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About The west shore. (Portland, Or.) 1875-1891 | View Entire Issue (May 1, 1879)
May, 1879. THE WEST SHORE. After riilintr n eounle of miles uridcn vollcv. I exulaiued m briefly as I could what the interpreter had COmtnunichtCd to me, and in order to cutcd across the level valley we came to the foot of the mountain whe.e it was too steep for horses to ascend. We dis mounted and hitched our horses and scrambled up for half a mile over huge rocks and through brush, and then found ourselves in the Indians' strong hold, just under the perpendicular cliff of Table Rock, and surrounded by 700 ncrce ana well armed hostile savages, in all their gcorgeous war paint and feathers. Capt. Smith had drawn out his company of dragoons and left them in line on the plain below. It was a bright beautiful morning and the Rogue river valley lay like a panorama at our feet; the exact line of dragoons, sitting statute like upon their horses, with their white belts and burnished scabbards and carbines, looked like they were engraven upon a picture, while a lew paces in our rear the huge pcrpen dicular wall of Table Rock towered, frowmngly, many hundred feet above us. 1 he business ot the treaty coin menced at once. Long speeches were made by Oeneral Lane and supenn Undent Palmer; they had to lie trans lated twice. When an Indian spoke in the Rogue river tongue, it was translated by an Indian interpreter into Chinook or jargon to me, when 1 translated it into English, when Lane or Palmer spoke the process was reversed, I giv ing the speech to the Indian interpreter in Llunook, ami he translating it to the Indians in their own tongue. This double translation of long speeches made the labor tedious, and it was not until late in the afternoon that the treat was completed and signed. In the meantime an episode occurred which came near terminating the treaty as well as the representation, of one of th "high contracting parties" in a sudden and tragic manner. AIkuiI the niiddl of the afternoon a young Indian came running into camp stark naked with th perspiration streaming from every pore lie made a brief harangue and threw himself upon the ground apparently exhausted. Mis speech hail created great tumult among his trilic. (Jen Lane told me to inquire of the Indian interpreter the cause ol the commotion the Indian replied that a company ol white men came down on Applcgatc creek and under command of Capt. Owen, had that morning captured an Indian, known as Jim Taylor, ami hail him tied up to a tree and shot to death The hubbub and confusion among the Indians at once lieeame intense and mur ilcr glared from each savage visage The Indian interpreter told me tnai in Indians were threatening to tie us up i trees ami serve us as Owen's men had served lim Taylor. I saw some In. I. ans gathering up lass. ropes while others drew tnc sum covers 11 nmu k""" and the wiping sticks from their mua iles. There appeared a strong prob ability ol our party Mag subject to a keep our people from huddling together make a better target tor the and thu ivages. I used a few English words not likely to Ik- understood by the Indian interpreter, such as "disperse" and "seggregate." In fact we kept so om to the savages .uni separated from one another that any general tiring must have been nearly as fatal to the Indians as to the whites. While ultuit that I thought my time had come, md hurriedly thought ol wile and clul hen, I noticed nothing but coolness among my companions, lien, l.ane sat win a log with his arm haudaged 111 a ling, the lines about his mouth rigidly compressing bis lips, while lii- eyes Hashed lire. lie asked hnel questions and gave me sententious ansueis in what little the Indians said Ions. capt. . 1. Smith, who was pieiiiaturely grey-haired and was alllictcd with a nervous snapping of the eyes, leaned upon his cavalry saler and looked anxiously down upon his well formed line id dragoons in the valley iielow. J lis eyes snapiK-d more vigorously than usual and muttered words escaped from under the old Dragoon's while mus tache that diil not sound like prayers. His squadron looked beautiful, hut alas! thev could render us no service. I sat lown on a log close to old chief Joe, and having a sharp hunting knife under my hunting shirt, kept my hand near its handle, determined that there would Ik- one Indian made "good awiut the time the tiring commenced. In a lew moments Gen. Lane sto.sl up ami com menced to speak slow ly hut very dis tinctly. He said Owens, who has vio lated the armistice and killed Jim Taylor, is a bad man. He i not one of my soldiers, when I catch him he shall . ' . 1 .1 II. J .US punished. I promised m goon 111110 to conic into your camp with ten other 1 unarmed men to secure peace. Myself and men are placed in your power; I do not betievi that you arc such cow ¬ ardly dogs as to take advanlgc of our unarmed condition. I know that you have the uower to murder us and can do so as quickly asy oil please, but what ood will our l.l.Hiddoyoii.' liur mur der will CMSperaU out friends ami your ml- w ill le huiilcdirom the lace 01 ine earth. Let u proceed with the treaty, and instead pi Ml have a lasting pc.nc. Much more wa said in this strain by the ticneral, all rather defiant, ami nothing of a begging character. The esulcmciit gradually suUided after l.ane promised to give a fan ipena til ill lot the defunct Jim Taylor in shuts and blankets. up to his squadron and gave a iricf order, The bugle sounded a note or two ami the squadron w heeled ami trotteil oil to camp. As (ten. l.ane and parly rode back across the valley we looked back and saw the rays of the setting sun gilding the summit of Table Rock. 1 drew a long breath ami re marked to the old General thtil Ihonoxl lime he wanted to go mutinied Into II hostile camp he must hunt up some one liesides myself to act as interpreter, With a benignant smile he replied, "find bless ou, luck is better than science." I never hear the fate of (ien. t'anhv, at the Mud. 1, camp, referred to, that I do not think of our narrow MCapt of a similar fate at Table Woik. The treaty of the 10th of Kcptrmlier, I get, was completed ami signed, and peace restored for the neat two years. Our party wended their way among iIm lc ,Un lo where our horse were tied ami mounted. Old A. J. Smith 1 U not thai enough? Till. IU MSI I I KK. Every individual in society is c pected to contiilxite something In its advancement and interest. We remem ber lo have read, many years ago, of a company of tradesmen who united themselves Into a mutual benefit society, and each one hail to relate what he could contribute to its suport. First the blacksmith came forward and said : "Gentlemen, I wish lo become a memlier of 0111 association. "Well, what can you dor" "Oh! I can iron your cariiagrs, shoe your horses, ami make all kind of im plements." "Very well, come in Mr. 111,. I ... M smith. "The mason applied foi admission into the society. "And what can you do, sir?" I can build your bat ns, houses, slablrs, and bridges." "Very well, come in, we cannot do without you." Alouu comes the shoemaker and B 1 . 1 I says: "I wish 10 iieeome a ir.rnnier 01 your society." "What can you do?" "I can make ImmiIs and shoes for you." "Come in, Mr. Shoemakei. We must have )ou." In turn, all the differeul trades ami professions applied, till at las! an Imli- vulul came in wno wamrii 10 ne member. "Ami what uri iw'" "I am a rum seller." "A iwnttttfrl What can you dor" "I can build jails ami prisons ami poorhoiises." "Ami is that all?" "No. I can fill Ihem. I ran lill yui jails wtlb criminals, your prisons with convict, ami your (morbou.es with pauera." "And what else can you do?" "I can bring Ihe greyhaira of the aged lo the grate wilh sorrow. I CM break the heart of ihe wife, ami blast Ihe prospect of the friends of latent, ami till Ihe land wilh more than the plagues of Egyjrt ." "Is that all you can do?" "Good heavens, etietl ihe nimsellcf,