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caire had spoken to the Six Nations on his way to the Ohio, and 

 a Cayuga sachem came to Johnson to report his words. He 

 brought a lead plate by which Joncaire took possession of 

 various points. Several such plates were buried in suitable places. 



Johnson said that smiths must be sent to the Six Nations, 

 but no liquor: ''It is actually the ruin of them." The French 

 were again seeking permission to build a fort at Onondaga, but 

 Johnson defeated this by purchasing land there soon after. The 

 smiths ought to have about £20 for presents to the Indians of the 

 castles where they went. They often had more. Kalm, the 

 botanist, was at Niagara that year, and said the French were so 

 anxious for trade that they supplied the Indians all the brandy 

 and rum they wanted, which the priests had always before 

 prevented. Strong drink brought the Indians there. 



Weiser came to Onondaga in 1750 in the interests of Virginia, 



but could effect nothing. The French party had the upper hand ; 



and he thought that nation lost to the English. The Onondagas 



notified him of Canassatego's death before he got there, and 



allowed him to condole 'his death at once and hold a council, as 



he had come so far. This was without precedent. One house 



still remained east of the creek. Weiser said : 



Our Friend Canassatego was buried to day before I came to 

 Onondago, and Solconwanaghly, our other good friend, died some 

 time before. He that is on the head of affairs now is a profifessed 

 Roman Catholick, and altogether devoted to the French. The 

 French Priests have made a hundred Converts of the Onon- 

 dagers, that is to say Men, Women and Children, dressed in 

 Silver and Gold, and I believe that the English Interest among 

 the Six Nations can be of no consideration any more. The 

 Indians speak with contempt of the New Yorkers and Albany 

 People, and much the same of the rest of the English Colonies. 



In this year occurred the notable visit to the Six Nations of 

 the Moravians Cammerhoff and Zeisberger. Some years before 

 the Moravians planned Indian missions in New York, and a 

 successful one was founded in Dutchess county. This was 

 stopped by the authorities, owing to a violent prejudice against 

 the United Brethren. Their attention had also been drawn to 

 the Iroquois, and John Christopher Pyrlaeus and his wife went 



