and robber- ies upon mail carriers and express riders, in order to continue hos- tilities and keep up the war.^ This feeling greatly increased the embarrassment of the Executive. A chief named " Cora Tustenuggee/' after due consultation with the interpreters sent to induce him to emigrate, concluded to sur- render, and go West. He collected his band, numbering about one hundred in all. Among them were some half breeds, descendants of the pioneer Exiles. They had intermarried with Indians of this band, and were treated as Indians. While on their way to one of our posts, near Palaklikaha Lake, they were fired upon by a party (1) Captain Sprague, in his history, declare?, that it was proven in two instances that white men, disguised as Indians, actually committed depredations and murdered white people. §8# THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. of dragoons who were said to have been conscious of the intentions of the Indians. This supposed violation of faith was greatly aggra- vated by the subsequent wanton murder of the chief, after he and his band had quietly submitted as prisoners. These people were immediately sent to Tampa Bay, and then embarked for the West- ern Country, where they joined their brethren, still resident on the Cherokee lands, and under Cherokee protection. The Presidential election being past, the Executive felt more untrammeled ; and Mr. Poinsett, Secretary of War, resisting the instruction which he might have drawn from four years of unfortu- nate experience, appears to have determined to leave this Florida War in as unpromising condition as he found it. He sent instruc- tions to the Commanding General to renew the war with whatever force he could bring into the field. It is a somewhat singular fact, that when the Secretary under- stood, and the country was fully informed, that he would leave the Department on the fourth of March, he wrote the commanding officer on the eighteenth of February, thirteen days prior to his own political dissolution, saying, '* The Department entertains the well- " grounded hope that you will be able to bring the war to a close *' upon the terms required by the treaty of Payne's Landing, and " by the interests and feelings of the people of Florida. ^^ The reader must be aware that the feelings and interests of the people of Florida required the capture and enslavement of the Ex- iles ; for which the Secretary of War had so long labored, and which appeared to be his ruling passion — " strong in the hour of his political death." To effect this object, recourse was had to the bribery of certain chiefs. Money was now offered certain influential men of the Sem- inoles and Exiles to induce them to exert their influence with their friends to emigrate. It was reported that slaves who had but a few years since left their masters, and intermarried with the Seminoles, dare not surrender, knowing that slavery awaited such act. With- out them, their relatives and connexions would not remove. It THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 281 was therefore proposed that Congress should make an appropriation for the purpose of purchasing such Exiles ; yet the bill making it was general in its provisions, granting a hundred thousand dollars to be expended by the Secretary of War for the subsistence and benefit of certain chiefs and warriors of the Seminole Indians who wished to emigrate. The subsistence of such emigrants was provi- ded for in other bills; but the benefits for which this money was to be expended was to purchase the pretended interest of certain white men to individual Exiles whom they claimed as property. By thus disguising the real intention and object of the bill, it was evidently expected it would pass without scrutiny, under the rules which prohibited the discussion of all questions involving the subject of slavery. The better to carry out this design, Hon. Waddy Thompson of South Carolina, a Whig member of the House of Representatives, but fully sympathizing with the Execu- tive in his policy of conducting the war in the manner *' required by the interests and feelings of the people of Florida,^'' was re- garded as the proper agent to introduce the bill and superintend its passage. The information found in the public documents had awakened previous investigation; and when this bill came up for '^ action (Feb 9), the policy of this war, with the causes which led to its commencement, were exposed. Every effort was made by slaveholding members to prevent the public discussion of this subject. They insisted that the gag-rules, as they were called, prohibiting the discussion of slavery, forbid this exposure ; but the presiding officer (Mr. Clifford of Maine) adhering to the parlia- mentary law, decided that an examination of the causes which led to the war was legitimate, and the discussion proceeded. This discussion was published and widely circulated among the people ; and is supposed to have given to the public the first infor- mation touching the real causes of the war.^ (1) This first speech had been carefully prepared by the Author of this work, and contained little more than a collation of facts from public documents. It was 282 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. The bill passed by a large majority ; and the report of the Sec- retary of War the next year, showing the expenditures of his de- partment, exhibited the manner in which the money appropriated and entrusted to his care was expended. Another bill, however, making an appropriation of more than a million of dollars for sup- pressing Indian hostilities in Florida was passed, giving to the War Department all the powers desired for bribery, and tempting Indian chiefs to emigrate to the Western Country. By reference to the map of Florida, it will be perceived that the great swamps, extensive everglades, hommocks, ponds and lakes, which spread over that Territoy, must present great difficulties in the progress of troops embodied in military force ; while a small party, following the footsteps of their leader, would pass over, around or through them with facility. The Great Okefenoka Swamp, lying on the south line of Georgia and the northern portion of Florida, afforded a retreat for small parties of Indians and Exiles, from which they sallied forth and committed depredations upon the people of southern Georgia, murdering families, burning buildings and devastating plantations. The swamps bordering on the With- lacoochee, the Great Wahoo Swamp, and other fastnesses on the western portion of the Peninsula, gave shelter to other bands, who, in like manner, wreaked their vengeance upon the inhabitants of that portion of the Territory. So also the Big Cypress Swamp, lying farther south, afforded shelter for others, who laid waste the made with the design of testing the application of the gag rules more than for the purpose of exposing the character of the war. Hon. John Q. Adams, Wm. Slade, and the Author, often consulted with each other as to the best means for inducing the House to repeal those obnoxious rules. The Author suggested the plan of alluding to slavery while pub- licly discus.«ing matters with which it was incidentally connected. Mr. Adams and Mr. Slade insisted that the Author should try his plan. Aware that appropriations for this war would be called for, he prepared this speech, showing the causes of the war ; and when the bill above referred to came before the House, he proceeded to test his plan. He wa« frequently called to order, and great excitement was produced ; but he succeeded in deliv- ering the speech. When he was through, a southern member replied, declaring that the gag-rules may as well be repealed as kept in force, if they permitted such discu.ssions. The position was evidently correct, and those disgraceful rules were repealed by the next Congress. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 283 settlements along the St. John's River, and in the vicinity of tho Atlantic Coast. From these, and numerous other strong-holds, the Indians and their allies came forth in small bands, spreading devas- tation and death throughout the Territory and the southern portion of Georgia. The people of Florida who had sought this war, and protested against peace except on such terms as would secure them in the exercise of that oppression which they deemed so necessary to their happiness, now felt the full force of that appropriate penalty which some philosophers believe attaches to every violation of the law of righteousness. Some died by the hands of the very individuals whom they had oppressed, and whom they again sought to enslave ; others were again driven from their homes, unable even to obtain food ; their wives and children receiving rations from the public stores, and subsisting by the charity of the United States. But this condition of things superinduced another most extraor- dinary feature of this war. Our officers, and the Executive, natu- rally feeling some degree of sympathy for a people thus driven from their homes, on whom the evils of war fell with so much force, ex- tended to them every aid in their power. Some were employed in the Commissary's Department ; some as contractors for transporting provisions ; and others as attendants upon the army in all the vari- ous departments of service, so numerous in a time of war. Even the slaves who remained in the service of their masters were em- ployed by the officers as guides, interpreters and employees at high wages. In this manner they earned for their owners far more than they could by labor upon plantations. This system was carried so far, that the war actually afforded to many greater profits than they could acquire in any other way ; and consequently it became a matter of interest with such men to prolong hostilities, and they were said to exert all their influence to effect