Chapter II: Part 2

While these things were being done and said, as I have reason to believe, a warrant for my apprehension was put into the hands of the High Sheriff, who, it appeared to me, was not very desirous to execute it. He approached me, and with some agitation, told me I must go with him to Catuiot; and added, that if I did not accompany him peaceably, he would have out the whole county of Barnstable. I was not conscious of giving any cause for this perturbation of mind, but I suppose others saw my conduct in a different light. It is admitted by all that nothing was done contrary to good order, though I admit, that if I had refused to obey the warrant, the Sheriff would not have been able to enforce it. The fact is I was in no wise unwilling to go with him, or to have my conduct brought to the test of investigation, or to give all the satisfaction that might be required, had it appeared that I had done wrong. I was also very desirous to have the truth appear, viz. that it was not the intention or wish of the Marshpees to do violence or shed blood.

The Sheriff told me that I should not suffer any injury or injustice, and that I should have a hearing in the presence of my friend, Mr. Fiske. I went with him very quietly. The excitement ran very high, and almost all Cotuet was present at my examination. If wishes could have availed, I doubt not that I should have been ruined forever. I was arraigned on three charges: for riot, assault, and trespass; and pleaded NOT GUILTY.

The Messrs. Sampsons, four in number, were called, and testified as follows, That on the first day of July, between eight and nine, A.M. they were carting wood from the Marshpee plantation, that they were hailed by Wm. Apes, and forbidden by him to take any wood away until a settlement with the overseers should have been had; that the said Apes threatened them that he would call his men if they persisted, who would "_cut up a shine with them_,"[4] (the Sampsons.) They all agreed, however, that no unchristian temper was manifested, and no indecorous language used. They admitted that they had no fear for their personal safety, and that no harm was done to any of the persons concerned, save unloading their teams, and ordering them to depart.

Now if I had taken any neighbors' wood without his leave, and he had thrown it out of my cart, and told me to go away, and had given me no farther molestation, I should think I had gotten off very easily. If a poor Indian wishes to get into a jail or penitentiary, that is just the course I would advise him to pursue. I leave it to the reader to say who were the persons aggrieved and injured, and that had the right to complain of trespass.

It was thought proper, by those who had the power so to do, to bind me over to appear and take my trial before the Court of Common Pleas, at the next session, in the sum of two hundred dollars, and sureties for the like amount were also required. Compliance was not difficult. I had only to send for Lemuel Ewer, Esq. of South Sandwich, who had, in former times, been the treasurer of the tribe, knew their wrongs, and was their friend. It was well for me that there was one man who knew on which side the right lay, and had the courage to support it, for I verily believe that no other person would have dared to become my bondsman. I owe Mr. Ewer the justice further to say that he has done much to advance the interests of the Marshpee tribe, by giving information respecting them to the Legislative body, for which we cannot easily show our gratitude.

The Cotueters now waxed exceedingly wroth at what Mr. Ewer had done. Truth had been shot into their hearts, and if I should say that they bellowed like mad bulls, and spouted like whales, gored mortally by the harpoon, I do not think the figure of speech would be too strong. Mr. Crocker, the contractor or agent, for our wood, felt himself especially aggrieved that I had gotten bail, and was let loose upon the plantation, to hinder him in his business. His life, he thought, would be in danger. There was a great deal of loose talk and a pretty considerable uproar.

While I was waiting for Mr. Ewer, to bail me, I had some conversation with the Hon. J.J. Fiske, who expressed himself concerned about the Indians, and thought that something ought to be done. I said to him that my object was to get them righted, and allowed that I might possibly have gone too fast and far. In this I am now satisfied that I was mistaken. I believe that neither I nor any of my brethren went fast enough. I think there is no white man, Christian or Infidel, who would have shown half so much forbearance as we did in the like circumstances. Mr. Fiske said he would do all he could for me, and I have no doubt that he did so. It was very proper in him to endeavor to quiet the whites. The Indians were already quiet, and had no disposition to be otherwise.

Nevertheless, it seemed to be the common opinion that the imprisonment of Apes would frighten the rest of the tribe, and cause them to forego their efforts to recover their rights. Had this been the case, they might have carted a few more good suppers and dinners out of our woods, and have eaten them on their town meeting days, for two or three days together, twice in the year, and have thrown the bones and crusts to the poor, old and ignorant, among the natives, as they had done, year after year. The missionary, as usual, might have helped them to devour the spoil, and have seen his flock degraded and abused, before his eyes. Much was also said about the pains that had been taken to educate the Marshpees, and it was averred, that, instead of going to the schools opened for them, they preferred going about the country picking berries, and basket making. Mr. Crocker said he had been at great pains to induce the Indians to go to school. Let him who has been prejudiced against the Marshpees, by such argument, look at the legislative act of 1789, section 5, for the regulation of the plantation, prohibiting the instruction of the Marshpees, in reading and writing, under pain of death. Who, then, dared to teach them?

