Chapter 4 3. Crow's War

1862 On April 6, General Grant defeated the Confederates at the Battle of Silo.Thoreau died on May 6th; at the age of forty-five.On May 20, the National Assembly passed the Homestead Farm Act, which set a price of 3.5 per hectare. The selling price of 08 US dollars will allocate 65 hectares of the western land to each resettler.On July 2, Congress passed the Morell Act, creating a federally supported college of higher education.On July 10, construction began on the Central Pacific Railway.On August 30, the Federal Army was defeated in the second Battle of Niuxi.On September 17, the Confederates were defeated at the Battle of Andy Hall.On September 22, Lincoln announced that all slaves would be free since New Year's Day, 1863.On October 13, Bismarck delivered an iron-blooded speech in Germany.On December 13, the Federal Army was defeated at Fredericksburg, causing heavy damage and panic throughout the country; several Army units entered the Winter Barracks and almost mutinied.On December 29, General Sherman was defeated at the Cheekshabayo River.Published by Hugo Les Miserables and Turgenev, Father and Son.

1863 On April 2, a bread riot broke out in Chemon, Virginia.From May 2nd to 4th, the Confederate Confederates were victorious at Chacena.From July 1st to 3rd, the Union Army defeated the Confederate Army at Gettysburg.On July 4, Vicksburg fell to General Grant.On July 11, the Confederate Union Army began conscription.From July 13 to 17, a draft riot broke out in New York City, killing hundreds of people. Riots also broke out in many cities.On July 15, Confederate President Davis ordered conscription.On September 5th, a bread riot broke out in Mubier City, and the face value of the Confederate dollar fell to eight cents.On November 1, five Russian warships entered New York Harbor to a great reception.From November 24th to 25th, President Lincoln pardoned the Confederates who returned to the Union.

The whites have always wanted the Indians to give up their lives and live like whites and farm and work and do what they do and the Indians don't know how to do it and won't do it anyway .If Indians want white people to live like red people, white people will refuse, and many Indians are like this. Chief Eagle of the Sioux Sandy Tribe At the same time as the great white civil war, nearly fifteen hundred kilometers south of the Na'vio land, the Sandy tribe of the Sioux was losing their homeland forever and ever.The Sandi tribe is divided into four branches: Dimdi Uken, Wapton, Wapkudi, and Xisedun.They are forest Sioux, but maintain close ties, and have a strong sense of tribal self-esteem like their brothers of the same lineage on the grassland, the Yang Ke Dun tribe and the Tita tribe.The Sandy Tribe is the most remote people and the border guards of the Sioux sphere of influence.

In the decade before the Civil War, the left wing of the once-permanent Indian frontier collapsed as 150,000 white settlers advanced into the Sandy tribal territory.Under two fraudulent treaties, the Woodland Sioux gave away nine-tenths of their land and crowded the narrow strip along the Minnesota River.From the beginning, stewards and traders, like vultures hovering over the carcasses of buffalo, systematically robbed them of most of the annuities they had persuaded the white man to give up their lands. here. Many whites often insulted the Indians and treated them very rudely. Da Ying said: Maybe they have an excuse, but the Indians don't think so.When a lot of white people see an Indian, it's always like I'm better than you.The Indians don't like it, and there's an excuse for that, but the Dakotas (Sioux) don't believe that there are better people in the world than they are.Afterwards, some white men abused Indian women in some way, making them ashamed. There should be no excuse for this.All these things make many, many Indians dislike white people.

In the summer of 1862, when everything seemed to go from bad to worse among the Sandy tribe and the white people, most of the wild animals were gone from the reservations, and the Indians crossed over into their old hunting grounds. White immigrants have already bought it, and disputes often arise.The Indians have had poor harvests for two consecutive years, and many people can only go to the management office (clan station) to get food on credit. The Sandy people have learned to hate the credit system because they cannot control the accounting.When Washington allocated their annuities, the traders were the first to report the accounts, and the government administrators deducted as much as they reported in the accounts.Some Sandys learned to keep accounts, and though they kept accounts many oceans less than the traders' accounts, the administrators did not accept their accounts.

In the summer of 1863, Crow was very angry with these traders.He is the chief of the Ukendun tribe in Emdi, as is his father and ancestor.The man was sixty years old, and he always wore long-sleeved clothes, covering his arms and wrists. His arms were shrunken because of the serious wounds he suffered in combat when he was young.Little Crow signed both of the treaties to trick other people from leaving the land and paying with money.He has been to Washington, visited the patriarch President Buchanan; he exchanged his shorts and blanket for a pair of trousers and a coat with brass buttons; he entered the Episcopal Church, built a house, opened a A farm.But in the summer of 1862, Crow's disillusionment turned to anger.

In July, thousands of Sandi people gathered at the upper management office of the Huangyao River to receive the annuity, which was guaranteed by the treaty, and they could use this in exchange for food.The money didn't arrive, but there were rumors that the big meeting in Washington was fighting the big civil war, and all the gold was spent, and there was no way to send any gold to the Indians.Because their people were starving, Little Crow and some other chiefs went to the administrator Gebris and asked him why he didn't send them food from the warehouse of the management office. The warehouse was full of food.Gebris said he couldn't do it unless the appropriation arrived, and sent a hundred soldiers to guard the warehouse.On August 4th, five hundred Sandi people surrounded the large army, and others broke into the storehouse and began to carry sacks of flour outside.The white soldier chief Sheehan was very sympathetic to the Sandy people, not only did not shoot at them, but also persuaded the administrator Gabriel to send pork and flour to the Indians, and pay them back after the allocation arrived.After Gubris complied, the Sandys left unharmed.However, the little crow would not leave unless the administrator agreed that the downstream management office in Hongmu Town, 50 kilometers downstream of the river, would also distribute the same amount of food to the Sandi people.

Although Little Crow's village was very close to the downstream management office, Gebras made him wait for several days before arranging a meeting in Redwood Town on August 15th.Early that morning, Little Crow and hundreds of hungry Umdi Ukentun tribesmen gathered together; but from the very beginning, the fact was clear that Gebris and the four members of the Downstream Management Office The traders, before the annuity payment has been paid, do not intend to send food from their shops first. Another dishonesty made the little crow furious. He stood up, faced Gabriel, and spoke on behalf of his people: We have been waiting for a long time, the money is ours, but we But can't get it.We didn't have anything to eat, but the shops here are full of food.We ask you, Administrator, to arrange for us to get food from these shops, or we may have to save ourselves from starvation by our own means.When people are hungry, they will come by themselves.

