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Show 142 REPORT OF THE BOARD OF INDIAN COMMISSIONERS. ployed now. The white man sard long ago the Indians ought to learn. I know the Indians have not learned. But now we have waked up and want to begin. If Mr. Meacham says these things will be done to- morrow, always to- morrow, they will never be done. I want it done to- day. Mr. Meacham says we have no money, but a blacksmith ought to be put in the shop, and the Indian taught, and so in all of the shops. If the old men had been taught in the schools, they would have known these things. Now we want our boys taught. You employ the doctor ; I am glad of it ; if you did not, and we got sick, we would die ; but the doctor comes and we get strong and able to work. JACOB- ADAM- CHOIT. I am glad to see Mr. Brunot. Our mills got bad and we said so to Meacham, and he told us we would have a mill, but we must work. We did work and soon it will be done, and we will get lumber ; and we will have a flour- mill, he said, and now we need it. We need a blacksmith ; a white man to teach the Indian, and the white man can quit helping us. Our boys will get like white men. And we want a school- house. We are to- day as if we knew nothing. 1 am like my father, I cant read and write. Men say I am a white man, but I am only a little like a white man. Some time ago we said we were poor; we want to know if the President sent money here. I never saw any. Did the President send these culter ( bad) blankets, worth about three dollars ? And this culter ( bad) calico ? I don't want such poor things. I see how many acres a white man has. I don't want to sell my land to the whites. I want money for my land. I want a good coat and pants, a good house. In a year I want to have money in my hands. I don't want these worthless things. White men would say they were cheated out of their lands, if you did so by them. If you send good blankets, plows, wagons, I would take that. We all want wagons and horses. The Government never gave us any of them. We went out and worked for them. Agents have never done right by us. They took our money away from us. The past year I saw nothing. Now I want to get something. You owe it to us. Long ago we did not wear pants. You want to see us like whites, so you must give us these things. JOHN COUCHEY. What did the chief come for ? I now know he came to see the people. I now want to talk to the chief. We want the things given to us that were promised long ago. W T e are no more in want of a saw- mill, we have it. Long ago we were promised things, they did not come ; but now we are set upon a grist- mill. We want the mill so that our people can get bread. The chief said long ago we should have lands, and now we will get, them. And we want word carried to the President that our hearts are glad for this. Besides the land, we need horses, plows, and harness. Long ago we gave our land to the whites, and now they own the land. All that we received for the laud in the past is gone. Now we will receive our laud. Your talk is good, and what we say is from our hearts. 1 have never received a wagon, or plow, or harness. Some of the others have; that is why I tell of them. Our land outside we never received anything for. So all the old people talk. All the laud which has been bought has been bought with a small amount ; my land was as large as all the lands about here ; it is as if I had given them away for nothing. In the past I have asked for the things that were promised, but they never came. You talk different to- day from what the white chief talked before. TOM SHASTA. Some time ago ( Miepay) you came arid talked to us, and" told us good things. Now, Mr. Brunot has come along way; it is good. The Indian wants to be good, and he likes the whites. Long ago I had no coat, pants, or hat. Papers came from the States and said we will be like the whites. Now I am getting old. I understand what you say. You are getting tired talking to the Indians. We want them all to be good. On most of the reservations the Indians are not like the whites. The whites are all over the country. They make money, and plenty of it, everywhere. The Indian gets poorer every day. If you want us to be like whites, give us what we need. We have received many things, but not what we need. All we got is gone, and we don't know anything. We have learned a little. All are good, and we know what we need. We understand better what you want of us. You see all have hats. Our women are dressed like the whites, and they all want things like whites. In the shops there are no Indians who understand how to make wagons. No Indian can run the mill. We want a white blacksmith and a miller. We can't be like white men without somebody to learn us. After a while we want a school ; but these things we must have now. The Indians never asked for them before; the whites said for them to have them, and now we want them. Our lands are surveyed. You must take care of u. s like you would of children. When you get a school the children will learn to read. You must tell the Indian what is true. You would be ashamed if the Indians could write the truth to Washington themselves. When the money and things arrive here they go into the storehouse and the Indian never sees them. So with all the agents. They never give us what is sent for us. If the agent tells us what is good we will keep it in our hearts. Plenty of money has come here ; we don't know how much. TOM CURL. All these chiefs have not fathers. If a man is good or bad, so he will talk. A long time ago I understood what was told me. When the treaty was made we under-stood it. Then I was young ; now I am old. It would take ten days to tell all I know. If you would get these Indians all right you must stay and see to them. Some of the India. ns are good ; some are bad. 1 have not seen what was promised us. At one time we got shoes, hats, tobacco, and everything, and we expected they would always come. We |