The Project Gutenberg eBook, The Life of Isaac Ingalls Stevens, Volume II (of 2), by Hazard Stevens
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Transcriber’s Note
Several of the double- and triple-page maps are accessible in a larger size by using the “Larger image” link below each caption.
THE LIFE OF
ISAAC INGALLS STEVENS
BY HIS SON
HAZARD STEVENS
WITH [MAPS] AND [ILLUSTRATIONS]
IN TWO VOLUMES
VOL. II
BOSTON AND NEW YORK
HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN AND COMPANY
The Riverside Press, Cambridge
1900
COPYRIGHT, 1900, BY HAZARD STEVENS
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
CONTENTS
| CHAPTER XXVI THE CHEHALIS COUNCIL | |
| Graphic account by Judge James G. Swan—Indians assemble on lower Chehalis River—The camp and scenes—Method of proceeding—Indians object to leaving their wonted resorts—Tleyuk, young Chehalis chief, proves recusant and insolent—Governor Stevens rebukes him—Tears up his commission before his face—Dismisses the council—His forbearance, and desire to assist the Indians—Treaty made with Quenaiults and Quillehutes next fall as result of this council | [1] |
| CHAPTER XXVII PERSONAL AND POLITICAL.—SAN JUAN CONTROVERSY | |
| Death of George Watson Stevens—Governor Stevens keeps Indians in order—Visits Vancouver—Confers with Superintendent Palmer, of Oregon—Firm stand against British claim to San Juan Archipelago—Purchases Taylor donation claim—Democratic convention to nominate delegate in Congress—Governor Stevens a candidate—Effect of speech before convention: “If he gets into Congress, we can never get him out”—J. Patton Anderson nominated | [10] |
| CHAPTER XXVIII INDIANS OF THE UPPER COLUMBIA | |
| Manly Indians—Ten Great Tribes—Nez Perces—Missionary Spalding—His work—Abandons mission—Escorted in safety by Nez Perces—Intractable Cuyuses—Religious rivalry—Dr. Whitman—Yakimas, Spokanes, Cœur d’Alenes, Flatheads, Pend Oreilles, Koutenays—Upper country free from settlers—Indian jealousy—Conspiracy to destroy whites discovered by Major Alvord—Warnings disregarded—Governor Stevens thrown in gap—Prepares for council—Walla Walla valley chosen by Kam-i-ah-kan—Journey to Dalles—Incidents—Unfavorable outlook—Escort secured—Trip to Walla Walla—“Call yourself a great chief and steal wood?”—Council ground—Scenes—General Palmer arrives—Programme for treaty—Officers—Lieutenant Gracie, Mr. Lawrence Kip, and escort arrive—Governor Stevens urges General Wool to establish post there | [16] |
| CHAPTER XXIX THE WALLA WALLA COUNCIL | |
| Nez Perces arrive—Savage parade—Head chief Hal-hal-tlos-sot or Lawyer, an Indian Solon—Cuyuses, Walla Wallas, Umatillas arrive—Pu-pu-mox-mox—Feasting the chiefs—Fathers Chirouse and Pandosy arrive—Kam-i-ah-kan—Four hundred mounted braves ride around Nez Perce camp—Young Chief—Spokane Garry—Palouses fail to attend—Timothy preaches in Nez Perce camp—Yakimas arrive—Commissioners visit Lawyer—Spotted Eagle discloses Cuyuse plots—Council opened—Treaties explained—Five thousand Indians present—Horse and foot races—Young Chief asks holiday—Pu-pu-mox-mox’s bitter speech—Lawyer discloses conspiracy of Cuyuses to massacre whites—Moves his lodge into camp to put it under protection of Nez Perces—Governor Stevens prepares for trouble—Determines to continue council—Invites Indians to speak their minds—Lawyer favorable—Kam-i-ah-kan scornful—Pathetic speech of Eagle-from-the-Light—Steachus wants reservation in his own country—General Stevens’s tent flooded—Lawyer accepts treaty—Young Chief and others refuse—Governor Stevens’s pointed words—Separate reservations for Cuyuses, Walla Wallas, and Umatillas—Sudden arrival of Looking Glass—His indignation—Orders Nez Perces to their lodges—Night conference with Yakimas—Stormy council—Lawyer goes to his lodge—Kam-i-ah-kan, Pu-pu-mox-mox sign treaties—Lawyer’s advice—Nez Perces and Cuyuses counsel by themselves—Lawyer’s authority confirmed—Last day of treaty—Both tribes sign—Eagle-from-the-Light presents his medicine, a grizzly bear’s skin, to Governor Stevens—Satisfactory ending great relief—Delegations to Blackfoot council—Nez Perce scalp-dance—Treachery of other tribes—Outbreak—Compelled to live under treaties—Provisions of treaties—Benefits of council—Present prosperity | [34] |
| CHAPTER XXX CROSSING THE BITTER ROOTS | |
| Party for Blackfoot council—Crossing Snake River—Red Wolf and Timothy thrifty chiefs—Traverse fine country—Cœur d’Alene Mission—Council with Indians—Wrestling match—Crossing the Bitter Root Mountains—Rafting the Bitter Root River—Bitter Root or St. Mary’s valley—Reception by the Flatheads and Pend Oreilles—Victor complains of the Blackfeet | [66] |
| CHAPTER XXXI THE FLATHEAD COUNCIL | |
| Chiefs unwilling to unite on one reservation—Alexander dreads strictness of the white man’s rule—Big Canoe—What need of treaty between friends?—Let us live together—Protracted debates—Indians feast and counsel among themselves—No result—Victor leaves the council—Two days’ intermission—Governor Stevens accepts Victor’s proposition and concludes treaty—Moses refuses to sign treaty—“The Blackfeet will get his hair” | [81] |
| CHAPTER XXXII MARCH TO FORT BENTON.—MARSHALING THE TRIBES | |
| Nez Perces and Flatheads to hunt south of Missouri pending council—Prairie Plateau on summit of Rocky Mountains—Elk for supper—Lewis and Clark’s Pass—Management of train—Traverse the plains—Abundant game—Bewildering buffalo trails—Reach Fort Benton—Governor Stevens meets Commissioner Cumming on Milk River—Boats belated—Provisions exhausted—Leathery jerked meat—Pemmican two years old—Hunting buffalo on Judith—Bighorn at Citadel Rock—Metsic, the hunter—Two thousand western Indians fraternizing with Blackfeet—Stolen horses—Doty recovers them—Cumming claims sole authority—Forced to subside into proper place—He stigmatizes Blackfeet and country—Disagrees on all points—Governor Stevens’s views—A million and a half buffalo find sustenance on these plains | [92] |
| CHAPTER XXXIII THE BLACKFOOT COUNCIL | |
| Twelve thousand Indians kept in hand for months—Nez Perces and Snakes move to Yellowstone for food—Adams and Tappan seek Crows—Delay of boats imperils council—Indians summoned—Council changed to mouth of Judith River—Remarkable express service—Three thousand five hundred Indians assemble—Best feeling—Treaty concluded—Peace established—Terms well kept by Blackfeet—Scenes at council ground—Grand chorus of one hundred Germans—Homeric feasts—Disgruntled commissioner | [107] |
| CHAPTER XXXIV CROSSING THE MOUNTAINS IN MIDWINTER.—SURPRISE OF THE CŒUR D’ALENES AND SPOKANES | |
| The start homeward—The haggard expressman brings news of Indian outbreak—How Pearson ran the gauntlet of hostile Indians—Governor Stevens disregards warning dispatches—Resolves to force his way back by the direct route—Sends to Fort Benton for arms and ammunition—Hastens ahead of train to Bitter Root valley—Confers with Flatheads and Nez Perces—Alarming reports—Procures fresh animals—Nez Perce chiefs join the party—Taking the unexpected route—Crossing the snowy Bitter Roots—Ten dead horses—The surprise of the Cœur d’Alenes—“Peace or war?”—Craig and the Nez Perces take direct route home—Surprise of the Cœur d’Alenes—Rescue of blockaded miners—Indians called to council—The Stevens Guards and Spokane Invincibles organized | [120] |
| CHAPTER XXXV STORMY COUNCIL WITH THE SPOKANES | |
| Disaffected Indians—Kam-i-ah-kan’s emissaries and falsehoods—Governor Stevens’s firm front preserves friendship—Looking Glass’s treachery discovered and frustrated—Dubious speeches—Indians’ friendship gained—Light marching order—Four days’ march in driving storm to the Nez Perce country | [133] |
| CHAPTER XXXVI THE FAITHFUL NEZ PERCES | |
| Two thousand assemble in council—Offer two hundred and fifty warriors to force way through hostiles—Battle of Oregon volunteers—The way cleared—The Nez Perce guard of honor—March to Walla Walla—Capture of Ume-how-lish—Reception by the volunteers—Governor Stevens’s speech—Winter campaign—Letter to General Wool—His inaction and mistaken views—In camp, 27° below zero—The Nez Perces dismissed— Governor Stevens pushes on to the Dalles in advance of train—Crossing the gorged Deschutes—By trail down the Columbia to Vancouver—The sail at night in the storm—Arrival at Olympia after nine months’ absence—Mrs. Stevens and children visit Whitby Island—In danger from northern Indians | [143] |
| CHAPTER XXXVII PROSTRATION.—RESCUE | |
| Country utterly prostrated—Settlers take refuge in towns—Abandon farms—General Wool disbands volunteers, takes the defensive, and maligns the people—Review of war— Kam-i-ah-kan, leading spirit—Treacherous chiefs, fresh from signing treaties, incite war—Miners massacred—Agent Bolon murdered—Major Haller’s repulse—Settlers driven from Walla Walla—Massacre on White River—Volunteers raised— Lieutenant Slaughter killed—Impenetrable forests and swamps—Cascades afford hidden resorts—Fruitless march of Major Rains to Yakima—Governor Stevens addresses legislature—His measures of relief—Calls out volunteers— Visits lower Sound—Enlists Indian auxiliaries—Settlers return to farms—Build blockhouses—Organization of volunteers | [156] |
| CHAPTER XXXVIII WAGING THE WAR ON THE SOUND | |
| Volunteers form Northern, Central, and Southern battalions—Plan of campaign—Cooperation sought with regulars—Memoir of information sent General Wool and Colonel Wright—Campaign east of Cascades suggested—Wool’s flying visit to Sound—Demands virtual disbanding of volunteers—Governor Stevens’s caustic letter of refusal—Pat-ka-nim fights hostiles—Naval forces—Battle of Connell’s prairie—Scouring the forests and swamps amid rains and storms—-Red allies—Massacre at Cascades—Two companies of rangers called out to reassure settlers—Unremitting warfare—Hostiles surrender or flee across Cascades—Posts and blockhouses turned over to regulars—Volunteers on Sound disbanded | [171] |
| CHAPTER XXXIX THE WAR IN THE UPPER COUNTRY | |
| Fruitless movements of Oregon volunteers—Colonel Wright marches to Yakima valley in May—Parleys instead of fighting—Governor Stevens proposes joint movement across Cascades—Colonel Casey declines—Colonel Shaw crosses Nahchess Pass—Marches to Walla Walla—Governor Stevens journeys to Dalles—Dispatches Goff’s and Williams’s companies to Walla Walla—Seeks coöperation with Colonel Wright—Warns him against amnesty to Sound murderers—Three columns reach Walla Walla the same day—Shaw defeats hostiles in Grande Ronde—His victory restrains disaffected Nez Perces—Governor Stevens invites Colonel Wright to attend peace council in Walla Walla—That officer fooled by the Yakimas—His abortive campaign—Ow-hi’s diplomacy | [194] |
| CHAPTER XL THE FRUITLESS PEACE COUNCIL | |
| Governor Stevens, assured of support by Colonel Wright, revokes call for additional volunteers—Council with Klikitats—Refuses to receive Indian murderers on reservation—Pushes forward to Walla Walla—Indians take pack-train—Steptoe arrives with four companies—Indians assemble—Manifest hostility—Steptoe moves off—Volunteers start for Dalles—Steptoe refuses guard—Governor Stevens recalls volunteers—Hostile and threatening Indians—Steptoe refusing support, Governor Stevens moves to his camp— Disaffected chiefs demand that treaties be abrogated, whites leave the country—Governor Stevens demands submission—Terminates council—Starts for Dalles—Attacked on march—The fight—Moves back to Steptoe’s camp—Indians attack it—Repulsed—Blockhouse built—One company left—Both commands march to Dalles—Steptoe’s change of views—Demand on Colonel Wright to deliver up Sound murderers, who gives order—Cleverly evaded—Colonel Wright marches to Walla Walla—Counsels with hostile chiefs—Yields to their demands—Whites ordered out of the country—Shameful betrayal of duty—Governor Stevens’s indignant letters to the War and Indian departments—Pernicious influence of missionaries and Hudson Bay Company—Governor Stevens’s views finally adopted—Steptoe’s defeat—Wright defeats hostiles—Summary executions—Fate of Ow-hi and Qualchen | [206] |
| CHAPTER XLI DISBANDING THE VOLUNTEERS | |
| Entire force disbanded—Their character, discipline—Public property sold—So many captured animals that more were sold than purchased—Transportation cost nothing—Anecdote of Captain Henness—Thirty-five forts built by volunteers, twenty-three by settlers, seven by regulars—Colonel Casey refuses demand for surrender of murderers—Governor Stevens insists—Sharply rebukes Colonel Casey’s slurs—Leschi surrendered for trial—Is finally hanged—Qui-e-muth killed | [232] |
| CHAPTER XLII MARTIAL LAW.—DIFFICULTIES OVERCOME | |
| Hudson Bay Company’s ex-employees remain in Indian country—Suspected of aiding enemy—Governor Stevens orders them to the towns—Five return to farms, at instigation of trouble-makers—Arrested and thrown in jail Judge Lander issues writ of habeas corpus—Martial law proclaimed in Pierce County—Colonel Shaw arrests judge and clerk, who are taken to Olympia and released—Lawyers pass condemnatory resolutions—Judge Lander holds court in Olympia—Issues writs—Martial law in Thurston County—Judge Lander arrested—Held prisoner at Camp Montgomery until end of war—Martial law abrogated—Governor Stevens fined fifty dollars—His action in proclaiming martial law disapproved by the President—Dishonorable discharge used to maintain discipline—Company A refuse to take field—Pass contumacious resolutions—Are dishonorably discharged—Control of disaffected Indians—Agents in constant danger—Summary dealing with whiskey-sellers—Agents men of high qualities—-Statement of temporary reserves—Indians and agents—Northern Indians depredate on Sound—Captain Gansevoort severely punishes them at Port Gamble, and sends them north—Colonel Ebey falls victim to their revenge | [242] |
| CHAPTER XLIII LEGISLATIVE CENSURE.—POPULAR VINDICATION | |
| Governor Stevens’s habits of labor—Adopts costume of the country—Builds home—Housewarming—Fourth message to legislature—Renders account of Indian war—Resolutions censuring Governor Stevens, for dismissing Company A and proclaiming martial law, pooled and passed—Indignation of the people—Governor Stevens nominated for Congress— Canvasses the Territory—Elected by two thirds vote— Resigns as governor—Death of James Doty—Turns over governorship to Governor McMullan; Indian affairs, to Superintendent Nesmith—Return journey East—Incidents | [260] |
| CHAPTER XLIV IN CONGRESS.—VINDICATING HIS COURSE | |
| Passing Superintendent Nesmith’s accounts—Obtaining funds for Indian service—President recommends confirmation of the treaties—Welcomed back by old friends—General Lane a tower of strength—Demands that military deliver Yakima murderers to punishment—They abandon their protégés—Takes house and moves family to Washington—Mr. James G. Swan, secretary—Circular letter to emigrants—Appeals to Indian Department to establish farms promised Blackfeet—Has Lieutenant John Mullan placed in charge of building wagon-road between Fort Benton and Walla Walla—Exposes memoir of Captain Cram—Convinces Senate Indian committee that treaties ought to be confirmed—Advocates Northwestern boundary commission—Speeches on Indian war—Pacific Railroad—Defends Nesmith—Matters engaging attention—Resists exactions of Hudson Bay Company in memoir to Secretary of State—Steptoe’s defeat—Colonel Wright punishes Indians—General Harney placed in command of Washington and Oregon departments—He revokes Wool’s order excluding settlers from upper country—Address on Northwest—Walter W. Johnson, private secretary—Treaties all confirmed March 8, 1859—Dictates his final report on Northern route before breakfast | [271] |
| CHAPTER XLV SAVING SAN JUAN | |
| Returns to Puget Sound—Guest of General Harney—Close relations with—Renominated for Congress—The canvass—Elected—Death of Mr. Mason—San Juan dispute waxes warm over a pig—General Harney advised by Governor Stevens—Sends Captain Pickett to occupy the island—British fleet blockade—Reinforcements sent to Pickett—British powerless on land—Thousands of American miners in Victoria and on Fraser River—Governor Gholson guided by Governor Stevens—Offers support of militia to General Harney, who places ammunition at his disposal—General Scott pacifies British lion—Governor Stevens’s influence in saving the archipelago | [288] |
| CHAPTER XLVI THE STAND AGAINST DISUNION | |
| Governor Stevens becomes chief exponent and authority on Northern route—Letter to Vancouver railroad convention— Contending for the Northern route—Governor Stevens lives down prejudice—Gains respect—Great influence with President and departments—His habits—Rebuke of self-seekers—Political issues—Governor Stevens a national man—Sustained constitutional rights of South, as matter of justice and to defeat disunion—Patriotism of men of this view—Attends Charleston and Baltimore Democratic conventions—Supports General Lane—Split in party—Governor Stevens accepts as chairman of executive committee of National Democracy—Writes address in a single night—Labors hard—Hopes of success—Abraham Lincoln elected President—Act to pay Indian war debt passed—W.W. Miller appointed Superintendent of Indian Affairs for Washington Territory—Governor Stevens’s achievements in seven years—His firm Union sentiments—Denounces secession—Strengthens the hands of the President | [296] |
| CHAPTER XLVII THE OFFER OF SWORD AND SERVICES | |
| Governor Stevens returns to Washington Territory—Recommends supporting the government and arming the militia—Elected captain of Puget Sound Rifles of Olympia—Democratic convention meets—Governor Stevens withdraws his name as candidate for delegate—His speech—Offers services—Hastens to Washington—Meets cold reception—Accepts colonelcy of 79th Highlanders—Governors Andrew and Sprague offer regiments | [313] |
| CHAPTER XLVIII THE 79TH HIGHLANDERS.—THE ARMY OF THE POTOMAC | |
| The Highland Guard, a New York city militia battalion, volunteer as the 79th Highlanders—Splendid material—Severe losses at Bull Run—Promised to be sent home to recruit—Disappointed— Colonel Stevens takes command—Breaks unworthy officers—The mutiny and its suppression—Colonel Stevens enforces discipline—Marches through Washington with band playing the dead march—Removes camp guards and appeals to honor of the regiment—Crossing the Potomac into Virginia—Colonel Stevens’s brief speech at midnight—Building Fort Ethan Allen—Digging forts and felling forests—Picket alarms—The reconnoissance of Lewinsville—General McClellan meets returning column; his anxiety to avoid a general engagement— Colonel Stevens deprived of his brigade and given three green regiments—President Lincoln reminded, directs appointment of Colonel Stevens as brigadier-general; says delay is owing to General McClellan’s advice—Hazard Stevens appointed adjutant 79th Highlanders—Colonel Stevens appointed brigadier-general— Moves forward four miles to Camp of the Big Chestnut—The recusant wagon-master—The unexpected rebuke—McClellan’s passive-defensive—General Stevens ordered to Annapolis—Bids farewell to the Highlanders—Whole line cries, “Tak’ us wi’ ye!”—Secures appointment of his son as captain and assistant adjutant-general—Condemns McClellan’s management—Predicts disaster—Reaches Annapolis—Applies for Highlanders—McClellan objects, but President Lincoln overrules him and sends them | [321] |
| CHAPTER XLIX THE PORT ROYAL EXPEDITION | |
| General Thomas W. Sherman—His army—General Stevens’s brigade—The embarkation—Fleet assemble off Fortress Monroe—Boat’s crew of Highlanders—Lively scenes—Sailing out to sea—Storm scatters the fleet—Opening sealed orders—Sail for Port Royal—The rebel defenses—Commodore Dupont’s attack—The enemy’s flight—Landing of the troops—Demoralized by sweet-potato field—General Stevens alone urges advance inland—Constructs a mile of defensive works—Sickness—Life on Hilton Head | [341] |
