"Ending’'
Our lOO-XJear
Indian"War"?
Osceola, Chief of the SeminoTes
By ELMO SCOTT WATSON
M l 10 other (lay u press dispatch
^ from West Palm Beach, Fla.,
told the following story:
Squatting on their
haunches in a circle on the
shores of Lake Worth, Sec
retary of the Interior liar
old Ickes and seven Semi
nole Indians today revived
negotiations to end the 100
year “war" between the
tribesmen and the United
States.'
Through an interpreter,
the representatives of a majority of the 500
^ Seminoles surviving in Florida asked a do
main of 200,000 acres in the Everglades and
$15 a month each from the government as
indemnity for seizure of the rest of the state
by “our white friends.”
In return they offered to recognize the
United States and obey its law’s, except the
game law’s.
“The Seminoles,” replied Secretary Ickes,
“are a proud and independent people. I do
not know whether it will be possible to give
them all they ask, but in co-operation with
* the state of Florida, the administration in
Washington will do all in its power to give
them the land and the gume they require
to live the lives of their forefathers.”
It was a colorful scene with ranks of Na
tional Guardsmen and huddles of Seminole
squaws and children in bright festive garb
forming a background along the sparkling
lake waters. Loud speakers carried the nego
tiations to several thousand spectators,
mostly winter visitors from the North, in
boxes and bleachers.
“There is no game left for me. I ask for
provision for my people,” said Sam Tommie,
the chosen spokesman.
“Formerly I had many grounds to hunt on.
Now I ask the white people to deed me
land,” said Charlie Cypress.
After the council the tribes in their many
pieced and many-colored dress danced the
green corn dance while the fashionable audi
ence applauded.
Not only did many newspapers print the story,
or one similar to it, but some of them editorial
ized at length on it. Others, however, ignored
the story or the opportunity for editorial com
ment. Perhaps they considered it just another
“press agent yarn.” Or they may have remem
bered that eight years ago this same “war” was
going to be “officially ended.” At least, that was
what press dispatches from Miami said at the
time. Those dispatches told how Chief Tony
[Tommy, “ordained leader of all the Seminoles in
Florida," was going to Washington “to make for
mal peace witli the United States government
and ask for citizenship for his people.”
All of which made good copy for the newspa
pers and good publicity for Miami and that part
of Florida. But a short time later this press dis
patch from Fort Myers, Fla., appeared in the
papers:
Nuck-Suc-Ha-Chee, chief of the Florida
Seminoles, vigorously denies that the glade
tribesmen seek American citizenship or rec-*
onciliation with the government of the
United States.
The position of “our little nation” is made
plain in a letter from Stanley Hanson, secre
tary of the Seminole Indian association of
Florida, to Judge George W. Storter of Col
lier county, a life long friend of the Indians,
in which the Indian chief repudiates state
ments made by Tony Tommy of Miami, “self
styled leader” for the Seminoles.
“All new’s dispatches carried out of Miami
. recently,” the letter continues, "have been
* unauthorized by Seminole leaders and there
fore without foundation. When the Seminoles
take action it will be through a duly consti
tuted council which governs the little na
tion.”
So that was that, and nothing more was heard
of the proposal to “end officially” a non-existent
“war” until recently when Secretary Ickes, on
vacation in Florida, was reported to be making
“peace medicine” with the Seminoles. The fact
that he and “seven Seminole Indians,” among
them “Sam Tommie, the chosen spokesman,”
Hmd “revived negotiations” may have reminded
'newspaper editors oi the negotiations started by
Chief Tony Tommy eight years ago.
Perhaps they remembered also that as far back
as 1917 arrangements were completed for acquir
ing land for those Seminoles who had been wan
dering around in the Everglades as a kind of
"lost tribe"; that in 1924 they came under the
provisions of a congressional act which made
them citizens of the United States and that in
1928 a reservation, divided between Lee and
Secretaru lckes and the Seminole*
The Dade V
Monument \
at West Point
*w Chief
Tony Tbmmy
A Group of Seminoles
Broward counties, was established for them with
an outpost agency half-way between Miami and
Fort Myers and that, under the direction of Maj.
Luclen A. Spencer, special commissioner, these
Seminoles really began to travel the white man's
road. So the picture of a group of savages
smoking the peace pipe to end a 100-year-old
war, as painted by the recent press dispatches,
didn’t seem so authentic.
But whether this was a press agent stunt by
some enterprising white men or a hid for notori
ety by some publicity-minded red men, it has
served to bring back into the news the name of
a famous Indian leader and to recall to Amer
icans the tragic story of bis people, although
they cannot be very proud of some parts of that
story. Even if the war with the Seminoles
wasn’t really a “100-year war,” it was the longest
and costliest ever waged by this nation on a
tribe of red men.
In reality there were two Seminole wars. The
first one was a comparatively short affair. It
took place in 1817-18 and lasted less than a year.
An aftermath of the Creek Indian war, it was a
minor incident in the larger field of diplomacy
and international relations.
After the defeat of the Creek Indians in 1817,
many of those tribesmen sought refuge among
the Seminoles in Florida, then held by the Span
isb. To the Seminoles also had tied many run
away negro slaves. So there was constant fric
tion between the Indians and slave-catchers, of
ficers of the law and settlers on the southern
border of what was then the United States.