Mr. Hawley, the former missionary, spent fifty or sixty years in Marshpee. He is mentioned in the history of Berkshire County, as a schoolmaster, for the Mohawks, Onedias and Tuscaroras, in 1748, and nothing more is known of him, up to his arrival in Marshpee. Thither he came to teach, in A.D. 1757, and there he staid till his death. What his care to educate the tribe was, may be judged from the facts that he _did not teach one_ Indian to read during his residence among them, as I am informed by those who knew him. He had probably imbibed the opinion that the natives were incapable of being taught, and therefore spared himself trouble that he thought would be of no use. Nevertheless, he was willing to preach to them, and had a good portion of their land set off for his support. Truth obliges me to say that not one Indian was converted during the fifty years of his ministry. The neighbouring whites were the sole recipients of the good resulting from his labors, if there was any. Speaking on this subject, the Rev. Cotton Mather Smith says that the arrangements for managing Indian schools were never thoroughly made; admirable as was the general plan, and much as it promised. I think I may safely vouch for the truth and honesty of the reverend gentleman's admission.

Mr. Fish succeeded Mr. Hawley, in 1809, and was confirmed in his office by the authorities at Harvard, and the white overseers at Marshpee. The arrangement was sanctioned by the General Court, in 1811; contrary to law, as we think. Surely it takes two sides to make a bargain, and the consent of the Indians was never asked or obtained. Both of the divines mentioned above were willing to have the use of the property of the Marshpees; I fear, under a mere pretext of doing them good; and, therefore, that they and the overseers might have a support from the plantation, the owners were constantly proclaimed to be savages. I wonder what the whites would say, should the Indians take possession of any part of their property. Many and many a red man has been butchered for a less wrong than the Marshpees complain of.

Neither of the reverend gentlemen set up schools, and when the Marshpee children were put out to service, it was with the express understanding, as their parents all agree, that they should not be schooled. Many of those who held them in servitude, used them more like dogs than human beings, feeding them scantily, lodging them hard, and clothing them with rags. Such I believe has always been the case about Indian reservations. I had a sister who was slavishly used and half starved; and I have not forgotten, nor can I ever forget, the abuse I received myself. To keep Indian children from hearing the gospel preached in a land of gospel privileges, in order that they might do work unbefitting the Sabbath at home, has been the practice, almost without an exception, wherever I have had opportunity to observe. I think that the Indians ought to keep the twenty-fifth of December[5], and the fourth of July, as days of fasting and lamentation, and dress themselves, and their houses, and their cattle, in mourning weeds, and pray to Heaven for deliverance from their oppressions; for surely there is no joy in those days for the man of color.

Let the reader judge from what has been stated, what good the Marshpee Indians have derived from their two missionaries. I say boldly, none at all. On the contrary, they have been in the way of the good that would have been done by others. I say also that all the religious advantages the Indians have enjoyed, have come from other ministers, and members of other churches. I am equally sure that the money paid for our use, from the Williams Fund, has been a curse, and not a blessing to us. Had some good Christian minister come to the tribe with half the sum, there is no doubt that God would have made him an instrument to raise up a respectable Christian Society; whereas the fund has only served to build up the missionaries and the whites about the plantation. I am glad that it has done even this good; though it be to our enemies; for I am not of a spirit to envy the prosperity of others; I rejoice in it. But I sincerely think it is wrong in the whites to take the gospel from the Indians, as they do in Marshpee, by occupying their meeting-house, and receiving the benefit of the missionary fund. I mean that the people about Cotuet and Marshpee go to our house, and fill it, to our exclusion, without any charge; while the Indians are enforced by the laws which deprive them of the use of their own lands, to pay a heavy tax, from which they derive no benefit. Is not depriving them of all means of mental culture the worst of all robberies? Can it be wondered, that the Indians become more and more degraded? I presume all honest people will regret that such has been the case. It will be seen that both the missionaries and their white followers, imbibed all the prejudices of the day, and by disseminating them, hindered others from doing us good. This is no excuse, however, for the government of this Commonwealth, whose duty it was to see that its red children were not abused in this way. We greatly fear that our white fathers did not much care about their colored children in Marshpee. At any rate, it may be some satisfaction to the philanthropists in the country to know how liberal they have been to their poor dependants.

To begin--the Indians owe nothing to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, or to the inhabitants of New England generally, for religious instruction, excepting a single appropriation of four hundred dollars, made in 1816 or 1818, for repairing their Meeting-house. Four hundred dollars more were appropriated in 1831, for the purposes of erecting two school houses; but not one cent for a teacher.[6]

The way the Marshpees have supported a school hitherto, has been this. Some of them have lived abroad among the whites, and have learned to read and write, with perhaps some small smattering of arithmetic. On returning to the tribe, they have taught others what they knew themselves; receiving pay from those who had the means, and teaching the rest gratuitously. At the same time they have been compelled to support a preacher whom they did not wish to hear, and to pay, in one way or other, to the amount of four hundred dollars _per annum_ to white officers, for doing them injury and not good. Thus then, in one hundred and forty years they have paid fifty-six thousand dollars to the whites, out of their own funds, in obedience to the laws of the Commonwealth. In return, the whites have given them one thousand in labor and money. Truly the Commonwealth must make haste, or it will hardly be able to pay us the interest of our money. The principal we never expect to get.

