1763.1 PETER COLLINSON. 257 



PETER COLLINSON TO JOHN BARTRAM. 



Ridgeway House, December 6, 1763. 



I am here retired, all alone, from the bustle and hurry of the 

 town, meditating on the comforts I enjoy ; and whilst the old log 

 is burning, the fire of friendship is blazing warms my imagination 

 with reflecting on the variety of incidents that hath attended our 

 long and agreeable correspondence. 



My dear John, thou does not consider the law of right, and 

 doing to others as we would be done unto. 



"We, every manner of way, trick, cheat, and abuse these Indians 

 with impunity. They were notoriously jockeyed and cheated out 

 of their land in your province, by a man's walking a tract of 

 ground in one day, that was to be purchased of them. 



Your Governor promised the Indians if they would not join the 

 French, that when the war was over, our troops should withdraw 

 from Pittsburg. They sent to claim his promise, but were shuffled 

 off. They resented it, as that fortress was situated on their hunt- 

 ing country. 



I could fill this letter with our arbitrary proceedings, all the 

 colonies through ; with our arbitrary, illegal taking their lands 

 from them, making them drunk, and cheating them of their pro- 

 perty. As their merciless, barbarous methods of revenge and re- 

 sentment are so well known, our people should be more careful 

 how they provoke them. 



Let a person of power come and take five or ten acres of my 

 friend John's land from him, and give him half price, or no price 

 for it, how easy and resigned he would be, and tamely submit to 

 such usage ! But if an Indian resents it in his way, instead of 

 doing him justice, and making peace with him, nothing but fire 

 and faggot will do with my friend John ! He does not search into 

 the bottom of these insurrections. They are smothered up, be- 

 cause we are the aggressors. But see my two proposals, in the 

 October Gentleman's Magazine, for a peace with the Indians. 



My dear John, I am glad thou art so happily recovered from 

 that cruel complaint; and that our good Colonel escaped those 

 terrible fellows. I hope such prudent measures will be taken as 

 will put a stop to their ravages, and establish a lasting peace. 



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