"This war was ostensibly begun to assert the rights of each nation to the territory west of the mountains, but it was, in fact, a contest for supremacy throughout all the North American dominions. It began amidst the mountainpasses of the Alleganies; it ended on the Plains of Abraham. The struggle was not of long duration, but it was effectual, and afforded a convincing proof of the valor and prowess of the English soldiers, and their superiority over their French opponents. Nor in this trial of arms are we to obliterate the memory of the services which the old English colonists of America rendered to their ancestors in their endeavors to destroy French domination in this country. How far they were repaid fer

Hart says:

The treaty ratified at Paris-England possessor of the Colonies on the Atlantic, Canada and part of Louisana. The destruction of life now became the between the authorities of our own gov. employment of the living, and conspicu- ernment and Spain; for, by the treaty of ous among the annals of this period are 1762, Great Britain ceded East Florida, the records of the gallant deeds of Wolfe and guaranteed West Florida to the crown and his brave companions, the destruction of Spain. of Fort Duquesne, Washington's march through the Chestnut Ridge and the hazardous defence of Lewis and Bullitt, the fall of Montcalm, one of the bravest and noblest Frenehman of the age, before British bayonets at Quebec, the surrender of Montreal and the massacre of Michilimackinac the details of these, time and space forbid our repeating.

"In the phraseology of diplomatists, nothing could have been more uncertain than the limits assigned by the treaty of 1763. The right of navigating the Mississippi was for a long time a disputed point between England and Spain, and the space of twelve years was consumed in negotiating upon that and other subjects of boundary. It appears strange, that in the furthest recesses of the forest,

where settlements originated out of that spirit of enterprise and industry which animated the bosoms of the early pioneers, their interests should have been so seriously affected by the wily intrigues of skilful diplomatists, but so it

*

On the 16th of February, 1762, a treaty was ratified at Paris by virtue of which England became possessor, not only of the colonies on the Atlantic, but the Canadas and that part of Louisiana lying east was; and we have seen that even the case of of the Mississippi, excepting the town of Langlade, the English government had to New-Orleans and the adjacent territory. *Etherington, a British major, who was in possession of In consideration of Havana and a greater Fort Mackinac, April, 1768, gave authority to the Langlade part of Cuba, which the British had conquered, they, by the same treaty, acquired permission in 1782. Founded under the auspices of the the Floridas from Spain. treaty of the same date, the country lying settlement of the now populous State of Wisconsin, became

By a secret

West of the Mississippi, and which was designated by the general appellation of Louisiana, was ceded by France to Spain.*

family, of French descent, to make their permanent residence at Green Bay. Lieutenant Governor Sinclair repeated this

French government, encouraged and sanctioned by the rigor. ous and arbitrary power of the British crown, this, an infant

so firmly rooted that to this day the descendants of Sieur Augustin de Langlade, who became the principal proprietor of

the post of Green Bay in 1750, are living there; and the succeeding generations have preserved uncorrupted the pol

ished manners and pure idiom of their native tongue, brought

hither from the French court by their educated and high

minded ancestor.

It will be seen that this treaty, vague and ambiguous in its terms, gave rise to constant collisions between the subjects Chien, which, with that of Green Bay, dates its rise from the

of the European governments, and was the source of almost endless discussions

We mention in this connection the settlement of Prairie du

middle of the eighteenth century, and the other settlements of Wisconsin which we have incidentally or otherwise referre to, all of which increased in wealth and population, and now some of these are the most prominent locations in the State. Minnesota, too, the youngest member of our Confederacy, was the wonted field of the pale-face, who wandered over its fertile plains in quest of the prey which had long been that of the red man, and her earliest settlements date as far back as 1750, a few years previous to which time her soil was first broken by L'Huiller on the banks of the Mankato, who with the

*The terms of this secret treaty have never been made known. On the third day of the preceding November, France ceded to Spain all her territories on the west side of the river, including the island and town of New-Orleans, which cession was accepted by the latter power pickaxe and spade undertook to find vast beds of copper which on the 13th of the same month.-Hart's History.he imagined were lying under her surface. Captain Jona

'O'Reilly takes possession of the Colony-The French King expresses a desire for the prosperity of the inhabitants.

grant permission to the subject of a foreign government to take up his abode on the shores of Lake Superior. The right of occupation, acquired after long years of toil and hardship, was by them considered subordinate to that which had been gained in war and on the batitle field.

