The Somerset reporter., 1892-06-09
For The Reporter.
Fast Day Sermon in Skowhcgan
April RI, 1902"

ed correspondent OF the RElbRTtK. II
Canon City. Col, takes exception to t
statement IN IA sermon preached by mi
on last Fast Day in the Congregational
house of Worship. The statement was
not my own, but was based on a report
of Congressional committee appointed
10 investigate the massacre at sand
Creek. Col. on NOV. %, 1864. Ny friend
thinks that this report was partial and
unfair, and that its conclusions were
reached by the undue influence of wire
pullcr.. who sought to do injury to their
political opponents. This charge is not
a new one. and for this reason ! will not
discuss it. The readers of the REPORT
| FR who may wish to see minute account
of Ibis Sand Creek tragedy. both from
| the point of view of many Of the early
| -etil er- of Colorado, and from that of
those who accept the substantial truth
fnlnc,s of the report of this committee.
will find it in the Appendix To Mrs Hi.
.acksons "Ccntury of Dishonor, pages
3l3-35S. In that account will be found
this same charge of unfairne-~ on the
part of the committee, and the reply of
Mrs. jackson To the same.
The admissions of your CORES pondcnt,
ihnk, are fatal to his case. lie states
thai Col. Chyington gave the order that
no prisoners should be taken. that all the
slain of the men were -calpcd to make
the victory more complete, that there
was very little discipline after the first
day. fight. aud that many of Tia" sol
diers, because of previous oaifages com
mittcd by the Indians. found gratlica-
ton in act, of vengeance. In my opinion
these many admissions tend to confirm
belief in the report of the committee.
But admitting that this report was
partial and unfair. what can be said III
reply to a statement in the report Of the
Indian Peace Commission of 1865: This
statement, which refers to the Sand
Creek outrage. is a. follows: at scarce
" has its parallel in the record, OF Indian
barbarity. Fleeing women, holding up
their hands and praying for mercy, were
shot down; infants were killed and
scalpcd in derision: men were tortured
and mutilatcd in IA manner that would
put to shame the sayages of interior AZ
rica. no one =. i'll be astonished that a
war cnsucd which cost. the government
$50, 900, 600, and carried cshtlagration
and death into the border settlements.
During the spring and summer of 1868,
no less than 5000 troops were withdrawn
from the effective forces engaged in the
Rebellion to meet this Indian war"
The commissioners who made this re-
port were n. j. Taylor, President; j. b.
Henderson, John Il. Sanborn. William
+. Sherman, Iieutcnant-ge general; VIM.
S. Harvey, Brevet Encouragement Alfred
II. Terry, Brcvet Encouragement c. &.
Auyiir. Brevct Major-general: :. +. Tap
par. II will be difficult to convince the
people of this country that these eminent
men were Influenced in their decision
about thi. matter by unprncipled wire
pullrrs. My good friend, think, will
hardl, care to say of this, as he does of
the report of the Congressional commit
tee. that it was cooked by the faction
who was resolved todestroy the political
reputation of all who were prominent in
the Sand Creek affair" Then. too, the
white participants in this massacre had
the amplest opportunity to present their
side of the ease.
\ military commission was appointed
to investigate it, and sat for seventy
three days in Denver and at Fort Lyon.
Mrs. jackson says .'Col. JIM. thiyington
called before it, in his defense, all the
witnesses he chose, and gave'notice on the
seuent y-thild day of the commissioners
sitting that he did not wish to intro luce
any more witnesses for the detensc. lie
also had (and used the privilege of
cross-cNamining every witness called by
the commission. The cvidcace given be-
fore this commission occupies over two
hundred pages of volume II. Senate
documents for ls66-'67. The attitude
of the Government towards this cruel
Slaughter at sand Creek is clearly and
strongly defined in Article 9Th of the
treaty made with the Arapahoc and
CHEYENNE Indians, oct. IN, 1865. The
following is an extract fro IN this article.
The United States being DESTROYS to
express its condemnation of. and ~ far
as may be- rcpudiatc III" gross and want
on onlragc> pcrpetrat,d against certain
bands of Cheyenne and Arapahoe In
dans by Colonel j. VI. Chivington in
command Of L, =. troops, on the 2htli
DAY of November, lsht, at Sand Creek.
in Colorado territory. rhHe TN wM IN
diapS rcrc N peace ran hc faaed Suites
and unti,r its faa. rb"Sc ProtecfioD h"g
bad by hrfm oWh"i5fY hccH iro0siSed 0Ud
ip,iuceJ IN Scck. olad Ho Gorefn@e3t, bciDp
desiropS ~ make spI0r SHitnbie r,yorutiO0
far tie ihiUiics Thus doD", will grant 800
acres of land by patent to each of the
following named chiefs of said bands
and will in like manner
grant to each other person of said bands
made widow, or who lost IA parent on
the occasion, 100 acres of land.
In conclusion, would say that there
is evidently n difference of opinion in
reference to this Sand Creek massacre,
and that ii is one which is apparently
rrcconcilable.
Y LII AN>nN