The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1894-02-25
rus yAKIxA RESERVATION.


WftAfa Ten BcaDdnsiss Il xnel uded Some
Of the Bess Lad In sAs State.
psowxa Feb 2-gspsciaLl-I June.
fsss Gcv. Isaac :. Stevens, then acting -
sup-rintendent on Indian STAIRS. con-
ssudsd . treaty With Aae different Indian
tries. which were to Re known ~ the
Yakima Indian nation. Wiz kAmsyakin
as their head chief The Ina ans we're
suriy and disseminated. and did NOS APP
prove of signing away their lands aho go
ing upon the reservatioa laid cut for thai.
bus Chief kamayakin said: II viii sign
the treaty and then We viii get ready 70
fght for our country" This great coun-
Gil was held At waila Walls, situated in
what was then generally called the Whit
man valley. The different. tribes present.
with their chiefs, were the Palouse-poms
(s.poms meaning tribe or family Caief
Grautoosh: the EntiaiG1es. Chiefs LA
Hcnsps and ChiIho-ses-cnt: Wsnafchess.
Chief Shomaak: Les Isle de Pierre. or
Rock Island tribe, Chief Coultin-menuck:
Yakimas. Chiefs Chow-wox-mi, Skull
Dam, omhi, Te-i-us: Head Of Priests
Rapids, or Sedan valley tribe, Chief Teoni-
shet These chiefs and suo-ehiefs never
came on the Yakima reservation to make
it their home. Notwithstanding they were
all party to the treaty. IL had been
the former home Of the great sachem
kamayakin, who had lived for years
on the upper Simcos creek, where he had
titled the soil by hitching ayoks Of viid
bulls 10 . government plow. Some inter-
esting stories are told of this chief; how
he ordered his servants TO drive herd OF
wild cows into the stockade, Assoc them.
tie their legs and milk them, and then or
dered them to eharn the milk while fresh
and sweet to make good butter for him;
how after churning for three:iays with no
signs Of butter, he ordered the cows
turned out until they got fat enough to
make butter. While he made total fail
ure of making butter. and had lively
time plowing. yet he raised a good crop of
potatoes. peas. corn, turnirs, etc. and
this by misunderstanding that the In
dams were well aware Of the productive
qualities of the land when we'll watered,
even at that early day. When hostilities
began and the whole country was In trr-
MOL, resulting from the treaty, Kamaya-
kin left his lone, and was aftsrward
seen near the falls At Spokane. weeping
for his country and the loss of his horses
and cattle.
The Indian agent at this time was Mr..
Boleyn. and the report having reached the
commandment at Fort Dslies that he had
been massacred somewhere in the Simcoe
mountains. Maj. Halter was sent in that
direction with q force supposed to be
strong enough to whip the Indians into
subsection, but which proved to be en-
tireiy inadequate, as the sequel proved.
Halter came upon the Indians at the cross
ing of Toppenish creek, about FIVE miles
from the present site o. the agency, and In
the engagement lost o number Of men and
all his pack horses and military supplies.
The Indians did not meet with any loss,
but had plenty Of governments coffee.
which they tried to boil like beans. but
met signal defeat On the night after the
battle the soldiers retrsated to the fort.
and securing rsinforcements returned to
the scene of war, but found no Indians.
The officers in command. however. were
so greatly pleased at the sight Of the beau
tiful valley that camp was struck, and
after a proper investigation of tho sur
roundings military post was established
which came TO be called Fort Simcoe.
The great Yakima reservation contains
GOO sections Of the finest agricultural lands
that the eye of man ever gazed upon, and
lies on two sides within the county Of
Yakima. At least 10000 acres of this
land Is composed of beautiful meadow
bottoms, all well watered by small streams
and by sub-irrigation, and the remainder.
ali of which will produce anything from
cotton To hops, including all the fruits
raised north of Los Angeles, are so located
that they eau be irrigated at slight ex.
pense. The reservation is bounded on the
east by the Yakima river. on the north by
Ahtanum creek, which heads in the Gas.
cade range, emptying into the Yakima
at Old Yakima City. on the west by the Cas-
cades and on the south by Kliekitat county.
The population Of the reservation does not
exceed at the present time I 900 Indians OF
all classes. Without fear of contradiction IL
may be said that the land comprised in
this body embraces the inest agricultural
lands in the Northwest From the head
of the Simcoe valley. at the base OF the
Cascades, TO the Yakima river. its eastern
boundary, the distance is about fifty-gour
miles and the mean width of the valley is
nearly eighteen miles. The entire area OF
land embraced in the section is level as q
floor, With slope 30 the Yakima river
only sufficient TO insure perfect system
Of irrigation. The traveller, from what
ever state in the Union. who first
views this magnificent stretch of vir-
gin soil is led to declaim on its
beauties and possibilities of supporting
a tecming population. After the Indians
have taken their choice Of the lands,
which Is always those bottom meadows
lying along the creeks and rivers. there
viii be thousands upon thousands Of acres
to be entered upon and cultivated by the
white settlers who are already watching
and waiting for the day when IL will be
thrown open to them. The land taken by
the Indians Is not tho best land by any
means, as may be supposed by many, but
Is that land which produces without labor
plenty OF good Wild grass for sheir ponies
and cattle. The upper and more sandy
loan IS far better adapted TO agriculture
than the lower land. which is OF q heavier
character and colder. On the lands which
viii cali for irrigation can be raised corn,
hops. alfalfa, cereals OF alI kinds. potatoes,
peanuts and all kinds of deeiduoas fruits,
while nearer the mountains and along the
Aatangm hills are some OF the finest
stock ranges left in the state