﻿HISTORY 
  OF 
  THE 
  NEW 
  YORK 
  IROQUOIS 
  143 
  

  

  French 
  and 
  English 
  made 
  them 
  able 
  diplomats, 
  and 
  they 
  used 
  

   their 
  power 
  well. 
  

  

  Their 
  eloquence 
  has 
  been 
  celebrated 
  and 
  has 
  not 
  lost 
  its 
  power 
  

   yet. 
  Competent 
  persons 
  have 
  testified 
  that 
  it 
  lost 
  rather 
  than 
  

   gained 
  by 
  interpretation. 
  Colden 
  says, 
  in 
  his 
  History 
  of 
  the 
  

   Five 
  Nations: 
  

  

  The 
  speakers 
  whom 
  I 
  have 
  heard 
  had 
  all 
  a 
  great 
  fluency 
  of 
  

   words 
  and 
  much 
  more 
  grace 
  in 
  their 
  manner 
  than 
  any 
  man 
  could 
  

   expect 
  among 
  a 
  people 
  entirely 
  ignorant 
  of 
  the 
  liberal 
  arts 
  and 
  

   sciences. 
  . 
  . 
  I 
  have 
  heard 
  an 
  old 
  Indian 
  sachem 
  speak 
  with 
  

   much 
  vivacity 
  and 
  elocution, 
  so 
  that 
  the 
  speaker 
  pleased 
  and 
  

   moved 
  his 
  audience 
  with 
  the 
  manner 
  of 
  delivering 
  his 
  discourse, 
  

   which, 
  however, 
  as 
  it 
  afterwards 
  came 
  from 
  the 
  interpreter, 
  dis- 
  

   appointed 
  us 
  in 
  our 
  expectations. 
  After 
  the 
  speaker 
  had 
  em- 
  

   ployed 
  a 
  considerable 
  time 
  in 
  haranguing 
  with 
  much 
  elocution, 
  

   the 
  interpreter 
  often 
  explained 
  the 
  whole 
  by 
  one 
  single 
  sentence. 
  

   I 
  believe 
  the 
  speaker, 
  in 
  that 
  time, 
  embellished 
  and 
  advanced 
  his 
  

   figures, 
  that 
  they 
  might 
  have 
  their 
  full 
  force 
  on 
  their 
  imagination, 
  

   while 
  the 
  interpreter 
  contented 
  himself 
  with 
  the 
  sense, 
  in 
  as 
  few 
  

   words 
  as 
  it 
  could 
  be 
  expressed. 
  

  

  Of 
  this 
  Mr 
  Parish, 
  the 
  interpreter, 
  once 
  said 
  it 
  was 
  altogether 
  

   impossible 
  for 
  him 
  to 
  impart 
  to 
  the 
  translations 
  anything 
  like 
  the 
  

   force 
  and 
  beauty 
  of 
  the 
  originals. 
  He 
  also 
  stated 
  that 
  on 
  great 
  

   occasions, 
  the 
  Indian 
  orators, 
  Red 
  Jacket 
  and 
  Farmer's 
  Brother 
  

   in 
  particular, 
  not 
  only 
  studied 
  their 
  speeches, 
  and 
  conned 
  them 
  

   well, 
  but 
  would 
  send 
  to 
  him 
  for 
  rehearsals, 
  in 
  order 
  that 
  they 
  

   might 
  be 
  assured 
  that 
  he 
  understood 
  them 
  fully, 
  and 
  could 
  trans- 
  

   late 
  them 
  with 
  accuracy. 
  

  

  Examples 
  will 
  appear 
  incidentally, 
  but 
  a 
  quotation 
  may 
  be 
  

   added 
  from 
  a 
  French 
  writer, 
  who 
  heard 
  Dekanissora 
  in 
  1694: 
  

  

  These 
  are 
  the 
  words 
  of 
  Teganissorens, 
  which 
  he 
  enunciated 
  

   with 
  as 
  perfect 
  a 
  grace 
  as 
  is 
  vouchsafed 
  to 
  an 
  unpolished 
  and 
  

   uncivilized 
  people. 
  He 
  went 
  through 
  his 
  speech 
  with 
  freedom 
  

   and 
  collectedness, 
  and 
  concluded 
  with 
  a 
  certain 
  modesty 
  and 
  so 
  

   great 
  a 
  show 
  of 
  respect 
  and 
  submission 
  to 
  the 
  Count 
  as 
  to 
  be 
  

   remarked. 
  

  

  Originally 
  Iroquois 
  speeches 
  combined 
  plain 
  speech, 
  intoning 
  

   and 
  pantomime. 
  An 
  account 
  of 
  Kiotsaeton's 
  address 
  and 
  pres- 
  

   ents 
  appears 
  in 
  the 
  Relation 
  of 
  1645. 
  "After 
  a 
  few 
  words 
  he 
  began 
  

  

  