Statement of FP Olney a half  breed Indian living at Fort Simcoe Yakama Agency Wash Ter  I was present at a Council held by Inspector Wm J Pollock in the School House at Fort Simcoe on or about the 28 day of December 1880 and was called on by Mr Pollock and several of the Indians to act as Interpreter, which I did  Mr Pollock produced a paper and said    Here is a paper called the issue       paper, all that is issued is written on       this paper, and then this paper is sent       off to the Great Father in Washington and       he sees it and knows what has been       issued to you by the Agent, and how       much has been issued to you and all       about it   Now from this paper I will       call the names of those men to whom the       paper says the Agent has given some       cattle and horses, and when I name the       person I want him to answer and I       will ask them   Yesmowit how many       cattle did the Agent give you during       the months of August September and       July    (I do not positively know that he said  September) Yesmowit answered    none     
        Pollock said    are you telling me the truth    Yesmowit still said    none       Pollock said,    John Lumley how many       head of cattle did you receive in the       months of July August and September    (I am not positive that he said September)    John Lumley answered    none    Mr Pollock said to Yesmowit    This paper says that       you have received an issue of    (3 or 4) head       of cattle    Mr Pollock said to John Lumley    The paper here says that you received (3 or 4) head of cattle    John Lumley still declared he had received none   Pollock then said    Wachoukie       how many head of cattle did you get       of the Agent during the months of       July August and September    (not  positive that he said September) Wachoukie answered    none but my son got received    (4 or 5)    head of cattle, but they were       to pay for work      then Pollock said to Albert    how many head of cattle did  you get during those months    Albert said that he had received 3 head (I think) pay    for work in the Shop, then Smith was called (I believe) and asked how many head of cattle he had received from the Agent during the same period,   he answered (I believe)  
           none    Mr Pollock said      Now when       this paper goes to the President, he does       not know but that the report is true, he is       not here to look on or do the business, the Agent       is here to do all this work; now if the President       sees this paper he will believe that you have       actually received these cattle and horses       when you had not received any at all       Now the Great Father will be greatly decei-       ved when he sees this report   I do not       know Mr Wilbur, and have never seen him,       he may be a good man, and I should,       be very much ashamed of him, if he       should be found guilty,   I hope he will       come out of this as pure as an Angel          Mr Wilbur has no business to take your       cattle and pay them to you for work, or       to sell you cattle for money; the cattle       are all yours and not the Departments       or Mr Wilbur   s or any other man   s   they       are yours   It is now too cold   if it       was not too cold I would divide up the       cattle and give each Indian a portion       or number for them to take care of and       raise themselves; the cattle are not       here for the Indian Agent to take care       of and raise, and increase year after       year till the Reservation is full of     
           of them, but the Great Father   s mind is        that the Indians are to have them and       take care of them and own them them-        selves. The Agent is not to have any        cattle here of the I.D.; if beef is wanted        here for any purpose the Agent is to        buy the cattle of you Indians   the Govern-       ment does not want a farm to raise       wheat and oats for its own use; what        land there is enclosed at the Agency is       sufficient for gardens and such like          If the Agent wants any wheat he will       buy it of you; if he wants beef he will       buy it of you; I may come back in       the Spring and if I come back I will       distribute the cattle among you and        there will not be any more cattle left       belonging to the Government, for the       Department to take care of here on this       Reservation   How is it       about the Store here? how do you       get your things? do you work for       your things for the Government?, does        the Agent pay you money for your work       I want to know all about it, that       is what I came here for, the Great       Father sent me to see and talk with        you and to know your mind     
           If you have anything on your mind       dont hide it, but speak it right out       You must not be afraid of any one in        the house    The Indians said,    Yes we have        to buy from the Agent and work to pay       for our things   Sometimes we sell our       cattle and horses and buy things from       the Agent    Mr Pollock said       That is just what I thought   that is        what I want to know   The Great       Father sends all of these things to you for        nothing, not for money, but to give them       to you   It is not annuities belonging to       the treaty, that has expired, the treaty        is still the same but the annuities ex-       pired last June   These goods that are       here are to be given to them that work       on their own farms and are trying to        do something, and the Agent must       give you things enough to the value        of your work   the only ones that       can get anything that do not work       are the old, the blind, the lame or       sick; the Great Father provides for       them because they cannot work,       cannot do anything to make a living;     
        Mr Pollock then spoke to Joe  Stwire, saying that he believed there  were many more cattle than the papers  represented, and that he thought if the  cattle were    rounded up    at the Govern- ment hay and Stock Ranch, there would  be found many more than Mr Wilbur   s papers said there was, and if the Indians  would gather the cattle from all parts of the Reservation, he would go down to  the Ranch and would have the cattle  all counted, and if there were more  than the papers called for, would give to  every Indian who assisted in the    Round up    a cow and calf. About 75 men  being called on volunteered to start out to drive up the cattle, and were organized  into bands, the snow being about then 7 to  10 inches deep   Mr Pollock told them that they were not to be paid, but to gather  up the cattle the same as they would gather  up for themselves, that the herd belonged to them and neither to Mr Wilbur or the  Great Father   he said    the cattle belong       to you Indians, they are yours, and if you       will gather them all to the stock ranch       in three days I will be down there        to count them, and if I find that      
           there are more cattle on the range than        the papers call for, I will give each of       you a cow and calf, not as pay for       work but just give them to you   The Great       Father does not intend to keep cattle       here on the Reservation, to use and       sell the beef to You Indians, the Great       Father sends money to the Agent to pay       for work; all the work that is done       for the Government is to be paid for       in money, not in goods   the Agent       has no right to sell you these goods       but you can have the Great Father       send a good man here to keep a       store for you  And affiant further states that he subsequently to wit on the 11th day of April exo 1881 examined the issue sheet used by Inspector Pollock at the Council mentioned above, and that neither John Lumley, or Yesmowit are charged with cattle on said sheet  And Affiant further states that he was appointed by Inspector Pollock as captain of one of the parties ordered to drive up the cattle for counting, and that with his party of 8 men he had gathered up about 100 head of cattle  
        and started to drive them to the cattle Ranch, the snow then being about 16  inches deep and falling rapidly; that when the order to abandon the drive arrived the cattle were left on the open prairie some miles from the Ranch; that snow had then fallen to the depth of about 18 inches and as it froze the last evening that a crust was on the snow, rendering travel for animals extremely difficult, so much so that it was with great difficulty the party reached home Yakama Agency April 16th 1881  Franklin P. Olney. Subscribed and sworn to before me this 16th day of April AD 1881  James H. Wilbur  U.S. Indian Agent