then, being exhausted from the rapid ride, and knowing that an Indian
must not be hurried, he ordered some beef and a plentiful supply of
tobacco for them, and said that after he and they had eaten and rested
they could talk the matter over. In the evening the principal men met
him and told him over a pipe that they had left Standing Rock agency
forever; that their great chief and friend Sitting Bull had been
killed there without cause; that they had come down to talk with their
friends on Cherry creek about it, but had found them gone, and were
consequently undecided as to what they should do. The captain replied
that he had come as a friend; that if they would surrender their arms
and go back with him to Fort Bennett, they would be provided for and
would not be harmed; that he could make no promises as to their future
disposition; that if they chose to join Big Foot’s camp, only a few
miles up the river, the result would be their certain destruction.
After deliberating among themselves until midnight, they came in a
body, delivered a number of guns, and said they would go back to the
fort. Accordingly they broke camp next morning and arrived at Fort
Bennett on December 24. The entire body numbered 221, including 55
belonging on Cherry creek. These last were allowed to join their own
people camped near the post. The Sitting Bull Indians, with some
others from Standing Rock, numbering 227 in all, were held at Fort
Sully, a few miles below Fort Bennett, until the close of the trouble.
Thirty-eight others of the Sitting Bull band had joined Big Foot and
afterward fled with him. (_War, 11._)
After the death of Sitting Bull and the enlistment of Hump in the
government service, the only prominent leader outside of the Bad Lands
who was considered as possibly dangerous was Sitanka or Big Foot,
whose village was at the mouth of Deep creek, a few miles below the
forks of Cheyenne river. The duty of watching him was assigned to
Lieutenant-Colonel E. V. Sumner of the Eighth cavalry, who had his camp
just above the forks. Here he was visited by Big Foot and his head men,
who assured the officer that they were peaceable and intended to remain
quietly at home. Friendly relations continued until the middle of
December, when Big Foot came to bid good bye, telling Sumner that his
people were all going to the agency to get their annuities. A day or
two later the order came to arrest Big Foot and send him as a prisoner
to Fort Meade. Believing that the chief was acting in good faith to
control his warriors, who might easily go beyond control were he taken
from them, Colonel Sumner informed General Miles that the Indians were
already on their way to the agency; that if Big Foot should return he
(Sumner) would try to get him, and that otherwise he could be arrested
at the agency, if necessary. Soon after, however, the report came that
Big Foot had stopped at Hump’s camp on the way to the agency, to meet
the fugitives coming south from Sitting Bull’s camp.
On receipt of this information, Sumner at once marched down the
river with the intention of stopping Big Foot. When about half way
to Hump’s camp, Big Foot himself came up to meet him, saying that he
was friendly, and that he and his men would obey any orders that the
officer might give. He stated that he had with him 100 of his own
Indians and 38 from Standing Rock (Sitting Bull’s band). When asked why
he had received these last, knowing that they were refugees from their
reservation, he replied that they were his brothers and relations; that
they had come to his people hungry, footsore, and almost naked; and
that he had taken them in and fed them, and that no one with a heart
could do any less.
Sumner then directed one of his officers, Captain Hennisee, to go
to the Indian camp with Big Foot and bring in all the Indians. That
officer started and returned the next day, December 21, with 333
Indians. This large number was a matter of surprise in view of Big
Foot’s statement shortly before, but it is possible that in speaking
of his party he intended to refer only to the warriors. They went into
camp as directed, turned out their ponies to graze, and were fed, and
on the next morning all started quietly back with the troops. As they
had all along appeared perfectly friendly and compliant with every
order, no attempt was made to disarm them. On arriving near their own
village, however, it became apparent that Big Foot could not control
their desire to go to their homes. The chief came frankly to Sumner and
said that he himself would go wherever wanted, but that there would be
trouble to force the women and children, who were cold and hungry, away
from their village. He protested also that they were now at home, where
they had been ordered by the government to stay, and that none of them
had done anything to justify their removal. As it was evident that they
would not go peaceably, Colonel Sumner determined to bring his whole
force on the next day to compel them. In the meantime he sent a white
man named Dunn, who had a friendly acquaintance with Big Foot, to tell
him that the Indians must obey the order to remove. Dunn delivered the
message and returned, being followed later by the interpreter, with the
statement that the Indians had consented to go to the agency, and would
start the next morning, December 23. That evening, however, scouts came
in with the word that the Indians had left their village and were going
southward. It was at first thought that they intended turning off on
another trail to the agency, but instead of doing so they kept on in
the direction of Pine Ridge and the refugees in the Bad Lands, taking
with them only their ponies and tipi poles.
