St. Clair and Wayne 333 



due to his loyal friendship to the Americans; for 

 he had advanced Clark's troops both goods and pel 

 tries, for which he had never received payment. 

 In a petition to Congress he showed how this failure 

 to repay him had reduced him to want, and had 

 forced him to sell his two slaves, who otherwise 

 would have kept and tended him in his old age. 5 



The Federal General Harmar, in the fall of 1787, 

 took formal possession, in person, of Vincennes and 

 the Illinois towns; and he commented upon the 

 good behavior of the Creoles, and their respect for 

 the United States Government, and laid stress upon 

 the fact that they were entirely unacquainted with 

 what the Americans called liberty, and could best 

 be governed in the manner to which they were ac 

 customed "by a commandant with a few troops." 6 



The American pioneers, on the contrary, were of 

 all people the least suited to be governed by a com 

 mandant with troops. They were much better stuff 

 out of which to make a free, self-governing nation, 

 and they were much better able to hold their own 

 in the world, and to shape their own destiny; but 

 they were far less pleasant people to govern. To 

 this day the very virtues of the pioneers not to 

 speak of their faults make it almost impossible for 

 them to get on with an ordinary army officer, ac 

 customed as he is to rule absolutely, though justly 

 and with a sort of severe kindness. Army officers 



8 American State Papers, Public Lands, I, Gibault's Memo 

 rial, May i, 1790. 



6 St. Clair Papers, Harmar's Letters, August 7th and No 

 vember 24th, 1787. 



