Brothers, we must be united; we must smoke the same pipe; we must fight each other’s battles; and more than all, we must love the Great Spirit.
TECUMSEHBrothers, we must be united; we must smoke the same pipe; we must fight each other’s battles; and more than all, we must love the Great Spirit.
TECUMSEHI am the maker of my own fortune, and Oh! that I could make that of my Red People, and of my country, as great as the conceptions of my mind, when I think of the spirit that rules the universe.
TECUMSEHWhen you rise in the morning, give thanks for the light, for your life, for your strength.
TECUMSEHI am a Shawnee. My forefathers were warriors. Their son is a warrior. From them, I take my only existence.
TECUMSEHFrom my tribe I take nothing, I am the maker of my own fortune.
TECUMSEHAlways give a word or sign of salute when meeting or passing a friend, or even a stranger, if in a lonely place.
TECUMSEHWhen you rise in the morning, give thanks for the light, for your life, for your strength.
TECUMSEHThe way, the only way to stop this evil is for the red man to unite in claiming a common and equal right in the land, as it was first, and should be now, for it was never divided.”
TECUMSEHA single twig breaks, but the bundle of twigs is strong.
TECUMSEHShow respect to all people, but grovel to none.
TECUMSEHLive your life that the fear of death can never enter your heart.
TECUMSEHWill we let ourselves be destroyed in our turn without a struggle, give up our homes, our country bequeathed to us by the Great Spirit, the graves of our dead and everything that is dear and sacred to us? I know you will cry with me, ‘Never! Never!’
TECUMSEHThe way, and the only way, to stop this evil is for all the red men to unite in claiming a common and equal right in the land, as it was at first, and should be yet; for it was never divided, but belongs to all for the use of each.
TECUMSEHLet us form one body, one heart, and defend to the last warrior our country, our homes, our liberty, and the graves of our fathers.
TECUMSEHGive thanks for your food and for the joy of living. If you see no reason to give thanks, the fault lies in yourself.
TECUMSEHWhere today are the Pequot? Where are the Narragansett, the Mohican, the Pokanoket, and many other once powerful tribes of our people? They have vanished before the avarice and the oppression of the White Man, as snow before a summer sun.
TECUMSEH