Page:Centennial History of Oregon 1811-1912, Volume 1.djvu/614

 cade Indians were in the fight. The next day, Toy, Sim Lasselas, and Four-fingered Johnny were hung. The next day Chenoweth Jim, Tumalth, and Old Skein were hung and Kanewake sentenced, but reprieved on the scaffold. Nine in all were executed. Banaha is a prisoner at Vancouver and decorated with ball and chain. The rest of the Cascade Indians are on your Island, and will be shot if seen otf of it. Such are Col. Wright's orders. Dow, Watiquin, Peter, Mahooka John, Kotzue, and maybe more of them, have gone with the Yakimas.

"I forgot to mention that your house at the Lower Cascades, also Bishop's was burned ; also to account for Captain Dan. Baughman and Jim Thompson. They put back into the mountains, and at night came down to the river at Vanderpool's place, fished up an old boat and crossed to the Oregon side. They concealed themselves in the rocks on the river bank opposite, where they could watch us ; and at niglit went back into the mountains to sleep. They came in safely after the troops arrived.

"We do not know how many Indians there were. They attacked the block-house, our place, and drove Sheridan all at the same time. We think there was not less than two or three hundred. When the attack was made on us three of our carpenters ran for the middle block-house, overtook the cars at the salmon house, cut the mules loose, and, with the car drivers, all kept on. They were not fired on until they got to the Spring on the railroad, but from there they ran the gauntlet of bullets and arrows to the fort. Little Jake was killed in the run. Several were wounded."

This is a sample of the desperate sort of fighting the Indians prosecuted all over Eastern Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and Southern Oregon for the years 1855 and 1856 ; and only came to an end by the practical exhaustion of the Indian allies. The U. S. Government then made a business effort to extinguish the Indian title to lands the American settlers wished to occupy. When all the bills and expenses the Government was liable for, or should justly assume and pay for these years of war was summed up, the aggregate was $6,011,457.36, as reported by Captains Rufus Ingalls and A. J. Smith, U. S. A., and L. F. Grover, commissioners appointed to audit these war claims. On February 7. 1860, R. J. Atkinson, Third Auditor of the United States Treasury, reported $2,714,808.55 as justly due ; and the greater part of this sum was during the early years of the Civil war in depreciated currency. This reduction and mode of payment bankrupted many of the early settlers, from the effects of which they never recovered. Then a peaceable settlement was made with the Indians for less than one- sixth of that expense. Treaties and purchases of lands from the Indians were made as follows. Twenty-nine thousand square miles, covering Klickitat, Yakima, Kittitas, Spokane, Lincoln, Whitman, Franklin, Lincoln, Douglas, Adams, Columbia, and Walla Walla counties in the State of Washington and portions of Union and Umatilla Counties in Oregon, excepting the Indian Reserves therein, were ceded to the United States by the allied Indians known as the "Yakima Nation." For this vast tract the Indians were to be paid $200,000 in yearly installments, and $500 a year to the head chief for twenty years. The Walla Wallas, Cayuses and Umatillas joined in another treaty by which they were to receive $100,000, with $500 a year to their head man for twenty years, and re- serving the lands in the Umatilla Reservation. The Nez Perces, who had always been friendly to the whites, joined in another treaty ceding eighteen thousand square miles, and reserving one-fourth of it in one body for their own Reserve,