Matthew
AMERICA’S TREATMENT OF INDIANS
As Colonel J.M. Chivington, along with his 750 cavalrymen equipped with loaded rifles and a cannon, stealthily crept up on the unsuspecting tribe of Cheyenne, his heart was full of hatred for these Indian. He wanted to kill them all, wipe them out completely, though they had done nothing wrong. He did not care whether he killed warriors or innocent women and children. Was not one Indian as good as another? The little boys would grow up to be bothersome warriors in the future, so why not get rid of them now? Yes, he saw the white flag flying from Black Kettle’s camp indicating peace with the white men. But did he care? No! He would kill them all. The Indians were treated terribly by America in many ways. This example of an unprovoked attack is one of many such horrendous stories. Settlers demonstrated their hatred for Indians by destroying the buffalo population—the Indians’ main food source. And the government showed their dislike for Indians as well by forcing countless thousands of Indians off their homeland. We do not have do go very far to see that the Indians were treated terribly by America.
One way in which the Indians were treated badly at the hands of the whites was in the senseless slaughter of the buffalo, which was the main food for the Indians. The Indians crafted many useful things from the various buffalo parts. Teepees, clothing, robes, saddles, bridles, storage bags, and tough thongs were made from the durable hide. Excellent ropes could be braided from the hair. Sinew could be made into good bowstrings and thread. Cups, spoons and ornaments came from hooves, horns, and bones. When a fire was needed immediately, buffalo chips could be relied on to start a good fire. General William Tecumseh Sherman, commander of many United States frontier forces after the Civil War, called the buffalo the Indian’s “commissary” or supply center. (Williams, 1972, 12). Sherman, like many other United States commanders, had an adamant contempt for any kind of Indian, and like most settlers and politicians of the day, exterminating the buffalo seemed to be the only way to tame the Plains Indian tribes. In 1867 in McPherson, Nebraska, Colonel Richard I. Dodge echoed Sherman’s sentiments. He was reported to have said to a group of British hunters, “Kill every buffalo you can. Every dead buffalo is an Indian gone.” (“American Indian Stereotypes: 500 Years of Hate Crimes,” dickshovel.com). To the government, killing the Indian’s food supply was much easier than needing to fight them.
Despite Sherman’s frequent campaigns to wipe out the buffalo, in 1871 numerous herds still roamed the plains, but he had plenty of assistance in this task. Sportsmen used buffalo simply as targets. In 1872, the first passenger train went toward Dodge City, Kansas and was halted by a huge herd of buffalo. To pass the time, passengers took potshots at the herd, killing over 500 before resuming their journey. Some hunted for railroad teams, and some were commercial butchers. In 1871 a tannery opened, offering $3.50 for every quality buffalo hide. The buffalo population, though, was still so great in 1874 that the price dropped to $1.00 per hide. (Williams, 12, 1972)
This did not however, stop the massive slaughter. Instead of backing off, hunters killed more in order to bring in the same amount of money they had gotten before. As the buffalo began diminishing outside Indian territory, hunters were not satisfied, and wanted more buffalo to kill, preferably in Indian lands. A commander at Fort Dodge told them that if he were in their situation he would do it. He believed that the only way of stopping Indian wars was to eliminate the buffalo, thus starving Indians on their reservations. (Williams 15, 1972)
General George Crook, a top commander and well-thought-of by the Indians because he seemed to understand their worries said, “They are surrounded on all sides. The game is destroyed or driven away; they are left to starve and there remains but one thing for them to do—fight while they can.” (Williams, 1972, 51). Eventually, almost the entire buffalo population was put to extinction. Although the destruction of the buffalo population was a terrible thing whites did out of their careless attitude and hatred of the Indians, it was one of the less cruel actions taken against them.
A far more cruel and downright heathen action was the many horrendous attacks by whites against Indians. Sometimes Indians would commit a fairly minor offense, often preceded by an equally bad or worse offense by whites, and would be totally thrown out of proportion.
