Thomas Jefferson Signs the Non-Intercourse Act, Setting Out for the First Time the Government's Official Policy to "Civilize" the Native Tribes (This Act recognizes that the clash between the European arrivals and the native population was in fact a clash of civilizations and not a dispute between neighboring countries)

Thomas Jefferson

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This is the first signed example of this 1792 Act that we have had, and a search of public sale records going back many decades fails to turn up even one other?It also sought to "promote civilization among the friendly Indian tribes" so as to "secure the continuance of their friendship?, and for the first time threatened criminal penalty against those who would challenge the primacy of the government in negotiating treaties and land purchasesAs the Europeans settled in the New World and expanded their footprint, they came into increasing contact with the natives there. This was a rare example of the meeting, not of two neighboring or distant countries, but of the clashing of distinct civilizations that had evolved separate from each other, with absolutely no contact. When the King of Great Britain sends his forces to combat France, this does not reveal a clash of civilizations, but contentions within civilizations. This had enormous consequences for the native populations. Few U.S. leaders took more of an interest in this than Thomas Jefferson.Thomas Jefferson's presidency would be a formative one in the interaction between native and European-based civilizations. He would send West two young men - Meriwether Lewis and William Clark - to find a water route to the other side of the continent, but he would also give other instructions. Learn what you can about the native populations, Jefferson instructed, and establish relations. He entertained tribal leaders sent back east by Lewis and was as close to an expert in this field as any of his contemporaries.The Nonintercourse Act (also known as the Indian Intercourse Act or the Indian Nonintercourse Act) is the collective name given to statutes beginning in 1790 that regulated relations between the native tribes and the new but growing American nation.George Washington, in 1790, spelled out the guiding principles of this effort. He said, "I am not uninformed that the six Nations have been led into some difficulties with respect to the sale of their lands since the peace. But I must inform you that these evils arose before the present government of the United States was established, when the separate States and individuals under their authority, undertook to treat with the Indian tribes respecting the sale of their lands. But the case is now entirely altered. The general Government only has the power, to treat with the Indian Nations, and any treaty formed and held without its authority will not be binding. Here then is the security for the remainder of your lands."The first act, passed that same year, was the first effort by the U.S. to stop people from taking Native Americans? property. This early effort was ultimately unsuccessful. When it expired two years later, Congress and the Administration set about fixing its shortcomings. There were two main pushes here. The first was guaranteeing the sanctity of native lands and protecting the federal government's primacy as the only entity to purchase or dispose of those lands. The second was an effort to bring the natives under the American fold in the social sphere by providing them with modern agriculture techniques and livestock and grain to plant.In 1792, Jefferson took a central role in the creation of this new bill that was intended to fix the original. The old bill did not stop illicit purchases. A stronger mechanism was needed, one with criminal penalties. And he sought to reassure the native tribes that this bill was being done in their best interests. You can see his frame of mind in a letter Jefferson sent to President Washington after the passage of the bill in 1793, enclosing two documents he felt ought to be provided to "each tribe of Indians whose circumstances may call for such a manifestation." The first was a Letter of Protection of the ordinary tenor, except that it declares a protection of the lands as well as the persons & other property, & would be signed by the President under the great seal. The second contained.

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• Titre: Thomas Jefferson Signs the Non-Intercourse Act, Setting Out for the First Time the Government's Official Policy to "Civilize" the Native Tribes (This Act recognizes that the clash between the European arrivals and the native population was in fact a clash of civilizations and not a dispute between neighboring countries)
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