that object. CHAPTER XX. HOSTILITIES CONTINUED. General Harrison assumes the duties of Chief Executive — Much expected of him — His sudden death — His successor — Politicfil feeling — General Armistead retires — Is suc- ceeded by General Worth — Instructions to General Worth — He discharges all unneces- sary employees — Halec Tustenuggee — General Worth's attempt to capture him — Wild Cat — His character and adventures — General Worth sends message to him — He and some companions come in -His manner and bearing — Meets his daughter — Interest- ing scene — Is seized by Colonel Childs — Placed in irons and sent to New Orleans — General Worth orders his return — Meets him at Tampa Bay — Arrangements — Wild Cat sends messengers to his friends — Sympathy for him — Chief Micco — He brings in his people — Wild Cat's band comes in — He is released from his irons — Meets his friends — His wife and child — General Jessup's policy as to Exiles — Consults Wild Cat — Hospetarche and Tiger-tail — Otulke comes in — Ilospetarche is suspicious — Wild Cat brings him in — Army suffers from sickness — General change of policy from that adopted at the commencement of the War — Army reduced — Wild Cat visits Tiger-tail — Singular adventure — Embarkation of Emigrants — Parting scene between Wild Cat and General Worth — The Emigrants reach Fort Gibson and join their friends — Wild Cat's position in his new home. On the fourth of March, General Harrison was inaugurated President of the United States. Much was expected of him in regard to the war. The Whigs had condemned it throughout the Presidential struggle, and it was anticipated that he would bring it to a successful and honorable termination ; but before he even entered upon the consideration of this subject, he was called from this to another sphere of existence, and was succeeded by the then Vice President, John Tyler, of Virginia. Nor is it easy to see what great reform General Harrison could have effected in regard to this war, had he lived to complete his term of service. (284) THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 285 The policy of so directing the energies of the Federal Government as to support the interests of slavery, had long existed ; he was not expected to make any substantial changes in that respect. But whatever may have been his designs, he had no opportunity to carry them into effect; and Mr. Tyler, after coming into office, soon ceased to enjoy the confidence of the Whig party, who generally declared themselves no longer responsible for his acts. The new Administration soon identified itself with this war by the following order : "Adjutant Generai's Office, Washington City, May 19, 1841. *' Sir : Brigadier General Armistead, being about to relinquish " the command of the Florida Army, as you will see by the in- '* structions communicated to him of this date, of which a copy is " herewith enclosed ; as the officer next in rank, you will relieve " him and assume the command accordingly. "I am directed, by the Secretary of War, to advise you of the " earnest desire of the Department to terminate, as speedily as pos- ** sible, the protracted hostilities in Florida, and to cause the most " perfect protection and security to be given to the frontiers, and " to those citizens who may be disposed to penetrate the country, '* for lawful purposes of trade or settlement. For the attainment ** of these important objects, you are considered as being clothed " with all the powers of a commander in the field, under the laws " and regulations of the army. •' It is expected the troops under your command will be kept in ** a perfect state of discipline, and that you make such disposition " of them as to be in readiness to meet any contingency that may ** call for active and energetic movements, the execution of which *' is left entirely at your own discretion. *' If you should deem it indispensable for the protection of the ** frontier, the President directs that you make a requisition upon " the Governor of Florida for militia, not exceeding one regiment, *' which, if called out, you will cause to be mustered into the service 286 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. " of the United States, in the manner prescribed by the regulations, ** for any period authorized by the constitution and laws. *' The Secretary of War, placing, as he does, entire confidence " in your ability and patriotism, desires me to say, that every ** possible aid and support will be afforded to enable you to bring ** to a close this protracted and most embarrassing war. "As the commander of Florida, you will exercise a sound dis- " cretion in the use of the means placed at your disposal ; and ** while these should be employed with the greatest efficiency, the " Secretary of War directs that you will, consistently with the pri- ** mary object in view, diminish, in a spirit of sound economy, all ** unnecessary drains upon the Treasury, by discharging all persons ** employed in a civil capacity whose services you shall not deem *' indispensable to the duties of your command, and by regulating " and reducing as far as practicable all other expenses, in accord- " ance with the just expectations of the Government and the ** country. *' I am, Sir, your obedient servant, "(Signed) R. JONES, Adjutant General. "Col J. W. Worth, *'8th Infantry, Tampa, Florida." General Worth now applied himself, with commendable zeal, to the work assigned him. His first object was to discharge all em- ployees not necessary to the operations of the army, and in every department to curtail the expenditures as far as possible ; thereby rendering the war unprofitable to those who had been seeking to prolong it. Early in June he issued the following order : " Head Quarters, Army of the Socth, > " No. 1.] Fort King, June 8, 1841. 5 *• I. Hereafter no expenditures of money will be made on '* account of barracks-quarters, or other buildings at temporary ** posts, except for such slight covering as may be indispensably ** necessary for the protection of the sick and security of the public ** stores, without previous reference to, and authority obtained from, "head-quarters. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 287 ** II. All safe-guards or passports granted to Indians prior to " this date, are hereby revoked. Any Indian presenting himself *' at any post, will be seized and held in strict confinement, except *• when commanding officers may, in the exercise of sound discre- *' tion, deem it advisable to send out an individual runner to com- *' municate with others. *'III. When the garrisons are not too much reduced by sick- " ness, detachments will be sent out as often as once in seven days, ** or more frequently if circumstances indicate a necessity, to scour *' and examine in all directions to the distance of eight or ten miles. ** IV. All restraints heretofore imposed upon district command- ** ers, in respect to offensive field operations, are hereby revoked ; '' on the contrary, the utmost activity and entorprise is enjoined. *' District commanders will give instructions to commanders of posts ** accordingly. " V. Brief reports of the operations carried on under the fore- " going orders, setting forth the strength of the detachments, and ** by whom commanded, with such observations as may be deemed *• useful or interesting to the service, will be made to district com- " manders on the 10th, 20th, and last of every month, by whom *' they will be transmitted to these head-quarters. " By order of Colonel Worth : "(Signed) G. WRIGHT, " Capt. %th Infantry, and A. A. A. GeneraV^ Halec Tustenuggeip was regarded as the most active and vindic- tive of the hostile chiefs. Among his followers were some forty Indian warriors and ten or twelve Exiles capable of bearing arms. They and their families, numbering in all some two hundred souls, were supposed to be somewhere in the neighborhood of Lake " Fonee-8afakee," among the extensive swamps and hommocks of that region. Some few of this band had surrendered and gone West. Among those who came in to Fort Jupiter for the purpose of emigrating, were several Exiles who had been born in that region, and had ever been connected with this small tribe. Some 'SSS THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. of those who had previously surrendered, were retained as guides and interpreters, with the expectation that they might be made use- ful in persuading their friends to emigrate also. It was thought very desirable to capture this band, if possible ; and guides, and interpreters, and scouts were sent in every direction, where it was supposed they might be discovered, in order to open a communica- tion with them. At length it was reported that a trail had been discovered leading to one of their favorite haunts, where it was believed they might be found. We cannot better exhibit the dangers which constantly beset the Exiles who remained hostile, or the vigilance with which they and their friends watched for their own safety, than by giving a short ac- count of Colonel Worth's expedition for the capture of this small party, which we copy from Sprague's History of the Florida War. Says that author : '* The negro guides, recently of the band, represented it as his " favorite resort from its seclusion, where he held his green corn ** dances and councils. Measures were at once adopted to follow " it up. Colonel Worth, with one hundred men of the 2d Infantry, "accompanied by Lieutenant Colonel Riley and Major Plympton, '* together with Captain B. L. Beall's company 2d Dragoons, and ** forty men of the 8th Infantry, in command of First Lieutenant " J. H. Harvil, moved from Fort King for Fort McClure or Warm ** Spring ; thence, under the guidance of Indian negroes, to the "neighborhood of the lake. At midnight,, on the night of the " tenth, the swamp was reached ; the troops having marched forty- " four miles. To surprise the Indian camp just at break of day, " was ^he only chance of success. The guides represented it to be " on the opposite side of the swamp, five or six miles through. The " horses were picketed, and the baggage left with a small guard on " the margin of the swamp. The soldier carried only a musket " and bis ammunition ; the officers a rifle or sword. Quietly and " resolutely the command moved, confident of success. The water " became colder and deeper at every step ; halts were frequently THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 289 *' made to extricate the officers and soldiers from the mud. The " night was dark, which added to the dismal gloomy shadows of a "cypress swamp. The command could only follow by the splash- *'ing of water, and the calm but firm intonations of the word of ** command. The negroes in advance, followed closely by the most '• hardy and active, guided these two hundred men to what wasbe- " lieved to be the stronghold of the enemy. Every hour and step " confirmed this conviction. The advance reached the opposite "side just before the break of day. Anxiously they awaited and " greeted every officer and soldier as he emerged from the swamp, "covered with mud and water. Day broke; when silently the " command was given — 'Fall in!' Eleven officers and thirty- " five privates were present. Occasionally a straggler would arrive, " and report those in the rear as coming. The Indian huts, by the "gray dawn of morning (twenty -four in number), could be dis- " cerned through the scrub, which separated the white and red man, " three hundred yards distant. At this hour the Indian around " his camp fire feels secure. From the number of huts, and their " location, they outnumbered the asssailants. To await the arrival " of the entire force, the day would be far advanced ; and discov- " ery was a total defeat. It was determined with the number pres- " ent to make a vigorous assault, and, if outnumbered, to rely upon " those in the rear. Each man reprimed his musket, and cautious- " ly, on his hands and knees, worked his way through the dense " undergrowth to within a few yar " grasped his musket, anxious for the first whoop, when he would " be rewarded for his toil. A musket was discharged to arouse the " inmates, and meet them on their retreat. It sent back its dull " heavy reverberation, causing disppointment and chagrin. Not a " human being occupied the huts, or was upon the ground." Large fields of corn were before them ; they had been carefully cultivated, and gave incontestable proof that the allies had just left. This place had been the temporary residence of a strong force ; but 19 290 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. their patrols had discovered the approach of our troops, and com- municated information to the party in time to enable them, with their wives and children, to escape from danger. The officers and soldiers looked about a while with wonder, and then commenced the work of destroying the cabins and crops, which being effected, they retraced their steps to head-quarters, fully sat- isfied that a disciplined army was not adapted to the work of sur- prising Indians and Exiles. Perhaps no act or policy of General Worth contributed so much to the favorable prosecution of the war, as his treatment of Coacoo- chee, or Wild Cat, as he was more recently called. This extraordi- nary personage became conspicuous in 1841. During the entire war he deeply sympathized with the Exiles — was always attended by some of his more dusky friends, in whose welfare he took a deep interest ; nor has he yet forsaken them. Even at the time of wri- ting this narrative, he is supposed to be with them ; and a short notice of some of his more than romantic experience in this war may interest the reader in the fortunes of a man who may yet fill a large space in the history of our country. He was the son of King Philip, a Seminole chief of some repu- tation. He is now (1857) about fifty years of age ; five feet eight inches in height ; well proportioned ; exhibiting the most perfect symmetry in his physical form. His eye is dark, full and ex- pressive ; and his countenance youthful and pleasing. His voice is clear, soft and musical ; his speech fluent ; his gestures rapid and violent. His views are always ingenious and clearly expressed ; and he never fails to infuse all his measures with spirit, and to ex- ert a controlling influence over his followers. He was born near Ahapopka Lake, where he resided at the commencement of the Florida War ; but soon after sought a more secure retreat in the large swamps, near Fort Mellon and Lake "Okechobee." His band at that time numbered some two hundred souls, amono' whom were several families of Exiles. In these sable warriors he is said to have reposed much confidence. He accompanied them at the THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 291 massacre of Major Dade and his battalion in December, 1835. Here he formed his acquaintance with Lewis Pacheco, who acted as guide to Major Dade. Lewis is said to have attended him, and to have shared in every battle in which Wild Cat participated, until the capitulation of 1837. After that capitulation had been agreed to, he visited General Jessup's camp with the apparent intention of emio-rating West. He brouo;ht in some of his friends, amonoj whom was Lewis Pacheco, whom he claimed as his slave, and declared that he had captured him at Dade's massacre. Lewis, being a negro, was placed within the stockade at Tampa Bay, but Wild Cat of course went among his friends in the vicinity. When he found that General Jessup was violating the articles of capitula- tion, and delivering over to slavery those Exiles who were claimed by the people of Florida, instead of securing them in their lives and property, for which the faith of the nation had been pledged, he be- came indignant, and insisted that every Indian and Exile who was enjoying his liberty, should leave the encampment where they were receiving food and raiment from the United States, and flee to their own homes. Micanopy, one of the most wealthy and influential chiefs, refused, and expressed his determination to emigrate. Wild Cat and Osceola (Powell), two young and daring chiefs, came to the tent of Micanopy, at midnight, and compelled him, at the peril of his life, to leave and flee to the Indian country. He did so, and with him every Indian and Exile, who was outside the stock- ade at Tampa Bay, made their escape. At the battle of Fort Mellon, on the eighth of February, 1837, he is said to have commanded two hundred warriors, many of whom were Exiles. He was at the battle of " Okechobee," on the twenty- fifth of December, 1837 ; the severest battle ever fought in Florida. Nearly all his warriors were with him. He was posted on the left of the Indian line, occupying the hommock, when General Taylor approached. He declared that not an Indian gave way until the charge of Colonel Foster, although he said the fire of our men " sent a stream of bullets among his warriors." He stated the 292 THE EXILES OP FLORIDA. whole loss of the allied forces in that memorable conflict to be thirteen killed and nineteen wounded, being less than one-fourth of General Taylor's loss. His father (King Philip) being imprisoned at St. Augustine in 1838, naturally felt desirous that his son should go with him to the Western Country, where he knew he must emigrate. He sent out a confidential friend with a message to Wild Cat, inviting him to come and see him. General Jessup also sent assurances of his perfect safety, if he wished to come and visit his father. The messenger found hira, and faithfully delivered the message which his father sent. There were also other Indians and Exiles going to Fort Peyton, under the peaceful invitation and assurance of safety which General Jessup sent them. Wild Cat left his band ; and, arrayed in his best robes, bearing a white flag, went with them and was betrayed, through the agency of General Hernan- dez, into the power of General Jessup, as we have heretofore shown. He was imprisoned in the castle at St. Augustine with his friend Tahnas-Hadjo. Accustomed to roam in the forests at will, and enjoy the free air of Heaven, this confinement bore down their spirits and affected their physical health. He and his friend Talmas-Hadjo made their escape, an account of which was given in a former chapter. His father remained with the other prisoners — was sent to Charleston ; and subsequently died on his passage to Fort Gibson in 1837, with the first party of emigrants under Lieut. Reynolds. Wild Cat now became one of the most active warriors in Flori- da. With his followers, he repaired to the Okefenoke Swamp, and, encamping in its fastnesses, sallied forth, as occasion permitted, and spread death and devastation in the southern settlements of Georgia, From thence he returned south, and committed constant depredations both east and west of the St. John's. In 1840, his daughter, an interesting girl of twelve years of age, fell into the hands of our troops, in a skirmish near Fort Mellon. This was regarded as a most fortunate circumstance, as it would be likely to procure an in- THE EXILES OP FLORIDA. 