Words of Chief Teedyuscung
“Good and evil cannot dwell together in the same heart, so a good man ought not to go into evil company.”
“When you begin a great work you can’t expect to finish it all at once; therefore do you and your brothers press on and let nothing discourage you till you have entirely finished what you have begun.
“Now, Brother, as for me, I assure you I will press on and the contrary winds may blow strong in my face, yet I will go forward and never turn back and continue to press forward until I have finished, and I would have you do the same.
“Though you may hear birds singing on this side and that side, you must not take notice of that, but hear me when I speak to you and take it to heart, for you may always depend that what I say shall be true.”
Eighteen years after the infamous Walking Purchase, the Delawares finally struck back.
Under the leadership of Delaware chief, Teedyuscung (converted to Christianity by the Moravians), and supported by the French who were fighting the British in the French and Indian War, the Delaware Indians attacked.
The first attack, on November 24, 1755, was directed against the Moravians who had established a mission at Gnadenhuetten (“tents of mercy”) and who reportedly supported the Indians entirely.
Teedyuscung, who had been baptized by the Moravians five years earlier, reportedly did not take part in that attack.
With Gnadenhuetten as a first strike initiative, the Delawares staged a furious assault against the settlers, reportedly killing them and burning settlement after settlement, but limited to the area of the Walking Purchase.
Wars were waged by Indians and Europeans alike, and atrocities were committed on both sides.
In 1756, ’57 and ’58, meetings were held to try and end the feuding. With some Quaker support Teedyuscung reportedly attended the meetings with the Colonists.
In speech after speech, he defended their cause to the governor in Philadelphia.
Quakers urged Teedyuscung to have all proceedings journalized to prevent another “agreement” like the one that
precipitated the Walking Purchase problem – the missing original 1686 treaty with William Penn.
He pleaded to no avail, and the Delawares were ordered to remove themselves to Shamokin and Wyoming, Pennsylvania.
Teedyuscung died in a house fire in 1763 during the years of tension-filled peace that followed
the 1758 removal of the Delawares.
SOURCE:
Acadamy Stree Bed and Breakfast is located in the Pocono Mountains near Hawley, PA.
