Fort Stanwix
Octobr
17.th 1768
Revd
&
Hond
ſir
I doubt not but you will be glad to hear from the Congreſs — I have ſir Done every thing I could both by Prayer Conſultation
& applica‐ tion — I have conſulted
Coll
Buttler. —& others — I have laid the Cauſe before ſir
Wm Johnson
perſonally and by an addreſs in writeing
ſubſcribd by Meſrs
David Avery
&
my ſelfe (For Dn Tho.s went Home not well) A copy of which I encloſe which you will pleaſe to
preſerve (for I have no other copy, & the original is in ſir
W.ms
poſseſion) I have oppertunity to con‐ verſe with the chief Gentn here as Governer Frank‐ lin of the Jerſie
Govenr Penn
Mr Peters of Philidelpa
& others many others — I coud be heartily glad you ſir was here you woud be receivd
moſt
Honbly
& affectionate I can aſſure you your name is often mentiond with a great deal of Reſpect by ſr
Wm
Johnſon
Gov.r
Frankd
& others — Govenr Penn is gone Home but before He went I took an oppertunity to confer with Him about ſetting up an Indn College on the ſuſquahanna or ſome where
there about He told me He had ſeen
Dr
Whittaker
& his Requeſt of a conſiderable Tract of Land
& that the affair was ſent Home to the Proprietors I aſk'd Him if he tho't the Propoſals
woud be granted He ſd He
tho't not — I aſkd Him if the Proprieters
woud not part with a tract of Land for that purpoſe He ſd He beliv'd not as requeſted — will they ſd I upon any Terms He
ſd yes as they ſold it to others upon no other terms
reply'd I He anſwerd no He beliv'd not or to that
purpoſe — I aſk'd Him if the Proprieters
woud
not come to ſome agreement with the New Eng.d
Purchacers on the ſuſquahanna He ſd yes as they would with any other
Purchacers and upon no other Terms ſd I He anſwrd no — . I confer'd with Mr Peters of Philadelpa upon the ſubject — He thot great care ſhoud be taken to
chooſe
ſuch a place to ſet up an Ind.n
Academie as might not intefere with any other public School or
occaſion
diſcontent or envy or the Like leſt it Shoudnt
anſwer the deſign —and beſides He tho't few of the Indns
woud ever do for Miſsionaries that in genll it waſ not
worth while to do more for them than to learn them to read & write & be induſtrious
&c I confer'd
ſir william upon the ſame
ſubject what His opinion was about it— He tho't it a Laudable & very good deſign — I
aſkd Him where He tho't
beſt to ſet up the School His Excellency ſd He ſuppoſd that affair was ſent Home already
&
determind — I infirm'd his Excellency It was now in agi‐ tation &
preperation to be ſent — But I ſuppoſd not yet gone — I aſkd Him where He tho't the moſt proper place to ſet it — He reply'd he ſuppoſd in or near Alba‐ ny — I mentiond
Penſylvania He ſd He ſuppoſd the
Proprieters woudn't part with their Lands for that pu[gap: tear][guess: rpose] upon any other Terms than they woud to others — I mentiond
Kohoſs —He tho't that too much a one
ſide — I mention'd
Pittfield — His Excelleny
aſk'd if they had any conſiderable of Lands &c for that pur‐ poſe — I told his Excelleny they woud
ſubſcribe in Lands & money a Thouſand pounds & more He ſmild
& made no reply onely that Coll Williams was propriet'r there &&— upon laying the encloſd
addreſs before Him when He had read it he aſk'd me where I
woud have the Bounds of the Provines
Reſtricted I told
Here eſpecially at the Onoidas He ſd that was at the Indns election whether they woud part with their Lands or no At preſent He coudn't tell no more than I coud where the Diviſion Lines woud run when all the chiefs were come together He ſhoud know & not before — and that He ſhoud be as tender of the Ind.ns
Intreſt as I or any other friend coud be to 'em — that twas
eaſie for
deſigning men to get away their Land by inſinuateing
themſelves into their faver together with a few Gifts good words &c that many too many had done it For the Indns in genll valu'd not their Lands — & much were
paſsd
betwixt Him & me alone — (which I have not time or room to write for Paper is here ſo
ſcarce that 12 ſheets has Coſt me as much as 2 quire in New Engd
& with great difficulty I have got ſo much &
uſd Halfe of it already)— But ſd He viz ſir
Wm upon the Concluſion he ſhoud make open proclamation of the Doings of the Congreſs that all might might know & in the mean Time that I might have further opportunity to confer upon
theſe things — And ſir I muſt
confeſs that ſir
wm has
& does treat me & mankind in the moſt
Handſome
& genteel manner Imaginable which has endeard Him to me very much tho' He has no Grace yet has no ſmall Share of lovely Humanity — But ſir on the whole the ſituation of the Ind.ns with reſpect to there' Lands is very tickliſh
& doubtful — no leſs than 15 thou‐ ſand Pounds worth of goods & a vaſt deal of Proviſien with 7 cheeſts of Gold &
ſilver weighing not leſs than a Barrel weight of Cyder or Peck each is ſent as a Temptation with Rum wine & high Spirits propertiona^le^ if not to Exceed &
[illegible] great numbers of adventuorers from
all parts eſpecially
Albany
New York
Penſylvn
&
virgina
& many beyond— And beſides
tis
tho't
the King has a deſign to make a large purchace of the natives for ſome pious
uſe — But this is kept as a ſecret which has not yet
tranſpird
& known onely to a very few — I muſt leave you as I am to gueſs in this matter what it portends but we may be pretty ſure
ſome thing to the ch-h of Engd or ſome
Dignatary — you will likely ſr have a more full
acct.
& view of theſe things at the Cloſe of the Congreſs
wch I am apt to think will be about the Latter end of next week it may be
not before the week after
I am yours in all Chriſtian Bonds &c &c
Jacob ws Johnson
Pleaſe to forward the Encloſed—
from M.r
J.
Johnſo[gap: tear][guess: n]
Rev.d
Jacob Johnsons
Oct.r
17.th 1768.
To
Dr
Elear Wheelock
Connect
New Engd
pr
Abraham