Indian speech, delivered before a gentleman missionary, from Massachusetts, by a chief, commonly called by the white people Red Jacket. His Indian name is Sagu-ya-what-hath, which being interpreted, is Keeper-Awake

The Senecas were members of the Iroquois Confederacy and allied with the British during the American Revolution. Red Jacket (ca. 1758-1830) was a Seneca chief and orator who wore a red coat provided by the British who used him as a messenger, hence his English name. It was as a spokesman for the Seneca nation that Red Jacket gained his prominence. Arrogant and eloquent, he played a prominent role in negotiations between the Seneca and the new United States. In 1805, a Boston missionary society undertook to convert the Iroquois settlements in western New York. This speech by Red Jacket told the missionaries directly that their effort was not welcomed. It makes arguments that are very realistic and points out real problems in the white men’s arguments. The speech was first printed in Monthly Anthology (1809) and was reprinted frequently thereafter (Drake 283-87; History Matters; Native Eloquence 7-12). See Indian Speech for another speech by Red Jacket.