nd never made a matter of
dispute afterwards. But the second article Butterfield
accepted was a stipulation that, while the released
British were to be free to fight again, the released
Americans were not; and it was over this point that a
bitter controversy raged. The British authorities maintained
that all the terms were binding because they had been
accepted by an officer commissioned by the Congress. The
Congress maintained that the disputed article was obtained
by an unfair threat of an Indian massacre and that it
was so one-sided as to be good for nothing but repudiation.

'The Affair at the Cedars' thus became a sorely vexed
question. In itself it would have died out among later
and more important issues if it had not been used as a
torch to fire American public opinion at a time when the
Congress was particularly anxious to make the Thirteen
Colonies as anti-British as possible. Most of Forster's
men were Indians. He had reminded Butterfield how dangerous
an increasing number of Indians might become. Butterfield
was naturally anxious to prove that he had yielded only
to overwhelming odds and horrifying risks. Americans in
general were ready to believe anything bad about the
Indians and the British. The temptation and the opportunity
seemed made for each other. And so a quite imaginary
Indian massacre conveniently appeared in the American
news of the day and helped to form the kind of public
opinion which was ardently desired by the party of revolt.

The British evidence in this and many another embittering
dispute about the Indians need not be cited, since the
following items of American evidence do ample justice to
both sides. In the spring of 1775 the Massachusetts
Provincial Congress sent Samuel Kirkland to exhort the
Iroquois 'to whet their hatchet and be prepared to defend
our liberties and lives'; while Ethan Allen asked the
Indians round Vermont to treat him 'like a brother and
ambush the regulars.' In 1776 the Continental Congress
secretly resolved 'that it is highly expedient to engage
the Indians in the service of the United Colonies.' This
was before the members knew about the Affair at the
Cedars. A few days later Washington was secretly authorized
to raise two thousand Indians; while agents were secretly
sent 'to engage the Six Nations in our Interest, on the
best terms that can be procured.' Within three weeks of
this secret arrangement the Declaration of Independence
publicly accused the