St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1879-04-11

ancestors spoke in the Declaration of
Independence in which we have taken
such glory, saying :
eve are all sprung from a woman,
we are unlike in many things.
We can not be made over again. You
are as you were made, and as you were
made you can remain. We are just as
we were made by the Great S ririt and
you can not change us; then why
should children of one mother and one
father quarrel-why should one try to
cheat the other? l do not believe that
the Great Spirit Chief gave one kind of
men the right to tell another kind of
men what they must do"
1t is not a pleasant report this In
dian makes of the Christian generals
conduct at this time and afterward.
Bishop Hare thinks he must do injus-
tice to Howard; yet Chief Joseph's
honor has never been impugned. He
says that Howard put one of his chiefs
in the guard-house for free language
concerning the outrage that was pro-
posed. The next day he and other
chiefs rode out with Gen. Howard, who
showed them land already occupied by
Indians and white people, whom he
proposed to move off, if Joseph and his
people would come there. Josephs
sense of right rebelled ut dispossessing
others of their homes, but Gen. Howard
told him that he would give him thirty
DAYS to 90 back home and move all his
people and stock to the place he had
selected, saying: ''If you are not here
in that time, shall consider that you
want to fight, and will send my soldiers
| to drive YOU on." Then Joseph, seeing
no other way to avoid war, yielded,
but asked for more time, to let the peO-
pie then at Lapwai gather their har-
vests, and to let his people prepare fol
winter Gen. Howard refused the re-
quest. Then these Nez Perces began
to move; they left horses and cattle
behind they lost many horses and
cattle in crossing the Snake river; and
they held Il council for ten days, ut
which the brave whom Gen. Howard
had imprisoned and other hOt-headeC
young men whom he had stirred NJ
were loud for war; and one, whose
father had been killed by Il white man
went out and killed fouI white men
Chief Joseph SAW that all his effort:
for peace were defeated. 81 would,
he says, ''llave given my own life if
could have undone the killing of white
men 10y my people" ''lf Gen. HOwar,
had given me time TO gather up my
stock, and treated Too-hoolhoOlsui
us man should he treated, there woulC
have been no wal"
Joseph's story of the war is wonder
fully graphic; as fine in its way IL
! ('n.S,,iS 4 ('An,,,nntnriaS H. InnS
find that the white man teaches lessons
of humanity to The Indian. ''ln th'
fight with Gen. Gibbon we lost fit,
women and thirty fighting men.
The Nez Perc6s never make war ol
women and children. We captured
one white man and two white women
We released them at the end of the,
days. They were treated kindly. TIL,
women were not insultcd. Were til,
Nez Perc6 women vino fell into tlr
hands of Gen. Howard's soldiers treat
ed with rs much respect 2" AS Bishol
Hare says, there is fine touch of kin
ship for us in ihis passage, describin!
what happened when Gen, Miles sur
prised them =
About seventy men, myself anon!
them, were cut off. My little daughter
twelve years of age, was with me.
gave her rope, and told her to catcl
horse and join the others who wer
cut off from the camp. have not seel
her since, but ! have learned that sh
is alive and well. thought of my wifi
and children, who were now surrounded
by soldiers, and | resolved to go t,
them or die. With prayer in IN.
mouth to the Great Spirit Chief VIII,
rules above, l dashed unarmed through
the line of soldiers. 1t seemed to mt
that there were guns on every side
before and behind me. My clothe
were cut to pieces and my horse wa
wounded, but | was not hut. AS
reached the door of my lodge, my wifi,
handed me my rifle, saying: "Here'
your gun. Fight"
: After that battle the Nez Perces sur
rendered. 'Gen. Miles said to me il
plain words: If you will come out an,
give up your arms, l will spare you
!, lives and send you to your reservation
| believed Gen. Miles, or l never woul,
have surrendered" Since this state
ment appeared in print, Gen. Miles ha
confirmed Chief Joseph's narrative S
far as it refers to his campaign. w
: all know how faith was kept in thi
instance. Commissioner Hayt toll
Joseph that it could not be done, an
it was not done. They are in the In
dian territory; the chief has come t
Washington to plead that his peopl
may go back to their mountains. II
1 gets plenty of promises, but "whil
I their mouths all talk right, do no
g understand why nothing is done for m
people," l cannot understand how til
government sends man out to figh
us, as it did Gen. Miles, and the
J breaks his word.n There has been to
much talking by men who had no righ
Z to talk" This is natural enough, is
not =? And does not Chief Joseph hav
+: the right of it when he says: ''If tn
white man wants to live in peace wit
u the Indian, he can live in peace. Their
need be no trouble. Treat all me
alike. Give them all the same laW.
And what equal sense and pathOs ther
5 is in his enlargement on this thought
Il know that my race must change
1 We cannot hold our own with the whit
men as we are. We only ask an eve
chance to live as other men live. w
ask to be recognized as men. We as
T that the same law shall work alike o
all men. If the Indian breaks the Law
S punish him by the law. If the whit
e man breaks the law, punish him ais,
t Let me be a free man-free to trave
e free to stop, free to work, free to trad
t where | choose, free to choose my ow
teachers, free to follow the religion {
r my fathers, free to think and talk an
act for myself-and will obey ever
law, or submit to the penalty. When
ever the white man treats the Indian 8
/, they treat each other, then we will hav
l no more wars. We shall all be alike