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 THE PUBLIC SERVICES OF HIRAM PRICE. 6oi 
 
 Affairs. He entered upon the work of his new position with 
 his usual zeal and energy, and for four years labored to better 
 the condition of the Indians, and reform some of the methods 
 of dealing with them by the Government. He was now nearly 
 seventy years of age, and had since boyhood led an active 
 life, toiling early and late, in both private and public affairs. 
 Whatever business claimed his attention was prosecuted with 
 untiring vigor and generally led to success. For more than 
 thirty years he had been a leader in reform, financial and 
 political affairs in the State. From youthful poverty he had 
 won a competence; in the temperance movement he was con- 
 ceded the highest rank ; in financial enterprises he had 
 achieved great success; in official life his record was above 
 suspicion, and his influence was second to none in the State, 
 As a public speaker Mr. Price never resorted to the artifices 
 of the professional orator. He did not care to amuse his audi- 
 ence with a stock of anecdotes sandwiched in at regular inter- 
 vals to raise a laugh or win applause. He never " posed " for 
 effect, nor did he ever seek occasions to make speeches for the 
 purpose of advertising himself When he spoke in public it 
 was certain that he had something to say, and he went at it in 
 the most direct and straightforward manner. There was no 
 policy, no honeyed phrases to please the ear and conceal an 
 opinion. He used the plainest English, looking his audience 
 squarely in the eyes; he held their closest attention and 
 aroused the highest degree of enthusiasm by his fearless and 
 earnest utterances. No one could mistake his position. It 
 was always taken and maintained with a positiveness that left 
 no room for doubt. He never waited to catch the drift of the 
 popular breeze, but always led off, prompted only by his con- 
 victions of right and wrong. He was never a compromiser, 
 but on the contrary was one of the most vigorous fighters ot 
 the times. When overborne by the majority he acquiesced 
 gracefully, not because he was convinced that the decision was 
 right, but because he was loyal to the fundamental principle 
 of our republican government — that the majority should rule. 
 He made bitter enemies in his life-long war against evil-doers, 
 
rS'f'^ 
 
 602 ANNALS OF IOWA. 
 
 but intense as was their hatred, they secretly entertained a 
 profound respect for a foe so vaHant and sincere. 
 
 Mr. Price was often urged to become a candidate for Gov- 
 ernor, by friends who recognized his superb e.xecutive abihty, 
 but he did not care to enter into a contest for that exalted 
 position, and is content to live a quiet life as old age ap- 
 proaches. One of his last kindly remembrances of his old 
 Davenport home was a recent gift to the public library of that 
 city. He set aside an amount of money, the interest of which 
 is used to furnish a free reading room with thirty of the best 
 magazines, weekly and daily papers. He also furnished and 
 fitted up a commodious room where the people have free 
 access to the best current literature of the times. 
 
 And now past eighty years of age, his mental vigor unim- 
 paired, he is living a quiet life in his Washington home. Our 
 Iowa people remember and honor him for his noble life work 
 in behalf of our great State, and his name will be for all time 
 associated with the stirring events of the brightest pages of its 
 history. 
 
 The steel portrait which appears with this article was en- 
 graved from a photograph of Mr. Price taken in 1878. 
 
 FORT ARMSTRONG. 
 
 BV MRS. MARIA PECK. 
 
 Upon the large and beautifully wooded island in the Missis- 
 sippi now occupied by the splendid piles of solid masonry 
 comprising Rock Island Arsenal, picturesque and solitary Fort 
 Armstrong once .stood. 
 
 To ascertain the initial facts underlying the history of the 
 establishment of this military post in 1816, it is necessary to 
 go back to the earlier years of the century and review the 
 
FORT ARMSTRONG. 603 
 
 most important incidents upon which was based the claim of 
 the United States to an immense and valuable tract of country 
 then in the possession of the Indians. 
 
 In the year 1700, as nearly as the date can be determined, 
 the federated tribes of Sacs and Foxes — or Sauks and Rey- 
 nards — came from the vicinity of Green Bay and established 
 themselv^es on the eastern bank of the Mississippi near the 
 mouth of Rock River. 
 
