- Transcription
Octob. 5th. 1757
We for our Selves and all the Indians of the Catawba Nation Do return you our hearty thanks for the good Paper you made & sent to us by Commissioners Brown & Caswell and for granting us a Fort agreeable to our request to Protect our Wives & Children when we go to Wares with our Brothers the English against our Enemys the French and their funds you all so have our thanks & good wishes for the powder Led and other goods you have sent us and for the great care you have for us and our Childeren. We desire you’l make a Paper to King George our great father over the water and let him know how much wee are his loving Children and that wee have the hatchet strong & fast in our hands against the French and we are resolved to die with our Brothers the English and all goin to the ground together Wee hope that you'l not for gett to send us smiths and other tradsmen to be teach our Children and make them fear and love god as you do that wee may all be Loving Brothers and one People Wee have made a Paper with strong talk and have sent it to the Governor of South Carolina to let him know there is a Fort Building agreeable to our desire and wee think it greatly for our preservation and wee approve much of it. If he says any more against it we are determind to go to Charles Town and tell him the Fort shall and must be erected Wee wonder what is matter are not all the Governors under King George our great Father Brothers whats the matter that one Governor wants to hinder another from Building a Fort if it was the French that was to com here to Build one wee should make no wonder at it but think him Straight but now we think him not Straight and his talk is crucket and not good Wee therefore desire that youl Send us our Brother Brown immediately to finish the Fort and that you will not for the future pay any regard so what any Body says in regard to this affair.
Wee desire that youl send us the men that is to gard [You Town] our Wives & Children as soon as possible then wee can be at all times ready to go to ware when you think proper to call upon us Wee have though proper to remind you of your Promis in regards to sending us guns & some other necessarys But his is a matter that wee do submit to your own goodness what induce us to make mentiond of this is because wee have heard that you have provided for us if so wee desire you’l send what ever it is by our Brother Brown when he coms up to finish the Fort. Wee have been inform'd by Col. Polly and many People in the South Goverment that you would never gives us any present and advised us not to let you Build the Fort that your talk was crochet and not good But wee now find them to be Liyers and shall never believe them here after Here is many People who make Whiskey and brings in the Nation and sells it to the Indians by which meanes they gett Drunk and do great damag[e] to whole People and there own Wee no desire you‘l make a strong Paper to put a stop to this Bad Practis if not wee shall be obligd to punish these White People our Selves which we are not fond of—
If the King Hagler had been well wee should have gon down to have Seen you and to confirm this talk and another great strong & straight talk wee have made in another Paper about the Fort which wee herewith send you Wee hope the Chain of friendship that is now betwixt us will be allways kept clean & be right wee have no more but we are your Loving Brothers and friends
Capt. Prence [his mark] Hueroy
Capt. [his mark] Harris
Capt. [his mark] Goodwill
Capt. [his mark] Thompson
Capt. [his mark] Sugariemy
Capt. [his mark] Bullin
Capt. [his mark] Canty
Capt. [his mark] Johny
Capt. [his mark] Thomson
Col. [his mark] Checkers
Matthew Toole
