I will admit that I am not much for reading.
I will also admit after reading thefirst chapter in this book that I felt sick to my stomach, literally. That Ifeared reading the rest of the book knowing that this really happened and thatpeople could actually do this to one another. Although the book disgusted meafter the first chapter that I didnt want to read it anymore it also made menot want to put it down. It could have been the way the writer describedeverything made it all so vivid and clear or maybe it was the fact that it wasso gruesome and real that I had to read it.
Whatever the truth may be I thoughtit was a very good book. Up until this class I hadnt even heard of theUprising. In my impression part of the book was the side of the Indians whilepart of it was the side of the white mans view. It told of how itstarted, where it began, when it ended and how it ended.
I feel as if theIndians had been changing their ways throughout the war. In the beginning theywere killing anyone and everyone but, to a point, by the end of the war theywere only killing the white males and were holding the women and childrencaptive so to speak. Although I dont think the Indians needed to be hung fortheir crimes they shouldve been arrested and brought into jail. The white menneeded to also take responsibility for their actions. It takes two people tostart a fight no matter what it is about.
Yes, it wasnt all of the white menwho held back their annuity payment, but it was those men who insisted that theychange their ways. The book was a well-researched and insightful narrative ofthe bloody uprising and the events which preceded it. It is another sad chapterin the history of the American West . All the shocking events took place duringone week in August of 1862, in response to being tricked and betrayed by brokentreaties, cheated continually by traders, and brought to the edge of starvationby delays in dispensing the government’s annuity payments, the Santee Sioux hadfinally had enough.
The Sioux left hundreds of settlers dead and turning fortythousand into refugees. From killings to burnings they did it all. The highpoint was reached over hens’ eggs when warriors mocked as cowards after refusingto steal the eggs shot the hens’ owner, his wife, and friends in cold blood. Faced with certain reprisals from whites, the most respected Sioux leader,Little Crow, sided with his war chiefs and the rampage began in earnest. Hundreds of isolated settlers in the area died, with only occasional prisonerstaken, while massive attacks took place against the nearby Army garrison and theprosperous town of New Ulm.
Even with superior numbers, these assaults failed,however, leaving many warriors dead and the rest disheartened. The Army quicklyrounded up all the Sioux to be found, sentencing hundreds to death in militarycourt without allowing them a defense. President Lincoln reduced the number ofcondemned to 38, who were duly hung. On December 26, 1862, those 38 SiouxIndians were executed for their part in uprisings.
