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Trade, Presents
and Mixed Results: Please do not quote or cite without permission This paper deals with the impact of the Spanish presence in the mid and lower middle Mississippi on Native American peoples during the last four decades of the 18th Century and the beginning of the 19th Century, the era of the Spanish administration of the Mississippi Valley preceding the arrival of American authorities in the territories. The Spanish documentation provides valuable information on the Native American peoples, seen through European and eyes. During the decades studied, Native American lives were affected by the presence of Europeans, but their way of life did not change as drastically as it did during the period following the 1820s and 30s, when they were relocated under the new American administration into territories other than their own.-1- During the period studied, the French and Spanish, British, and Americans competed for the control of Indian territories. As a result of the French and Indian War, the western bank of the Mississippi Valley was given to the Spanish Crown by the French Monarch in compensation for losses suffered by Spain in coming to the aid of France in the war. It then became Spanish Louisiana. The eastern bank of the Mississippi Valley became British territory until 1776, when these lands became part of the United States of America. Native American peoples, whose territories were being fought over and subject to claims of ownership, were affected by the changing circumstances in each phase of the European and Euro-American balance of power. The European presence did not involve enough population to exert control over the territories, and therefore, the European relationship with the Indians was based on trade and presents, and the Native Americans were able to play one power against the other, and obtain advantages and maintain a de facto condition of independence. This process can be analyzed through two Indian peoples: the numerous Osages, divided between the Big and Little Osages, and the far less numerous Quapaws, or Arkansas Indians. Both the Osages and the Quapaws were of Sioux culture, and had migrated from the Ohio to the Mississippi.-2- Both peoples dominated the mid to middle-lower Mississippi Valley Both peoples were impacted by the French and then the Spanish administration of Louisiana during the 18th century, and had almost daily dealings with the French and Spanish. They reacted similarly in some aspects, but quite differently in others. An analysis of this impact and these reactions, as reflected in colonial sources, can contribute to bettering the existing knowledge of this period in the history of these two peoples. The main basis for their differing reactions lies in the differences in the numbers and the territories between the two peoples. The larger Osage population and the relative inaccessibility of their villages gave them a freedom the Quapaws did not have. The Osages lived in the Missouri territory, north of the Ozark plateau, but their hunting territories went beyond this area to include lands north to the Arkansas River. The Osages were important owing to their large number, aggressive behavior and the volume of their hunting and trade activities. In 1754, French Governor Kerlérec reported that the Big Osages had over six hundred warriors, and the Little Osages two hundred and fifty.-3- The Quapaws lived in three villages near the mouth of the Arkansas River, near where Jacque Marquette's 1673 expedition found them.-4- Documents on a earlier European visit to the Arkansas territories -De Soto´s 1541 expedition - indicate that the Indian population in the area was very large, but they do not describe any people similar to the Quapaws, who apparently migrated to Arkansas from the Ohio sometime during the 17th century.-5- The Quapaw population had been declining over the years. In 1687, explorer Henry Joutel estimated that the Quapaws had one thousand five hundred warriors. In 1700, Henry de Tonti estimated that disease and wars had dramatically reduced the Quapaw population to three hundred warriors.-6- According to Captain Phillip Pitman, shortly before the arrival of the Spanish, Quapaw there were six numbered people. In 1777, the Arkansas Post commandant reported to Governor Bernardo de Gálvez that the Quapaw male population consisted of one hundred seventy-six.-7- Both peoples lived mainly off hunting, part of which they used to trade with the French and Spanish, other Indian tribes or the British on the other side of the Mississippi. The Arkansas Valley was well known for its wealth of beaver, raccoon, wolf, marten, otter, and other species whose furs were sent down the Mississippi to New Orleans. Hunting in the Arkansas Valley's was engaged in by the Quapaws, their Osage rivals, other, smaller Indian tribes, and also by the British, who were considered trespassers by the Spanish authorities.-8- The Osages also hunted in what were considered their territories between the White and the St. Francis Rivers. French policy, which was maintained and built upon by the Spanish when it became the colonial power in Louisiana, was similar to that of the British across the Mississippi River. It can be described as holding the territory as its own in the face of any other colonial power. To achieve this, they needed the friendship of the Native American peoples, whom they courted with presents and dealt with through trade. Trading relations between Native Americans and Europeans had an important strategic component, in addition to an economic one. The sparse population of Europeans and the rivalry among them required them to seek friendly relations with the Indians in order to maintain their claim and relative control over the territories they occupied, and even to the point of garnering their military assistance in case of skirmishes or wars.