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Beyond Penn's Treaty

Minutes of the Committee on Indian Concern No 1

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the views of the Yearly Meeting; the Committee performed
the service, and on their return reported as follows;

Agreeably to our appointment we have made a
visit to most of the Indian Nations on the frontier of this
State. We first visited those settled at Brothertown

, which
is about one hundred and twenty miles northwest of Albany;
they consist of about 35 families, being parts of several
tribes from New London, Narraganset and Long Island,
and have some knowledge of the English language, habits
and manners; some of them can read and write, and all progress
a belief in Christianity. They possess about 10,000 acres of
very fair land, given them by the Oneida Tribe, which is
laid out in farms of 50 to 150 acres to a family: a
number of them appear to be desirous of religious improvement,
and frequently meet together on the first day of the week
for the purpose of religious instruction, and employ the time
in reading and exhortation

From Brothertown

we proceeded to a
settlement made by the Stockbridge Tribe, about 15 miles
further west and within 5 miles of the principal town
of the Oneidas, who gave them the tract on which they
are now settled, containing six miles square of excellent
land; they removed from Massachusetts to this place
about 10 years since.

The Stockbridge

Indians are generally
unacquainted with the English language, and retain
their native dress and manners; some of them have
separate farms, but they are very indifferently tilled, as