Gebris didn't answer, and turned to the traders, asking them what to do.A trader, Malik, said contemptuously: As for me, if they are hungry, let them eat grass, or eat their own shit. The surrounding Indians were silent for a while, and then roared, and the Sandy people stood up at the same time and left the venue. Myric's words angered all the Sandy people, but to Little Crow, these words were like a fiery explosion to his already sealed emotions.For many years, he tried to abide by the treaty, heeded the advice of the white people, and led his people to follow the rules.It seemed like he had lost it all, the people had lost faith in him, blamed him for their bad luck, and now the stewards and traders weren't dumping him.In the early summer, the people in charge of the Ukendun tribe in the lower reaches of the Sohamdi cursed the little crow for betraying them, signed the treaty, and gave away the land; they chose You Hai to replace the little crow as a spokesperson.If Crow had persuaded the steward Gebris and the trader to distribute food to the people, they would have respected him again, but he had failed.

In those days, he could wage war and regain leadership, but he was bound by treaty not to engage in hostile acts, whether against whites or other tribes.He wondered, what's going on?The Americans talk so much about peace, their peace with the Indians, and Indians with Indians, and yet they themselves go to a savage war with the gray uniforms, and leave no money left to pay the Sandys little a debt?He knew that some young men of his own tribe were talking openly of a war with the whites to drive them out of the valley of the Minnesota River.They said it was a good time to fight the whites, because there were a lot of blue-uniformed soldiers who went off to fight the gray-uniformed men.Crow thought such talk foolish. He had been to the East and seen the strength of the Americans.They were everywhere, like locusts, and they destroyed the enemy with a thunderous cannon, and it was unthinkable to start a war with the whites.

On August 17th, Sunday, Xiaoya attended the Episcopal Church of the Downstream Management Institute and listened to Pastor Xingman's sermon.After the service, he shook hands with other church members and went back to his home three kilometers upstream from the management office. Late that night, Little Crow was awakened by the voices of many people, and the noise of several Sandy people entering his bedroom.He recognized Shekpi's voice. Something very important had happened, very bad.Xie Kepi, Mankato, Pill Bottle, and Big Eagle all came in. They said that Chief Wabasha would arrive for a meeting soon. There were four young lads in Xie Kepi's party, hungry and eager to find something to eat, when they crossed the river to hunt in the big forest that sunny afternoon, and there something went wrong.The Eagle told this story: They came to a settlement fence, where they saw a hen's nest with many eggs in it.One of them picked up all the eggs, and the other said: Don't take them, they are all white people's, and they may cause trouble.The one who took the egg was furious, because he was hungry and wanted to eat the egg, so he threw the egg on the ground and said, "You are a coward, afraid of white people, so afraid that you don't even dare to take an egg, even if you are half starved."Yeah, you're a coward, and I'm going to tell everybody that.The one replied: I am not a coward, and I am not afraid of white people. I want to show you that I am not a coward. I dare to go into the house and beat him to death. Do you have the guts to come with me?The one who called him a coward said: Dare, I will definitely go with you, and I can also see which one of us is better.They all went into the white man's house, but he got scared and ran to another house where there were also white men and women, and the four Indians followed and killed three men and two women, sparking a group from another settler's house, chased them to Shekopi's camp and told what they had done. As soon as the little crow heard that the white man had been killed, he scolded the four young men, and then asked Xie Kepi and the others sarcastically, didn't they choose You Hai as their spokesperson?Why come to him again for advice?The leaders assured Little Crow that he was still the war chief of the tribe.They said that after this murder case, no one in the Sandy tribe will be safe. The way for the white people is to punish all the Indians if one or a few people make mistakes and commit crimes; Instead of waiting for the soldiers to come and slaughter them.It's a good time to be with the whites, because they're far south, and they're fighting each other. The little crow rebuked this statement straight away, saying that the power of the white people is too strong.However, he also admitted that because the