One such crime was committed against the Yuki Indians in northern California. When the whites first happened upon these Indians in 1851, the government moved all 3,500 Indians onto fenced reservations. Soon settlers were tearing down the fences to let their cattle graze, shoving the Yuki further back. Federal agents made their situation even worse by diverting food originally intended for the reservation and starving the Indians. In desperation, the Yuki began stealing livestock herds from the settlers. H.L. Hall, a cattle supervisor for the Round Valley reservation, got very angry. He got together men to punish the Indians for their wrongs. He reportedly said that if a man would not kill all Indians he saw—men, women, and children alike—he could not participate in this manslaughter. On one hunt, they killed 240 Yuki for killing a valuable stallion. After such massacres as this, California Governor John B. Weller, sent his congratulations to the volunteers for accomplishing “all that was anticipated,” as well as his “sincere thanks for the manner in which it [the campaign] was conducted.” (“American Indian Stereotypes: 500 Years of Hate Crimes,” dickshovel.com). After the California government was finished with their mission to exterminate the Yuki, the population of 3,500 Yuki Indians in 1848 was reduced to 400.
The Camp Grant massacre in 1871 was another instance of unprovoked attacks. A group of Tucson whites and Mexicans pounced upon and slaughtered a tribe of 128 peaceful Apache men, women, and children, who had just moved and begun living on a reservation. (Williams, 1972)
In 1835, trappers led by Englishman James Johnson, were planning a huge party and had invited the Apache Indians to join them. While the approximately 35 Indians were admiring their presents of whiskey, blankets, and flour, Johnson opened up on the unsuspecting Indians with a howitzer loaded with nails, broken chains, bullets, and other shrapnel. About 20 Apaches were immediately killed, while those who were wounded were finished off by trappers, saving a very few who managed to sneak away to safety. (Williams 80, 1972)
General Ranald MacKenzie collected a group of over 2,000 men including infantry, cavalry, artillery, Indian scouts, drivers, and packers for the supply wagons. After capturing several Sioux villages and sending residents to Fort Robinson which was located in Nebraska, he continued on until reaching Dull Knife’s village. Dull Knife was an aged chief, who, for 20 years had been a major promoter of peace with the white men. Early one morning, over 1,000 cavalry snuck up to the village and suddenly attacked. During the first charge, Dull Knife’s son was killed, and after failing to ward off the overwhelming odds against them, they managed to get to a safe place where the soldiers could not touch them. They then watched in helpless horror as cavalry proceeded to burn the entire village to the ground, including all the supplies the village had laid up for winter. MacKenzie knew that he did not have to defeat them in battle; the winter would be just as effective. (Williams, 1972)
When, in 1849, troops first rode into Canyon de Chelly, a huge natural fortress, they discovered down in the deep sandy bottomland were many orchards, grazing horses, sheep, and goats. This was the heart of the Navajo Indian lands. As the troops let their animals loose to graze on the Navajo’s wonderful grain, several headmen walked out to talk with the troops. The troops opened fire on the headmen killing six, including one old, crippled chief, Narbona, who for years had encouraged peace with the whites.(Williams, 1972)
On December 29, 1890, soldiers of the Seventh Cavalry opened fire on a Lakota tribe. Men, women, and children were all victims. Unarmed Lakota warriors bravely fought back with their bare hands. The elderly men and women, in a show of defiance and bravery, stood in a row and sang death songs as they were shot down by repeated volleys of bullets. No one is sure of the exact number of deaths, but a monstrous grave at Wounded Knee holds 150 bodies. The Lakotas claim that only about 50 out of the original 350 survived the massive attack. With many examples of terrible attacks like this, it is easy to see whites’ terrible treatment and horrible hatred for Indians.
Another area in which the Indians were treated poorly by America was in broken promises.
Treaties were agreed upon, frequently broken, often changed, and sometimes completely ignored. Federal and state governments often took back lands set aside for Indian reservations if any kind of economic value was discovered on it. (Williams, 1972)
When Andrew Jackson was elected president of the United States in 1828, the Cherokee had good reason to believe that he might help them be able to remain in Georgia. After all, principal chief John Ross had helped Jackson defeat the raiding “Red Stick” Creeks and Junaluska. Jackson had been rescued by a Cherokee at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend in the Creek War of 1814. Jackson’s inaugural address in 1829 raised the Cherokee hopes even higher. In his address he said, “It will be my sincere and constant desire, to observe towards the Indian tribes within our limits, a just and liberal policy; and to give that humane and considerate attention to their rights and their wants, which are consistent with the habits of our government, and the feelings of our people.” (Williams, 1972, 157).
