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1797 John Adams - Chicasaw and Choctaw Nations



In 1796, under George Washington Pinckney's treaty was signed with Spain defining the southern boundary of the United States with the Spanish colonies of East Florida and West Florida.   The treaty also set the Western boundary between the United Sates and the Spanish Colony of Louisiana.  This put the lands of the Chickasaw and Choctaw Nations of American Indians within the new boundaries of the United States. Both the Chickasaw and the Choctaw Nations were on friendly terms with the Untied States.  During the revolutionary war, the Chickasaw fought as allies of the United States against the Indians of the old Northwest Territory and helped to defeat the Shawnee in the Battle of Fallen Timbers.   In 1786, the Chickasaw signed the Treaty of Hopewell with the United States to establish peace and friendship as written "The hatchet shall be forever buried".    The Choctaw also supported the United States during the great war, but they were a more diverse groups of people whose alliances differed by region.  They had alliances with the French on the Gulf Coast, the English on the Southeast and the Spanish of Florida and Louisiana.  The Choctaw also signed the Treaty of Hopewell. 

Then, in the years after the war, and prior to 1796, Spain had been supplying the Chickasaw and Choctaw tribes with weapons and secretly fomenting acts of hostility against the United States.  As part of the Pinckney treaty, both United States and Spain agreed not to incite the native tribes to warfare against either country.  But now, in 1797 President John Adams had received word that there was evidence that Spain was once again inciting the Chickasaw and Choctaw tribes to hostility against the United States.  President Adams, wrote that there were "attempts of foreign agents to alienate the affections of the Indian nations and to excite them to actual hostilities against the United States".   Furthermore, activities had been undertaken by these foreign agents to stir up the Indian tribes residing within United States territory to form a confederation and prepare for war against the United States.  Actions had been taken to "counteract these infractions of our rights, to prevent Indian hostilities, and to preserve entire their attachment to the United States", but Adams wanted a law that would provide adequate punishment to prevent this from happening again.
"In connection with this unpleasant state of things on our western frontier it is proper for me to mention the attempts of foreign agents to alienate the affections of the Indian nations and to excite them to actual hostilities against the United States. Great activity has been exerted by those persons who have insinuated themselves among the Indian tribes residing within the territory of the United States to influence them to transfer their affections and force to a foreign nation, to form them into a confederacy, and prepare them for war against the United States. Although measures have been taken to counteract these infractions of our rights, to prevent Indian hostilities, and to preserve entire their attachment to the United States, it is my duty to observe that to give a better effect to these measures and to obviate the consequences of a repetition of such practices a law providing adequate punishment for such offenses may be necessary."
I could not find any laws passed that provided specific punishment against influencing Indian nations to "transfer their affections and force to a foreign", but in 1798 John Adams did pass the Alien and Sedition Acts.  Among other things, these acts authorized the president to imprison or deport aliens "considered dangerous to the peace and safety of the United States".   While the general consensus is that the  unrest in Europe and the undeclared war with France (Quasi War) was the impetus for the Alien and Sedition Act, John Adam's words here point to other lesser known concerns that may have also played a role.

Trail of Tears

Unfortunately, this has a sad ending for both the Chickasaw and the Choctaw Indians.  Under  President Andrew Jackson, Congress passed the Indian Removal Act of 1830.   This act authorized the government to extinguish Native American title to lands in the Southeast.  In 1831, the Choctaw became the first Nation to be removed, followed by the Creek removal in 1834, and the Chickasaw in 1837.  And finally the Cherokee in 1838.  

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinckney's_Treaty
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chickasaw
http://wardepartmentpapers.org/document.php?id=23643
https://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/Alien.html
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/70/Choctaw_Village_by_Francois_Bernard.jpg




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