The Chemawa American, March 27, 1929, Image 1

«—sTK‘“’X l
S k <© t —
✓ f»v
, \f . ^ 0
e
CHEMAWA
AM ERICAN
P r in te d a t C he m a w a , O re g o n , a n d D e v o te d to th e In te r e s ts o f In d ia n E d u c a tio n
OREGOM
.J—. — . .
.«MHHMillMllIltdlllllllllHltlllllllHUIIIIIUIIIlllllUIIIIHtllillllHtllllll
W ednesday, March 27, 1929
Vol. X X X
ALCHESAY
/ Supt. Charles T. Davis, well known in the Indian
Service, writes the following facts of Alchesay, and
George Nickolson has compiled the same for publica­
tion:
In 1875 General Crook had brought all the outlaw
Apaches under control of the government. Most of
them had settled down on the land that was allotted
to them, or that they chose and cleared. General
Crook promised all these Indians that, such land as
they would clear and cultivate that land should be
theirs.
In the years that followed some of the Indians did
not act right, and some of the actions of those that
were over them were not right, and freguent changes
caused much dissatisfaction among the Indians until
in 1882, when trouble seemed almost inevitable, Gen­
eral Crook was sent back and. the following was Al­
chesay’ s speech of welcome:
7 f When yotTleft, there were no bad Indians out? We
were all content; everything was peace. The officers
you had here were all taken away, and new ones came
in—a different kind. T'he good ones must all have
been t aken away and the bad ones sent in their places.
“ We couldn’t make out what they wanted; one day
they seemed to want one thing, the next day something
else. Perhaps we were to blame, perhaps they were;
but, anyhow, we hadn’t any confidence in them.
We were planting our own corn and melons and making
our own living. The agent at San Carlos never gave
us any rations, but we didn’t mind that, as we were
taking care of ourselves.
“ One day the agent at San CarloS sent up and said
that we must give up our own country and our corn
patches and go down there to live, and he sent Indian
soldiers to seize our women and children and drive us
all down to that hot land.
“ Vclenni” and I were doing all we could to help
the whites, when we were both put in the guardhouse.
All that I have ever done has been honest ; I have al­
ways been true and obeyed orders: I made cam­
paigns against the Apaches, Yumas, Tontos, Pinalenos,
and all kinds of otherpeople, and even went against
my own people.
“ When the Indians broke out at the San Carlos,
when Major Randall was here, I helped him to go
| i -fin-ht them- ,1 haw-been’ in all - the campaigns,
No. 22
“ When Major Randall was here we were all happy;
when he promised a thing he did it; when he said a
word he meant it; but all that he did was for our own
good and we believed in him and we think of him
yet. Where has he gone? Why don’t he come back?
Others have come to see us since he left, but they talk
to us in one way and act in another, and we can’t
believe what they say.
“ They say this man is bad, and that man is b a d .. I
think that the trouble is>they, themselves, are bad.
Oh, where is my friend Randall—the captain with’
the mustache which he always pulled? Why don’t he
come back? He was my brother and I think of him all
the tim e.’’
Jim Reed who was with Alchesay on all his trips
between the scout camps and the. outlaw camps tells
the following:
“ in th e days of 1884’’
“ My good friend Alchesay in gone. .Manydays we
were together, and often we crossed the mountains
together, That was in the days of 1884 when we
were still young.men. But I have not forgotten my
goodfriend, even now, when he is gone.
“ Sometimes J sit for a long time and. think about
my good friend, Alchesay, and about my goodfriend,
General Crook—when we were together and fighting
against the outlaws, het me tell you a story about
them:
“ One time General Crook said to Alchesay, ‘Dont
think that I am over yon, or that you are over’ me;
we are going into Mexico.’ ”
“ A boutthis time a "brother-in-law of Geronimo, an
outlaw by the name of X—,' was captured and put in
chains. He was taken at San Carlos and brought to
Wilcox. General Crook was at this time absent on
business at Chihuahua City, but in the days following
he returned to Wilcox, and there he found X —.
“ On the same day that he returned he wanted to
hold court. And so court was called.
“ Alchesay said to General Crook, take off those
shoe-strings (chains) from Xdri, they are too1 tough to
wear;’ they will last too long. Also take off those
bracelets (handcuffs) from him; I want my brother to
wear shoestrings the same as I wear. Whoever owns
the shoestrings that he has now come and get them.
X — has done many things; he has taken horses and