woman was killed, the white immigrants would definitely have severe revenge.Xiao Ya's son, who was present at the time, later said that his father looked haggard, with large beads of sweat dripping from his forehead. Finally, a young warrior shouted: "Little Crow is a coward!" The word pussy has caused this kind of killing, and the word was a challenge when the lad was starving but afraid to take the white man's eggs.As far as the chief of the Sioux tribe is concerned, even if he has already walked halfway on the road of the white people, he cannot easily accept this word. As far as his youngest son remembered, the little crow replied: The little crow is not a coward, and he is not a fool either!When did he escape from the front of the enemy?During the battle, when had he left the warriors behind him and returned to his own cone?When did he flee from your enemies?He walks behind your retreat path, facing the Ojibwe tribe, covering your back like a mother bear protecting her cubs!Has the little crow never scalped?Look at his battle feathers!Look at the hairs of your enemies hanging from tent poles!Do you call him a coward?Little Crow is not a coward, nor is he a fool.Warriors, you are like little babies who don't know what you are doing. You're all full of white man's ghost water, like a pack of dogs in the summer months, running mad and pouncing on your own shadows.We only have a few scattered bison herds left, and the big herds that used to cover the mountains and plains on the grasslands are no longer there.Understand!The white man was like a locust, and flew up to the sky in such a thick layer that the whole sky was like a snowstorm.You may kill one, two, ten; yes, their brethren are as numerous as the leaves in the distant woods, and they will not let you go, they will kill one, two, ten, and ten times as many will come to kill you.The white man with the gun in his hand will come so fast, count your fingers all day faster than you can count. Yes, they are fighting themselves at a distance.Have you heard the thunder of their cannon?Where they are fighting, you have to run for two moons to get there. On the road you pass, there will be white soldiers, densely packed like larch in the swamp of the Ojibwe tribe. Yes, they are fighting themselves But if you hit them, they'll all turn on you, and devour you, your women and babies, like locusts that will settle on a tree and kill you in a day. All the leaves are eaten up. You are fools, you can't see the face of your leader, your eyes are full of smoke; you can't hear his voice, your ears are full of roaring water.Warriors, you are all children, you are fools, when hungry wolves pounce on the cold first month, you will die like rabbits. Little Crow is not a coward, he will die with you. At this time, Daying talked about peace, but was booed.Ten years of white man's abuse Treaty broken; Loss of hunting grounds; Promises not kept; Everything comes up, making the killer of the white immigrant irrelevant. The Little Crow sent messengers upriver, calling the tribes of the Wapton and the West Sideon to fight, and the women were woken up to cast bullets, and the warriors polished the guns. Little Crow issued an order to attack the management office in the early morning of the next day and kill all the traders; Big Eagle later said: The next day, when the troops began to attack the management office, I also went there.I didn't lead my own group, and I didn't participate in the killing. I went to do my best to save the lives of my two good friends.I think other people go for the same reason, because almost every Indian has a friend who doesn't want him to be killed; of course, he doesn't care about other people's friends.By the time I got there, the killing was pretty much done, and Crow was there directing the fight.The trader, Mr. Myrick, had an Indian wife, and some Indians asked him for some grain on credit. He refused to agree to this short-term credit, but said to them: Go and graze.At this time, he was lying dead on the ground with a lot of grass in his mouth. The Indian laughed and said, "Malik is eating grass by himself." The Sandi killed twenty men, kidnapped ten women and children, emptied the storehouses of food, and set fire to nearby buildings.The remaining forty-seven residents (some escaped with the assistance of friendly Sandys) escaped across the river and fled twenty kilometers downstream to Fort Ridgely. These narrow escapes, on their way to Fort Richley, encountered a company of forty or fifty soldiers marching to aid the Management Office.Pastor Xingman, who preached the previous day and was the last sermon Little Crow had heard, warned the soldiers to retreat. Ma Xi, who led the team, ignored the warning and ran headlong into the ambush of the Sandi people. His officers and soldiers had only Twenty-one people escaped alive