, 1860-05-18

cort. SO hostile aud disafected and threat.
ening did he find large portion of the Nez
! Perces, that it was requisite for his safety
/ that he should return Immediately, and he
moved one hundred miles without camping
When they learned, however, OF the defeat
Of the Indians at Burnt river, and especial
ly Of the victory of Col. Shaw, at Graudg
Ronde, which was q most decisive and hard
ly-contested fight, where the volunteers at
tackled the Indians and drove them, -6ght
ing hand to hand some fifteen miles, killing
some forty or sixty Indians, mostly with the
revOlver,-the Nez Perces became friendly
again This brief recital will show to you
the exact condition of things in that inte-
rior, and that had not mistaken the signs
Of the times, establishing The necessity Of
the movement under Col. Shaw.
Immediately on the battle of Grandc
Roude, the Indians generally, not only the
Nez Perces, but the other tribes, sent mes
sagcs to me, requesting me to come TO the
Walld Walla and TO see if some general ar
rangement could be made. They oil ex-
pressed the most sincere and earnest desire
that there should be : total end of all diff
Guilty. Accordingly, | went TO the Walla
Wulia and called the tribes into council
For reasons which are given at length in
my Official report, the council did not sue
coed, aud no arrangement was made. This,
however, is adduced to show to your minds
that there was every disposition to avail
ourselves of any and all opportunities to
end that war, either by the open aud man
ly field fight or by the. friendly conference.
At this point, l will call your attention
to a matter referred to in Gen. W WooTs let
ter given in the auditors report, wherein
be refers to the two companies called out
by proclamation in August, 1856. These
companies were called out by proclamation,
so as to be ready for contingencies. At
the same time, l communicated with Col.
Wright to ascertain, for the second time,
whether be intended to move troops to the
Walla Walla; and when ascertained that
he did not intend to move troops to the
Wala Walla, not only did revoke this
proclamation, but took immediate steps
to Withdraw all troops from the Walla
Wala under Col Shaw, aud actually, be-
fore the council was commenced there, did
send down below all but one company Of
about 75 men. Sc anxious was | to re-
duee aud do away with the organization,
that at the very time when it might be
supposed that would most Of all require
troops, l stripped myself Of all but one
company, relying upon the presence Of the
regular troops as answering every sufficient
purpose. These regular troop had just ar
rived All these facts slow that the exec
utive Of Washington was acting in perfect
good faith throughout all these transac-
tions.
In regard to Grams report, to which al
usion has been made, will state, in gen.
eral terms, that it is most grossly inaccu-
rate aud very discreditable to that officer.
He has picked up and endorsed the idle, rid
iculous rumors which pass from mouth to
mouth in on Indian, aud particularly in O
disturbed Indian, country; gathering
strength from moment to moment, and as
snming all conceivable shapes-improbable,
absurd, and contradictory = throughout
their various course. We have class Of
men in that country, and some Of them very
good, well-meaning men, who have lived
among Indians so long that their minds as
simulate to those Of the Indians. They will
not believe anything wrong Of an Indian;
if they should see an Indian kill white
man before their eyes, they would not be-
lieve it. They are perfect idiosyncrasists
in this respect; and il is this class who have
aided in giving currency to the ridiculous
and absurd statements which Capt. Gram
endorses The accurate knowledge Of Capt.
Cram, in the account he gives Of the re-
spective parts played by Pa pu;muximux
and the Yellow Sepent is commentary,
and fit commentary, upon the accuracy
aud truth of his whole paper so far rs lh'
dian operations are concerned, Whenever
this committee desire it, am prepared to
take his whole paper, step by step, point
by point, and demonstrate the truth Of
what l havo stated; but it does not seem
to me that it is necessary to occupy the
time Of this committee now BY any further
reference to Capt. Cram
Passing now from these questions to the
proposition before the committee, we ask
and We demand, in the name OF the people
Of Oregon and Washington, that Congress
pay our war claims according TO tue awards
Of the commission instituted by authority Of
Congress. We hold that these claims have
been adjusted by law. We hold that they
have been approved by all lhe departments
of the government first, by Congress, in
insttuting the commission I; second, by the
executive branch, which, though fully advi-
sed of the operations of the volunteer SER
vice in both territories, never sent in reply
word of reproof or remonsirance. The
executive department manifestly sustained
the ground OF the executives Of those terri
tories, that in time Of war, invasion, and
peril, discretion did vest with them 10
take such measures as they deemed abso-
lu,ey iudispe sable to repel Invasion, and
to free tue country from war and peril.
Willlhis committee take the ground that
the action Of that commission should be
vitiated for fraud, or for want of jnrisdic-
tion F? Nobody will contend that they did
not have jurisdiction, because it was con-
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