In the Current of the Revolution 301 



Canoe told the white treaty-makers that the land 

 beyond the mountains, whither they were going", 

 was a "dark ground," a "bloody ground"; and 

 warned them that they must go at their own risk, 

 and not hold the Cherokees responsible, for the 

 latter could no longer hold them by the hand. 

 Dragging Canoe especially told Henderson that 

 there was a black cloud hanging over the land, for 

 it lay in the path of the Northwestern Indians 

 who were already at war with the Cherokees, and 

 would surely show as little mercy to the white men 

 as to the red. Another old chief said to Boone: 

 "Brother, we have given you a fine land, but I 

 believe you will have much trouble in settling it." 

 What he said was true, and the whites were taught 

 by years of long warfare that Kentucky was indeed 

 what the Cherokees called it, a dark and bloody 

 ground. 2 



2 The whole account of this treaty is taken from the Jeffer- 

 son MSS., 5th Series, Vol. VIII ; "a copy of the proceedings of 

 the Virginia Convention, from June 15 to November 19, 1777, in 

 relation to the Memorial of Richard Henderson, and others;" 

 especially from the depositions of James Robertson, Isaac 

 Shelby, Charles Robertson, Nathaniel Gist, and Thomas 

 Price, who were all present. There is much interesting 

 matter aside from the treaty; Simon Girty makes deposi- 

 tions as to Braddock's defeat and Bouquet's fight; Lewis, 

 Croghan, and others show the utter vagueness and conflict of 

 the Indian titles to Kentucky, etc., etc. Though the Chero- 

 kees spoke of the land as a "dark" or "bloody" place or 

 ground, it does not seem that by either of these terms they 

 referred to the actual meaning of the name Kentucky. One 

 or two of the witnesses tried to make out that the treaty was 

 unfairly made ; but the bulk of the evidence is overwhelm- 

 ingly the other way. 



