WRITINGS OF 5AM HOUSTON, 1855
161
the Indian Bureau, Colonel Medill,3 with having "cheated" the Indians. The charge was made in broad language, without quali- fication; it therefore is a charge against an agent of the Govern- ment of having acted criminally, dishonestly, and fraudulently. If he had said it was done unintentionally, or without design, there would have been some qualification to it, but there is no limitation; it is a broad, unqualified charge that he had cheated the Menomonee Indians. This was calculated to produce a bad_ state of feeling on the part of the Indians towards the Govern- ment, and to engender hostility. They were situated in a remote region, in connection with hostile tribes, and such charges might have led to a state of feeling, on their part, threatening most detrimental consequences to the peace and safety of our frontier. There was an indiscretion in this, to say the least of it. It may be said that this gentleman was not connected with the transactions of the Messrs. Ewings;' which were exposed by the Senator from Michigan. If he has disclaimed any such connec- tion I have nothing to say about it, but I am not aware of any such disclaimer. It has been shown that the object of some persons was to filch from the Indians all the money which it was possible to obtain from them. How far a conspiracy or combina- tion for that purpose extended I leave for others to determine, on the conviction of the parties, as set forth in our public documents. But, sir, the statement which was read by the Senator from Michigan, in manuscript, as a report of a speech made by this · claimant to the Shawnee council, seems to be resisted with great power and earnestness. We are told that it is a report which was made subsequently, and that, therefore, no reliance is to be placed upon it. Why, sir, let me tell the Senate it is the easiest thing in the world to take down such things literally. When such communications are made to the Indians it is done through an interpreter. The speaker states what he means to say, sen- tence by sentence, and the interpreter translates each sentence to the Indians. The deliberate manner in which such a speech is made to them would afford an ordinary pensman an oppor- tunity of taking it down literally, and exhibiting it to the world as it really occurred. For this reason I should be very much disposed to rely on the accuracy of the report thus presented to us, particularly when we have such strong testimonials as are presented to us in behalf of the character of the individual who furnished the translation to superintendent Cumming.
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