39 The Winning of the West 



caused the immediate abandonment of the proposed 

 treaty. 



The remaining Chippewas marched toward home, 

 with the scalps of the men they had slain, and with 

 one captured soldier. They passed by Detroit, tell 

 ing the French villagers that "their father [the 

 British Commandant] was a dog," because he had 

 given them no arms or ammunition, and that in 

 consequence they would not deliver him their pris 

 oner, but would take the poor wretch with them to 

 their Mackinaw home. Accordingly they carried 

 him on to the far-off island at the mouth of Lake 

 Michigan; but just as they were preparing to make 

 him run the gantlet the British commander of the 

 lonely little post interfered. This subaltern with his 

 party of a dozen soldiers 'was surrounded by many 

 times his number of ferocious savages, and was com 

 pletely isolated in the wilderness; but his courage 

 stood as high as his humanity, and he broke through 

 the Indians, threatening them with death if they in 

 terfered, rescued the captive American, and sent him 

 home in safety. 19 



The other Indians made no attempt to check the 

 Chippewas; on the contrary, the envoys of the Iro- 

 quois and Delawares made vain efforts to secure the 

 release of the Chippewa prisoners. On the other 

 hand, the generous gallantry of the British com 

 mander at Mackinaw was in some sort equaled by 



19 State Dept. MSS., No. 150, Vol. III. William Wilson 

 and James Rinkin to Richard Butler, August 4, 1788; Wilson 

 and Rinkin to St. Clair, August 31, 1788. 