Despite his convincing words and promises, many land-greedy whites pressured Jackson to reconsider his promises, though he never actually had any kind feelings toward Indians and believed that all Indians should be moved west. In the end it would be Jackson who would prevail, and many Indians were shoved out of their lands.
Although Crazy Horse was promised a reservation in Powder River country, beloved of the Indians, if his band of Sioux surrendered, the promise did not hold true. Though General George Cook, the highest ranking commander of that particular region, did his best to keep the promise which he had made, even making a trip to Washington to plead with the government, white men snatched the Powder River country and the Black Hills away from the Sioux. (Williams, 1972)
The government promised Dull Knife and his tribe of Northern Cheyenne bountiful amounts of food and other supplies if they would move to Oklahoma. When supplies did arrive, it was barely enough to keep them alive. J.D. Miles, the agent in charge, informed the Senate that food meant for a year was hardly enough to stretch for nine months, and was of very poor quality. As a result of the poor food and hot weather which the Northern Cheyenne were not used to, many came down with fevers and chills, and within two months two-thirds of them were sick. (Williams, 1972)
In 1978 the United States signed the Treaty of Tellico with the Cherokee nation, promising the remaining 43,000 square miles of tribal land would belong to the Cherokee forever. Twenty-one years later, though, since the United States wanted to build roads through the land, only one-third of it remained in Cherokee hands. (Williams, 1972)
The wrongs which America committed against Indians did not stop with destroying the Indians’ food source—the buffalo, attacking for no reason, or backing out of agreements. It continued as more and more settlers were ever greedy to get their hands on more land, even if it meant forcibly driving the Indians from it. Hardly any tribe could escape settlers’ greedy grasp, and all were victims of much pain, suffering, and anguish along the way. I will be focusing on only on how several of countless Indian tribes were treated.
One sad story of forced Indian migration is that of the Cherokee nation. Though the government excused their actions against Indians by characterizing them as savage-like beasts, the Cherokee certainly did not fit that description.
In 1830, despite passing of the Removal Bill which provided money and authority to negotiate with the Cherokee tribes and was defended by many important whites such as Noah Webster, John Adams, Sam Houston(who was an adopted Cherokee), and Davy Crockett, President Andrew Jackson, along with many settlers, were determined to move all Indians west. When Martin Van Buren was elected president, any hopes of the Cherokee that they would be permitted to stay in Georgia vanished. Van Buren certainly did not think Indians were civilized, and in his words, “No state can achieve proper culture, civilization, and progress in safety as long as Indians are permitted to remain.” (Williams, 1972, 164). The Cherokee had a legal system, a written constitution and laws, good schools, churches, a postal service, and a newspaper published in both Cherokee and English, which almost every Cherokee could read. Yet they were not allowed to live on their own land because the “civilized” whites wanted it.
In May of 1838, General Winfield Scott was commanded to drive all Cherokee who had not surrendered out of Georgia. With the help of 4,000 regulars and 3,000 volunteers, Scott reluctantly did as he was told. He pitied the Cherokee and wanted to do it as humanely as possible in such an undertaking. He commanded his men not to shoot at an Indian unless shot at first, to aid the sick and disabled, and to refrain from using profane language. (Williams, 1972)
On May 26, the evacuation began. Soldiers were to carry away any Indian they happened across. Cherokee were interrupted at meals, seized along the roadside, and taken while plowing fields. Despite General Scott’s order to be as humane and gentle as possible, many soldiers and officers ignored his order. Often Cherokee were herded like cattle. They were struck and shoved along with bayonets, and frequently children were separated from their families. (Williams, 1972)
White settlers were so eager to take over the land and possessions, that barely before the Cherokee were out of sight, thieves looted homes of family heirlooms, furniture, and clothing. Cattle, hogs, and sheep were all herded off. Even graves sacred to the Cherokee were robbed of precious jewelry. Houses and barns were burned to the ground out of sheer pleasure. (Williams, 1972)
In the blistering heat of June, three detachments totaling over 2,400 Cherokee were piled onto boats which transported them up the Tennessee River to the Ohio, down to the Mississippi, on to the Arkansas, and then on to what would be their future home. To save money, the rafts were often overloaded. In November, as another detachment made the trek, a poorly built raft was sent across the Mississippi with twice its safe load. It promptly sank, drowning nearly 100 people. (Williams, 1972)
The first detachment started its sad journey during the winter months. With numerous Cherokee weak from meager rations, they were susceptible to many sicknesses including pneumonia, tuberculosis, small pox, and cholera, killing many Cherokee.
