In my reading of A Narrative of the Life of Mrs. Mary Jemison, written by James E. Seaver and edit
From the readings in class and the narrative, I found the relationship between the Indians and the Revolutionary had war peaked my interest. It proves to be a profound turning point , not only in the history of the Iroquois Indians, but all tribes within the American frontier. I became particularly interested in the predicament the Iroquois had been placed in, and what they tried to accomplish to survive in this war between the patriots that bordered their land and the mother country that had originally sent these colonists over.
There had been a long history of both trust and friendship between the Iroquois and Britain. But the patriots had a certain appeal to the Indians. These patriots longed for a government much like the Indians had in place, and saw the wisdom in Indian views.
A local government, where everyone either voted or council was held to discuss the issue, was the choice among these two groups. They both shared a distrust of a singular, central government body ruling over all. This is part of the enduring gift that the United States had received from the Iroquois and other Indian people, through their knowledge with the government they had in place.1
The young American Congress realized how important these Indian people were towards winning the Revolution. To attempt to secure the Indians as allies, Congress setup a commission that split the Indian country into three sections, sending three representatives to the northern department, and one each to the remaining. This was in fact copying what the French had done to receive the favor of Indian nations. Failing in doing so, they sought after the neutrality of the Iroquois Confederacy...