 Accordini^ to their own traditions, both tribes originally 
 came from Canada. The date of their migration to the upper 
 lake region is not definitely known, though Father Hennepin 
 speaks of the Foxes as residents on Green Bay in 1680, and 
 another writer of the existence of a Sac village on Fox River in 
 1689. There is very good authority for the supposition that 
 they both descended from the great Chippewa nation. It is 
 known that the Foxes found and fought their way to their new 
 home first, and when joined some years later by the Sacs, were 
 in such a weakened condition from an encounter with the 
 allied forces of the French and Indians, followed by frequent 
 attacks of other hostile tribes, that they were unable to main- 
 tain themselves longer as an independent nation. 
 
 The Sacs in their wanderings had fared better though they 
 had suffered from a war with the Iroquois. So, in addition 
 to an aflfinity of kinship, the stronger bond of mutual protec- 
 tion induced the formation of a union — a relation which was 
 sustained uninterruptedly for upwards of a century. The con- 
 federacy was governed by two sets of chiefs, the civil and 
 military; each had separate and distinct powers conferred 
 upon it, though in all matters involving the sale of lands, 
 the making of important treaties or declaration of war, the two 
 ruling powers, to make such transaction valid, must act con- 
 junctively. When they finally settled in the surpassingly beau- 
 tiful and fertile Rock River region, the principal Sac village 
 — the one of historic fame — was located on the isthmus or 
 point of land formed by the junction of Rock River with the 
 Mississippi, about four miles below Rock Island. This 
 
604 ANNATE OF IOWA. 
 
 village became in time one of the largest, most populous, and 
 prosperous of the Indian villages on the continent. 
 
 Having secured by conquest a footing, these enterprising 
 and indomitable people were not content until they had sub- 
 jugated their southern neighbors and added to their posses- 
 sions rich and extensive hunting grounds, where in a more 
 genial climate they could spend the winter months. After 
 gaining the supremacy they sustained themselves as masters of 
 the country, not only against their ancient and implacable 
 enemies, the Sioux, and other warlike nations, but against a 
 powerful federation. Nevertheless these Indians, of whom it 
 has been said, that they had more courage in battle than 
 wisdom in council, in the year 1804 ceded to the United 
 States all of their possessions east of the Mississippi River for a 
 most insignificant compensation. 
 
 The complications and disagreements that followed the 
 consummation of this treaty caused all the serious difficulties 
 that subsequently arose between the Government and the 
 Indians down to and including the final struggle that resulted 
 in their expulsion from the country east of the river, and 
 almost the extinction of one of the bravest tribes that ever 
 wielded a tomahawk or followed a trail in the Mississippi 
 valley. 
 
 In the first article of the famous treaty, the Sac and Fox- 
 Indians were received, with much show of interest, into the 
 friendship of the United States and full protection guaranteed 
 them. For and in consideration of these valuable assets, 
 including two thousand two hundred and thirty-four dollars 
 and fifty cents in goods delivered at the time, and a promised 
 annual stipend amounting in value to one thousand dollars in 
 goods, the United States acquired a title to twenty millions of 
 acres of land. Article VII of the treaty contains its redeeming 
 feature. It reads as follows: " As long as the lands which are 
 now ceded to the United States remain their- property, the 
 Indians belonging to the said tribe shall enjoy the privilege of 
 living and hunting upon them. The treaty was negotiated at 
 Saint Louis, November, 1804. William Henry Harrison, 
 
FORT ARMSTRONG. 605 
 
 Superintendent of Indian Affairs for Indiana Territory and the 
 District of Louisiana, acted for the Government and five 
 representatives of the united Sac and Fox nation in behalf of 
 the Indians." 
 
