St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1901-05-25

''this was very unfortunate
blunder." 1t appeared to Es-kim-in-
Yin like trickery and he became en-
ragged. He was stirred to revenge,
and later, either he, or one of his
friends. killed white man.
His friends maintain that it was
wonderful that he stopped at the
death of only one of a race with which
he had formerly maintained relations
of perpetual war. and who, since a
truce was declared. had exercised. as
he believed, and had reason to believe,
SO much treachery and cruelty toward
him and his people.
The enemies of Es-kim-in-Zin empha-
sized his alleged crime by saying that
the man who was killed had befriended
him. His friends said that these peo-
pie lost sight of the fact that all this
treachery, cruelty and murder toward
the Apaches was enacted after the
and protection had been made to the
Indians by the commissioned officers
of the American government.
One of the papers filed IN behalf OF
Es-kim-in-zin contains the follwing
paragraph: us it not strange that we
can pass lightly over the 12s treacher-
Gus and cowardly murders instigated
by white men, while we carefully treas
ure the memory of a single killing by
an Indian, and after the lapse of %
years point to him and say: This man
murdered his friend without even Civ
ing him the benefit of the circum-
stances which instigated the crime"
Within the two years which followed
the massacre of old Camp Grant, Spe-
cial Commissioner Colyer and Gen. o.
O. Howard visited Arizona. Post Office
Inspector Clum says that these Off
GERS did not find Es-kim-in-zin
"treacherous, cruel and bad" but
that, on the contrary. they had great
in him. and that Gen. How
ard believed in the old chief. Mr..
Clum states that when he went to
Arizona in 1874 as the Indian agent at
San Carlos he found Es-kim-iA-zin q
prisoner of war at new Camp Grant
in irons, engaged in making adobes
for the soldiers, and that then, as
now, there were no specific charges
against him. Mr.. Clum said that the
officers at the post told him the In
dian was confined because "a certain
major of the United States army did
not like him." and regarded him as .
bad Indian.
Think of that, A human being con-
fined in irons. like a convict, and COM
PEELED to make adobes for officers who
held him in durance, because, forsooth,
one white man wearing shoulder
straps so automatically ordered, SIM
ply because he suspected the old chief
of being a bad man. The officer who
that outrage was not in
danger of being suspected" of being
! bad man; for he was bad man. and
a disgrace to the uniform which he
wore. He was as Infamous as those
villains who not only suspected, but
by perjured testimony convicted Capt.
)reyfus and condemned him to living
death in torture and torment.
In 1874, in compliance with an Off
cial request from Indian Agent Clum,
was released. and up to
The time Of the departure Of Agent
clum from that agency the old Indian
vas faithful, and never found wanting
IN action or advice. When the agents
life was sometimes in danger. he re-
led upon Es-kim-in-zin, and the old
chief always did his duty well. It was
n 1877, after Agent Clum went else
where, that the undeserved outrages
we're heaped upon the old Indian, who |
lad done nothing wrong. but had done
to deserve a better fate.
Es-kim-in-zin was confined for many |
ears at Mount Vernon barracks, Ala
,ama. and ultimately was sent to Fort |
Sill, Oklahoma, where he remained un-
il 1895 without seeing even a glim- |
ner of justice to cheer his pathway to |
he happy hunting grounds.
SMITH D. FRY.
First Rank.