What a magnificent encapsulation of two cultures inevitably bound to  
clash.

Lyle Browning, RPA


On May 21, 2007, at 11:42 AM, Katharine Harbury wrote:

> There was indeed input from  Native Americans but has to know where to
> look.  One famous example, shown below, was given in June 1744 to the
> College of William and Mary in response to their invitation that  
> the Six
> Nations send twelve boys to the school:
>
> "Sirs,
>  We know that you highly esteem the kind of Learning taught in those
> Colleges, and that the Maintenance of our Young Men, while with you,
> would be very expensive to you.  We are convinc'd, therefore, that you
> mean to do us Good by your Proposal; and we thank you heartily.  But
> you, who are wise, must know that different Nations have different
> Conceptions of things; and you will therefore not take it amiss, if  
> our
> Ideas of this kind of Education happen not to be the same with yours.
> We have had some Experience of it.  Several of our Young People were
> formerly brought up at the Colleges of the Northern Provinces; they  
> were
> instructed in all your Sciences; but, when they came back to us, they
> were bad Runners, ignorant of every means of living in the Woods,  
> unable
> to bear either Cold or Hunger, knew neither how to build a Cabin,  
> take a
> Deer, or kill an Enemy, spoke our Language imperfectly, were therefore
> neither fit for Hunters, Warriors, nor Counsellors; they were totally
> good for nothing.  We are, however, not the less oblig'd by your kind
> Offer, tho' we decline accepting it; and, to show our grateful  
> Sense of
> it, if the Gentlemen of Virginia will send us a Dozen of their  
> Sons, we
> will take Care of their Education; instruct them in all we know, and
> make Men of them."
>
> IF I recall correctly, the source is housed among the special
> collections at the College of William and Mary, but it can also be  
> found
> in printed books, such as "Letters of a Nation" by Andrew Carroll or
> "Touch the Earth" by T.C. McLuhan.
>
> Swem's index also lists names of some of the Indian students at the
> College of William and Mary if anyone is interested- here are a few of
> the names listed for the years 1754 and 1755 - Gideon and John  
> Langston,
> Charles Murphy, John Montour, William Squirrel, and John and Thomas
> Sampson.  [See vol. 6 of "William and Mary Quarterly," first  
> series, No.
> 3, p. 188; vol. 1 of ditto, 2nd series, No.1,  pp. 32, 35, 36, 38,  
> 39.]
>
>