Page:The History of Oregon Bancroft 1888.djvu/624

606 and Gillem were making a reconnoissance with a cavalry company, an accidental meeting took place with Jack and a party of his warriors, at which a conference was agreed upon between Jack, Sconchin, and the two generals; but when the meeting took place it was Scarface, the acknowledged war-chief, instead of Sconchin, who accompanied Jack. These provocations caused Canby to tighten more and more the cordon of soldiery, and to remove headquarters to the foot of the high bluff skirting the lake, within three miles of the Modoc position.

The peace commission, which had been reorganized by the appointment of E. Thomas, a methodist preacher of Petaluma, California, and L. S. Dyar of the Klamath agency, in place of Applegate and Case, resigned, arrived at headquarters on the 24th of March, and also Captain Applegate with five reservation Modocs sent for by Canby to assist in the peace negotiations. On the 26th Thomas and Gillem had an interview with Bogus Charley, another of the Modoc warriors, who passed freely between the stronghold and the military camp, carrying news of all he saw to his leader. In this interview it was once more agreed upon that on the following day Jack and his head men should meet these two in conference; but instead, a message "of a private nature" was sent by a delegation consisting of Bogus Charley, Boston Charley, Mary, and Ellen, another Modoc woman.

In this way the time passed until the last of March was reached, and fear was entertained that with the return of warm weather the Modocs would escape to the Shoshones, and that together they would join in a war on the outlying settlements. Hooker Jim had indeed already made a successful raid into Langell Valley, driving off a herd of horses; and on more than one occasion Jack's lieutenants had ventured as far as Yainax, laboring to induce Sconchin's band to join in a confederacy of five tribes, which he said were ready