o visited Fort Pitt during the
troubled lull in frontier war which succeeded the news of the peace of
1783. His speeches showed, as his deeds had already shown, in a high
degree, that loftiness of courage, and stern, uncomplaining acceptance
of the decrees of a hostile fate, which so often ennobled the otherwise
gloomy and repellent traits of the Indian character. He raised no plaint
over what had befallen his race; "the Great Spirit above directs us so
that whatever hath been said or done must be good and right," he said in
a spirit of strange fatalism well known to certain creeds, both
Christian and heathen. He was careful to dwell on the fact that in
addressing the representatives of "the Great Council who watch the
Thirteen Fires and keep them bright," he was anxious only to ward off
woe from the women and little ones of his people and was defiantly
indifferent to what might personally be before him. "As for me my life
is short, 't is already sold to the Great King over the water," he said.
But it soon appeared that the British agents had deceived him, telling
him that the peace was a mere temporary truce, and keeping concealed the
fact that under the treaty the British had ceded to the Americans all
rights over the Iroquois and western Indians, and over their land. Great
was his indignation when the actual text of the treaty was read him, and
he discovered the double-dealing of his far-off royal paymaster. In
commenting on it he showed that, like the rest of his race, he had been
much impressed by the striking uniforms of the British officers. He
evidently took it for granted that the head of these officers must own a
yet more striking uniform; and treachery seemed doubly odious in one who
possessed so much. "I assisted the great King," he said, "I fought his
battles, while he sat quietly in his forts; nor did I ever suspect that
so great a person, one too who wore a red coat sufficient of itself to
tempt one, could be guilty of such glaring falsehood." [Footnote: State
Dept. MSS., No. 56, March 7, 1786, p. 345, also p. 395.] After this
Cornplanter remained on good terms with the Americans and helped to keep
the Iroquois from joining openly in the war. The western tribes taunted
them because of this attitude. They sent them word in the fall of 1785
that once the Six Nations were a great people, but that now they had let
the Long Knife throw them; but that the western Indians would set them
on their feet again if they