Thus, though it is manifest that we have cost the government absolutely much less than nothing, we have been called State paupers, and as such treated. Those are strange paupers who maintain themselves, and pay large sums to others into the bargain. Heigho! it is a fine thing to be an Indian. One might almost as well be a slave.

To return to the proceedings of the court at Cotuet: When supper time was past, the Cotueter's were anxious to draw something out of me, by questioning. They said they knew more about the matter than I did; that I had gotten myself into difficulty, and that Mr. Fish was a good man, and had gained twenty members over to his church in twenty-five years. They might have added that these were infants, who became members merely by undergoing the rite of baptism. Perhaps they were very good members, when they grew up--perhaps not.

Mr. Fish, alluding to the charge that but eight or ten of the Indians heard him preach, stated, in his memorial to the Legislature, that more than twice ten were upon his Sabbath School list. That might be true; but it was no answer to the charge. There may well have been on his list the names of so many persons, who attended neither his meeting nor his school. Nor had he denied the statements of the Indians in the least. I said to the gentlemen who were rejoicing over my supposed downfall, that I was glad they had taken me into custody, as it would lead to an investigation of the whole ground in dispute. Mr. Ewer presently arrived; his bail was accepted, and I and my friends returned home.

On the seventh of July, I was again visited by the Hon. J.J. Fiske, who conversed freely with me on our religious affairs. He said it would be better for us to turn Congregationalists, as then we should probably be able to get assistance from the fund, I replied, that I cared little by what name I was called; for I was no sectarian, but could unite in the worship of God with all good Christians. It seemed to be the opinion of the Hon. J.J. Fiske, that it was wrong for the Rev. Mr. Fish to receive the salary he did, without attending to the concerns of the Indians.

On the sixth, the head men of the tribe held a meeting, and agreed to rescind the former meetings until the session of the Legislature, as the commissioner had fairly stated that whatever could be done for us, would be done by that honourable body. We could do no less than accept a promise coming from so high an authority, and await the leisure of our father, the Legislature, though he had neglected us and suffered us to be abused. Who could say but that he would uplift his voice and weep aloud, on hearing the story of our wrongs, as Joseph and his brethren did when they recognized each other. And indeed, though our tender parent proved a little hard-hearted at first, by and by there was a little relenting toward his poor suffering babes of the woods, as will be seen in the proper place. The following notice was drawn up accordingly:

Whereas, certain resolutions have been made by us, the
Marshpee Indians, in reference to our plantation, we do
hereby solemnly declare, upon the security of the Governor's
Counsel,[7] that we shall be righted; and that there shall be
a change of government, if necessary, and that the governor
has pledged himself to do right, and that the property sold
for money or otherwise disposed of, shall be refunded to us
again, and that justice shall be done. Now, in consideration
thereof, we do hereby guaranty to our white neighbours that
they shall not be molested in their lawful concerns upon our
plantation, provided that no white man meddles or interferes
in any way whatever in our lawful affairs; and that you may
understand that it is so, we say the resolutions are revoked,
and we will wait with pleasure the sitting of the Legislature.

Done by order of the Marshpee Tribe, July 6, 1833.

DANIEL AMOS, _President_.

ISRAEL AMOS, _Secretary_.

Soon after this, the Commissioner departed, and I saw him no more till the sitting of the General Court. About this time our affairs got into the public prints, and it was reported through the whole land that there were hostile movements among the Indians at Cape Cod, or Buzzard's Bay. All the editors were very willing to speak on the favorite topic of Indian wrongs; but very few of them said any thing about redress. On this head they were either silent or against us. Here and there was found one liberal and independent enough to speak in our behalf. Some of these articles shall be given, that it may be seen who were for or against our rights and privileges. It will be proper to state in the first place, however, that from July 4, to the sitting of the Court of Common Pleas, in September, there was little disturbance upon the plantation. We thought, from what we heard among the whites that they were inclined to spare no pains to frighten us; but we listened patiently and remained quiet, according to our promise.

In August, we had a four-day meeting, which was the means of much good. Twelve Indians were redeemed from sin, and during the eighteen months that I have known them, the power of God has been manifested in the conversion of some thirty. God forbid that I should glorify myself; I only mention the circumstance to show that the Marshpees are not incapable of improvement, as their enemies would have the world suppose. But, under these circumstances, is it not natural for the Indians to think that their missionaries have cared less for saving their souls than for filling their own pockets, and that their thousands have been expended on them to very small purpose? I do think that the result of this meeting was in no wise pleasing to our white enemies.