"Have we not reason to be thankful for the enlightened spirit and policy of our own free institutions which guaranteed to the stranger as well as to the native the protection of our laws and government? Yet such was the policy pursued by the European government in many periods of their political existence, that aliens were not allowed to abide in the country without the special permission of the crown. Such, however, does not seem to have been the case under the cession of Louisiana to Spain. It will be remembered that this secret treaty was not the result of any warlike operations between the two governments, and thus the Catholics inhabitants of Louisiana seemed to be the objects of the special care, and solicitude of the French monarch.'

forms and usages of the Colony; that the in-
habitants would be maintained and preserved in
their estates, which had been granted to them by
the Governors and Directors of the Colony, and
that finally, all these grants, though not con-
firmed by the French authorities, would be con--
firmed by his Catholic Majesty.

Although this letter was dated April, 1764,
cised any permanent jurisdiction over the ter-
it was not until the year 1768 that Spain exer-
ritory thus acquired by her.

"In the year 1766, Don Ulloa arived with a detachment of Spanish troops, and demanded possession of M. Aubey, the succeessor of D'Abbadie, who was deceased. This functionary, aided by the people, opposed the design of Spain. They complained that a transfer without their consent was unjust, and, in a moment of irritation, resorted to their arms, and obliged the Spaniards to measure their steps to Havana."

On the 17th of August, O'Reilly arrived fron the East and took possession of the Colony without a show of resistance. By his authority six of the malcontents, who had been prominent in the measures of 1766, were immediately hung, and six more were doomed to the dungeons of Cuba.

"In a letter signed by the French King, dated April 21st 1764, addressed to M. D'Abbadie, Director-General and Commandant of Louisiana, he informs him of the treaty of cession, and directs him to give up to the officers of Spain the country and colony of Louisiana, together with the city of New-Orleans' and all the military posts. He expressed a desire for the prosperity and peace of the inhabitants of The French established their settlethe Colony and his confidence in the affection ments in Upper Louisiana, on the west. and friendship of the king of Spain, He at branch of the Mississippi in 1766, one the same time declared his expectation that of which was the foundation of the presthe ecclesiastical and religious bodies, who had the care of the parishes and missions, would ent city of St. Louis; these were subcontinue to exercise their functions; that thejected to Spanish rule in 1770. Superior Council and ordinary Judges would continue to administer according to the laws,

than Carver also explored this country in 1766, and claimed

a settlement from a gift which he pretends to have received

from the Indians; and among those of the present century

whom we are to regard as pioneers in promoting the early and rapid settlement, and who are prominent among the

early explorers of this territory, stand the names of Cass and Schoolcraft, Nicolet, Fremont and Long.

For years succeeding the signing of the secret treaty, the government of Spain in the Southwest presents a series of panoramic changes, interesting but painful to contemplate, and which fall just beyond the scope of our present undertaking.

HISTORY OF OGLE COUNTY.

15

Major Clark's treaty with Pontiac-Pontiac's deception-Indians instructed in the arts of European Warfare. · in the North, crying, Why, says theGreat Spirit, do you suffer these dogs in red clothing to enter your country and take the land I have giv en you? Drive them from it; drive them. When you are in distress, I will help you. That voice was heard, but not by the whites. The unsuspecting traders journeyed from village to village, the soldiers in the forts shrunk from the sun of early summer, and dozed away the days; the frontier settler, singing in fancied security, sowed his crop, or, watching the sun

Balanced, as it were, between the two great powers of Europe in the West, the Indian tribes of this country had been flattered and coaxed, hired and befriended by both parties, each in the hope of gaining a predominance of power by inducing them to become its allies; and when, for a passing period, either had been more successful, it was not slow to place in their hands European implements of warfare, and to instruct them in European arts of destruction. When, therefore,, Great Britain was the only power to be met in the defence of their sacred hunting grounds, and when they could clearly perceive that, should that power consult its own best interests, the final extermination of their race must be inevitable, they were prepared to strike with effect the blow, which, should it be successful, would leave to them the boundless fields which the Great Spirit had given them. Illy did they count the cost of measuring arms with the British Lion.

