| OCR Text |
Show REPORT OF THE BOARD OF INDIAN COMMISSIONERS. 43 CAMP GRANT, ARIZONA TERRITORY. We arrived at Camp Grant on the 13th instant, and found a white flag flying over the post, the effect of the telegram forwarded to its commander through the kindness of the Secretary of Interior and the Secretary of War on the 3d of August last. We were hospitably received by Lieutenant Royal E. Whitman and Captain Win. Nelson, com-manding the post. Soon after our arrival we learned that a company of one hundred and seventy- five or two hundred armed white citizens from Tucson ( the town where the body of citizens came from who committed the massacre some few months since) were on their way to, and within twelve miles of, the reservation, and were expected iu on the morrow. Two Mexican couriers, who had arrived some days previous, re-ported that the expedition was gotten up with a view to breaking up the reservation. Captain Thos. S. Dunn, Twenty- first United States Infantry, and Agent Wilbur, of the Pupagos, who came up with the party, informed us that it was a party of " prospect-ers," who were coming through the reservation on their way to the mountains. At the same time we were informed that Governor Stafford, with a party of three hundred citizens, who had recently passed through the reservation, were expected in on their return homeward on the morrow. As the reservation is within a valley and surrounded with mountains, without a road or trail through it leading anywhere, and as the Indians had only just come in after much persuasion, and were under evident fears of another attack, the impropriety of allowing these armed bands of citizens to rendez-vous upon the reservation was apparent. As either the Indians or these citizens had to leave the reservation, I promptly informed Captain Nelson that if he permitted these citizens to come nearer than ten miles of the post, I would have to send out Indian runners to the Apaches, and, gathering them together, ask him for a sufficient escort to conduct them with me over to the White Mountain reservation. Captain Nelson replied that he should regret to have me do that, and instead he would forbid the party of citizens from approaching nearer than within ten miles of the post; and he issued an order to that effect. ( See Appendix A &, No. 17.) He forwarded this order by a corporal and four men that evening, who met the party twelve miles away. At 4 o'clock the corporal sent in word that he had met the leaders, and that they had de-clared that " they would cross the reservation." Captain Nelson then directed Lieu-tenant Whitman to ride out and meet the party and inform them that he was prepared to enforce his order, and had his guns in position, and would open tire upon them on their appearance at the mouth of the canon opposite the post ; Captain Nelson load-ing up the water- wagon belonging to the post and sending it out to them, that they might not suffer in case they should conclude to go back, which the report of Captain Nelson says they very reluctantly consented to do. They left with the declaration that they could use the white flag as well as we, and if that would bring in the Indians they would bring them in and put them on a reservation where it would not cost much to feed them. They went off around the reservation toward the east, Captain Thos. S. Dunn accompanying them. It was reported that a band of the Papago Indians were with them, but- Pr. R. A. Wilbur, the agent of the Papagoes, who came into the post with the party, said that he had no knowledge of any Indians being present. As the Papagoes, for many years, have had a feud with the Apaches, and as they were the people whom the citizens of Tucson brought with them on their formed visit and who had assisted so vigorously in the massacre, I was very much surprised, and expressed my great regret to Dr. Wilbur at seeing him accompanying another expedition from the same place of a character so similar to the former, and composed of a portion of the same people, in a foray against another Indian tribe. He informed me that he had no authority from Dr. Beudel, the superintendent of Indian affairs of Arizona, or from the Indian Office, to leave his agency. I called his attention to the fact that his presence with such a party was calculated to awaken distrust among the Apaches as to the honesty of our intentions in inviting them in, and I suggested to him the propriety of returning to his agency as soon as possible. The Doctor said that he had never received any copy of the laws of the Indian Bureau, and being unin-formed of his duties, was not aware of there being any impropriety iu his being here under such circumstances. He returned to his agency two days ai'ter the above inter-view. Before he left I requested him to use every means in his power to recover back from the Papagoes the 28 children stolen from the Apaches during the massacre. He promised to do so. ( See Appendix A &, No. 19.) THE APACHE CHILDREN TAKEN INTO CAPTIVITY. Permit me to call your attention to the fact that these children have not yet been returned to their families, though it is now more than four months since they were stolen. As they were captured while their parents were being killed, though held as " prisoners of war " by the Army, the War Department, without other aid, has the power, it seems to me, to recover them if they are still in our country. It is reported that the majority of them have been carried over into Souora by the Papagoes and sold |
