New Ulm review., 1906-07-18
BIG EAGLE JOINS WARRIORS
Happy Hunting Ground For Lead
er of Indians.
Was in Command of Foes at Second
New Ulm Battle.
Friend of Helpless Whites But a
Warrior in Battle.


Many people of this city will be in
terested in the announcement of the
death of w amde-tonka, or Great War
Eagle, commonly known as Big Eagle,
and credited by the government with
the name Mr.. jerome Big Eagle. He
died Thursday at his home, surround
ed by number of his friends and
relatives at the advanced age of 80
years. s
Some years ago Big Eagle was in
duced to tell the Indian side of the
massacre which took place in the vici-
nifty of this city in 1862, and is the only
Indian who has been willing to talk Of
that affair in any manner, most ofthem
preferring to keep silentlesttheir words
lead to trouble for themselves.
AS is to be expected in his account
which was published in the Review
three years ago, he pictures the Indian
side as justifable in their eyes and
provoked by the white people. Promi-
nent in this uprising after it was in
augurated by Little Grow, was this
chief. He was always at the front when
there was fighting and proved to be
one of the best generals the Indians
had.
The one redeeming feature the chief
had was that he would not war on the
defenseless, and number of the people
of the prairies owe their lives to him
and his timely warnings, for he told
them to get out of the country or some
of the Indians would kill them, and
many were thus able to get to New Ulm
or other points of shelter.
Speaking of the uprising he says in
his interview, that many of the Indians
did not like the way the white people
took advantage of Little Grow and
bought from him the land that belong
ed to all the Indians and compelled
them to move to the south side of the
river, and by SO doing give up all
their hunting ground to the north. OF
the outbreak he says, SIT was wrong,
we all know it now, but there were not
many christians among the Indians
then and they did not understand
things as they should. The whites did
not let them go to war against their
enemies. This was right, but the In
dians did not know it. Then the whites
were always trying to make the In
dians give up their life an live like
white men-go to farming, work hard
and do as they did-and the Indians
did not know how to do that, and did
not want to anyway. If the Indians
had tried to make the whites live like
them, the whites would have resisted,
and it was the same way with many
Indians. The Indians wanted to- live
like they did before the treaty Of Ira
vers des Sioux-go where they pleased
and when they pleased, hunt game
wherever they could find it, sell their
furs to the traders and live as they
could
In the second attack on New Ulm,
he says that there was no head chief
and the Indians were led by sub chiefs
and it seems that he was principal in
the leading attacks as we'll as in the
charge at the second attack on Ft.
Ridgely. The first attacks on these
two places he claims was made by ir-
responsible bands of marauding In
dians and not by any orders from Little
Grow and he says that at the first fight
there was not chief present
Inhis concluding statements he says,
"Soon after the battle of Wood Lake,
[, with many others who had taken
part in the war, surrendered to Gen.
Sibley. Robinson and the other half
breeds assured us that if we would do
this we would only be held as pri-
sOners of war for short time, but as
soon as [ surrendered [ was thrown
into prison. Afterwards was tried
and served three years in the peniten-
tiary at Davenport and Rock Island
for taking part in the war.
son my trial a great number of
white prisoners, women and others
were called up, but not one Of them
could testify that I had murdered any,
one or had done anything to deserve
death, Or else I would have been hang.
ed. If I had known that I would be
sent to the penitentiary I would not
have surrendered. but when I had been
in the penitentiary three years and they
were about to turn me out told them
they might keep me another year if
they wished, and meant what said,
[ did not like the way | had been