In 1799, sixteen year old James McFadden runs from the terror of the orphanage that was his home for six years. Captured by Indians, he stays and comes of age with the tribe during the years of the Northwest Territory Indian Wars. James is torn between his loyalty to his race, and his love for those who loved and cared for him. He experiences the brutality, lies and deceit, that drive the conflict between Great Britain and the newly formed United States as he and the Native Americans are caught in the middle of a war they did not want. The story covers the period just prior to the Revolutionary War until December, 1816, when Indiana became the nineteenth State of the Union. The ever increasing press of frontiersmen and settlers squatting on land that does not belong to them forces the tribes to defend their ancient culture with the desperation of men who know they are destined to lose, but some would choose death, rather than succumb to the rule of the white eyes.Shawnee chief, Tecumseh, tries to unify the tribes remaining east of the Mississippi in an effort to recover lands, ceded by earlier chiefs, who placed their marks on treaties initiated by William Henry Harrison, Governor of the Northwest Territory. He acquired millions of acres of Indian hunting grounds, for pennies per two hundred acres and annual payments, including flour, salt, blankets, to be be distributed among the tribes. Such practices coupled with war and disease, effectively destroyed the Indians' way of life. James McFadden relates the story from his perspective as a man, like the tribes, caught in the middle of a firestorm. Tecumseh called the white eyes "the race of dark souls." Harrison and leaders of the time believed they were being guided, protected, by God's divine providence to tame the savages and claim the land. One must ask, if in their endless pursuit of acquiring all the land and wealth of the resources of North America, was it divine providence or subscribing to evil? Many Indians rejected Christianity, not because of Jesus, but because of the hypocrisy of many, who with their words claimed to be His followers, but their actions toward the Indians revealed a darker side. James and his wife experience great hardships, loss, and grief; their faith is challenged, but but in spite of torture, murder, and injustice, they prevail finding that indeed, good comes to those who wait upon the Lord. It's an epic tale based on actual events, a tale designed to arouse your beliefs about the fundamental nature of humanity.
About the Author: Jim Ellsberry, born 1936, Terre Haute, Indiana. Parents: Howard and Dorothy, one sister, Marianne B.S. and M.S., Indiana State University, Ed.S., Michigan State University. Military service: U. S. Army. Married: Doris J. Duncan (Fiftieth Anniversary2012) Children: Stephen Ray, Carol Lynn, Lee Anne, Karen Michelle Grandchildren: Taryn, Patrick, and Hadley J., and great granddaughter, Kinley J. Career: Educator (Teacher, counselor, coach, administrator) Adjunct Professor: Butler University and Indiana Wesleyan University (Leadership and Administration) Retired 2012: CEO. The DeWitt Institute for Professional Development Elder: New Beginnings Community Church, Franklin, IN. Hobbies: Fishing, golf, writing, reading, and working outdoors. Praise God from whom all blessings flow.