and fled back to Fort Richley. Spurred on by the success of the First World War, the Crow resolved to attack Fort Ridgely, the barracks itself. Came from the upper management office, and at this time, the Eagle's people had joined the war, and he could no longer remain neutral. At night, these chiefs and hundreds of warriors under their command walked down the Minnesota Valley, and in the early morning of August 19, they began to gather on the prairie west of the fort.All the boys were eager to do it. Among the participating soldiers, a lightning blanket said: We are painted with combat colors like soldiers, shorts and leggings, and a large belt is wrapped around the body, which contains food and bullets. Some young men who had no combat experience reconsidered attacking this place when they saw the solid stone tower of the soldiers' barracks and the armed blue uniforms were waiting there.All the way down from the management post, they talked about how easy it would be to attack Xinwumu Town, a village on the Baiyang River;Why didn't they fight it at New Umm?The little crow told them that the Sandy people are now at war, and to win, they must defeat the soldiers in blue uniform.If the soldiers could be driven out of the valley, all the white immigrants would go away.But in New Um the Sandys would get nothing but a few whites to kill. But despite Crow's scolding and pleading, the boys started to slip towards the river.Crow discusses with the other chiefs, and they decide to postpone the assault on Fort Richley until the next day. We start at sunrise, says Lightning Blanket, cross the river at the Ferry Management Office, and follow the road under Faribat Creek to the top of the hill.We rested there for a short while, and the little crow issued a plan to attack the fort there After approaching the fort area, the medicine bottle men issued three gunshots as a signal to attract the attention and firepower of the soldiers, so the people from the east (Daying's men), west, and south (Little Crow and Xie Kepi's men) , can rush up and seize the fort area. We arrived at Sanlixi before noon, cooked some food there, and after eating we dispersed, and I led the infantry northward, leaving Little Crow.Let's leave the chiefs alone, and everyone can do what they like.The two parties approached the keep at about the same time, and we could see them passing to the west, with Crow on a black horse.We are Vial's men, we give the signal Three shots.As soon as the signal was given, people from the east, west, and south all approached slowly. While we were shooting, we ran to a house near the big stone house.When we ran over, we saw the man with the cannon. We all knew that man, because we were the only ones he could see, and he fired at us. He heard the signal gun in our direction, and he was ready.When our signal gun sounded, Little Crow's men began to shoot, and the soldiers who fired at us were killed. Two of us were killed, three were wounded, and two were dying.We ran back into the creek, wondering if the others were going to come up and close, and we could have shot and killed the soldiers at the same time, because the soldiers were coming out of the gate between the two big houses.We don't fight like the whites, where one officer commands; we all shoot at will.The plan to break into the house was abandoned, and we shot at the windows, mostly at the windows of the big stone house because we thought there were a lot of white people in there. We couldn't see them, so we couldn't be sure if someone was killed.In shooting, we wanted to set the house on fire, so we fired rockets, but the house didn't burn, so we had to get more powder and more guns.By the time we circled to Fort West the sun was about two hours high.Decided to go back to Little Crow Village and come back to continue fighting the next day There were about 400 Indians in this attack, but the women did not follow, and they all stayed in Little Crow Village.Cooking was done by boys between the ages of ten and fifteen, too young to fight. That night in the village, both Xiaoya and Daying were listless, because they failed to pull down the soldier's house.Big Eagle objected to another attack. He said that the number of Sandi warriors was not enough to go straight to the cannons of the soldiers. If there was another attack, too many people would be lost.Little Crow said that he would decide what to do in the future.At the same time, everyone should go to work to manufacture as many bullets as possible; and keep enough gunpowder in the warehouse of the management office. In the middle of the night, things changed.From the upper management, came four hundred warriors of the Wapton and West Saidon tribes, and joined the Umdi Ukentun tribe in the war against the whites.The little crow was triumphant, and the Sioux Sandi people were united again. With