-9- In Louisiana, the Spanish changed their traditional, mission-based frontier colonial policy, and adopted the policies of their French predecessors - trade and presents. Both the French and the Spanish encountered the same problems, and had the same objective: to stay friends with the native Americans for strategic and security reasons; to establish and maintain strong trade relations; to prevent their British rivals across the Mississippi from trading and befriending their Indian allies; and to prevent disorder and violence, as far as possible. With this aim, both powers made it known to the Indians that an authority existed (the King, and the King's representative, the Governor at New Orleans), and that they should be loyal to such authority. The political symbols of loyalty, such as flags and medals were presented to the chiefs of the Native American peoples, who generally accepted them. In fact, both the Osage and the Quapaw would travel periodically to New Orleans, where they would met with the Governor. For example, the chiefs of the Indians that were friends and allies of the French were called to New Orleans where they were told that the Spanish would take the place of the French from then on, and they should give the same loyalty to the Spanish as they had to the French. They are many indications in the Spanish documents that the Quapaws recognized certain Spanish sovereignty over the territory. According to Spanish documents, the Quapaws swore loyalty to the King, accepted political symbols such as flags and, again, according to Spanish documents, called both the King and the Governor " their father."-10- Yet, both Indian peoples considered themselves independent and the owners of their territory, which they, in fact, controlled. Moreover, the Indians were aware that although they maintained a relationship of friendship and alliance with the French and the Spanish, they could have had a closer relationship with the British if they had wanted to. Neither the French nor the Spanish were strong enough to prevent contact by the Osages and the Quapaws with the English.-11- To the French and Spanish it was vital to keep the Indians from increasing their contacts with the British. As noted above, French Indian policy consisted basically of efforts to hold the territory by entering into alliances and having relations with the Indians, in an attempt to keep the English as far away as possible. Before the French and Indian War, a French officer was stationed with the Big Osages. His mission consisted of facilitating trade and keeping the Osages firm in their alliance with the French. The Spanish period was marked by continuing and building on this policy. Having sparse human resources and economic means, the Spaniards gave the Indians some breadth, trying to maintain the general features of the French policy and ignoring specific problems they could not solve. The system worked quite well, considering the scarcity of means available. The main problem -security-, was not subject
to any major setbacks or changes. Neither the Quapaws nor the Osages
ever attacked any French or Spanish village or settlement, although
the commandants of both St. Louis and Arkansas feared Osage attacks
at certain times. The Quapaws had frequent trade relations with the English. English products were usually of better quality and cheaper than Spanish products and therefore Spanish attempts to keep the Quapaws and other Indian nations in Spanish territories from dealing with the English did not succeed.-12- English hunters and merchants crossed the river from English territory, hunted and traded, and returned to their bases on the east bank of the Mississippi. Successive Arkansas Post commandants reported trading between the Quapaws and the English.-13- The English even continued such relations during the American Revolution. They entered Spanish territory via the Gulf of Mexico and the eastern Texas. After the American Revolution, the Americans took advantage of trade opportunities in the area. Despite Spanish prohibition, threats and punishment, the temptation to trade with the English, was too great for the Osages and the Quapaws to resist, and the Spanish were not able to enforce their policy. Regarding trade with the English, both tribes, the Quapaws and the Osages, reacted similarly. The contact of the Osages and Quapaws with the French and Spanish was not similar. The Quapaws lived near the Arkansas Post and had almost daily contact with the French-Spanish inhabitants. Quapaw chiefs and their entourages visited the Post to exchange products, to discuss different issues, or simply in the hope of being invited to drink alcohol. Arkansas Post commandants complained about the frequency of visits, stating that "there were Indians at the Post every day and on many nights."-14- The Osage case was quite different. There were more Osage villages and they were located much farther from the Franco-Spanish establishments. They were more independent and distant. Their thefts from and harassment of hunters, both European and belonging to other tribes, made it unwise for them to show up at St. Louis too often. While the Quapaws had had a European settlement near their villages since 1686, the Osages traded at several posts, but only in the later years of Spanish rule was there a post near their villages. St. Louis was founded at the beginning of the Spanish rule in order to keep an eye on and trade with the Indian nations in the territory, and as a strategic part in the series of settlements along the Mississippi River. The Osages visited St. Louis periodically to meet with Spanish authorities and trade their products with the French-Spanish population. Several decades later, the Spanish founded Fort Carondelet of the Osages, near Osage villages, in order to trade keep watch over on the Osages. The powerful St. Louis trader, August Chouteau, who held a monopoly on trade with the Osages, was key in the Spanish approval of the governor's plans for the Fort and funded its construction. The fact that a private individual, Chouteau, provided the funds to build the fort is an indication of how important trading with the Osages was for the French and Spanish in Missouri.