| CHAPTER L BEAUFORT.—ACTION OF PORT ROYAL FERRY | |
| General Stevens occupies Beaufort, the Newport of the South—Abandoned by white population—Sacked by negroes; their ignorance, habits, condition—Faint attack on the pickets—General Stevens advances across Port Royal Island—Pickets outer side, throwing enemy on the defensive—Enemy close the Coosaw River—General Stevens’s plan to dislodge them authorized—Reinforcement by two regiments and gunboats—Flatboats assembled in a hidden creek—Troops embark at midnight, cross Coosaw, and effect landing—March in echelon toward Port Royal Ferry—The action—The enemy’s hasty retreat—The Ferry occupied—The forts destroyed—Troops bivouac for the night—Cross the ferry and march to Beaufort in triumph—Thanked in general orders for the victory of Port Royal Ferry | [353] |
| CHAPTER LI BEAUFORT.—CAMPAIGN PLANNED AGAINST CHARLESTON | |
| General Stevens restores public library—It is confiscated by Treasury agents against his protest—The Gideonites come to elevate the freedmen—General Stevens moderates their zeal; wins their gratitude—Other visitors—Thorough course of drill and discipline—Twenty-five-mile picket line—Detachment of 8th Michigan defeat 13th Georgia regiment on Wilmington Island—Death of Mr. Caverly—Governor Stevens’s views on military situation—General Stevens’s force a menace to Charleston and Savannah Railroad—Six miles trestle bridges—General Robert E. Lee’s defensive measures—General Stevens eager to cross swords with Lee—Plans movement to destroy railroad and hurl whole army on Charleston—Captain Elliott’s scouting trips—General Sherman adopts plan—Commodore Dupont to coöperate—General Hunter supersedes General Sherman—Fort Pulaski taken—General Hunter proclaims negroes forever free, then impresses them as soldiers—General Stevens’s views on the negro soldier—He is confirmed as brigadier-general | [367] |
| CHAPTER LII JAMES ISLAND CAMPAIGN AGAINST CHARLESTON | |
| Enemy abandon lower part of Stono River and batteries—General Benham plans movement on Charleston by way of James Island—General Stevens lands on James Island—Drives back enemy in sharp action—Takes three guns—Cautions Benham of need of a day’s preparation before attacking—Incompetent commanders—Wright joins, a week later, with his division—Organization of the army—Enemy strengthening works across island—Fort Lamar, strong advanced work—General Stevens erects counter-battery—Reconnoissances | [387] |
| CHAPTER LIII BATTLE OF JAMES ISLAND | |
| General Benham’s precipitate determination to assault Fort Lamar—Protests of his generals—He orders General Stevens to assault at dawn, Wright and Williams to support—Attacking column—Forms at two P.M.—Drives in and follows hard on enemy’s pickets—Enters field in front of fort at daylight—Rushes on the work in column of regiments—The fight over the parapet—Deadly fire from enemy’s reserves in rear of the work—Troops withdrawn in good order and reformed—General Williams attacks on left—General Wright takes position to protect left and rear—General Stevens about to assault a second time, when General Benham suddenly gives up the fight and orders both columns to retreat—Forces and losses—Causes of the repulse—Highlanders’ revenge at Fort Saunders—Benham deprived of command and sent North | [399] |
| CHAPTER LIV RETURN TO VIRGINIA | |
| The Highlanders present General Stevens with a sword—His response—Death of Daniel Lyman Arnold—General Stevens’s letters to his wife—Holds Benham to account—General Wright succeeds to command on Benham’s arrest—James Island evacuated—Troops uselessly harassed—Jean Ribaut’s fort—Voyage to Virginia—General Stevens’s letter to President Lincoln recommending such movement—His views of military situation—Lands at Newport News—Ninth corps formed, General Stevens commanding first division—Meets General Cullum | [416] |
| CHAPTER LV POPE’s CAMPAIGN | |
| General Stevens moves to Fredericksburg—Division in three brigades, and joined by two light batteries—Stevens and Reno’s division, march up the Rappahannock; join Pope’s army at Culpeper Court House—General Stevens stops straggling and marauding—Battle of Cedar Mountain—Army of Virginia—Pope advances to Rapidan—General Stevens holds Raccoon Ford—Lee leaves McClellan—Concentrates against Pope, who withdraws behind Rappahannock—General Stevens’s action at Kelly’s Ford—Marching up the river to head off Lee—Benjamin silences enemy’s gun with a single shot—Reinforcements arrive from Army of the Potomac—Jackson marches around right flank and falls on rear—Positions and movements, August 26, 27, 28—Description of Bull Run battlefield—Jackson withdraws from Manassas and takes position there—Movements of Pope’s forces—Fiasco of McDowell and Sigel—Jackson attacks—Stubborn fight of General Gibbon near Groveton—Generals King and Ricketts march away from the enemy—Pope reiterates order to attack | [425] |
| CHAPTER LVI THE SECOND BATTLE OF BULL RUN | |
| Jackson resumes his position—Sigel’s troops move forward slowly and become engaged—Reynolds, on left, advances, but falls back—Troops of right wing arrive, scattered to meet Sigel’s cries for reinforcements—General Stevens advances with small force to Groveton—Unexpectedly fired on by enemy’s skirmishers—Benjamin maintains unequal artillery combat—Sigel and Schenck withdraw troops from key-point—Jackson forces back Milroy and Schurz—General Porter’s movement—Inactive all day—Pope hurls disconnected brigades on Jackson’s corps—Attacks by Grover, Reno, Kearny, Stevens, all repulsed—King’s division slaughtered—General Stevens collects his scattered division—Union attacks repulsed the first day—Lee master of the situation—August 30, second day—Pope sure the enemy had retreated—General Stevens expresses contrary view—Captain John More finds enemy in force—Pope’s fatuous Order of pursuit—Porter slowly forms column in centre—Pope’s faulty dispositions— Whole army bunched in centre—Wings stripped of troops— Porter’s attack—General Stevens joins in it—The repulse— Lee’s opportunity—Longstreet’s onslaught—The battle on left and centre—The right firmly held—General Stevens’s remark—Pope orders retreat—General Stevens withdraws deliberately—Checks pursuit—Capture of Lieutenant Heffron—Crosses Bull Run at Lock’s Ford—Bivouac for night—Battle lost by incompetent commander—Troops fought bravely | [446] |
| CHAPTER LVII THE BATTLE OF CHANTILLY | |
| Retreat to Centreville—Rear-guard—Bivouac on Centreville heights—Counting stacks—Two thousand and twelve muskets left—Loss nearly one half—General Stevens’s last letter—Sudden orders—March to intercept Jackson—Battle of Chantilly—General Stevens’s charge—He falls, bearing the colors—The enemy driven from his position—Sudden and furious thunderstorm bursts over the field | [477] |
| CHAPTER LVIII THE BATTLE OF CHANTILLY | |
| Progress of the fight—General Kearny responds to General Stevens’s summons with Birney’s brigade—His death—Three of Reno’s regiments engaged—Night ends the contest—Sixteen Union regiments against forty-eight Confederate—Respective losses and forces—General Stevens averted great disaster | [487] |
| CHAPTER LIX FINAL SCENE | |
| General Stevens’s body borne from battle to Washington—President considering placing him in command at time of his death— Burial in Newport, R.I.—City erects monument—Inscription— Poem—General Stevens’s descendants | [498] |
| Appendix—Census of Indians | [503] |
| Index | [507] |
ILLUSTRATIONS
| PAGE | |
| Arrival of Nez Perce Cavalcade at the Council | [34] |
| Feasting the Chiefs | [36] |
| Kam-i-ah-kan, Head Chief of the Yakimas | [38] |
| U-u-san-male-e-can: Spotted Eagle, a chief of the Nez Perces | [40] |
| Walla Walla Council | [42] |
| Pu-pu-mox-mox: Yellow Serpent, Head Chief of the Walla Wallas | [46] |
| We-ah-te-na-tee-ma-ny: Young Chief, Head Chief of the Cuyuses | [50] |
| She-ca-yah: Five Crows, a Chief of the Cuyuses | [52] |
| Appushwa-hite: Looking Glass, War Chief of the Nez Perces | [54] |
| Hal-hal-tlos-sot: The Lawyer, Head Chief of the Nez Perces | [58] |
| The Scalp Dance | [60] |
| Ow-hi, a Chief of the Yakimas | [64] |
| The Flathead Council | [82] |
| The Blackfoot Council | [112] |
| Group of Blackfoot Chiefs—Ha-ca-tu-she-ye-hu, Star Robe, Chief of the Gros Ventres; Th-ke-te-pers, The Rider, Great War Chief of the Gros Ventres; Sak-uis-tan, Heavy Shield, Great Warrior of the Blood Indians; Stam-yekh-sas-ci-cay, Lame Bull, Piegan Chief | [114] |
| Blackfoot Chiefs—Tat-tu-ye, The Fox, Chief of the Blood Indians; Mek-ya-py, Red Dye, Piegan Warrior | [116] |
| Group: Commissioner Alfred Cumming, Alexander Culbertson, William Craig, Delaware Jim, James Bird | [118] |
| Crossing the Bitter Roots in Midwinter | [126] |
| Cœur d’Alene Mission | [128] |
| Spokane Garry: Head Chief of the Spokanes | [140] |
| Ume-how-lish, War Chief of the Cuyuses | [148] |
| Homestead in Olympia | [260] |
| Letter offering Sword and Services (facsimile) | [316] |
| Captain Hazard Stevens at the age of 19, from a photograph | [340] |
| Headquarters at Beaufort | [372] |
| General Stevens and Staff: Captain B.F. Porter, Lieutenant William T. Lusk, Captain Hazard Stevens, Lieutenant Abraham Cottrell, General Stevens, Major George S. Kemble, Lieutenant Benjamin R. Lyons | [386] |
| Headquarters on James Island | [398] |
| Camp of General Stevens’s Division at Newport News | [422] |
| Headquarters at Newport News | [424] |
| The Monument | [502] |
The portraits of Indian chiefs were made by Gustavus Sohon, a private soldier of the 4th infantry, an intelligent and well-educated German, who had great skill in making expressive likenesses. He also made the views of the councils and expedition. These portraits, with many others taken by the same artist, were intended by General Stevens to be used to illustrate a complete account of his treaty operations. The views of camps and headquarters were sketched by E. Henry, E Company, 79th Highlanders.
MAPS AND PLANS
| The Interior from Cascade Mountains to Fort Benton. Made on reduced scale from Governor Stevens’s map of April 30, 1857, sent to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs. Routes traversed by Governor Stevens taken from maps accompanying his final report of the Northern Pacific Railroad route. See Appendix for marginal notes | [16] |
| Theatre of Indian War of 1855–56 on Puget Sound and West of Cascade Mountains. Made on reduced scale from map sent by Governor Stevens to the Secretary of War with report of March 21, 1856 | [172] |
| Reconnoissance of Lewinsville, September 11, 1862 | [330] |
| Port Royal and Sea Islands of South Carolina | [352] |
| Action at Port Royal Ferry, January 1, 1862 | [358] |
| Battle of James Island, June 16, 1862 | [402] |
| Virginia—Potomac to Rapidan River | [426] |
| Positions of forces August 26, 1862, 9 P.M. | [432] |
| Positions of forces August 27, 9 P.M. | [433] |
| Positions of forces August 28, 9 P.M. | [443] |
| Second Battle of Bull Run, August 29 | [446] |
| Second Battle of Bull Run, August 30 | [464] |
| Jackson’s flank march, August 31 | [480] |
| Battle of Chantilly, September 1 | [482] |
THE LIFE OF ISAAC INGALLS STEVENS
CHAPTER XXVI
THE CHEHALIS COUNCIL
While treating with the Sound Indians, the governor sent William H. Tappan, agent for the southwestern tribes, Henry D. Cock, and Sidney Ford to summon the Chinooks, Chehalis, and coast Indians to meet in council on the Chehalis River, just above Gray’s Harbor, on February 25, and on returning to Olympia dispatched Simmons and Shaw on the same duty. On the 22d he left Olympia on horseback, rode to the Chehalis, thirty miles, and the following day descended that stream in a canoe to the treaty ground. Among other settlers who attended the council at the governor’s invitation was James G. Swan, then residing on Shoalwater Bay, and since noted for his interesting writings on the Pacific Northwest, and for the valuable collections of Indian implements and curiosities, and monographs of their languages, customs, and history that he has made for the Smithsonian Institution. Judge Swan gives the following graphic and lively account of this council in his “Three Years’ Residence in Washington Territory.” He describes how he and Dr. J.G. Cooper, accompanied by twenty canoe-loads of Indians, paddled up the Chehalis one cold, damp morning, without waiting for breakfast, finding it difficult to keep warm:—
“But the Indians did not seem to mind it at all; for, excited with the desire to outvie each other in their attempts to be first to camp, they paddled, and screamed, and shouted, and laughed, and cut up all kinds of antics, which served to keep them in a glow. As we approached the camp we all stopped at a bend in the river, about three quarters of a mile distant, when all began to wash their faces, comb their hair, and put on their best clothes. The women got out their bright shawls and dresses, and painted their faces with vermilion, or red ochre and grease, and decked themselves out with their beads and trinkets, and in about ten minutes we were a gay-looking set; and certainly the appearance of the canoes filled with Indians dressed in their brightest colors was very picturesque, but I should have enjoyed it better had the weather been a little warmer.
“The camp ground was situated on a bluff bank of the river, on its south side, about ten miles from Gray’s Harbor, on the claim of Mr. James Pilkington. A space of two or three acres had been cleared from logs and brushwood, which had been piled up so as to form an oblong square. One great tree, which formed the southern side to the camp, served also as an immense backlog, against which our great camp-fire and sundry smaller ones were kindled, both to cook by and to warm us. In the centre of the square, and next the river, was the governor’s tent; and between it and the south side of the ground were the commissary’s and other tents, all ranged in proper order. Rude tables, laid in open air, and a huge framework of poles, from which hung carcasses of beef, mutton, deer, elk, and salmon, with a cloud of wild geese, ducks, and smaller game, gave evidence that the austerities of Lent were not to form any part of our services.
“Around the sides of the square were ranged the tents and wigwams of the Indians, each tribe having a space allotted to it. The coast Indians were placed at the lower part of the camp; first the Chinooks, then the Chehalis, Quen-ai-ult, and Quaitso, Satsop, upper Chehalis, and Cowlitz. These different tribes had sent representatives to the council, and there were present about three hundred and fifty of them, and the best feeling prevailed among all.
“The white persons present consisted of only fourteen, viz., Governor Stevens, George Gibbs (who officiated as secretary to the commission), Judge Ford, with his two sons, who were assistant interpreters, Lieutenant-Colonel B.F. Shaw, the chief interpreter, Colonel Simmons and Mr. Tappan, Indian agents, Dr. Cooper, Mr. Pilkington, the owner of the claim, Colonel Cock, myself, and last, though by no means the least, Cushman, our commissary, orderly sergeant, provost marshal, chief story-teller, factotum, and life of the party,—‘Long may he wave.’ Nor must I omit Green McCafferty, the cook, whose name had become famous for his exploits in an expedition to Queen Charlotte’s Island to rescue some sailors from the Indians. He was a good cook and kept us well supplied with hot biscuit and roasted potatoes.
“Our table was spread in the open air, and at breakfast and supper was pretty sure to be covered with frost, but the hot dishes soon cleared that off, and we found the clear, fresh breeze very conducive to a good appetite. After supper we all gathered round the fire to smoke our pipes, toast our feet, and tell stories.
“The next morning the council was commenced. The Indians were all drawn up in a large circle in front of the governor’s tent, and around a table on which were placed the articles of treaty and other papers. The governor, General Gibbs, and Colonel Shaw sat at the table, and the rest of the whites were honored with camp-stools, to sit around as a sort of guard, or as a small cloud of witnesses.
“Although we had no regimentals on, we were dressed pretty uniform. His Excellency the Governor was dressed in a red flannel shirt, dark frock coat and pants, and these last tucked in his boots, California fashion; a black felt hat, with, I think, a pipe stuck through the band; and a paper of fine-cut tobacco in his coat pocket. We also were dressed like the governor, not in ball-room or dress-parade uniform, but in good, warm, serviceable clothes.
“After Colonel Mike Simmons, the agent, and, as he has been termed, the Daniel Boone of the Territory, had marshaled the savages into order, an Indian interpreter was selected from each tribe to interpret the jargon of Shaw into such language as their tribes could understand. The governor then made a speech, which was translated by Colonel Shaw into jargon, and spoken to the Indians, in the same manner the good old elders of ancient times were accustomed to deacon out the hymns to the congregation. First the governor spoke a few words, then the colonel interpreted, then the Indians; so that this threefold repetition made it rather a lengthy operation. After this speech the Indians were dismissed till the following day, when the treaty was to be read. We were then requested by the governor to explain to those Indians we were acquainted with what he had said, and they seemed very well satisfied. The governor had purchased of Mr. Pilkington a large pile of potatoes,--about a hundred bushels,—and he told the Indians to help themselves. They made the heap grow small in a short time, each taking what he required for food; but lest any one should get an undue share, Commissary Cushman and Colonel Simmons were detailed to stand guard on the potato pile, which they did with the utmost good feeling, keeping the savages in a roar of laughter by their humorous ways.
“At night we again gathered around the fire, and the governor requested that we should enliven the time by telling anecdotes, himself setting the example. Governor Stevens has a rich fund of interesting and amusing incidents that he has picked up in his camp life, and a very happy way of relating them. We were all called upon in turn. There were some tales told of a wild and romantic nature, and Judge Ford and Colonel Mike did their part. Old frontiersmen and early settlers, they had many a legend to relate of toil, privation, fun, and frolic; but the palm was conceded to Cushman, who certainly could vie with Baron Munchausen or Sindbad the Sailor in his wonderful romances. His imitative powers were great, and he would take off some speaker at a political gathering or a camp-meeting in so ludicrous a style that even the governor could not preserve his gravity, but would be obliged to join the rest in a general laughing chorus. Whenever Cushman began one of his harangues, he was sure to draw up a crowd of Indians, who seemed to enjoy the fun as much as we, although they could not understand a word he said. He usually wound up by stirring up the fire; and this, blazing up brightly and throwing off a shower of sparks, would light the old forest, making the night look blacker in the distance, and showing out in full relief the dusky, grinning faces of the Indians, with their blankets drawn around them, standing up just outside the circle where we were sitting. Cushman was a most capital man for a camp expedition, always ready, always prompt and good-natured.
