those tribes; both of which are objects of great importance. We can most cordially recommend these books as deserving attention from all the statesmen, the ministers of religion, and the philanthropists of our country.

Those who may read impartially the two volumes of Mr. Heckewelder, will find no occasion for resorting to the hypothesis of miracles, to account for the decrease or extermination of the Indian tribes, unless it be miraculous that many white people, professing the Christian religion, should surpass the red savages in depravity, cupidity, barbarity and unprovoked violence. Nor will they any longer be unable to account for the little success of the exertions which have been made to civilize and christianize the Indians. This, it will he found, can be done without imputing to the Indians any unusual want of intellect, or any thing perverse of a moral nature, which is not to be found in uncivilized nations in general. The war policy which has been pursued by white men,-French, English, and the people of the United States,-the disposition too often indulged to encroach on the Indian settlements, to obtain their lands by fraud or violence, to excite the different tribes to destroy one another, and to engage them in the wars waged between Christian nations, will account for the strong prejudices of the Indians against the white people, and against their religion. The same things will also account for the rapid decrease of these tribes, and for the little success which has attended the benevolent efforts for their civilization and moral improvement.

Should a people, superior to the present inhabitants of the United States, acquire possession of our sea-coasts, and pursue the same course which has been pursued towards the Indians,-to dispossess us of our lands, diminish our numbers, and drive us back step by step into the wilderness; what views would those who might survive the desolations entertain of such a race of men.

The attachment, which the Indians have manifested towards the Friends and Moravians, serves to evince, that they are as suscepti. ble as other people of the natural influence of beneficent treatment. It also affords reason to believe, that had all the white people uniformly treated them with such respect and kindness, as have been displayed by the Friends and Moravians, a great portion of these tribes might before this time have been civilized, christianized, and strongly attached to their white brethren. By such beneficent means, a

multitude of wars, and the untimely and violent destruction of hundreds of thousands of human beings, might have been prevented. What a melancholy subject for reflection!

Mr. Heckewelder's Narrative clearly shows, that these natives have been capable of civilization, of embracing the principles of Christianity, and of being formed into societies of regular, peacea. ble, and industrious citizens; and that the war-policy which has been pursued by their white neighbours, towards them and towards each other, has been the principal means of obstructing and inter rupting the progress of improvement among the Indians. When the Missionaries had formed in one place a respectable congrega. tion of Christian Indians, and a fine village with schools for the instruction of the young, and a meeting-house for the public worship of God; the detestable war-policy would step in and cause this peaceable society to leave their possessions, flee to a distant wilderness, and begin a new settlement. Many such removals of the same society are recorded by Mr Heckewelder,-so many indeed, that the reader of the Narrative will rather be astonished at the perseverance of the Missionaries, and the fidelity and attach ment of their Indian disciples, than at the fact that no more was effected under circumstances so discouraging and disastrous.

Omitting several removals of earlier date, we may observe, that prior to the American Revolution, two considerable congregations of Christian Indians, "two hundred and forty one persons,” were induced to abandon fine settlements on the Susquehanna and to remove, with such things as they could take with them, to Muskingum, "having, exclusive of horses for carrying the sick and the baggage, seventy head of horned cattle to take care of" This removal was in 1772. On the Muskingum they soon formed sev eral fine towns. Their numbers increased so, that, at the close of 1775, they had in their societies four hundred and fourteen persons. In 1777 they were induced to leave their principal town, Shonbrun, having heard "that large parties were on their way to murder the Missionaries.' This town then contained "upwards of sixty dwelling houses, most of which were of squared timber. The street from east to west was long and of a proper width; from the centre, where the chapel stood, another street ran off to the north. The inhabitants had, for the most part, become husbandmen. They had large fields under good rail-fences, well paled

gardens, and fine fruit-trees; besides herds of cattle, horses, and hogs."

The Christian Indians resolved to have nothing to do with the war between Great Britain and the colonies. This course was not only according to the pacisc principles which they had adopted, but it was recommended to them, and to the other Indians, by commissioners from the American Congress. But the Britons excited many of the tribes to aid them in the war. This policy exposed the Christian Indians to great trials and dangers; as each of the contending parties suspected them of partiality to the other. In the course of the war, through the influence of false reports the British commandant at Detroit sent parties of Indian warriors against this peaceable people, who compelled the whole society to remove from their settlements on the Muskingum to the Upper Sandusky, where they were exposed to perish by hunger and cold.