Pontiac, an Indian Chief, whose name will ever stand among those of Logan, Blackhawk, Tecumseh, Philip and the like, in the archives of American history, succeeded, after the peace of 1763, in banding against the common foe, the Hurons, the Ottawas, the Chippewas and the Pottawatomies of the North, and the Shawnees, the Sakies, the Cherokees and several other prominent nations of the South, to extirpate from the land, whether by fair or foul means, these their enemies who had made such startling in. roads upon t're interior.

set through the girdled trees, mused upon one more peaceful harvest, and told his children of the horrors of the ten years' war; now, thank God! over. From the Alleganies to the Mississippi the trees had leaved, and all was calm life and joy. But through that country, even then, bands of sullen red men were journeying from the central valleys to the lakes and the eastern hills. Bands of Chippewas gathered about Michilimackinac. Ottawas filled the woods near Detroit. The Maumee post, Presque Isle, Niagara, Pitt, Ligednier, and every English fort was hemmed in by mingled tribes, who felt that the great battle drew nigh which was to determine their fate,

and the possession of their noble lands. At last the day came. The traders everywhere were seized, their goods taken from them, andi more than one hundred of them put to death.. Nine British forts yielded instantly, and the

their hands,' the blood of many a Briton. savages drank, 'scooped up in the hollow of The border streams of Pennsylvania and Virginia ran red again. We hear,' says a letter from Fort Pitt, 'of scalping every hour.' In Western Virginia, twenty thousand people were driven from their homes."

As speedily as possible, a force was sent to the West under Maj. George Rogers Clark, and with him Pontiac signed a treaty of peace, which, however, on his part, was only an act of deception. Despite his tricks and traps, the three most prominent forts of the West were unconquered

The Indians sue for Peace-Pontiac killed at the "Great Council"-His Son's Address to the Authorities of Virginia.

in the fall of 1763; old animositics among the Indians revived; gradually their ranks became disjointed and broken, and Pontiac, with a few followers, was incapable of completing the task so courageously began. The British government, having taken conciliatory steps towards those whom she acknowledged, had, in many cases been defrauded of their rights, a treaty of peace was concluded at Detroit, on the 21st of August, 1764, when more than twenty tribes were present, all of whom sued for peace. Subsequently very little of importance was effected by hostile Indians under the great Chief, while treaties were being made through the whole Northwest by which peace was being secured.

Your reception proves his falsehood, and that my fears were groundless. Truth and him have been a long time enemies. My father and many of my chiefs have lately tasted the bitterness of death.

The memory of this misfortune almost, destroys my quality of man in filling my eyes with tears. Your sensible compassion has relieved my heart of this heavy burden, and the remembrance will be transmitted to the remotest posterity. Fathers, I rejoice at what I have just now heard, and I shall faithfully re late it to my nation. If for the future you wish to speak with me, I shall return with pleasure, and I thank you for my present invitation. The particular friendship which you expressed toward me, and the gun which you have given me for the care I took of your young friend Field, exact my most heartfelt gratitude. I feel that I did nothing but my duty.

He who simply does his duty merits no praise. If any one of your nation should visit mine, either from curiosity or on business, or should be involuntarily thrust among us by the strong hand of the conqueror, he will ever meet the same reception which your brother received. You have assured me that if my nations hould visit yours, they ‘will

Pontiac was killed by a Kaskaskian Indian while in the act of rallying his dismembered army at a "Great Council." At the beginning of the difficulties between the Colonies and the mother country, Shegenata, the sou of Pontiac, who in his youth had saved the life of a young Virginian who had wandered in the woods, and had lost his way, notwith-be welcome. My fears have ceased. I have standing the endeavors of Hamilton, the Governor of Detroit, to frighten him from his purpose by telling him that only assassination would await him, appeared before the Virginia deputies, where, after reciving many presents and warm professions of friendship, he addresssed them

as follows:

“Fathers, after the insinuations of the Com. mandent of Detroit, I accepted your invitation with distrust, and measured my route with trembling feet towards this 'Council of Fire'*

*A Council where he had come to light the calumnet of peace.

no longer any doubts. I will recommend our young men to visit yours and make their acquaintance. Fathers, what has passed this day is too profoundly engraved on my heart for time over to efface it. predict that the sun's eays of this day of peace will warm the children of our children, and will protect them against the the tempests of misfortune. As a guarantee of what I say, I present you my right hand-this hand, which has never been given without the heart consented, which has never shed human blood in peace, nor spared an enemy in war; and I assure you of my friendship with a tongue which has never jested with truth, since I have been of that age to know that falsehood is a crime."