AN ERIE INDIAN VILLAGE AND EURIAL SITE 463 



and implements of war and the chase. Her value to the State was 

 at once apparent as her influence and long acquaintance with the 

 New York Indians placed her in a position to obtain from them 

 many more objects of historic and ethnic interest. The articles 

 which she donated and those which she purchased now form a col- 

 lection of confederated Iroquois ethnological material which stands 

 without rival in any museum, save by that of the Morgan collection 

 within our own walls. It was largely through her influence with 

 the New York Indians that, at the initiative of Secretary Dewey 

 and A. G. Richmond, the historic wampum of the Iroquois were 

 passed over to the keeping of the State. This proposition was 

 placed before the Onondaga nation which after due deliberation 

 passed the following resolutions : 



Resolved, That the University of the State of New York be and 

 it hereby is elected wampum, keeper of the Onondaga nation, with 

 full power and it shall be its duty to get possession of and safely 

 keep forever all wampums of the Onondaga nation and the Five 

 Nations and Six Nations and each of them. 



Thus the University of the State of New York was unanimously 

 elected to the office of wampum keeper. 



The following resolution was also unanimously adopted : 

 Resolved, That the Onondaga nation does hereby sell to the Uni- 

 versity of the State of New York all wampums for $500, and that 

 the sachems and chiefs present all execute a bill of sale for the 

 nation. 



his 

 [Signed] Say-ha-que Baptist (X) Thomas 



mark 

 and II others. 



With the passing of the Six Nations' archives into the keeping of 

 the State came their formal presentation and acceptance at Albany 

 June 29, 1898. 



The following invitation was sent to carefully selected chiefs, 

 sachems and head women of various tribes. 



The University of the State of New York invites. . . as a 

 representative of the Five Nations to attend the exercises of Indian 

 day, June 29, at the annual University Convocation of the State of 

 New York in commemoration and ratification of the appointment 

 of the University as wampum keeper and of the deposit of the 

 wampums in the State Capitol as part of the Indian museum re- 

 cently established by the Legislature. 



[Signed] Melvil Dewey_, Secretary 



Albanv, 10 June, il 