“The second morning after our arrival the terms of the treaty were made known. This was read line by line by General Gibbs, and then interpreted by Colonel Shaw to the Indians. The provisions of the treaty were these: They were to be placed on a reservation between Gray’s Harbor and Cape Flattery, and were to be paid forty thousand dollars in different installments. Four thousand dollars in addition was also to be paid them, to enable them to clear and fence in land and cultivate. No spirituous liquors were to be allowed on the reservation; and any Indian who should be guilty of drinking liquor would have his or her annuity withheld.
“Schools, carpenters’ and blacksmiths’ shops were to be furnished by the United States; also a sawmill, agricultural implements, teachers, and a doctor. All their slaves were to be free, and none afterwards to be bought or sold. The Indians, however, were not to be restricted to the reservation, but were to be allowed to procure their food as they had always done, and were at liberty at any time to leave the reservation to trade with or work for the whites.
“After this had all been interpreted to them, they were dismissed till the next day, in order that they might talk the matter over together, and have any part explained to them which they did not understand. The following morning the treaty was again read to them after a speech from the governor, but although they seemed satisfied, they did not perfectly comprehend. The difficulty was in having so many tribes to talk to at the same time, and being obliged to use the jargon, which at best is a poor medium of conveying intelligence. The governor requested any one of them that wished, to reply to him. Several of the chiefs spoke, some in jargon and some in their own tribal language, which would be interpreted into jargon by one of their people who was conversant with it; so that, what with this diversity of tongues, it was difficult to have the subject properly understood. But their speeches finally resulted in one and the same thing, which was that they felt proud to have the governor talk with them; they liked his proposition to buy their land, but they did not want to go to the reservation. The speech of Narkarty, one of the Chinook chiefs, will convey the idea they all had. ‘When you first began to speak,’ said he to the governor, ‘we did not understand you; it was all dark to us as the night; but now our hearts are enlightened, and what you say is clear to us as the sun. We are proud that our Great Father in Washington thinks of us. We are poor, and can see how much better off the white men are than we are. We are willing to sell our land, but we do not want to go away from our homes. Our fathers and mothers and ancestors are buried there, and by them we wish to bury our dead and be buried ourselves. We wish, therefore, each to have a place on our own land where we can live, and you may have the rest; but we can’t go to the north among the other tribes. We are not friends, and if we went together we should fight, and soon we would all be killed.’ This same idea was expressed by all, and repeated every day. The Indians from the interior did not want to go on a reservation with the coast or canoe Indians. The whole together only numbered 843 all told, as may be seen by the following census, which was taken on the ground:—
| Lower Chehalis | 217 |
| Upper Chehalis | 216 |
| Quenaiults | 158 |
| Chinooks | 112 |
| Cowlitz | 140 |
| 843 |
“But though few in numbers, there were among them men possessed of shrewdness, sense, and great influence. They felt that though they were few, they were as much entitled to a separate treaty as the more powerful tribes in the interior. We all reasoned with them to show the kind intentions of the governor, and how much better off they would be if they could content themselves to live in one community; and our appeals were not altogether in vain. Several of the tribes consented, and were ready to sign the treaty, and of these the Quenaiults were the most prompt, evidently, however, from the fact that the proposed reservation included their land, and they would consequently remain at home.
“I think the governor would have eventually succeeded in inducing them all to sign, had it not been for the son of Carcowan, the old Chehalis chief. This young savage, whose name is Tleyuk, and who was the recognized chief of his tribe, had obtained great influence among all the coast Indians. He was very willing at first to sign the treaty, provided the governor would select his land for the reservation, and make him the grand Tyee, or chief, over the whole five tribes; but when he found he could not effect his purpose, he changed his behavior, and we soon found his bad influence among the other Indians, and the meeting broke up that day with marked symptoms of dissatisfaction. This ill-feeling was increased by old Carcowan, who smuggled some whiskey into the camp, and made his appearance before the governor quite intoxicated. He was handed over to Provost Marshal Cushman, with orders to keep him quiet till he got sober. The governor was very much incensed at this breach of his orders, for he had expressly forbidden either whites or Indians bringing one drop of liquor into the camp.
“The following day Tleyuk stated that he had no faith in anything the governor said, for he had been told that it was the intention of the United States government to put them all on board steamers and send them away out of the country, and that the Americans were not their friends. He gave the names of several white persons who had been industrious in circulating these reports to thwart the governor in his plans, and most all of them had been in the employ of the Hudson Bay Company. He was assured that there was no truth in the report, and pretended to be satisfied, but in reality was doing all in his power to break up the meeting. That evening the governor called the chiefs into his tent, but to no purpose, for Tleyuk made some insolent remarks, and peremptorily refused to sign the treaty, and with his people refused to have anything to do with it. That night in his camp they behaved in a very disorderly manner, firing off guns, shouting, and making a great uproar.
“The next morning, when the council was called, the governor gave Tleyuk a severe reprimand, and, taking from him his paper, which had been given to show that the government recognized him as chief, he tore it to pieces before the assemblage. Tleyuk felt this disgrace very keenly, but said nothing. The paper was to him of great importance, for they all look on a printed or written document as possessing some wonderful charm. The governor then informed them that as all would not sign the treaty it was of no effect, and the camp was then broken up.
“Throughout the whole of the conference Governor Stevens evinced a degree of forbearance, and a desire to do everything he could for the benefit of the Indians. Nothing was done in a hurry. We remained in the camp a week, and ample time was given them each day to perfectly understand the views of the governor. The utmost good feeling prevailed, and every day they were induced to some games of sport to keep them good humored. Some would have races on the river in their canoes, others danced, and others gambled; all was friendly till the last day, when Tleyuk’s bad conduct spoiled the whole.”
That was an intrepid and resolute act of Governor Stevens, thus to tear up the turbulent chief’s commission before his face, surrounded by three hundred and fifty Indians and supported by only fourteen whites; but it effectually cowed the insolent young savage, and preserved the respect of the Indians.
The council was by no means abortive, for in consequence of it the following fall Colonel Simmons obtained the assent and signature of the chiefs of the Quenaiult and Quillehute coast tribes to the treaty so carefully explained to them at the Chehalis council, and it was signed by Governor Stevens at Olympia, January 25, 1856, on his return from the Blackfoot council, and duly confirmed with the other treaties on March 8, 1859. These Indians were given $25,000 in annuities, and $2500 to improve the reservation, the selection of which was left to the President. A reservation of ten thousand acres was set off at the mouth of the Quenaiult River, including their principal village and salmon fishery, renowned as yielding the richest and finest salmon on the coast, a fish of medium size, deep, rich color, and exquisite flavor. The other provisions were the same as those secured to the Sound Indians.
Tah-ho-lah and How-yatl, head chiefs of the two tribes, and twenty-nine other chiefs signed the treaty, and it was witnessed by M.T. Simmons, general Indian agent; H.A. Goldsborough, surveyor; B.F. Shaw, interpreter; James Tilton, surveyor-general; F. Kennedy, J.Y. Miller, and H.D. Cock.
These two tribes numbered four hundred and ninety-three, a number greatly in excess of the census given in Swan’s account. In their distrust the Indians invariably reported less than their actual numbers, and nearly every tribe was found to be larger than the first estimate. The numbers of the Chinook, Chehalis, and Cowlitz Indians were reported by Governor Stevens in 1857 as one thousand one hundred and fifteen.
Including the Quenaiults and the Cowlitz, and other Indians not on reservations, they now number some seven hundred, and are in about the same condition as the Sound Indians.[1]
CHAPTER XXVII
PERSONAL AND POLITICAL.—SAN JUAN CONTROVERSY
Just before going to the Chehalis council, Governor Stevens and his family suffered a sad and severe affliction in the death of his young kinsman, George Watson Stevens, who was drowned on February 16 at the debouch of the Skookumchuck Creek into the Chehalis River, as he was returning from Portland, whither he had gone to cash some government drafts. He was accompanied on the journey by A.B. Stuart, the mail and express carrier, who, as they approached the stream, had occasion to stop at a settler’s house, while George Stevens kept on, and, although cautioned by Stuart, lost his life in the attempt to cross by the usual ford. The Skookumchuck empties into the Chehalis at right angles, and although ordinarily a stream of moderate size, becomes, when swollen by rains, a mighty and furious flood, which, encountering the rapid current of the Chehalis, forms a dangerous whirlpool in the centre of that river. Not realizing the danger, and anxious to reach his journey’s end that day, he forced his horse into the raging torrent, and was swept, man and steed, into the whirlpool below, where, although a fine swimmer and a strong, vigorous man, he met his death. Stuart reached the ford soon afterwards, and finding it impassable and his companion nowhere visible, rightly concluded that he was lost, and hastened to Olympia with the sad tidings.
Governor Stevens with a party hastened to the scene, and diligently searched for the missing one. The governor caused a band of horses to be driven into the stream to test its power, but all were instantly swept down into the larger river, several of them clear to the whirlpool, although the water had fallen considerably. The unfortunate youth’s horse swam ashore, and was found with the saddle and saddle-bags soaked with water, and a few days later his remains were found in the river a mile below the whirlpool. This sad event cast a deep gloom upon the family, and indeed all the community, for he was a young man of great promise, noble traits, and only twenty-two years of age. The governor said of him:—
“His whole character was an admirable blending of strength and gentleness. He was essentially a man of great resolution, daring, enterprise, and purpose, who adhered with great inflexibility to his determinations; yet he was so gentle, so kindly, so courteous, and so disinterested that his strength did not fully appear in ordinary intercourse. To his friends his death is a sad bereavement, which time only can obliterate. His memory will be precious, his life an example, his bright and pure spirit is now in the heavenly mansion.”
“He was a brother in the house,” wrote Mrs. Stevens to her mother; “evenings he always spent at home, and took an interest in everything about the house, played with the children, seemed to be happy just staying in our society. Here is my garden he made, and the flowers he set out, and marks of him all about us.”
It was a sad time when his remains were brought in, and the little toys and candy he had thoughtfully purchased for the children were found in his pockets and saddle-bags. He was buried on the beautiful green Bush Prairie, amid the scenes of mountain, prairie, and forest he loved so well. His intimate friends, Mason and Doty, were soon to be laid at rest by his side.
In a letter to a sister Mrs. Stevens relates another instance of the governor’s firmness and fearlessness in dealing with the Indians:—
“There are three different tribes of Indians in Olympia now, all different,—the Nisquallies, Chissouks, and northern Fort Simpson Indians. A curious sight it is to see them. They are all gambling, their mats spread on the ground; and you will see groups of fifty seated on the ground, and playing all day and night. The town is full of them. Mr. Stevens has them right under his thumb. They are as afraid as death of him, and do just what he tells them. He told the chiefs of the tribes he would not let them disturb the whites. That night they kept up an awful howling and singing, making night hideous like a pack of wolves. Mr. Stevens got up, took a big club, and went right in among them, and talked to them, and told them that the first man that opened his lips he would knock down. The chief said, ‘Close’ (All right), and not another sound came from them that night. When he came back, he said the biggest lodge was full of men sitting in a circle around a big fire, smoking and singing.”
Returning from the Chehalis council, Governor Stevens remained the next two months in Olympia, hard at work with his multifarious duties, reviewing legislative acts, preparing reports of the councils and treaties, instructing the Indian agents, and attending to the unceasing cares and questions arising from the Indians, and preparing for the trip east of the mountains. In April he made the arduous horseback and river trip to Vancouver, and there met Superintendent Joel Palmer, of Oregon, by appointment, having previously invited him, in order to arrange with him in regard to the proposed council with the Indians of the upper country, some of whom were within General Palmer’s superintendency.
This spring began the San Juan Island controversy with Great Britain, which came near involving the two countries in war, and lasted with various phases for eighteen years, until it was finally decided in favor of the United States by Emperor William I., of Germany.
By the treaty of 1846 the main ship-channel which separates the continent from Vancouver Island was fixed as the boundary from the point where the 49th parallel intersects the Gulf of Georgia, in order to give the whole of that island to Great Britain, for the parallel intersects it. It happens, however, that there are two channels, with a valuable group of islands between them, answering this description. The Americans claimed the western-most, the Canal de Haro, which runs next to Vancouver Island, and is the shorter, broader, and deeper, in every respect the main ship-channel, while the English insisted that the eastern channel, Rosario Straits, was the proper boundary. The shrewd and aggressive officers of the Hudson Bay Company at Victoria, Sir James Douglass at their head, originated the British claim, which otherwise had never arisen, so little merit had it, and in order to gain a foothold on, and claim possession of, these valuable islands, placed a flock of sheep on San Juan, and stationed there a petty official of the company. The island was included in Whatcom County by act of the Washington legislature, the property thereon became subject to taxation, and the sheriff of the county levied upon and seized a number of the sheep in default of payment of taxes.
Sir James Douglass thereupon addressed Governor Stevens, complaining of the seizure, and demanding to know if the sheriff’s proceedings were authorized or sanctioned in any manner by the executive officer of Washington Territory. The governor promptly replied, May 12, 1855, and firmly and uncompromisingly asserted the American right, and justified the sheriff. After reciting the acts of Oregon and Washington assuming jurisdiction over the islands, he continued:—
“The sheriff, in proceeding to collect taxes, acts under a law directing him to do so. Should he be resisted in such an attempt, it would become the duty of the governor to sustain him to the full force of the authority vested in him.
“The ownership remains now as it did at the execution of the treaty of June 11, 1846, and can in no wise be affected by the alleged ‘possession of British subjects.’”
The correspondence was communicated to the Secretary of State, who in reply deprecated any action by the territorial authorities pending a settlement of the question by the respective governments, and the dispute remained in abeyance until excited some years afterwards by another British act of aggression. Had our government firmly asserted its undoubted right at this time, the matter would have been settled. To the resolute and patriotic stand of Governor Stevens on this occasion, and his subsequent course in defense of this American territory, as will be seen hereafter, were due the ultimate defeat of the persistent and hard-fought British demands.
At this time the governor purchased of William Taylor for $2000 his donation claim, a fine tract of half a section, 320 acres, six miles southwest of Olympia, and in the northwestern corner of Bush Prairie. It comprised a few acres of prairie, over a hundred acres of heavy meadow, and the remainder in heavy fir timber. A small house and a field fenced off the prairie were the only improvements. The governor always took great interest and pleasure in the soil, in gardening and farming. He soon put a man on the place, and laid out extensive plans of improving it.
In April the Democratic convention met in Olympia to nominate a candidate for delegate in Congress, to succeed Judge Lancaster. The delegates assembled in a large store building on the southwest corner of Main and First streets, belonging to George A. Barnes. Governor Stevens was a candidate for the nomination. He was desirous, after completing his treaty operations and returning from the Blackfoot council, to represent the Territory in Congress, and there push forward his plans for the public service, further railroad surveys, wagon roads, mail routes, steamer service, Indian treaties and policy, and, above all, the Northern Pacific Railroad. Many of the first settlers were strong in his support, recognizing how much such a man in Congress could accomplish for the Territory. There were two other candidates, Judge Columbia Lancaster, very anxious to succeed himself, and J. Patton Anderson, United States marshal, who had traveled all over the Territory in taking the census the previous year, and, it was said, had diligently improved his opportunities as census-taker by paying court to all the women, kissing all the babies, and pledging all the men to support him for delegate. He was a man of good appearance, cordial, pleasant Southern manners, and well calculated to make friends. The convention divided between the three candidates, and balloted an entire day without result. In the evening the candidates were invited to address the convention. Colonel Shaw, who was one of the governor’s supporters, although not a member of the convention, says that he advised the governor not to accept the invitation, lest the friends of the other candidates, hearing him speak, should become alarmed at his ability and power, and combine against him. Such advice was the very last that the governor, with his straightforward and positive character, would relish. He went before the convention, and in a forcible and patriotic speech, without reference to himself, set forth the needs of the Territory, and the public measures required for its advancement, so ably and clearly that his friends were delighted, and felt sure that he would be chosen on the next ballot. But it turned out as Shaw feared. Although he gained votes, his opponents combined on Anderson, and nominated him, some of them exclaiming, “It won’t do to nominate the governor, for if he once gets into Congress, we can never get him out again.”
CHAPTER XXVIII
INDIANS OF THE UPPER COLUMBIA
The Indians of the upper Columbia, with whom Governor Stevens was next to treat, presented a far more pressing and difficult problem than the reduced tribes of the Sound. They numbered fourteen thousand souls, comprised in ten powerful tribes, viz., Nez Perces, Cuyuses, Umatillas, Walla Wallas, Yakimas, Spokanes, Cœur d’Alenes, Flatheads, Pend Oreilles, and Kootenais.[2] They were a manly, athletic race, still uncontaminated by the vices and diseases which so often result from contact with the whites, and far superior in courage and enterprise, as well as in form and feature, to the canoe Indians of the Sound and coast. Each tribe possessed its own country, clearly defined by well-known natural boundaries, within whose limits their wanderings were restrained, save when they “went to buffalo,” or attended some grand council or horse-race with a neighboring tribe. The chase, the salmon fishery, the root ground, the numerous bands of horses and cattle, furnished easy and ample sustenance. It was estimated that the Nez Perces owned twenty thousand head of these animals, and the Cuyuses, Umatillas, and Walla Wallas not less than fifteen thousand. The Yakimas and Spokanes also possessed great numbers.
THE INTERIOR FROM CASCADE MOUNTAINS TO FORT BENTON
Of all these tribes, the Nez Perces or Sahaptin were the most numerous and progressive. They numbered 3300, and occupied the country along the western base of the Bitter Root Mountains for over two hundred miles, and a hundred miles in width, including both banks of the Snake and its tributaries, the Kooskooskia or Clearwater, Salmon, Grande Ronde, Tucañon, etc. Yearly, in the spring or fall, their war chief would lead a strong party across the Rocky Mountains to hunt the buffalo on the plains of the Missouri, and many were the bloody encounters they had with the dreaded Blackfeet, the Arabs of the plains. They owned great numbers of horses, and the advent of the horse among them, about the middle of the eighteenth century, obtained from the Spaniards of New Mexico or California, of which they preserved the tradition, was the chief cause of their prosperous condition. From the days of Lewis and Clark, the first of the white race to meet their astonished gaze, they were famed as the firm friends of the white man. During all the fur-hunting and trading epoch the “mountain men,” as the trappers and voyageurs delighted to call themselves, were welcome in the lodges of the Nez Perces. Together they wintered in safety on the banks of the Kooskooskia, and together they hunted the buffalo on the plains of the Missouri, and made common cause against the Blackfeet. Among the most noted of the numerous encounters in which they were allied against their common foe was the stubborn fight of Pierre’s Hole in 1832, so graphically described by Washington Irving in his “Bonneville Adventures.” It was in this fight that Lawyer, then a promising young brave, and afterwards for many years the powerful head chief of the Sahaptin, received a severe wound in the hip, which never entirely healed, and doubtless hastened his death.
