Chaminitawaa, During Council at Fort Detroit, 1778

Chaminitawaa, Village Chief of the Odawas then rose up and said:

Father!  I am chosen to speak the sentiments of the Odawas, Chippewas and Potawatomies.

Father!  I beg you will listen to the words of your children and I beg they will be attentive.

Father!  Since I am appointed to speak for your children, I hope you will excuse any impropriety, in my speech, I am but a poor ignorant man.  You see by this string, the color of our hearts, we have no other thought than that of making one with you, and obeying your will.

5 long strings white Wampum

Father!  Where should we learn sense, but from you, 'tis from you we expect everything that is good.

Father! we all thank you from the eldest to the youngest for what you have said during this meeting and at all other times.

8 white strings & 8 strings of white & black mixed.

Father! These are the sentements of all your children. When you first came here, you told us children, I am sent here by your Father the King for the good of you all, which we find is true, and you have always told us the truth, for which reason we all, men, women & children return you our thanks.

A Belt of 8 Rows of Wampum

Father!  What shall I say, I can only repeat the thanks of your children for the good things you always say to them.

Father! You see your children who are gathered together from different parts of the Country and will act as you desire them. You told us you was obliged to keep us in the dark a little, till you should hear from our Father at Quebec, but that you would soon open our eyes for which we thank you.

A Belt of 7 Rows.

Father! it is from you we expect every assistance, you are our support and notwithstanding bad birds come about us and whisper in our ears, that we should not listen to you, we shall always be attentive to what you say. Father! Your children who are assembled from all parts to see you, listen to you, you told those who were impatient to go to War this Spring to Teraain quiet, untill you spoke to them, which they did, we thank you father for that good advice.

A White Belt of 8 Rows with 4 black crosses.

Chamintawaa continued: Listen Brethren! I am going to say a few words to our Grandfathers the Delawares in the name of all the Nations here present, I speak in the name of their War Chiefs.

I speak in the name of our War Chiefs, because in their path they have sometimes found Branches or Stumps laid across, which they desire to know the reason of.

Brethren!  We see you, tho' you be far distant, and we observe you breaking down the branches from the trees to lay across our road, at the same hanging down your heads and with tears in your eyes.

Six strings black and white Wampum.

Brethren!  We speak to you now in presence of our father, we are not like you, we speak from the bottom of our hearts and want to know why the Path of the Warriors going against the Rebels has been blocked up. We Relieve you to be the authors of it, this is the opinion of all the War Chiefs, you now see round our father.

We speak to you, because when our Warriors went your way, they were obliged to go out of the road and thereby have suffered and returned with tears in their eyes.  We speak once more to you who came here in fear & trembling.

We address you as well in the name of the village as the War Chiefs, and desire if you have anything bad in your hearts, that you will leave it here & not carry it away with you, we know you sometimes take your hearts to the Virginians, but we beg you will now leave them here, where ours are all assembled, we beg you to have sense and listen to our father as we all do & obey his will.  These are the sentiments of all here present & this is the last time we intend speaking to you.