Osceola
      
On the third night, a new leader emerged. Throughout the discussions, Osceola had lobbied chief Micanopy behind the scenes. Finally he stepped
forth, brandishing a knife, to let the assembly know his thoughts on emigration:
"The only treaty I will ever execute will be this!"
With that, Osceola allegedly plunged his knife into the negotiating table -- according to some, into the treaty itself:
"There remains nothing worth words. If the hail rattles, let the flowers be crushed - the stately oak of the forest will lift its head to the sky and the storm, towering and unscathed."
-- Osceola at the Fort King negotiations*
  
Sources: Sprague Origin 80, Cohen 62, Mahon
92, Wickman 42-3.
©
Part 2, War: l
*Quotations attributed to Osceola and other Seminole leaders were recorded in military reports throughout the
war. |