more than 800 troops, they would definitely be able to take down Fort Lichley.He convened a combat conference and issued strict orders for the next day's operations. This time they must not fail. We set off in the early morning of August 22, and the Lightning Blanket said: But the grass was wet with dew, and it was even wetter than when we attacked the previous day, so we had not advanced too far, and the sun was quite high, just before noon , we arrived at the fort this time we didn't stop to eat, but everyone brought food in their leg pockets, and we fought and ate at noon. Big Eagle said that World War II Fort Richley was a big deal.We were determined to take the Fort because we knew that it was of the greatest and greatest importance.If we could get it down, we'd have the whole Minnesota Valley in no time. This time, the Sandy warriors did not approach the fort boldly, but tied grassland flowers and plants on their headbands as a cover, then climbed up the mountain from the ravine, and crawled among the bushes until they were close Can shoot the defenders.A shower of rockets set the roof ablaze, and the Sandys rushed to the barn.In this battle, Vakendiyaman said: I came to the stable from the south to get a horse.Just as I was making my way towards the stables, in a stable near me, a shell exploded, a horse leaped over me and fled, and threw me to the ground with a hoof.I got up and saw a mule running. I was so angry that I killed it with one shot. Within a few minutes, hand-to-hand combat broke out around the stall, but the Sandi people were blasted back again under the heavy bombardment of the soldiers' cannons. Little Crow died, and his injuries were not serious, but the loss of blood made him paralyzed.He retreated from the field to recover his strength, and again charged forward, led by Mankato, and the double-charged cannon fire cut off the advancing warriors, and the attack failed again. If it weren't for the cannon, I think we'd have taken the whole fort down.Daying said: The soldiers fought so bravely that we thought there were many more of them than they actually were. (A total of 150 defenders and 25 armed civilians guarded Fort Richley on August 22.) During the battle that day, most of Eagle's men were lost. By dusk, the leaders of the Sandi tribe called off the attack.The sun was already low at this time, and the Lightning Blanket said: After we saw the people from the south and the west, they were all driven back by the cannons, and we saw the little crow and his people going to the northwest, so we decided to join them. After seeing what to do to meet them, we thought we were going back to Little Crow Village to add more fighters. Little Crow told us that there were no more fighters there, and we immediately started discussing it.Some people will attack the fort area again the next morning, and then attack the town of New Oum; some will attack the town of New Oum in the early morning, and then return to take the fort area.We were afraid that the soldiers would reach New Oumm first. The soldier mentioned by Lightning Blanket was the Sixth Minnesota Regiment with 1,400 troops coming from St. Paul. The head of the regiment was Colonel Sibler, a high-ranking businessman who was very familiar with the Sioux Sandy tribe.In the first treaty, he promised to pay $475,000 to the Sandy Tribe, but the high businessman Seborough withheld $145,000, saying that his American Fur Company had overpaid Sandy. The Sandi people thought that the fur company did not pay them enough, but the administrator Ramsey accepted the demands of Siberle and other traders, so that the Sandi people lost money from their own land. Received, in fact, nothing. (At this time, Ramsey, who was governor of Minnesota, appointed Merchant Tall as Chief Peahawk of the Minnesota regiment.) In the middle of the morning on August 23rd, the Sandys attacked the town of New Umm. Under the bright sunlight, they poured out of the woods, formed an arc on the grassland, and swept towards the town.The townspeople are ready. Since the unsuccessful attack of those young warriors on August 19, the townspeople have built various barriers and brought in more weapons. The militiamen of other towns in the valley Watch closely with assistance.When the Sandy people approached the front line of the white defense line for two and a half kilometers, groups of Sandy people fanned out, and at the same time increased their advancing speed, shouting and killing on the other side to scare the white people.The leader of the battle on this day was Mankato (Little Crow lying wounded in the village), and his attack plan was to encircle the town. The shooting from both sides was fierce and fast, but the Indians' charge was slowed down by the townspeople, who used the houses that had been shot through as defensive positions.Early in the