Treaties

Sketch of the Walla Walla treaty council gathering.

According to Stevens' plan, the tribes would keep two small areas (or reservations): One for the Yakama bands, the Klickitat, and Palouse. Another for the Nez Perce, Walla Walla, Umatilla, and Cayuse. In return, the federal government would make initial cash payments and provide annual disbursements for education, technology, and economic development.

Most Indian leaders spoke in opposition. They questioned whether they were getting a fair deal and could trust the United States. They expressed their belief that the earth actually did not belong to anyone and could not be owned or sold.

Stickus, a Cayuse chief, probably best expressed the Indians' deep sorrow at the prospect of giving up their homelands: "If your mother were here in this country who gave you birth, and suckled you, and while you were sucking, some person came ... and sold your mother, how would you feel then? This is our mother, this country..."

Yet Indian leaders realized they had few choices. The non-Indians, they said were as numerous and "blades of grass" or "leaves on a tree." Furthermore, the U.S. military presence in the territories indicated the United States' readiness to use force.