The Thrilling Mission of Commissioner Joseph C. Eldridge to the Wild Tribes in 1843, by Authority of President Houston -- Hamilton P. Bee, Thomas Torrey --- the three Delawares, Jim Shaw, John Connor and Jim Second Eye --- The Treaty. (Part 1 of 2) When the year 1843 opened, Gen. Sam. Houston was serving his second term as President of the Republic of Texas, and the seat of government was temporarily at the town of Washington-on-the Brazos. He had uniformly favored a peace policy toward the Indians, whenever it might become practicable to conclude a general treaty with the numerous wild and generally hostile tribes inhabiting all the western and northwestern territory of the republic. On this policy the country was divided in opinion, and the question was often discussed with more or less bitterness. Nothing could be more natural, respecting a policy affecting so deeply the property and lives of the frontier people, who were so greatly exposed to the raids of the hostiles, and had little or no faith in their fidelity to treay stipulations; while the President, realizing the sparsity of population and feebleness in resources of the government and the country, hoped to bring about a general cessation of hostilities, establish a line of demarcation between the whites and Indians and by establishing along the same a line of trading houses, to promote friendly traffic, with occasional presents by the government, to control the wild men and preserve the lives of the people. At this time Joseph C. Eldridge, (*1) a man of education, experience, courage, and the highest order of integrity, was appointed by President as Commissioner of Indian Affairs. About the same time a delegation from several of the smaller tribes visited the President, in order to have a talk. Among them were several Delawares, nearly civilized, and among them were persons who spoke not only our language, but all the tongues of the wild prairie tribes, soome speaking one and some another tongue. It occurred to the President, after frequent interviews, that he could utilize these Delawares, or the three chief men among them, Jim Shaw, John Connor and Jim Second Eye, as commissiones in inducing all the wild tribes to meet the President and peace commissioners, at a point to be designated, for the purpose of making a treaty. Subsequent events went to show that the Delawares had imbibed that idea; but Pesident Houston finally decided to commission Capt. Eldridge for that onerous and hazardous mission, to be accompanied by two or three white men of approved character, together with the Delawares and a few Indians of other tribes. Capt. Eldridge eagerly applied to his young and bosom friend, Hamilton P. Bee, to accompany him. They had crossed the gulf together on their first arrival in Texas in 1837 -- Bee accompanyning his mother from South Carolina to join his father, Col. Barnard E. Bee, already in the service of Texas, and Eldridge coming from his native State Connecticut. He selected also Thomas Torrey, already an Indian agent, and also a native of Connecticut. The preparations being completed, the party left Washington late in March 1843, and consisted of Joseph C. Eldridge, commissioner, Thomas Torrey, Indian Agent, the three Delawares as guides and interpreters, several other Delwares as hunters, helpers and traders. Acoquash, the Waco head chief, who was one those who had been to see the President, and Hamilton P. Bee. there may have been a few other Indians. they had a small caravan of pack mules to transport their provisions and presents for the Indians. They also had with them for delivery to their own people two comanche children about twelve years old, one a girl named Maria (May-re-ah) and the other a boy who had taken the name of William Hockley, being two of the captives at the Council House fight, in San Antonio, on the 19th of March. 1840, elsewhere described in this work. They also had two young Waco women, previously taken as prisoners, but these were placed in charge of Acoquash. They passed up the valley of the Brazos, passing Fort Milam, near the present Marlin, around which were the outside habitations of the white settlers. further up, on Tehuacano creek, six or seven miles southeast of the present city of Waco, they reached the newly established trding house of the Torrey brothers, (*2) afterwards well known as a resort for Indians and traders. Here they found a large party of Delawares. The Delawares accompanying Eldridge also had mules freighted with goods for traffic with the wild tribes and, among other commodities, a goodly supply of that scourge of our race -- whisky -- doubtless intended for the Delawares found here, as expected by those with Eldridge, for at the time the wild tribes did not drink it. On the arrival of the commissioner, all became bustle and activity. the liquor was soon tapped and a merry time inaugurated, but soon after dark every Indian surrendered his knife and firearms to the chiefs, by whom the were secreted. Then loose reign was given to unarmed warriors, and throughout the night pandemonium prevailed accompanied by screams, hideous yells, fisticuffs, scratching, biting, and all manner of unarmed personal combat, causing wakefulness and some degree of apprehension among the white men. but no one was killed or seriously injured, and in due time, sheer exhaustion was followed by quite sluber, the red man showing the same maudlin beastliness when crazed by mean whiskey as, alas! characterzes his white brother in like condition. It required two days to recover from the frolic, and then Eldridge resumed his march into the wilds beyond. His instructions were to visit as many of the wild tribes as possible, and the head chief of the Comanches -- to deliver to them the words of friendship from their Great Father, the President, and invite them all to attend a grand council to be held at Bird's Fort, on the north side of the main or west fork of the Trinity, commencing on the 10th of August (1843), where they would meet duly accredited commissioners and the President in person to treat with them. This fort was about twenty-two miles westerly from whre Dallas was subsequently founded. At a point above the three forks of the