nclosed. When we
landed the whites appeared displeased because we came back. We repaired
the lodges that hid been left standing and built others. Keokuk came to
the village, but his object was to persuade others to follow him to the
Iowa. He had accomplished nothing towards making arrangements for us to
remain, or to exchange other lands for our village. There was no more
friendship existing between us. I looked upon him as a coward and no
brave, to abandon his village to be occupied by strangers. What right
had these people to our village, and our fields, which the Great Spirit
had given us to live upon?

My reason teaches me that land cannot be sold. The Great Spirit gave it
to his children to live upon and cultivate as far as necessary for their
subsistence, and so long as they occupy and cultivate it they have the
right to the soil, but if they voluntarily leave it, then any other
people have a right to settle on it. Nothing can be sold but such things
as can be carried away.

In consequence of the improvements of the intruders on our fields, we
found considerable difficulty to get ground to plant a little corn. Some
of the whites permitted us to plant small patches in the fields they had
fenced, keeping all the best ground for themselves. Our women had great
difficulty in climbing their fences, being unaccustomed to the kind, and
were ill treated if they left a rail down.

One of my old friends thought he was safe. His cornfield was on a small
island in Rock river. He planted his corn, it came up well, but the
white man saw it; he wanted it, and took his teams over, ploughed up
the crop and replanted it for himself. The old man shed tears, not for
himself but on account of the distress his family would be in if they
raised no corn. The white people brought whisky to our village, made our
people drink, and cheated them out of their homes, guns and traps.
This fraudulent system was carried to such an extent that I apprehended
serious difficulties might occur, unless a stop was put to it.
Consequently I visited all the whites and begged them not to sell my
people whisky. One of them continued the practice openly; I took a party
of my young men, went to his house, took out his barrel, broke in the
head and poured out the whisky. I did this for fear some of 'the whites
might get killed by my people when they were drunk.

Our people were treated very badly by the whites on many occasions. At
one time a white man beat