Imágenes de página
PDF
ePub

Menout,medt die borge & Mum paivat 23 the Lenopis mères when: William Penn first arrived and began the settlement of Pennsylvania in 1682. at Saw all of hove p

[ocr errors]

(6.) p. 141. From the figurative language of the Indians, as well as from the practice of those we are still acquainted with, it is evident that it was and still continues to be, a constant custom among the Indians to gather up the bones of the dead, and deposit them sin la particular place. Thus, when they make peace with any nation with whom they have been at war, after burying the hatchet, they take up the belt of wampum, and say, "We now gather up all the bones of those who have been slain, and bury them, &c." See all the treaties of peace. Besides, it is customary when any of them die at a distance from home, to bury them, and afterwards to come and take up the bones and carry them home. At a treaty which was held at Lancaster with the Six Nations, one of them died, and was buried in the woods a little distance from the town. Some time after a party came and took up the body, separated the flesh from the bones by boiling and scraping them clean, and carried them to be deposited in the sepulchres of their ancestors. The operation was so offensive and disagreeable, that nobody could come near them while they were performing it.atruling wide galt od nord

(7) p. 148. The Osweatchies, Connosedagoes and Cohunnegagoes, or as they are commonly called, Cagnewagos, are of the Mingo or Six Nation Indians, who by the influence of the French missionaries, have been separated from their nation, and induced to settle there.

I do not know of what nation the Augquagahs are, but suspect they are a family of the Senecas.

The Nanticocks and Conoies were formerly of a nation that lived at the head of Chesapeak bay, and who of late years, have been adopted into the Mingo or Iroquois confederacy, and .make a seventh nation. The Monicans or Tuskaroras, who were taken into the Confederacy in 1712, making the sixth..

The Saponies are families of the Wanamies, who removed from New-Jersey, and with the Mohiccons, Munsies, and Delawares, belonging to the Leonopi nation. The Mingos are a war Colony from the Six Nations; so are the Cohunnewagos.

Of the rest of the northern tribes I never have been able to learn any thing certain. But all accounts seem to agree in this, that there is a very powerful nation, distinguished by a variety of names taken from the several towns or families, but commonly called Tawas or Qutawas, who speak one language, and live round and on the waters that fall into the western lakes, and extend from the waters of the Ohio quite to the waters falling into Hudson's bay

[ocr errors][ocr errors][merged small]

No. II.

$

In the Summer of the year 1783, it was cxpected that the Assembly of Virginia would call a Convention for the establishment of a Constitution. The following Draught of a Fundamental Constitution for the Commonwealth of Virginia was then prepared, with a design of being proposed in such Convention had it taken place.

To the Citizens of the Commonwealth of Virginia, and all others whom it may concern, the Delegates for the said Commonwealth in Convention assembled, send greeting.

It is known to you, and to the world, that the government of Great-Britain, with which the American States were not long since connected, assumed over them an authority unwarrantable and oppressive; that they endeavored to enforce this authority by arms, and that the States of New-Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New-York, NewJersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North-Carolina, South-Carolina, and Georgia, considering resistence, with all its

train of horrors, as a lesser evil than abject submission, closed in the appeal to arms. It hath pleased the Sovereign Disposer of all hu man events to give to this appeal an issue fa vorable to the rights of the States; to enable them to reject forever all dependence on a government which had shewn itself so capable of abusing the trusts reposed in it; and to obtain from that government a solemn and explicit acknowledgement that they are free, sovereign and independent states. During the progress of that war, through which we had to labor for the establishment of our rights, the legislature of the commonwealth of Virginia found it ne. cessary to make a temporary organization of government for preventing anarchy, and pointing our efforts to the two important objects of war against our invaders, and peace and happiness among ourselves. But this like all other acts of legislation, being subject to change by subsequent legislatures, possessing equal powers with the...selves; it has been thought expedient, that it should receive those amendments which time and trial have suggested, and be rendered permanent by a power superior to that of the ordinary legislature. The general assembly therefore of this state recommend it to the people thereof, to choosé delegates to meet in general convention, with powers to form a constitution of government for them, and to declare those fundamentals to which all our laws present and future shall be subordipate; and, in compliance with this recommendation, they have thought proper to make

choice of us, and to vest us with powers for this purposed in meast

We, therefore, the delegates, chosen by the said people of this state for the purpose aforesaid, and now assembled in general convention, do in execution of the authority with which we are invested, establish the following constitution and fundamentals of government for the said state of Virginia.

The said state shall forever hereafter be governed as a Commonwealth.

[ocr errors]

The powers of government shall be divided into three distinct departments, each of them to be confided to a separate body of magistracy; to wit, those which are legislative to one, those which are judiciary to another, and those which are executive to another. No person, or collec tion of persons, being of one of these depart ments, shall exercise any power properly belonging to either of the others, except in the instances hereafter expressly permitted.

The legislature shall consist of two branches, the one to be called the House of Delegates, the other the Senate, and both the General Assembly. The concurrence of both of these, expressed on three several readings, shall be. necessary to the passage of a law.

[ocr errors]

iDelegates for the general assembly shall be chosen on the last Monday in November every year. But if an election cannot be concluded on that day, it may be adjourned from day to day till it can be concluded.

The number of delegates which each county may send shall be in proportion to the number of its qualified electors; and the whole number

« AnteriorContinuar »