The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1875-07-22


but like too many Indian contractsl was
transferred for ga valuable consideration,
a few days after it was signed, to w. "A. fax-
ton. OF Omaha. AS this assignment couiu
not take place, by the terms OF the CONTRACT
'swithout the written consent OF the secfe-
tarv of the interior" the full responsibility
of this transfer rests with him. This con-
tract was nominally in force at the time OF
NV visit to Red Cloud Agency. me real
beef contractor, however, whom L IOuDo
supplying this agency, was the wen known
Bosler, notorious for frauds in prevlouH
contracts and for this reason excluded py
the published regulations from any partlci-
patton in future contracts rms second
virtual transfer of the contract 10 MIN
was we'll known to every one at the agency.
and in that region, and must have been
equally well known TO the interior depart
ment. On my arrival at the agency, Nov.
9. 1874, 1 asceTtained that there had peen no
beef Issue for some time, and only seven
head of cattle were then remaining over
rom previous issues. These seven cattle
had all been receipted for to the contractor,
received by the agent and were In his cnarge.
All. or nearly all, Of them were subsequent
ly issued to the Indians. These facts, whlcn
are important, learned at the agency, and
thew we're fully admitted by Agent Ssvills
to the Rev. S. ID. Human, the official inter
prefer of the interior department, and TO
myself in Washington, May %. THESE were
the cattle examined, at Red Clouds request,
by Gen. Bradley and his officers, and ABOUT
which so much has been said. Inc
RESULT OF THAT EXAMINATION
is given in the following certificate, the
original of which is in my possession.
We. the undersigned, officers of the
u cited States army, were present at an ln-
terview held at Red Cloud agency on the
| 18th day OF November, 1874, between Prof.
O. c. Marsh and Red Cloud and Red Dos,
and now bear individual testimony IS to the
wretched quality of the rations, and to the
undersize and puny condition OF seven bead
of beet cattle 1.-THE remainder of herd)
which were shown us by Red Cloud as
having been issued to his people by the agent
there stationed. Each OF US, unknown TO
the other, marked at that time his estimate
of the gross weight of these cattle, and re-
member the average thereof to be 500
pounds, Red Cloud, two other Indians, and
one of the herders, asserting that these cat
| tie were not smaller than those turned over
| tor slaughter at any ordinary issue day.
| l.. p. BRADLEY,
Lieut. Col. oh Infantry, Commanding Dis
trict Black Hills.
| JOHN MIX, Captain I'd Cavalry.
LEONARD HAY, First Lieut., AdJt. 9:h ln-
fantry, A. A A. G.. District Black Hills.
FORT LARAMIE, w. t., May 10, 1875.
This certificate, which was published
| while the Sioux delegation was in Washing
ton fully confirmed my own statement IN
regard to the same cattle, and is entitled TO
great weight, as the officers have had large
experience in Western affairs, and are per-
f5ctly familiar with matters at the Sioux
agencies in the Black Hills District. The
Indian Bureau Immediately endeaYored TO
destroy the effect of this testimony, and The
method adopted so we'll illustrates the man
ner in which that Office receives informa-
ton rejecting on the management of its
affairs that il Is worthy OF record here, espe-
cially as the same method had been en-
ployed to weaken the. force of the facts L
had previously laid before it about affairs
at the same agency. Commissioner Smith
dictated to the agent of the Associated Press,
for publication, the following counter-state-
ment, which was widely published the next
day, May %: Commissioner Smith of the
Indian bureau says, in regard to the letter of
Gen. Bradley, published yesterday, that the
cattle spoken of belonged to the contractor;
that they were sick, some OF them with
broken limbs, and that they were not issued
to the indians, and that there was no lnten-
ton OF issuing them, simply because they
we're in such poor and sick condition. lie
asserts that Red Dogs statement was incor-
rect and that Red Cloud informed him this
morning that Red Dog lied when he told the
story to Gen. Bradley and Prof. Marsh.
The commissioner also states that Gen.
Il Bradley could have satisfied himself ofNhls
fact by slight inquiry OF the herdman Oh
contractor If he had desired to do So" As
this reply contained some statements which
1 knew to be erroneous. 1 at ones endeav-
Ored to ascertain
THE EXACT TRUTH ABOUT THESE CATTLE.
In company with the Rev. S. D. Rinman,
the official interpreter of the interior de-
partment. 1 called upon Agent Saville, May
% at his hotel, aud asked him about the
cattle examined by Gen. Bradley and the
other officers. Agent Saville said that "these
cattle did not belong to the contractor, but
to the governments; that he had accepted
them from the contractor, and given receipts
for all of them, and they were in his charge:
that subsequently all except two of them
were issued by him to the Indians; that
these cattle were not sick, and none of them
had broken legs; and that they were the
only cattle at the agency when Gen. Brad
lev was there" / also called on Red Cloud
himself, and he positively denied that he
had held any conversation whatever with
Commissioner Smith about these
cattle that morning, as stated; and l subse-
: quently learned by inquiry of all
of the Sioux interpreters then In the
city, through whom alone such CONVEX
station could be held, that Red Cloud had &c
:, such conversation with COMMISSIONS
Smith. Red Cloud also told me that he
, "must have been misunderstood in the
council of Friday MAY 2S). He did not
i mean to say that these cattle had been re-
iected by the agent, but simply that at the
time Gen. B -adley saw them they had not
been issued by the Indians, but had been
left over from a former ISSUE" This testi
mony fairly disposes of the explanation at
tempted on this point by Commissiore 9,
: Smith, Essentially the
: same excuse for the inferior quality of these
q cattle was made by Agent Saville in Wash
y ingtOn, June 1. 1875, when questioned by
i Bishop w. III. Hare, in my presence, in re-
u gard to this particular issue. Agent SavillC
then stated, ''thst the poor condition OF
. these cattle was owing to hard driving some
. forty-eight hours with little grass or sleep
/ to hurry them through, as the Indians hac
o had no beef for some time, he having KEEP
U back rations to induce them to be
: counted. The cattle arrived in
: the morning, and he weighed most of then
the same forenoon. Some few that were
: | wild he did moi weigh hnt estimated. Thf