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Colonial and State Records of North Carolina
Talk by the Cherokee Nation to Samuel Johnston
Cherokee Indian Nation
February 16, 1789
Volume 21, Pages 530-532

A GRAND TALK HELD THE 16TH OF FEBRUARY, 1789, ON THE WATERS OF COOSO RIVER, AT A TOWN CALLED COOSOWATHEE, BEING PRESENT ALL THE CHIEFS OF THE WARRIORS BELONGING TO THE CHEROKEE INDIANS. A TALK FROM HIS EXCELLENCY SAMUEL JOHNSTON, ESQR., GOVERNOR OF NORTH CAROLINA, WAS LAID BEFORE THEM BY MR. ALEX. DROMGOOLE & FULLY EXPLAINED TO THEM, IN ANSWER TO WHICH THEY ADDRESSED THE FOLLOWING TALK:

Friend & Brother:

Mr. Alexander Dromgoole, our Beloved Brother, arrived safe to our Land with your Talks, which gives us great satisfaction to hear

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from you. We then sent all through the Nation to collect the Head Men & Warriors to hear your Talks. Your Talk was so good that young and Old rejoiced at it. What you said about War we are sure it is true, and for our parts we can assure you we never wanted War with our Brothers the White People, but were totally driven into it contrary to our own intentions by some bad people on the Western Waters.

But Mr. Dromgoole has fully explained to us your good Intentions towards our Nation, and what he says we faithfully depend on. We have been at a loss for a long time for somebody to come into our Land to do something for us. You tell me you have ordered your people to lay down the Hatchet and you may depend I have done the same.

Now Brother, I hope the Great Spirit above will hear both our Talks, and that he will do justice on both sides; you write your wish to Treat with us, which we have all agreed to do, and as we have all agreed to lay still till the grand Talk is held, I expect you will stop your bad people on the Western Waters from coming into our Towns, or disturbing us any more.

It is surprising to me, that you can’t keep them from killing us, and I hope will do everything in your power to keep these bad people from us, and from encroaching on our hunting Grounds by these means. I hope a lasting peace will be concluded. It will give me pleasure to see our children raised in Peace together as we ought to do, if things could be compleated for us with respect to our Lands, we should be very glad to return to our old Town Conecnee.

You mention to us that you wish to treat with us at French Broad River, but our People do not wish to Treat there. Our desire is all to treat at Seneca, where the last Treaty was held between our people and the Commissioners. When everything is ready for a Treaty, you may write to us and let us know. I hope that you will have provisions enough for us so that we may not be hungry. We were informed by the Proclamation of Congress that all the White people would be removed off our Hunting Grounds and we find that they are very slow about it. When they get a little scared we find they run off from their Houses, but as soon as we return they come back again. We set out last fall in Company with our Brothers, the Creeks, in order to lay waste and burn the Houses of all those people settled on our Hunting Grounds, but hearing the good Talks of Congress we did

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nothing but take one Station, which we thought would answer in satisfaction for our beloved Brethren killed in that Quarter, and our beloved Warriors took pity to see the white people killed, and desire all our young Warriors to return home and sit down to see if Congress would remove them, which we all expect will be done soon and in consequence of this we have all layed down the Hatchet.

Now this is our beloved Womens’ Talk. They say they have heard your good Talks and they hope to live at Home in their Houses in Satisfaction, and they have told their Warriors to be at peace from this time that they may raise their children in happiness.

JAMES CAREY, LINGUIST.