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1758]
Post's Journals
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and therefore must come to this side the river; but we assure you that he will not come to your towns to hurt you." I begged them to let the Shawanese at Logstown, know it, and gave them four strings of 300 wampum, with this message; "Brethren, we are arrived with good news, waiting for you; we desire you to be strong, and remember the ancient friendship your grandfathers had with the English. We wish you would remember it, and pity your young men, women and children, and keep away from the French; and if the English should come to surround the French, be not afraid. We assure you they won't hurt you."

22d.—Kittiuskund came home, and sent for us, being very glad to see us. He informed us, the general was within fifteen miles of the French fort; that the French had uncovered their houses, and laid the roofs round the fort to set it on fire, and made ready to go off, and would demolish the fort, and let the English have the bare ground; saying; "they are not able to build a strong fort this winter; and we will be early enough in the spring to destroy them. We will come with seventeen nations of Indians, and a great many French, and build a stone fort.

The Indians danced round the fire till midnight, for joy of their brethren, the English, coming. There went some scouting parties towards the army. Some of the captains told me, that Shamokin Daniel, who came with me in my former journey, had fairly sold me to the French; and the French had been very much displeased that the Indians had brought me away.

23d.—The liar raised a story, as if the English were divided into three bodies, to come on this side the river. They told us the Cayugas, that came with us, had said