oney. Truly the Commonwealth must make haste, or it will
hardly be able to pay us the interest of our money. The principal we
never expect to get.

Thus, though it is manifest that we have cost the government
absolutely much less than nothing, we have been called State
paupers, and as such treated. Those are strange paupers who maintain
themselves, and pay large sums to others into the bargain. Heigho! it
is a fine thing to be an Indian. One might almost as well be a slave.

To return to the proceedings of the court at Cotuet: When supper time
was past, the Cotueter's were anxious to draw something out of me,
by questioning. They said they knew more about the matter than I did;
that I had gotten myself into difficulty, and that Mr. Fish was a good
man, and had gained twenty members over to his church in twenty-five
years. They might have added that these were infants, who became
members merely by undergoing the rite of baptism. Perhaps they were
very good members, when they grew up--perhaps not.

Mr. Fish, alluding to the charge that but eight or ten of the Indians
heard him preach, stated, in his memorial to the Legislature, that
more than twice ten were upon his Sabbath School list. That might be
true; but it was no answer to the charge. There may well have been
on his list the names of so many persons, who attended neither his
meeting nor his school. Nor had he denied the statements of the
Indians in the least. I said to the gentlemen who were rejoicing over
my supposed downfall, that I was glad they had taken me into custody,
as it would lead to an investigation of the whole ground in dispute.
Mr. Ewer presently arrived; his bail was accepted, and I and my
friends returned home.

On the seventh of July, I was again visited by the Hon. J.J. Fiske,
who conversed freely with me on our religious affairs. He said it
would be better for us to turn Congregationalists, as then we should
probably be able to get assistance from the fund, I replied, that I
cared little by what name I was called; for I was no sectarian, but
could unite in the worship of God with all good Christians. It seemed
to be the opinion of the Hon. J.J. Fiske, that it was wrong for the
Rev. Mr. Fish to receive the salary he did, without attending to the
concerns of the Indians.

On the sixth, the head men of the tribe held a meeting, and agreed to
rescind the former meetings until the session of the Legislature, as
the commissioner had fairly state