-15- Trade with the Osages had always been lucrative. The Europeans considered them good hunters. According to Etienne Veniard de Bourgmont, who visited the Osages in 1714, they had the best furs in the Missouri region, and were one of the most vital and sharpest nations.-16- The Spanish authorities dictated that the rich Osage trade was to be channeled through St. Louis. Since it was so lucrative, it was coveted also by other Posts, namely the Arkansas Post, causing jurisdictional disputes between the two commandants. Arkansas Post authorities claimed that they should have the right to trade with the Osages, as they hunted not only in the Missouri region but also in the Arkansas territory. In fact, part of the rivalry between the Quapaws and the Osages was due to Osage hunting incursions on lands the Quapaws considered theirs. The Osage custom of robbing and occasionally killing hunters who entered their territory was a constant problem for the French and later on for the Spanish. Documents from these times very often show violent behavior on the part of the Osages. These same documents also show the inability first of the French and then of the Spanish authorities to effectively prevent these activities or to punish the Indians. Threats of withdrawing from trading activities were of little concern to the Osages, because French and Spanish traders pressed authorities to lift all prohibitions of Osage trade. In fact Osage trade accounted for half of total St. Louis trade. In addition to the lobbying by the merchants, there was the commercial and political rivalry with the British, who were ready to jump at any opportunity to deal with the Indians in Spanish territory, not only to obtain economic benefits but also to establish strategic political alliances with them. The Osage, for their part, quickly learned to show their remorse and to beg for the pardon of the Spanish authorities, so that bans on trade would be lifted. Trade was extremely important to the Indians. They grew impatient and even threatened the Spanish when they thought trade would be banned. Francisco Riu, the commandant of Illinois, went so far as to report that he had avoided war by reinstating licenses to trade with the Osage, and obtaining the British flag that was flying over an Osage village and replacing it with a Spanish flag. The document in which traders from Missouri, Illinois and Arkansas applied to the governor for trading licenses lists the items they were carrying to trade with the Indians. These items were wine; liquor; coffee; sugar; soap; cloth; blankets; vermilion paint; iron; household items; muskets, gunpowder and bullets.-17- While it was not customary for Spanish authorities to grant trade monopolies, Spanish authorities sometimes altered their policy and granted such privileges to specific individuals under specific circumstances. In the case of the Osages, this occurred several times. One of them was right after the French and Indian War, that had caused the displacement of Native American peoples and French and English settlers. Because of the instability during the war, trade in the Missouri territory was granted to Maxent, Laclede and Company, a New Orleans-based firm, for an eight-year period. The monopoly included the Big and the Little Osage peoples, involving a large amount of trade. As would happen later during the1790s, towards the end of Spanish rule, monopolies were allowed in times of great instability. Other traders with interests in the area protested the measure, and eventually the authorities cancelled the monopoly license, as it went against official policy. Spanish policy, even more against monopolistic trade than the French, changed in 1794. The way of the frontier reigned. St. Louis trader August Chouteau was granted a virtual trade monopoly with the Osages for six years in exchange for keeping the Native Americans control and paying the cost of building a fort in Osage territory. The remaining St. Louis traders reluctantly accepted the new organization of trade in the area, hoping that the fort would deter Osages depredations. Documents from this period of time show that disorders diminished. The importance of Osage trade is clearly shown in the 1794 trade reorganization. The merchants in the St. Louis district divided Missouri River trade into thirty-nine parts, giving 12 to the Big Osages and four to the Little Osages. The other eight tribes of the district (including the Kansas, Oto, and Panis tribes) had only thirteen parts among them. According to Din and Nasatir, trade with the Osages amounted to some 96,000 pounds out of a total of 175,000 pounds. Osage trade was, therefore, key to St. Louis trading.-18- The volume of trade with the Quapaws was far lower, although it was an important factor in the economy of the Europeans in Arkansas. In contrast with the Osages, who sold their products in the districts of Missouri and Arkansas, the Quapaws seem to be "one-post Indians," that is, they generally traded only with the inhabitants of the Arkansas Post and its territory. In this sense, the Quapaws complied with Spanish regulations, which put the commandant in charge of dealing with the Indians who lived in his district. Such dealings included trade. The Quapaws provided furs and pelts, meat, and tallow, but demand for these products in Arkansas was greater than the Quapaws were able to meet. The Quapaws were only interested in providing for themselves and then exchanging whatever was left for European products, especially alcohol. Therefore, Arkansas traders dealt not only with Quapaws, but also with other Native American peoples, and with French and Spanish trappers who lived in the forests.