At harvest time the reapers cut their grain and carried it to their granaries. But they were under the control of their task masters. A dispute arose. A woman whose husband was absent, doing business upon the great waters, claimed a portion of the grain, while the overseers maintained that it belonged to them. She applied for assistance to one of the true proprietors, who, in the presence of five or six men who were with the overseer's team, unloaded it, and placed the grain where it ought to have been. I was present and happened to smile at this novel proceeding, which, I suppose was the cause of a prosecution that presently took place for trespass. My horse had bitten off five or six rye heads in a rye field, for which enormity his owner was obliged to pay ten dollars, though the actual damage was not to the value of six cents. I will not retort the petty malice which prompted this mean act of revenge, by mentioning names. I now proceed to mark out the state of public feeling, by some extracts from the newspapers. The following is from the New Bedford Press, of June 1, 1833:

MARSHPEE INDIANS.

The remnants of that race of men who once owned and inhabited
the forests and prairies of the Old Colony that have new
given place to large and populous villages and the busy hum
of _civilized_ man, are, it would seem, somewhat dissatisfied
with the manner in which they are governed by the State
authority. Communications illustrative of the condition of
the _Marshpee Indians_ in the County of Barnstable, have been
forwarded to us by the agent of the tribe, by which it appears
that they have been abused. Intelligence from other quarters
comes fraught with bitter complaint, and there can be
no manner of doubt that too ample room remains for the
improvement of their condition. The communications at hand
advise the Indians to stand out for their right to appoint
their own overseers, and do all business now especially done
by the State. That they ought to be allowed this privilege,
(if _privilege_ it may be called,) there is no question; but
there is a question, whether this is the first important step
to be taken. By a list of names which accompanies our advices,
it appears that very few are able to write their own names,
their mark being affixed instead; and in addition to this, we
are informed that there are many who cannot even read. With
this view of their condition the correct and efficient course
to be pursued would seem to be that of sending _Education
Missionaries_ among them, that in contending for their rights,
of which they say they are deprived, they may be enabled to
act understandingly.

This may serve to show that the Marshpees had long been dissatisfied with their government, and that very many complaints had been made; which will be illustrated by extracts from divers petitions, in another page. The next refers to the Marshpee trials, and is signed in a manner signifying that the writer speaks advisedly, and from knowledge.

_From the Barnstable Journal of July 18, 1833_.

Mr. Apes was arrested at the Marshpee Plantation on the 4th,
by order of the Executive, and required to give bond for his
good behaviour.

Mr. Apes now says, that this statement is not correct; that
the Governor has ordered no such thing, and that he never was
requested in all his life to give bond for his behavior.

Much has been said in and out of the papers about the Indians
in Marshpee. All that the Indians want in Marshpee is to enjoy
their rights without molestation. They have hurt or harmed no
one. They have only been searching out their rights, and in so
doing, exposed and uncovered, have thrown aside the mantle of
deception, that honest men might behold and see for themselves
their wrongs. The Indians could spread columns before the
world which would cause the hearts of good men to be sad, and
recoil at the conduct of their white brothers. All that Mr. A.
wishes is, that people would tell the truth.

A BEHOLDER.

With regard to this article, I have to say that it speaks the truth. If an honest white man could look into our private affairs and know what wrongs we have suffered, it would change his complexion to a hue redder than the Indian's. But the crimes committed against our race cannot be enumerated here below. They will each and all, however, be judged at the bar of God, and it must be the comfort of the poor and oppressed, who cry for justice and find it not, that there is one who sees and knows, and will do right. The next is from the Boston Daily Advocate, of July 12.

Rev. Mr. Apes, who has been conspicuous in the Marshpee
nullification, has, we learn, been taken and committed to jail
in Barnstable county; upon what process, we are not informed,
but we trust, for the honor of the State, that while our
mouths are yet full of bitterness against Georgian violence,
upon the Indians, we shall not imitate their example.

How true it is that men see the faults of others, rather than their own. If the good people of Massachusetts were as ready to do right as to have the Georgians do right, the Marshpee Indians might, perhaps, send a Representative to the Legislature. I hope the remark will give no offence. The next is from the same print, of July 15, 1833.

The Marshpee affairs, we are gratified to learn, are
more quiet than they have been. The Indians took forcible
possession of the Meeting-house the other day, and have
retained it ever since, but no farther act has been committed
on their part. They notified Mr. Fish that they had dismissed
him from their Parish, and also formally gave notice to the
overseers that their offices were at an end. Hon. J.J. Fiske,
of the Executive Council, has visited the Indians, by request
of the Governor, and has, we learn, discharged the duty in a
highly conciliatory and discreet manner. The Indians would
not at first consent to see him, but being satisfied of the
disposition of the Executive to listen to their grievances,
they met Mr. Fiske alone in the Meeting-house, where, by their
special request, the overseers also appeared. The Sheriff of
the county, Hon. John Reed, and others, were also present.
About one hundred of the Indians appeared, many of them armed
with guns. They were perfectly under the command of Apes, but
all of them conducted with propriety, and seemed peaceably
disposed. Mr. Fiske heard their complaints for one day. Their
demands were to have the overseers removed, and the books and
funds, now in the hands of the Treasurer, transferred to
them; and in fact to be left to the entire management of their
affairs. It was explained to them that the Governor had no
power to do this, if he were so disposed. That he could only
change their overseers, and lay their complaints before the
Legislature, who alone could alter the laws now governing the
plantation. To this, Apes would not agree, insisting that they
should be relieved of the guardianship of the State, and that
the Governor could do it at once.