 Many of the most prominent chiefs afterward repudiated 
 the treaty, saying that it was unauthorized, fraudulently 
 obtained, and therefore invalid. Black Hawk in his autobiog- 
 raphy gives an explicit account of the incidents which led to 
 its execution. It had its origin according to his story in this 
 way : one of their number had killed a white man and was 
 arrested and imprisoned at Saint Louis for the offense. A 
 council was called at the Sac village on Rock River (Black 
 Hawk's village) to consider the best means of obtaining his 
 release. . It was decided that a deputation consisting of four 
 men be sent to confer with the Indian authorities at Saint 
 Louis with instructions to offer money and horses, after their 
 own way of dealing in such matters, as a ransom. While there 
 on this business it was claimed that these delegates were made 
 drunk and in that condition induced to sign the objectionable 
 treaty. When they returned, after a protracted absence, it was 
 observed that they acted strangely, were dressed in fine 
 clothes and wore medals, but could give no very satisfactory 
 account of the mission with which they had been charged. 
 They reported that the agents wanted some of their land and 
 that they had agreed to give it to them, but the full import of 
 the transaction was not understood until some time later. 
 After a critical examination of all of the available evidence 
 General D. W. Flagler, in his History of Rock Island Arsenal, 
 says : " Other facts of history and the treaty itself .seem 
 to prove that this story, or at least its application, was without 
 good foundation." Still, judging of this matter from whatever 
 bias modern historians may choo.se to give it. the conscientious 
 student of history will hardly be able to divest himself of the 
 conviction that there was something unfair about the treaty 
 and irregular, if not intentionally dishonorable, in the way that 
 it was obtained. The persistent efforts of the (jovernment in 
 
6o6 ANNALS OF IOWA. 
 
 after years to secure its confirmation may be construed into- 
 an admission of its weakness. 
 
 Through the artful machinations of the English, and on 
 account of the bad faith of the Americans in not fulfilling their 
 pledges to furnish the Indians with supplies upon the same 
 favorable terms given by the English, Black Hawk and two 
 hundred warriors were persuaded to join the British army in 
 the war of 1812. This contingent under the leadership of 
 " General Black Hawk " was ever afterward known as the 
 " British Band." The participation of this party in the war 
 furnished a pretext for inviting all the chiefs of the two nations 
 to a general peace conference held at Portage des Sioux some- 
 time after its conclusion. The Fox chiefs and warriors 
 responded and joined in a treaty of peace in which w^s incor- 
 porated a ratification of the one of 1804. Black Hawk and his 
 followers refused to attend the meeting, though a short time 
 after a treaty of similar import was effected with a part}' of 
 Sacs. 
 
 It has been alleged that Black Hawk signed the latter, but 
 he strenuously affirmed that he did not, and from the fact that 
 another invitation to the Sac chiefs to attend a meeting at 
 Saint Louis was issued the following year, it would appear 
 that his statement must be accepted as the more reasonable. 
 This conference was called for the avowed purpose of conclud- 
 ing a new treaty that would bind the war faction of the Sac 
 nation to the provisions of the old ones. Twenty-one chiefs,, 
 including Black Hawk, attended, and on the 13th of May, 
 18 16, a new document was executed and signed by all the 
 chiefs present. But this did not terminate the troubles, for 
 afterward Black Hawk complained bitterly that he was 
 deceived and did not know when he touched the goose quill to- 
 the treaty that he was consenting to give away his village. 
 
 A general feeling of uneasiness caused by the continued un- 
 friendly attitude of the Sacs and Foxes, and their evident dis- 
 position to contest the claim of the Government to their lands 
 resulted in a regiment of infantry under Col. R. C. Nichol.s 
 being started from Saint Louis for Rock Island to establish a 
 
KOKT ARMSTRONG. 607 
 
 fort in September, 1815. The troops with necessary supplies 
 were transported in keel-boats, but before their destination was 
 reached the river was so obstructed b\' ice that they were com- 
 pelled to abandon the expedition until the following spring. 
 
 The troops under General Smith finally landed upon Rock 
 Island in May, 1816. The construction of the Fort was im- 
 mediately begun, and in honor of the Secretary of War was 
 called Fort Armstrong. After a temporary stay on Rock 
 Island, General Smith left the work in charge of Colonel Law- 
 rence and passed on up the river to Prairie du Chien to estab- 
 lish another post. 
 
 It was estimated that the united Sac and Fox nations num- 
 bered at that time 1 1,800 persons, all living in villages on both 
 sides of the Mississippi near Rock Island. 
 
