The Ely miner., 1930-02-14
Birthday

chief who was destined to be con-
cerned over the liquor question. Amer
lean history is full of cases of Indian
leaders who saw with alarm what
the white mans "firewater" was do
ing to their people and who protested,
usually In vain, to white authorities to
stop the sale of it,. One of the out
standing of these was Chief Little
Turtle of the Miamis in Indiana, con-
queror of Generals Harmar and st.
Clair during the Indian wars after the
Revolution. After his defeat by Mad
Anthony" Wayne at the Battle of Fall
len Timbers, Little Turtle settled down
near Fort Wayne, Ind, and devoted
his efforts to trying to improve the
lot of the Miami tribesmen by teaching
them to learn to "walk In the white
mans road" and to avoid the pitfalls
placed in that road by the white man.
During a visit to the East in 1896,
Little Turtle visited the yearly con-
ference of the Society Of Friends, at
Baltimore. and appealed to them to
use their influence to stop the trans
portation of liquor to the Indian cOun-
try. Accordingly the Friends addressed
memorial to congress asking that
this be done. But nothing seems to
have come Of it, for in 1902 and 1903,
we find him making a personal appeal
to the legislatures of Kentucky and
Ohio for their aid in suppressing the
liquor traffic among his people. "We
had better be at war with the white
people," he declared, "for this liquor
is more to be feared than the toma-
hawk. More of us have died since the
Treaty of Greene-Ville than we lost
by the years of war before. and 1t Is
all owing to the introduction Of liquor
among u.s."
Mention Of Mad Anthony" Wayne
recalls the fact that a regular ration
of liquor was considered an indis-
pensable part of the soldiers daily
fare during the early days of the Unit
ed States army and in that respect
its use by Wayne's forces during the
campaign against the tribes of the Old
Northwest was in accordance with the
custom Of the day. The original manu-
script Orderly Books" of the western
army, commanded first by Wayne and
later by Gen. James Wilkinson, are
preserved in the library of the Unit
ed States Military academy at West
Point, and in them are some entries
which make curious reading In these
days of the Eighteenth amendment.
For instance, on July 4, 1892. when
headquarters of the expedition were
at Pittsburgh, Wayne issued a gen.
eral order for "a double allowance of
spirits to the troops today. being the
anniversary Of the independence of the
United States" On February 81, 1896.
at Greenville, General Wilkinson or
dered that the soldiers were to be
allowed to "draw an extra gill Of
whisky" with which to celebrate Wash
ington's birthday. The same extra al
lowance was authorized for the cele-
bratiOn of st. Patricks day on March
II, although it was accompanied by
warning that "the brigadier-genera
will have no riot or drunkenness"
The next year, however, when head
quarters were at Detroit, the use of
liquor by the soldiers was causing so
much trouble that Wilkinson was
forced to issue an order prohibiting its
sale to them. This order was issued
on July II, 1897, and read as follows
The desertion of the troops may be
ascribed chiefly to the scene of drunk
enness produced by the unrestrained
sales of liquor which have been per-
mitted, and to the seductive arts of
persons Ill disposed to the government
OF the United States.
To remedy evils replete with con-
sequences SO destructive to the ma
tional interests, and SO subversive of
subordination and discipline all per-
sons are hereby prohibited selling
liquor of any kind TO the troops. except
under the written permission of Lieut.
enant-Colonel Comma ndant Strong; the
infraction of this order by whoever
committed shall be punished by the