hile the secretary
was writing out the treaty the braves of the Chippewas held a dance
under the walls of Fort Snelling. This indicated not only their
satisfaction at the successful conclusion of the council, but was also
intended as a compliment to the commissioner. Three hundred
warriors circled about in their gaudy costumes, recounting during the
pauses of the dance the deeds of bravery they had done and the number of
Sioux scalps they had obtained. At a distance a great number of Sioux
looked upon the scene, not daring to interfere when the troops of the
fort were so near.[494]

By this treaty the Chippewas ceded an immense tract of land east of the
Mississippi. In return the United States agreed to pay annually for
twenty years $9500 in money, $19,000 in goods, $3000 for blacksmiths,
$1000 for farmers, $2000 in provisions, and $500 in tobacco. One hundred
thousand dollars was to be paid to the half-breeds, and $70,000 was set
aside to pay the claims of the fur traders. The privilege of hunting,
fishing, and gathering wild rice along the lakes and rivers of the ceded
territory was reserved for the Indians.[495]

This cession of land by the Chippewas had its counterpart in a treaty
concluded by Sioux chiefs on September 29, 1837, in Washington, whither
they had been taken by Major Taliaferro. All their lands east of the
Mississippi--the land between the Black River and the Mississippi River
as far north as the Sioux-Chippewa boundary line was given up for
various considerations amounting in total to almost one million
dollars.[496]

By these two treaties all the lands east of Fort Snelling were opened to
settlement and commercial exploitation. As soon as the news of their
ratification came, developments immediately began--developments
which had an important bearing upon the future history of Old Fort
Snelling. The days when the Chippewa treaty was being drawn up are
important, not only because they present an interesting sight of the
picturesque features of an Indian council, but also because they show
how Fort Snelling was assisting in the opening up of the rich timber
lands and fertile prairies that border the Mississippi River.

For many years the payment of annuities that had been promised the Sioux
was an annual reminder of these treaties. It was necessary that each
Indian receive his portion of the goods and money in person in order to
prevent fraud. In the late summer of each year all the warriors of Red