, 1862-09-17

pARn, anu at my urgent request ottef many
| delays, the president has been pleased to au-
thorize The raising and equipment of thou
! sand mounted troops. The United States
quarttr1Daster stationed here Is authorized to
pu1chate horses for this regiment, and trust
that bis speedy execution Of this order will
Sioux.
I have thus far given only 60 much Of the
history IF our 1nnian Disturbances al was re-
quired to show the measures adopted for their
suppression and the general scope Of our
military operations, for details OF which
GENERAL, and the official dispatches Of the
officers commanding the various detacau,nnt5,
which will be transmitted to you.
But this review Of the Sioux revolt would
enee to the singular atrocities which have
marked d Its couree, and to the mischief fnflict-
Cd upon our people
The sudden and treacherous outburst of
savage cruelty, which In one Sudden blow
s1uck down their friends and ueichbors Of
another bleed, and rcvelca in :;eltrAl mas
sacre Of 1ue1, women and children, has been
alluded to.
But massacre itself had been mercy, If it
could have purchased exemption from the re-
Voting circumstances with which it IVES ac-
companied. Nothing which the brutal 1ass
and 'ganton cruelty CT these eavagcs could
Wrea5 upon their helpless aud innocent VIC
tins, Was omitted lrom the category vi their
crimes.
HelplesEness and Innocence indeed which
move pity in any breast but their theirs,
s'eneo to 1nspirt tneiu only with q more
fer dish rage.
lniaIte Eew into bloody chips Of flesh, or
paised nlsTe to door posts to linger out their
little lite in mortal agony, or torn untim=y
trim the womb OF the murdered mother and
In cruel mockery cast In fragments on her
pnlseless aud oltediDg breast, rape Joined to
murder IN one awful tragedy; young girls,
even cEildfen of tender years. outraged by
:heir brutal 1avishers till death en1ed th.ir
Shame and sufterinys; women held in captivity
to undergo the Etrrors ct 4 living death !;
xbole families burned aliye; aud, IS if their
Gtviish fury could not glut itself With. out
raSeB OIL the living, its last Efforts txhaus. ed
In muE1ating The bodies Of the dead, such are
the speclAclrs, aud a tEous3nd naInel.5s nur-
IoAs besides, which their first experience of
indian var has burned into the trains and
hearts ct our frontier people, aud such the
enemy with whom we have to deal
Il is estimated that 500 persons Of every age
and Eek ptrished, ami worse thau perisned, 6y
the hands Of these reEors=lsss tntcaers iu the
course ct the two or three days succeeding
the outbreak, before their progress was
checked ty our forces; aI.t hundreds of them
lie ye: unburled where they fill, hidden to the
grass and bnshts Of prairies aud ravinss.
atc1ty doubtless In the attempt to escape, hava
lect'me lost, or flfnttny from exhaustion aid
teIrs,r, bave died of starvation.
The theatre Of depTedations as far as ascer-
taited, lae extended from Otter Tail Lake aud
Felt Abercro mhie, CD The Red t:iyer, to tue
loxa boundary, OF front OF 200 1uilsa, aud
1ren. the western border Ct ,hs State east
wa1dly to its heart ut Forest City, IN area OF
&C, COG eqnare u.it5.
TGe property destroyed or carried off az
booty, is cstiinutcd ut millions of dollars. ia.
cludiDg large supplies Of arms aud ammnui.
ton I','laged from the government and pri IA e
stores on the reservation, aud the cattle,
hcr:es and household effects OF settlers.
Tie inditect damage to our citizens Is vast
II grester. and If We include its probable
Effects on our future prosperity is beyond cal
cuiaIon.
Tens Of thousands Of acres Of crops, which
comprised all the wealth Of their oEncrs,
have thus been abandoned to destruction, and
thousands Of prosperous and happy temilies
reduced at one blow to poverty and often to
tcgEary.
Throughout the whole district embracing
the coqrties OF Brown, Cottonwood, Fari:
bau1t, Jackson, and other counties In the
Southwest, through the beautiful lake coun-
try cf kandi. obi, Douglae, Monouga,ia, Meek.
er, Mcleod, q large part Of Stearns and
! Wright, and throughout the new settlements
in The Red River vslley--but few days siacs
the abode Of busy and happy communities
| CT il any remain, it is in fear and terror
t ARMED against surl lrise-suspicious OF every
| shadow that falls upon the grass-lEe log cot
| tage lotp.holcd for defense-2nd The peaceful
village turned into d fortified post. The dan
| ger may be exaggerated, but the effect Is tot
| real.
