To regulate trade with Indians, Congress creates the factory system, by which the U. S. government operates its own trading houses (known as “factories”). These trading houses are to be staffed by federal employees and are authorized to provide Indians with non-Indian goods on credit. The factory system is meant to end tension between Indians and independent traders, who often earned the enmity of their Indian trading partners by offering shoddy goods, selling alcohol, and negotiating unfair deals.
The Land Act permits the sale of land in the Northwest Territory.
To encourage white settlement in the Northwest Territory (what is now Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin, and portions of Minnesota), Congress passes the Land Act. The act allows Americans to buy tracts of public domain land in the territory for a minimum of two cents per acre. The law will quickly accelerate the displacement of the Indians native to the region.
Has seen three visions. In the first, three messengers offered him berries to heal him and told him that the Creator has chosen him for a mission. In the second, a man with nail holes in his hands shows him the paths to Heaven and Hell. In the third, he is given instructions from the Creator, instructions that will become known as the Code of Handsome Lake.
Handsome Lake’s visions provide the basis of the Longhouse Religion, which spreads quickly among the Seneca. By the prophet’s code, his followers are instructed to shun alcohol, witchcraft, gambling, sexual promiscuity, selfishness, and vanity. They are encouraged to value marriage and children, seek harmonious relationships with family members, and perform the Great Feather Dance, the Drum Dance, and other rituals of thanksgiving. Handsome Lake also advocates the adoption of many non-Indian ways, including white clothing, house styles, and farming methods.
World History