The cause of this precipitate flight after the promise given by Big
Foot is somewhat uncertain. The statement of the interpreter, Felix
Benoit, would make it appear that the Indians were frightened by Dunn,
who told them that the soldiers were coming in the morning to carry
them off and to shoot them if they refused to go. While this doubtless
had the effect of alarming them, the real cause of their flight was
probably the fact that just at this critical juncture Colonel Merriam
was ordered to move with his command up Cheyenne river to join forces
with Sumner in compelling their surrender. Such is the opinion of
General Ruger, who states officially that “Big Foot and adherents who
had joined him, probably becoming alarmed on the movement of Colonel
Merriam’s command from Fort Bennett and a rumor that Colonel Sumner
would capture them, eluded Colonel Sumner’s command and started for the
Pine Ridge reservation.” This agrees with the statement of several of
the survivors that they had been frightened from their homes by the
news of Merriam’s approach. Sumner, in his report, calls attention to
the fact that they committed no depredations in their flight, although
they passed several ranches and at one time even went through a pasture
filled with horses and cattle without attempting to appropriate them.
He also expresses the opinion that Big Foot was compelled unwillingly
to go with his people. The whole number of fugitives was at least 340,
including a few from the bands of Sitting Bull and Hump. Immediately
on learning of their flight Colonel Sumner notified General Carr,
commanding in the direction of the Bad Lands. (_War, 12._)
The situation at this crisis is thus summed up by Indian Commissioner
Morgan:
Groups of Indians from the different reservations had commenced
concentrating in the Bad Lands upon or in the vicinity of the Pine
Ridge reservation. Killing of cattle and destruction of other
property by these Indians, almost entirely within the limits of
Pine Ridge and Rosebud reservations, occurred, but no signal fires
were built, no warlike demonstrations were made, no violence was
done to any white settler, nor was there cohesion or organization
among the Indians themselves. Many of them were friendly Indians,
who had never participated in the ghost dance, but had fled thither
from fear of soldiers, in consequence of the Sitting Bull affair
or through the overpersuasion of friends. The military gradually
began to close in around them and they offered no resistance, and
a speedy and quiet capitulation of all was confidently expected.
(_Comr., 34._)
Nearly 3,000 troops were now in the field in the Sioux country. This
force was fully sufficient to have engaged the Indians with success,
but as such action must inevitably have resulted in wholesale killing
on both sides, with the prospect of precipitating a raiding warfare
unless the hostiles were completely annihilated, it was thought best to
bring about a surrender by peaceful means.
The refugees in the Bad Lands who had fled from Pine Ridge and Rosebud
had been surrounded on the west and north by a strong cordon of troops,
operating under General Brooke, which had the effect of gradually
forcing them back toward the agency. At the same time that officer
made every effort to expedite the process by creating dissensions in
the Indian camp, and trying in various ways to induce them to come
in by small parties at a time. To this end the Indians were promised
that if they complied with the orders of the military their rights
and interests would be protected, so far as it was within the power
of the military department to accomplish that result. Although they
had about lost confidence in the government, these assurances had a
good effect, which was emphasized by the news of the death of Sitting
Bull, the arrest of Big Foot, and return of Hump to his agency, and
the steady pressure of the troops from behind; and on December 27,
1890, the entire force broke camp and left their stronghold in the Bad
Lands and began moving in toward the agency at Pine Ridge. The several
detachments of troops followed behind, within supporting distance of
one another, and so closely that the fires were still burning in the
Indian camps when the soldiers moved in to occupy the same ground.
