country where they liyed $ this
island or continent, Hawoheo, for the red race,
and meant it for them alone; He did not allude5
to, or acknowledge any migration from other
lands. This Le Fort, himself an Onondaga; a
chief, and an educated man, told me during
the several interviews I had with him at the-
Onondaga castler
Ondiyaka proceeded to say, as they walked
overdhe ancient ruins in the valley of the Ka-
sonda,* that this was the spot where the Onon-
dagas formerly lived, before they fixed themselves
in the Onondaga vallef, and before they;
had entered into confederation. In those days
they were at enmity with each other; they raised
the old forts to defend themselves. They wandered
about a great rdhal. They frequently
changed their places of residence; * They lived
in perpetual fear. They kept fighting, and moving
their villages often: This reduced their
numbers, arid rendered their, condition one of
alarms and trials. Sometimes they abandoned
a village, and all their gardens and cledflftgS,
because they had encountered, much sickness,
and believed the place to be doomed. They
were always ready to hope for better luck in a
new spot. At length they confederated, and
then their fortifications Were no longer necessary,
and fell into decay. This he believed, was
* Butternut Creek, which,runs through parts of, the towns
of Pompey, Lafayette and Pe Witt, Onondaga couhtyk
the origin of these old ruins, which were not of
foreign construction.* Before the confederacy,
had been pot only • at war among themselves,
but had been driven by other enemies,f
After ify they carried, their wars out of their own
country, and began to bring home prisoners.
Theif plan was to select, for adoption, from the
prisoners, and captives, and* fragments of trifles
whom they conquered. These captives were
equally divided among each of the tribes, Were
adopted and, incorporated with them, and. served
toknake good their losses* They used the term,
We=-hait-wat-sha, - in- relation to tlicse. captives.
This term means a body cut into parts and scattered
around.- In this manner; they figuratively
scattered their prisoner^ aqcfsunk and destroyed
their nationality, and built up their own.
At- what: period they confederated, we hpve
no exact means of deciding. It appears to have
been comparatively recent;: judging from traditionary
testimony^ Whilekheir advancement
in; the economy of living,' in arms, in diplomacy-
atiShh civil polity, would lead conjecture to a
more remote date. Then 'own legends, like
# This remark must, be considered as applied only to the
dlass of simple ring fotts, so frequent in western New York.
These "forts are proved by antiquarian remains, forest growth,
&c'.y to' he the most ancient of any, works, hi Onondaga coun-
ty, inthe shape, e f f o r t s ,.
* f Gbideli represents th’em as driven by the Algohquins, 6n
the discovery of Canada-. '
8 f Vtde Pyrl&tfe. ■