-19- According to a document of this period, the Arkansas forests could produce "an enormous amount of animal and deer skins."-20- As stated above, the demand for Arkansas game products compelled traders to expand their dealings with other Indian nations, especially the Osages. This resulted in rivalry between the Arkansas Post and the younger settlement of St. Louis. According to the Spanish organization of Louisiana, Osage trade was supposed to be channeled through St. Louis. However, Arkansas merchants had been dealing with the Osages from the French times and were not willing to renounce this relationship during the Spanish years, despite Spanish regulations. The fact that the Osages often hunted in Arkansas territory made it difficult for Spanish authorities to enforce this policy and to prevent trade between the French and Spanish populations of Arkansas and the Osages. Even the Arkansas commandant, Alexander de Clouet, asked to be allowed to trade with the Osages. His request was denied by Governor Antonio de Ulloa, who sent him instructions to advise the Osages to hunt in the territory of the St. Louis district.-21- The French and Spanish inhabitants of Arkansas also tried to have trade relations with the Indians under "English jurisdiction," who lived on the eastern side of the Mississippi, to whom they gave presents at Spanish forts. Spanish authorities tolerated and even encouraged these activities. If caught by the English authorities, their goods would be confiscated. The British traders and authorities behaved in a similar way vis-à-vis the other side of the river. Documents of the era report that in 1767 the English were trying to attract the Osages by giving them presents and promises of good trading products, and that the English had given the Osages a flag.-22- The Spaniards tried to get the Osage to relinquish the foreign flag. The rivalry with the British also prevented a real implementation of Governor Antonio de Ulloa's instructions not to supply the Native Americans with firearms. He claimed that they had had little contact with the Europeans, and were not so dependent on firearms. These instructions, though, were not realistic, because if the Osage Indians did not get what they wanted from the Spanish, they would get it from the British. Therefore, the Spanish authorities were unable to prevent the Indians from having access to firearms.-23- Ulloa´s attempt to prevent the Indians from having firearms was warranted, especially in the case of the Osages, who tended to resort to violence. Incidents between the Osages and the Quapaws, and between the Osages and other Indian nations living in neighboring areas were very frequent during the 18th Century. Documents usually report that the Osages were the offenders. Osage behavior upset the lives of the French and Spanish inhabitants of Arkansas and Missouri. Violent incidents affected not only the development of trade but, furthermore, the French and Spanish inability to solve the problem made evident to both the Native Americans and the Europeans the limits of their authority in the territory. Sometimes the Osage Indians even threatened the security of the European inhabitants. These threats, however, never posed any real danger to the French and Spanish settlement. The Osages, although troublesome, never attacked French and then Spanish settlements, nor did they play any significant role in the French and Indian War or in the American Revolution. Their activities were limited to harassing other Native American peoples and stealing or, at worst, killing isolated individuals, be they Indian or European. In contrast, the Quapaws had a peaceful attitude towards the French and their Spanish successors. According to the last French Governor of Louisiana, Kérlerec, "this Arkansas Nation is the only one who never spilled French blood."-24- The Osages were enemies of almost all the neighboring Indian nations, even the feared Commanches. In fact, the Osage were a real problem. The impact of their violent, predatory behavior on the Indian nations in Louisiana and even Texas gave rise to many complaints by post commandants to the Louisiana Governor. They attacked both Indians and whites from their villages on the Missouri and upper Arkansas Rivers, protected by their remoteness and their comparatively large numbers. Harassment of frontier peoples was commonplace activity among the Osages. The aggressiveness of the Osages made them enemies of the Caddoes, Panis, Illinois, Quapaws, Chicasaws and the Choctaws, to name a few. The Osages even fought the fierce Commanche, considered by many Indian nations as the most feared Indian tribe.-25- In fact, the only friends that the Osages seemed to have were their neighbors, the Missouri Indians. The Osages were also known for being very mobile and traveling long distances.-26- Their use of horses greatly increased the areas of their incursions. Spanish complaints of horse theft were numerous. Hunters, Indian or white, who trespassed on Osage territory were dealt with aggressively by the Osages, who already had a reputation for violence. This may, at times, have been due to a lack of understanding of their perceptions regarding the defense of their hunting grounds. At other times, Osage Indians killed individuals with no provocation. The Osage Indians seem not to have been understood by either the French, the Spanish or the Americans. During his travels in 1719, Frenchman Sieur Bénard de La Harpe remarked, "Although they are friends of the French, this is a treacherous nation, and it is best to be on guard against them." According to Jean Beaurain, "The Osages are allies of the nomadic and sedentary nations of the upper Red River, and at war with the Canecy and the Paducas, and with some Panis Indians." According to Claude Charles Du Tisné, who met the Osages in 1719, "They are astute, treacherous, and prone to breaking their word. The Spanish and their American successors considered the Osages as "treacherous" and "disloyal," and a real obstacle for their policy in the Louisiana interior. Commandant Pedro Piernas even suggested that they be exterminated, and the same idea was also voiced by Athanase de Meziéres, although previously he had stated that the Osage disorders were caused by undesirable elements from the Arkansas woods.