afternoon the Sandys set fire to several buildings on the windward side of New Oum, trying to make their way under such a screen of smoke.Sixty soldiers, some on horseback, some on foot, rushed towards the obstacle, but were blasted back by rows of fierce gunfire.The battle was fought long and fiercely, in the streets, in the houses, in the outhouses, and in the warehouses.When night fell, the Sandi people retreated without success, but what remained were 190 smoking ruins and more than 100 casualties among the tenacious defenders of New Um Town. Three days later, the vanguard of High Merchant Seborough's regiment arrived at Fort Ridgely, and the Sandys began to retreat to the upper valley of the Minnesota River. They were accompanied by more than 200 captives, most of whom were white women and children, and Quite a lot of sympathy for white people.After Little Crow established a temporary village about 65 kilometers upstream from the upstream management office, he started negotiations with other Sioux leaders in this area, hoping to gain their support, but to no avail.Their lack of enthusiasm was due to the failure of the Crows to drive the soldiers out of Fort Ridgely; another reason was that when the Crows besieged Fort Ridgely, bands of undisciplined lads looted their homes and plundered the white settlers north of the Minnesota River. The indiscriminate killing turned into a bloody massacre. Without warning, hundreds of immigrants were trapped in wooden houses, and many people were brutally hacked to death.Others fled to safety, some into the villages of the Sioux tribe that Crow wanted them to join in the rebellion. Although Little Crow looked down on those who attacked the immigrants who had no resistance, but he also knew that he was determined to start the war lightly, which made these assaulters lawless.But it was too late to turn back at this time, as long as he had soldiers to fight on, the war against the soldiers would continue. On September 1, he decided to send scouts down the river to spy on the strength of the high merchant Xibole's troops.The Sandi troops were divided into two groups. Little Crow led a hundred and ten soldiers and advanced along the north bank of the Minnesota River, while Big Eagle and Mankato advanced on the south bank and led the main force. The crow's plan was to avoid a frontal encounter with the large army, but to go around to the rear communication line of Siborough, trying to capture the supply and baggage of this large army.To do this, he made a sweeping circle north, bringing his fighters close to several colonies that had resisted raids by the Redskins for the previous fortnight.Among the warriors following Crow, some could not resist the temptation to attack the small settlement and disagreed.On the second day of the search, a small chief asked for a combat meeting and suggested attacking the residential areas to loot the area. The crow strongly objected, insisting that the soldiers were their enemy and they must fight against them.At the end of the meeting, seventy-two fighters joined the side of the little chief who was robbing houses, and there were only thirty-five loyal and faithful followers on Xiaoya's side. On the second morning, Xiaoya and his small group unexpectedly encountered a company of seventy-five officers and soldiers.In the hasty battle that followed, the sound of musketry made the Sandys, who had deserted the day before, rush back to rescue Crow.In a bloody hand-to-hand fight, the soldiers used spears, but the Sandys killed six and wounded fifteen, causing the enemy to retreat toward Hutchinson City. For the next two days the Sandys scouted around Hutchinson and Forest, but the soldiers stayed behind the barriers.On September 5th the dispatch brought news that there was a fierce battle not a few kilometers to the southwest.Big Eagle and Mankato have trapped Gao Shang's soldiers in Huashugou. The night before the battle of Huashugou, Daying and Mankato had quietly surrounded the big barracks so that they could not escape.As soon as the dawn broke, the battle began. Da Ying said: "We fought all day and night until the next morning, and we fought very well on both sides.They lost a lot of men because of the way the whites fought.Because of the way the Indians fought, they had only a few casualties. About mid-afternoon, our people became very dissatisfied with the slowness of the battle and the tenacity of the whites. , ready to charge the camp.The brave Mankato would have charged after the first hour Just as we were about to charge, word came that a large body of soldiers on horseback was approaching Fort Richley from the east.This stopped the charge and caused some excitement.Mankato immediately brought some people from the ravine to fight Mankato, showing off his troops everywhere. The Indians in the ravine continued to