The clothes and other necessaries which we sent you the last year, were, as you supposed, a present from us. We never meant to ask land or any other payment for them; and the store which we sent on, was at your request also; and to accommodate you with necessaries at a reasonable price, you wished of course to have it on your land; but the land would continue yours, not ours. As to the removal of the store, the interpreter, and the agent, and any other matters you may wish to speak about, the Secretary at War will enter into explanations with you, and whatever he says, you may consider as said by myself, and what he promises you will be faithfully performed. I am glad, brothers, you are willing to go and visit some other parts of our country. Carriages shall be ready to convey you, and you shall be taken care of on your journey; and when you shall have returned here and rested yourselves to your own mind, you shall be sent home by land. We had provided for your coming by land, and were sorry for the mistake which carried you to Savannah instead of Augusta, and exposed you to the risks of a voyage by sea. Had any accident happened to you, though we could not help it, it would have been a cause of great mourning to us. But we thank the Great Spirit who took care of you on the ocean, and brought you safe and in good health to the seat of our great Council; and we hope His care will accompany and protect you, on your journey and return home; and that He will preserve and prosper your nation in all its just pursuits. VIII. _My Children, White-hairs, Chiefs, and Warriors of the Osage Nation_:-- I repeat to you assurances of the satisfaction it gives me to receive you here. Besides the labor of such a journey, the confidence you have shown in the honor and friendship of my countrymen is peculiarly gratifying, and I hope you have seen that your confidence was justly placed, that you have found yourselves, since you crossed the Mississippi, among brothers and friends, with whom you were as safe as at home. _My Children_,--I sincerely weep with you over the graves of your chiefs and friends, who fell by the hands of their enemies lately descending the Osage river. Had they been prisoners, and living, we would have recovered them. But no voice can awake the dead; no power undo what is done. On this side the Mississippi, where our government has been long established, and our authority organized, our friends visiting us are safe. We hope it will not be long before our voice will be heard and our arm respected, by those who meditate to injure our friends on the other side of that river. In the meantime, Governor Harrison will be directed to take proper measures to inquire into the circumstances of the transaction, to report them to us for consideration, and for the further measures they may require.