Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1904-09-30
CHIEF JOSEPH.
Death Of Famous Warrior Who Directed a
Vigorous Campaign in the War Of 1877.

warrior, died at his camp at Nespelem.
on the Colville reservation, Wednes-
day, of last week. He was sitting by
his campfire, while his squaw had
gone to get tirewood, when he was seen
by Indians near by to fall from his
seat to the ground. When he was
lifted it was found he had died from
heart disease.
By nature he wa. proud, defiant and
warlike. His summer home was in
Wailowa valley of Eastern Oregon, but
when not engaged there at hunting
and fishing he roamed at will from
the California line to the Canadian
boundary, and from the Blue noun
tains to the summit OF the Rockies.
The invasion of his broad realm by
miners and settlers forced upon the
government its policy of forming q
new treaty with the Indians for the
purpose of confining them to two or
three reservations. At the conference
held at Lapwai in 1873 between the
various Indian chiefs and representa-.
tives OF the government, Joseph refused
to 60 upon either the Nez Perce reser.
vation, in Idaho, or the Umatilla reser.
vation, in Oregon. This being report.
ed to the Secretary Of the Interior, an
order was issued that Joseph's band
should be permitted to remain in the
Wallowa valley during the summer
and autumn and later the President
set aside the Wallowa and Imnaha
valleys for Joseph and his non.treaty
Indians.
Thus matters drifted until 1875,
when, under pressure from the settlers,
the President rescinjed his order and
another commission was appointed
to negotiate with Joseph and his
band. Joseph haughtily replied that
he had not come to talk of the land; 3;
the Maker of the earth had not por.
toned it off, and man should not; the
earth was his mother, sacred to his
affections, and too precious to be sold.
He did not propose to live by farming,
but to live upon such fruits as the
earth produced for him without effort.
The government replied that unless
in a reasonable time Joseph consented
to be removed he should be forcibly
taken with his people and given lands
on the reservation. He answered this
by taking to the warpath. Joseph,
White Bird and Looking. Glass gath.
cred their forces on Cottonwood creek,
sixty five miles from Lewiston, Idaho,
ostenslbly to comply with the govern.
ments command, but really in prepar-
alton for the fierce war that followed.
The first victims were four white
men killed on White Bird creek. On
June IA, 1877. while playing cards they
were surprised by band OF hostiles.
Gen. Howard, in command OF the De-
partment OF the Columbia, took to the
field. The war lasted for three months,
and ten weeks Joseph fought a run
ming battle in which he displayed high
qualities OF generalship. He had in
the beginning only 300 warriors and
these we're encountered with their
families and stock. Surrounded again
and again by the forces of Howard,
he eluded capture, resumed his mas.
terly retreat and repeatedly doubled
his tracks and struck singing blow
against the troops. Against him How.
ard had nearly forty companies Of
regular army soldiers and large force
of volun teers and Indian scouts.
After hard fighting near Camas
prairie, Joseph escaped over the Lolo
trail, eluded the forces stationed at
the mouth of the canyon in Montana,
and pursued his way toward the Cana.
dian border. He was finally captured
by Gen. Miles near the north end of
the Bear Paw mountains. The dis.
tance marched by Howard's army in
this fierce running campaign was near
ly 1900 miles. The United States
army lost LOG officers and men killed
and 12O wounded. Thirteen volun.
teers were killed and fifty settlers were
massacred.
After the war OF 1877, it was not
deemed best to put Joseph upon the
Nez Perce reservation. The whites Of
that section were burning for revenge,
and it was feared that if Joseph and
the ringleaders of the war we're placed
near the scene of their massacres
fiercer fighting would result. Accord.
ingly, Joseph and q few hundred Nez
Perces were taken to the Colville res.
ervation in Northern Washington.
Chief Joseph is we'll remembered in
Seattle, where he lectured last year,
under the direction of Prof. Edmund
S. Meany, whom he dubbed "Tbree
Knives" Chief Joseph's subject was
the ambition which he and hi. tribes.
men had to spend their remaining
days in the Wallowa valley, from
which they were forced to flee by fed
eral troops.
PoULTNEY Bigelow proclaims that
this country should keep an army OF
10000 soldiers, and Richmond Hob
son wants about fifty new battlesbips
Immediately. And Teddy embraces
the idea of both, in the more brutal
and expressive simile OF "big club"