(_War, 13._)
As early as December 6 a conference had been brought about at
Pine Ridge, through the efforts of Father Jutz, the priest of the
Catholic mission, between General Brooke and the leading chiefs of
both friendlies and “hostiles.” Although no definite conclusion was
reached, the meeting was a friendly one, ending with a feast and an
Indian dance. The immediate effect was a division in the hostile camp,
culminating in a quarrel between the two factions, with the result that
Two Strike and his party left the rest and moved in toward the agency,
while Short Bull and Kicking Bear retreated farther into the Bad Lands.
On learning of this condition of affairs, General Brooke sent out
American Horse and Big Road with a large party of warriors to meet Two
Strike and go back with him to persuade the others, if possible, to
come in. At the same time the troops were moved up to intercept the
flight of the hostiles. (_Colby, 2; G. D., 37._)
On Christmas day the Cheyenne scouts, camped on Battle creek north of
the Bad Lands, were attacked by a party of hostiles led by Kicking Bear
in person. The fight was kept up until after dark, several being killed
or wounded on both sides, but the hostiles were finally driven off.
(_Colby, 3._)
But the tragedy was near at hand. Orders had been given to intercept
Big Foot’s party in its flight from Cheyenne river toward the Bad
Lands. This was accomplished on December 28, 1890, by Major Whitside
of the Seventh cavalry, who came up with him a short distance west of
the Bad Lands. Not having succeeded in communicating with the refugees
who had fled there and who were already on their way to the agency,
Big Foot had made no stop, but continued on also toward Pine Ridge.
On sighting the troops he raised a white flag, advanced into the open
country, and asked for a parley. This was refused by Major Whitside,
who demanded an unconditional surrender, which was at once given, and
the Indians moved on with the troops to Wounded Knee creek, about 20
miles northeast of Pine Ridge agency, where they camped as directed by
Major Whitside. In order to make assurance complete, General Brooke
sent Colonel Forsyth to join Major Whitside with four additional troops
of the Seventh cavalry, which, with the scouts under Lieutenant Taylor,
made up a force of eight troops of cavalry, one company of scouts, and
four pieces of light artillery (Hotchkiss guns), with a total force
of 470 men, as against a total of 106 warriors then present in Big
Foot’s band. A scouting party of Big Foot’s band was out looking for
the camp under Kicking Bear and Short Bull, but as these chiefs, with
their followers, were already on their way to the agency, the scouting
party was returning to rejoin Big Foot when the fight occurred the next
morning. It was the intention of General Miles to send Big Foot and his
followers back to their own reservation, or to remove them altogether
from the country until the excitement had subsided. (_War, 14._)
At this time there were no Indians in the Bad Lands. Two Strike and
Crow Dog had come in about a week before and were now camped close to
the agency. Kicking Bear and Short Bull, with their followers, had
yielded to the friendly persuasions of American Horse, Little Wound,
Standing Bear, and others who had gone out to them in the interests of
peace, and both parties were now coming in together and had arrived at
the Catholic mission, 5 miles from the agency, when the battle occurred.
On the morning of December 29, 1890, preparations were made to disarm
the Indians preparatory to taking them to the agency and thence to
the railroad. In obedience to instructions the Indians had pitched
their tipis on the open plain a short distance west of the creek and
surrounded on all sides by the soldiers. In the center of the camp the
Indians had hoisted a white flag as a sign of peace and a guarantee of
safety. Behind them was a dry ravine running into the creek, and on
a slight rise in the front was posted the battery of four Hotchkiss
machine guns, trained directly on the Indian camp. In front, behind,
and on both flanks of the camp were posted the various troops of
cavalry, a portion of two troops, together with the Indian scouts,
being dismounted and drawn up in front of the Indians at the distance
of only a few yards from them. Big Foot himself was ill of pneumonia in
his tipi, and Colonel Forsyth, who had taken command as senior officer,
had provided a tent warmed with a camp stove for his reception.