In 1836 Rev. H.H. Spalding with his wife was sent out by the Presbyterians, and settled as a missionary on the Lapwai, a branch on the southern side of the Kooskooskia, twelve miles above its confluence with the Snake. Here he was preceded by William Craig, a Virginian, one of the best type of mountain men, who had married a Nez Perce maiden and made his home among her people. Aided by Craig’s knowledge of the Nez Perce tongue and character, and of the Indians themselves, Mr. Spalding taught the whole tribe a simple Christian faith, made a dictionary of their language, and translated and had printed in the native tongue a hymn-book, catechism, and New Testament, taught a number of the young men to read and write their own language, built a saw and grist mill, and labored to induce them, not without success, to till the soil. Yet, after all this achievement, he was in the end led to abandon his mission. In an unhappy hour he opened a store and went to trading with the Indians. In their experience a trader was the personification of greed and falsehood. To them the union of the trader, all selfishness and fraud, and the preacher of morality and truth was monstrous, nay, impossible. Mr. Spalding, too, was hard and exacting in his dealings, and offended in that way. With all his zeal and energy, he evidently lacked knowledge of Indian nature, perhaps of human nature. What wonder that some of the Nez Perces, seeing that the trading-post was a fact, concluded that his preaching was a fraud, and warned him out of their country! The massacre of the devoted missionary, Dr. Marcus Whitman, and his family, by the Cuyuses, in 1847, had just occurred, and Mr. Spalding, fearing a like fate if he remained after the warning, abandoned the mission where he had done so much. The majority of the Nez Perces, however, desired him to remain; and when he decided upon going, they formed a strong party of warriors, and escorted him with his family and effects unharmed through the hostile Indians to the frontier settlement. They magnanimously refused the large reward offered them, saying, “We will not sell Mr. Spalding; he left our country of his own free will, and we escorted him as his friends.” In the war which ensued they remained the firm friends of the whites, and the officers of the Oregon volunteers engaged in it presented them with a fine, large American flag, in which they took great pride. It was their boast that “We are the friends of the white man. The white man is our brother. His blood has never stained our hands.” Craig remained among them in perfect safety, and was treated with undiminished kindness. Although abandoned by Mr. Spalding, they by no means discarded the good he had taught them. They maintained, unaided, their simple religious worship, and held services regularly every Sabbath, with preaching, singing of hymns, and reading of the Bible, all in their own language, with the books translated and printed for them by the devoted missionary. They prided themselves upon their superior intelligence, upon having young men who could read and write, and upon their ancient and fast friendship with the whites. This friendship indeed was not merely a matter of sentiment. They were shrewd enough to turn it to good account. Large emigrations crossed the plains to Oregon during the period from 1843 to 1855; and the Nez Perces used to go down to the emigrant road on the Grande Ronde or Umatilla, with bands of fat, sleek, handsome ponies, and exchange them with the emigrants for their worn-out horses, oxen, and sometimes a cow, clothing, groceries, ammunition, etc. The Pikes, as the Missourians who comprised the majority of the emigrants were called, “allowed that the Nez Perces could beat a Yankee on a trade.” By these means they were beginning to obtain cattle as well as horses, were learning to wear blankets and shirts instead of skins, and individuals were even beginning to set out fruit trees, and plant corn and potatoes, and in a word the Nez Perces were making rapid strides toward civilization. There is no more interesting and instructive example of the amelioration of a savage tribe by the introduction of domestic animals, and its steady growth from abject barbarism, than that afforded by the Nez Perces. But little more than a century ago they were a tribe of naked savages, engaged in a perpetual struggle against starvation. Their country afforded but little game, and they subsisted almost exclusively on salmon, berries, and roots. The introduction of the horse enabled them to make long journeys to the buffalo plains east of the Rocky Mountains, where they could lay in great abundance of meat and furs; furnished them with a valuable animal for trading with other less favored tribes; soon raised them to comparative affluence, and developed in their hunting and trading expeditions a manly, enterprising, shrewd, and intelligent character. They had improved and profited still more from their intercourse with the whites, until there seemed every prospect that, with the introduction of cattle, they might lay aside their nomadic habits, and become a pastoral and then an agricultural people.
The Cuyuses were the most disaffected and intractable of all the tribes. But little is known of their early history. They are said to have come from the east many years ago. No tribe could resist their prowess, and when they settled on the Umatilla and Walla Walla rivers, having driven out the original inhabitants, none dared molest them; since which, wars and pestilence had reduced their numbers to but five hundred, and continual intermarriages with the neighboring tribes had caused their own language to fall into disuse. But they still maintained their separate independence, and were as haughty and arrogant as ever. The Jesuits established a mission on the Umatilla and made some progress in their conversion, and then Dr. Whitman came among them, establishing his mission in the Walla Walla valley, and for several years possessed their confidence and accomplished much good. The rivalry between Jesuit and Protestant missionary was carried to a high pitch. Pictorial cards were issued by each party, representing its opponents descending into the fiery depths of the infernal regions, where Satan and his imps, with red-hot pitchforks, were impatiently waiting to receive their prey, while the converts to the true faith were ascending to heaven up a broad flight of stairs with winged angels on either side. This hostile and bigoted attitude of the missionaries towards each other must have weakened the respect and confidence of the Indians, and contributed not a little to the troubles that followed.
Dr. Whitman was accustomed to attend the Indians when sick, and these labors, undertaken in the purest benevolence, were ultimately the cause of his death; for, the measles having broken out among them, and great numbers, especially of the children, dying, their suspicions were directed towards this devoted and able missionary.
In the war which ensued the Cuyuses suffered severely, were deprived of great numbers of horses, compelled to relinquish their white captives, and to surrender to well-deserved death some of the most active in the massacre. Their head chief was known as the Young Chief, and next in rank and influence was the Five Crows.
The Walla Wallas and Umatillas numbered upwards of one thousand, and inhabited the banks of the rivers which bear their names, and those of the Columbia. Their head chief was Pu-pu-mox-mox or the Yellow Serpent, a man of great intelligence and force of character, but well stricken in years.
The Yakimas, including outlying bands,[3] were over 3900 strong, and occupied the large region between the Columbia and the Cascades, with their principal abodes in the Yakima valley. One band, the Palouses, lived on the Palouse River, on the north side of the Snake and east of the Columbia, next the Nez Perce country. Large bands of the Yakimas had crossed the Cascades and were pressing on the feebler races on the west, by whom they were appropriately termed “Klik-i-tats” or robbers. The Jesuits had a mission on the Ah-ti-nam Creek, on the Yakima, but do not seem to have acquired much influence over them.
The Spokanes numbered 2200, including the Colvilles, 500, and Okinakanes, 600, and held the country north of Snake River to Pend Oreille Lake and the 49th parallel, and extending west from the Nez Perce country, and that occupied by the Cœur d’Alenes at the base of the Bitter Root Mountains, to the Columbia River. A Presbyterian mission was also established among them under Rev. E. Walker and G.C. Eells, and abandoned about the same time as that of Mr. Spalding.
Immediately east of the Spokanes, under the western slope of the Bitter Roots, lived the Cœur d’Alenes, a tribe of about five hundred. There was a Catholic mission among them presided over by Father Ravalli, and they had been converted to the ancient faith, and their material condition greatly improved by the good fathers.
The Flatheads, Pend Oreilles, and Koutenays lived in the mountain valleys between the main range of the Rockies and the Bitter Roots, upon the tributaries of Clark’s Fork chiefly, and depended largely upon the buffalo for their subsistence. They, too, like the Nez Perces, were distinguished as the constant friends of the whites, and were exposed to the unceasing forays of the Blackfeet. They numbered 2250. They termed themselves the Salish, and the Spokanes and Cœur d’Alenes were of the same stock.
There were also some small independent bands along the Columbia, who subsisted chiefly on salmon. Five sixths of the Indians lived within the Washington superintendency,—all, indeed, except the Cuyuses, Umatillas, Walla Wallas, and a small number of the Nez Perces, who dwelt or roamed in both territories, and the small bands about the Dalles and on the Columbia, Des Chutes, and John Day’s rivers, who lived wholly in Oregon.
The whole vast region occupied by these numerous, brave, and manly Indians was still free from the intrusion of white settlers, save a handful in the Walla Walla valley and about Colville. But year after year they saw the long trains of emigrants pass through their country and settle, like swarming bees, upon the fertile plains of the Wallamet. They saw the Indians there dispossessed of their hunting grounds, and rapidly dying off the face of the earth. The tale of every Indian wronged or aggrieved, or who thought himself wronged or aggrieved, was borne with startling rapidity to their ears. Thus far their intercourse with the whites had been of immense benefit to them. The fur traders supplied them with superior weapons, blankets, and many articles of comfort, and had greatly improved their condition. Devoted missionaries had labored among them for years, and with marked success. By trade with the emigrants they were growing rich in cattle. But the actual occupation of the soil by the settlers filled them with alarm. Amid all these benefits, the fear was fast growing into conviction that the fate of the Chinooks and the Wallamets was the presage of their fate, and that the whites would sooner or later pour with increasing numbers into their country, and appropriate it for themselves. The Flatheads, Pend Oreilles, and Koutenays, remote from the settlements, retained their ancient friendship for the whites. But among the other tribes the desperate resolution was extending and deepening itself to rise and wipe out the dreaded invaders ere it was too late. For several years the bold and turbulent spirits among them had been enlisting the disaffected Indians far and wide in a great combination designed to crush the unsuspecting whites simultaneously at all points by one sudden and mighty blow. In 1853 the wild rumors of impending outbreaks, the forerunners of every Indian war, but which have been invariably unheeded by the over-confident whites, were flying about the land. Yet outwardly all was serene. The great tribes of the upper country, from whom alone danger was to be feared, were as yet unmolested by settlers, had reaped only benefits from the whites, and were as friendly as ever to all appearance. Both authorities and people were lulled into a sense of complete security, and disregarded with contempt the warnings of the few who foresaw the danger. In truth, a similar state of affairs has preceded nearly all our great Indian wars. They have not been caused by petty acts of aggression, stinging whole tribes to frenzied revenge. Indians who undergo such treatment are usually too degraded and helpless to resist. But powerful tribes, unbroken by too long contact with the whites, fired and led by their master spirits, have from time to time risen in arms, and vainly striven to arrest and drive back the white race ere it overwhelmed them, as it had overwhelmed their kindred. Many chiefs have shown profound sagacity in foreseeing the danger menacing their race, and the highest talents and bravery in their bloody struggles to avert it. The Nez Perces saw the danger, but they alone realized the hopelessness of averting it by war. The Nez Perces alone discerned that their only safety was to “follow the white man’s road,” and that his mode of life was better than their own. Under the wise guidance of Lawyer, they had become imbued with these convictions, by which their traditional friendship to the whites was strengthened and confirmed, and the time was fast approaching when their fidelity was to save many a valuable life, and preserve the settlements from destruction.
In the spring of 1853 General Benjamin Alvord, then a major and commanding the military post at the Dalles, heralded among the Indians the approach of Governor Stevens with the exploring parties, and in reply was visited by a delegation of chiefs of the Yakimas, Cuyuses, and Walla Wallas, who said that “they always liked to have gentlemen, Hudson Bay Company men, or officers of the army, or engineers, pass through their country, to whom they would extend every token of hospitality. They did not object to persons merely hunting, or those wearing swords, but they dreaded the approach of the whites with ploughs, axes, and shovels in their hands.” Major Alvord had largely dealt with and studied these Indians, and moreover he had confidential sources of information from the Catholic priests of the Yakima Mission. He became so impressed with the danger of an outbreak that he reported the facts and rumors to his superior, General Hitchcock, commanding the Pacific Department, by whom they were discredited, and Major Alvord was soon afterwards relieved from the Dalles. Events were soon to prove that the magnitude and imminence of the danger were even greater than he apprehended. Says General Alvord:[4]—
“I informed Governor Stevens of these threatened Indian difficulties, and of the gigantic scale of their proposed insurrection. What should he do? Was he to remain idle and let the storm come? No, he set to work to provide for the inevitable. As the whites would come as five or six, or ten thousand would come every summer, he did his best to get the Indians to sell their Indian titles.”
It was on reaching the Dalles on his overland exploration that the governor first learned of this smouldering fire. Quick to grasp the situation, to see the breach into which, as Governor and Superintendent of Indian Affairs, it was his duty to throw himself, he lost no time, by his earnest and forcible reports, and by his visit in Washington, in obtaining the necessary authority for treating with these Indians.
Five years had elapsed since Congress, by the Donation Acts, had invited settlers to take possession of the lands of these brave and numerous Indians, utterly disregarding their rights, and now, when the volcano was ready to burst forth, the effort was to be made for the first time to treat with them, and the herculean task was devolved upon Governor Stevens of buying their country, allaying their well-founded fears, adjusting their jealousies and disputes with the whites and with each other, and inducing them to relinquish their savage and nomadic mode of life for agriculture and civilization. Many of the best informed settlers and army officers thought that any attempt to treat with these Indians for their lands was a useless and dangerous enterprise, and would surely lead to collision and bloodshed.
During the spring Mr. Doty and agents A.J. Bolen and R.H. Lansdale were visiting the powerful tribes of the upper country, and preparing them for treating. The Walla Walla valley was chosen for the council ground at the instance of Kam-i-ah-kan, the head chief of the Yakimas, who said, “There is the place where in ancient times we held our councils with the neighboring tribes, and we will hold it there now.” A large quantity of goods was taken up the Columbia to Walla Walla in keel-boats. A party of twenty-five men was organized at the Dalles, outfitted with a complete pack-train, mules, riding animals, and provisions, and sent to the council ground to make ready for the reception of the Indians, and afterwards to accompany the governor to the Blackfoot council. The Walla Walla council, like the Blackfoot, was conceived and planned exclusively by Governor Stevens. He alone impressed the necessity of them upon the government, and obtained the requisite authority. The work of collecting the Indians was done chiefly by his agents, and it was not until he learned from Doty that the Indians had agreed to attend, and that the council was assured, that he invited Superintendent Palmer to take part in it as joint commissioner with himself for such tribes as lived partly in both Territories. This fact he caused to be entered on the joint record of the council.
Leaving the gubernatorial office in the hands of Mr. Mason, and the Indian service, now well organized, in charge of Colonel Simmons and other agents, Governor Stevens early in May left Olympia on his treaty-making expedition east of the mountains, calculating to be absent from five to six months. He was accompanied by Lieutenant Richard Arnold, en route to San Francisco; Captain A.J. Cain, Indian agent for the lower Columbia; R.H. Crosby; his son Hazard, whom he decided to take as far as the Dalles and then send home; and some other gentlemen. The little cavalcade trotted rapidly across the prairies amidst severe and drenching showers, and after a brisk ride of thirty miles reached the hospitable log-house of Judge Ford for supper and shelter.
It rained heavily during the night, and on continuing the journey the next morning, and fording the Skookumchuck, where poor George Stevens was so recently lost, and which was then barely passable, a terribly swift, turbulent, and dangerous-looking torrent, the whole country seemed to be under water. The prairie upon which the town of Newarkum is built was flooded, and the horses laboriously waded across the plain in single file, belly-deep in water. The narrow track through the timber beyond the prairie was like a canal. Dick Arnold, who led the party, a tall, erect, athletic, soldierly figure, suddenly sunk down into the water with a plunge until only his head and his horse’s ears were visible. He had ridden into a deep slough, which here crossed the road, indistinguishable in the general flood, but his steed swam and struggled across it and climbed out on the other side, the water dripping from man and horse, but the rider remaining firm in his seat through it all. After some delay the rest of the party effected a crossing on foot by a fallen tree, and drove the horses across by the road, swimming. Without further mishap, save the toils and discomforts of muddy roads and rains, they reached Cowlitz Landing that afternoon, descended the Cowlitz in canoes the next day, and proceeded by steamboat to Vancouver. After a day’s stay here the governor continued his journey up the river by steamboat to the lower Cascades, where he spent the night, crossed the Cascades portage on horseback early the next morning, proceeded by steamboat to the Dalles, and found hospitable quarters with Major Granville O. Haller at the military post, where were stationed two companies of the 4th infantry, under Major G.J. Rains. Superintendent Palmer was found at the Dalles, awaiting the governor’s arrival.
The outlook for effecting a treaty was deemed unfavorable by all. Governor Stevens was warned by Father Ricard, of the Yakima Mission, that the Indians were plotting to cut off the white chiefs who might attempt to hold a council.[5] The Snake Indians had attacked and massacred parties of emigrants recently, and Major Rains was under orders to send a force on the emigrant road to protect them. General Palmer and his Indian agents were reluctant to attempt to treat with the Indians at that time. The governor relates in his diary how he induced Major Rains to send from his small force a detachment of forty soldiers, under Lieutenant Archibald Gracie, to the council as a guard. Mr. Lawrence Kip, afterwards a colonel of the United States army, accompanied Mr. Gracie on the trip, and published an interesting account of the council:—
“After supper, went with Major Haller to see Major Rains. It was about midnight, but the major got up, and we talked for two hours on Indian matters. I dwelt particularly on the necessity of a small force on the treaty ground to maintain order. He saw the necessity, but had no suitable force at his disposal, etc. The bearing of the proposed council on the Snakes was then alluded to by me, and I remarked that the services of a small force in checking insolence would be as good as two hundred men subsequently. We deemed it necessary to maintain our dignity and that of our government at the council, and we would seize any person, whether white man or Indian, who behaved in an improper manner. There were unquestionably a great many malcontents in each tribe. A few determined spirits, if not controlled, might embolden all not well disposed, and defeat the negotiations. Should this spirit be shown, they must be seized; the well affected would then govern in the deliberations, and I anticipated little or no difficulty in negotiating. I then alluded to my determination to call out the militia of the Territory should I find, on reaching the council ground, that any plan of hostilities was being matured, or should a feeling of hostility be manifested, in case a small force was not sent from the garrison.
“So doubtful did General Palmer consider the whole matter of the council, that it was only the circumstance of a military force being dispatched which determined him to send to the treaty ground presents to the Indians. He stated to me that he had concluded to send up no goods; but, the escort having been ordered, he would send up his goods. At this time the Oregon officers expected little from the council, and evidently believed that the whole thing was premature and ill-advised.”
Stopping at the Dalles only long enough to obtain this detachment and outfit his own small party with riding animals, seven pack-mules, two packers, and a cook, the governor again took the saddle, and traveling rapidly overland two hundred miles to the Walla Walla valley in four days, camping the first night on the Des Chutes River, the second on John Day’s River, the third on the Umatilla, reached the council ground on May 21 towards evening, the party thoroughly drenched by the soaking rain in which they had traveled all day.
An amusing incident occurred at the camp on John Day’s River, which the governor was fond of relating as a good joke on himself. There was no wood to be found in that vicinity, except some drift sticks, which were claimed by an old Indian who had pitched his lodge on the river’s bank. After many fruitless attempts to purchase some of his wood, the men took advantage of the temporary absence of the old fellow to purloin a small quantity of it. This was nearly all consumed, and a hot and savory supper was smoking before our travelers, when the old Indian returned and discovered his loss. Dismounting from his pony, he approached the governor, and, in a tone of indignation and scorn, exclaimed, “Do you call yourself a great chief and steal wood?” A liberal present mollified him considerably, and after partaking of the supper, he departed in great good humor.