"Never," says Mr. Heckewelder, "did the Christian Indians leave a country with more regret. The three beautiful settlements, Gnadenhutten, Shonbrun, and Salem, were now to be forsaken, together with many of their young cattle, that were in the woods, with some hundred head of hogs; and at least three hundred acres of corn, ripe for harvesting,-exclusive of a great quantity of old corn, potatoes, turnips, cabbages, &c. were now lost to them; together with books that were burnt, many of which were for the instruction of youth."

After their arrival at Upper Sandusky, finding themselves in danger of perishing with hunger, about one hundred and fifty of them, men, women, and children, resolved to return to their former settlements, to secure the corn they had left. When this party had nearly accomplished their work, and were preparing to go back to their friends, a party of our warriors came to them with professions of friendship, and assurances that they would conduct them to a place of safety. With these hypocritical pretences, they collected together nearly a hundred; and then, delib erately, and in cold blood, murdered ninety six of these friendly but unfortunate fellow beings!

We shall not here be more particular in describing this massacre, as we intend in the next article to give a sketch of the proceeding, in the language of Mr. Heckewelder.

The survivors of the Christian Indians were subjected to the inconveniences and distresses of several subsequent removals, before a permanent peace could be established between the United States and those tribes of Indians who had joined the Britons in the

war.

In justice to the British commandant it should be observed, that, after seeing the Missionaries and being correctly informed, he did much to alleviate the sufferings both of the Missionaries and the surviving Christian Indians. On the other hand, it is doubtless true, that the American Congress disapproved the massacre perpetrated by our people, and did considerable for the benefit of the survivors. Still the evils done by each party were the genuine fruits of war. When the war spirit is strongly excited, and the " dogs of war" are let loose to seek their prey; it is not always in the power of their masters, either to control their course, to "call them out," or to set bounds to their mischiefs and cruelties. Were there no other reason to be given, this alone should restrain rulers from making war. What worse can be imputed to the most inhuman barbarians, than wantonly destroying the innocent? Yet this is done by civilized nations as well as by savages, in every public war. It is matter of joy that the government of our country has, within a few years, favoured the exertions of the benevolent, for improving the condition of the Indians. We cannot but indulge a hope, that the writings of Mr. Heckewelder will be a means of exciting still greater efforts to save the remnants of the injured tribes; that the sentiment once expressed in the National Intelligencer-" they should be conquered by beneficence, and not by force,"-will become popular with our government, and with the whole nation, and that there will be an entire abandonment of the war policy in respect to the Indians. It is more glorious to save than to destroy. An opposite principle has already been too long pursued-so long, indeed, that it has exterminated many tribes of Indians, greatly diminished others, and probably caused the untimely destruction of more white people, than are now to be found in any one of the United States.

It must be the ardent desire of all men of benevolence and reflection, that the character of our country may no more be tarnished with Conestoga and Muskingum massacres of peaceful and friendly Indians; nor by boastings of having killed eight hundred Creeks-who were enticed into a war by the British, and that we

compelled the tribe "to cede fifteen millions of acres ;" nor by blowing up a fort and destroying two hundred and seventy five Indians in time of peace; nor by making war on a whole tribe for offences committed by a few individuals, in revenging wrongs done by abandoned white men; nor by the wanton and cold-blooded slaughter of captives, taken by decoy or false pretences of friendship; nor by employing one tribe of Indians as murderers, to aid in the destruction of another. Such inhuman deeds deserve and will receive the abhorrence of enlightened patriots; and the deep stains they have occasioned can never be effaced, but by adopting a pacific, paternal, and benevolent policy towards our red brethren. Do not humanity, benevolence, and justice demand of our government, that the profits of the immense tracts of land, obtained from the Indians by war, should be appropriated as a redeeming and saving fund ;-to redeem the character of our nation from the reproach of flagrant injustice, in retaining property acquired by violence,and to save the Indians from extermination, and from the miseries of an uncivilized state?

MUSKINGUM MASSACRE.

In the preceding article, we have briefly mentioned the cruel treatment which was received by the Christian Indians on the Muskingum, from a war party in the employment of Britain,-also the inhuman murder by our own people, of a party of these peaceable Indians. We shall now give a concise account of the Massacre in the language of Mr. Hecke welder.-The towns belonging to the Christian Indians were called Shonbrun, Salem, and Gnadenhutten. Those of the party who happened to be at Shonbrun, providentially escaped the hands of the murderers; and three of ninety-nine who were at Salem or Gnadenhutten also made their escape to relate the dreadful story. One of whom, however, had been scalped. The following is but a sketch of Mr. Heckewelder's account of the affair.

"It has already been stated, that the Indians, pressed by hunger, had gone to their forsaken towns to gather and secure a quantity of corn, that they might fetch the same from time to time as they wanted it. On the day our Indians were bundling up their packs, intending to set off on the next morning; a party of between one