Adriaen van der Donck, A Description of New Netherland, 1655- 1656.

All American Indian treaties, accords, peace negotiations, agreements, atonements, proposals, requests, contracts, and pledges are sealed with gifts. Without these, their promises are not worth much, but with presents, agreements are binding. That is why an offering is commonly made with each point requested or agreed. The points are represented and remembered by means of wooden tallies. The person making the request has the offering nearby. When he finishes each point, he places an offering before the one for whom it is intended. Matters thus concluded with among them, they will exactly remember and perform to the utmost by all possible means. The offerings usually consist of wampum, pelts, duffel cloth, and weapons.

American Indians are ever ready to exchange gifts among themselves and with the Dutch, who are not keen on it. The Indians tend to demand too much and to take what the Dutch do not willingly give.

When making a request to the Indians, one sends an offering to them. The offering is hung up, and the request is stated, and those to whom it is addressed examine and deliberate the proposition seriously. If they take the offerings, the request is accepted and consented to. If the offering remains where it hangs for over three days, the petitioner must alter the request or increase the offering or both.

Adapted from Charles T. Gehring and William A. Starna, eds. A Description of New Netherland, trans. Diederik Willem Goedhuys (2008).

Biography: Adriaen van der Donck was a Dutch lawyer. He came to New Netherland in 1641 as an employee on Kiliaen van Rensselaer’s patroonship, Rensselaerswijck (now part of Albany and Rensselaer counties). In 1645, he helped colonial officials negotiate a treaty with the Munsee Indians. As a reward for this service, Van der Donck received a 24,000 acre estate in what is now the city of Yonkers. However, Van der Donck’s political activities later put him in conflict with Director-General Petrus Stuyvesant. The main goal of A Description of New Netherland was to encourage interested Europeans to consider settling in New Netherland.