Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1913-03-14
Indians
HOLDING
COUNCIL
Delegates Of Several Tribes
Assemble at Fort Yates TO
Start a Law Suit

DR.. A. MEG Beede, the Indian mis-
s!onary who has been in Bismarck th:s
week tells of a great council O being
held by delegates of several tribes who
are now assembled at Fort Yates. He
took occasion to call at the Tribune
office, and related several of the cir
cumstances in connection with the af
fair.
Chosen delegates Or. McBeede
says, of the Arrapaho, Cheyenne and
Sioux Indian nations are assembled al
Fort Yates for the purpose Of starting
a law suit against the {. S. govern
ment for obtaining the Black Hills
country by dishonest means, and with
out a fair compensation. Numerous
Indians besides the delegates are in
companions Of Sitting Bull. partic'
ipants in the battle with Sully at Kill.
deer mountain and those who saw
captain Fisk hemme1 in at the corral
which has been recently located by
the North Dakota Historical Society.
And to hear those old Indians talk of
such events seems almost like parti-
cipating in them. And We must real
ize that while the Sitting Eull-Custer
battle IS truly the tragedy of the Da-
kotas tSioux). still it involved the in
terests of the A%rrapahoes and Chey.
ennes also.
How many historians are aware
I hot SITTING Rn1f, fatpGnonShj had
secured an alliance between the Sioux,
the Arrapahoes and the C%heyennes?
This council assembled is proof of mis-
alliance.
"Probably no one who reads this is
aware that in February, 1874, Sitting
Bull sen able delegates to Fort Berth
old, asking that all the Fort Berthold
Indians break off their alliance with
the y. S. government and join his In
dian c~onfederacy, and that he made
every possible effort to lead the Crows
also in to this alliance. These dele.
gates of Sitting Bull said to the Fort
BerthoId Indians: You have the key
10 the door. You can trail us, but the
soldiers can't. You a tell the sol
diers how to conquer us. If you will
join with us, we do not fear the white
man. With you to help us. and not
help the United States army we can
hold the land guaranteed to us by the
treaty of 1865, and you shall have all
you want of this land The Fort
Eerthold Indians did not join the al
lance. Why not? If for no other reason
than because their women and chill
dren. used to living in houses for
many generations, could not have ell
dured the h%ardships to which Sioux
women and children were accustomed.
The Fort Berthold Indians sent their
young men to help the United States
army and now those loyal young men,
grown old. and some Of them wounded,
have no pensions from the U. S. gov
eminent. and DO not receive as much
land as is given to the Sioux. And so
among Chippewas. Sioux, A%rikarosac,
we hear the saying: THE white man
respects only what he fears"
These delegates assembled at Fort
Yates claim that the treaty of 1868
guaranteed them all the land from Ne
Jbraska to the 46th parallel north, and
from the Missouri river to the 14lst
parallel west. and stipulated that no
change should be made in this treaty
without the consent in writing of
three-fourths of the adult male In.
dams. THE treaty does read that
way They claim. further, that the
treaty of 1876, by which the treaty OF
1868 was greatly changed in the in
terests of the white man vas signed
by only about one-fourth of the male
adult Indians. that a majority of those
signing acted under duress, and that
the $1,000. 900 promised wen in this
treaty. executed fr%auoulently, has not
been paid.
Listening TO the statements of In
dian witnesses, and examining the doc
uments seems to show a good prima
facia Ease against the U. S. govern.
ment. But the governments answer
is yet to oe heard.
1T is well known that in 1868 the U.
S. government was anxious for a
peace treaty with the northwest In
dams and so made a treaty on liberal
.erm= The U. S. government may |
claim that Sitting Bulls attempt to
maintain the treaty rights guaranteed
1863 las Indians understood mat |
.ers) constituted a state of war which |
n itself annulled the benefits of the |
reaty. Were I an Indian and know
ng the white mans shrewdness as I
10. | would ask to have this matter
by arbitration, rather than
rust the labyrinthial technlcalities OF
he white mans court. ! have heard
many cases tried in Indian courts and
many in the white mans court. If |
we're wrong. | would sooner be tried
n the white mans court. and hope to
,vade justice on technicalities. If
light, l would sooner trust to an In
Ian court.
ITO meet these old indians and talk
With them seems like living over again
hings that appened in some other
world. Could Sitting Bull have sue
:eeded in uniting in one confederacy
III the northwestern Indians, he would
come hear to realizing the dream
If his life-a sovereign Indian state.
In the ~sixtythird congress Senator
Sallinger OF New Hampshire will be
The Oldest senator in point Of SER
vice, while Senator Stephenson of