“Brothers, we want you not to be displeased, if we of this party open our minds to you. We are going to tell you our situation. Some of us pay attention and observe the sabbath day--others do not. We wish you now, brothers, to give us suitable advice, and make our difficulties straight, as you understand how to remove difficulties.
“Brothers, you know the cause of our difficulties. You know the reason we are divided. The young men who sit here (pointing to four or five who sat near him,) think different from the old ones. Our old men observe the sabbath, or First day. We are not prepared for it. We wish you to tell us which is best. Whether to do as our old men do, or follow our old customs.
“Brothers, we have heard from the Quakers, that it is a bad thing for a nation to divide, and you wished us to be of one mind as one man--and now we want you to tell us which is the best plan for us to pursue--whether white people’s customs, or our old ones. On the other hand, you have been well acquainted, from old time, with our ancient customs. We meet three times in the year to worship the Great Spirit; and we want you now to put us right about it, and give us your advice on this subject, whether we shall keep the sabbath, or continue to adhere to our former practice of worshipping the Great Spirit.
“Brothers, it is now many years since you have taken us by the hand, and have yearly given us advice. We intend to follow the advice we have heard from you; but some of our old men have been drawing towards the _missionaries_, and keeping the First-day.
“Brothers, we hope you fully understand what we have said, and wish the chain of friendship still may be kept bright between us and you--and that you will not be displeased at what we have said to you.”
A chief, named Strong, of the opposite party, then spoke nearly as follows:
“Brothers, yesterday we deliberated among ourselves, and we wanted to have our minds made up and united. When our younger brother proposed the foregoing questions to be put to our brothers the Quakers, we were glad; hoping they would make the thing straight among us.