The last group reached their destination on March 25, 1839, and began a new life. For over a century, the Cherokee have been tormented by those who thought they were more civilized, but were not. (Williams, 1972)
Another group of Indians who were treated terribly were the Cheyenne. Though not as civilized as the Cherokee, the Cheyenne had a love for their home country and were not defending only their lives, but a way of life.
The government locked up many Cheyenne and wanted them to move south. The Cheyenne knew that the south was not good for their health and refused to go. A Cheyenne chief, Dull Knife, said, “You may kill me here, but you cannot make me go back.” (Williams, 1972, 67). Yet the government was not to be moved easily. General George Cook pleaded with the United States government to help the Indians become self-sufficient, but he was largely ignored.
Because of the intense cold of the winter months, the government decided to wait until later in hope that the Cheyenne would give up. The Cheyenne did not, however, and the government decided to make them surrender by trying to starve them until they gave in. After five days without food, though, the Cheyenne were still as firm as ever. It was decided then that they would not be allowed to have water either until they surrendered or died. Dull Knife’s words show the determination and will of the Cheyenne. He said, “The only way to get us there is to come in here with clubs and knock us on the head and drag us out and take us down there dead.” (Williams, 1972, 69). After three more days without water also, they still refused to be moved voluntarily. Some Indians, nearly insane from lack of food and water tried to jump to barracks hoping to be instantly killed instead of slowly starved to death, but friends restrained them.
The desperate Cheyenne decided to attempt escape. Even though they knew that most of them would be killed, carried out their plan. They would rather die defending their freedom than die locked up like animals. Their escape was soon found out and the chase was on. Many Indians died from cold along the way or shot by pursuing soldiers, but the main group of warriors managed to elude the chase for twelve days. After the chase ended, fifty dead, frozen bodies along with sixty-five prisoners were found and brought in to the camp. Arriving in camp, Captain Wessels asked his prisoners, “Now will you go South?” A wounded girl hobbled to her feet and defiantly retorted, “No we will not go back, we will die rather. You have killed most of us, why do you not go ahead now and finish the work?” (Williams, 1972, 72).
When the nation learned how these Cheyenne had been treated, they were angered. Because of public pressure, fifty-eight Cheyenne were allowed to go and live with the Sioux at Pine Ridge Agency. Those who were badly wounded were loaded into wagons and taken home. The only seven reasonably healthy men left were sent to Kansas to stand trial for the white men killed, while an overflow of funds came in to pay lawyers for the Cheyenne. (Williams, 1972)
The Poncas, even though they were Christians, were another group who suffered as a result of forced migration.
In January of 1877, Indian Inspector Edward Kemble talked with the Ponca Indians who were to be given land in present-day Oklahoma. Kemble and the Poncas made a trip to Oklahoma to check things out. The Indians noted the hard, dry, soil and knew how hard it would be to grow crops. They refused. Edward Kemble’s response was to abandon the Poncas who had no other choice but to walk 500 miles back in the dead of winter. When they staggered into their camps in April of 1878, Kemble and his men where waiting for them. They herded them down to Fort Randall nearby. In the camps, they were treated horribly. Every morning, soldiers would ride through the camp and toss raw slabs of meat over the fences as if the Poncas were animals. (Williams, 1972)
The Navajos were another group of Indians who experienced mistreatment at the hands of the whites.
