The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1880-03-13

uclulIcu clSHl VI MS young DfdVcS us u puaib
TO protect the boatmen from harm while
ascending the river and these men remained
camped near the boat ut the upper rapids until
klnzie returned from Chicago with the OK
teams. Mr. kinzle and his companions re
manned ignorant of this attempt on their lives,
and could not account for the eight Indians fol
lowing them up the rlvcr, and camping each
night near where the boat landed. Shaubcna
knowing the prciudiccs and il.lcelings OF the
whites against the Indians, and # this attempt
10 murder the boat crew was known II would
Iniure his people, therefore he resolved 10 tell
it to no one, and for many years it remained
saCret
More than thirty years had passed away
since lhIs incident occurred; kinZie and Shau-
hcna were both in their graves, but the mem
DRY of them was stil fresh in the minds OF ev-
cry western tronticrsman. Col. j. III. KNEE,
son Of the old Indian trader, kept the govern
ment revenue Office in Chicago, and on &C
count Of his fathers popularity, Indians from
the West frequently call on him. \ dccga,
ton of western Indians, while on their way to
Washington, stayed over night in Chicago,
when one of them came into Mr.. kinzies oil
flee and narrated to him the above story, say
ing that he was one OF the young braves who
guarded his fathers boat while ascending the
Illinois river.
OF course we could fill page with extracts
which many Of our readers would find OF alb,
sorbing interest, but to do So would hardly
he treating the author fairly, If not en-
trenchng on his copyright, We cannot, how
ever, torbear making one other extract Poor
Shaubcna, in spite Of the vast service he dld
the white people-saying hundreds OF lives
and millions of property-shared the common
fate of his race in being shamefully robbed
and swlndled out his lawful possessions by
the government, and hut for TIE "charity' OF a
few warm personal friends, would have ended
his days IN Indulgence and beggary. 1t will be
borne in mind that the government, in dispos
sessing the Indians of their territory in ILL
nois in 1882, SO and up, reserved two sections
of land including what is known as Shaube.
mas Grove, IN DeKalb county, and granted
them to Shaubena and his heirs in fee as
their exclusive possession until they should
sell or voluntarily abandon it. Subsequently,,
without his knowledge, by one OF those infamous
tricks so characteristic Of our Indian admins
tration, the treaty with Shaubcna was so
amended at Washington As to take from him
the right to sell his land In 1Si9 Shaubena,
of course IN ignorance of this swindle, sold
all his land except 100 acres for a large sum toI
A. G. 0. Gates, no money being paid down,
but Shaubena expecting tolive off the interest
Now to the extract:
In the spring oil 1919, Shaubena, with his
family went to Kansas to visit his friends and
there over two years leaving his
farm in care of Mr.. Norton, who was to col
lect the rents and save them until he returned.
As soon as Shaubena was gone, persons who
had learned of the repeal of that part OF the
treaty authorizing him to sell his land, made
ailidavits that he had sold and abandoned his
reservation, and gone west to 1--we. These pa
pers were sent to the General Land Office in
Washington, and the commissioners decided
that the transfer to A. q q. Gates was void, and
by abandoning and giving possession, Shau-
bena had forfeited his right to the reservation.
In the fall of 1S40, the purchasers were sur
prised to find it advertised to be sold at public
auction at the land office at Dixon, the same
as other government lands.
In the fall of 1851 Shaubena, with Iris fam |
lily returned to his home at the grove, after an
absence of two and half years. On his arrival,
he expected to find the rents from his farm in
the hands of Mr.. Norton, and the accumu-
lated interest on the sale of his lands in the
hands of Gates, but was doomed to dIsap.
pointmcnt; all was now gone and he was left
destitute.
When Shaubcna found all his possessions
gone, he was broken done In spirit and cried
like a child. For many days lie gave himself
up to sadness refused to be comfOrted and
each night went TO a lonely place in the grove
nd ,,rn,,aJ 10, tbo Shirt Tho ,bp
owned the timber where he encamped cursed
him for cutting camp poles and burning some
dry limbs for cooking purposes, and ordered
him to leave his timber.
This grove had been Shaubenas home for
nearly fifty years; here was the grave of his
first squaw and his two papOoses, and here he
expected to- lay his bones He had been a
friend to the whites for many years, having
saved some of their lives at the risk of his
own; he had given up his position as chief
among his people, whom he loved so well, to
spend the remainder OF his days with his
adopted friends He was now old-past three
score and ten-no longer capable of getting a
living by the chase, as in former days, and
With n number Of small grandchildren de-
pending on him for support. With IA sorrow
'ul heart, Shaubena Looked for the last time
lp0n the graves of his departed ones and
hen left the grove forever.
Shaubcna could never understand why he
vas dispossessed of his reservation, and con
inuod to believe until the day of his death
hat the government had been unjust to him.
In dispossessng Shaubena of his property,
he government committed an act of ingrati-
ude which Is without parallel in the history
If Indian affairs.
STRoME. A novel by Julian Haw-
thornc, author of Garth" "Bressant," &c.
New York: ID. Appleton Il Co.; Chicago: Jan
sen, McClurg Il Co; Ottawa: Osman Il Hape-
man. Price IS cents.
Few novels of the day have attained high.
n popularity than Julian IIawthornes
Garth" and Sebastian Stromc" will not les.
zen his reputation. The framework of the
story seems slender enough. The heroine has