293 terview with the father. Micco, a sub-chief and friend of Wild Cat, was dispatched with a white flag, on which were drawn clasped hands in token of friendship, with a pipe and tobacco. He found Wild Cat, and delivered the message of the Commanding General, requesting an interview. Wild Cat agreed to come in, and gave Micco a bundle of eight sticks, denoting the days which would elapse before he appeared in camp. Micco returned, and made his report. On the fifth of March, Wild Cat was announced as approaching the American camp with seven of his trusty companions. He came boldly within the line of sentinels, dressed in the most fantastic manner. He and his party had shortly before killed a company of strolling theatrical performers, near St. Augustine, and, having possessed themselves of the wardrobe which their victims had with them, he now decorated himself and followers in the most grotesque style. He approached the tent of General Worth, calm and self- possessed, and shook hands with the oflficers. He addressed the Commanding General in fluent and dignified language, saying, he had received the talk and white flag sent him ; that, in pursuance of the invitation, he had come to visit the American camp with peaceful intentions ; that, relying upon the good faith of the ofiicer in command, he had entrusted himself to their power, in order to promote the designs of peace which had been tendered him. The dignity of his manner, the gracefulness of his gestures, the musical intonations of his voice, the blandness of his countenance, won the sympathy, and commanded the attention, of all around him. At this moment his little daughter escaped from the tent, where it was intended she should remain until General Worth should feel that the proper time had arrived for him to present her to her father. With the feelings and habits of her race, she presented him musket balls and powder, which she had by some means obtained and se- creted until his arrival. On seeing his child, he could no longer command that dignity of bearing so much the pride of every Indian 294 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. chief. His self-possession gave way to parental emotions ; the feel- ings of the father gushed forth ; he averted his face and wept. Having recovered his self-possession, he addressed Colonel Worth, saying, "The whites dealt unjustly by me. I came to " them, when they deceived me. I loved the land I was upon ; '* my body is made of its sands. The Great Spirit gave me legs '* to walk over it; eyes to see it; hands to aid myself; a head with *' which I think. The sun, which shines warm and bright, brings ** forth our crops ; and the moon brings back the spirits of our war- ** riors, our fathers, our wives and children. The white man comes; ** he grows pale and sickly ; why can we not live in peace ? They '• steal our horses and cattle, cheat us, and take our lands. They ** may shoot us — may chain our hands and feet ; hut the red man's " heart will be free. I have come to you in peace, and have taken ** you all by the hand. I will sleep in your camp, though your ** soldiers stand around me thick as pine trees. I am done : when " we know each other better, I will saj more." General Worth assured him of the good faith with which he should be treated ; that the feelings which he had expressed were honorable to him and to his people ; that the emotions manifested on seeing his child, were highly creditable to him as a father ; as- sured him that his child should not be separated from him ; that the American oflficers and soldiers highly respected the parental affection which he had exhibited. He then entered upon a consul- tation with him concerning the best mode of obtaining a peace. Wild Cat spoke with great sincerity ; frankly stated the condition and feelings of this people ; stated the friendly attachment between the Exiles and Indians ; said that they would not consent to be separated ; that nothing could be done until their annual assem- blage in June, to feast on the green com; that, hard as the fate was, he would consent to emigrate, and would use his influence to induce his friends to do so. After remaining four days in camp, he and his companions left, THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 295 accompanied by his little daughter, whom he presented to her mother on reaching his own encampment. Prompt to his engagement with General Worth, he returned on the tenth day after his departure. He stated that he could do nothing until June; but expressed his desire to see General Armi- stead, the former commander, who was yet at Tampa Bay. With that officer he also made arrangements to do whatever was in his power to induce his friends to emigrate. There appears no good evidence on which to doubt the sincerity of Wild Cat ; yet it appears that General Armistead, before leaving Florida, ordered Colonel Childs, commanding at Fort Pearce, to seize Wild Cat, if he should come within his power, with such fol- lowers as should attend him, and send them to Tampa Bay for emigration. General Armistead retired to Washington soon after issuing this order, leaving General Worth in command. On the twenty-first of May, Wild Cat and his brother, together with an uncle, a brother of his father King Philip, and twelve other Indians and three Exiles, came into Fort Pearce, where Colonel Childs was in command. Wild Cat and his friends had reposed perfect confidence in the honor and good faith of General Worth. He had been betrayed by General Hernandez, acting under General Jessup's orders ; had been imprisoned, and suffered much ; but from the manner and bearing of General Worth, he had been led to repose the most implicit confidence in his sincerity. Colonel Childs, however, punctilious in his obedience to orders, at once seized and sent him and his companions in irons to Tampa Bay, where they were immediately placed on board a transport and sent to New Orleans, en route for Fort Gibson. The people of Florida heartily approved this transaction, feeling that the Territory was now rid of one of its most dangerous foes. General Worth soon learned the manner in which Wild Cat had been again seized as a prisoner, in violation of the pledged faith of Government. Mortified and chagrined, he at once dispatched a faithful officer, with explicit directions, to bring Wild Cat and his 296 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. friends back to Florida at the earliest moment at which he should be able. The officer found them at New Orleans, and forthwith started with them on his return to Tampa Bay. This measure of General Worth, though bold, and in direct op- position to the popular sentiment of Florida, probably tended as much to the pacification of that Territory as any movement during the war. General Worth set out to meet the distinguished chief, and reached Tampa Bay on the third of July. The next day he went on board the ship, where he met Wild Cat and his companions ; they were yet in irons. As they met upon the deck, the General took him cordially by the hand ; assured him of his sincere friend- ship ; of the mistake by which he had been arrested ; but assured him, that so great was his renown as a warrior, and such were the fears which the people entertained of him, that, as commanding General, he was constrained to hold him a prisoner. Perhaps nothing so touches the vanity of a savage as an expres- sion of his greatness ; and the consummate policy of General Worth was never more apparent than in the manner of his treating this savage chief. After recounting the devastation and death which Wild Cat had scattered throughout the Territory, he told him, with great emphasis, that he had the power to put an end to the war. He then told him he was at liberty to select five of his most trusty friends, and send them to his band with such a message as would inform them of the precise state of facts, to name the time necessary to gather his band, and have them at Fort Brooke ; that, if they failed to come in at the appointed time, he and his followers, who should remain with him, should be hanged. Wild Cat listened with emotion ; most of his followers wept. After General Worth had closed his remarks, he arose, and, with great force of eloquence and truth, portrayed the wrongs to which he and his friends had been subjected. He then added, that they had fought the white people bravely, had killed many, but they were too numerous and too strong for them to contend with ; that THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 297 they were compelled to submit. Then, in conclusion, he said he would send out his friends-, and do what ho could to induce his band to surrender, for emigration. While he was speaking, the hour of twelve arrived, and an armed ship lying in port, opened her ports and commenced firing a national salute, in honor of the day. Wild Cat stopped, and, turning to General Worth, inquired the cause. It was explained to him, and he readily contrasted his own situation and that of his friends, who were sitting around him in irons, with the condition of the freemen to whom they were prisoners. After he had concluded his remarks, he gathered around him his friends, and, having consulted with them, he selected his five mes- sengers, one of whom was taken from the Exiles, and the other four from the Indians. The five messengers were brought together, and he addressed them in their own language, apparently with deep emotion ; but when he came to inform them of the message they were to deliver to his wife and child, the feelings of the husband and father again overpowered him : he turned aside and wept ; and such was the deep and thrilling interest which pervaded those around him, that the hardy sailors who had long been accustomed to danger, and the soldier who had become familiar with death in its various forms, were melted to tears. The sympathy became general ; and all present seemed to acknowledge the reality of those holy affec- tions of the human heart which God has implanted deep down in its core and center. Silence pervaded the whole assemblage. The order was given by General Worth in a low and solemn voice to remove the fetters from the limbs of the five messengers. It was done quietly, and all looked on with interest. After the irons had been taken from their limbs, and all was prepared for their depart- ure, Wild Cat shook hands with each as they passed over the side • of the ship. To the last he handed a silk handkerchief and a breast-pin, saying, ** give them to my wife and child." The time which Wild Cat had voluntarily set for their return, was forty days. The band was supposed to be on the Kissimee or 298 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. St. John's River ; and much interest was felt by all in the result. They greatly feared that delay might take place in finding and communicating with them. Officers and soldiers participated in the excitement ; and the messengers were instructed by them to inform the commanding officer at that post, if any great delay should occur. The success of this mission was regarded as the turning point of the Florida War, and in its perfect success all felt a deep interest; as it was believed that his example would be followed by other chiefs of sufficient influence to bring this long protracted war to a close. The officers visited Wild Cat and his friends, on board the ship, daily, and endeavored to cheer them by constantly expressing their confidence in the fidelity of the messengers. He endeavored to surmount the anxiety and apprehension which his situation naturally brought to his mind ; but his care-worn countenance and anxious manner showed the corroding solicitude which he felt. " Old Micco," the Indian chief who at first induced Wild Cat to come in to Fort Cummings, was at Tampa Bay at the time the messengers left. He was aged, but continued active. He had been the confidential friend of King Philip, the father of Wild Cat, and was now the warm friend of the son. He volunteered to accompany the messengers, assuring Wild Cat that he would him- self return in ten days with such tidings as he should be able to gather in that time. The old man, faithful to his engagement, on the tenth day ap- peared at Tampa Bay with six warriors and a number of women and children, and reported that others were on their way. The return of Micco with such intelligence cheered his followers and friends, and gave to our officers and soldiers confidence in the entire success of the plan ; but the chief continued to exhibit gloom, and at times he evinced despondency of spirits. In the meantime, his people continued to arrive daily, and in less than thirty days, his entire band were encamped at Tampa THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 299 Bay. He had informed General Worth of the precise number of his warriors by delivering to him a bundle containing one stick for each warrior. On the last day of July, it was found that the num- ber of warriors, including Exiles, exactly corresponded with the number of sticks. When informed that his warriors were all in, he resumed his natural cheerfulness ; his countenance became lighted up with hope and intelligence ; his bearing was lofty and independent. Several officers went on board to congratulate him. He was warmly greeted. He now, turning to the officer of the guard, in a tone of confident assurance, requested that his irons might be removed, and he per- mitted to address his warriors, as he said, "like a man." His shackles were taken off; and he then dressed himself in a manner which he deemed fitting the occasion. His turban was of crimson silk, from which three ostrich plumes were gracefully suspended ; his breast was covered with glittering silver ornaments ; his many- colored frock was fastened around his waist by a girdle of red silk, into which was thrust his scalping knife, -enclosed in its appropriate scabbard. Red leggins and ornamented moccasins completed his attire. He was attended on shore by several officers, who took seats with him in the boat. As they approached the shore, and he saw his friends who had gathered at the landing to greet him, his heart seemed to swell with emotion ; but gathering himself for the occasion he became dignified and haughty in his deportment, and as he stepped on shore he waived his hand, beckoning them all to stand back. They impulsively obeyed ; and raising his form to its utmost height he sent forth a shrill war-whoop, which reached every ear in the vicinity, as the announcement of his freedom. A hearty response at once came back from every warrior of the band. The crowd simultaneously opened to the right and left, when, with- out noticing the presence of any person, he at once proceeded to the head-quarters, where he met General Worth, whom he saluted in the most respectful manner. He then turned to his people and addressed them, stating the arrangement with General Worth, 800 THE EXILES OP FLORIDA. thanking them for so cheerfully coming to him, declared they were now at peace with the white people. He then inquired for his wife and child, who had remained silent spectators of the whole scene. They at once came forward, and as he saw them, the feelings of the husband and father again overcame him for an instant ; but resum- ing his lofty demeanor he mingled again with those faithful and tried followers, who had so often stood beside him in times of peril. Such were the fortunes, and such the character, of one of those chieftains whom the incidents of the Florida War brought into pub- lic notice. He is now introduced to the reader, and will continue to receive occasional attention until the close of our narrative, and perhaps he may again appear in the future history of the people to whose trials and persecutions we are now directing attention. We have felt this sketch due to the cause of truth, inasmuch as during the war, and even up to the present day, public newspapers have spoken of Wild Cat as a cruel and vindictive savage. His efforts in behalf of freedom have been represented by public officers as crimes, and he has been held up to the public as an unprincipled brigand. We would judge him, as we would all others, by his acts. Wild Cat's band, now convened at Tampa Bay, had been previ- ously diminished by emigration. It now numbered seventy-eight warriors, sixty-four women and forty-seven children — making in all one hundred and eighty-nine souls. We have no official statement of the number of Exiles who surrendered with this band. We suppose, however, from the warm interest which Wild Cat always took in behalf of the Exiles, that more would have flocked to his standard than to those of other chiefs ; but we have no evidence that such was the fact. Probably the Exiles constituted about one- sixth of the band — that being the proportion of Exiles who ac- companied him to Fort Cummings, and were seized with him by Colonel Childs. Indeed, we have had no official data by which to determine the proportion of Exiles who constituted the several par- ties that surrendered after General Jessup left the army. No sub- sequent commander in Florida appears to have drawn distinctions as THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 301 to the color of his prisoners. They were all reported as Seminoles, and the term "negro" occurred only incidentally in their official reports, when speaking of the class of interpreters and agents who were employed ; nor do we find that General Worth made any eflfort to send any of his prisoners into slavery. So far as we are informed, like General Taylor, he treated them all as prisoners of ivar, entitled to the same rights, the same respect, and the same attentions, agreeably to the doctrine advanced by General Gaines at New Orleans. General Worth appears to have felt authorized to send every Exile who surrendered, to the Western Country. If any of them were claimed by the slaveholders of Florida, he directed the proofs of ownership to be taken and the value of the negro estimated, and then, without waiting for further contest, the negro was treated as other prisoners, and sent West with his Seminole friends, leaving the Government to pay for the slave or not, as the Execu- tive and Congress should determine.^ It was this policy which enabled General Worth to conduct the war with so much greater success than his predecessors. It enabled him to avail himself of all the influence of Wild Cat, now exerted in favor of emigration ; while General Jessup, by delivering over the Exiles to slavery, had induced the same chief to exert absolute violence to prevent emigration.^ General Worth, having secured the friendship and cooperation (1) This statement is founded upon the authority of Captain Sprague. It is however certain, that many of the claimants actually received compensation from the public treas- ury for the loss of their slaves. The power to pay for them was assumed by Executive officers, under the appropriation act of March, 1841, without reference to Congress. (2) Captain Sprague, in his history, enters into a somewhat lengthened apology for this practice of General Worth, by saying, the negroes were the most active and vindictive of the hostile forces ; that, from the peculiar situation of the country, ten negroes could keep it in a state of constant alarm ; that many of them had intermarried with the Seminoles and become identified with them, had acquired their habits, and would have been useless to their owners had they been delivered to them ; that the negro would have remained in service but a few days, when he would have again taken to the swamps and hommocks, where he could elude pursuit, and would have been more vindictive than before. 