 The day followmg the arrival ot the troops on the Island 
 General Smith sent messengers to all of the villages with an 
 invitation to their chiefs to meet him in council, but no atten- 
 tion was paid to the request. The Indians at first looked with 
 unfriendly eyes upon the project, for they knew only too well 
 the significance of a garrisoned fort in their immediate neigh- 
 borhood. The island itself had long been used by them as a 
 sort of pleasure park ; it was held in special veneration because 
 it was believed to be under the supervision of a good spirit, 
 whose habitation was in a cave in the rocks near the site of the 
 fort. No forcible resistance, however, was made to its erec- 
 tion, though it appears that an unsuccessful attempt was made 
 which probably, if it had not been frustrated, would have 
 resulted in a surprise and massacre of the encampment. 
 
 One day, while a large party of soldiers was engaged some 
 distance away in cutting timber, a party of warriors approached 
 the island on the north side in canoes and after landing 
 danced up to the encampment and wanted to enter the com- 
 mander's tent. At the same time another large party headed 
 by Keokuk was discovered coming over a ridge on the south 
 side. The sound of the bugle quickly recalled the soldiers to 
 their post, and in a very short space of time 600 men were 
 under arms with the cannon ready for action in front of the 
 
6o8 ANNALS OF IOWA. 
 
 encampment. The warriors immediately dispersed and the 
 contemplated attack was averted. 
 
 The following description of the completed fortress is taken 
 from General Flagler's History of Rock Island Arsenal : 
 
 " The interior of the fort was 400 feet square. The lower half 
 of the walls was of stone and the upper half of hewn timber. 
 At the three angles, the northwest, southwest and southeast, 
 block houses were built and these were provided with cannon. 
 One side of the square was occupied by barracks and other 
 buildings. These were built of hewn timber with roofs sloping 
 inward as a protection against their being fired by the Indians, 
 and that they might not furnish a safe lodging-place for the 
 enemy in an attack. The fort was placed at the extreme 
 angle of the island. Its northwest corner was about 200 feet 
 from the present location of the island end of the bridge." 
 
 The unrivalled beauty and peculiar charm of scenery 
 attaching to the island and surroundings, when found as 
 mother nature finished it, has been the theme which has in- 
 spired many of the most exquisite word pictures ever drawn 
 by pen. Lieutenant Pike in 1805 was captivated by its won- 
 drous loveliness, and James Hall, author of the History of the 
 North American Indians, in 1829 paid the varied scenic attrac- 
 tions of this historic region a long and beautifully worded 
 tribute. 
 
 Governor Ford, in his History of Illinois, gives a splendid 
 description of Fort Armstrong and the " romantic wilderness " 
 in which it was set, as it appeared to him when he first saw it 
 in 183 1. He compares "the white-washed walls and tower 
 of the fort perched upon a high cliff, as seen from a distance, 
 to one of those enchanted castles in an uninhabited desert, so 
 graphically described in the Arabian Nights." 
 
 After the completion of Fort Armstrong nothing occurred 
 to disturb the peaceful and friendly relations early established 
 between the occupants and the Indians until rhe trouble arose 
 which culminated in the Black Hawk war. The Indians con- 
 tinued going south in winter on hunting expeditions and 
 while absent their villages were left unprotected. In the 
 
FORT ARMSTRONG. 609 
 
 Avinter of 1828, a number of lawless individuals, called at that 
 time squatters, took possession of Black Hawk's village and 
 on his return contended with him for its occupancy. Ordina- 
 rily the Indians would have been equal to an emergency of 
 this kind, but either from motives of policy or a sincere desire 
 to avoid trouble with their white neighbors, no attempt was 
 made to avenge their wrongs by a resort to violence. The 
 aggressors, emboldened by the seeming good nature of the 
 Indians, continued to annoy them until retaliatory measures 
 were at last provoked. Black Hawk, especially, resented the 
 introduction of whisky among his people, and to prevent it, 
 resorted to some vigorous and effective prohibition methods. 
 Thereupon the intruders appealed to the authorities for pro- 
 tection, and without regard for the merits or justice of the 
 case, this flimsy pretext was used as an excuse for selling, pre- 
 maturely, a few sections of land on Rock River, including the 
 one occupied by the Sac village. As has been seen by one 
 of the provisions of the treaty of 1804, the Indians were not 
 tenants at will, but retained the right to live upon their lands 
 until they were sold. It is perfectly apparent that the exped- 
 ient of disposing of a small portion was resorted to for the sole 
 purpose of dispossessing them of this right. The transaction 
 furnishes another exemplification of the political creed ot 
 might as well as a strange inconsistency, for at the same time 
 that the Government was insisting upon the fulfillment of the 
 letter of a compact on one hand it was openly violating its 
 spirit on the other. 
 