In June of 1863, the Navajo were told that those who would submit to reservation life should come to Fort Canby or Fort Wingate before July 20. They were also informed that those who did not surrender would be ruthlessly exterminated. By previous experience, the Navajo did not believe that the Army would treat them well if they surrendered, and they refused. Soldiers promptly began to pursue those Navajo that had defied them. Before long, a dozen men were dead and about twenty women and children were captured. As the soldiers went along, they focused primarily on destroying the Navajo’s food supply. They did a thorough job, destroying nearly 2,000,000 pounds of Navajo grain—almost all Indian fields within a days ride of Fort Canby. Soldiers also captured as many animals as they could since they were rewarded with $20 dollars for every good horse or mule and $1 for every sheep they turned in to the quartermaster. (Williams, 1972)
Many Navajo families began to surrender as a result of many infant deaths. The Navajo were given an extra ten days to surrender and show themselves at Fort Canby—those who still refused would be shown no mercy. Most surrendered since it was foolish to think that they could live after having their flocks, herds, fields, and orchards totally destroyed. (Williams, 1972)
In March 1864, 2,000 Navajo left Fort Canby for Fort Sumner with about 500 horses and 3,000 sheep. This was the first group to make the Long Walk as it was to be later called. After the first week at Fort Sumner and Fort Canby, 126 Navajo had perished, mostly due to contaminated food and water. (Williams, 1972)
In April of the same year, 2,400 more Navajo started on the long, 300-mile trek to Fort Sumner. Heavy snow made the trip difficult and miserable, especially since most of the Indians were nearly naked and many froze to death. Those strong enough to withstand the cold had to contend with sickness as well. Dysentery killed many, and those to sick to walk were shot. Frostbite left wounds that often would end up as gangrenous. In the book, Trail of Tears, Jeanne Williams suggests that this may have been the worst conditions suffered by American Indians forced from native lands for any length of time.
Life on the reservation was hard and treatment was poor. First of all, the reservation was not big enough to adequately house every Navajo. Bad water and scarcity of supplies was also a problem. The government did not even provide vital food, clothing, or farming implements. In 1865 Julius Graves was sent to Fort Sumner to give a report to the Congressional Committee about the treatment and living conditions on the reservation. The Navajo begged and pleaded to be able to return to their homeland and promised to live in peace if allowed to move. One Navajo told Graves, “Chain the eagle to the ground, he will still strive to gain his freedom, and though he fails, he will lift his head, and look up at the sky which is his home. We want to return to our mountains and plains.” (Williams, 1972, 145).
On June 1, 1868, an agreement was made with the Navajo. The Navajo promised to live peacefully on a reservation in their homeland of 5,000 square miles—3,500,000 acres out of the 23,000,000 acres previously owned. The Navajo were satisfied, but still scarred from the Long Walk and their reservation days at Fort Sumner. Before the Long Walk, they had owned 250,000 sheep; now they had only 1,000. They had had 60,000 horses; now there were only 1,500 left.
Currently, the Navajo reservation is the largest in the United States and is the approximate size of West Virginia. Nearly 91,000 Navajo live there.
There could be many more such terrible stories told of forced migration of Indians and awful treatment on reservations, but the statistics attest powerfully to that as well.
1. Indians suffer from hunger and malnutrition more than any group in the United States.
2. Suicide is the second leading cause of death in Indians from age 15-19 and is three times the national rate.
3. Life expectancy of a reservation Indian is 44 while the national average is 64. Deaths from influenza and pneumonia are twice the national rate, and seven times as many Indians die from tuberculosis as the average American. Over 3% of babies born on a reservation die in the first year. (Williams, 1972)
American’s have committed innumerable wrongs against Indians. These wrongs nearly all stemmed from the deep root of hatred for this group of people, and greed for land and money. White men wiped out the buffalo population, attacked Indian tribes for no reason, and forced Indians out of their lands. A newspaper published five days after the massacre at Wounded Knee seems to best sum up the crooked and wicked thinking of most of whites. It read, “The Pioneer has before declared that our only safety depends upon the total extermination of the Indians. Having wronged them for centuries, we had better, in order to protect our civilization, follow it up by one more wrong and wipe these untamed and untamable creatures from the face of the earth.” (www.americanindians.com/woundedknee.htm).