302 THE EXILES OP FLORIDA. of Wild Cat, entered into consultation with him as to the best method of carrying out his plan of peaceful surrender of the Indians and Exiles, and their emigration West. Those in the eastern part of the Territory, under Hospetarche and Tiger-tail and Sam Jones, were bitterly opposed to emigration. They determined, in council, to kill any messenger sent to them for the purpose of persuading them to surrender, or any one who should attempt to leave them for the purposes of emigration. Notwithstanding this determination, some three or four families, numbering in all about twenty souls, made their escape (Aug. 10), and, though closely pursued, reached the military post on Pease Creek, and were sent to Tampa Bay, where they joined Wild Cat's band. Otulke, a brother of Wild Cat, lived in the vicinity of those people who had become so indignant, and it was deemed important to inform him of Wild Cat's determination to go West. The chief had also a younger brother, now with the band at Tampa Bay, who volunteered to perform the hazardous duty of carrying a message to Otulke. Much solicitude wa.s felt for his safety, but he accom- plished his mission successfully. Otulke, with some six warriors and their families, obeyed the call, and came to Tampa Bay and joined the party destined for emigration. Otulke also brought a message from Hospetarche, an aged chief, the head of a small band numbering nearly one hundred souls. He was said to be eighty-five years of age ; but was yet active, and possessed great energy. He sent a message to Wild Cat that he, too, was coming in to see him. He was from the *' Great Cypress Swamp," whose inhabitants were regarded as very treacherous, and altogether destitute of integrity. A few days after Otulke arrived, Hospetarche sent a boy with a white flag to Tampa Bay, saying, he was old and fatigued, and wanted whisky and provisions to enable him to reach Fort Brooke. These were sent him ; but the next day another message of the same character was received, and complied with. This practice continued for five days. And such was the desperate character of • THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 303 the old chief, that none of the friendly Indians dared go out to meet him, particularly as they learned that he was attended only by warriors ; they believed he was intent on hostility rather than peace, and they feared him. Wild Cat had been absent for some days. When he returned, he ascertained the situation of Ilospetarche, with whom he had long been acquainted. The next morning he dressed himself in his gayest attire, and, taking his rifle, mounted his favorite horse, which had been brought to Tampa Bay by his followers. The officers who witnessed his departure, declared that the noble animal exhibited evidence of having recognized his master. No sooner had Wild Cat mounted, than he began to champ his bit and paw the earth, as if impatient to bear forth his rider to the hunting grounds. Wild Cat, sitting upon his spirited horse, shook hands with General Worth and the other officers, and then dashed into the forest ; and before sunset, returned with his venerable friend, Hospetarche, and eighteen warriors. After they arrived, they were treated kindly, but placed under a strong guard. They sent confidential friends however to their homes, who in a few days returned, bringing with them the women and children of the whole band. There were now at Tampa Bay nearly three hundred prisoners ready for emigration, including Exiles, supposed to be about sixty in number. While General Worth was thus successful in his efforts to induce the Indians and their allies peacefully to emigrate, he was pained to witness the suffiirings to which his army were subjected. As an illustration of the sacrifice which our nation made in this effort to enslave the Exiles, we would state, that the 1st regiment of Infant- ry, under Colonel Miller, came to Florida in 1838, and left in August, 1841. It numbered some six hundred men, and during the three years of its residence in Florida, one hundred and thirty- five soldiers and six commissioned officers died of sicknes. This we believe to be nothing more than the average loss of the troops who served in that war, in proportion to the time of service. The 304 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. ofl&cial reports for July, 1841, showed two thousand four hundred and twenty-eight men on the sick list, unfit for duty, being consid- erably more than one half of the whole army. A few Indians and Exiles, from various bands, occasionally ar- rived at Tampa Bay, and joined the emigrating party. Throughout the different families, they appeared to believe that General Worth was acting in good faith. The whole character of the war had undergone a change. It had originally been commenced and pros- ecuted for the purpose of reenslaving Exiles : now that object, so far as they could discover, appeared to have been given up. Exiles and Indians were treated alike. Wild Cat, their most active and popular chief, and the leading Exiles with him, were acting with sincerity in favor of emigration. The war was in fact suspended, for the adoption of a more pacific policy, which seemed to promise success. Tiger-tail was yet inexorable and inveterato. He was said to have murdered his own sister for proposing to surrender ; yet a small party from his band escaped to Tampa Bay, and were pro- tected. A few other Indians and Exiles wore captured without bloodshed ; and such were the prospects of returning peace, that by the commencement of September, General Worth informed the War Department that the 3d regiment of Artillery could be spared from the service in Florida ; and that he hoped, within a month, to discharge the 4th and 5th Infantry, and the 3d Dragoons. Wild Cat visited Tiger-tail in his retreat, which was regarded as a most hazardous undertaking. With six followers he started on a visit to this barbarous chief. He reached the vicinity of his camp near nightfall, but deemed it prudent not to approach at that late hour of the day. He and his friends fearing discovery, bivouacked in a grove, supposing they had not been noticed by any one. In the darkness of the night, they heard slight movements near them. Wild Cat suspected it was the wary chief, preparing to massacre himself and friends. He boldly called out, announcing his own name, and telling Tiger-tail not to come upon him like a coward, Thlocklo Tustenuggee, (Tiger Tail.) THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 305 by stealth, but to speak frankly, or come up boldly to a personal conflict. Tiger-tail, surprised and astonished at this course, com- menced conversation. Wild Cat, referring to their former friend- ship, avowed his desire to renew the attachment ; or, if Tiger-tail insisted on fighting, then he would meet him in a manner becoming a bold warrior. The ferocity of Tiger-tail gave way. They agreed to meet next day, when a long consultation was held. The savage chief gave assurances of his peaceful disposition, and promised to reflect upon the propriety of emigrating. 'Wild Cat also sent to other chiefs messages, assuring them of his intention to emigrate ; that his band, and that of Hospetarche, with individuals from other villages, were at Tampa Bay with the intention of soon embarking for the Western Country. Tiger-tail insisted on seeing Alligator, a Seminole chief, who emigrated in 1837, saying, if Alligator would come back and advise him to go West, he would comply with such advice. A messenger was accordingly sent West to bring Alligator to Florida. In the meantime. Wild Cat declared to General Worth that he desired to see his own people on their way ; and assigned as the reason for such desire, that Indians were a restless people, and could not be long kept inactive, with no employment for either body or mind. The advice was received by General Worth with respect, and he at once gave orders to prepare for the journey. Transports had been employed, and were then in waiting. The women and children were engaged in cracking corn, to serve as food for their journey. Amid all the cares which surrounded him, General Worth endeavored to make both Indians and Exiles com- fortable, and render them cheerful. They were a wronged and persecuted people, about to leave their homes, their native country, and go to a distant region, of which they were ignorant. Driven from the graves of their fathers, they were about to be separated from scenes which had been familiar to them from childhood. Of those who had come in for emigration, fifteen had died. Wild Cat detailed from his band seven, and Hospetarche detailed ten war- 20 30b THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. riors, who, with their families, making some eighty souls in all, were to remain with General Worth for a while in order to exert what influence they could with their friends in favor of emigrating to the West. The number who actually embarked was little more than two hundred and fifty, exclusive of fourteen Mickasukies, who per- sisted in drawing their rations, and in all things being separated from the others. Some fifty Exiles are supposed to have been amons: those who embarked, and two of the seventeen families who remained at Tampa Bay were of mixed blood. The emigrants were all on board the transports, when General Worth and staflf paid them a last visit. The scene was said to be affecting. Hospetarche, Tenerable for his years, sat in silence, resting his head upon his hands, and looking back upon his native land. He appeared dis- qualified for holding conversation with any one, and none appeared willing to disturb his seeming melancholy reflections. The women — both Exiles and Indians — were weeping and sighing, unre- strained by that dignity so much cultivated by savages of the other sex. The warriors — black and red — were solemn and silent. This appeared to give Wild Cat pain. He stood upon the quarter deck with his sub-chiefs around him. As General Worth was about to take leave, " I am looking (said Wild Cat) at the last ** pine tree of my native land. I am about to leave Florida for ** ever; and I can say that I have never done anything to disgrace *' the land of my birth. It was my home : I loved it as I loved " my wife and child. To part from it, is like separating from my •' own kindred. But I have thrown away the rifle ; I have