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To-mo-chi-chi pledged his unwavering friendship for the whites, and gave his influence to Oglethorpe in bringing about a general convention of the heads of the confederacy. That convention assembled at Savannah late in May, 1733, and was attended by fifty chiefs representing eight tribes of the Muskogee or Creek nation.

Through an interpreter, Oglethorpe addressed the assembled chiefs. He represented the power and wealth of the English Government, and dwelt on the advantages to be derived from an alliance with them. When the governor ceased speaking, Tomo-chi-chi, the venerable chief, on behalf of the Creek warriors cordially assented to what had been proposed. In conclusion he said:

"I was a banished man. I came here, poor and helpless, to look for lands near the tombs of my ancestors, and the trustees sent people here. I feared you would drive us away, for we were weak and wanted corn; but you confirmed our land to us, gave us food and instructed our children.” Then, giving Governor Oglethorpe a buffalo skin, on the inside of which were delineated the head and features of an eagle, he added: "Here is a little present. I give you the skin of a buffalo adorned with the head and feathers of an eagle, which I desire you to accept, because the eagle is the emblem of speed and the buffalo of strength.

The English are as swift as the bird, and as strong as the beast; since, like the former, they flew over vast seas to the uttermost parts of the earth, and, like the latter, they are so strong that nothing can withstand them. The feathers of the eagle are soft, and signify love; the buffalo's skin is warm, and signifies protection; therefore I hope the English will love and protect our little families."

A treaty was made, by which all the unoccupied lands within the defined boundaries were assigned to the English, which treaty was confirmed by the trustees on October 18, 1733. The colony of Georgia, fostered and cared for by South Carolinia as a bulwark between that colony and the hostile Spaniards of Florida, early began to thrive. Almost one of the first acts of the law-making powers of Georgia was to prohibit the drinking of rum.

In the spring of 1734, Oglethorpe went to England, leaving the colony in the care of others. He invited the old Creek monarch To-mo-chi-chi, with his queen, See-naw-ki, their adopted son and nephew, Too-na-ho-wi and five other chiefs to accompany him, which invitation they accepted. The barbarians were as much objects of curiosity in Europe as were the first savages taken by Columbus to the court of Spain. They were presented to the king and were entertained by his highness, and the Prince of Wales gave Too-na-ho-wi a gold watch,

with an injunction to call upon Jesus Christ every morning, when he looked at it.

Oglethorpe tarried over a year and a half in England, returning in the year 1736. He brought with him several cannon and one hundred and fifty Scotch Highlanders, who were well skilled in military art, and who constituted the first army in Georgia during its early struggles.

More important perhaps than soldiers and cannon were two passengers on that ship. They were Rev. John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and his brother Charles Wesley, who came to preach the gospel in the new world. To-mo-chi-chi greeted John Wesley with:

"I am glad you came. When I was in England I desired that some one would speak the great word to me. I will go up and speak to the wise men of my nation, and I hope they will hear you; but we would not be made Christians as the Spaniards make Christians. We would be taught before we are baptized."

After waiting until the colony of Georgia was formed, Noah Stevens returned to his Virginia home, where, under the shade of the beech trees, he sported with the prattling babe of his neighbor, little George Washington.

CHAPTER VII.

THE FRENCH IN THE MISSISSIPPI VALLEY.

Stern daughter of the voice of God;
O, Duty; if that name thou love,

Who art a light to guide, a rod
To check the erring, and reprove;
Thou art victory and law

Where empty terrors overawe;

From vain temptation dost set free,

And calm'st the weary strife of frail humanity.

-WORDSWORTH.

IF the novelist should be true to life, the historian should be impartial, and the writer of historical romances is supposed not only to see the external man of the past, but to possess the power of probing the heart and reading his thoughts. In this romance the reader has learned something of the atrocities of the French and Indians. To advance no farther in this narrative, we have only the English view of the subject.

The contention was more a contention for supremacy in the New World than of religion. In the name of religion deeds were done that shamed humanity. It was a spirit of politics, a struggle

for national supremacy, which produced the butcheries, and it was more the work of scheming statesmen and ambitious officers, like Hertel De Rouville who captured George Stevens, than the acts of the priests or preachers.

Even among the clergy were some ambitious men. who disgraced their cloth; but they were politicians in purpose, while priests in name. It is pleasant to turn from the ambitious, scheming priest to the true man of God, who has the salvation of human souls at heart.

When we come to discuss actual and natural rights, we must admit that the Indian was the owner of the soil, and, humiliating as it is to confess, the white man was the usurper. In the name of God, he came with a Bible in one hand to convert him, and a sword in the other to drive him from his home.

Spain, by right of discovery, certainly had the true title to the United States. While Cabot discovered the eastern coast, probably from Maine to Virginia, no claim was made in his time to this dominion. Verazzani, a Florentine, sailing in the interest of France, did pretend to seize North America in the name of France, while Cartier certainly was the discoverer of Canada.

Thus three of the greatest powers in Europe held a portion of the New World and began early to

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