The council ground was situated on the right bank of Mill Creek, a tributary of the Walla Walla River, and about six miles above the site of the unfortunate Whitman Mission, in the midst of a wide and fertile valley, bounded in the distance on either hand by high, bare, rolling hills, and extending, fan-shaped, far eastward to the Blue Mountains, whose lofty and wooded heights bounded and overlooked the plain. The valley was almost a perfect level, covered with the greatest profusion of waving bunch grass and flowers, amidst which grazed numerous bands of beautiful, sleek mustangs, and herds of long-horned Spanish cattle belonging to the Indians, and was intersected every half mile by a clear, rapid, sparkling stream, whose course could be easily traced in the distance by its fringe of willows and tall cottonwoods. Now every foot of this rich valley is under cultivation, a dozen gristmills run their wheels by these streams, and the very treaty ground is the centre of the thriving town of Walla Walla, with a population of six thousand souls.
Under the energetic hands of Doty and C.P. Higgins, the packmaster,—a position corresponding to the chief mate on shipboard, or the orderly sergeant of a company of troops,—the camp was found pitched, and everything in readiness for the council. A wall tent, with a large arbor of poles and boughs in front, stood on level, open ground a short distance from the creek, and facing the Blue Mountains, all ready for the governor. This was also to serve as the council chamber, and ample clear space was left for the Indians to assemble and seat themselves on the ground in front of the arbor. A little farther in front, and nearer the creek, were ranged the tents of the rest of the party, a stout log-house to safely hold the supplies and Indian goods, and a large arbor to serve as a banqueting-hall for distinguished chiefs, so that, as in civilized lands, gastronomy might aid diplomacy. A large herd of beef cattle and a pile of potatoes, purchased of Messrs. Lloyd Brooke, Bumford & Noble, traders and stock-raisers, who were occupying the site of the Whitman Mission, and ample stores of sugar, coffee, bacon, and flour furnished the materials for the feasts.
General Palmer arrived the same day with R.R. Thompson and R.B. Metcalfe, Indian agents for Oregon tribes, who had visited the Cuyuses and Umatillas and small bands living wholly in Oregon, and summoned them to attend the council. Fatigued and uncomfortable as they must have been after the day’s journey and drenching, the commissioners had a long conference in the evening, listened to Doty’s report of his visits to the tribes and the talk and dispositions of the chiefs, and discussed the location of reservations and other points. The following programme was agreed upon:—
1. Governor Stevens to preside at the council.
2. Each superintendent to be sole commissioner for the Indians within his jurisdiction.
3. Both to act jointly for tribes common to both Territories, each to appoint an agent and commissary for them, and goods and provisions to be distributed to them in proportion to the number under the respective jurisdictions.
4. To keep separate records, to be carefully compared and certified jointly as far as related to tribes common to both Territories.
5. To keep a public table for the chiefs.
The following officers were appointed for the joint treaties, in each case the first named for Washington, the second for Oregon: Governor Isaac I. Stevens and Superintendent Joel Palmer, commissioners; James Doty and William C. McKay, secretaries; R.H. Crosby and N. Olney, commissaries; R. H. Lansdale and R.R. Thompson, agents; William Craig, N. Raymond, Matthew Danpher, and John Flette, interpreters.
The governor also appointed as interpreters A.D. Pambrun, John Whitford, James Coxie, and Patrick McKensie.
Lieutenant Gracie, with his little detachment, arrived on the 23d. A tent, furnished by the governor, was pitched for the officer and his guest, Mr. Kip, while the soldiers built huts of boughs, and spread over them canvas pack-covers. The two gentlemen dined with the governor under the arbor near his tent, “off a table constructed from split pine logs, smoothed off, but not very smooth,” says Mr. Kip.
The scanty treating party of whites were now all assembled, and awaited the arrival of the Indians with interest, not unmixed with apprehension; for it seemed a bold and perilous step to meet so many brave and warlike Indians, many of whom were known to be disaffected and ready to provoke an outbreak, in the heart of the Indian country, two hundred miles from the nearest settlement or military post, with such a mere handful. They numbered barely a hundred men,—the governor’s party of thirty-five, twelve with General Palmer, the military guard of forty-seven, two Catholic missionaries, and a few settlers.
The second day after reaching the valley Governor Stevens, learning that General Wool had just arrived at Vancouver, wrote him a letter urging the importance of occupying the Walla Walla valley with a strong military force, preferably of cavalry, pointing out the central location of the point, and its strategic advantages for protecting the emigrant road, the trails to the Missouri on the east, the Puget Sound on the west, and for controlling the disaffected Indians, particularly the Cuyuses and Snakes. This, like other sound and indeed necessary measures recommended by the governor, was ignored by the self-sufficient Wool and his officers, until they were obliged to adopt them from necessity.
CHAPTER XXIX
THE WALLA WALLA COUNCIL
The Nez Perces, the first to arrive, came the next day, May 24, 2500 strong. Hearing of their approach, the commissioners drew up their little party on a knoll commanding a fine view of the unbroken level of the valley. The standard of the Nez Perces, the large American flag given them by the officers engaged in the Cuyuse war, was sent forward and planted on the knoll. Soon their cavalcade came in sight, a thousand warriors mounted on fine horses and riding at a gallop, two abreast, naked to the breech-clout, their faces covered with white, red, and yellow paint in fanciful designs, and decked with plumes and feathers and trinkets fluttering in the sunshine. The ponies were even more gaudily arrayed, many of them selected for their singular color and markings, and many painted in vivid colors contrasting with their natural skins,—crimson slashed in broad stripes across white, yellow or white against black or bay; and with their free and wild action, the thin buffalo line tied around the lower jaw,—the only bridle, almost invisible,—the naked riders, seated as though grown to their backs, presented the very picture of the fabled centaurs. Halting and forming a long line across the prairie, they again advanced at a gallop still nearer, then halted, while the head chief, Lawyer, and two other chiefs rode slowly forward to the knoll, dismounted and shook hands with the commissioners, and then took post in rear of them. The other chiefs, twenty-five in number, then rode forward, and went through the same ceremony. Then came charging on at full gallop in single file the cavalcade of braves, breaking successively from one flank of the line, firing their guns, brandishing their shields, beating their drums, and yelling their war-whoops, and dashed in a wide circle around the little party on the knoll, now charging up as though to overwhelm it, now wheeling back, redoubling their wild action and fierce yells in frenzied excitement. At length they also dismounted, and took their stations in rear of the chiefs. Then a number of young braves, forming a ring, while others beat their drums, entertained the commissioners with their dances, after which the Indians remounted and filed off to the place designated for their camp. This was on a small stream, flowing parallel to Mill Creek, on the same side with and over half a mile from the council camp. The chiefs accompanied the governor to his tent and arbor, smoked the pipe of peace, and had an informal talk.
THE ARRIVAL OF THE NEZ PERCES
Hal-hal-tlos-sot or the Lawyer, the head chief of the Nez Perces, was an Indian Solon in his efforts to improve the condition of his people. Without any advantages of birth or wealth, he made himself the first in his tribe, while yet in middle life, by his unrivaled wisdom and force of character. His first acts were directed against gambling, which was indulged in to great excess, and against polygamy. Finding, however, that his influence as head chief was insufficient to carry out his plans for the improvement of his people, he reorganized the government of the tribe, appointed an additional number of chiefs from the young men, and, having thus increased and strengthened his influence, was enabled to accomplish his reforms. He early perceived that the growing power of the whites, which threatened to swallow up all before it, could not be resisted by force, and in consequence all his efforts were directed to inducing the Indians to adopt the customs and civilization of the whites, and to preserving the unbroken friendship between the two races. From the effects of the wound received at the battle of Pierre’s Hole he was still suffering, and his right arm had been twice broken in a fight with a grizzly bear. Wise, enlightened, and magnanimous, the head chief, yet one of the poorest of his tribe, he stood head and shoulders above the other chiefs, whether in intellect, nobility of soul, or influence.
Provisions were issued to the Nez Perces, and some petty tribes which had come in, at the rate of one and a half pounds of beef, two pounds of potatoes, and one half a pound of corn to each person.
The Cuyuses, Walla Wallas, and Umatillas next arrived, and went into camp without any parade or salutations on a stream on the other side of Mill Creek, and over a mile distant from the camp of the whites, from which the intervening fringes of trees completely hid them. The head chief of the Walla Wallas and Umatillas was Pu-pu-mox-mox or the Yellow Serpent, who held despotic sway over his own people, and great influence with neighboring tribes. He owned thousands of horses and cattle, and had amassed a large sum in specie, from trade with settlers and emigrants. Some years before one of his sons, a youth of promise, was murdered by a miner in California, and although he had always been on friendly terms with the whites, not even allowing his people to take part in the Cuyuse war, it was believed that the outrage rankled in his heart. He was well advanced in years, and somewhat childish and capricious in small things, but his form was as erect, his mind as firm, and his authority as unimpaired as ever.
FEASTING THE CHIEFS
The day after their arrival many of the Nez Perce chiefs came to see the commissioners, and after much friendly conversation were invited to dine. Governor Stevens and General Palmer presided at opposite ends of the long table, at which were seated some thirty chiefs, and, having heard of the enormous appetites of the Indians, piled the tin plates, as they were presented, to the brim. Again and again were the plates passed up for a fresh supply; the chiefs feasted and gorged like famished wolves; and the arms of the hosts became so wearied from carving and dispensing the food that they were glad to resign the posts of honor to a couple of stalwart packers. The table for the chiefs was kept up during the council, and every day was well attended, but it was not again graced by the presence of the commissioners.
During the morning an express was received from the Yellow Serpent. He sent word that the Cuyuses, Walla Wallas, and Yakimas would accept no provisions from the commissioners, but would bring their own, and proposed that the Young Chief, Lawyer, Kam-i-ah-kan, and himself, the head chiefs of the Cuyuses, Nez Perces, Yakimas, and Walla Wallas respectively, should do all the talking for the Indians at the council. The messenger would accept no tobacco for the chief, a very unfriendly sign, and muttered as he rode off, loud enough to be overheard by the interpreter, “You will find out by and by why we won’t take provisions.”
Every effort was made by the other Indians to induce the Nez Perces to refuse provisions, but without avail. The latter took great pride in their unwavering friendship to the whites, and were fond of contrasting their course with that of the Cuyuses. Considerable jealousy sprung up between them in consequence.
Two of the priests, Fathers Chirouse, of the Walla Walla, and Pandosy, of the Yakima Mission, arrived for the purpose of attending the council. They reported that these Indians were generally well disposed towards the whites, with the exception of Kam-i-ah-kan. The latter said, referring to the proposed council: “If the governor speaks hard, I will speak hard, too.” Other Indians had said, “Kam-i-ah-kan will come with his young men with powder and ball.” They were opposed to selling their lands; and when Secretary Doty visited and invited them to attend the council, Kam-i-ah-kan refused the presents offered him, saying that he “had never accepted anything from the whites, not even to the value of a grain of wheat, without paying for it, and that he did not wish to purchase the presents.” He was a man of fine presence and bearing, over six feet in height, well built and athletic. Governor Stevens said of him: “He is a peculiar man, reminding me of the panther and the grizzly bear. His countenance has an extraordinary play, one moment in frowns, the next in smiles, flashing with light and black as Erebus the same instant. His pantomime is great, and his gesticulation much and characteristic. He talks mostly in his face, and with his hands and arms.”
Reports were flying about that these tribes had combined to resist a treaty, and fears were expressed that an attempt to open the council would be the signal for an outbreak.
The following day a body of four hundred mounted Indians, supposed to be Cuyuses and Walla Wallas, were observed approaching, armed and in full gala dress, and uttering their war-whoops like so many demons, and, after riding three times around the Nez Perce camp, they departed. Soon after the Young Chief, accompanied by his principal chiefs, rode into camp, and, being invited to dismount, did so with evident reluctance, and shook hands in a very cold manner. They refused to smoke, and remained but a short time. “The haughty carriage of these chiefs,” remarks Governor Stevens in his journal, “and their manly character have, for the first time in my Indian experience, realized the descriptions of the writers of fiction.”
KAM-I-AH-KAN
Head Chief of the Yakimas
Garry, the head chief of the Spokanes, came, not to take part in the council, but as a spectator. When a boy he had been sent to the Red River settlements in Manitoba by Sir George Simpson, then governor of the Hudson Bay Company, where he acquired a common-school, English education. It being impracticable to assemble so distant and widely scattered a tribe as the Spokanes in time for this council, Governor Stevens designed making a separate treaty with them later in the season on his return from the Missouri.
Father Menetrey, from the Catholic mission among the Pend Oreilles, also arrived to attend the council,—a cultivated man, who spoke English fluently.
A messenger sent to invite the Palouses returned accompanied by only one of the chiefs, who reported that his people were indifferent to the matter, and would not come. A number of scattered and insignificant bands, who lived at different points on the Columbia, also arrived.
The following is from Governor Stevens’s journal:—
May 27, Sunday. There was service in the Nez Perce camp and in the Nez Perce language, Timothy being the preacher. The commissioners attended. The sermon was on the Ten Commandments. Timothy has a natural and graceful delivery, and his words were repeated by a prompter. The Nez Perces have evidently profited much from the labor of Mr. Spalding, who was with them ten years, and their whole deportment throughout the service was devout.
The next day agent Bolon, with an interpreter, was sent to meet the Yakimas, who were thought to be near at hand. He soon returned, having met Kam-i-ah-kan and also the Yellow Serpent. The latter said to Mr. Bolon that he was very sorry to hear that the chiefs and others in the commissioners’ camp had said that he was unfriendly to the whites,—that his heart was with the Cuyuses, whose hearts were bad. He had always been friendly to the whites, and was so now, and he would go to-day to see the commissioners, and ask why such things had been said of him. Accordingly, soon after Bolon’s return, Pu-pu-mox-mox, Kam-i-ah-kan, Ow-hi, and Skloom, the two latter being chiefs of the Yakimas, accompanied by a number of their braves, rode into camp. Dismounting, they shook hands in the most friendly manner, and seating themselves under the arbor indulged in a smoke, using their own tobacco exclusively, although other was offered them.
Governor Stevens addressed them, saying that he had important business to lay before them, and proposed to open the council the next day at noon. The Yellow Serpent replied that he wanted more than one interpreter at the council, that they might know they translated truly. Being assured on this point, and invited to designate an interpreter in whom he had confidence, he said, in a scornful manner, “I do not wish my boys running around the camp of the whites like these young men,” alluding to some young Nez Perces present and feeling quite at home. He added that he had only ridden over to-day to see the commissioners, and soon withdrew with his party.
SPOTTED EAGLE
A Chief of the Nez Perces
In the morning the commissioners and Secretary Doty visited the Lawyer at his lodge, as, his wound having broken out afresh, he was unable to walk without great pain and difficulty. He exhibited and explained a map of his country, which he had drawn at Governor Stevens’s request. During the conference several chiefs came in, and suddenly one of them, U-u-san-male-e-can or Spotted Eagle, said:—
“The Cuyuses want us to go to their camp and hold a council with them and Pu-pu-mox-mox. What are their hearts to us? Did we propose to hold a council with them, or ask them for advice? Our hearts are Nez Perce hearts, and we know them. We came here to hold a great council with the great chiefs of the Americans, and we know the straightforward path to pursue, and are alone responsible for our actions. Three Cuyuses came last night and spoke to me and two other chiefs, urging us to come to a council at the Cuyuse camp to meet Pu-pu-mox-mox and Kam-i-ah-kan. We did not wish to go. They insisted. Then I said to them, ‘You had best say no more. My mind is made up. Why do you come here and ask three chiefs to come to a council, while to the head chief and the rest you say nothing? Have we not told your messenger yesterday that our hearts are not Cuyuse hearts? Go home! Our chiefs will not go. We have our own people to take care of; they give us trouble enough, and we will not have the Cuyuse troubles on our hands.’”
The Lawyer then opened a book containing in their own language the advice left them by their former head chief, Ellis, and read as follows:—
“Whenever the great chief of the Americans shall come into your country to give you laws, accept them. A Walla Walla heart is a Walla Walla, a Cuyuse heart is a Cuyuse, so is a Yakima heart a Yakima, but a Nez Perce heart is a Nez Perce heart. While the Nez Perces are going straight, why should they turn aside to follow others? Ellis’s advice is to accept the white law. I have read it to you to show my heart.”
The speech of U-u-san-male-e-can afforded new evidence that the Cuyuses were plotting underhand, although but little could be learned as to the nature of their designs.
At two P.M., on May 29, 1855, the council was formally opened by Governor Stevens. Under the roomy arbor in front of the tent were seated the commissioners, secretaries who kept the records, interpreters, and Indian agents, while the Indians were seated on the ground in front in semicircular rows forty deep, one behind another. Timothy, the chief and preacher, concerning whom Governor Stevens said, “He and others are very devout, and seem to form a theocracy in the tribe, and, like the old New England fathers, to require every one to worship God in some visible way,”—this Timothy, assisted by several of the young men, who were very tolerable penmen, kept the records of the council for the Nez Perces. They were accommodated with a table under the arbor, where everything could be seen and heard. Some two thousand Indians were present, fully half of whom were Nez Perces. The pipe having been smoked with due solemnity, two interpreters were appointed and sworn for each tribe, some preliminary remarks were made, and the council was adjourned until ten o’clock the next morning. Before adjourning Governor Stevens renewed the offer of provisions to the recusant Indians, proposing that each tribe should take two oxen to its own camp and slaughter for themselves.
Young Chief: “We have plenty of cattle. They are close to our camp. We have already killed three, and have plenty of provisions.”
General Palmer to the interpreter: “Say to the Yakimas, ‘You have come a long way. You may not have provisions. If you want any, we have them, and you are welcome.’”
Young Chief: “Kam-i-ah-kan is supplied at our camp.”
The Yellow Serpent and Kam-i-ah-kan dined with the commissioners, and remained in their tent for a long time, smoking in a friendly manner, but the Young Chief declined the invitation to dine.
