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56
To His Excellency, Lieutenant General, Sir.
John Harvey, Knight Commander of the
Order of the Bath, and Knight Commander of the
Royal Hanoverian Guelphic Order, Lieutenant
Governor, and Commander-in-Chief in and
over Her Majesty's Province of Nova Scotia
and its Dependencies, &c &c __

Father,
The Petition of Newel Joe, Newel Dennis,
Greigwell and others of the MicMacs of Nova Scotia
on behalf of themselves and others, especially some of their
tribe who are aged and infirm and now residing at
Saint Mary's _

Humbly Sheweth, That in consequence of the failure
of the crops for some years past, also the scarcity of
fish, and consequently there being no demand for such
labor as we were want to perform; and lastly the
scarcity of game with which we were plentifully supplied
in former time has rendered your Red Children destitute
in the extreme.

Father, We would therefore approach [you - written above so insert here] respectfully, yet
confidently believing that, as some of these [?wrong's] especially
the latter) has been inflicted by our white brothers you
will not permit us to suffer with cold and hunger
during this winter; which threatens to be one of unprecedented
hardships to us_ In proof of this we need
only remind you, that, during the deep snow last
spring between two and three hundred moose were taken
by our white brothers in this small District alone
Other animals have been destroyed in nearly the same
proportion, so that the food and clothing with which
the Great Spirit so plentifully supplied us before
the coming of our pale brothers is now cut off from
our mouths and bodies and your red children left
to inherit want and destitution.

Father, We would therefore take the liberty to suggest
that if a few Blankets an other clothes, and a small
quantity of provisions were given to us, it would
eable us to maintain our wives and children, together