Eureka Daily Sentinel

ARREST OF NATCHEZ, CHIEF OF THE PIUTES.

By order of the psalm-singing agent at Pyramid Lake, Natchez, Chief of the Piutes, was arrested and conveyed to Alcatraz. Natchez is connected with the Winnemucca family, and has always been friendly with the whites. He speaks good English, and it is supposed that he knew too much to suit the hypocritical agent aforesaid. The local Register has the annexed account of the affair:

By act of official power. There is no suspicion in our minds what has caused all this trouble. The allegation that Natchez wanted the Indians to leave the reservation is totally false without the least foundation; but on the contrary, the very reverse is the fact. He has been talking to us for the last month or six weeks, day after day, telling the troubles which has culminated in his arrest. Natchez, in fact a great majority of the tribe, think the agent at Pyramid Lake is swindling them at every opportunity. They say he draws rations from the Government for the tribe, and keeps them for his own use. Natchez has watched the thing closely, and says the Indians have been defrauded shamefully for several years. He told us publicly that he was going to Washington to tell the President all about the matter, and ask the President to remove Bateman and appoint an honest man. Five of the chiefs were making preparations to go when Natchez was arrested. Our candid opinion is that the agent at Wadsworth, or somebody else, was afraid to have the Indians go to Washington, for fear they might make an expose of something they prefer should remain a profound secret. Most, if not all, of our Indian wars were instigated by thieving white men, who hoped thereby to harvest by furnishing supplies to Government troops. By all present appearances they have now commenced by robbing the Indians and creating a false report among them that the Government is about to send them away from their homes, and their chief becomes dissatisfied and dares to protest against such conduct, he is at once arrested and carried in chains to Alcatraz to be tried for creating a disturbance among the Indians. We hope the military authorities, after an examination of the matter, will place the blame where it belongs, and speedily return Natchez to his people.