WALLA WALLA COUNCIL
The two following days Governor Stevens explained the proposed treaties at length, item by item. There were to be two reservations,—one in the Nez Perce country of three million acres, on the north side of Snake River, embracing both the Kooskooskia and Salmon rivers, including a large extent of good arable land, with fine fisheries, root grounds, timber and mill-sites, and was for the accommodation of the Cuyuses, Walla Wallas, Umatillas, and Spokanes, as well as the Nez Perces. The other embraced a large and fertile tract on the upper waters of the Yakima, and was for the Yakimas, Klikitats, Palouses, and kindred bands. The reservations were to belong to the Indians, and no white man should come upon them without their consent. An agent, with school-teachers, mechanics, and farmers, would take charge of each reservation, and instruct them in agriculture, trades, etc.; grist and saw mills were to be built; the head chiefs were to receive an annuity of five hundred dollars each, in order that they might devote their whole time to their people; and annuities in clothing, tools, and useful articles were to be given for twenty years, after which they were to be self-supporting. At first the reservations were to be used in common, but provision was made for the survey and subdivision of the land, and its allotment to the Indians in severalty as soon as they should be prepared to receive and utilize it. As it was evidently impracticable to make so radical a change in their habits suddenly, the Indians were to have the privilege of hunting, root-gathering, and pasturing stock on vacant land until appropriated by settlers, and the right of fishing. The advantages of the reservations were dwelt upon. They embraced some of the best land in the country, and were large enough to afford each family a farm to itself, besides grazing for all their stock; they contained good fisheries, abundance of roots and berries, and considerable game. They were near enough to the great roads for trade with the emigrants, yet far enough from them to be undisturbed by travelers. By having so many tribes on the same reservation, the agent could better look after them, and could accomplish more with the means at his disposal. The staple argument held out was the superior advantages of civilization, and the absolute necessity of their adopting the habits and mode of life of the white man in order to escape extinction. Governor Stevens also exhorted them to treat, for the sake of the example upon their inveterate enemies, the Blackfeet, that thereby they would prove themselves firm friends of the whites, and that he would then take delegations from each tribe with his party and proceed to the Blackfoot country, and make a lasting treaty of peace, so that they could ever after hunt the buffalo in safety, and trade horses with the Indians east of the Rocky Mountains. The Indians listened gravely and in silence, as these matters were slowly unfolded to them, sentence by sentence through the interpreters, for five or six hours each day, and upon the adjournment of the council, quietly dispersed to their lodges. The third day the Young Chief for the first time dined at Governor Stevens’s table with the other head chiefs, and General Palmer and the gentlemen of the party; and in the evening he sent word that his young men were tired of such close confinement as they had undergone at the council, and desired to have a feast and holiday to-morrow, and he requested that no council be held until the day after (Saturday). The commissioners cheerfully acceded to his request, well pleased at these signs of mollifying the opposition of the haughty savage.
There were now assembled on the ground between five and six thousand Indians. Says Colonel Kip: “About five thousand Indians, including squaws and children. Their encampment and lodges are scattered over the valley for more than a mile, presenting a wild and fantastic appearance.”
Every afternoon, after the council adjourned for the day, horse-races and foot-races were held at the Nez Perce camp, attended by the sporting bloods of the other tribes, and witnessed by many of the whites. The usual course was a long one,—some two miles out and back, making four miles. Oftentimes thirty horses would start together in a grand sweepstakes; the riders and betters would throw into one common pile the articles put up as stakes,—blankets, leggings, horse equipments, and whatever was bet, and the winner would take the whole pile. The foot-races were equally long, and the runners would be escorted in their course by a crowd of mounted Indians, galloping behind and beside them so closely that the exhausted ones could hardly stop without being run down. The riders and runners were invariably stripped to the breech-cloth, and presented many fine, manly forms, perfect Apollos in bronze.
Everything was very quiet about the council ground the day begged for a holiday by the Young Chief, the Indians remaining at their own camps. But the next day, Saturday, June 2, they reassembled as usual; and after several hours had been spent in further explaining the provisions of the treaties, Governor Stevens called them to speak freely, saying, “We want you to open your hearts to us,” etc.
Hitherto the Indians had listened in grave silence, but now the opponents of the treaties took the lead in the discussion. The Yellow Serpent, in a speech marked by strength and sarcasm, uttered the prevailing reluctance to part with their lands, and their dread and distrust of the whites:—
“We have listened to all you have to say, and we desire you to listen when any Indian speaks. It appears that Craig knows the heart of his people; that the whole has been prearranged in the hearts of the Indians; that he wants an answer immediately, without giving them time to think; that the Indians have had nothing to say, so that it would appear that we have no chief. I know the value of your speech from having experienced the same in California, having seen treaties there. We have not seen in a true light the object of your speeches, as if there was a post set between us, as if my heart wept for what you have said. Look at yourselves: your flesh is white; mine is different, mine looks poor; our languages are different. If you would speak straight, then I would think that you spoke well.
“Should I speak to you of things that happened long ago, as you have done? The whites made me do what they pleased. They told me to do this, and I did it. They used to make our women to smoke. I supposed then they did what was right. When they told me to dance with all these nations that are here, then I danced. From that time, all the Indians became proud and called themselves chiefs.
“Now, how are we here as at a post? From what you have said, I think that you intend to win our country, or how is it to be? In one day the Americans become as numerous as the grass. This I learned in California. I know it is not right; you have spoken in a roundabout way. Speak straight. I have ears to hear you, and here is my heart. Suppose you show me goods, shall I run up and take them? That is the way with all us Indians as you know us. Goods and the earth are not equal. Goods are for using on the earth. I do not know where they have given lands for goods.
“We require time to think quietly, slowly. You have spoken in a manner partly tending to evil. Speak plain to us. I am a poor Indian. Show me charity. If there was a chief among the Nez Perces or Cuyuses, if they saw evil done they would put a stop to it, and all would be quiet. Such chiefs I hope Governor Stevens and General Palmer have. I should feel very much ashamed if the Americans did anything wrong. I had but a little to say, that is all. I do not wish a reply to-day. Think over what I have said.”
After a stinging rebuke administered by Camospelo, a Cuyuse chief, to some of his young men who had behaved in a surly manner, talking and walking about during the proceedings, the council was adjourned until Monday.
PU-PU-MOX-MOX: YELLOW SERPENT
Head Chief of the Walla Wallas
This speech of the Yellow Serpent is marked in every sentence by his bitter distrust of the whites. He intimates, almost asserts, that the commissioners are trying to deceive and overreach the Indians, and with biting irony declares that he would feel very much ashamed if the Americans did anything wrong.
Late that evening the Lawyer came unattended to see Governor Stevens. He disclosed a conspiracy on the part of the Cuyuses to suddenly rise upon and massacre all the whites on the council ground,—that this measure, deliberated in nightly conferences for some time, had at length been determined upon in full council of the tribe the day before, which the Young Chief had requested for a holiday; they were now only awaiting the assent of the Yakimas and Walla Wallas to strike the blow; and that these latter had actually joined, or were on the point of joining, the Cuyuses in a war of extermination against the whites, for which the massacre of the governor and his party was to be the signal. They had conducted these plottings with the greatest secrecy, not trusting the Nez Perces; and the Lawyer, suspecting that all was not right, had discovered the plot by means of a spy with the greatest difficulty, and only just in time to avert the catastrophe.
The Lawyer concluded by saying: “I will come with my family and pitch my lodge in the midst of your camp, that those Cuyuses may see that you and your party are under the protection of the head chief of the Nez Perces.” He did so immediately, although it was now after midnight, and, without awakening the suspicions of any one, he caused it to be reported among the other Indians that the commissioners were under the protection of the Nez Perces.
Governor Stevens on his part imparted his knowledge of the conspiracy to Secretary Doty and Packmaster Higgins, and to them alone, for he feared that, should the party generally learn of it, a stampede would ensue. Having through these efficient officers quietly caused the men to put their arms in readiness, and posting night guards, he determined to continue the council as usual, hoping that the Cuyuses, foiled in their design, would finally conclude to treat.
On Monday the governor opened the council by inviting the Indians to speak their minds freely, and, no one responding, finally called on the Lawyer. He expressed himself in terms favorable to the treaty, and was followed by several of his chiefs in a similar strain. Kam-i-ah-kan, on the other hand, avowed his distrust of the whites, and alluded in a contemptuous manner to the speeches of the Lawyer and the others:—
“I have something different to say from what the others have said. They are young men who have spoken as they have spoken. I have been afraid of the white man. His doings are different from ours. Perhaps you have spoken straight that your children will do what is right. Let them do as they have promised.”
The Yellow Serpent said with bitter irony, “I do not wish to speak. I leave it to the old men.”
Steachus, the only chief of the Cuyuses reported to be well disposed, commended the speech of the Lawyer, and exhorted all present to speak their minds freely.
But the most impressive speech by far was that of Tip-pee-il-lan-oh-cow-pook, the Eagle-from-the-Light, a pathetic and touching speech:—
“You are now come to join together the white man and the red man. And why should I hide anything? I am going now to tell you a tale. I like the President’s talk. I am glad of it when I hear it here, and for that reason I am going to tell you a tale.
“The time the whites first passed through this country, although the people of this country were blind, it was their heart to be friendly to them. Although they did not know what the white people said to them, they answered Yes, as if they were blind. They traveled about with the white people as if they had been lost.
“I have been talked to by the French [Hudson Bay Company men] and by the Americans, and one says to me go this way, and the other says go another way, and that is the reason I am lost between them.
“A long time ago they hung my brother for no offense, and this I say to my brother here, that he may think of it. Afterwards came Spalding and Whitman. They advised us well, and taught us well,—very well. It was from the same source,—the light [the east]. They had pity on us, and we were pitied, and Spalding sent my father to the east,—the States,—and he went. His body has never returned. He was sent to learn good counsel, and friendship and many things. This is another thing to think of. At the time, in this place here, when there was blood spilled on the ground, we were friends to the whites and they to us. At that time they found it out that we were friends to them. My chief, my own chief, said, ‘I will try to settle all the bad matters with the whites,’ and he started to look for counsel to straighten up matters, and there his body lies beyond here. He has never returned.
“At the time the Indians held a grand council at Fort Laramie, I was with the Flatheads, and I heard there would be a grand council this side next year. We were asked to go and find counsel, friendship, and good advice. Many of my people started, and died in the country,—died hunting what was right. There were a good many started; on Green River the smallpox killed all but one. They were going to find good counsel in the east, and here am I looking still for counsel, and to be taught what is best to be done.
“And now look at my people’s bodies scattered everywhere, hunting for knowledge,—hunting for some one to teach them to go straight. And now I show it to you, and I want you to think of it. I am of a poor people. A preacher came to us, Mr. Spalding. He talked to us to learn, and from that he turned to be a trader, as though there were two in one, one a preacher and the other a trader. He made a farm and raised grain and bought our stock, as though there were two in one, one a preacher, the other a trader. And now one from the east has spoken, and I have heard it, and I do not wish another preacher to come, and be both trader and preacher in one. A piece of ground for a preacher big enough for his own use is all that is necessary for him.
“Look at that; it is the tale I had to tell you, and now I am going to hunt friendship and good advice. We will come straight here,—slowly perhaps, but we will come straight.”
The next two days Governor Stevens continued, explaining the treaties still further. A large map was brought forth, and the boundaries of the reservations accurately marked out and shown. The Indians took great interest in this map, asking many questions about the mountains and streams they saw represented upon it, and in some instances adding streams which were not laid down.
Superintendent Palmer spoke for some time, going over the same ground as Governor Stevens. After he had concluded, Steachus, the friendly Cuyuse, arose and said:—
“My friends, I wish to show you my heart. If your mother were in this country, gave you birth and suckled you, and, while you were suckling, some person came and took away your mother and left you alone and sold your mother, how would you feel then? This is our mother,—this country,—as if we drew our living from her. My friends, all of this you have taken. Had I two rivers, I would leave the one, and be content to live on the other. I name the place for myself, the Grande Ronde, the Touchet towards the mountains, and the Tucañon.”
Thus even Steachus, the most friendly of the Cuyuses, was the first to express his dissatisfaction with a treaty which left him none of his own country, and to request a reservation within its borders. The Indians were slow to speak; they required time to make up their minds, and the council was therefore adjourned.
WE-AH-TE-NA-TEE-MA-NY: YOUNG CHIEF
Head Chief of the Cuyuses
About midnight the governor and his little son were awakened by Lawyer, who shook the tent and said, in a low, soft voice, without a trace of hurry or excitement, “Water come now.” On springing out of bed, they splashed knee-deep in water flooding the tent, and were forced to make a hasty flight to higher ground. The creek had risen suddenly without warning, probably from a waterspout or heavy rains in the mountains. The following day it subsided again as rapidly as it rose.
When the council met the next day, Lawyer spoke first, and expressed the assent of himself and his people to the treaty. A great part of his speech was addressed to the Indians. He traced the increase of the whites from the discovery of the New World by Columbus; alluded in a touching manner to the way in which the Indians had passed and were passing away; and urged his auditors, as their only refuge, to place themselves under the protection of the Great Father in Washington.
When Lawyer concluded, the Young Chief, the haughty Cuyuse, was the first to break the silence:—
“He would not sell his country. He heard what the earth said. The earth said, ‘God has placed me here to take care of the Indian, to produce roots for him, and grass for his horses and cattle.’ The water spoke the same way. God has forbidden the Indian to sell his country except for a fair price, and he did not understand the treaty.”
Five Crows, the Yellow Serpent, Ow-hi, and several other chiefs followed in similar strain. The Yellow Serpent proposed that another council should be held at some future time. He insisted that the whites should not be allowed to come into his country to settle. He complained that the Indians were treated like children, were not consulted in drawing up the terms of the treaties, etc.
Kam-i-ah-kan refused to speak, although several times urged to do so. His invariable reply was, “I have nothing to say.”
The commissioners replied, explaining those parts of the treaties which the Indians did not understand, and answering their objections. The discussion on the part of the Indians was captious, stormy, and unsatisfactory. Governor Stevens in pointed words, well calculated to touch their pride, urged the recusant and evasive chiefs to speak plainly:—
“My brother and myself have talked straight. Have all of you talked straight? Lawyer has, and his people here, and their business will be done to-morrow.
“The Young Chief says he is blind, and does not understand. What is it that he wants? Steachus says that his heart is in one of three places, the Grande Ronde, the Touchet, and the Tucañon. Where is the heart of Young Chief?
“Pu-pu-mox-mox (the Yellow Serpent) cannot be wafted off like a feather. Does he prefer the Yakima reservation to that of the Nez Perces? We have asked him before. We ask him now. Where is his heart?
“And Kam-i-ah-kan, the great chief of the Yakimas, he has not spoken at all. His people have had no voice here to-day. He is not ashamed to speak. He is not afraid to speak. Then speak out!
“But Ow-hi is afraid lest God be angry at his selling his land. Ow-hi, my brother, I do not think that God will be angry if you do your best for yourself and your children. Ask yourself this question to-night: ‘Will not God be angry with me if I neglect this opportunity to do them good?’ Ow-hi says his people are not here. Why did he promise to come here, then, to hear our talk? I do not want to be ashamed of Ow-hi. We expect him to speak straight out. We expect to hear from Kam-i-ah-kan, from Skloom.”
SHE-CA-YAH: FIVE CROWS
Cuyuse Chief
At length Five Crows proposed an adjournment. “Listen to me, you chiefs. We have been as one people with the Nez Perces hitherto. This day we are divided. We, the Cuyuses, the Walla Wallas, and Kam-i-ah-kan’s people and others will think over the matter to-night, and give you an answer to-morrow.”
The feature of the treaties which met with the greatest opposition was the provision that the Cuyuses, Walla Wallas, and Umatillas should relinquish the whole of their own lands, and remove to a reservation in the Nez Perce country. The commissioners therefore decided to establish a separate reservation for these three tribes on the headwaters of the Umatilla, at the base of the Blue Mountains. Conferences were had with the recusant chiefs separately, the proposition of a reservation in their own country was broached, and the whole ground of the treaties again gone over and fully discussed. Steachus expressed himself as highly pleased with the new arrangement, and, although the others gave less encouragement, the commissioners were hopeful that a successful result would soon be reached.
The change of reservations was brought forward in council the next day. The annuities of five hundred dollars for ten years to each of the head chiefs were extended to twenty years. The Yellow Serpent was given the privilege of establishing a trading-post for trade with the settlers and emigrants, and an annuity of one hundred dollars a year for twenty years was given his son. Young Chief and Yellow Serpent were the principal speakers, and in lengthy and rambling speeches gave their assent to the treaties. The latter, on declaring his acceptance, exclaimed, “Now you may send me provisions!” Kam-i-ah-kan was sullen, and refused his assent.
Some commotion was now observed among the Indians, and suddenly a small party of warriors were seen approaching, painted and armed, singing a war-song, and flourishing on the top of a pole a freshly taken scalp. It proved to be a party of Nez Perces, headed by Looking Glass, the war chief, just from the Blackfoot country, where they had been for three years hunting the buffalo. Looking Glass was old, irascible, and treacherous, yet second only to Lawyer in influence. While hunting the buffalo he had several fights with the Blackfeet. At one time seventy of his horses were stolen by them; but the vigorous old chief hotly pursued the depredators, killed two, put the rest to flight, and recovered his horses. He had reached the Bitter Root valley on his return home, when he heard that the Nez Perces were at a great council, and concluding a treaty without his presence. Leaving his party to follow more slowly, he pushed on with a few chosen braves, crossed the Bitter Root Mountains, where for some distance the snow was shoulder-deep on their horses, and, having ridden three hundred miles in seven days at the age of seventy, reached the council ground while Governor Stevens was urging Kam-i-ah-kan to give his assent to the treaty, for the governor, hearing the arrival of Looking Glass announced, seized the occasion to call upon the Yakima chief to sign the treaty in the name of Looking Glass, there being great friendship between these two. Scarcely had he concluded when Looking Glass, surrounded by his knot of warriors with the scalps tossing above them, rode up, excited and agitated, received his friends coldly, and finally broke forth into a most angry philippic against his tribe and the treaty:—
“My people, what have you done? While I was gone, you have sold my country. I have come home, and there is not left me a place on which to pitch my lodge. Go home to your lodges. I will talk to you.”
LOOKING GLASS
War Chief of the Nez Perces
The council was immediately adjourned. Governor Stevens consulted Lawyer, who was of opinion that Looking Glass would calm down in a day or two and accept the treaty. He said, however, that the latter’s return would make it impossible to reduce the Nez Perce reservation, which, originally intended for the Cuyuses, Walla Wallas, and Umatillas, in addition to the Nez Perces, was larger than they alone required, and it was determined to make it a general reservation for other tribes, not exceeding in numbers those for whom it was at first designed.
In the evening Governor Stevens assembled the Yakima chiefs in his tent, and discussed the treaties with them until one o’clock in the morning. Kam-i-ah-kan was not present, but Skloom acted as the principal spokesman. The governor remarks in his journal, “Skloom was desirous that his land should first be surveyed.”
The council of the following day, however, soon made it evident that Looking Glass had not yet calmed down. He declared himself the head chief of the tribes present; that the boys had spoken yesterday, but that he would speak to-day. He made many inquiries, raised many objections, and finally marked another line for the reservation, including nearly the whole of the Nez Perce territory. The Cuyuses seized the occasion to retract their assent to their treaty, and the Young Chief strenuously supported Looking Glass in his objections, and omitted no opportunity to assert his supremacy as head chief of the Nez Perces. At length Lawyer abruptly left the council in the midst of one of Looking Glass’s philippics, and retired to his lodge. Governor Stevens refused to submit to the demands of the angry and grasping old chief, and adjourned the council until the following Monday.
After the adjournment the Yellow Serpent and Kam-i-ah-kan, who had at length yielded to the advice of the other chiefs, with all the chiefs and prominent men of the two tribes, came forward and signed their respective treaties. The former had remarked in the morning that his word was pledged, and that he should sign the treaty no matter what Looking Glass and the Nez Perces did. It was thought that his example had great weight with Kam-i-ah-kan.
Late in the evening Governor Stevens had an interview with Lawyer, who said:—
“Governor Stevens, you are my chief. You come from the President. He has spoken kind words to us, a poor people. We have listened to them, and have agreed to a treaty. We are bound by the agreement. When Looking Glass asked you, ‘How long will the agent live with us?’ you might have replied by asking the question, ‘How long have you been head chief of the Nez Perces?’ When he said, ‘I, the head chief, have just got back; I will talk; the boys talked yesterday,’ you might have replied, ‘The Lawyer, and not you, is the head chief. The whole Nez Perce tribe have said in council Lawyer was the head chief. Your faith is pledged. You have agreed to the treaty. I call upon you to sign it.’ Had this course been taken, the treaty would have been signed.”