Shortly after 8 oclock in the morning the warriors were ordered to
come out from the tipis and deliver their arms. They came forward and
seated themselves on the ground in front of the troops. They were
then ordered to go by themselves into their tipis and bring out and
surrender their guns. The first twenty went and returned in a short
time with only two guns. It seemed evident that they were unwilling
to give them up, and after consultation of the officers part of the
soldiers were ordered up to within ten yards of the group of warriors,
while another detachment of troops was ordered to search the tipis.
After a thorough hunt these last returned with about forty rifles,
most of which, however, were old and of little value. The search had
consumed considerable time and created a good deal of excitement among
the women and children, as the soldiers found it necessary in the
process to overturn the beds and other furniture of the tipis and in
some instances drove out the inmates. All this had its effect on their
husbands and brothers, already wrought up to a high nervous tension
and not knowing what might come next. While the soldiers had been
looking for the guns Yellow Bird, a medicine-man, had been walking
about among the warriors, blowing on an eagle-bone whistle, and urging
them to resistance, telling them that the soldiers would become weak
and powerless, and that the bullets would be unavailing against the
sacred “ghost shirts,” which nearly every one of the Indians wore. As
he spoke in the Sioux language, the officers did not at once realize
the dangerous drift of his talk, and the climax came too quickly for
them to interfere. It is said one of the searchers now attempted to
raise the blanket of a warrior. Suddenly Yellow Bird stooped down and
threw a handful of dust into the air, when, as if this were the signal,
a young Indian, said to have been Black Fox from Cheyenne river, drew a
rifle from under his blanket and fired at the soldiers, who instantly
replied with a volley directly into the crowd of warriors and so near
that their guns were almost touching. From the number of sticks set up
by the Indians to mark where the dead fell, as seen by the author a
year later, this one volley must have killed nearly half the warriors
(plate +XCIX+). The survivors sprang to their feet, throwing their
blankets from their shoulders as they rose, and for a few minutes there
was a terrible hand to hand struggle, where every man’s thought was
to kill. Although many of the warriors had no guns, nearly all had
revolvers and knives in their belts under their blankets, together with
some of the murderous warclubs still carried by the Sioux. The very
lack of guns made the fight more bloody, as it brought the combatants
to closer quarters.
[Illustration: PL. XCVII
WOUNDED KNEE BATTLEFIELD]
EXPLANATION OF PLATE XCVII
Compiled from map by Lieutenant T. Q. Donaldson, Seventh United
States cavalry, kindly loaned by Dr J. D. Glennan, United States
Army.
A. and I. Seventy-six men from A and I troops forming dismounted line of sentinels.
B. Troop B dismounted and in line.
C. Troop C mounted and in line (sorrel troop).
D. Troop D mounted and in line (black troop).
E. Troop E mounted and in line (bay troop).
G. Troop G mounted and in line (gray troop).
K. Troop K dismounted and in line.
S. Indian scouts.
1. Tent from which a hostile warrior shot two soldiers.
2. Tent occupied by Big Foot and his wife and in front of which the
former was killed.
3. Tents put up for the use of Big Foot’s band.
4. Council ring in or near which were General Forsyth, Major
Whitside, Captain Varnum, Captain Hoff, Captain Wallace, Doctor
Glennan, Lieutenant Robinson, Lieutenant Nicholson, Lieutenant
McCormick, and the reporters.
5. Officers’ tents, first battalion.
6. Enlisted mens’ tents, first battalion.
7. Bivouac of second battalion on night of December 28, 1890.
8. Four Hotchkiss guns and detachment of First artillery, under
Captain Capron, First artillery, and Lieutenant Hawthorne,
Second artillery.
9. Indian village.
10. Indian ponies.
11. Dismounted line of sentinels.
12. Captains Ilsley and Moylan.
13. Lieutenants Garlington and Waterman.
14. Captain Godfrey and Lieutenant Tompkins.
15. Captain Jackson and Lieutenant Donaldson.
16. Lieutenant Taylor, Ninth cavalry, commanding Indian scouts (S).
17. Captain Edgerly and Lieutenant Brewer.
18. Captain Nowlan and Lieutenant Gresham.
19. Indian houses.
20. Lieutenants Sickel and Rice.
Just beyond the limit of the map, toward the west, the ravine forms
a bend, in which a number of hostiles took refuge, and from which
Lieutenant Hawthorne was shot. Captain Wallace was found near the
center of the council ring. Big Foot was killed two or three yards
in front of his tent. Father Craft was near the center of the ring
when stabbed. The Indians broke to the west through B and K troops.
