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XVP:indian history

#1

In a message dated 2/11/2003 1:48:54 PM Pacific Standard Time,
vpFREE@yahoogroups.com writes:

> Study your American History again. The tribes were often infected
> directly by giving them blankets that had been recently used by
> smallpox victims. The tribes had little or no immunity. I learned
> about this years ago before "PC" was rampant.
>
> --
> Pat O'Connell

 This appears to be an urban legend\.  Via snopes\.com \(search

"smallpox"):

This is not an urban legend. It actually happened in the French & Indian War.
What Snopes has is a reference to a Billings (MT) Gazette article about the
smallpox outbreaks at later periods in time (1781 & following).

<A HREF="http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/smallpox1.html">http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/smallpox1.html</A>

It is also during the eighteenth century that we find written reports of
American Indians being intentionally exposed to smallpox by Europeans. In
1763 in Pennsylvania, Sir Jeffrey Amherst, commander of the British
forces....wrote in the postscript of a letter to Bouquet the suggestion that
smallpox be sent among the disaffected tribes. Bouquet replied, also in a
postscript, "I will try to innoculate the[m]...with some blankets that may
fall into their hands, and take care not get the disease myself."

http://www.thefurtrapper.com/

The four major "things" brought to Native Americans by early Europeans were
disease, alcohol, trade guns, and Spanish Colonial horses. Of these four,
disease and alcohol had the most devastating affects on the Native American
Indians. The smallpox outbreak of 1781-1782 killed over half of the Plains
Indians, and the one in 1837 was as bad or worse (Plains and Rocky Mountain
Indians are grouped together as Plains Indians). Whiskey turned a great many
proud, self-reliant Native American Indians into drunken beggars, willing to
trade anything they had for more of the white man's liquor.

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

#2

In a message dated 2/11/2003 1:48:54 PM Pacific Standard Time,
vpFREE@yahoogroups.com writes:

>
> > Study your American History again. The tribes were often infected
> > directly by giving them blankets that had been recently used by
> > smallpox victims. The tribes had little or no immunity. I learned
> > about this years ago before "PC" was rampant.
> >
> > --
> > Pat O'Connell
>
>
> This appears to be an urban legend. Via snopes.com (search
> "smallpox"):
>

This is not an urban legend. It actually happened in the French & Indian War.
What Snopes has is a reference to a Billings (MT) Gazette article about the
smallpox outbreaks at later periods in time (1781 & following).

     I believe I noteded that incident during the F and I War. The
Gazette article mentions how the belief that this was a common
practice in later decades is widespread but inaccurate.

gj

···

On Wed, 12 Feb 2003 TedChee@aol.com wrote:

<AHREF="http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/smallpox1.html">http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/smallpox1
html</A>

It is also during the eighteenth century that we find written reports of
American Indians being intentionally exposed to smallpox by Europeans. In
1763 in Pennsylvania, Sir Jeffrey Amherst, commander of the British
forces....wrote in the postscript of a letter to Bouquet the suggestion that
smallpox be sent among the disaffected tribes. Bouquet replied, also in a
postscript, "I will try to innoculate the[m]...with some blankets that may
fall into their hands, and take care not get the disease myself."

http://www.thefurtrapper.com/

The four major "things" brought to Native Americans by early Europeans were
disease, alcohol, trade guns, and Spanish Colonial horses. Of these four,
disease and alcohol had the most devastating affects on the Native American
Indians. The smallpox outbreak of 1781-1782 killed over half of the Plains
Indians, and the one in 1837 was as bad or worse (Plains and Rocky Mountain
Indians are grouped together as Plains Indians). Whiskey turned a great many
proud, self-reliant Native American Indians into drunken beggars, willing to
trade anything they had for more of the white man's liquor.

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

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#3

The best "thing" the Indians gave the Europeans in return was tobacco. The Native Americans used it for ritual purposes. Now the rest of the world is killing themselves with it.

Elaine
TedChee@aol.com wrote:The four major "things" brought to Native Americans by early Europeans were
disease, alcohol, trade guns, and Spanish Colonial horses. Of these four,
disease and alcohol had the most devastating affects on the Native American
Indians. The smallpox outbreak of 1781-1782 killed over half of the Plains
Indians, and the one in 1837 was as bad or worse (Plains and Rocky Mountain
Indians are grouped together as Plains Indians). Whiskey turned a great many
proud, self-reliant Native American Indians into drunken beggars, willing to
trade anything they had for more of the white man's liquor.

···

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