roar; finally, the whites began to retreat, retreating more than three kilometers, and began to dig fortifications.Mankato followed them closely, leaving about thirty men to watch them, and took the rest back to the ravine to fight.On the way back, the Indians laughed, they've tricked the white man; we're all glad the white man didn't push us out The next morning General Sibler arrived with a large force and drove us off the field, and we left without haste.Some of us said that they stayed there until Sibler caught up with them, and when some of his officers and soldiers were shaking hands with those in the camp, they shot them.Our people on the grassland went west, and the enemy did not pursue us when we went down the valley.When we left the field, the white men bombarded us with cannons, but they were only loud enough to do as much damage as a drum.We retreated across the river to our camp in the old village, and up the river to the mouth of the Yellow and Chippewa Rivers, where the Crows joined us. Then word came that Sibler and his troops started off again. Deal with us. He left a letter for the little crow on a split wooden pole in the Huashugou battlefield. Some of us found it and brought it back. The letter left by Merchant Gao is very short and does not have a clear position: If Little Crow has any claims, he can send a second rotor to me, and he will be protected when he comes and goes. Colonel Seaborough Of course the little crow didn't believe this guy, he was so wicked that he stole a lot of money from the Sandi people's treaty.But he still decided to send a reply letter. He thought that maybe Merchant Gao had been in White Rock City (São Paulo City) all along, and he didn't know why the Sandy people started fighting.小鴉也想要藍姆賽州長知道開戰的原因。桑狄部落中很多中立的族人，很害怕藍姆賽告訴明尼蘇達白人的話：蘇族印第安人一定要消滅掉，或者永永遠遠攆出州境以外。 九月七日，小鴉覆信給西伯勒將軍： 為什麼原因我們開仗，我告訴你吧，是因為格布瑞斯少校。我們同政府訂得有條約，請求發下我們應得的，可是卻領不到，一直到我們的孩子餓死。這一仗也是貿易販引起的，邁立克先生告訴印第安人去吃草或者吃泥巴；孚布斯告訴下游蘇族，他們不是人；然後羅伯茲又串同朋友，許騙我們的金錢。 （格布瑞斯是保留區管理所長，邁立克、孚布斯和羅伯茲都是下游管理所貿易站的商販） 如果年輕的勇士們突襲了白人，我自己也這麼做了。所以我要你讓藍姆賽州長知道這一點。我有好多俘民女人和小孩我要你給送信人一個答覆。 西伯勒將軍的答覆是： 小鴉你們沒有充份的理由，就殺害了我們好多的老百姓。把俘虜用白旗交還給我，我才會以你為男子漢來談判。 小鴉不到高商人現出動靜，是不是要執行藍姆賽州長的決斷，把桑狄部落消滅或者放逐以前，不打算把俘虜交還，他要用俘民來討價還價。可是，在各個部落的開會中，桑狄人應該在西伯勒大軍抵達黃藥河以前，採取什麼行動方案，卻是議論分歧。上游管理所西塞敦部落的馬茲可，譴責小鴉掀起戰端。把所有白人的俘民都給我，他要求道：我來把他們送還給他們的朋友不要打了。同白人打仗的人，沒有一個發了財，也沒有一個人能在一處地方待上兩天，都老是在逃，老是挨餓。 參加李奇里堡和新烏姆鎮作戰的瓦巴夏酋長，也屬意釋放俘民，打開和平的通路，可是他的女婿塔因揚卡替小鴉，替大部分戰士說話：我贊成繼續打下去，反對交還俘民，如果我們放了他們，白人會遵守任何協議嗎，我可是沒有信心。自從我們同他們訂了條約以來，他們的管理員、貿易販就剝削我們、欺詐我們。我們有些人被槍斃了，有些被絞死，還有些人給放在浮冰上淹死，很多人在牢裡餓死。這一族人並沒有立意要殺任何白人，一直到有四個人從厄克敦回來，把他們的所作所為告訴我們；他們做出了這種事，所有的青年人都很激憤，展開了這場殺戮。老年人原可以有辦法可以防止這種事，可是自從訂了條約以後，他們一切的影響力都喪失了。我們或許懊悔發生的事情，可是事情已經到了無可救藥的程度。我們只有一死，那麼，就讓我們儘可能多殺白人，讓這些俘民跟我們一起死吧。 九月十二日，小鴉給了高商人停止戰爭、不再流血的一次最後機會。他在信中要西伯勒放心，這些俘民都受到良好的待遇。以朋友的身份，我要從你那裡得到答覆，他補充道：用什麼辦法，我能為本族人民謀取和平。 小鴉卻不知道，就在這同一天，瓦巴夏寄了封密信給西伯勒，譴責小鴉啟釁，聲稱他本人是好白人的朋友，卻沒有提到前一兩星期他也曾攻打過李奇里堡和新烏姆鎮。他信中說：我受到威脅，說如果我做了任何協助白人的事，就會給宰了，所以始終退在後面。不過如果你能指定一處地點同你會晤，我和少數朋友就會盡力所能及，帶所有的俘民、以及我們的家屬，到你指定會面的地點去。 西伯勒對這兩封信立刻作答，他痛斥小鴉不肯釋放俘民，告訴他這不是謀和的辦法，但對這位作戰酋長籲請停戰的辦法，卻沒有答覆。西伯勒反而給出賣小鴉的瓦巴夏，寫了封長信，有著明明白白的指示，要他使用白旗送還俘民。西伯勒保證：我會很高興接受白人所有的真朋友，他們帶著這麼多的俘民同來，本人的力量強大，足以摧毀所有企圖阻擋前進的人，足以膺懲所有那些手上染有無辜人鮮血的人。 小鴉的請求，得到高商人冷冷的答覆後，知道除開告饒的投降以外，已經沒有和平的指望了。如果沒有辦法打垮大兵，那麼蘇族人的桑狄部落不是死就是流放。 九月二十二日，探馬報告說，西伯勒的大兵正進入木湖地區紮營。小鴉決心在他們到達黃藥河以前，痛擊一番。 我們所有作戰的酋長都到了，還有我們所有的優秀戰士們，大鷹說道：我們覺得這會是戰爭中決定性的一仗。他們也像在樺樹溝作戰般，桑狄人悄悄地準備以埋伏攻擊大兵。我們聽得到他們的笑聲和唱歌，所有準備工作完成後，小鴉和我，還有其他幾位酋長到西邊的一處丘陵上去觀戰，在那處地方作戰一開始，視界要好得多 到了早上，一件意外把我們的計畫搞砸了。定是有什麼原因，西伯勒並沒有像我們預料到的早早出發。我們的人都躺著隱藏，耐著性子在等候，有些人在山谷裡，非常接近營地線，可是白人卻連我們一個人都沒有發現。我想他們並沒有發現有埋伏，似乎太陽起來後有相當長久的時間了，這時才有四五輛篷車，載著一些大兵，開始從營地出發，駛向黃藥河老管理所的方向。我們後來才曉得，他們並沒有得到命令去，而是到八公里外管理所的所在去挖馬鈴薯，他們就在草原上駛過，正正就在我們陣線的地方；有些篷車並不在路上，如果它們直直向前走，或許就已經輾過我們躺在草裡的人了。最後，它們來得太近，我們的人不得不挺身起立開槍；當然，這一下引起開仗了，不過卻不是按照我們策畫的途徑。小鴉看到了，覺得好難過 在作戰中的印第安人打得很好，可是我們有好幾百人沒有參加，也沒有放上一槍，因為距離太遠了。在山谷裡的人，以及聯接山溝一線上的人，和在道路上的人，擔任了大部分的作戰。我們在丘陵上的人，也竭盡了全力，可是馬上就被驅退了。曼卡脫就在那裡戰死，使我們損失了一位很好、也很勇敢的作戰酋長。他是被一發炮彈所打死，炮彈快要打光，他並不怕它們，人躺在地上，炮彈打在他背部，把他打死了。白人一陣衝鋒，把我們攆出了山谷，結束了這一場激戰。我們多少有點潰散向後撤退，白人卻沒有能力追擊我們。我們越過一處廣大的草原，可是他們的騎兵卻沒有跟來。我們的損折有十四五個人打死，相當多的人受傷，有些受傷的人後來都死了，但我卻不曉得是多少，我們不運走死屍，但是卻把所有受傷的人抬走。白人把所有我們的死屍都剝了頭皮這件事我早就聽說過了。（士兵支解死去的桑狄人屍體後，西伯勒才下令嚴禁這種行動：死者的遺體，即使是野蠻敵人的屍體，在文明人與基督徒，都不應該不加尊重。） 當天晚上，在黃藥河上游十九公里處的桑狄人營地裡，酋長們開了一次會。大多數人現在都信服，高商人是太強大了。森林蘇族人必須投降，或者逃到他們的同胞一族達科塔一帶的草原蘇族人那裡去。那些沒有參加這次作戰的人，決定停留下來投降，確信把白人俘民送還，會獲得高商人西伯勒永遠不渝的友誼。他們加入瓦巴夏一夥，瓦巴夏也說動了女婿塔因揚卡留下來。到了最後一分鐘，大鷹也決心留下不走，有些個二轉子勸他放心，如果他投降，只會做短短的一陣戰俘，以後他一生都會懊喪這個決定。 第二天早上，戰敗的痛苦和深感六十年歲月的沉重，小鴉向跟隨他的人，作了最後一次的講話，說道：我真沒有臉自稱是一個蘇族人，七百名優秀的戰士在昨天痛遭白人擊敗。現在，我們最好全體逃走，像野牛和狼群般在大草原上星散。當然，白人有車拉的大炮，和比我們更好的武器，人數也比我們多。但是並沒有理由，為什麼我們打不敗他們，因為我們是英勇的蘇族人，而白人是懦弱的女人。我沒有辦法說明這一次丟人的敗仗，這一定是我們中間的奸人搗蛋。 然後，他和謝柯皮、藥瓶下令族人拆散錐幕，把自己的貨物糧草，還有婦女小孩，裝上了少數幾輛管理所的篷車，啟程西去。野米月（九月）到了盡頭，寒冷的幾個月馬上就要來了。 九月二十六日，西伯勒的大軍，在瓦巴夏酋長和高舉白旗的馬茲可協助下，進入了桑狄部落的營地，要求立刻送還俘民；一百零七個白人和一百六十二個二轉子交還給大兵。緊接著便是開會，西伯勒宣布，桑狄人應當認定本身為戰俘，一直到他找出了他們中間的罪犯加以絞死為止。和平的頭目們，以著奉承的友誼語氣提出抗議，像馬茲可的說法：我像你們的子女一樣長大，以你們的東西，能使我長大成人，現在我握起你們的手，就像孩子拿起父親的手一般我已經把所有白人當成是我的朋友，從他們那裡，我領悟這種福氣已經來了。 