e nothing out of the
common course of proceeding, then, for us to engage allies, if we needed
any for their punishment. But we neither need, nor have sought them. The
fact itself is utterly false, and we defy the world to produce a
single proof of it. The declaration of war by the Chickasaws, as we
are informed was a very sudden thing, produced by the murder of some of
their people by a party of Creeks, and produced so instantaneously as to
give no body time to interfere, either to promote or prevent a rupture.
We had, on the contrary, most particularly exhorted that nation to
preserve peace, because in truth we have a most particular friendship
for them. This will be evident from a copy of the message of the
President to them, among the papers now enclosed.

2. The gift of provisions was but an act of that friendship to them,
when in the same distress, which had induced us to give five times as
much to the less friendly nation of the Creeks. But we have given arms
to them. We believe it is the practice of every white nation to give
arms to the neighboring Indians. The agents of Spain have done it
abundantly, and we suppose not out of their own pockets, and this
for purposes of avowed hostility on us; and they have been liberal
in promises of further supplies. We have given a few arms to a very
friendly tribe, not to make war on Spain, but to defend themselves from
the atrocities of a vastly more numerous and powerful people, and one
which by a series of unprovoked and even unrepelled attacks on us, is
obliging us to look towards war as the only means left of curbing their
insolence.

3. We are aiming, as is pretended, at an establishment on the
Mississippi, at the _Ecores Amargas_. Considering the measures of this
nature with which Spain is going on, having, since the proposition to
treat with us on the subject, established posts at the Walnut Hills
and other places for two hundred miles upwards, it would not have been
wonderful if we had taken countervailing measures. But the truth is,
we have not done it. We wished to give a fair chance to the negotiation
going on, and thought it but common candor to leave things in _statu
quo_, to make no innovation pending the negotiation. In this spirit we
forbid, and deterred even by military force, a large association of our
citizens, under the name of the Yazoo companies, which had formed to
settle themselves at those very Walnut Hills, which Spain has since
occupied. And so