 A peremptory order for the removal of all Sac and Fox In- 
 dians to the west side of the Mississippi quickly followed 
 the sale. Keokuk, a popular and rising young war chief 
 listened to the counsel of his friends at the fort and with 
 a large party of followers settled on low^a River. Black Hawk 
 was not so complacent, and persistently refused to give up the 
 home to which he was so deeply attached. Meanwhile niat- 
 ters between the trespassers and the remaining Indians grew 
 more and more aggravating, until a second appeal was made 
 for protection. This brought General Gaines with a regiment 
 
6lO ANNALS OF IOWA. 
 
 of soldiers from Jefferson Barracks, and Governor Reynolds of 
 Illinois with i,6oo mounted militiamen to the scene. General 
 Gaines, wishing to accomplish the ejectment of the Indian 
 tenants, peaceably if possible, called a general council at Fort 
 Armstrong, and might have gaiAed his object sooner if he had 
 better understood the spirit and temper of the people with 
 whom he was dealing. He began with a speech which was 
 admirably calculated to kindle the hostility of those whom he 
 desired to conciliate. Among other things he called for the 
 reading of the treaty of 1804. This brought Black Hawk to 
 his feet with some very forcible and convincing arguments 
 concerning its invalidity. The General then asked : " Who 
 is Black Hawk? Is he a chief? By what right does he 
 appear in council?" The old chief, highly indignant, wrapped 
 his blanket about him and stalked out of the room. 
 
 The following day, after resuming his seat, he arose and said : 
 " My father, you inquired yesterday, who is Black Hawk ? 
 Why does he sit among the chiefs ? I will tell you who I 
 am. I am a Sac, my father was a Sac ; I am a warrior and so 
 was my father. Ask those young men who have followed me 
 to battle and they will tell you who Black Hawk is. Provoke 
 our people to war and you will learn who Black Hawk is." 
 
 Because of this rupture the conference resulted in the refusal 
 of the Indians to vacate their village. A more dispassionate 
 view of the situation was arrived at later, and in a few days 
 the Indians quietly withdrew from their village, crossed over 
 to the west bank of the Mississippi and encamped under the 
 protection of a white flag. On the 30th of June, 1831, a coun- 
 cil was again summoned at the fort, a treaty of peace concluded, 
 the memorable treaty of 1804 again ratified, and an additional 
 pledge exacted from Black Hawk that he would not recross 
 the river, duly incorporated. The motives which led to the 
 violation of this stipulation the following year, have been 
 variously interpreted. The re-appearance of the old chieftain, 
 accompanied by a few hundred of his faithful adherents, was 
 construed at the time into a hostile intention to re-occupy his 
 old village, whereas, it would seem now that, whatever ulterior 
 
FORT ARMSTRONG. 6ll 
 
 designs he may have entertained, the rash act was undertaken 
 with nothing more serious in view than the acceptance of an 
 invitation from his old friends and neighbors, the Winnebagoes, 
 on the upper part of Rock River to pay them a visit and raise 
 a crop of corn on their lands. 
 
 The note of alarm was immediately sounded ; an order issued 
 by General Atkinson for their return was ignored, and decisive 
 measures were at once instituted to compel obedience. The 
 Black Hawk war followed — a useless conflict in which in ad- 
 dition to the sacrifice of many lives both the national honor 
 and treasury suffered. A few thousands of dollars in connec- 
 tion with a spirit ot sincere good will would have at almost 
 any time secured the territory in dispute, and the peaceful re- 
 moval of the Indians to their lands west of the Mississippi. 
 