-27- The Americans declared them outside the protection of the U.S. Government.-28- Current studies on the Osage offer explanations of their behavior. Historian Abraham Nasatir shares contemporary opinion regarding the Osage aggressiveness. For the anthropologist James E. Christianson, the Osages fought against so many Indian nations in order to preserve and expand their territories. Another anthropologist, Carl H. Chapman, holds that the Osage political system, particularly the "Mourning War" religious ceremony, was the reason behind their violence. According to Chapman, Osage political organization was based on a hereditary chieftancy and patrilineal clans. The power of the chief was very limited. The main institution of tribal government was a council made up of men initiated into the different tribal levels. Warriors who wanted to become members of the council had to earn war honors, and one of the main ways to get them was through the "Mourning War" ceremony. The Osages believed that the dead needed company for their voyage to the great beyond, and that the best travelling companion was the scalp of an enemy. This was taken from the first enemy encountered through the "Mourning War" ceremony. "Mourning war" ceremonies were performed quite often, giving rise to fear, enmity, and mistrust towards the Osage people.-29- The Chapman theory sheds some light on the crimes of the Osage nation, but does not explain the theft and damage to the property of other Indians, the French and the Spanish. Obviously, attacks on distant settlements in Texas, or the even more distant cities of New Mexico, were not the objects of the ceremony. Perhaps the explanation of the violence of the Osages is a combination of all the above theories. Furthermore, horse and slave theft was a lucrative activity. The large Osage population and their relatively inaccessible villages, together with the weakness of some of their neighbors, enabled the Osages to lead a violent way of life. On the other hand, the Quapaws, although they had enemies (the Osages and others, including the Chickasaws and Chocktaws), maintained good relations with a large number of tribes, such as the Pawnees, also enemies of the Osages, with whom the Quapaws had trade relations, along with the Caddos and Tunicas. Several tribes, such as the Abenakees and the Peorias crossed the Mississippi to settle on the Spanish side of the river. Some of the ceremonies in which English flags were replaced by Spanish flags were attended by Quapaw Indians. Another difference between the two tribes was their mobility. The Quapaws were the much more sedentary of the two. They traveled generally to hunt, to visit other friendly tribes, or specifically to carry out attacks against bands of Osages which, according to Spanish documents from the time, were punitive in nature. The Osages moved often throughout neighboring territories, sometimes covering large distances. The Osages many times reached as far as the district of Natchitoches, in Texas, in order to steal horses. Many complaints were recorded by the commandants of Illinois, Arkansas and Nachitoches regarding Osage activities. Sometimes the Quapaws would launch attacks against the Osages, attacks that, according to Spanish documents, were punitive in nature. The local authorities usually tolerated them or even supported them, giving the Quapaws arms. For example, the commandant of the Arkansas Post, Francisco Desmazallieres, suggested allowing the Quapaws, or Arkansas Indians, to attack the Osages.-30- This same attitude was held by other post commandants, such as Francois Desmazellieres, and previously, José de Orieta. Both reported in their correspondence with the governor that the Chief of the Quapaws, Cosenompoint, had asked for permission to attack the Osages in response to harassment, and requested gunpowder, bullets, a suit of clothes, and a cask of liquor.-31- Nonetheless, the commandant of Natchitoches, Athansase de Meziéres, attributed Osage violence to other causes. According to him, the Osage had not always been violent, that it was on account of the undesirable elements who hunted without a permit in the district of Arkansas and from whom the Osage obtained firearms to attack Natchitoches for the purpose of stealing horses and mules, along with women and children. Osage harassment caused the tribes in the Natchitoches district (Commanches, Taovayas and Sacs, Tawakonis, Tonkawas and Kichais) to move towards Texas, where they robbed and harassed Spanish establishments. As Osage incursions continued, De Mezieres decided to advise the use of force against them. The governor responded by ordering that all peaceful means of coercion possible should be used first.-32- Relations were not always poor between the Osages and the Quapaws. In March 1771, Major Orieta was visited by an Osage chief, his wife and four children. He gave them a flag of the King of Spain, explaining that it was the flag of the commandant over all their lands. During the visit, the Osage and the Quapaws made peace.-33- The peace did not last very long, as subsequent correspondence shows that skirmishes over Osage thefts and attacks continued between the two tribes. For example, the new commandant in Arkansas, Fernando de Leyba, reported that he had dissuaded the Quapaws from avenging the Osage attacks. Finally, he sent Chief Guatanika to New Orleans to meet with the governor.-34- De Leyba not only ended up allowing the Quapaw to attack, but also rewarding them with products for their friendship and respect.