Our friend We are much disturbed in mind by what we are told is in the newspapers..

It is said that the man who is sent to Congress by the White People of Arkansas has written to them and said that the President has ordered a Large part of Lovelys purchase to be surveyed and Sold, and that it will, very soon, be settled by the Whites. This makes us very uneasy..We think there must be some mistake about it. We can not think that the present President would give such an order if he knew and were to think of what other Presidents have said to us. Nor do we think that the present Secretary of W ar [James Barbour], who we are told is a friend to red people, would advise such an order if he were to look at the words and promises of the Secretary, who was in office four or five years ago [John C. Calhoun]. Between eight and nine years ago when Our Great Father was persuading our people to c ome here he talked to us in these words. "I have not yet obtained the lands lying up the Arkansaw River, to the West of your Settlement. I will give instructions to Governor Clark to hold a Treaty, with the Quapaws this Summer in order to purchase them, and when purchased, I will direct them to be laid off for you. It is my wish that you should have no limits to the west, So that you may have good Mill Seats, plenty of Game and not be surrounded by the white people.".He said to us. "I will not forget my red Children because they are far off. I will remember you. It is my wish to make you p rosperous and happy in your new homes; and if you will at any time make known to me your wishes I will attend to them.".Now we ask you, our friend, to make known our wishes to our Great Father, and tell him we do not wish Lovely.s purchase to be settled by white people:That we never Supposed it wo uld be: that we believed the Talk given to us by our Great Father. He told us he would not forget us and we hope his talk will not be forgotten..

The late Secretary of War told us in a talk given to us four or five years ago, last October, that white people should not be permitted to settle on Lovely.s purchase: That it should be kept as an Outlet for us, according to promise..He told us that although we Should acquire no right to the soil in it, the Government only reserved to itself the right of disposing of the saltsprings upon it..We were and always have been satisfied with this, but should be very unhappy were we to be "surrounded by the White people" as we should be were the government to allow it to be settled..We think we sh ould have just cause to say that the promises of our Great Father and the secretary had been broken. We hope we shall never have cause to say so.

The Lands Ceded to the Government have not all been surveyed. When they are, should it turn out, as we think it will, that we have not yet got as many acres as we are entitled to, where shall we get them if Lovelys Purchase, of which we at present have part, shall have been sold to and setled by Whites?

It may be said that the Government Could pay us for it;-- but we do not wish to sell any of our Land. We have but little and were promised it should be given to us here, and if we do not get it all, then our Treaty as well as the promises of our Great Father and Secretary would be broken.--We can not believe these things will happen, but when we hear from men that are sent to Congress that they will, it makes us very unhappy. We again ask you, our friend, to make known our wishes to our Great Father--Signed by

JOHN JOLLY. his mark. X
JOHN LOONY his mk. X
BLACK. FOX his mark. X
TOO-TSN-WUH his mk. X
THOS GRAVES his mark X
SPRING FROG his mark X
WALTER WEBBER, his mk .X
TA-HA-TUH his mark. X
YOUNG GLASS his MK X
THO MAW.his mark. X

From: Clarence E. Carter, ed., "Territorial Papers of the United States," (Washington: G.P.O., 1954), 20:331-32 as published in A Documentary History of Arkansas, by Williams et. al (University of Arkansas Press, 1984).[This documentary history book is available from the University of Arkansas Press, McIlroy House, Fayetteville, Arkansas 72701.]

*Note: Cultural information may vary from clan to clan, location to location, family to family, and from differing opinions and experiences. Information provided here are not 'etched in stone'.