Year: 1875

after the powwow had commenced. All these
sat on benches while the other chiefs and head
men sat mostly ON the floor around the room. While
they waiting the formal opening Of the Council


procession of the other soldiers who had participated
in the dance passed by the open doors beating their
drums There several interpreters in Attendance
notably Jules Ecoec William Rowland, Antoine Janis
and Leon r. Palarday-so that there could be com
plant on either hand tho ground of misnterpreta
ton Red Cloud expressed preference for Louis
Richard but he away in the Black Hills. Agent
sayiIo and OF the employees at the agency were
also present In fact Red Cloud when he arose TO
speak the door where several Of the en-
ployes stood and brought them witness what he
had TO say. Governor Fletcher chairman of the com
mission, opened the Council by rising in the midst of
those representative red and addressing them rs
follows, Mr.. Paarday acting as interpreter


GOVERNOR PLErcnER's SPEECH


We come here to see You and TO talk with you, and
selected for that purpose by the Great Father
at Washington, not with the intention of making any
bargains with you of getting you 10 agree
10 anything with US, but simply to talk with you
There four Of US here Another Senator Howe) u
great white man, TO have been with but has not
Joined US yet; why, do not know. We sent
here To talk with you and TO learn from you II per-
son has III used you in any manner. (''How, how'D II
the agent or any OF the contractors who have been
employed by government to furnish you goods and
supplies have cheated you want to lind that out





bad ratons or not given you enough or has done you
any wrong, we Will have him punished Tor II by our
law. ('How, how!D We want you To tax with Us as
good friends and tell us all about how you have been
getting and how you have been treated The white
is very smart you know; he will not only cheat
Indians but he Will cheat white men, too and we want
you tell all about what has been done here. But
II Is only few bad white men that would wrong
YOU the great body of the white men want you
treated right and here to represent them You
and We, and We want you 10
talk with M not only in Council, hut as
talks to another about his affairs The Great
Father and the white men want you 70 do well want
you " be happy, want you TO be rich some time or
other t'Howp0 You must learn the ways Of the
white man. You must learn To raise cattle and sheep,
and then you VIA have great herds the prares that
will be more cattle and sheep than there are grass
hoppers the pllnsS When the Indian shall have hls
great of cattle and sheep then he will sell them ~
the white man feed the white man the white man
sends slppes 10 feed the Indian now The white mon
many they have not got great praries like these
Craze their cattle but they have 10 dig the ground
TO grow food for theIn while here the cattle live on
the open prairie Amer while when the Indian has
herds OF cattle then he Will send beef 10 the
white man when he has great herds OF sheep then he


will make his blankets and he viii send his sheep
and his wool TO sell TO the white man. and lac VIII get
pay sugar, coffee, tobacco and everything else hs
wants Now, we want TO talk with all OF you, and We
you TO tell us freely all you know about the man
agement of affairs out here without fear OF anybody
II We do you any good We want to do IT, That Is
what we came for; and that Is all ('Howl now ~


RED CLOUDS SPEECH


Red Cloud then replied follows Pallarday and Janis
acting as interpreters


NV friends YOU men that are sitting down here do
you think that you will succeed understanding what
/ tell your May the Great Father above look upon US
oil! And what we are going to say, hope you VIII
look upon il we'll You people that are here to-day have
gwen this land that am on at present And you
people who belong down yonder towards the sea- that
country where you have been born and raised belongs to
YOU that is your country am one OF the people who
have been gathered here from the four winds OF heaven
But those old people you see around you here the most
OF them have been raised the country around Fort
Laramie and the River Platte. have been working
strong in years past against them-I mean the whites.
The buffalo south and buffalo north, both sides OF
that the game that has brought nation where 1t Is
now. All those old people that were raised on the
Platte called commissioners to come around and
They used 10 bring persons with them,
and give guns and clothing thought II We
moved our agency up here and would come
into this country would succeed in getting moro
goods than We had been IN the habit OF getting there
but instead OF that succeeded backwards and all the
time get less OF everything Last fall when the annu


y goods here there were only thirty seven bales
blankets for all these people There upwards Of
people who did not get any, and everything
else was short in proportion To the blankets 1t is two
years since have come here and we have not got
enough We have had to divide with the Indians from
the North and have TO divide with them still and
that makes short; that the goods We get not
enough Tor ourselves ana them before SIX months ex
pre are Out OF almost everything When went to
see the Great Father in Washington this summer he
told me that twelve months rtios anu twelve months
annuity goods sent to US believe this myself
But | don't believe whoever the Great Father has
10 buy these goods and provisions 10 forward
to us here sends them out. l think there is
something wrong about that When the goods
from the East come up Cheyenne there portion OF
them is lost and that think know myself l have
jealousy against any one, nor do wish to backbite
anybody; but what see with my own eyes wish to
tell The comnissary man there pointng To one OF the
empoyes) must not understand the weights When he
gives rations 10 the old women and children he gives
them out by the shovel That does not please me. My
father, sitting there (pontng to the agent the young
you have employed at the herds have been drunk
and drinking for some tine and understand some Of
the cattle have been stolen and traded OIL As Sioux
Indian brought with Drains heart, ana
the all brought up. Those three men
sitting beside the agent onting DIR. Snow physician
at the agency; Mr.. Gibbons, clerk, and Mr.. Bosler,
brother vi the beef contractor) are good men like
those men, they have feelings aud heart; they are
employed here and they do what is right The doctor
is man who helps US along good deal; he doctors
the women and children when they are SICK and
does very well by them The other man is the clerk
here and have found nothing out OF the way with
hun and everything has gone on all right That other
(Mr BOsler) is the man who has brought cattle
here and he has brought them here III time. We have
nothing To say against him. Last winter Mr.. Bosler
very near freezing IN bringing cattle over My
Father pointing 10 Agent Savilc) We don't blame you
about provisions and goods because you don buy
them They bought by other parties east and sent
W you but you ought 10 that they do well by US.


There il another thing never did like and | spoke
about it when was down east, and that Is about the
soldiers being in this country. canped above this
creek. told my Father in Washington that we didn't
want any soldiers here, that we didn't need them MY
Father here (the Agent), | tell you today why the
Indians spoke about you Las year you wanted To put
up "A flag here and il did not please the nation, and





10th sides-whites and lndans and since that the
Indians didn't like that plan at all and they have talked
against you and that Is the only thing that the Indians
did not like ia you Some ago We had officers Tor
agents this country beyond here on the Missouri
River, aud now that Is thing that we don't want.
tell you now and have said II before, that don
want any army officer an Indian agent There arc
plenty OF men in the country that you can get Tor
agents besides military men. We want close u
our Great Fathers place. good man not officer. We
person who has the confidence OF the Great
Father in Washington. We don't want agent any
who wants 10 come out here to get rich We don
want poor man agent. That man that las been
picking up bones ia this country (Proiessor MarshD-
what Is the reason he did not here with your


Governor FLETCHER-Professor Marsh told all these
things Father and brought him the samples
Of the things you gave him and showed them to him,
and the Great Father sent here to about them


RED CLouD-My Father TO the Agenu lately have
got jealous here. The reason why got jealous
down Spotted Tail Agency and down there they
showed great deal Of lumber, and the hafbreedi
and other people who living with the Indians are
luit MI ( mt nd no n