Year: 1877

mittee on Indian Affairs, General Crook
and others. The Indians were in full
costume. The President said he was
ready to hear the chiefs If they wished to
speak further. After pause Spotted
Tail spoke, urging that the lands now oc-
cupled by his people be secured to them.
Swift Bear, Red Bear, Touch-the-Cloud
and White Tail applauded his words.


Red Cloud said, "The foot of the hills is
a good place to put my agency. l didn,t
come here to beg anything. The Black


Hills were mine and gave them to the
commissioners. l suppose you are going
to decide what you are going !" give us


for The hills, and have come To get ii" ="


The other Indians having spoken,


Gen. Crook advocated their claims, and
the President WAS presented with the
pipe of peace. .FThe President sa i'd:


My COOP FRIENDS You have de-
sired to take counsel with me, and !


have permitted you to come. | AIN glad
to see you. l have attentively llstended
to what you have said. | have also


heard Mr.. VIM. Welsh and General
Crook, who spoke for you as your friends
and who have my confidence. L have
well considered all that was said. Now,
listen to my answer. have your wei


fare sincerely at heart. | will be good
friend to YOU, and the wishes you cx-
press | shall be glad to crafty when it is
In my power, and for your own good.
There is an understanding between
YOU and the white people, which
| want to have carried out by
both, and that understanding is.
you shall ,go to your reservation
and occupy it and that the lands should
be yours. have removed the Poncas
to Indian Territory to give you more
room. l have promised TO procure food
for you for your people to eat. The great
council of my nstion-the Congress OF
the United States-resolved and your
chiefs and head men agreed that the sup
plies TO be furnished to you should be
delivered to you near the Missouri river.
This is what was told. This is what


the great council of my nation believed.


| have fulfilled that promise and your
supplies have been carried to the Mis-
souri, river and there they are no ac-
cording to our promise. You say you
don't like to 90 to the Missouri river,
but your supplies cannot be taken
to any other place before your
people will need them, and before the
cold days of winter icomo, If YOU don't
g. near the place where your supplies
are your people will be hungry and |
shall not be able to give them food. |
desire TO do all tor you | can, and there


lore want you to be in place this win
ter, where my helping hard can reach
you. But / do not mean that you and
your people shall stay near the Missouri


river always; you shall stay there only
this winter. When spring comes, you
,hall select for your permanent abode
such land on your reservation Ms you like
best. My agents will aid you in making
n selection. Your country is
large and there is mucd land


where you can cultivate the soil, and
raise crops, and where cattle can be fed.
That land is TO be distributed among
you. 1t is to be surveyed and allotted
TO each family, to b. It's homestead There
your people can build cabins and make
homes for their families to dwell in when
that land is surveyed ard allotted, and
when your families have taken possession
of 1t shall ask the Great Council of my
nation to give you cows and oxen and
tools with which TO till the soil, that you
may be able to provide for your own
necessities. desire you to have schools
tor your children, so that they may be
educated to take care of themselves and
become industrious and prosper
Gus like the children of my
people. also wish your people
10 have churches where you can worship.
i shall speak good words for yon
to the great council of my nation that
they may grant your people these bene-
fits. you are wise you will heed my
advice. Game Is tast disappearing from
your country and you cSnnot always
live rs hunters, neither can we Tor ali
time provide or your wants and ieed your
people and their children. If you want
to live in security you must do as the
white people 90. You must work
and learn to produce for yourselves
that which you need. Cattle and hoes
and ploughs will be more useful TO you
than ponies and guns. To be educated
so AS to know how to work and how to
make their own living, by raising cattle
and by ulling the soil, will be better for
your children than hunting butfsloes and
dancing war dances. When you look
ar und you will see that the white peo.
pie are a great multitude, which you can
not count every year. Their number is
in reased by far more than the number
OF all the Red men in this great land.
They cannot be kept away from the
western country, and year after year
more OF them go there. If you live
roaming about without homes they
will sweep over you like great flood OF
waters. To sustain yourselves against
that food, you must have homes in
which you and your families can perms-
nently live, and land on which to
raise that which is necessary to support
you. Then you will have firm ground
to stand OF, and the food will not sweep
you away. | am a good friend TO you
and your people, and as y good friend l
give you this Al swer and advice. Now
l will speak word TO the Arrspahoes.
You desir. TO 90 west with your people,
10 join the Shoshones, and live with
them as friends, but If you go you must
provide Tor your own support. The
grand council OF my nation has
given me no money TO aid you.
Ii without such aid you make such
journey, then am l willing you should
go and the agent whom have sent to
the Shoshones shall also be agent for
you. You have been good friends TO the
white people, and hope you will remain
so. You all have the best wishes of my
heart. Let US live in peace and friend
ship together, and | will protect you with
all the power have. l heard yesterday
morning, that forty lodges of the people
of Crazy Horse and Lame Deer have
gone North. As long as these psople
are North We don't know our friends


from our enemies. Then it is OF the