He was questioned as to his own right to be on the plantation,
to which he does not belong, and finding all argument useless
with him, Apes was arrested in the assembly, (where he was
acting as moderator,) upon a warrant for assault and trespass,
in unloading the teams of Mr. Sampson. The Indians were
perfectly quiet, and Apes having been bound over for his
appearance to take his trial, in the sum of $200, he was
immediately bailed by Mr. Ewer, a Justice of the Peace, and
was not committed to jail, as has been represented. After his
arrest, he expressed some contrition, and admitted he had gone
too far. The ultimate understanding appears to be with the
Indians, that they will offer no further resistance, but wait
patiently for a redress of grievances, until the meeting of
the Legislature, when they confidently expect to have their
guardianship removed. As an evidence of their peaceable
disposition, "President" Amos, at the request of Mr. Fiske,
gave up the key of the Meeting-house, for Rev Mr. Fish to
occupy the pulpit, and asked as a favor, that the Indians
might occupy it half the time. The result of the mission
of Mr. Fiske, is therefore very favorable, and if a similar
course is pursued hereafter, there will be no further
difficulty with the tribe. They should be treated with
all possible lenity and kindness, for the honor of the
Commonwealth.

The Indians would not consent to see Mr. Fiske at first, because they did not like to meet their enemies off their own ground, and I presume they would not have consented to do so to this day. As to the Counsellor's meeting us alone, it was the especial direction of the Governor that he should hear the parties separately, because, supposing the government to be oppressive, it seemed to him that the Indians would be afraid to speak plainly in presence of their masters, or proffer their complaints. The Indians wished to do nothing in a corner; but rather to proceed with an open and manly spirit, that should show that they were unjustly accounted abject and willing slaves. As to my opinion of the powers of the Governor, I have already admitted that I was in error; for I am not a man skilled in legal subtleties. My reason for pressing our claims so strongly was, to make the way easy for my brethren, till something could be done for them. The Indians were requested to give up their own Meeting-house to a gentleman who did not come at their request, and to gather other people into it to suit his convenience. The Indians asked for their own house for only half the time, and even this was denied them. The law not bearing out their petition, they could only obtain it by force, and, finding this to be the case, they forbore.

The question is, how can a man do good among a people who do not respect him or desire his presence, and who refuse to hear him preach? Yet Harvard College has forced such an one on the Marshpees against their will, right or wrong.

I heard a white lady observe, that Mr. Fish was not a preacher for every one; as though he was not fit to preach to any but us poor ignorant Indians. Nevertheless, if any people need a talented, enterprising preacher, we are the very ones. Some may suppose Mr. Fish to be a Unitarian. He was, when he was first settled at Marshpee; but his opinions underwent a change soon after, and he became what is commonly called an orthordox Congregationalist. In order to be a good one, he ought to make one more change--a change of inclination, to force himself on poor Indians. One who has such an inclination cannot be a good member of any sect, or an honor to it. Such a person can be no ornament to any ecclesiastical body. I would not have it inferred from this that a breath of reproach is in my mind, or in those of my brethren against any denomination of Christians. We love all who love the Lord Jesus in sincerity.

I expressed no contrition because I thought I had acted morally wrong, or had asked any thing more than was right; but because I had mistaken the _law_, which in this case was a very different thing from justice.

The next article is from the Barnstable Journal, of July 25. It will serve to show that though the matter had been perfectly explained to the inhabitants of Barnstable County; yet it contained some of our worst enemies as well as best friends. Our enemies were those in office, and those under their influence. The majority believed the Indians to be wronged, and ought to have had redress; and these were unable to act in our behalf. Those who did act were either our enemies or persons who had no minds of their own, and were led by them in all they did. Many of them did, nevertheless, sympathise with the Indians, and pitied them when cast into prison, for all men can appreciate the blessing of liberty.

MARSHPEE INDIANS.

