Show gre ate f american D 0 ak J JP f I 1 0 4 s VIZ 0 W am 2 t y V P et N T by ELMO SCOTT WATSON N ONE ot of robert W chambers hambers spir cited romances of revolutionary new york the first chapter opens with these words the day sir william died there died the greatest american of his day because on that midsummer evening his excellency was still only a Nir virginia ginia gentleman not yet et famous and best known because of courage and sagacity displayed in the bloody business of braddock indeed all americans taen tl en living and who since have become famous were ere little celebrated excepting locally on the day sir I 1 villiam john bon u d ed few were kno cuts out de a s agie pro pron ince scarcely one amor amot g tl cm ew had been heird heard of abroad but sir william was a wo I 1 11 I 1 flure a great constructive genius the greatest gre idest mild owner in north america a R wise magistrate a victorious sold er a builder of cities amid a wil wit berness a redeemer of men he ile vas a baronet of t le e british realm his majesty s superintendent of ind an affairs for all r north america he was the only living white man implicitly trusted by the of this con because he be never broke his word to them he was perhaps the only representative represent athe of royal authority in the western hemisphere utterly believed in by the dishonest tyrannical and stu pid pack of royal governors magistrates and lesser vermin that afflicted the colonies with the british plague he ile was kind and great all loved him all mourned I 1 lim tin for he wa a ery very perfect gentle man who practiced truth and honour an 1 mercy an unassuming ano ant respectable man who loved laughter and gaiety and plain people he saw tl ti e conflict coming coining which in drench the land in blood and dry with fire the black ened cinders torn betwixt loyalty to his king whom he had so tirelessly served and loyalty to his country which he so passionately loved it has been said that rather than choose between king mug and col ony he died by his own hand but those who know mm flat best know othen ise sir william johnson died of a broken I 1 eart in his great hall flail at johnstown John stoAn all alone thus a novelist noi alist one of tl ti ose weavers eavers w of roman tic tales who frequently ass agn real persons roles in their fictional writings and interpret tl ti em as suits their fancy but what of the historian who deals only with facts would he endorse endore tie tl e novelist novelists s estimate of the greatness greit ness of S r wil wit liam ilam johns n tie tl e best answer to that is to read a recent biography of tl e man T linson linon of the mohawks A biography of S r william johnson irish immigrant mol mot awk war LI U let lef american solder empire builder written by arthur pound in collaboration coll with richard ichird Il 1 day and published by the Alite macmillan millan company this biography represents tl ti e fruits of 2 ai years ye irs of work on johns n n an letters docu dou ments etc by dr richard E day dav of tl ti e I 1 II 11 of the state of now aorl who prepared prep ired them for official publication six volumes of pages each already hive have been published and tl it ree more are tire irth hi tit 1st ed so the P und day biography based as it Is upon thi in n in I 1 ece of work may safely be regarded as the final au dhority on sir william johnson to reid read the words of tl e his in it is to realize tl it it there Is no exaggeration in the words of chan ban hers bers the novelist for virtually every statement he mikes maker can be backed up by documentary evidence which 9 gives ives johnson of the mohawks its authority the life of sir IN illiam liam ll johnson Is one of the great american romances rom inces in 1738 william john son a tall rugged ragged handsome young irishman aged twenty twentythree three ande at boston and proceed ed to tie small dull and dirty city of sew new york here he was the guest of his uncle the famous british admiral sir peter warren there for a few months the young irishman entered wholeheartedly whole heartedly into the social galet gaieties les for which the new york of that briod and sir peter war ren s house especially was noted then he pro ceedee by sloop ap the hudson to albiny albany and then by wagon to the mohawk villey valley where he lie was to take charge of a large tract of land which belonged to his uncle this body of 13 uncultivated acres lay along the south bank of tl it e mol mot awk iver near what Is now south amsterdam within a year with the help of sen several era meet antes and a few settlers whom he had brought with him young johnson idill karf kirf had surveyed the land built a house houge opened a gei get eril enl stole and vv s braning other settlers to the place attracted by hi merchandise the in deans of tl e great ir quals confederation more especially the mohawks came to exchange their furs for tl ti e wl ite n in s goods an I 1 wit in a few years williim william willi im joins jol ns it was one of the greatest traders in ta tie e celily with his operations extend ing far beyond tie mohawk villey valley i u tl it e beg nning anin tl ti I 1 immigrant I 1 ed his red neighbors fairly a at ique experience for them in their dealings with tie tl e I 1 anglish colonists and tl ti cy ey began to ook to I 1 im tin as their special champion in their dealan z with other whites adol ted into tl ti e mol mot awl al tribe under tinder the name mme of Var ragi i jev gm hie tt it I 1 a fitting name for this energetic young i erch int he sat at tl ti air council fires joined in their games and dance learned their lan ian u ge knew tier tl e r folk ways lovel love their women and in arned with them for their dead wl WI en ell it tie e last french an I 1 li if d an war broke out joins jot ns n tl ti e tra ler tie tt e landowner ian lan lowner tie ti e coun ailor out burt I 1 asir IV as a in I 1 tary leader I 1 e I 1 IV I 1 v I 1 I 1 soi of and his fr end iving king hen lien drick tt ti e mol slot I 1 i vi ak ch ef the colonial troops of new ew I 1 bork ork and tl ti air ind an all es on a great victory oer o er Dl dieskau ekau at lake take