Having failed in his appeals to the Indian agents, for redress of the
grievances of his people, he determined to apply to these two chiefs, on
the subject, and accordingly waited upon them for that purpose.
He spoke of the indignity perpetrated upon himself, (his having been
beaten with sticks by the whites,) with the feeling that a respectable
person among us would have shown under such circumstances; and pointing
to a black mark on his face, said that he wore it as a symbol of
disgrace. The customs of his nation required, that he should avenge the
wrong that he had received, but he chose rather to submit to it for the
present than involve them in a war. And this was the only alternative,
for if an Indian should kill, or even strike a white man, the aggression
would be eagerly seized upon and exaggerated; the whole frontier
population would rush to war, and the Indians would be hunted from their
houses like wild beasts. He spoke of the intrusion upon their fields,
the destruction of their growing corn, the ploughing up of the graves of
their fathers, and the beating of their women; and added, "we dare not
resent any of these things. If we did, it would be said that the Indians
were disturbing the white people, and troops would be sent out to
destroy us.
Pages:
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113