-35- In contrast to the Osage, there were few complaints regarding the Quapaws and these generally referred to their trading with the English or to disorderly conduct by Native Americans under the influence of alcohol. Trade in liquor was a major problem in Arkansas. Alcohol was supplied by the Europeans, French and Spanish authorities alike, as well as by legal and illegal merchants. The Indians were also given liquor by the English on the other side of the river, and English traders often entered Arkansas territory to sell alcohol to the Indians.-36- Although the Spanish authorities wanted to ban the sale and distribution of liquor to the Indians, they themselves included it in official presents, since it was something the Indians expected and asked for.-37- Alcohol was an important part of trade in Louisiana and one of the most pernicious elements in European-Indian relations during the 18th Century. This brief overview of the major topics in French and Spanish relations with the Osages and the Quapaws leads to the following conclusions: While the sparse European population in the Mississippi Valley did not pose a threat to the Indian peoples, the changes brought about by their presence, their colonial rivalries, and their products, changed the lives of the Indians in many different ways. European products had an enormous impact on Indian life, and the Indians became increasingly dependent on them for their daily lives. They increasingly relied on European products for security, especially on firearms that were crucial to inter-tribal relations.-38- Without them, their rivals could occupy their lands and take over their hunting grounds. Since the French and later the Spanish needed the Indians as allies for their own security, there was a mutual dependence between the colonizers and the colonized. In addition to the firearms, the most pernicious product introduced by the Europeans was alcohol. The Quapaws, who lived near the French and Spanish and had daily dealings with them, appear to have been affected more by alcohol than other Indian nations, such as the Osages. The many attempts by the Spanish authorities to ban, or at least limit and control the access of Indians to alcohol, were a total failure. A document of the times asks that no alcohol be taken to Arkansas and adds that the Indians only wanted to trade for alcohol and that they were in a sorry state.-39- While the European presence and products changed the lives of the Osage and Quapaw peoples to a certain extent, they did not keep them from generally maintaining their traditional way of life. The Quapaws basically submitted to French and Spanish policy, playing the role assigned to them, while the Osages reacted more independently. They took what interested them -trade- from the French and Spanish, but refused to change the violent way of life that brought them into conflict with many Indian peoples, as well as with the French and Spanish. The Osages were able to maintain a more independent stance because of their numbers and the relative inaccessibility of their villages. The Quapaws were more dependent because they were fewer in number and had a French and, later, a Spanish outpost near their villages. Also, the Quapaws did work for the Spanish. They served as guides and helped defend them against other Native Americans and the English. The defensive role of the Quapaws became more important for the Spanisrds during the years of the American Revolution. As Spain assisted the Americans, her territories became a target for the English in the right bank of the Mississipi. In fact the Arkansas Post was attacked by Colbert and his Chickasaw allies. Altough the Quapaws arrived to the Post when the attack had been repealed, a small number of Quapaws who were at the Post during the attack fought side to side with the Spaniards. Moreovern the Quaoaw warriors who arrived later, offered the Post commander to persecute the British-Chicasaw attackers.-40- The 18th Century, therefore, saw a number of changes in the lives of the Native American peoples, particularly with the advent of horses, firearms and liquor. They received European products that improved their quality of life, such as textiles, tools, utensils and many others, but which also increased their dependency. The Indians traded furs, horses and captive Indians for these products (the latter with other Indian peoples). While the Quapaws hunted only to meet their own needs and to engage in comparatively minor trade, the Osages contributed to trade in Louisiana in a large way. The Osages were so committed to trade, in fact, that they stepped up their activities to get more furs and even hunted beaver, an animal sacred to them. Perhaps the greatest difference between the Osage and the Quapaw attitudes towards the French and Spanish was that, while Osage violence threatened the peace in several districts, the Quapaws were a safeguard for the Arkansas Post. The Saint Louis and Arkansas commandants came to fear for the safety of their establishments at times when the Osages took on an especially violent stance. On one occasion, the Arkansas commandant, Fernando de Leyba, reported to the governor that if the Osages attacked the post he could count on the Quapaws to defend it.-41- The Quapaws were characterized by the French, during France´s dominion of Arkansas, and then by the Spanish inhabitants of the Arkansas post during the Spanish years as "their saviors."-42- Osage behavior came to be considered so threatening that some urged their extermination.-43- The New Orleans authorities did not authorize the cruel measure, but they did tolerate and even sponsor punitive expeditions against them by other tribes. In general, however, instructions were fairly similar throughout the four decades of Spanish rule in Louisiana: treat the Indians peacefully and resort to presents and trade in dealing with them.