MESSRS. EDITORS,

We observed in one of your late papers, some editorial remarks
which breathed a spirit of candor and good will towards us,
and not of ridicule and sarcasm, like that of your neighbor,
the Patriot. Now Messrs. Editors, as our situation is but
little understood, and the minds of the people much agitated,
we feel a desire to lay before them some of the causes of the
late excitement. We have long been under guardians, placed
in authority over us, without our having any voice in the
selection, and, as we believe, not constitutional. Will the
good people of Massachusetts revert back to the days of their
fathers, when they were under the galling yoke of the mother
country? when they petitioned the government for a redress of
grievances, but in vain? At length they were determined to try
some other method; and when some English ships came to Boston,
laden with tea, they mustered their forces, unloaded and threw
it into the dock, and thereby laid the foundation of their
future independence, although it was in a terrible war, that
your fathers sealed with their blood a covenant made with
liberty. And now we ask the good people of Massachusetts, the
boasted cradle of independence, whom we have petitioned for a
redress of wrongs, more grievous than what your fathers had
to bear, and our petitioning was as fruitless as theirs, and
there was no other alternative but like theirs, to take our
stand, and as we have on our plantation but one harbor, and no
English ships of tea, for a substitute, we unloaded two wagons
loaded with our wood, without a wish to injure the owners of
the wagons. And now, good people of Massachusetts, when your
fathers dared to unfurl the banners of freedom amidst the
hostile fleets and armies of Great Britain, it was then that
Marshpee furnished them with some of her bravest men to fight
your battles. Yes, by the side of your fathers they fought
and bled, and now their blood cries to you from the ground to
restore that liberty so unjustly taken from us by their sons.

MARSHPEE.

The next article is from the Boston Daily Advocate. In the editorial remarks will be discerned the noble spirit of independence and love of right which are prominent characteristics of Mr. Hallett's character, and which induced him, throughout the controversy, to lend the aid of his columns to the poor and oppressed descendants of the people who welcomed his forefathers to their shores. He is not ungrateful for the kindness showed them in a time so remote. I think it my duty to say of him, that he has been fruitful of good works in behalf of all the oppressed. We Indians have tried his integrity and have found it sound metal. He gave us the aid of his extensive learning and undeniable talent, and carried our cause before the Legislature with no other end in view than the good of the Commonwealth and of the Marshpee tribe, and a strong desire to wipe from the character of his native State the foul blot of our continued wrongs. He never asked where his pay was to come from; but exposed the iniquities which had been transacted in the affairs of the Marshpee people, without hesitation, fear or favor, a course he has steadily pursued to this day. We acknowledge his doings as acts of pure benevolence toward us, and we say that the sons of the pilgrim fathers may well be proud of such a brother. Had others been only a little like him, we should have had no reason to complain; and we recommend him as an example, to all who may hereafter have dealings with Indians. Let them do as he has done, and they will be honored as he is. To be sure, it is no great matter to be loved and honored by poor Indians; but the good will of even a dog is better than his ill will. The rich man fared sumptuously every day, while the poor one was lying at his gate, feeding on the crumbs that fell from his table, and the dogs only had compassion on him. They both died; and we read that God sent a convoy of angels to bring the poor man safe home. The rich man doubtless had a splendid funeral; but we do not hear that he had any favor from his Maker. O, ye who despise Indians, merely because they are poor, ignorant, and copper-colored; do you not think that God will have respect unto them?

THE MARSHPEE INDIANS.

We have received a genuine communication from one of the
Marshpee Indians, and as we verily believe that tribe is in
many respects wronged by the whites, and neglected by their
legal guardians, the Legislature, we are desirous of giving
them a hearing, that justice may be done them, if it be a
possible matter to get such a thing as justice and good faith
from white men toward Indians. Undoubtedly some of their
supposed grievances are imaginary and much exaggerated, but
others are real, and tend greatly to depress them. We have
had an overflow of sensibility in this quarter toward the
Cherokees, and there is now an opportunity of showing to the
world whether the people of Massachusetts can exercise more
justice and less cupidity toward their own Indians than the
Georgians have toward the Cherokees. We earnestly exhort the
Marshpeeians to abstain from all acts of violence, and to rely
with full confidence upon the next Legislature for redress.
That body has heretofore treated their claims too lightly,
but there is a growing disposition to hear and relieve their
grievances. A memorial from the tribe, setting forth the
wrongs of which they complain, would unquestionably receive
prompt attention. The laws by which they are exposed to the
cupidity of their white neighbors, are extremely defective,
and require a thorough reform. Our correspondent, who we
believe speaks the sentiments of the tribe, shall be heard for
himself, and we hold our columns free to publish any facts,
on either side of this question, which may be offered to the
public.

"MARSHPEE, AUG. 5, 1833.

MR. HALLETT,

_Dear Sir_--With regret I say that your white brethren still
think it a privilege to impose upon us here. The men upon
our plantation were gathering their rye harvest, and the poor
women whose husbands were at sea, who had let out their land,
confidently expected to have their share, but it was taken
from them by unjust men, and not so much as a spear of it left
to sustain them, or even the promise of help or aid in any
way; it was not taken for debt and no one knows for what. The
overseers have now become displeased, and choose at this time
to use their great power. I hope we shall not have to call
upon the State to protect us, but if we are imposed upon in
this manner, we believe we shall. And while we are willing
to be still and peaceable, we think that those of our white
friends, with the light they possess, ought to show as much
of the spirit of kindness as poor ignorant Indians. The
Legislature has bound the poor Indians as they have. The
Indians would propose one thing. We have some white men here
who will smuggle rum, and sell it to the Indians, and as they
have no license, they ought to be stopped. We are happy to say
that many of our Indians are temperate, but we wish them
all to be, and we want some way to have a stop put to these
things, for these white men are ten times worse than any
of the Indians. I might name a Fuller, a Chadwick, and a
Richardson; we really wish that the honorable Legislature
would place guardians over them, to keep them from wasting our
property in this way. While I was absent, there was a man
that sued me for trespass, and tried the case without my
information. What kind of law is this? I had the liberty of
baiting my horse in a field. A man had rye in a field he did
not hire, but took it upon shares. My horse got in his rye,
but six cents would pay all the damage. But the action is not
damage, but trespass, and that done unknown to me.