shaken "hands with the white man, and I look to him for protection." He then addressed General Worth, thanked him for all his kind- ness and confidence ; and on behalf of his people he expressed a high sense of gatitude for the humanity and friendship extended to them. Then extending his hand to the General he bade him fare- well. General Worth, in taking leave, expressed the hope that they would have a pleasant journey, and find themselves happy in their western homes. They parted ; the anchor was hauled up, THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 307 the sails hoisted ; and the unhappy emigrants soon cast their last lingering look upon the long-loved scenes of their childhood. They were hurried on their way as rapidly as wind and steam could propel the ships in which they embarked. They made a short stay at New Orleans ; and in two weeks from the time they left Tampa Bay, they landed at Fort Gibson, and were conducted to the settlement made by their brethren who had previously emi- grated. Here Wild Cat found himself in a new sphere. Respected and beloved by his followers for his gallant bearing ; his undoubted courage ; his devotion to the interests of his people ; his truth and justice — distinguished above all others of his tribe by his warlike exploits, he was qualified and prepared to enter upon the trying scenes which awaited his future life. CHAPTER XXI. CLOSE OP THE WAR. Delegation from Emigrants return to Florida — Their efforts in favor of Peace — Pacific indications — Troops discharged — Indians and Negroes surrender — Foray of Captain Wade — Waxe Hadjo surrenders — Massacre at Mandarin — People of Georgia and Flori- da dissatisfied with GeneraMVorth — They insist on furnishing Troops — Gen. Worth refuses to employ Militia — General McDonald and Volunteers from Georgia take the field — Demand the withdrawal of the Regular Troops — They are withdrawn — Call for Provisions — General Worth refuses to furnish them — Militia disband — Tustenuggee Chapco surrenders — More Troops discharged — General Worth states the number of Enemy, and recommends cessation of Hostilities — Propositions rejected by Executive — Battle with Halec Tustenuggee — Tlis character — His capture — Ho and his people sent West — President reconsiders General Worth's advice — Adopts the proposed policy — General Worth calls Council — Terms of Peace agreed upon — GSeneral Order — General Worth retires — War ended — Its object — Its cost — Number of lives sacrificed — Char- acter of Indians and Exiles who remained in Florida, On the fourteenth of October, Alligator, with two other chiefs, and one of the leading Exiles, named James, reached Fort Brooke, on their return from the Western Country. They came at the request of General Worth to exert their influence with Tiger-tail and others in favor of emigration. The next day they left for the interior, and after an absence of seven days returned with Tiger-tail. The General held several conversations with him, and kindly expressed his sympathy for the Indians, explaining his own situation and duty, and advising the Indians to emigrate as their best policy. Tiger-tail, after remaining in camp four days, returned for his band ; and friendly Indians were dispatched by (808) THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 309 General Worth to Sam Jones and other chiefs to induce them also to come in. Some thirty Indians deserted Halec Tustenuggee (Nov. 10), and came to Fort Brooke. The appearance of Indians and Exiles was so pacific that the Commanding General discharged from further service in Florida five companies of dragoons, who were ordered to the western frontier. The Indians and Exiles who remained at Fort Brooke when Wild Cat and his party left for the West, were active in their endeavors to induce their other friends to emigrate. In these efforts they were at least partially successful. Small parties from the bands of Tiger-tail and Nethloke-Mathla arrived occasionally, and with the apparent consent of those chiefs ; but Tiger tail himself appeared suspicious and wary. He would not come in then, but promised to do so at some future day. The influence of most of the Exiles now remaining in Florida was ex- erted in favor of emigration. It is believed that nearly every fam- ily of pure Exile blood had left ; that the last of that class had departed with Wild Cat. particularly all of the descendants of those pioneers who remained unconnected with the Indians by marriage. There were yet remaining a few who had more recently fled from their masters in Florida and Georgia. They dared not trust them- selves within the power of our troops, lest they should be recon- signed to slavery. They exerted a strong influence with the In- dians against emigration. There were also, in almost every band and small village of Indians, Exiles who had intermarried with In- dian families. They could not well separate from their family con- nexions, and therefore refused to surrender for emigration, until those relatives would go with them. By the twentieth of Novem- ber, fifty-two warriors and a hundred and ten women and children — making in all one hundred and sixty-two people — were gathered from the bands of Tiger-tail and Nethloke-Mathla ; some thirty of whom were Exiles, intermarried with the Indians and half-breeds. Captain Wade made a foray into the Indian Country, and cap- tured some sixty-five Indians and Exiles of two different bands, by surprise, and without bloodshed. They were mostly women and 810 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. children, and were at once sent forward to Tampa Bay for emi- gration. About the close of November, " Waxe-Hadjo," a young chief from the Cypress Swamp, with seventeen warriors and more than thirty women and children — some ten or twelve of whom were half-breeds, descendants of Exiles and Seminoles — surrendered, and were sent to Fort Brooke for emigration. While everything thus wore the appearance of peace, and all were regarding the war as near its close, a small settlement of white people, at a place called Mandarin, twenty-two miles from Jackson- ville, was assailed in open day, and five of the people murdered. This attack was conducted by a small party of Indians, less than twenty in number, who had come from the interior, and in a stealthy manner approached this settlement, committed the murders, and retired before any troops could be brought to the scene of slaughter. Near the close of the year, the authorities of Georgia and Flor- ida gave evidence of their dissatisfaction of the manner in which General Worth was conducting the war. The militia of neither Florida nor Georgia were called on to participate in the war. No opportunities were afforded them of seizing negroes and selling them into slavery ; none but the regular sutlers were permitted to en- camp with or near the troops ; in short, the war, as then conducted, afforded them but little profit. General Worth had encouraged the return of the people to their homes and plantations, and very few of them now drew rations from the public stores for their support. He had discharged citizens and their slaves from public employ- ment, and the war was carried on without permitting the people, or politicians of Georgia or Florida, to interfere or dictate the manner of its prosecution. This proceeding of General Worth greatly excited the people and Executive of Georgia, who insisted upon furnishing militia to carry on the war. The Secretary of War referred the matter at once to General Worth, and a most interesting and amusing corres- pondence followed between the Executive of Georgia and the Com- THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 311 manding General. The latter refusing to call for militia from that State, they were mustered without his authority, and he was re- quested by Governor McDonald to withdraw the United States forces from the Georgia frontiers. As there was then no enemy near that State, and no danger to the inhabitants, he removed the troops, and the Georgia militia were ordered by the Governor to take their place. They did so with the confident expectation that General Worth would furnish rations and hospital supplies and arms from the United States stores. But he refused to do this, and the gallant militia of that State immediately retired to their homes in order to dine. The correspondence on this subject continued until May, 1842, and shows the skillful management of individuals to get up alarms in regard to the supposed presence of hostile Indians, and thereby manifest the necessity of posting troops in certain localities, where there had probably never been an enemy. To give importance to these counterfeited alarms, letters were written, and presentments were made by Grand Juries. The Delegate from the Territory of Florida demanded of the Executive the employment of militia for the protection of the frontier, and that such militia be authorized to act independently of the Commanding General. Hon. John C. Spencer, Secretary of War, replied, that the De- partment could see no particular advantage to be derived from such a division of the duties of the Commanding General ; and, as he had no doubt General Worth would do whatever was proper, he referred the whole matter to his consideration. Had General Jessup, in 1836 and '37, adopted the policy which guided General Worth ; had he sent his prisoners to the Western Country without permitting the militia, or the people of Florida, to seize and enslave those whom he had engaged to protect and defend, there is little doubt that the war would have been closed during the time he was employed in Florida. During the last days of December, Tustenuggee Chopco, a sub- chief, and about seventy followers, consisting of warriors, women 312 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. and