Trinity, probably in Wise or Jack County, the expedition halted for a few days and sent out Delaware messengers to find and invite any tribes found in the surrounding country to visit them. Delegations from eleven small tribes responded by coming in, among them being Wacos, Anadarcos, Towdashes, Caddos, Keechis, Tehuacanos, Delawares, Bedais, Boluxies, Ionies, and one or two others constituting a large assemblage, the deliberations of which were duly opened by the solemnities of embracing, smoking, and a wordy interchange of civilities. Capt. Eldridge appeared in full uniform, and Bee (*3) performed the duties of secretary. The council opened by an address from the Delaware interpreters, and the whole day was consumed in a series of dialogues between them and the wild chiefs. Capt. Eldridge getting no opportunity to speak, and when desiring to do so was told by the Delawares that it was not yet time, as they had not talked enought to the wild men. So, at night, the council adjourned till next day when Eldridge delivered his talk, which was interpreted to the different tribes by the Delawares. Finally Eldridge said: "Tell them I am the mouth-piece of the President, and speak his words." Two of the Delawares interpreted the sentence, but Jim Shaw refused, saying it was a lie. The other two conveyed the language to all. The result was satisfactory, and the tribes present all agreed to attend the council at Bird's Fort. Returning to his tent, Capt. Eldridge demanded of Shaw, who was the leader and more intelligent of the Delawares, the meaning of his strange conduct, to which he replied that the three Delawares considered themselves the commissioners, Eldridge being along only to write down whatever was done. He also charged that Eldridge had their commission attested by seals and ribbons, with his baggage. This document being Eldridge's instructions as commissioner, was brought out, read and explained by Bee. Jim Shaw was greatly excited, and had evidently believed what he said; but Eldridge bore himself with great composure and firmness. After the reading Jim Shaw said: "I beg your pardoon, Joe, but I have been misled. I thought the Delawares were to make the treaties. We will go no farther, but go to our own country, on the Missour river -- will start to-morrow, and will never return to Texas." Eldridge, alarmed at this unexpected phase of affairs, appealed to the trio to stay and guide him, as the President expected them to do; but they seemed inflexible. To proceed without them was madness, and in this dilemma Eldridge sent for Jose Maria, the noted chief of the Anadarcos, who had been so severely wounded in his victorious fight with the whites, in Bryant's defeat near Marlin, in January, 1839. He explained to him the facts just related, and asked him if he wuld escort him back into the settlements. greatly pleased at such a mark of confidence -- his keen black eyes giving full expression to his gratified pride -- he promptly and solemnly promised to do so. On the next morning, while Eldridge was packing and mounting for his homeward march, surrounded by his promised escort of one hundred Anadarco warriors, well mounted and armed with bows and lances, with Jose Maria at their head, Jim Shaw sent word to Capt. Eldridge that he had changed his mind and would continue the trip. An interview followed and a full understanding was entered into, acknowledging Capt. Eldridge as the sole head of the expedition; but after this the manner of the Delaware trio was formal and reserved, and their intercourse long confined to business matters. Continuing the march, they next reached the principal village of the Wacos, whither they had been preceded by Acoquash, with the two released Waco girls, who greeted them warmly. During their stay he was their guest, and most of the time had his family on hand. It was a little odd, but his friendship was too valuable to be sacrificed on a question of etiquette. Here the Delawares announced that it would be necessary to send out runners to find the Comanches; that this would require fifteen days, during which time the trio -- Shaw, Connor and Second Eye -- would take the peltries they had on hand to Warren's trading house down on Red river, for deposit or sale, and return within the time named. During the delay, Eldridge camped three miles from the village, but was daily surrounded and more or less annoyed by the Wacos, men, women and children. The wife of Acoquash became violently ill, and he requested his white brothers to exert their skill as medicine men. Mr. Bee administed to her jalap and rhubarb, which, fortunately for them, as will be seen later, speedily relieved and restored her to health. The runners returned on time with rather encouraging reports; but the essential trio, so indispensable to progress, were absent twenty-eight instead of fifteen days, causing a loss of precious time. Their next move was for the Wichita village, at or near the present site of Fort Sill. They were kindly received by this warlike tribe, who had heard of their mission and promised to attend the council at Bird's Fort. They next bore westerly for the great prairies and plains in search of the Comanches. Acoquash and his wife being with them. It was now in July and all of their provisions were exhausted, reducing them to an entire dependence on wild meat, which, however, was abundant, and they soon found the tallow of the buffalo, quite unlike that of the cow, a good substitute for bread, They carried in abundant strings of cooked meat on thier pack mules. After twenty days they found Indian "signs" in a plum thicket, "the best wild plums," wrote Young Bee, "I ever saw." They saw where Indians had been eating plums during the same day, and there they encamped. Pretty soon an Indian, splendidly mounted, approached, having a boy of six years before him. He proved to be blind, but a distinguished chief of the Comanches -- a man of remarkable physique, over six feet in height, a model in proportions and his hair growing down over his face. He told the Delaware interpreter the locality in which they were, and that the town of Payhayuco, the great head chief of the Comanches, was only a few miles distant. (To be continued...)