 It is a fact worthy of mention that only a short time prior 
 to the events which precipitated the final contest, si.\ thousand 
 dollars paid to the disaffected fragments of the Sacs and Foxes 
 would have effected the substantial results achieved by the 
 war, and quieted all complaints. The Government refused to 
 compromise, and waged a war of extermination during which 
 the flag of truce, held sacred by all the civilized nations of the 
 world, was twice fired upon. The war cost two million dollars. 
 The treaty made by General Scott with the Indians at the con- 
 clusion of the war terminated at last the difficulties and also 
 added six million acres west of the Mississippi (afterwards 
 comprised in the State of Iowa) known as the " Black I lawk 
 Purchase," to the territory of the United States. Owing to the 
 fact that an epidemic of cholera was raging among General 
 Scott's troops detained at Fort Armstrong, all the deliberations 
 connected with this important treaty were conducted in a tent 
 on the west bank of the river. The ground occupied was the 
 site upon which was afterward built the first house erected in 
 the city of Davenport. Black llawk and a few of his adherents 
 were held as hostages, ami with a view of impressing them 
 with the vastness of the country, the nutnerical strength and 
 greatness of the people, they were taken to Washington antl 
 from there through many of the large cities of the East. 
 
6l2 ANNALS OF IOWA. 
 
 Probably no more pathetic, affecting, and in some respects 
 more ludicrous scene was ever enacted at Fort Armstrong than 
 the closing one in the long series that formally severed all con- 
 nection of the Sacs and Foxes with their old homes, and also 
 achieved by the intervention of the Government the humilat- 
 ing subjugation of the broken, but true-hearted son of the 
 wilderness. Black Hawk, and the official recognition of his pow- 
 erful and hated rival, Keokuk, as the leader of his nation. 
 Upon the arrival of Major Garland with his captives at the fort, 
 a grand council was convened so that the liberation of the 
 prisoners might be attended with the most impressive and im- 
 posing ceremonies. " The princely Keokuk," who was expect- 
 ing the party, was encamped in the vicinity, and came up to the 
 island in a style that befitted his newly acquired rank and the oc- 
 casion. In two canoes lashed together side by side, fantastically 
 decorated and covered by a canopy, the stars and stripes floating 
 from above, sat Keokuk and his three wives. His approach 
 was announced by the sound of Indian drums and the wild 
 shouts and songs of his followers ; next came a fleet consist- 
 ing of twenty canoes in which were seated the chiefs and one 
 hundred warriors. The most careful attention had been be- 
 stowed upon their toilets, and the spectacle as they moved 
 slowly up to the island is said to have been exceedingly bril- 
 liant and novel. The commodious council room at the fort 
 had been fitted up for the occasion with more than usual barbaric 
 splendor. Major Garland acted as chief speaker for the Govern- 
 ment. The delicate business, however, of announcing to the as- 
 sembled chiefs and warriors that the deposed chieftain must 
 henceforth conform to the counsels and authority of Keokuk 
 was indiscreetly managed, and the fiery spirit that once animated 
 the illustrious warrior was again manifested. Serious difficulty 
 was averted by the timely and pacific words of the eloquent, 
 talented and politic Keokuk and the friendly advice of Colonel 
 George Davenport, to whom Black Hawk was sincerely at- 
 tached. 
 
 The pomp and magnificence of Keokuk and his party, the 
 discordant surroundings and ostentatious ceremonies, little ac- 
 
FORT ARMSTRONG. " 613 
 
 corded with the melancholy mood of the fallen hero, and in 
 his mind added an unnecessary drop to the bitter cup that had 
 been forced upon him ; yet with the exception of the episode 
 referred to, he maintained throucjhout the conference a digni- 
 fied but respectful silence. 
 
 When the banishment of the last remnant of the Sacs and 
 Foxes from their villages, for which they entertained, says 
 General Flagler, " an affection like that of the Jews for the city 
 of Jerusalem," was effected, the ultimate object for which Fort 
 Armstrong was established was attained, and it was soon after 
 abandoned, never to be re-garrisoned. 
 
