A Century of Dishonor: A Sketch of the United States Government's Dealings with Some of the Indian Tribes

The Nez Perces occupy lands in the present-day Pacific Northwest. They are not nomads, but “as wedded to their homes as any civilized inhabitants of the world” (104). Christian missionaries begin arriving in the 1830s, and many Nez Perces adopt the Christian faith. In 1851, the US government negotiates treaties with multiple tribes in Oregon Territory, but after the Senate fails to ratify them, hostilities ensue. Despite pressure from neighboring tribes, the Nez Perces remain friendly to the US. In 1859, the year Oregon becomes a state, the Nez Perces agree to settle on a reservation in a “fine tract of country” (117). There they continue, successfully and peacefully practicing agriculture and Christianity.

Less than two years later, in a rage for gold, thousands of prospectors descend on Nez Perce lands. The US government promises the tribe a new reservation in what is now Idaho Territory, though the Senate once again delays ratification. When the new land is finally surveyed in 1870, a Board of Special Commissioners determines that the result of the survey amounts to a “most scandalous fraud” (123). Meanwhile, when the US government tries to force the Nez Perces who had remained behind in Oregon under the leadership of