While in the council ring all the warriors had on blankets, with their
arms, principally Winchester rifles, concealed under them. Most of
the warriors, including the medicine-man, were painted and wore ghost
shirts.
At the first volley the Hotchkiss guns trained on the camp opened fire
and sent a storm of shells and bullets among the women and children,
who had gathered in front of the tipis to watch the unusual spectacle
of military display. The guns poured in 2-pound explosive shells at
the rate of nearly fifty per minute, mowing down everything alive. The
terrible effect may be judged from the fact that one woman survivor,
Blue Whirlwind, with whom the author conversed, received fourteen
wounds, while each of her two little boys was also wounded by her side.
In a few minutes 200 Indian men, women, and children, with 60 soldiers,
were lying dead and wounded on the ground, the tipis had been torn down
by the shells and some of them were burning above the helpless wounded,
and the surviving handful of Indians were flying in wild panic to the
shelter of the ravine, pursued by hundreds of maddened soldiers and
followed up by a raking fire from the Hotchkiss guns, which had been
moved into position to sweep the ravine.
There can be no question that the pursuit was simply a massacre,
where fleeing women, with infants in their arms, were shot down after
resistance had ceased and when almost every warrior was stretched
dead or dying on the ground. On this point such a careful writer as
Herbert Welsh says: “From the fact that so many women and children
were killed, and that their bodies were found far from the scene of
action, and as though they were shot down while flying, it would look
as though blind rage had been at work, in striking contrast to the
moderation of the Indian police at the Sitting Bull fight when they
were assailed by women.” (_Welsh, 3._) The testimony of American Horse
and other friendlies is strong in the same direction. (See page 839.)
Commissioner Morgan in his official report says that “Most of the men,
including Big Foot, were killed around his tent, where he lay sick. The
bodies of the women and children were scattered along a distance of two
miles from the scene of the encounter.” (_Comr., 35._)
This is no reflection on the humanity of the officer in charge. On the
contrary, Colonel Forsyth had taken measures to guard against such an
occurrence by separating the women and children, as already stated, and
had also endeavored to make the sick chief, Big Foot, as comfortable as
possible, even to the extent of sending his own surgeon, Dr Glennan, to
wait on him on the night of the surrender. Strict orders had also been
issued to the troops that women and children were not to be hurt. The
butchery was the work of infuriated soldiers whose comrades had just
been shot down without cause or warning. In justice to a brave regiment
it must be said that a number of the men were new recruits fresh from
eastern recruiting stations, who had never before been under fire, were
not yet imbued with military discipline, and were probably unable in
the confusion to distinguish between men and women by their dress.
After examining all the official papers bearing on the subject in the
files of the War Department and the Indian Office, together with the
official reports of the Commissioner of Indian Affairs and of the
Secretary of War and the several officers engaged; after gathering
all that might be obtained from unofficial printed sources and from
conversation with survivors and participants in the engagement on both
sides, and after going over the battle-ground in company with the
interpreter of the scouts engaged, the author arrives at the conclusion
that when the sun rose on Wounded Knee on the fatal morning of December
29, 1890, no trouble was anticipated or premeditated by either Indians
or troops; that the Indians in good faith desired to surrender and
be at peace, and that the officers in the same good faith had made
preparations to receive their surrender and escort them quietly to
the reservation; that in spite of the pacific intent of Big Foot and
his band, the medicine-man, Yellow Bird, at the critical moment urged
the warriors to resistance and gave the signal for the attack; that
the first shot was fired by an Indian, and that the Indians were
responsible for the engagement; that the answering volley and attack by
the troops was right and justifiable, but that the wholesale slaughter
of women and children was unnecessary and inexcusable.