causes, it may be imagined, will often excite the young and thoughtless portion of them to raise the war-club, to chant the war-song, and follow the war-path.
To remove these causes, to teach them the folly of such a contest, to remind them of the treaty stipulations and promises solemnly made to the government and to the Sioux, and to induce them to renew those promises, and to act on fixed principles of political faith, were the primary objects committed to me; and they were certainly objects of exalted attainment, according as well with the character of the government as with the spirit and moral and intellectual tone of the age. To these objects I have faithfully, as I believe, devoted the means at my command. And the Chippewas cannot, hereafter, err on the subject of their hostilities with the Sioux, without knowing that the error is disapproved by the American government, and that a continuance in it will be visited upon them in measures of severity.
Without indulging the expectation that my influence on the tour will have the effect to put an end to the spirit of predatory warfare, it may be asserted that this spirit has been checked and allayed; and that a state of feeling and reflection has been produced by it, which cannot fail to be beneficial to our relations with them, and to their relations with each other. The messages sent to the Sioux chiefs, may be anticipated to have resulted in restoring a perfect peace during the present fall and ensuing winter, and will thus leave to each party the undisturbed chase of their lands. The meditated blow of Steenaba was turned aside, and his war-party arrested and dispersed at the moment it was ready to proceed. Every argument was used to show them the folly and the insecurity of a continuance of the war. And the whole tenor and effect of my visit has been to inform and reform these remote bands. It has destroyed the charm of their seclusion. It has taught them that their conduct is under the supervision of the American government; that they depend on its care and protection; that no other government has power to regulate trade and send traders among them; finally, that an adherence to foreign counsels, and to antipacific maxims, can be visited upon them in measures of coercion. That their country, hitherto deemed nearly inaccessible, can be penetrated and traversed by men and troops, with baggage and provisions, even in midsummer, when the waters are lowest; and that, in proportion as they comply with political maxims, as benevolent as they are just, will they live at peace with their enemies, and have the means of subsistence for an increased population among themselves. The conduct of the traders in this quarter, and the influence they have exerted, both moral and political, cannot here be entered upon, and must be left to some other occasion, together with statistical details and other branches of information not arising from particular instructions.
It may be said that the Indians upon the St. Croix and Chippewa Rivers, and their numerous branches, have been drawn into a close intercourse with government. But it will be obvious that a perseverance in the system of official advice and restraints, is essential to give permanence to the effects already produced, and to secure a firm and lasting peace between them and the Sioux. To this end the settlement of the line upon the Red Cedar fork is an object which claims the attention of the Department; and would justify, in my opinion, the calling together the parties interested, at some convenient spot near the junction of the Red Cedar River with the Chippewa. Indeed, the handsome elevation, and the commanding geographical advantages of this spot, render it one which, I think, might be advantageously occupied as a military post. Such an occupancy would have the effect to keep the parties at peace, and the point of land, on which the work is proposed to be erected, might be purchased from the Sioux, together with such part of the disputed lands near the mills as might be deemed necessary to quiet the title of the Chippewas. By acquiring this portion of country for the purposes of military occupancy, the United States would be justified in punishing any murders committed upon it; and I am fully convinced, that no measure which could, at this time, be adopted, would so certainly conduce to a permanent peace between the tribes. I therefore beg leave, through you, to submit these subjects to the consideration of the honorable the Secretary of War, with every distrust in my own powers of observation, and with a very full confidence in his.
I have the honor to be, sir,
Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
H. R. Schoolcraft.
No. 3.
Yellow River, Aug. 1, 1831.
Lawrence Taliaferro, Esq.,
Indian Agent at St. Peters.
Sir:
It is in accordance with the instructions under which I am acting, to solicit your co-operation in keeping the Sioux and Chippewas at peace, and to induce them to adhere, in good faith, to the articles of the treaty of Prairie du Chien. Blind to their true interests, these tribes continue a warfare as hopeless in its termination as it is inglorious in its results. Notwithstanding every pains which has been taken by the government to convince them of the erroneous policy of such a contest, and to inspire in them fidelity to their public treaties with each other, restless and ambitious young men, on either side, continue to lead war-parties into the territories of the other, and to waylay the unsuspecting. I am satisfied that the authority of the chiefs is not always sufficient to restrain the incursions of these young warriors, who are led on by the thirst of fame, and stimulated by hereditary animosity. Such a course is not surprising among savages. But it is the dictate of humanity to restrain this false ardor, and to make use of every practicable means to put a stop to scenes at which the heart sickens. It is but recently that a Mr. Cadotte, a young half-breed of the Sault Ste. Marie, another young man of mixed blood, called the Little Frenchman, living as an Indian, and two Chippewas, one a female, travelling down the St. Croix in a canoe, were fired upon from an ambush by the Sioux, and killed. And this injury still remains unredressed.
The Chippewas complain of this mode of warfare, which it would be an idle affectation to designate by any other term than murder. They say the Sioux are indeed ready to smoke the pipe of peace with them, and never fail to do so when it is presented to them; but that a confidence, on their part, in these smoking councils, is paid with the loss of lives.
I have despatched a message to the Sioux chief, Petite Corbeau, and another to Wabisha, reminding them of their treaty engagements with the Chippewas, and of the recent violation of them above referred to, and requesting them to use their influence efficaciously to terminate further inroads. These messages are accompanied by others from Shakoba and from Kabamappa, Chippewa chiefs on the St. Croix and Snake Rivers.
I am, sir,
Very respectfully,
Your obedient servant,
H. R. Schoolcraft.
No. 4.
Mozobodo’s speech, in relation to the murder of the Menomonie woman.
My father at the Sault Ste. Marie: I have not forgot what was told me at Prairie du Chien, Fond du Lac, and Butte des Morts. I have kept always what you told me until the last summer. My young men were foolish, and went to war.
My father: The war-club was sent to them from Lac Chetac twice, before they accepted it. They did not go to war of their own accord. I did all I could to prevent them.
My father: They did not kill our friends intentionally. They supposed them to be their enemies, and killed them accidentally.
My father: This pipe I send to you in token of peace. My young men will hereafter keep quiet.
My father: I hope you will not take our traders away from us. If you do, our little children will suffer; and not only they, but all of us.
Mozobodo.
Lac du Flambeau, May 28, 1831. Interpreted by Charles H. Oaks.
No. 5.
Report of Doctor Houghton on the Copper of Lake Superior.
Fredonia, N. Y., November 14, 1831.
Hon. Lewis Cass, Secretary of War.
Sir:
In