Gunnison news-champion and tribune., 1904-07-08
Th< Ss.sshern Use Ins.-as
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L ~ ~ AHA'A =
he task hl- wsic 7Chlre'a W5th hiIa
f . reu..Fk..iily hauassu.o -.Iuaw g.
s.ham b. ws- xery much attached
f tH che impressions gaIch NashluG
/ t1nIans received 81 ANA si the Cap
it..l ! siI here au1tc from the pm
T Vaie ulcmllrs at t'arl >churz.
/ -Ouray and Chifcta often visited
mc a. my house, and fhcy always su
such 0ccasi9I.s c8naucted themselves
wIfh perfoci pgopuety They Oh
served the variaHs belongings af rAe
+ drawing g-raam with keCu but dscaru=
/ pruPueiy and werc ESPECIALLY a.
tracied By a large crystal chaudciisr
winch was suspended from the coll-
mE They wished D. know whore
such q chandelier cluld be- boucii
and whaf if w3uid Cost. b weuli be-
such an ornament o. thcr home
M 1iiicid conversation his tik
vss quite different ir1m that ID thc
ordinary ludian chief ne spoke
like q mau NJ high order ai iutelii-
gouce and 81 large Viev- who had
risen above che sIudius and aver
-iaus af lis mee. and expressed Dis
thlualis In lauggage clear and pre-
ei-e. entirely uburjeuei by ths o. Il
uras af speech and tHe saperiutie-
commonly current u Indian talk
d. had eyileatk paDieed much
over che condition and future Of tbe
indians in North America a8i ca
pressed his mature Commissions with
The simple elogumoa af a statesman
IT, clmprehen1ed psrieatly ibc utter
h'pcles-ne-s 9t the struggle ai the
Indians against the progress ai civ
ilizatlan he saw clearly that moth
ing was left t5 theta but t1 acc9ma-
.laie themselves 90 civilized ways or
perish lie admitted that it WAS
very hard % make many of bis peo-
pie understand this. that So long a.
they did not fully appreciate it, they
should, as much a. possible, be kept
out of harm way, that IT was the
duty Of influential chiefs TO cooperate
with the Government 60 make the
transition as little dangerous and
painful as possible, that he, therefore
recognized the necessitvo Of removing
the Utes from Colorado. hard a. the
parting from their old haunts might
be, and that he depended on me 10
bring about that removal under con
ditions favorable 10 his people
Ouray was by far the brightest in
dian ever met.
Nftrrr6e conclusion Of our nego-
tiations, which resulted in the res
toration Of peace and in the eventual
removal of the ties to reservation
IN Utah, Ouray returned 10 his west
ern home Soon afterward he fell i'll
and died. Then something Of a very
touching character happened
Sometime after Ourays death ] /
received from the Government agent
on the Ute reservation letter which
Ourays widow, Chipeta, had dicta-
ted to him. In ii she told me that |
had been her departed husband's
best friend. lie had said So had
also done much to save his people
from grave disaster, and was there
fore, their best friend. She wished
to give, in memory Of her husband,
as a present, the things she valued
most. Would | accept that present: A.,
THE GIFT OF THE GREAT FTHEG
Il thereupOn wrote o. the agent. /
asking him TO inform himself whether /
my accepting such a present would .
have a good effect with the Utes, and .
also, whether, if such acceptance I
were thought advisable, whether it /
would be the proper thing on my 1
part to send present in return, and /
If so, what should it be
A few weeks afterward | received |
a box containing the clothes Ouray
had worn while negotiating the
treaty with me in Washington, and
in addition, his tobacco pouch and
an old powder horn which he used
in his younger days. This was Chi /
peta present.
1T was accompanied by letter
from the agent, giving me from
Chipeta this message: If ! accepted
the present, to keep it while | lived
and for my children. whom she had
seen, without sending one in return,
ii would be regarded by Chipeta
and her people as a proof Of true
friendship on my part, and they
would esteem that friendship very
highly But if made a present in
return, it would be understood by
them as signifying that ] did not
value their friendship much and sim
ply wished to get rid Of an obliga-
ton and be quit with THEM; and
this would make them sad. Chipeta