Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly volume 14.djvu/275

Rh Chief of the Walla Wallas with Mr. McBane [McBean] on this subject during the late Cayuse war, in presence of the Commissary General, one of the commissioners to treat with the Indians, the Ordinance master of the regiment, and a Lieutenant of the army as they called at Fort Walla Walla on their march to Wayalatpu, After Mr. McBane, through the interpreter, had labored some time to keep the impression on the chief that they (the H. B. Co.) had nothing to do with the war and that they only should consider the Americans their enemies, and at the same time they were friends to both Americans and Indians—After this harangue to the chief who sat as it were ruminating for several seconds, after the cessation of McBane, in rather a spirited manner, he replied to McBane in these words, "We (the Indians) have always been told by you this same thing, but I cannot understand what you say—you say you and the Americans are not friends—you say you and the Indians are friends—you say you and the Americans are not friends, and you say you are not afraid of the Americans—and you say you are afraid of the Americans—you have always told us that King George was master of all the white people in this country and when we come to you for powder and balls you tell us you cannot let us have it because you are afraid the Boston Tyee (American chief) will be mad and how is this? I do not understand it that you shall be afraid of the Bostons if you are masters? And how is it if you are not friends of the Bostons you will not let us have powder and lead? For you always bought what the Indians 'capswalla' (stole) from the Bostons and told us the Americans had come here to capswalla our lands and horses and kill us. I do not understand your talk." (Explanatory to this I will just refer to a law being enacted called the Organic law that was framed by the people in Oregon, assuming that all in the territory should be mutually protected and benefited by this compact and all bound to support the laws enacted by this compact, and a law under this compact at the time of a declaration of war against the Cayuse Indians was made, forbidding the Indians in the territory being furnished with powder and lead. This brought the Indians and their former allies in contact, and this was the matter which brought out the former advice and connivance of the H. B. Co. out), but their opposition to the furnishing the Indians held a two-fold interest at stake, first, the trade, and, second, the destruction of American influence with the tribes.