Daily press and Dakotaian. [volume] (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1875-1880, 1878-07-11
LYING INDIANS.
By the Crookedncss of their Tongues they
clear the Murderer "Whip,n
Rand CITY journal lime %

By the CrOOkeuneSs OF their I OMg CUES they
clear the Murderer "Whfp."
Rapid City Journal, June 90.
The case of the Indian Z. Chap-Sen-Te,
alias "The Whip" ives subject of consid-
Grafton by the U. S. court and trial Jury
last week, and resulted in the discharge OF
the prisoner, who has been in Jail at Rapid
for several months awaiting trial for the
murder Of Francis Haines, of Co. IL" 18th
U. S. Infantry, at the Cheyenne river rgen-
cy, in July 1873.
1t appears thet on July End, in the year
mentioned, "The Whip" found q dottie Of
medicine in pile of chips that had been
thrown out at the post. He took it to his
tepee, and his four year-old boy swallowed
portion Of the bottles contents, and short
ly afterwards fell dead. "The Whip" then
went into mourning dy stripping himself
naked, cutting his body and hair, gashing
up his legs, and otherwise Disgusting him
self.
The soldier Haincs, who was at the time
an invalid in the post hospital, while taking
a walk a short distance north of the post,
for the benefit of his health, accidentally
met "The Whip" sit is not known what
transpired, it Is supposed that Haines ap.
preached the Indian, and shook hands with
him, and it is thought that the red man
struck from behind with knife, unawares.
From the point where he was stabbed. the
wounded man walked back about 300 yards
towards the post, as his trail was marked
with blood. After his murder ;'The Whip,
left the agency and was gone some three or
four weeks. After his return, he went with
his brothers" White Robe" "Che- Rus Kee"
before the agent Bingham, but what transpir-
I'D hnR 20 ~ lyro H. s~k> =
dead, "The Whip" was allowed to 90 at
liberty, and remained around the agency,
sassy, impudent and turbulent, aed frequently
boasting Of numerous deeds until the militia.
~ arraived there some three years afterwards
The commanding officer then received or.
ders to dismount and disarm all Indians.
that all indians found with ponies or
arms in their possession, should be arres-
Carrying aas arms 80 era The wy %hip ipsy vsas was
the only Indian out of several thousand who
disobeyed the order, and for which disobedi-
ence he was placed under arrest. While in
prison it came to the knowledge of the COM
manding officer that" The Whip" was impli-
Gated in the murder Of private Haines, and
he was turned over TO the civil authorities.
At the September term of 1877 an
indictment was found against the In.
dian, and YVES arraigned and plead
not guilty, and his trial was set for
the present term. The witnesses before the
the trial jury were as follows, "The Whip's''
wife, the "White Buffalo Woman" "Drags
the Iron," his sister-in-law, "Woman With
Tongue Black Like Snake" his aunt,
"White Robe, his brother, and w. NJ. Fiel.
der the interpreter. Although the facts are
no doubt as We give them above, yet on the
trial, not a scintilla of evidence could be
obtained to convict. The assistant United
States attorney prosecuting the case, ques-
toned the Indian witnesses very closely, and
at considerable length, but they stoutly de-
MED all knowledge Of the matter, beyond
hearing that soldier by that name had been
killed. They declared that they had seen
nothing Of the killing, never heard anything
from "Whip" about it and were sure he was
in his tepee at the time when it occurred.
The ingenious harmony of their testimony,
and the anxiety they manifested to interlard
it with argument, left very general impres.
sion on the minds of the hearers that they all
lied. In view of the fact that the indictment
of last fall was found on the testimony Of
these same witnesses, the general impression
would not seem far wrong. Col. Parker 70,
the defense had nothing to do, As after the
prosecutor had exhausted every form of ques
tionins that could be used and the court it
self failed to elicit any information from th,
red witnesses but the uniform asservatior
that they knew nothing Of the killing ans
that "The Whip" was somewhere else at tn,
time. the case vas submitsed to the jury, tn