CHAPTER V. INDIAN WARS. 129. The Whitman Massacre. The first outbreak of the Indians in Washington occurred on the 29th of November, 1847, called the Whitman massacre. Dr. Marcus Whitman and twelve other persons were killed. Dr. Whitman came to the country as a missionary in 1836, and established a mission among the Cayuse Indians on the banks of the Walla Walla River, just above the mouth of the Pasha, now called Mill Creek, six miles from the present city of Walla Walla. The site of the mission was named Wai-i-latpu, signifying the place of rye grass, this grass growing abundantly here. Here the good doctor labored for the benefit of these savages for a period of eleven years; then he was cruelly murdered by the hand he had nurtured. Mrs. Whitman was murdered at the same time. The victims of this terrible tragedy were buried together beneath a mound at the foot of the hill near the old mission. The causes of the Whitman massacre are difficult to determine. Much bitter controversy has been indulged in by the partisan friends and enemies of the martyred Whitman in regard to the cause of his death. Suffice it to say here that Indian treachery was at the bottom of the affair. 130. Character of Dr. Whitman, Dr. Whitman was a noble man. His long, toilsome ride across the plains in the winter of 1842-43 to save Oregon for the United States tests his patriotism; his fair dealings Iwith all with whom he came in contact shows his honesty; his devotedness to the welfare of the untutored savages in his care, and his kind treatment of the weary emigrant and fatherly care for the orphan proves his charitableness. The Whitman massacre was the cause of the first Indian war in Washington Territory. THE CAYUSE WAR. 131. The Oregon Volunteers. When Governor Abernethy learned of the Whitman massacre he issued a call for volunteers. A company called the "Oregon Rifles" was organized under command of Captain Henry A. Lee, and sent up the Columbia to protect the settlers at the Dalles. Soon after a regiment of fourteen companies, numbering about 600 men, were enlisted in the Willamette Valley and placed under command of Colonel Cornelius Gilliam. They reached the Dalles in February, 1848. 132. The Battle of Sand Hollow. From the Dalles Colonel Gilliam pushed on up the Columbia towards Waiilatpu. At Sand Hollow, about half way on his march, the Indians were met in force. They had chosen a deep canyon among the sandy hills called "Sand Hollow," being a good position, as the cuts and washes afforded the Indians good hiding places. The Indians were Cayuse warriors, led by the chiefs Five Crows and War Eagle. The battle lasted until late in the afternoon, when just before night the Indians retired. 133. The Battle of the Touchet. After the battle of Sand Hollow the Indians fell back toward Snake River, closely followed by the volunteers. When they had arrived near the south bank of the Snake River the troops were attacked by the Indians on all sides. The troops fell back fighting as they retired slowly before the Indians. All day the battle continued. At nightfall, when the troops reached the Touchet, a small tributary of the Walla Walla, the Indians withdrew, and the troops returned to the Waiilatpu mission. 134. Commissioners to Negotiate With the Indians. The Oregon legislature had appointed a board of commissioners to treat with the Indians. They demanded of the Indians the surrender of those who committed the murders of Waiilatpu. This the Indians refused. Soon afterward the Indians abandoned their own country on the west of the Blue Mountains and crossed the mountains to hunt buffalo and to be out of the reach of the troops. The Oregon volunteers returned to the Willamette Valley, and the Cayuse war was ended. THE WAR OF 1855-56. 135. Governor Stevens' First Treaty with the Indians. Governor Stevens had been appointed by the general government to treat with all the Indian tribes in the territory. Early in 1855 he sent Mr. Doty into eastern Washington to arrange for a council with the |