“In reply,” says the governor, “I told the Lawyer that we considered all the talk of Looking Glass as the outpourings of an angry and excited old man, whose heart would become all right if left to himself for a time; that the Lawyer had left the council whilst in session, and without speaking. It was his business to have interfered in this way, had it been necessary. We considered the Lawyer’s leaving as saying, ‘Nothing more can be done to-day; it must be finished to-morrow.’ Your authority will be sustained, and your people will be called upon to keep their word. You will be sustained. The Looking Glass will not be allowed to speak as head chief. You, and you alone, will be recognized. Should Looking Glass persist, the appeal will be made to your people. They must sign the treaty agreed to by them through you as head chief, or the council will be broken up and you will return home, your faith broken, your hopes of the future gone.”
The council being adjourned, the Cuyuses and Nez Perces retired to their respective camps to hold councils by themselves, which lasted all night. The position of Looking Glass was determined by the latter to be second to Lawyer, who was reaffirmed head chief. The council was stormy, but the chiefs at length all agreed on a paper sent in by Lawyer, and read in council, which declared the faith of the tribe pledged to Governor Stevens, and that the treaty must be signed. “Those who would advise breaking their word were no better than the Cuyuses. Let them share the lot of the Cuyuses.” The morning after this council being Sunday, Timothy preached a sermon for the times, and held up to the indignation of the tribe, and the retribution of the Almighty, those who would coalesce with the Cuyuses, and break the faith of the Nez Perces.
The governor had a conversation with Kam-i-ah-kan, who said:—
“Looking Glass, if left alone, will sign the treaty. Don’t ask me to accept presents. I have never taken one from a white man. When the payments are made, I will take my share.”
Steachus, the friendly Cuyuse chief, expressed his earnest desire that his tribe should sign the treaty, and both Pu-pu-mox-mox and Kam-i-ah-kan used their influence to induce them to accept it.
Early Monday morning Governor Stevens saw Lawyer, and said to him: “We are now ready to go into council. I shall call upon your people to keep their word, and upon you as head chief to sign first. We want no speeches. This will be the last day of the council. Call your people together as soon as possible.” The Lawyer replied, “This is the right course,” and immediately summoned his tribe. The closing scene of the council is best given in Governor Stevens’s own words:—
“The Looking Glass took his seat in council in the very best humor. The Cuyuses and Nez Perces were all present. Kam-i-ah-kan sat down near the Young Chief. The council was opened by me in a brief speech: ‘We meet for the last time. Your words are pledged to sign the treaty. The tribes have spoken through their head chiefs, Joseph, Red Wolf, the Eagle, Ip-se-male-e-con, all declaring Lawyer was the head chief. I call upon Lawyer to sign first.’ Lawyer then signed the treaty. ‘I now call upon Joseph and the Looking Glass.’ Looking Glass signed, then Joseph. Then every chief and man of note, both Nez Perces and Cuyuses, signed their respective treaties.
“After the treaties were signed, I spoke briefly of the Blackfoot council, and asked each tribe to send delegations, the Nez Perces a hundred chiefs and braves, the whole under the head chief, or some chief of acknowledged authority, as Looking Glass. There was much talk on the subject on the part of the Indians. Looking Glass said he would have a talk with me alone some other time.”
HAL-HAL-TLOS-SOT: THE LAWYER
Head Chief of the Nez Perces
The council being completed, presents were made to all the assembled tribes, who began packing up and moving off. Eagle-from-the-Light, the Nez Perce chief, who was at first opposed to the treaty and refused to accept provisions, now presented a magnificent grizzly bear’s skin, with the teeth and claws intact, to Governor Stevens with the following speech: “This skin is my medicine. It came with me every day to council. It tells me everything. It says what has been done is right. Had anything been done wrong, it would have spoken out. I have now no use for it. I give it to you that you may know my heart is right.” Every day Eagle-from-the-Light had brought this skin to the council, and, placing it with the teeth and claws turned towards the commissioners, had used it as a seat, declining the roll of blankets offered him.
“Thus ended,” says the journal, “in the most satisfactory manner, this great council, prolonged through so many days,—a council which—in the number of Indians assembled and the different tribes, old difficulties and troubles between them and the whites, a deep-seated dislike to and determination against giving up their lands, and the great importance, nay, absolute necessity, of opening this land by treaty to occupation by the whites, that bloodshed and the enormous expense of Indian wars might be avoided, and in its general influence and difficulty—has never been equaled by any council held with the Indian tribes of the United States.
“It was so considered by all present, and a final relief from the intense anxiety and vexation of the last month was especially grateful to all concerned.”
The following day the Nez Perces celebrated the happy conclusion of the treaty, and the return of Looking Glass and his braves from the buffalo country, by a scalp-dance. The chiefs and braves, in full war-paint and adorned with all their savage finery, formed a large circle, standing several ranks deep. Within this arena a chosen body of warriors performed the war-dance, while the densely massed ranks of braves circled around them, keeping time in measured tread, and accompanying it with their wild and barbaric war-song. The ferocious and often hideous mien of these stalwart savages, their frenzied attitudes and shrill and startling yells, formed a subject worthy the pen of Dante and the pencil of Doré. The missionary still had work to do. Presently an old hag, the very picture of squalor and woe, burst into the circle, bearing aloft upon a pole one of the fresh scalps so recently taken by Looking Glass, and, dancing and jumping about with wild and extravagant action, heaped upon the poor relic of a fallen foe every mark of indignity and contempt. Shaking it aloft, she vociferously abused it; she beat it, she spat upon it, she bestrode the pole and rushed around the ring, trailing it in the dust, again and again; while the warriors, with grim satisfaction, kept up their measured tread, chanted their war-songs, and uttered if possible yet more ear-piercing yells. A softer and more pleasing scene succeeded. The old hag retired with her bedraggled trophy, and a long line of Indian maidens stepped within the circle, and, forming an inner rank, moved slowly round and round, chanting a mild and plaintive air. A number of the stylish young braves, real Indian beaux in the height of paint and feathers, next took post within the circle, near the rank of moving maidens, and each one, as the object of his adoration passed him, placed a gayly decorated token upon her shoulder. If she allowed it to remain, his affection was returned and he was accepted, but if she shook it off, he knew that he was a rejected suitor. Coquetry evidently is not confined to the civilized fair, for, without exception, the maidens, as if indignant at such public wooing, threw off the token with disdain, while every new victim of delusive hopes was greeted with shouts of laughter from the spectators.
The turning-point in the council was undoubtedly the discovery of the Cuyuse conspiracy by Lawyer, and his act of moving his lodge into Governor Stevens’s camp, thereby placing the whites under the protection of the Nez Perces. This was all that prevented the hostile chiefs and braves from striking the blow. They refrained because they knew that if Lawyer was killed in an attack on the camp, which was to be expected in the mêlée, the whole Nez Perce nation would avenge his slaughter in their blood. The real extent and imminence of the danger was known to but few, but the fact of the plot was soon generally bruited about.
THE SCALP DANCE
“Their design,” says Colonel Kip, “was first to massacre the escort, which could have been easily done. Fifty soldiers against three thousand Indian warriors, out on the open plains, made rather too great odds. We should have had time, like Lieutenant Grattan at Fort Laramie last season, to deliver one fire, and then the contest would have been over. Their next move was to surprise the post at the Dalles, as they could also have easily done, as most of the troops were withdrawn, and the Indians in the neighborhood had recently united with them. This would have been the beginning of their war of extermination against the settlers.”
Foiled in their plot, why did they then so quickly agree to the treaties, which up to that time they had so bitterly spurned? All the circumstances and evidence go to show that, with the exception of Steachus, the friendly Cuyuse, they all—Young Chief, Five Crows, Pu-pu-mox-mox, Kam-i-ah-kan, and their sub-chiefs—all signed the treaties as a deliberate act of treachery, in order to lull the whites into fancied security, give time for Governor Stevens to depart to the distant Blackfoot country, where he would probably be “wiped out” by those truculent savages, and for the Nez Perces to return home, and also for completing their preparations for a widespread and simultaneous onslaught on all the settlements. Scarcely had they reached home from the council when they resumed such preparations, buying extra stores of ammunition, and sending emissaries to the Spokanes, Cœur d’Alenes, and even to some of the Nez Perces and to other tribes, to incite them to war, actually held a council of the disaffected at a point in the Palouse country the following month, and, within three months of accepting ostensibly the protection of the Great Father, precipitated the conflict. Agent Bolon and many white miners and settlers in the upper country were massacred, and settlements as widespread as Puget Sound and southern Oregon, six hundred miles apart, were attacked on the same day. In this conspiracy and contest Kam-i-ah-kan was the moving spirit, the organizer, the instigator, whose crafty wiles never slept, and whose stubborn resolution no disaster could break. But in the end, after protracted and stubborn resistance, they were defeated and compelled to move on their reservations, and live under the very treaties they so treacherously agreed to, and under which they still live and have greatly prospered.
Whether or not the Walla Walla council precipitated the outbreak, as has been claimed, it is certain that it confirmed the Nez Perces in their friendship, neutralized the Spokanes for two years, kept even some of the Cuyuses friendly all through the war, namely, Steachus and his band, extinguished the Indian title, and permanently settled the status of the Indian and his relation with the white man, without which peace was an impossibility. The outbreak itself could have been suppressed in a single season, had Governor Stevens’s firm policy and sagacious views been sustained.
Over sixty thousand square miles were ceded by these treaties. The Nez Perce reservation contained five thousand square miles, including mountain and forest as well as good land, and provision was made for moving other tribes upon it. The payment for the Nez Perce lands comprised $200,000 in the usual annuities, and $60,000 for improving the reservation, saw and grist mills, schools, shops, teachers, farmers, mechanics, etc. Ardent spirits were excluded; the right to hunt, fish, gather roots and berries, and pasture stock on vacant land was secured, and provision was made for ultimately allotting the land in severalty. An annuity of $500 for twenty years was given the head chief, and a house was to be built for him, and ten acres of land fenced and broken up the first year. At the special request of the Indians, the claim and homestead of William Craig was confirmed to him, and was not to be considered part of the reservation, although within its boundaries.
Besides Lawyer and Looking Glass, fifty-six chiefs signed this treaty, and among them were Joseph (the father of the chief Joseph, who in 1877 fought the brilliant campaign against Generals Howard, Gibbon, and Miles, the only conflict that has ever occurred between the Nez Perces and the whites), James, Red Wolf, Timothy, Spotted Eagle, and Eagle-from-the-Light.
The Umatilla reservation contained eight hundred square miles. $100,000 to be given for annuities in goods, etc., for twenty years; $50,000 for improving the reservation; $10,000 for moving the emigrant road, which passed through it, around its borders; a sawmill, a flour-mill; two schoolhouses; a blacksmith’s shop, a wagon and plough making shop, a carpenter and joiner shop; tools and equipments; and teachers, farmers, and mechanics to instruct them for twenty years,—were the very liberal payments for their lands. Moreover, the head chief of each tribe was to have his annuity of $500 for twenty years, a house built, and ten acres fenced and ploughed. Pu-pu-mox-mox, in addition, was to be allowed to maintain a trading-post at the mouth of the Yakima; his first year’s salary was to be paid him on signing the treaty; he was also to receive three yoke of oxen, three yokes and four chains, a wagon, two ploughs, twelve axes, two shovels, twelve hoes, one saddle and bridle, a set of wagon harness and one of plough harness; and his son was to have an annuity of $100 for twenty years, and have a house built, and five acres of land ploughed and fenced.
The wily old chief had certainly gotten all he could.
The other provisions were similar to those of the Nez Perce treaty. It was signed by the three head chiefs and thirty-two sub-chiefs.
The Yakima treaty contained the same general provisions. A large reservation on the Simcoe, a southern branch of the Yakima, and a smaller one on the Wenatchee, including the fishery there, were set apart for them. The payments include $200,000 in annuities, $60,000 for improving the reservations, the annuity, house and field for the chief, etc. In all the treaties provision is made for finally dividing the land among the Indians in severalty.
Kam-i-ah-kan, Ow-hi, Skloom, and eleven other chiefs signed the treaty. The first three were able and persistent inciters of, and leaders in, the Indian war. Ow-hi is mentioned in “The Canoe and Saddle,” by Theodore Winthrop, and met a tragic end, being slain while a prisoner trying to escape from the troops under Colonel George Wright.
After their exemplary punishment the Yakimas settled down on their reservation, and for many years were prosperous and contented under the charge of the faithful agent Wilbur. They number 2556, showing little diminution; have taken their lands in severalty; most of them wear civilized dress in whole or part; have 17,000 acres under cultivation; raise 50,000 bushels of grain, 9600 of vegetables, and 25,000 tons of hay.
The Spokanes number 3000. While some of the bands are backward, others have made encouraging progress, “are thrifty and industrious, have splendid farms, and raise large crops of grain and hay, ... are self-supporting, and, but for the intemperance of some of them, are making rapid strides towards civilization.” The agent says of one band: “They accept no issues from the government, and are independent and self-supporting. They are peaceable in their own social relations, and courteous to their white brethren. They have made material progress, having good farms, fine horses, and many of them small herds of cattle.”
OW-HI
A Chief of the Yakimas
The Cœur d’Alenes, numbering 506, are further advanced in civilization, and in better condition financially than any other tribe. They are well supplied with all kinds of farming implements, from a plough to a threshing-machine, of which latter they now have thirteen in operation, purchased by themselves with their own money.
The Nez Perces, the most progressive and deserving of all, seem to have fared the worst. Their reservation was early overrun by thousands of miners, and they were outrageously swindled by dishonest agents. They number only 1795, having diminished one half. But they have taken their lands in severalty; have 10,000 acres under cultivation, 100,000 acres under fence; raise 55,000 bushels of grain, 15,000 bushels of vegetables; own 30,000 horses, 15,000 cattle, 3000 swine, and 20,000 fowls. “Very enthusiastic revival meetings were conducted here last winter by the native elders, which resulted in quite a number of converts being made.”[6]
CHAPTER XXX
CROSSING THE BITTER ROOTS
On the close of the council the Indians homeward-bound filled all the trails leading out of the valley with their wild and picturesque cavalcades,—the braves resplendent with scarlet blankets and leggings; the squaws and pappooses decked with bright calico shirts and kerchiefs. Lieutenant Gracie marched away to join Major Haller in an expedition against the predatory Snakes. The secretaries and other treaty officers toiled early and late making up the records and reports for Washington, which, with letters and instructions for Olympia, were dispatched on the 14th by W.H. Pearson, the express rider.
It will be noted how carefully and fully the proceedings of all Governor Stevens’s councils were recorded; not merely a statement of what was done, but a complete verbatim report of the deliberations, the speeches, every word uttered by both whites and Indians in council, and many of the talks out of council, was reduced to writing and made part of the official record,—a record which now affords the most convincing evidence of the wisdom, foresight, and benevolence of the treaties, as well as the difficulties and dangers attending them, and presents a most interesting and historically valuable picture of the characters, dispositions, and feelings of the Indians.
General Palmer had been appointed one of the commissioners to treat with the Blackfeet, Governor Stevens and Alfred Cumming, Superintendent of Indian Affairs for Nebraska, being the others, but he declined the arduous and dangerous duty, and, with the Oregon Indian officers, started for home.
A.J. Bolon, the Yakima Indian agent, with a small party, was sent to old Fort Walla Walla with a quantity of Indian goods intended for the Spokanes, there to be stored for safe-keeping. He was instructed to visit and inspect the Yakima reservation, thence proceed to the Dalles and bring the Nez Perce Indian goods to Walla Walla, deposit them, and, loading up with the Spokane goods, take them to Antoine Plante’s ranch on the Spokane River, in readiness for the council on the governor’s return from the Blackfoot country. Mr. Henry R. Crosby was dispatched to Colville to notify the Indians, the Hudson Bay Company officers, and the missionaries of the proposed council. Agent W.H. Tappan was sent with Craig to Lapwai to organize a delegation of the Nez Perces to go to the Blackfoot council, and was to accompany them himself. All the officers were charged to examine the regions traversed by them, and report on the topographical and agricultural features, etc. The governor had procured from New York a supply of barometers and other instruments, and was determined to continue and complete his railroad explorations, so summarily arrested by Jefferson Davis, as far as possible on this expedition, although it was one primarily on the Indian service. In his final railroad report he gives a daily journal of this trip, and a graphic description of the country passed over, together with an immense amount of new information, the fruits of his own indefatigable personal exertions and those of his subordinates, amplifying and triumphantly vindicating his first report.
It was a beautiful, sunny June morning, the 16th, when the little train drew out from the deserted council ground, and took its way in single file across the level valley prairie, covered with luxuriant bunch grass and vivid-hued flowers. A large, fine-looking Cœur d’Alene Indian, named Joseph, led the way as guide; then rode the governor with his son, Secretary Doty, Agent Lansdale, and Gustave Sohon the artist, barometer-carrier, and observer; then came Packmaster Higgins, followed by the train of eleven packers and two cooks, and forty-one sleek, long-eared pack-mules, each bearing a burden of two hundred pounds, the men interspersed with the mules to keep them moving on the trail; while seventeen loose animals, in a disorderly bunch, driven by a couple of herders, brought up the rear. It was a picked force, both men and animals, and made up in efficiency for scanty numbers. The artist, Gustave Sohon, a soldier of the 4th infantry, detailed for the trip, was an intelligent German, a clever sketcher, and competent to take instrumental observations. Higgins, ex-orderly sergeant of dragoons, a tall, broad-shouldered, spare, sinewy man, a fine swordsman and drill-master, a scientific boxer, was a man of unusual firmness, intelligence, and good judgment, and quiet, gentlemanly manners, and held the implicit respect, obedience, and goodwill of his subordinates. He afterwards became the founder, banker, and first citizen of the flourishing town of Missoula, at Hell Gate, in the Bitter Root valley. A.H. Robie worked up from the ranks, married a daughter of Craig, and settled at Boisé City, Idaho, where he achieved a highly prosperous and respected career. Sidney Ford, a son of Judge Ford, already mentioned, was a handsome, stalwart young Saxon in appearance, broad-shouldered, sensible, capable, and kindly. The others were all men of experience on the plains and mountains, brave and true; several had been members of the exploring expedition; others had served the fur companies, or voyageured and trapped on their own account. By all odds the most skillful and picturesque of these mountain men, and having the most varied and romantic history, was Delaware Jim, whose father was a Delaware chief and his mother a white woman, and who had spent a lifetime—for he was now past middle age—in hunting and traveling over all parts of the country, from the Mississippi to the Pacific, meeting with many thrilling adventures and hair-breadth escapes. He had a tall, slender form, a keen eye, an intelligent face, and reserved manners. He was reticent in speech, although he spoke English well; but when he was induced to relate his varied experiences and adventures, his simple and modest narrative impressed every auditor with its truth. Many of the men were clad in buckskin moccasins, breeches, and fringed hunting-shirts; others in rough, serviceable woolen garb, stout boots, and wide slouch hats. All carried navy revolvers and keen bowie-knives, and many in addition bore the long, heavy, small-bored Kentucky rifle, which they fired with great deliberation and unerring skill.