It is impossible to give you the details of wrongs imposed
upon the Indians. We are to be accused by our enemies, tried
by them, and condemned by them. We can get redress no where,
unless we trouble the government all the while, and that we
are delicate to do.

Now we believe that some of these things published abroad
would do good, and we should have more peace.

Yours, most obediently."

We have received another communication from Marshpee, upon the
same subject.

"Having seen several articles in your paper, relating to
the Marshpee tribe, we perceive that your paper is free, not
muzzled. Marshpee Indians speak for themselves. It is not to
be doubted but that the public would like to hear the Indians
speak for themselves. It has been represented that the Indians
were troublesome, and war-like movements were among us. If to
make an inquiry into our rights by us, is war-like, so it is.
Otherwise than this we know nothing about it, and we know of
none that has a disposition to shed blood. It is true that
the day the Hon. J.J. Fiske, of the Governor's Council,
was present with us, in a council at the meeting-house, the
Indians, three in number, were out in the morning, hunting
deer, and when they came to the meeting-house, they had their
business to attend to, and could not conveniently go four or
five miles to put up their muskets, neither did we see the
propriety of their so doing. We believe that a just man would
not have trembled at an old rusty musket.

We are hard to believe, that any people, served as we have
been here, would more kindly submit to it, than we have. We
think now we have submitted long enough, and we thought it no
crime to look, or ask after our rights. But we found our
white neighbors had thrown their chains of interest around our
principal stock, so much so that we began to think they soon
would drag both interest and principal all away. And no wonder
they began to cry out, when they saw that the Indians were
likely to unhook their chains, and break their hold. We
believe white men had more war in their hearts than any of the
Indians.

We are willing to hint a few things. We thought white men
would do well, that they were trusty. We doubt not but what
they be among themselves; but we scarcely believe that they
care much for the poor Indians, any further than what they can
get out of them. It is true we have land in Marshpee. We can
stay upon it; but we have had to pay one dollar per cord, to
the overseers, for our own wood, and take it or carry it
just where these men said. Our meadows were taken from us and
rented out to white people, our pastures also. About twelve
hundred cords of our wood has been cut the last year, and we
judge the minister has cut one hundred and fifty cords for his
share. And in a word, they did as they pleased. The poor could
get a pound of meat, or a half peck of corn, and one quart of
molasses for two weeks. Much might be said, but we forbear.
It is true that we have had a preacher, but we do not believe
that he cares any thing about us. Neither had we any hand in
his settlement over us. To be sure, he likes to stay with us,
but we think it is because he gets so much good pay. But five
or six adult persons attend his preaching, there being _not
one Indian male_ belonging to his church. This gentleman has
cut much wood, to the dissatisfaction of the Indians; and it
is true they have passed resolutions that they will not hear
him preach. Yet he wants to stay with us.

Interest men tremble and threaten, but we fear not, and
sincerely hope they will soon tremble before God, and prepare
to meet their Judge, who will do right, and who will have no
regard for skins or color.

THINK OF THE INDIANS.

We turn from this judicious and liberal article, to one that is less favorable. It is from the Barnstable Journal, of August 22, 1833.

THE INDIANS.

We learn from South Sandwich that the Indians, constituting
the Marshpee tribe, intend to petition at the sitting of the
next Legislature, for a redress of grievances, and a revision
of the code of laws by which they are governed. The recent
revolt among them, and the measures adopted to make known
their situation and treatment, by themselves, and by those who
have avowed their friendship toward them, (its validity time
will determine,) gave rise to considerable excitement. An
inquiry into the state of affairs was instituted, which
terminated, as far as we have been able to learn, to the
satisfaction of those employed in the investigation, that
some of the evils under which they are labouring are real,
and rendered so by the laws of the Commonwealth, but many
imaginary. We do not doubt that the state of society among
them is low and degraded, comparatively speaking, but what
contributes to keep them in this situation we are unable to
say, unless it be, that the plantation has been a resort of
the vagrant, the indolent, and those whom refined society
would not allow among them. If this is the case, and we
believe it has been, something should be done, either among
the Indians, or by the Legislature, to remedy the evil.
We have understood also, that certain individuals, located
contiguous to the plantation, retail ardent spirits to them
in quantities as large as they are able to pay for. If this be
the fact, such men should be ferreted out, and in justice to
the Indians, to the community about them, and to the laws of
the land, they should be made to suffer, by being exhibited to
public derision, and by the penalty of the act prohibiting
the retail of spirits. If they have not the power, and no one
feels willing to go forward in shutting up these poisonous
springs, give them the power, and if they do not exercise it,
let them suffer.