george today a magnificent monument topi e I 1 by it tie e stat iles of king flendria an 1 jol jolt r s n con rades forever in stone ks the battlefield hatt batt lefeld where I 1 tt e ii if d if chief fell an i ta tie e c I 1 n al at lea ler won the victory which estabi sl si ed I 1 is fd fa e an I 1 won for I 1 in a baronetcy and i purse of I 1 later ater wl lie ile 1 I was capter ng qu oil bee and amherst mgt ting his way wity to ar I 1 at etreal the former trist in figr tat pw bir sir N illiam johns n birt B was vinning inning an tin it tier er vict rv it I 1 t ni igara an I 1 tl ti us securing for gleat britain absolute a assurance of control of the mid lie est annl an I 1 ina la iq but no sooner wa was tl ti e daner f fr r in ill I 1 tie I 1 e pi fience ench eliminated than a new e ar sc e the indi ns its in the west anest were lestler lest les s at II 11 tie e pr spec of w what hat would lappen tappen to aten tl en if blat tl dt c atrol of the continent had passed from tl if air fret fr et Is the I 1 rench to their enemies the P trish aish so to de troit w went ent sir william lot lornson in lit tl ti ere to hold a council to exert n uch of the game came influx ence over tl it ese tribes as he be had exea excited ted over the iroquois and to postpone for a wh ie le the table conflict which flamed out two leara years later in I 1 lont laca s uprising but again it m was as the strong hands on the covenant chain which turned the scale for sir william johnson and his brothers by adoption managed to keep all but one of the six lotions nations out of tie most bitter indian war the british fought in america and so pontiac was defeated worn out from his arduous services on the fron tier sir william declined to be consid considered ered for gobernor goer gov arnor nor of new york A year after I 1 is arrival in the mohawk valley he had purchased for himself thereby alienating his uncle sir peter warren 70 1 t 10 a tract of land on the north side of it 11 e mol mot awk river where he later built fort rort johns n near the present N Y but after his return from the wars he be built a new m inseon for him self joinson jol hall flail in NOW is now John johnstown town N Y A settlement quid quiet ly sprang up aroun I 1 the hall flail cl CI arches were built and acl I 1 ere he established probably pro bibly the free school in amer lea ca nd missions for the dindial s life dt it jol jot hall flail wis was on an e expansive and expensive scale sale f bests can cane e from all parts of tl e world to enjoy the tbt boun bess of f this american baronet rich wine an I 1 aban lint lant food graced his tible table ills stables were filled with fine horses fox rox hunting with hounos houn Is brought from england archery fencing racing such stich sports were the birder of ta tie e day always his mohawk brethren haunted the place and once a year the six nations come came trooping in for a coun cil ell and a feasting which lasted tor for days never did he fail fall then them in protecting thein them from land grab grabbing of his own race thus for more than a decide decade the former irish immigrant boy ruled like a feudal b biron iron over his little kingdom on american soil but it was vies a kingdom kindom in to which the monarch rule with fib wisdom and kindness and fair deiling to ail all men the end came on july 11 1774 robert W chan bers in the novel previously referred to has diluted th tb c unforgettable word picture of tl it e scene that fay his son sir john killed a fine I 1 orse riding from fort rort johnson to the hill hall an I 1 arrived too late and all of a lati tail er in tl ti e stirlie t at the hall flail he nu I 1 usel ld was all in a turmoil and besides sir ill ims it imell ate family there vere a tl us nd quests guests a thou sand iroquois ind ans anro ind ti tie e hill with ith whom sir william hid had been if I 1 ling me flie council counell he had determine 1 to restrain his ills mo I 1 bawks aw ks and to mail tain tr neull tv among all the fierce warriors of the si nations s an I 1 so pledge plede tt e entire s bonfe ler icy to an absolute neutrality in the in if ir it ence of tl tt Is war I 1 betwixt king and colony wild now seemed to ie corn com ing in so u r pilly up n us tl ti al at adlei IV its furnace breath was heating r siv to a fever feer all that hot guiv d v th ugh ill in an I 1 n ei pi tally ui lit liapi v ind ui ill der a vertical sun with head uncovered unco verel sn siz wil ian hid had spoken to tl e iroquois with belts the day s labour of tl ti it at accursed G c ur cil 11 fire ended at sunset em ind cl el let del arted tall spectres spec tres in tl e flu flat ng west there wal a clash of steel at tl e guar buarl I 1 I 1 use ilse is as tt it e guird guard pre seated aril arn s mr duncan saluted the ency with lifted claim re tl TI en ell an old n in barel beaded alone turned iway away from tie cidred c uncil flie fhe and an ofil seeing how feebly he movel monel flung an arm about I 1 Is shoulder sl st so sir willlim william came sl anly to his gie gleit it hall flail nd entered and laid alm down in its I 1 arary on a sofa and slowly died there wh ie le tl ti e sun was going down ihen the first star came out in the ashes of the july sunset a 8 pile pale rose tint still lingered but clr ir william lay dead in his great hall ill alone go to jol jot ast wn N Y today and wander in ta tie e churchyard of old st johns there you w will ill tind find a simple 1 ead stone upon which Is engraved only this sir william johnson bart 1715 1774 but when tl at itne disso dissolves hes under the slow kiss of time writes I 1 aund a grateful people II 11 ay consider graving upon its successor this quo tation from a johnso letter I 1 thank heaven I 1 I 1 ave ane avei thought my self love a small sacrifice to the public and it s er ams up the story of the career of tl is greatest grei test american of his day with these words the Pe revolution could proceed emerica could proceed the gatekeeper gate keeper of the mol mot awk had dougl t off the french rench and tamed the indians and now since he was dead deal the gate to the west stood open 0 by western newspaper union |