 About these Indians it may be said that those of the early 
 settlers who knew them best have given them the best charac- 
 ter for honesty and sobriety. 
 
 Davenport, Iowa. 
 
 LETTERS OF WILLIAM CLARK AND NATHANIEL 
 
 PRYOR. 
 
 BY ELLIOTT COUES. 
 
 When Captains Lewis and Clark were returning from their 
 expedition, and had reached the Mandan villages, in August, 
 1806, they then and there took with them, for a visit to 
 President Jefferson, a Mandan chief known by the names ot 
 Shahaka, Gros Blanc and Big White. For this chief, see the 
 1893 edition of Lewis and Clark, pp. xxxix, ciii, 182, 185, 192, 
 209, 236, 242, 247, 1 184, 1 185. 1 186, 1 191, 1212. 
 
 The attempt to send Shahaka safe home again, and its frus- 
 tration by a sharp collision with hostile Indians, in the vicinity 
 of Bismarck, S. D., in September, 1807, form the main sub- 
 ject of the four letters now first published. The originals, in 
 the handwritings of Captain Clark and Ensign Pryor, respect- 
 ively, are on file in the archives of the War Department at 
 
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 
 
 016 090 965 1^ 
 
 614 ANNALS OF IOWA. 
 
 Washington, where I have examined and copied them, word 
 for word, letter for letter and point for point. General Clark's 
 three letters are in official correspondence with General Henry- 
 Dearborn, Secretary at War, in his capacity as Indian Agent 
 for Louisiana ; one of them covers and transmits Ensign Pry- 
 or's official report to him, narrating the interesting incident, no 
 sufficient account of which has hitherto appeared in print. 
 
 We know very little of Nathaniel Pryor, beyond the main 
 fact that he was one of four sergeants of Lewis and Clark's 
 expedition (the others being Charles Floyd, who died early in 
 the expedition ; Patrick Gass ; and John Ordway), and afterward 
 commissioned in the army. It appears from Heitman's Regis- 
 ter of the United States Army that Nathaniel Pryor, of Ken- 
 tucky, was appointed an ensign in the First Infantry, Feb. 27, 
 1807; promoted to be second lieutenant. May 3, 1808; re- 
 signed, April I, 1 8 10; was made first lieutenant in the Forty- 
 fourth Infantry, August 30, 181 3; promoted to be captain, 
 October i, 1814; and honorably discharged, June 15, 1815. 
 
 Saint Louis June ist 1807. 
 Sir 
 
 In my letter to you of the i6th ulto: 1 informed you that a deputation from 
 
 several bands of the Sieoux Nation had arrived at this place with Wm. Dorion, &c. 
 Those Indians set out on their return a few days past highly pleased with the 
 presents & treatment which they have received. Colonel [Thomas] Hunt fur- 
 nished a Lieut, seven men and a boat to escort those people to their Country in 
 safety. By the recjuest of the Mandan Chief [Shahaka, Gros Blanc or Big White], 
 I have suffered him to delay and go in Company with the Sieoux. The party 
 accompanying those Indians consists of I Lieut. I Ensign, i Sergt. I Corpl. 18 
 privates, i hunter and 3 hired boatmen. Young Chouteau (late an Officer) has 
 a boat and perogue and 32 men (for the Mandan Trade) Young Dorion has a 
 boat and 10 men (for the Sieoux Trade) those together with the 2 interpreters 
 makes a total of 70 men ; exclusive of the 18 Indian Men and womin and 6 chil- 
 dren. After Lieut. Kimble's [Joseph KimbaH's] return which will be from the 
 Sieoux Country, Ensign I'ryors Party will consist of 48 men which will be fully 
 sufficient to pass any hostile band which he may probably meet with. I am 
 informed that the Ricaras have moved moved [bisj to the Mandans for fear of 
 being cut off by the Sieoux of the North ; I think it probable that the report is 
 correct, and a measure which I advised them to as I decendetl Jast fall from a 
 knowledge of their dependence on the Sieoux. 
 
 Mr. Bolvar [Nicholas Roilvin] has returned from the Saukees without the 
 
\ 
 
 LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 
 
 llllii 
 
 016 090 965 1 <