Daily press and Dakotaian. [volume] (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1875-1880, 1878-08-07
boats have to be very careful in their move
menta IN avoid nro1ouroI i.tar,;.vs 9th

o~"@AS. Aue OluCeCS OI the Tar west
and we believe the same is true Of all the
officers Of the Coulson line of boats-are
eilclent in their respective duties, and spare
no pains to make a trip on the Missouri a
pleasant pastimc.
There is little to he seen from the deck
of q steamboat on this river to write about.
80 l will try to make this letter readable by
referring to some of the sayings and doings
Of the noble red men, which have not vet
reached your readers.
The day before Commissioner Hayt and
the Indian commission held their council
with the Spotted Tail Indians. The head
men of the tribe held a council at which it
wasdecided what to say to the representatives
Of the great father, and old Spot was deput-
ed to do all the talking. Upon assembling
in council at the agency, Mr.. Hayt made a
speech in which, among ether things, he
stated that the great father intended to give
the Indians a great many cows, and wanted
to know of the Indians if they would keep
them. Spotted Tail replied that they would
The commissioner repeated the question
three times. Twice it was answered through
the interpreter in the affirmative, but the
third time old Spot went up to the commits
sioner and making a sort ofspeaking trumpet
of his hands yelled into his ear; s'Yes we
will keep them; put this in your ear and
carry it to the great father. The question
was not repeated.
In reply to the commissioners speech
Spotted Tail said that he had not much to
say; that there was no occasion for much
talking. The great father had promised
that they should be permitted to move in
the spring, and he had confidence in him
and believed that when he made a promise
he intended to falfll it. But he continued
the great fatherhas a great many bald-head
ed men about him, and sometimes he sends
some of his bald-headcd men out among the
Indians. my experience is" said Spot,
"that all bald-headed men are liars and l
can place no confidence in what they say.
We have the promise of the great father
that We should be moved to an agency more
to our liking in the spring. We
have waited long beyond the time for
the fulfllment of that promise. W. will
wait ten days longer, and then if the word
Of the great father is not redeemed, 1 will
bring my young men here, burn these build
ings, and move ourselves. I have selected
a place for our future home, We are going
there, and it is useless for you to say that
we shall not go, or that we shall 20 to some
other place."
This is the substance Of but a part of the
chiefs speech. 1t was a bold, plain talk,
and indicated throughout that the Indians
were determined to hold the government
strictly to President Hayes foolish promise.
When an Indian receives a promise, he will
never rest satisfied until it is performed,
whether it is for his benefit or not. AS a
gentleman, who seems to understand the
Indian character, said, if the president had
compelled the Indians to settle in Paradise
last fall, and at the same time told them that
if they didn't like the place they could go to
hell in the spring, they would have insisted
on the change.
The point of Spotted Tails a~llusion to
bald-headed men can be better appreciated
when it is known that Commissioner Hayt's
head is as bald as a billiard ball, and tina
he is as cold and u~napproachable as an ice
berg. But Spotted Tail is a monarch
who acknowledges no superior, and
the commissioner left the council
thoroughly convinced that his posi-
ton and dignity won no Difference, or
even respect from those whom he was
pleased to regard as his wards and subjects.
The commission, of which Gen. Stanley
is the head, returned to Red Cloud Satur-
day, from a trip towards the head of White
river. They report that they found two
good sites for the new %agency-one on
Wounded Knee creek, 200 miles from the
Missouri river, and the other on White Clay
creek, 230 miles from the river. To one of
those places the Red Cloud Indians will be
moved, and the removal will commence
about the 25th Of this month. J. w. Dear,
trader at Red Cloud, has the contract to re-
move the Indians, and he is q passenger on
this boat on the way to Fort Pierre, to en-
ploy teams for the purpose. The gentlemen
composing the commission are still al Red
Cloud, but will leave for down river on the
first boat.
On Friday morning a delegation of the
head men of the Yankton Indians visited
Fort Randall, and had a talk with Col. Lu-
genbeel. Their grievances, whether real or
imaginary, are numerous. Medicine Cow,
the second chief of the tribe, was the spokes-
man. He complained that the new agent,
Maj. Douglas, didn't understand the bust
ness, and that under his management things
were all going wrong. They had a great
many seed potatoes, but the agent planted
only . few, and allowed the balance of the
seed to rot; he don't issue fall rations
of beef although enough is slaugh-
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