[Note:Philip Schuyler, James Duane, and Volkert Pieterse Douw were Commissioners of Indian Affairs for the Northern Department. They sat at Albany, N.Y. ]

   Head Quarters, Valley Forge, March 13, 1778.

    Gentlemen: You will perceive, by the inclosed Copy of a Resolve of Congress, that I am impowered to employ a body of four hundred Indians, if they can be procured upon proper terms. Divesting them of the Savage customs exercised in their Wars against each other, I think they may be made of excellent use, as scouts and light troops, mixed with our own Parties. I propose to raise about one half the number among the Southern and the remainder among the Northern Indians. I have sent Colo Nathl. Gist, who is well acquainted with the Cherokees and their Allies, to bring as many as he can from thence, and I must depend upon you to employ suitable persons to procure the stipulated number or as near as may be from the Northern tribes. The terms made with them should be such as you think we can comply with, and persons well acquainted with their language, manners and Customs and who have gained an influence over them should accompany them. The Oneidas have manifested the strongest attachment to us throughout this dispute and I therefore suppose, if any can be procured, they will be most numerous. Their Missionary Mr. Kirkland seemed to have an uncommon ascendency over that tribe and I should therefore be glad to see him accompany them. If the Indians can be procured, I would choose to have them here by the opening of the Campaign, and therefore they should be engaged as soon as possible as there is not more time between this and the Middle of May than will be necessary to settle the business with them and to March from their Country to the Army. I am not without hopes that this will reach you before the treaty which is to be held, breaks up. If it should, you will have an Opportunity of knowing their sentiments, of which I shall be glad to be informed, as soon as possible. ¹⁷ I have the honour etc. ¹⁸

[Note:Regarding the employment of Indians, Sparks prints the following footnote in volume 5 of his Writings of Washington :

   "A short time before Congress passed the resolve conferring the authority described above the subject had been vehemently discussed in the British Parliament (February 6) on a motion of Mr. Burke to call for the papers which had passed between the ministry and the generals commanding in America relative to the military employment of Indians. The act was denounced as criminal, and the ministers were censured with much asperity by the prominent opposition members for abetting and approving it. Mr. Burke said: 'No proof whatever had been given of the Americans having attempted offensive alliances with any one tribe of savages; whereas the imperfect papers now before that House demonstrated, that the King's ministers had negotiated and obtained such alliances from one end of the continent of America to the other; that the Americans had actually made a treaty on the footing of neutrality with the famous Five Nations, which the King's ministers had bribed them to violate, and to act offensively against the colonies; that no attempt had been made in a single instance on the part of the King's ministers to procure a neutrality; that if the fact had been, that the Americans had actually employed those savages, yet the difference of employing them against armed and trained soldiers, embodied and encamped, and employing them against the unarmed and defenceless men, women, and children of a country, dispersed in their houses, was manifest, and left those, who attempted so inhuman and unequal a retaliation, without excuse.'

   "Lord George Germain spoke in reply, and justified the conduct of the administration. He said 'the matter lay within a very narrow compass; the Indians would not have remained idle spectators; the very arguments used by the honorable gentleman, who made the motion, were so many proofs that they would not. Besides, the rebels, by their emissaries, had made frequent applications to the Indians to side with them, the Virginians particularly; and he said, that some Indians were employed at Boston in the rebel army. Now taking the disposition of the Indians, with the applications made to them by the colonies, it amounted to a clear, indisputable proposition, that either they would have served against us, or that we must have employed them.' Lord North said, on the same side, 'that, in respect to the employment of Indians, he looked upon it as bad, but unavoidable.'

   "Governor Pownall, who had resided long in America and understood the Indian character perfectly, was of the same opinion. He proposed a scheme of his own. 'I know,' said he, 'and therefore speak directly, that the idea of an Indian neutrality is nonsense; delusive, dangerous nonsense. If both we and the Americans were agreed to observe a strict neutrality in not employing them, they would then plunder and scalp both parties indiscriminately on both sides. Although this is my opinion, founded on the knowledge and experience I have had in these matters, yet I am persuaded, that if we and the Americans would come to some stipulation, or convention, that we would mutually and in a spirit of good faith not suffer the Indians to intermeddle, but consider and act against them as enemies, whenever they did execute hostilities against any of the British nation, whether English or Americans, all this horrid business might be prevented, or at least in a great measure restrained.' Governor Pownall enlarged upon his scheme and even offered to proceed himself to Congress, if duly authorized, and use his endeavors with that body to carry it into effect."

   (See Almon's Parliamentary Register , vol. viii, pp. 349, 353, 357.) ]

[Note:The draft is in the writing of Tench Tilghman. ]