Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly volume 23.djvu/13



RESERVATION POLICY PACIFIC NORTHWEST 3

of Oregon, and the officers of the military and the Indian department.

Difficulties with the Indians in the interior were expected by the military and Indian authorities unless some change was brought about in their attitude toward settlements that were being made. Major Rains stated that five Indians had been killed in the vicinity of Fort Dalles during a short period prior to January 29, 1854, and that the Indians were so enraged by the actions of the settlers in taking their lands and committing crimes that prompt action would be required to prevent an Indian war, with all the tribes between the Cascade Mountains and the Rockies united. 7 The Indian agent at The Dalles, R. R. Thompson, wrote that conflicts between the settlers and the Indians were on the increase caused by ; the whites taking up claims which included the lands actually occupied by the Indians, the robbing of the emigrants along the trail, and the presence of whiskey dealers, who under the guise of settlers, were carrying on their trade. 8 The most serious Indian at- tack, that occurred during the period under consideration, happened near Fort Boise. The Shoshoni Indians along the Snake River were 'said to have threatened to kill all those who might fall into their hands, and the fate of the Ward party, and several men of another party, in the fall of 1854, seemed to be the carrying out of this threat. Nineteen of the Ward party were murdered, August 20, 1854, on the Oregon trail, twenty miles east of Fort Boise. 9

It will be seen from this brief survey of the Indian situation, that difficulties were more numerous, and scattered over a larger area than in previous years. The obvious reason for this was the increase of settlements outside of the Willamette Valley. There were two other causes for the dangerous Indian situation that existed in the fall of 1854. These were: the failure of the courts and police to punish offences by the Indians and the settlers ; and the failure of the military depart- ment to inspire the Indians with sufficient fear of the Ameri- cans, to prevent attacks.

The Indian policy in Oregon which was adopted in 1854

76. J. Rains to E. D. Townsend, Jan. 29, 1854, ibid., p. 16.

8 R. R. Thompson to Palmer, Sept. 3, 1854, C. I. A., A. R., Nov. 25, 1854 (Serial 746, Doc. i), p. 4-86.

9 Ibid., p. 487-