Levi General (March 15, 1873 – June 27, 1925), commonly known as Deskaheh, was a Haudenosaunee hereditary chief and appointed speaker noted for his persistent efforts to get recognition for his people. He is most famous for bringing Iroquois concerns before the League of Nations in the 1920s. Early life Levi General was raised and educated as a traditional Cayuga, participating actively in Longhouse ceremonies. In addition to his first language, Cayuga, he also spoke the other Iroquois dialects. He worked as a lumberjack in the Allegheny Mountains in western New York and Pennsylvania. An accident forced him to return and he began to farm near Millpond, in the vicinity of Ohsweken on the Six Nations Reserve, where he married and had four daughters. Speaker of the Six Nations Council In 1917, General became hereditary chief of the Cayuga with the title "'Deskaheh'", meaning "more than eleven". Deskaheh travelled to London in August, 1921 with attorney George P. Decker, who was hired by the Six Nations as counsel. Because the Canadian government would have denied him permission to travel, the Six Nations Confederacy issued their own passport for Deskaheh at the advice of Decker. Deskaheh appeared at the Hippodrome "in full regalia" and also distributed a pamphlet entitled "Petition and Case of the Six Nations of the Grand River". Winston Churchill, British undersecretary for the colonies at the time, stated the petition should be returned to the Canadian government, so Decker and Deskaheh returned to the United States. In 1922, the two men went to Washington, DC and gained the support of the Netherlands' minister of foreign affairs, H. A. van Karnebeck, who sent their petition to the League of Nations' Secretary-General's office. They also gained the support of the Swiss Bureau International pour la Défense des Indigènes. In 1923, Canadian officials built Royal Canadian Mounted Police barracks on Six Nations Grand River lands, conducted searches of private homes, and prohibited the Indians from cutting wood for fuel (while allowing others to do so), intensifying the Indians' desire to seek protection from the British crown. Deskaheh travelled to Rochester, NY and began strategizing with Decker to ask the League of Nations to place sanctions on Canada. On July 14, 1923, Deskaheh and Decker sailed to Geneva, Switzerland. Decker returned to the U.S. after a brief time but communicated with Deskaheh frequently by mail. Meanwhile, Deskaheh remained in Switzerland for eighteen