Root Of All Present Distress

Creeks Had Been Armed By British At Pensacola

"I do not wish you to engage in any rash enterprise. You must act on the defensive." Compare such a diffident spirit with the martial one that called forth such fervid utterances as "Seize Pensacola and you disarm the Indians. It is the real heart of the Creek Confederacy;" "At all hazards, I wish you would enter the Creek Nation;"


"I would advise a stroke at the root of all present distress — Pensacola." Such confidence of speech not only reveals the military ardor of the Mississippi soldier, but conclusively proves that he had a clear understanding of the situation. [Source]