! Brown county, adj acent to The Sioux Reser
raiiop, has telt the worst effects Of This ch .mi
! II. It was peopled chiefly by Germans, aul
| their neat cottages and fine farms gave evi
dtnce OF the superior thrift and industry whici
! distinguish this class ct our foreign citizsus
t1liyGN fffn fhEir hnfnna Il
| stroyed or p1uude1ed-robbed even of thefl
! household goods-nany of them mournin.
wives, husbands. children, aud parents mur
darcd-their beautiful and busy town Of N:u
| tlm, and their oWn homes, q b1ackened hca!
! Of ruins these poor fu,!tiyes. many Q
/ whom Cannot speak our 1aueuage, are espe
tially deserving Of our sy1nplthies.
I LII I'LL, probability not less than 50 900 neo
pie IRE involved liryctly OF Indirectly in til,
! loss Of He or los Of property from pilagc
| destruction CT abandonment.
| The towns and villages have been ard ar
now overrun with fugi'iyes reduced to penu
r., many Of them without food or clotuini
except what is furnished By public and prlyati
clarity. To relieve the temporary wauts o
these people, for which the re6courcrs O
Calt. BeIklty, Of St. Paul, Hon. Henry i
Swift of St. Peter, and a1r. Blssett, Minoeapo
lss, TO provide subsistence and shelter for th
time being, ct the expeuse of the S:ate.
! iAe numueFs u 1naiAu "aTFaota actualt.
engaged in the raid, as far as known, Hou
eeem inadequate to the intliction OF s.
n1cs havoc end terror, If they had no
been aided by the eu3denness Of the outbreak
Tie peculiar secrecy and rapi1ity Of moyenlen
which charactt rZ.s their mode Of warfare
the sparsely settled character Of the country
and I may add, the singular violence and au
dacity with which, encouraged by the PAM
produced BY tncir appearance, they have Ven
tured into tile heart Of our settlements. Mos
Of the depredations have, 1t is believed, bee
committed by small parties Of n1arauders. tn
number OF 1tdian engaged in the dc1nonstr;
tions btforc Fprt Ridgely and New Uim wa
estimated at only fron $50 to 500 The whol
Lumber OF Alinnescta, or annuity Sioux, (me
women and children,) is about 1900, which
1t is possible might furnish 200 warriors.
doubted that the D1Eotah nation has, by i
tlsgrant violation OF it, treaty oblig ation
fully and entirely exoncrated the goYernmeI
from all corresponding duties on It's part.
; this be true, SO fir Us the Sioux nation is Col
ments in Minnesota is past. The governulel
will doubtless refuse to pay any further sun
under the treaty to the offending tribes, b1
the act which has abso1ved it from this du
!! hns created another By the destruction
property BY acts against the occurrence
$ Tee. It is believed that the authorities
Washington will deny neither the equity n
D the legality OF this claim when the same sna
: as I trust It promptly Will, be urged up:
: their attention, but, while escaping from
: future obligations to those tribes, will rega
. their claims as only transferred to the sutft
! ers By their depredations.
= These anLuit1es thus forfeited by the Stol
: 6mouut in all, in goods, moneys, and 9th
. classes OF expenditures, to about s., 900 00o
Irecomntnd and urge that you eat ,est
memo1ializc Congress and the departments
q use this sum to promptly idcmnify tho
, = Hhese property has been destroyed or pillag
!. hT these Indians, and for the support OF II
t widows and orphsus Of those who have falt
at their lal,3s. do not daubt that if prop
! representations are made, that this jus: COZ
u pt nsation can be secured.
u In tue extremity to which our military
c, VERSES have reduced the nation it is in vain
q expect any immediate or sufficient protcc,f
u from the general government The matsr
5; Of WAT, and meaus for the payment and su
u sistepcc OF troops, will doubtless be furnish
le us sooner or later through the regular cha
:, ne1s Of military supply; but the required
IL s'staDce, as it does not conc within the gc
y erl system OF military operations, under
y eye Of cur generals, We may expect will oft
Is come tasdily and without system, too sloa
and irregu1arIy fer the prompt aud decisi
- action required tur the peculiar exIgencies
It our situation.
o No must, therefore, for the present, depe
y upon 0nr own resourcss to make good to q
St citizens the protection which tn general gt
J. ernnent owes them, and it is to this Z
C. chiefly that have called you together. c.
I, siderable expenditures may be necessary
y this purpose, but they must be regarded a
y loan to The gov. rnment. which having fat
l Ak15 IL