One of the most remarkable men connected with the expedition was the express rider, W.H. Pearson. A native of Philadelphia, of small but well-knit frame, with muscles of steel, and spirit and endurance that no exertion apparently could break down, waving, chestnut hair, a fair, high forehead, a refined, intelligent, and pleasant face, the manners and bearing of a gentleman,—such was Pearson. He was destined that year to render services invaluable in character and incredible in extent. Of him the governor remarks in his final report, p. 210:
“Hardy, bold, intelligent, and resolute, having a great diversity of experience, which had made him acquainted with all the relations between Indians and white men from the borders of Texas to the 49th parallel, and which enabled him to know best how to move, whether under the Southern tropics or the winter snows of the North, I suppose there has scarcely ever been any man in the service of the government who excelled Pearson as an expressman.”
He was still young, about thirty-five, but, as a Texan ranger, a scout, Indian fighter, and express rider, knew the frontiers from the Rio Grande to the Columbia and Missouri like an open book.
The party thus starting on the protracted and perilous expedition was composed of only twenty-two persons, as follows: Governor Isaac I. Stevens; James Doty, secretary; R.H. Lansdale, Indian agent; Gustave Sohon, artist; Hazard Stevens; C.P. Higgins, packmaster; Sidney S. Ford, Jr., A.H. Robie, Joseph Lemere, Frank Genette, H. Palmer, William Simpson, John Canning, Frank Hale, Louis Oson, Louis Fourcier, C. Hughes, John Johnson, William S. De Parris, William Prudhomme, packers, the last two cooks; Joseph, the Cœur d’Alene guide; and Delaware Jim, who deserves a place by himself.
The party followed the Nez Perce trail, and, after a short march of eight miles, made camp on Dry Creek. Two messes were formed,—the gentlemen of the party, with the guide Joseph, Delaware Jim, Ford, Genette, and De Parris as cook, comprising the governor’s mess, and the remainder of the party Higgins’s mess.
Continuing on the Nez Perce trail, the party in the next three days and fifty-four miles traversed a beautiful rolling prairie country of fertile soil, luxuriant bunch grass, and wild flowers, crossing the Touchet and Tucañon rivers, and ascending the Pa-ta-ha branch of the latter, and, descending the Al-pa-wha Creek, reached its confluence with Snake River at Red Wolf’s ground. Here was found a village of thirteen lodges of Nez Perces, under the chiefs Red Wolf and Timothy, with a fenced field of thirty acres, well watered by irrigation from the Al-pa-wha, and containing a fine crop of corn and a promising orchard. “I observed with great pleasure that men as well as women and children were at work in this field, ploughing and taking care of their crops,” observes the governor. After some bargaining, for the chiefs were keen traders and exacted a stiff toll for the service, the party, with packs and baggage, were ferried across the Snake, a notably swift and dangerous river, by the Indians in their canoes, and went into camp, while the animals crossed by swimming.
By appointment Lawyer met the governor here, and with the other two chiefs took supper with him, the three devouring the lion’s share of a fine salmon, which Timothy had just sold at an exorbitant price,—clearly the Nez Perces were fast learning the ways of civilization,—and completed the arrangements for sending their delegation to the Blackfoot council. Lawyer also gave much information about his people and country.
Climbing out of the deep cañon of the river next morning by an easy grade up a lateral creek, the party took a general N.N.E. course across the high, rolling plains stretching away to the mountains, for five days traversing a fine fertile and diversified country, clothed with waving grass and bright flowers, well wooded with groves of pine, and abundantly watered. They passed on the second day 600 Nez Perces gathering the kamas root, and having with them 2000 horses, and crossed the Palouse River, with its broad valley extending far eastward into the heart of the mountains. Says the governor: “We have been astonished at the luxuriance of the grass and the fertility of the soil. The whole view presents to the eye a vast bed of flowers in all their varied beauty.” The governor continually remarks the fertility and agricultural capabilities of the country traversed. It now forms the most productive part of the wheat belt of eastern Washington, and is all settled up by a prosperous farming community. The third day’s camp was made at the kamas prairie of the Cœur d’Alenes, where were found 29 lodges and 250 Indians of that tribe, gathering and drying kamas. This esculent is about the size and shape of a large tulip bulb, and when dried and smoked for use has a dark color and sweet taste, and was highly esteemed by the Indians and mountain men. The governor had a talk with Stellam, the head chief, and a number of other chiefs, and requested them to meet him at the mission in order to learn about the treaty the Great Father desired to make with them. They promised to attend. In the evening came the Palouse chief, Slah-yot-see, with 30 braves, and complained that no goods were given him at the recent council. The governor replied:—
“Slah-yot-see, you went away before the council was ended. Koh-lat-toose remained and signed the treaty. He was recognized as the head chief of the Palouses, and to him the goods were given to be distributed among his tribe as he and the principal men should determine. I have brought no goods to give you. Go to Koh-lat-toose. He is the chief, and it is from him you must obtain your share of the presents. Had you remained until the council terminated, you would have had a voice in the distribution of the goods. Kam-i-ah-kan, your head chief, signed the treaty, and said that he should bring the Palouses into the Yakima country, where they properly belonged.”
The chief said but little in reply except acknowledging Kam-i-ah-kan as his head chief. The Palouses had a bad name, and were regarded as sullen, insolent, and disaffected.
The last day, putting the party in camp on the Cœur d’Alene River, the governor with Doty and Sohon rode on nine miles farther to the mission, where he was received with the utmost hospitality by good Father Ravalli, and where he found Crosby, just arrived from Colville. The mission was situated on a sightly eminence in the midst of a little prairie on the right bank of the river. On this beautiful and commanding site stood a well-proportioned church, solidly built of squared timbers as smoothly hewn and closely fitted as though done by skillful white artisans, yet all the work of the Indians, under the direction of the priests. A long wooden building, plain but comfortable, afforded quarters for the fathers and two or three lay brothers and the transient guests. At the foot of the knoll, near the river, were the lodges of the Indians, constituting their principal village.
At the camp of the party this evening an incident occurred of quite unusual character,—a wrestling match between Indian and white. A large number of the Cœur d’Alenes had come down with their canoes, and assisted the party in crossing the rivers, and had taken the packs by water a long distance, thus relieving the animals over a stretch of muddy trail, and at night camped near the whites. After supper they came over to camp, and, with much talk in Chinook and many signs, at length conveyed the idea of a challenge at wrestling between an immense, powerfully formed Indian, whom they brought forward as their champion, and any “skookum man” of the whites. The latter were rather taken back. None liked the looks of the big and muscular savage, but all agreed that it would never do to decline the challenge, and back down before a parcel of Indians. At last Sidney Ford stepped forward, declaring that he would try a fall with him, if he broke his back in the effort. In the struggle which ensued, it was soon apparent that the Indian was the superior in weight and strength, and Ford had to put forth all his skill and agility to prevent being forced to the ground. At last, while all the spectators, both red and white, were breathlessly watching the straining, panting wrestlers, the whites especially with great anxiety and apprehension, Ford gave a sudden and mighty heave, the huge Indian’s bare legs and moccasined feet whirled in the air, and the next instant he struck the ground with a heavy and sickening thud, and lay senseless as the dead. Ford had thrown him completely over his shoulder by some skillful wrestling stroke. The Indian soon recovered, and departed with his companions, well satisfied that the white man was “hi-u skookum” (mighty strong). This rencounter led to much discussion around the camp-fire that evening as to the relative prowess of Indian and white. All agreed that the latter was far superior, not only in courage and physical strength, but even in endurance and woodland and savage arts and skill.
The next day the party moved and encamped near the village, and on the following morning the principal chiefs to the number of thirty assembled in front of the governor’s tent, and listened attentively as he explained to them the benefits they would gain by learning to “follow the white man’s road,” and referred to the treaties made with the other tribes at the recent council, at which some of them were present, and asked them to meet him in council with the Spokanes on his return. Finally he invited them to send with him a delegation to the Blackfoot council, and make peace with those fierce and feared marauders. The chiefs received the talk favorably, but declined to send the delegation, saying that only a few of their people went to buffalo, and besides they were afraid to go to the council. The Blackfeet would kill them.
At noon, after this conference, the train set out in charge of Higgins, while the governor, with Doty and Crosby, remained a few hours longer. The oath of allegiance to the United States was administered by Crosby to the fathers and lay brothers, who subscribed the naturalization papers, and seemed much pleased with the idea of becoming American citizens. Towards evening they bade the hospitable missionaries farewell, and, riding rapidly eleven miles, found the train snugly encamped in a large prairie with fine grass, where the governor encamped, October 12, 1853. The next two days the party were kept in camp by a pelting summer rain.
Friday, June 29, on a cool and delightful morning after the storm, the march was continued up the Cœur d’Alene River, retracing the governor’s route of 1853 across the Bitter Root Mountains; the summit was passed on July 1, and, descending the St. Regis de Borgia, crossing and recrossing the stream no less than thirty-five times, the Bitter Root River was reached on the 3d, eighty-six miles distant from the mission. The Father Superior of the Catholic missions, with two companions returning from an inspection of the Pend Oreille Mission, was met the first day, and on the summit a Cœur d’Alene Indian, whom the governor had previously sent to the Bitter Root valley[7] with dispatches to Mr. Adams, special agent for the Flatheads, in regard to holding a council with them, brought the gratifying intelligence that the Indians were all ready to assemble, all full of the Blackfoot council, and that everything was quiet in the Indian country. The governor took great pains in examining the route and the topography of the country, and in determining the altitude by the barometer.
The Fourth of July was spent in crossing the Bitter Root, which was at this point one hundred and fifty yards wide, with a swift, strong current, and fordable only at the lowest stage of water in fall and winter. It was now swollen from recent rains and melting snows in the mountains. All hands set to work felling trees and building rafts, with which to effect a crossing. While thus laboriously engaged, a large band of Flathead Indians, who were encamped here, took down their lodges, and ferried themselves over the swift and broad river, with all their women, children, horses, dogs, lodges, and effects, in less than an hour’s time, and in a simple and ingenious manner, which put the whites quite to the blush. The buffalo-skin lodge was spread out on a smooth, flat place at the water’s edge, all the blankets, robes, clothing, bundles of provisions, saddles, packs, everything in short in the way of goods and chattels were piled in a broad, circular pile upon it, and the ends and edges of the skin were stretched up and tied together on top, as one would tie up a bundle of clothes in a handkerchief. This being completed, a brave rode his horse into the river until almost swimming, holding by his teeth the end of a line; the bundle was then pushed and lifted into the river; the squaws climbed on top of it with the children and babies around them, one of them took and held the other end of the line, and the brave started his pony swimming across the stream, holding by the mane or tail with one hand, and swimming with the other, and soon reached the opposite bank in safety. It was a curious and exciting spectacle to see ten or twelve of these bundles, the size of large haycocks, surmounted by groups of squaws and pappooses, rapidly floating down the stream, while being slowly towed across, nothing visible of the ponies and braves except their heads, while the loud, labored breathing of the swimming horses and the shouts and splashings of the Indians echoed across the water.
The Flatheads were accustomed to train and exercise their horses in swimming, and were very skillful in crossing streams in this manner. The buffalo-skin lodges were impervious to water for only a short time, and would become leaky and useless by a prolonged soaking.
The party built three large rafts, loaded all the goods upon them, and poled them across the river with long poles. The animals were compelled to swim. The last, bearing the governor, was the largest and least manageable, and came near escaping down the river on a voyage of its own choosing. It was carried farther down than the others, and on nearing the other bank got into a swifter current, where the poles were quite useless, and was swept along at break-neck speed, flying past the rocks and trees of the bank only forty feet away. At this juncture Higgins seized the end of a pack rope and plunged headfirst into the raging current, gained the shore in a few powerful strokes, raced along it at top speed to keep the rope from being jerked out of his hands by the flying raft until he came to a tree, threw a turn of the rope around it, and checked the raft, which then swung inshore under the pressure of the current. In these few minutes the unwieldy craft was carried down two miles. But everything was gotten together and a comfortable camp pitched before night. The tired men smoked their pipes around the camp-fire after supper and recounted the adventures of the day, with great satisfaction that the river was behind them.
After a late start the next morning the party moved eighteen miles up the right bank of the beautiful river, traversing tracts of open woods and prairies, alternating in pleasing variety with the dark, rugged range just surmounted, frowning on the right. Large schools of salmon or trout were seen in the clear, pellucid water, motionless over the spawning-beds, fairly covering and hiding the river’s bed, in such numbers were they. The next day’s march was thirty-seven miles. On the 7th, soon after leaving camp, they were met and received by three hundred chiefs and braves of the Flathead, Pend Oreille, and Koo-te-nay tribes, in the most cordial manner, with a salute of musketry, and escorted to their camp near Hell Gate River. After spending some hours with them, learning their condition, and establishing pleasant relations between them and his own party, the governor moved to the main river, a mile distant, and established his camp and council ground.
In the afternoon the three head chiefs, Victor of the Flatheads, Alexander of the Pend Oreilles, and Michelle of the Koo-te-nays, accompanied by a number of other chiefs, visited Governor Stevens, and after the pipe had passed around,—the indispensable introduction to every Indian conference,—the latter spoke to them in his usual vein, proposing a treaty, referring to the great council just held with so many Indians in the Walla Walla valley, and appointing the next Monday for opening the council with them. He also spoke of his efforts to make peace with the Blackfeet, and urged them to send a delegation to the proposed council with these, their inveterate and bloody foes. This was a sore subject with the Flatheads, for the Blackfeet had but faithlessly kept their promises of amity and good conduct towards their neighbors. Many of their young braves, despite the efforts of the chiefs and elders to restrain them, had continued their predatory raids, saying, “Let us steal all the horses we can before the great white chief returns and makes peace with all the tribes, and stops horse-stealing forever,” and had inflicted severe losses upon the Flatheads since the governor passed through their country nearly two years before, notwithstanding, and that was what made it all the harder to bear; the Flatheads had scrupulously heeded the governor’s admonitions, and refrained from retaliation. On one occasion, when some young Pend Oreilles ran off a number of Blackfoot horses, the chiefs sent them back, at the risk of the lives of the party returning them. When the governor finished, Victor said:—
“The Blackfeet have troubled us very much. I am going to tell what has happened since you were here. Twelve men have been killed when out hunting, not on war-parties. I fear the whites and keep quiet. I cannot tell how many horses have been stolen since. Now I listen, and hear what you wish me to do. Were it not for you, I would have had my revenge ere this. They have stolen horses seven times this spring.”
The chiefs then returned to their camp, promising to attend the council the following Monday.
The Flatheads or Salish, including the Pend Oreilles and Koo-te-nays, were among those who had been driven westward by the Blackfeet, and now occupied the pleasant valleys of the mountains. They were noted for their intelligence, honesty, and bravery, and although of medium stature and inferior in physique to the brawny Blackfeet, never hesitated to attack them if the odds were not greater than five to one. Having been supplied by the early fur traders with firearms, which enabled them to make a stand against their outnumbering foe, they had always been the firm friends of the whites, and, like the Nez Perces, often hunted with the mountain men, and entertained them in their lodges. A number of Iroquois hunters and half-breeds had joined and intermarried with them. The Bitter Root valley was the seat of the Flatheads proper. The Pend Oreilles lived lower down the river, or northward, in two bands, the upper Pend Oreilles on the Horse Plains and Jocko prairies, and the lower Pend Oreilles on Clark’s Fork, below the lake of their name, and were canoe Indians, owning few horses. The Koo-te-nays lived about the Flathead River and Lake. All these, except the lower Pend Oreilles, went to buffalo, and their hunting-trips were spiced with the constant peril and excitement of frequent skirmishes with their hereditary enemies. The Jesuits, in 1843, established a mission among the lower Pend Oreilles, but in 1854 moved to the Flathead River, near the mouth of the Jocko. They also started a mission among the Flatheads in the Bitter Root valley, forty miles above Hell Gate, where they founded the beautiful village of St. Mary, amid charming scenery; but the incessant raids of the Blackfeet were slowly but surely “wiping out” these brave and interesting Indians, and the mission was abandoned in 1850 as too much exposed. The Owen brothers then started a trading-post at this point, which they named Fort Owen; and fourteen miles above it Lieutenant Mullan built his winter camp in 1853, known as Cantonment Stevens, which has been succeeded by the town of Stevensville. The term “Flathead” was a misnomer, as none of them practiced the custom of flattening the head.
CHAPTER XXXI
THE FLATHEAD COUNCIL
After a quiet and restful Sunday in both camps the Indians assembled at the appointed time, and the council was opened on Monday, July 9, at half past one P.M., by the governor, in a long speech, explaining, as at the other councils, the terms and advantages proffered by the government. Although the Indians were extremely friendly, and very desirous of “following the white man’s road” and coming under the protection of the Great Father, their only apparent refuge from the fierce Blackfeet, whose incessant raids threatened them with speedy extinction, the council proved unexpectedly difficult and protracted, lasting eight days, and the treaty was only saved by Governor Stevens’s persistence and astuteness in accepting an alternative proposition offered by Victor at the last moment. The chronic objection of every tribe to leaving its own country and going on a reservation in the territory of another was the stumbling-block.
The governor required the three tribes, as they were really one people, being all Salish, speaking a common language, and closely intermarried and allied, and also reduced in numbers, to unite upon one reservation. He offered to set apart a tract for them either in the upper Bitter Root valley in Victor’s country, or the Horse Plains and Jocko River in the Pend Oreille territory, as they might prefer, and urged them to decide and agree among themselves upon one of these locations; but neither tribe was willing to abandon its wonted region, where they were accustomed to pitch their lodges, and where their dead were buried. The following brief extracts from the proceedings give an idea of the course of the difficult and at times stormy and vexatious negotiations.
When the governor finished Victor said:—
“I am very tired now, and my people. You [the governor] are the only man who has offered to help us.... I have two places, here is mine [pointing out Bitter Root valley on the map], and this is mine [pointing out Flathead River and Clark’s Fork]. I will think of it, and tell you which is best. I believe you wish to assist me to help my children here so that they may have plenty to eat, and so that they may save their souls.”
Alexander: “You are talking to me now, my Big Father. You have told me you have to make your own laws to punish your children. I love my children. I think I could not head them off to make them go straight. I think it is with you to do so. If I take your own way, your law, my people then will be frightened. These growing people [young people] are all the same. Perhaps those who come after them may see it well before them. I do not know your laws. Perhaps, if we see a rope, if we see how it punishes, we will be frightened. When the priest talked to them, tried to teach them, they all left him. My children, maybe when the whites teach you, you may see it before you. Now this is my ground. We are poor, we Indians. The priest is settled over there [pointing across the mountains towards the north, the direction of his country]. There, where he is, I am very well satisfied. I will talk hereafter about the ground. I am done for to-day.”
In this speech Alexander expresses the difficulty he has to manage his unruly young people, and his fear that the white rule might prove too strict for them.
THE FLATHEAD COUNCIL
Red Wing, a Flathead chief: “We gathered up yesterday the three peoples you see here. They think they are three nations. I thought these nations were going to talk each about its own land. Now I hear the governor: my land is all cut up in pieces. I thought we had two places. This ground is the Flatheads’, that across the mountains is the Pend Oreilles’; perhaps not, perhaps we are all one. We made up another mind yesterday, to-day it is different. We will go back and have another council.”