Footnotes -1- For a study of the effect of European contact on the Native American peoples in Arkansas see Williard H. Rollins, "Living in a Graveyard: Native Americans in Colonial Arkansas," in Jeannie Whayne, comp., Cultural Encounters in the Early South. Indians and Europeans in Arkansas, The University of Arkansas Press, Fayetteville, 1995. Pp. 38-60. Rollins stresses the decimation of the Mississippi Native Americans during the sixteenth century due to epidemics and years of severe drought, Ibid, 41. For a bibliographic review of Hernando de Soto´s expedition , the first contact between the Mississippi Valley Native American peoples living in the Arkansas territories and the Europeans, see David Sloan, "The Expedition of Hernando de Soto: A Post-mortem Report" in Jeannie Whayne, comp. , Cultural Encounters, pp 3-37. -2- John Joseph Mathews, Wah'Kon-Tah: The Osages and the White Man, Road. Norman, Oklahoma, 1960 1961; Gilbert C. Din and Abraham P. Nasatir, The Imperial Osages. Spanish-Indian Diplomacy in the Mississippi Valley. Norman, University of Oklahoma Press, 1983. W. David Baird, The Quapaw Indians. A History of the Downstream People. Norman, University of Oklahoma Press, 1980 -3- Governor Kerlerec´s description is translated in Abraham Nasatir, translator and editor, Before Lewis and Clark St.Louis, 1952, pag. 51-52. -4- Pierre Margry, ed., Découvertes et établissements des français dans l'ouest et dans le sud de l'Amerique septentrionale (1614'1764) Paris: Maisonneuve, 1876-86, Vol. 2, p.181. -5- According to most authors, the Quapaws and the Osages appear to have been newcomers to Arkansas lands when the French explored and established their settlements in Arkansas. See Charles Hudson´s introduction to Jeannie Whayne´s Cultural Encounters, p. xiii. -6- Baird, Ibid., p.23. -7- Captain Desmazelliers, "Denombrement du Post des Arkansas et de la Nation Sauvage de ce nom," August 3, 1777, AGI, PC, leg. 107. -8- Luis de Unzaga y Amezaga, "Noticia General de lo que Produce la Provincia de la Luisiana," October 26, 1771, AGI, PC, leg. 1, doc. 110. -9- For a study of the Spanish population in Louisiana see Antonio Acosta, La población de la Luisiana Española (1763-1803), Madrid, 1976. -10- Letters from the commander of the Arkansas Post, De Clouet to Mon General (Alejandro O'Reilly), Arkansas, December 9, 1769; Letter from De Clouet to O'Reilly, November 14, 1770; Letter from the Arkansas Indians Great Chief to Mon Père Unzaga, September 12, 1770; Letter from Governor Unzaga to Causenoneon, Great Chief of the Arkansas Nation, New Orleans, June 30, 1772, AGI, PC. -11- John Preston Moore, "Anglo-Spanish Rivalry on the Louisiana Frontier, 1763-68," in John Francis McDermott, The Spanish in the Mississippi Valley, 1762-1804, University of Illinois Pres, 1974. 72-86. -12- De Clouet to Ulloa, May 6, 1768; also May 10 and July 10, all these documents in AGI, PC, leg. 107. -13- Riu to Ulloa, St. Louis, November 12, 1767, AGI, PC, leg. 109. -14- De Clouet to Mon General, Arkansas, July 22, 1768: Fernando de Leyba to Unzaga, Arkansas, June 6, 1771, both documents in AGI, PC, leg. 107. -15- Chapman, "The Indomitable Osage," in McDermott, The Spanish in the Mississippi Valley. -17- De Clouet to Mon Commandant, August 21, 1769; Leyba to Unzaga, June 6, 1771: summary of an undated letter (circa 1770) from Desmazelleires. All these documents are in AGI, PC, leg. 13. -18- Din and Nasatir, Imperial Osages, pag. 254. -19- De Clouet a Mon Comandant, Augst 21 of 1769; Leiva to Unzaga, June 6 , 1771, summary of the undated letter from Desmazellieres (1770). All theses documents are in AGI, PC, leg. 13. -20- Memoire sur l'état de la colonie de la Luisiane, written in 1764 by the French officer Luis de Villemond to the Secretary of State of Spain, Marquis of Grimaldi, Archivo Histórico Nacional, Estado, leg. 33882, exp. n. 12, doc. 9. -21- De Clouet to Ulloa, Arkansas, February 27, 