Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1877-10-03
souarrR 8os 8rpAHrMxNr
Indian Matters.

duplicated. - =
indian Matters. n
IL WAsHlNGToN, Sept. %. The con-
: ference with the Indian delegation
was resumed this morning st tho
Executive Mansion. There were
: present President Hayes, members ~
the Cabinet, Commissioner Of Indian
Affairs, General Crook, and others.
The Indians were in full costume.
The President said he was ready to
hear the chiefs if they wished to speak
further. After pause Spotted Tail
spoke, urging that the lands now oc-
cupied by his people be secured
for them. "Swift Bear" "Touch
the Clouds" and sWhite Tair'
applaudcd his words. Red Cloud
said, the foot Of the hills is good
place to put my agency. did not
come here to beg anything. Tho
Black Hills were mine. l gave them
to the commissioners. suppose You
are going to decide what You are 20
ing to give us for the hills, and have
come to get it. n
Other Indians having spoken Gen.
Crook advocated their claim, and the
President was presented with the
pipe of peace.
The President said, "My good
friends, you have desired to take
counsel with me, and | have per-
mitted you to come. l am glad
to see you. I have attentively
listened to what you have
said. l have also heard Mr.. VIM.
Welsh and Gen. Crook, who spoke
for you as your friends, and who have
my confidence. have well consid-
cred all that was said. Now, listen
to my answer: have your welfare
sincerely at heart. / will be a good /
friend. Your wishes you express, /
shall be glad to crafty whenever Il
is in my power and for your own
good. Tho understanding between
you and the white people which 1
want to have carried out by both,
and that understanding is that yon
should go to your reservation and
occupy it. That the lands should be
yours. 1 have removed the Poncae
to the Indian Territory to give you
more room. I have promised to pro-
cure food for your people to eat.
The great council of my nation, the, Il
Congress of the United States. resOlv.
ed, and yonr chiefs and head men
agreed that supplies to be fnrnished
to you near the Missouri river. This
is what was told. This is Whist the
great council of my nation believ.
ed. l have fulfilled that prom-
ise and your supplies have been car
ried to the Missouri and there
they are now according to our
promise. You say you do not like to
go to the Missouri river, but your
supplies cannot be taken to any other
place before your people will need
them, and before the cold days Of
winter come. If you do not go near
the place where your supplies are,
your people will be hungry, and / -
shall not be able to give them food.
desire to do all for you can, and
therefore want you to be in q place
this winter where my helping hand
can reach you, butt do not mean you
and your people shall stay near the
Missouri river always. You shall
stay there only this winter. When
spring comes you shall select for
your permanent abode such land on
your reservation as you like best. Ny N
agents will aid you in making the se-
lection. Your country is large, and
there is much land where you can
cultivate the soil and raise crops, and
where cattle can be fed. That land is
to be surveyed and allotted to each
family to be its homestead. There
your people can build cabins, and
make homes for their families. When
that land is surveyed and allotted and
your families have taken possession, 4
shall ask the great council of my ma
tion to give you COWS and oxen and
tools with which to till the soil that
you may be able to provide for your
own necessities. 1 desire You to
have schools for your children, 90
that they may be educated to take 5
care of themselves, and become indus-
trious and prosperous like the chill
drcn of my people.
also wish your people to havc
churches, where they can worship.
| shall speak good words for you to
the great council of my nation thatit
may grant your people these benefits. Y
If you are wise you viii heed my adj
vice. Game is fast disappearing from
your country and you cannot always
live as hunters, neither can we for all
time provide for your wants and feed
your people and their children. IL
you want to live in security You must
do as white people do. You muet
work and learn to produce for your
selves that which you need. Cattle,
horses and plows will be more useful
to you than ponies and guns. To be
educated SO as to know how to work,
how to make your own living by
raising cattle and tilling the soil
will be better for your children
than hunting buffalo and dancing
wardances. When you look aronnd
you, you will see that the white peo-
pie are great multitude which you
cannot count. Every year their num-
bers increase by far more than the
number of all red men in this great
land, they cannot be kept away
from the western country and year
after year moro of them will go there.
If you go roaming about the country
without homes. They will sweep
over you like great flood of water.
To sustain yourselves against that
great flood you must have homes In
which you and your families shall
permanently live and land on which
you shall raise that which is necessa-
ry to support you, Then you will
have firm ground to stand upon, and
the flood will not sweep you away.
am good friend to you and to your
people and as q good friend I give
you this answer and advice. Now I
will speak word to the Arrapa-
hoes. You desire to 60 west
with your people to join the Sho-
shones, and live with them as friends,
but If you 60, you must provide for
lyour own support. The grand coun-
Gil of my nation has given me NO
money to aid you on your way. II,
without such aid, you will make the
Tourney, then am viking you should
lgo, and the agent whom have cent
to the Shoshones shall also be agent
for you. You have been good friends
to the white people, and hope yon
will remain SO. You all have the best
wishes of my heart. Let us live in
peace and friendship together, and /
will protect you with all my power.
heard yesterday morning that forty
lodges of the people of Crazy Horne
and Lame Deer have gone north. Az
long as these people are north we do
not know our friends from our ono
mics. Ii Is of the greatest importance
that you should keep all Of those
people at the agencies. / know that
Iyour hearts are right and that will
make you strong with me. It is inn
possible for me to let those people 20
up into the Tongue river country un-
til we know they are all our friends
1t Is necessary that all of the Indians
/ ohAnlA IN @ha 1snaOkfnr ~