His woman has none like her. We often come to their house. We
thank them for telling us to come to-day. But as all the chiefs were asked
we expected some important talk. Now, here we are: what is your business?'
"This, as may be readily supposed, was an embarrassing position to a young
man just out of college. I paused. Every countenance was fixed upon me,
while Red Jacket in particular seemed to search me with his arrowy eye,
and to feel that the private and informal nature of the meeting, and the
extreme youth of the man, were hardly in keeping with the character and
number of the guests invited; and his whole manner implied, that 'but for
the sake of the general and his good viands, I should have waited for you
to come to us.' With these impressions of his feelings, I proceeded to say
in reply:
"That I should have thought it very presumptuous in me to send for him
alone, and still more for all the chiefs of his tribe, to come so far to
see me; and that my intention had been to visit him, and the other chiefs
at his town; but the general and his lady, could not go with me to
introduce me. Nor were we at all certain that we should find him and the
other chiefs at home; and at any rate the general's house was more
convenient. He intended, when he asked them, to keep them as long as they
could stay, and to invite them to break his bread, and drink his cup, and
smoke his pipe; that his woman, and he as well as I, desired to see them
at their house; that as to myself, I was a young man, and had no business
with them, except that I had heard a great deal of Red Jacket, and wished
to see him and hear him talk; and also that I had some things to say to
him, when we were better acquainted, which though not _business_, were
important to his people; and I thought it would be interesting to him, as
I knew he loved his people much; and finally that I would return his
visit, and show him that it was not out of disrespect, but out of regard
for him, and great desire to see him, that we had sent for him, this being
the way that white men honor one another.
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