Page:The Early Indian Wars of Oregon.djvu/448

Father Pandozy, missionary, in which the chief made overtures of friendship, on his own terms. As a part of the history of the conduct of the war, the reply of Major Rains to Kamiakin is here presented:—

Headquarters, Yakima Expedition,
Roman Catholic Mission, November, 13, 1855.

Kam-i-ah-kin, Hias Tyee of the Yakima Indians:

Your talk by Padre Pandozy is just received. You know me, and I know you. You came among the white people and to my house at The Dalles with Padre Pandozy and gave me a horse, which I did not take, as Pan-a-wok had given Lieutenant Wood another horse for him. You came in peace—we come in war. And why? Because your land has drunk the blood of the white man, and the Great Spirit requires it at your hand.

You make the sign of the cross, and pray to the God of truth for mercy, and yet you lie when you say you "were very quiet, the Americans were our friends; our hearts were not for war," until Governor Stevens changed your feelings; for long before the treaty, which you agreed to, you proposed to the Walla Walla chief, Peu-peu-mox-mox, to go to war, and kill off all the whites. He told us so. You had been preparing for this purpose a very long time; and your people agreed with the Cayuses, at the Walla Walla council, before the treaty was made, to murder all the whites there, which was only prevented by the Nez Percés disagreeing.

You know that you murdered white men going to the mines who had done you no injury, and you murder all persons, though no white man had trespassed upon your lands. You sent me a delegation to stop Hamilton and Pierce settling in your country. I wrote them a letter, and they left. You murdered your agent Bolan for telling you the truth—that the troops would come upon you for these murders. Has his death prevented their coming? I sent a handful of soldiers into your country to inquire into the facts. It was not expected that they should fight you, and they did right to return back. Your foul deeds were seen by the eye of the Great Spirit, who saw Cain when he killed his brother Abel, and cursed him for it. Fugitives and vagabonds shall you also be, all that remain of you, upon the face of the earth, as well as all who aid or assist you, until you are gone.

You say now, "if we will be quiet, and make friendship you will not war with us, but give a piece of land to all the tribes." We will not be quiet, but war forever, until not a Yakima breathes in the land he calls his own. The river only will we let retain this name to show to all people that here the Yakimas once lived.

You say that you will fight us with thousands, and if vanquished,