1768, AGI, PC, leg. 107; also De Clouet to the Governor, Arkansas, July 144, 1769 and September 1, 1769. Ulloa´s response to De Clouet was dated July 5, 1768. De Clouet´s reports about Osage disorders and Osage trade are in AGI, PC, leg. 107. -22- Francisco Riu to Antonio de Ulloa, St. Louis, November 12, 1767, AGI, PC, leg. 109. -23- Din and Nasatir, Imperial Osages, pag. 59. -24- Pierre Margry, Découvertes et Etablisement des Francais dans L'Amerique Septentrionale , 1614-1765, Vol I, pag. 573. Paris, Imprimerie Jouaust et Signeau, 1876-1888. -25- Letter from Governor Esteban Miró to the Commandant of Arkansas Post, Balthasar Dubreuil, New Orleans, July 5, 1787, AGI, PC, leg. 4A. -26- Reuben G. Thwaites, Early Western Travels, 1748-1846., Cleveland, 1905, pag. 246. -27- Letter from Governor Miró to the Arkansas Post Commandant Dubreuil, New Orleans, July 5, 1787, AGI, PC, leg. 4A. -28- Din and Nasatir, Imperial Osages. 1983:34-36. -29- Mezieres to Unzaga, Narchitoches, February 10, 1773, AGI, PC, leg. 2357. -30- Letter from Francisco Desmazellieres to the Governor, Arkansas, May 15, 1777, AGI, PC, Leg. 107. -31- Desmazelliers to the Governor, Arkansas, October 6, 1770. AGI, PC, leg. 107. -32- Din and Nasatir, Imperial Osages, pag. 78. -33- Luis de Unzaga, Arkansas, March 11, 1771, AGI, PC, leg. 107. -34- Leyba to Unzaga, Arkansas, letters of July 5 and 11, 1771, both in AGI, PC, leg. 197. -35- Fernando de Leyba to Unzaga, Arkansas, April 27, 1772, AGI, PC, leg. 111. -36- De Clouet to Mon Commandant, August 1, 1769; Leyba to Unzaga, June 6, 1771, Valliere to Miró, October 1, 1789, AGI, PC, leg. 15 -37- De Clouet to Mon General, July 26, 1768; also the letter of October 6, 1768; De Clouet to Monsieur le Commandant, February 14, 1769; Ulloa to De Clouet, June 5, 1768, AGI, PC, leg. 107; Dubreuil Document "Distribución de los regalos hechos a los indios de este partido" (Distribution of presents to Indians in this district"," Arkansas, April 17, 1784, AGI, PC, leg. 107. -38- The list of presents received annually by the Quapaw Indians from the King included the following: rifles, gunpowder, bullets, needles, blankets, knives, scissors, hatchets, fabrics, salt and other objects of use. And there were also decorative items such as red ribbon, red paint, little bells, combs, stockings and luxurious clothing, such as special jackets. "Certificado de regalos para los Indios" (Certificate of presents for the Indians) May 19, 1775, AGI, PC, leg. 107. -39- Governor Esteban Miró to Valliere, New Orleans, July 19, 1787, AGI, PC, leg. 4B. For the effect of alcohol on the Quapaws see Carmen Gonzalez L.-B. "Noticias de los Quapaws," 20-26. -40- "Relación de gastos hechos durante el ataque de Colbert a este puesto y fuerte el 17 de abril de 1738," attached document to Dubreuil´s letter to Governor Miró, Arkansas, April 17, 1784; also Miró to Dubreuil, November 15, 1784; Alejo Pastor´s Certificate, January 28, 1784, all documents in AGI, PC, leg. 107. -41- Fernando de Leyba to Unzaga, Arkansas, April 30, 1773, AGI, PC, leg. 107. -42- Leyba to Unzaga, Arkansas, January 4, 1772, AGI, PC, leg. 107. -43- An example of the opinion of the Spanish authorities is Governor Carondelet's letter to Trudeau, dated May 5, 1793 in New Orleans, AGI, PC. leg. 124. With regard to the United States Government, after several failed attempts at putting a stop to Osage incursions, they were declared outside the protection of the Government of the United States by the American Governor of Louisiana, Meriwether Lewis. President Thomas Jefferson suggested not only encouraging other tribes to attack the Osages, but also that they be given arms for such purpose. Letter from President Thomas Jefferson to Governor Meriwether Lewis of August 21, 1808, at James R. Christianson: "A Study of Osage History Prior to 1876" Ph. D. Dissertation, Univ. of Kansas, 1978, p. 26.
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