Mr. Apes is among them, and attended the "Four Days Meeting,"
held during the present month, which we are told was managed
with good order and regularity.

The writer here says that the Indians are vile and degraded; and admits that they can be improved. He gives no explanation of the causes of their degradation. If the reader will take the trouble to examine the laws regarding the Marshpees, he will see those causes of the inevitable and melancholy effect, and, I am sure, will come to the conclusion that any people living under them must necessarily be degraded. The Journal, however, does us the small justice to admit, that we are not so degraded but that we can hold a meeting of four days duration, with propriety and moderation. What, then, might we not do, were proper pains taken to educate us.

The next two extracts are from the Boston Advocate of September 10 and 11, 1833.

THE MARSHPEE INDIANS.

We are mortified for the honor of the State, to learn from
Barnstable County, that the Court of Common Pleas and Sessions
there, (Judge Cummins,) have tried and convicted William Apes
and six Indiana of the Marshpee tribe, upon charges connected
with the efforts of the Indiana to obtain justice from their
white masters. Apes is very popular with the Indians, and
this persecution of him, which at least was unnecessary, will
inflame them the more.

The papers say the conviction was for _riot_. This cannot
be, for there was no riot, and no riot act read. Apes and
his associates prevented a man from carrying wood off the
plantation. They were, perhaps, wrong in doing so, but the
law which takes this wood from the Indian proprietors, is as
unjust and unconstitutional as the Georgia laws, that take the
gold mines from the Cherokees. Could the question of property
have been tried, the act of stopping their own wood, by the
Indians, could not have been made even trespass, much less
riot. It is said that Apes and the rest were indicted under
some obsolete law, making it a misdemeanor to conspire against
the laws. We have looked for such an act, but cannot find it
in the Statute Book.

At any rate, law or no law, the Indians were indicted and
convicted. They were tried by their opponents, and it would be
impossible to get justice done them in Barnstable County. An
impartial jury could not be found there. It is the interest of
too many to keep the Indians degraded. We think the conviction
of these Indians is an act of cruelty and oppression,
disgraceful to the Commonwealth. The Marshpee Indians are
wronged and oppressed by our laws, nearly as much as ever the
Cherokees were by the Georgians. But it is useless to call for
the exercise of philanthropy at _home_. It is all expended
_abroad_.

An attempt was made to indict some of the white harpies, who
are selling rum to the Indians, without license. Those men got
clear, and are still suffered to prey on the poor Indians;
but to stop a load of wood, which in reality belonged to the
Indians themselves, was an outrage which the Court were ready
enough to punish! Is it creditable to let the _white_ spiders
break through the laws, while we catch and crush the poor
Indian flies?

THE INDIANS.

William Apes and the Marshpee Indians, who were tried before
the Court of Common Pleas, in Barnstable County, were ably
defended by Mr. Sumner, of this city. Apes was sentenced by
Judge Cummings, to thirty days imprisonment in the common
jail. One other was sentenced to ten days imprisonment, and
the rest were not tried. When the sentence was pronounced,
several Indians who were present, gave indications of
strong excitement at what they conceive to be a tyrannical
persecution. It is much to be feared, that this unnecessary
and apparently vindictive course, pursued by the overseers
and their friends, after the Indians had become quiet, and
resolved to wait patiently for redress from the Legislature,
will inflame them to acts of violence, and give the whites,
who wish to oppress them, further advantages over them.

We have visited the greater part of the tribe recently, in
their own dwellings, and we know how strongly and unanimously
they feel upon the subject of what they really believe to be,
their slavery to the overseers. If, therefore, the course we
have pursued, and mean to pursue, in laying their claims to
justice before the public, entitles us to be listened to as
a friend, we beg them to abstain from all acts which violate
even the unjust and hard laws by which they are now held
in bondage. Resistance will furnish their enemies with the
strongest weapons against them, and discourage their friends.
Let them endure patiently, till the next Legislature meets,
and if there is any virtue or honesty in our public men, the
rights of the Marshpee Indians will be secured.

In our last article we said that it was impossible for the
Indians to have an impartial jury in Barnstable. We did not
mean that this arose from all the whites being opposed to
the Indians. They have many friends in Barnstable County, who
think them deeply injured, and who have no interest in keeping
them degraded, in order to enjoy the privileges which too many
whites now have, at the expense of the tribe. We alluded to
the influences that would be used upon the jury, as in
the case of Apes, where we learn, that three individuals,
favorable to the Indians, but having formed no opinion in that
case, were excluded from the regular jury. One of them was set
aside, for saying he thought the Indians ought to be free. We
are still at a loss to know under what law these Indians were
found guilty of riot, in preventing their own wood from
being carried off their own land. Where are all our Cherokee
philanthropists, at this time?