西伯勒的答覆，就是在營地四周，放列了一列大炮。然後派了二轉子傳令，去警告所有明尼蘇達河谷的桑狄人到釋放營（他命名的這處地方）來。不肯自動到來的人，就要加以追剿，加以生擒或者死取。正當桑狄人正在被圍捕、繳械時，大兵們砍伐樹木，建造了一處龐大的木頭房屋。馬上就明白它是什麼用途了，大多數桑狄部落的男人全營兩千多印第安人中，有六百名男性都給雙雙帶上鏈子，囚禁在屋子裡。 這時，西伯勒已經從所屬軍官中，選派出五員組成軍事法庭，審判所有涉嫌從事這次發動的桑狄人。因為印第安人沒有法律的權利，他認為要替他們指定一名被告辯護人，並沒有什麼道理。 帶到法庭前受審的第一名嫌犯，是個二轉子，名叫郭弗勒，他同瓦巴夏部落的一個女人結婚，在下游管理所已經住上四年了。證人是俘民中的三個白人婦女，沒有一個人控告他強姦，也沒有半個人看見他殺過人，可是她們說，聽見郭弗勒大蓋特蓋，說在新烏姆鎮殺了七個白人。軍事法庭依據這種證據，認定郭弗勒犯了謀殺罪，判處絞刑。 後來郭弗勒一曉得法庭願意免他的死罪，只要他能指認出參加各次攻擊中的桑狄人來，他立刻欣然擔任起了眼線，法庭的進行也就很順遂。一天之內，就有多達四十個印第安人給判處死刑或者徒刑。十一月五日，法庭結束，桑狄人有三百零三人判處死刑，十六個人判處長期徒刑。 要負起責任消滅這麼多的人命，那怕他們是人形的魑魅，這也不是高商人西伯勒所想單純承擔的事情。他把這種重責，轉到了西北軍區司令波普將軍那裡；波普又把最後的決斷，轉呈給美利堅合眾國大總統林肯那裡。除非總統禁止，蘇族這些犯人定將處決，波普將軍通知藍姆賽州長：那一點我想總統不會。 然而，林肯是一個有良知的男子漢，他要求定讞的完整筆錄，如果紀錄上並沒有充份顯示出犯人更多的罪惡與影響，請把所指各點詳細敘述轉呈本人。總統接到法庭筆錄後，便指定兩位律師審查，把殺人犯和僅僅參與作戰的人區別出來。 林肯不肯批准立即把三百零三名桑狄人處絞，使得波普將軍和藍姆賽州長大為光火。波普抗言：從各方面來看，定讞的罪犯應該一律迅速處決人道需要在這一案裡立即有所表現。藍姆賽要求總統批准，下令將這三百零三名定讞的犯人，迅速予以處決，警告說：如果林肯的行動不快，明尼蘇達的老百姓，就會採取私人報復了。 林肯總統正在覆審法庭筆錄時，西伯勒卻把定罪的印第安人，解到明尼蘇達河南彎的一處囚營裡去。押解他們經過新烏姆鎮時，鎮上一批暴民，還有很多女人在內，用乾草耙、滾水和扔石頭，企圖對犯人報私仇。大兵們把他們押運離開鎮上以前，有十五名犯人受傷，一個打裂了下巴骨。十二月四日晚上，又有一批暴民猛撲囚營，想對印第安人動用私刑。士兵不讓暴民接近，第二天就把印第安人轉運到曼卡脫鎮附近一處堅固的柵欄裡。 同時，西伯勒決定把留置的其餘一千七百名桑狄人大部分是婦孺作為俘虜，儘管他們除開生而為印第安人以外，並沒有被控訴過任何罪行。他下令把他們經由陸路轉運到史內林堡去，沿途他們也受到憤怒白人國民的襲擊。很多人挨了石頭砸、棍棒揍；一個小小孩被人從做娘的手裡抱走，活活打死。到了史內林堡，長達六公里半的行列，進入一處低窪潮濕地區的柵欄圍場裡，那裡有士兵看守，印第安人住在破破爛爛的棚舍裡，吃的是那麼一點點兒的口糧，一度驕傲的森林蘇族人餘民，就在這裡等待他們的命運。 十二月六日，林肯總統通知西伯勒，他可以使人處決三百零三名定讞桑狄人中的三十九人。其餘定罪的犯人，你必須留禁等待更進一步的命令，小心不能讓他們逃脫，也不要讓他們遭受任何非法的暴行。 處決的日期定在鹿脫角月（十二月）的二十六日。那天早上，曼卡脫鎮上擠滿了擁護的、病態的好奇國民。開來了一團部隊以維持秩序，到最後一分鐘，有一名印第安人獲得免於死刑。約摸著十點鐘光景，三十九名定讞的死刑犯；從監獄走到絞刑臺來。他們都唱著蘇族人的死歌，一直到士兵用白布套套在他們頭上，絞繩結繞在他們脖子上為止。在一員陸軍軍官令下，把控制繩割斷，三十八名蘇族桑狄人身軀，了無生命地在空中擺動。如果不是林肯的仲裁，處決的會有三百人。即令如此，一個觀刑的人誇稱這一次是美國最大規模的集體處決。 幾個小時後，官員們就發現在處決的犯人中，有兩個並不在林肯核准的名單裡。可是卻沒有公開半個字兒，一直到了九年以後。一位負責的官員才宣布說：這次處決發生了任何錯誤，都至感遺憾。本人深信它們並不是有意造成。在那次攻擊中，一個救了一名白人婦女生命的人，也被處絞了。 一直到就刑以前，還有好幾個人認為自己清白無辜，其中一個便是塔因揚卡，他在戰爭甫起，便力圖止戰，可是後來卻加入了小鴉一夥。小鴉和部屬離開達科塔時，瓦巴夏酋長勸塔因揚卡不要走。 塔因揚卡在處絞前不久，向他的酋長口述了一封遺書： 瓦巴夏： 你騙了我了。你告訴我說，如果照著西伯勒將軍的忠告做，向白人投案，一切都會安然無事，清清白白的人不會受害的。我沒有殺過、傷過、損過一個白人男人、或者白人的任何人呀；沒有參加打劫他們的財產呀，然而今天卻把我分開處絞，幾天內就會死掉了，而犯了罪的人還留在監獄裡。我的妻是你女兒，我的子女是你的外孫，我把他們全部交給你照顧保獲了。不要讓他們受痛苦！子女們長大以後，讓他們曉得，他們爸爸的死是遵照他酋長的勸告，並不是有了白人的血而向大神贖罪。 我疼愛妻兒子女，要他們不要為我悲傷，讓他們記住，勇士應該準備迎接死亡，我要成為一名蘇族勇士，就這麼做。 婿塔因揚卡留稟 那些逃過了處決的都給判處徒刑，其中一個是大鷹，他業已承認參加了各次作戰。他說：假如我早知道會送進牢裡，就不會投降。可是我已經在牢裡關了三年，他們快要釋放我時，我告訴他們，只要他們願意，還可以把我再關一年，我說的話很認真。我不喜歡我們所遭受到的處置待遇，我懷著好好的信心投降，知道很多白人同我熟識，我又不是個殺人凶手，凶殺發生時我也不在場；如果我殺過人、傷過人，那都是公平、公開的打鬥。很多人都懊悔，不曾和戰士們一起逃離明尼蘇達。 在處決時期以前，小鴉和他手下從屬在鬼湖紮營，那是蘇族好幾個部落過冬的地點。在那一個冬季，他力圖與其他酋長團結成為軍事同盟，向他們警告說，除非他們準備作戰，否則就會在入侵的白人前屈服。他獲得了他們的同情，不過平原蘇族人沒有幾個相信他們有什麼危險可言。如果白人進入了達科塔地區，印第安人根本就會向西走遠一點，土地大得足夠容納每一個人嘛。 到了春天，小鴉、謝柯皮和藥瓶，率領他們的部落北上進入加拿大。在格瑞堡（溫尼柏），小鴉想說動英國當局協助桑狄人。在同他們的頭一次會議中，他穿上最後的服裝。一件天鵝絨領的黑上衣，藍布馬褲和鹿皮裹腿。他提醒英國人，在以前幾次對美國人的戰爭中，他的祖父是他們的盟友。而在一八一二年戰爭中，桑狄人從美國人那裡擄獲一門大炮，把它獻給了英國人。小鴉說道，在那一次英國人曾經答應桑狄人，假如他們有了麻煩亟需援助時，英國人會把那門大炮送回，還派人操作它。桑狄人現在有麻煩了，要把這門大炮運回來。 然而，小鴉從加拿大英國人那裡所得到的，只是領了些食物，他們沒有給桑狄人半門炮，甚至連他們現有武器的彈藥也不給。 一八六三年草莓月六月裡，小鴉決定自己應該做什麼了。如果他和自己的家族，逼得要成為平原印第安人，他們一定要有馬兒不可。那些把他趕出故土的白人們有馬，他要去拿他們的馬，為自己的土地作交換；便決心帶了一小股人，回歸明尼蘇達去抓馬。 他那十六歲的兒子弗溫那巴，後來道出了這件事：父親說他沒辦法同白人打，但是要南下去偷白人的馬兒，拿來給子女，可以使他們舒服一些，然後他便會走掉。 父親也告訴我，他越來越老邁，要我同他去，載他的行包，他把好幾位太太和別的子女都留下來。南下跟我們一起走的，有十六個男人和一個女人。我們都沒有馬，而是一直走到了居民區。 百合花開月，他們走到了大樹林，那裡不幾年以前，還是桑狄人的家園地帶，現在滿是農場和居民區。七月三日下午，小鴉和弗溫那巴離開了他們的隱匿營地，到候清遜居民區附近去摘覆盆子。在日落時分，他們被兩個打鹿歸來的居民看到了。由於明尼蘇達州最近開始，得一塊蘇族人頭皮發給二十五塊大洋的賞金，這兩個居民立刻就開槍射擊。 小鴉給打中了側面，就在臀部的上方一點，他的槍和我的槍都擱在地上。弗溫那巴說：他拿起我的槍先開一槍，然後再開他的槍，一發子彈打中了他的槍托，然後打中了他的脇骨，靠近肩頭的地方，這一槍要了他的命。他告訴我被人打死了，問我要水喝，我把水給了他，他登時就死了。我聽見頭一聲槍響就臥倒下來，父親被打死以前，那兩個人沒有見到我。 弗溫那巴急急忙忙替父親穿上新鹿皮靴，好上鬼域去。他在屍身上蓋一件上衣，便逃到營地裡去，警告這一股人分散，自己就動身回鬼湖去。我只在晚上走路，又沒有子彈打東西來吃，沒有力氣走得很快。在接近大石湖的一處廢棄的村落裡，他發現了一發子彈，設法打到了一隻狼。我吃了些狼肉，使我有了力氣行走，我繼續沿湖往北走，一直走到被抓到的那一天。 高商人西伯勒手下的士兵，那年夏天進入達科塔地區追殺蘇族人，有些人把弗溫那巴抓到了。他們把這個十六歲大的男孩送回明尼蘇達，他在那裡接受了一次軍法審判，被處絞刑。那時他才知道，他父親的頭皮和首級已經保存過，放在聖保羅市示眾。明尼蘇達州對打死小鴉的移民，除了一般的頭皮賞金外，另外給獎金五百大洋。 弗溫那巴的審訊筆錄送呈華府，軍方當局對這次處置沒有批准，而把這個男孩的絞刑減為徒刑。（好幾年後，弗溫那巴獲釋，他就改名為威克曼，成為教會的執事，在蘇族人中成立了基督教青年會。） 在這段期間，謝柯皮和藥瓶依然待在加拿大，認為自己還在復仇的明尼蘇達人待在搆得著的地域以外。然而，在一八六三年二月，高商人手下一位小酋長哈契少校，率領了明尼蘇達一個騎兵營，進軍到了加拿大邊境不遠的奔比納。 哈契在奔比納，派了一員中尉過了國境到格瑞堡，私下和一個美國公民麥肯瑟會晤，由這員中尉安排生擒謝柯皮和藥瓶。在一次友好的會面中，陰謀人向這兩位桑狄人的作戰酋長，奉贈了內含鴉片酊的酒，當他們睡著後施以氯仿，綁住手腳，把他們綑紮在一輛狗雪橇上。這位中尉完全不管國際法，就把俘獲的人拖過邊界，把他們交給了在奔比納的哈契少校。幾個月以後，西伯勒佈置了另外一次壯觀的審判，謝柯皮和藥瓶都被處以絞刑。對於這次判決，聖保羅市的前鋒報評論道：我們並不認為明天的處決，會造成嚴重的不公不正，但如果對他們的罪行，獲得一些實質的證據，那就更可信了沒有一個白人，在他同族的陪審團前，會因這種產生的證詞而被處決。絞刑過後，明尼蘇達的議會，感激地撥款一千塊大洋給麥肯瑟，作為他在加拿大境內服務的報償。 這時，明尼蘇達州內蘇族桑狄部落的時代告了結束，儘管大多數作戰酋長和戰士們都已死了、下獄、或者遠在州界以外，這次暴亂卻給了白人國民大好良機，攫奪了桑狄部落其餘的土地，甚至連假充門面的付款都免了。以前的條約統統廢止，碩果尚存的桑狄人接到通知，要把他們遷到達科塔地區中的一片保留區裡去，甚至那些一向同白人合作的首領也同去。不消滅，就趕走！是渴望土地的移民們的口號。一八六三年五月四日，第一批七百七十名桑狄人坐了汽輪駛離聖保羅市。明尼蘇達州的白人，在河邊碼頭上排隊送他們的行，用的是嘲笑的喊叫，和拋擲的如雨石頭。 桑狄人的保留區，選定了密蘇里河上的鴉溪，那裡土壤瘠薄，雨量稀少，野生動物罕見，鹼質的水份不宜於飲用。不久，附近的山岡上都滿是墳丘了；一八六三年送到那裡的一千三百個桑狄人，過完了第一個冬天的不到一千人。 那一年到鴉溪去探望的人們中，其中有一個蘇族提塔部落的年輕人，他滿懷憐憫地望著這些桑狄部落的遠房兄弟們，靜聽他們的報導，美國人拿走了他們的土地，把他們趕走。他就想到，的確不錯，白人民族就像是春氾，它溢出了兩岸堤防，毀滅了它途徑中所有的人。不久，他們就會佔去野牛的原野，除非印第安人的內心堅強得足以據守不放。他決定自己將為了據守土地而作戰，這個年輕人的名字是塔坦卡岳坦卡坐牛。