concluded peace, the two men
would immediately sit down together, smoke the calumet, and be good
friends; and all this without the slightest loss of dignity.

This method of making peace was pursued not only by individuals, but by
nations. Very often women had this important political duty thrust upon
them,--a duty for which they were probably very well qualified, for it
is seldom that the women of a nation desire war.

This national disposition in regard to peacemaking was once the occasion
of a serious misfortune to the tribe of Lenni-Lenape. The tribes to the
north, who had formed themselves into a powerful body called the Five
Nations, had long been jealous of their neighbors the Lenni-Lenape, and
contrived a plan to humiliate them, and render them less important in
the eyes of the Indian world. Being at war with some other tribes, these
Five Nations came to the Lenni-Lenape and pretended to desire peace, but
stated that this was too important a case to be managed by women. They
declared that this was a great work, which should be given only into the
hands of a quiet, dignified, and honorable tribe, such as their great
neighbors, and urged the Lenape to undertake negotiations for the
cessation of hostilities.

As all this seemed reasonable enough, the Lenape were at last persuaded
to become peacemakers, and, as might be supposed, they were entirely
successful; but they suffered for their kindness and good feeling. Ever
afterwards they were looked upon by other Indian tribes as no better
than women. In Cooper's novels there are references to the fact that the
noble Lenape were sneered at as peacemakers and squaws.

But we will now return to our guardian angel. It was after a visit of
the Indians to the vessel of De Vries, that the peacemaking instinct
took possession of the wife of one of the Indian chiefs; and quietly and
stealthily, unperceived by her people, she managed to get on board the
"Squirrel," when she informed the commander of the real object of his
visitors, who had invited him to sail up Timber Creek. It was the desire
of the Indians to destroy this company of white men; and the narrow
stream where they wished to make the attempt was much better adapted for
their purpose than the broad waters of the river.

Wishing to prevent an encounter in which the sturdy Dutchmen would
probably kill some of her countrymen before they themselves were
destroyed, she had come to implore the whites not to run into t