St. Charles Republican intelligencer. (St. Charles [Charles City], Iowa) 1856-1857, 1856-12-04

River, and extending down the Missis
sippi to the mouth Of the Ohio theme
up the Ohio to the Wabash; thence +
Fort Wayne thence down the Miam
to the Lake, and thence north to st. Jc
seph and. Chicago. The Sac and Fo,
Indians, originally residing upon th
waters of the ST. Lawrence, Tough
their way to Green Bay, and thcr
uniting with other tribes, made dc
scent upon the Him Confederacy, an
after years of bloody strife and barbal
Gus warfare, conquered, subjected, an
finally exterminated them, and tool
possession of their extensive and fruit
full territory.
Upon the Rock River, just above it
confluence with the Mississippi, an,
in the immediate vicinity of Rock Isl
and, the united and triumphant Sac
and Foxes, founded and built thei
Capital City; it contained, at one
time, several hundred houses, some o
them, one hundred feet long, by forty
and fifty feet wide, and was among tht
largest and most populous Indian vii.
lagos on this continent. It was al
this principal village, in 1867, that the
renowned Sac Chief, Black Hawk, was
born and it was mainly his refusal
to abandon this ancient and national
city, the cherished home of his child
hood, and the graves of his progeni
tors, that occasioned the bloody, ex
pensive and inglorious "Black Hawk
War" ...
For this Capital City and its sur
roundings, especially, the Rock Island
of the Mississippi-the beauty of this
attractive locality-the Sacs and Fox
es had an abiding affection. For a
hundred years it had been their nation
al metropolis. Upon a lovely eleva.
tion, overlooking the village, the noble
rivers and undulating prairies, were
deposited the remains of their fathers
and to this rude and savage, but nat
urally beautiful cemetery, the living
annually repaired, to pay tribute Of
respect to the departed-to clear away
the grass from their graves, and de-
posit food for the spirits of the de.
ceased friends or relatives and to
Rock Island, in immediate proximity,
they daily resorted, to gather nuts
which grew in spontaneous profusion
to catch delicious fish in the Rapids,
which lave it's shores, and to hold per.
sonal communion with Good Spirit
whose favorite abode, according to
their traditional belief, was in a cave
in the rocks at the southern extremity
of the Island.
In 1904, Governor William Henry
Harrison, in behalf of the United
States, made treaty with the Sac
and Fox Indians, obtaining the cessior
of large tract Of country, east o1
the Mississippi, including their favor
ite island and ancient city. For this
large cession, they were to be paid,
one thousand dollars and
the United States, by the 7th article,
covenanted and agreed, "As long as
the lands which are now ceded to the
United States, remain their property,
the Indians belonging to the said
tribes, shall enjoy the privilege Of iv-
ing and hunting upon them"
In 1916, twelve years after the ma
king of this treaty, and when the near
est frontier settlements had not reach
ed within hundreds of miles Of Rock
Island, the United States erected up
on its southern extremity the frowning
battlement-walls Of Fort Armstrong.
This military fort was an annoyance
to the Sacs and Foxes, impaired their
fruit-gathering, and hunting and fishing
privileges upon their favorite island,
and disturbed and violated the sacred
abode of the Good Spirit, and finally
so alarmed it, that, outspreading its
swan-like wings, it few away and dis
forever. @ F
Subsequently, and previous to 1929,
the United States made frequent at
tempts to induce the Indians to aban-
don their ancient and cherished abid-
ing place, and remove to the west OF
the Mississippi, but the attachment of
Black Hawk and his tribe was enslur-
ing, and their determination to remain,
Interchangeable. A technical violation
of the letter and palpable infringe.
mcnt of the spirit of the 7th section
Of the treaty of 1904, was then resort
ed to. In the year last mentioned,
(l829) when the nearest frontier east
ern settlement was still fifty or sixty
miles distant, and when the govern
ment lands, around, in other directions,
had not been offered at public sale,
the United States surveyed and sold
q few quarter sections Of land at the
mouth Of Rock River, including this
Capital City of the Sacs and Foxes
And although Keokuk and his follow
ers acquiesced and urged Black Hawk
to yield, and although the United
States threatened his election, "dead
or alive" still the old Chief and hif
Braves, would neither go themselves
nor let their people abandon the home
and the graves Of their fathers, the
sacred abode of the Good Spirit, and
the prolific fruit and fishing grounds
upon and around Rock Island.
Then ten companies Of United State,
troops were sent to Fort Armstrong
under General Gaines, and We're joined
by sixteen hundred mounted Illinoi,
militia. under General Duncan: auG