children, a proportion of whom were Exiles and half-breeds, surrendered near the Great Cypress Swamp, and were also sent to Fort Brooke for emigration. At the commencement of this year several more compa- nies of troops were discharged, the number of the enemy being so far diminished as to render their presence useless. On the fifth of February, some three hundred rand fifty Indians and Exiles were embarked at Tampa Bay for the Western Country. They in due time reached Fort Gibson, and took up their residence with those who had gone before them, and were still residing upon the lands of the Cherokees. On the fourteenth of February, General Worth addressed the Commanding General of our array, at Washington City, a commu- nication, giving a detailed statement of the number of Indians yet remaining in Florida — amounting in all to three hundred, accord- ing to the best information he had been able to obtain. He also stated the impossibility of capturing these individuals, scattered as they were over a vast extent of country, and advising that they be dealt with, henceforth, in a peaceful manner ; and that at least five-sixths of the troops then employed in Florida be withdrawn, and an equal proportion of the expenses of the war be curtailed. He proposed sending a portion of those friendly Indians who remained at Fort Brooke, among the hostiles, to continue with them, and exert what influence they could in fiivor of peace and of emigration; with the assurance, that no further hostilities would be prosecuted by the United States while the Indians remained peaceful. The proposition, however, was rejected by the Executive ; and General Worth continued to carry forward the work which he had prosecuted thus far with such signal success. He dismissed more troops from service in Florida ; discharged employees in the various departments under his command, and made such retrenchments as he was able to effect, without detracting from the efficiency of the public service. THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 313 On the sixteenth of April, the troops fell in with Hallec Tuste- •nuggee, who, with some seventy warriors of his own and other bands, was encamped upon an island in the Great Wahoo Swamp, and after an irregular fight of two hours, routed them. The loss was slight on both sides. Our troops had one man killed, and four wounded ; the allies three wounded, whom they carried from the field. This was the last battle fought in the Florida War. The Indians scattered in various directions, and in that way evaded pursuit. Halec Tustenuggee was a most skillful warrior : bold and daring in his policy, yet capable of dissimulation and treachery. He hud been the object of pursuit for two years. His unceasing vigilance had enabled him to bid defiance to civilized troops. He was now nearly destitute of powder and provisions, and, as an alternative, professed a desire for peace. He came into the American camp boldly, shook hands with General Worth, and proclaimed his pacific purpose. His professions were treated with great apparent respect. He wanted provisions for his band. They were encamped within three miles of General Worth's head-quarters, and were fed at public expense. And when the whole band had come within the lines, for the purpose of attending a feast, they were secured as prisoners, and immediately sent to Tampa Bay for emigration ; and, on the fourteenth of July, this entire band, consisting of one hundred and twenty persons, embarked for Fort Gibson, by way of New Orleans. They reached their destination in safety ; and most of them took up their residence with their brethren, the Seminoles ; while others joined the Creeks. The Federal Executive, having more maturely considered the suggestions of General Worth, at length concluded to accede to his propositions for a pacification with the remaining hostiles in Florida. That ofiicer, having secured Halec Tustenuggee and his band, and sent them West, now dispatched his messengers to those small bands of hostiles which remained, inviting them to hold a council and enter into an arrangement, based upon the condition, that the 314 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. allies should remain in the southern portion of the Peninsula of Florida, confined to certain limits, and abstain from all acts of ag- gression upon their white neighbors. Most of these small bands sent chiefs, or sub-chiefs, to attend the council ; and terms of peace were agreed to, and the following General Order was issued : " ORDER, ) Head Quarters Ninth MartART Department, \ No, 28. J ^ Cedar Key, Florida, August 1-1. 1843. 5 ** It is hereby announced, that hostilities with the Indians within *' this Territory have ceased. Measures are taken to pass the few " remaining Indians within certain limits — those in the far south " immediately ; those west of the Suwanee in a few days, who, ** meantime, there is every reasonable assurance, will conduct in- *' offensively if unmolested in their haunts. The lands thus tem- *• porarily assigned, as their planting and hunting grounds, aro " within the following boundaries, to wit : From the mouth of '• Talockchopco, or Pease Creek, up the left bank of that stream to ** the fork of the southern branch, and, following that branch, to " the head or northern edge of Lake Istokpoga ; thence down the " eastern margin of that lake to the stream which empties into the " Kissimee River, following the left bank of the said stream and " river to where the latter empties into Lake Okeechobee ; thence '* down, due south, through said lake and everglades to Shark " River, following the right bank of that river to the Gulf; thence ** along the Gulf shore (excluding all islands between Punta Rosa ** and the head of Charlotte's Harbor) to the place of beginning. *' The foregoing arrangements are in accordance with the instruc- " tions of the President of the United States. " By order of Col. Worth : " S. COOPER, A. A. General.'* Most of the troops were now withdrawn from Florida. General Worth retired from the command, and the Florida War was sup- posed to have ended. It had been commenced with a determination to reiinslave the Exiles. That object was, in part, attained. More THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. 315 than five hundred persons were seized and enslaved, between the first of January, 1835, and the fourteenth of August, 1843. Probably one half of them had been born free ; the others had themselves escaped from slavery. To effect this object, forty mil- lions of dollars were supposed to have been expended. Eighty thousand dollars was paid from the public treasury for the enslave- ment of each person, and the lives of at least three white men were sacrified to insure the enslavement of each black man. The deterioration of our national morality was beyond estimate, and the disgrace of our nation and government are matters incapable of computation. The suflfering of the Indians and Exiles amidst such prolonged persecution, such loss of lives and property, we cannot estimate. The friends and families who were separated, the num- ber of those who were made wretched for life, the broken hearts, we will not attempt to enumerate. Nearly one half of the whole number were consigned to the moral death of slavery, and many to that physical death which was dreaded far less than slavery. After wandering in the wilderness thrice forty years, they fell under the oppression, the persecution, the power of a mighty nation, which boasts of its justice, its honor, and love of liberty. We lament the sad fate of those who died in that struggle ; but with deeper anguish, and far keener mortification, we deplore the un- happy lot of those who were doomed to drag out a miserable exist- ence, amidst chains and wretchedness, surrounded by that moral darkness which broods over the enslaved portion of our fellow- beings in the Southern States. There are yet remaining in Florida a few descendants of the pioneer Exiles. They are intermarried with the bands of "Billy Bowlegs," and of ** Sam Jones,'' sometimes called Aripeka; they are now mostly half-breeds, and are rapidly becoming amalgamated with the Indian race. Besides these, there are a number of Spanish Refugees, or color- ed people who fled from Spanish masters and took up their resi- dence with those called " Spanish Indians." These did not engage 316 THE EXILES OF FLORIDA. ' in the war until 1840: nor did they then engage in any of the battles with our army ; they contented themselves with plundering ships wrecked on their coast, and the foray upon Indian Key. They refused to send delegates to the council summoned by General Worth, to establish terms of pacification. They live independent of the white people, subsisting mostly on fish and the natural pro- ducts of the soil, holding very little intercourse with either white men or other Indians. Descendants of Exile parents, they have the complexion and appearance of pure Spaniards ; but they are rapidly blending with the Indians, and forming a mixed race. These diflferent bands, remaining in Florida, and aggregating into a distinct people, have on several occasions since 1843, given evidence of implacable hostility to the whites. And at the time of writing this narrative, they are engaged in open war ; while the Government of the United States is endeavoring to secure peace in the same manner and upon the same terms on which General Worth obtained it, in 1843. Their future history may, hereafter, occupy the pen of some other historian. CHAPTER XXII. HISTORY OF EXILES CONTINUED. Character of Abraham — His knowledge of the Treaty of Payne's Landing — Its stipula- tions—General Jessup's assurances — Confirmed by other Officers of Government — Disappointment of Exiles on reaching Wt- stern Country — They refuse to enter Creek jurisdiction — Creeks di.