After a number of Indians and whites had
been killed in the spasmodic warfare which fol
lowed, General Gaines was sent with a force of
regulars to demand the surrender of some of the
Seminoles accused of killing white settlers. The
lndiuns refused, claiming that the whites were
responsible for the first aggressions, which was
probably the truth.
So Gaines attacked a party of Seminoles at
Fowltown just north of the Florida border, ana
stirred up a veritable hornet’s nest, which re
suited in an attack by the Indians on his gar
rison at Fort Scott. The War department then
ordered (Jaines to continue his offensive against
the Indians, pursuing them into Spanish terri
tory if necessary but not to molest any Span
isli garrison. The department next ordered Gen.
Andrew Jackson, the hero of New Orleans and
the Creek war, into the field and gave him ex
tremely vague Instructions as to the course lie
was to pursue.
With his usual high-handed methods “Old
Hickory” invaded Florida, captured the Spanish
post of St. Marks, summarily executed two Eng
lisbmen named Arbuthnot and Armbrister, whom
lie accused of stirring up the Seminoles against
the Americans. He fought a few minor skir
mishes with the Seminoles, who promptly scat
tered like quail, making pursuit impossible, and
then pushed on to capture tlg.> Spanish town of
Pensacola. Of course, Spain protested at this
unwarranted invasion of her territory and tlie
United States placated her by censoring Jackson
in a manner that was something of a polite slap
on the wrist
The upshot of the whole affair was that Spain,
seeing the handwriting on the wall, agreed to
sell Florida to the United States. And that,
more than any great desire to punish the Semi
noles for their depredations, was what the Amer
ican government wanted. But in thus making
the Seminoles pawns in a game of diplomacy the
United States was storing up trouble for itself.
It broke out soon after Florida became our
territory. Friction between the settlers and the
Seminoles continued, mainly because the sellers
wanted the lands held by the Indians. By the
treaty of Fort Moultrie In 1823 the Semlnoles)
ceded most of their lands except one small res
ervation. But the land-hungry whites began
crowding in upon them there and demanding that
they be removed across the Mississippi as had
other southeastern tribes.
So another treaty was made at I’ayne’s Land
ing in 1832 by which the Semlnoles, at least a
part of them, agreed to migrate within three
years. The majority of the Indians, however, re
pudiated tiie treaty. Matters came to a crisis in
November, 1835, when Amathla, a chief who had
signed the treaty and received ids share of the
money for doing so, was shot by a party under
the leadership of Mlcanopy, the head-chief, and
Osceola, a half-breed war-leader.
Gen. A. It. Thompson, agent for Hie Seminoles,
exerted all pressure possible to get the Semi
noles to agree to the removal and during a coun
cil became so angry with Osceola that lie ordered
the Seminole leader arrested and held in irons.
Enraged at this treatment Osceola, while agree
ing to sign the treaty, plotted revenge on the
agent.
Removing his people to places of safety, Osce
oln and his warriors began attacks on the white
settlements. Troops were concentrated In Flor
ida to protect the settlers and force the removal
of the Semlnoles. On December 24, 1835, an ex
pedition of 108 officers and men, commanded by
Maj. Francis L. Dade, set,out from Fort Rrooks
to meet a force from Fort King for a punitive
expedition against the Seminoles.
Four days later Dade’s force readied the
banks of the Withlacooehee river. Wliat took
place there—and tragic though it was, it is one
of tales of high heroism in the annuls of the
American army—Is recorded on the side of a
monument which stands on the grounds of the
United States Military academy at West Point,
N. Y. It reads: “To commemorate tin* battle of
tiie 28th of December, 1835, between a detach
ment of 108 United States troops and tiie Semi
noles of Florida in which all of the detachment
save three fell without an attempt to retreat.”
On the same day Osceola made a daring raid
against Fort King, killed and scalped General
Thompson and four others who were dining at
a house outside the fort and made Ills escape.
As the result of tills and tiie DsiiIp tragedy a
great outcry went up all over the country for
the extermination of tiie Seminole-. P.tit officer
after officer sent against the Indians failed to
crusli them and at last General Jessup, spurred
on by tills cry, forever sullied his name as a
soldier by seizing Osceola while holding a con
ference with him under it flag of truce and send
ing him away to prison.
Osceola died in Fort Moultrie, Fla., on Janu
ary 30, 1838. Rut even the loss of their leader
did not break the spirit of the Semlnoles. The
war dragged on for four years more before tiie
Indians finally acknowledged defeat in August,
1842. It had lasted for nearly eight years at a
cost of the lives of 1,500 soldiers and nearly as
many civilians, not to mention a money cost of
$20,000,000!
The Semlnoles who were removed to Okla
homa became known as tiie Seminole Nation,
one of tiie “Five Civilized Tribes.” Even with
the removal of nearly 4,000 Seminoles in 17 dif
ferent parties between 1830 and 1842, some 300
remained in the fastnesses of the Everglades at
the close of the war. There was still some trou
ble with them later and In 1858 Chief Hilly How
legs and 100 of his followers were sent west.
Hut there still remained approximately 100 Sem
inoles who refused to leave their ancestral home
and from these are descended the 400-odd Seml
noles who live in Florida today.
0 by Western Newspaper Union.
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