Note 74 — Chapter III · 1608-1763. THE FRENCH, THE ENGLISH, AND THE INDIANS.
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“I apprehend it will clearly appear to you, that the colonies had all along neglected to cultivate a proper understanding with the Indians, and from a mistaken notion have greatly despised them, without considering that it is in their power to lay waste and destroy the frontiers. This opinion arose from our confidence in our scattered numbers, and the parsimony of our people, who, from an error in politics, would not expend five pounds to save twenty.”—MS. Letter—Johnson to the Board of Trade, November 13, 1763.