am tired of fighting . . . It is cold and we have no blankets. The little children are freezing to death. My people, some of them, have run away to the hills and have no blankets, no food. No one knows where they are—perhaps freezing to death. I want to have time to look for my children and see how many I can find. Maybe I shall find them among the dead.
—"I Will Fight No More Forever": Chief Joseph
What event was Chief Joseph talking about in this passage?
Chief Joseph was referring to the forced relocation of the Nez Perce tribe from their ancestral lands in the Pacific Northwest to a reservation in Idaho in 1877.
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Chief Joseph was referring to the events of the Nez Perce War and their subsequent retreat in 1877. The Nez Perce, a Native American tribe, were forcibly removed from their ancestral lands in Oregon, Idaho, and Washington by the United States government. Chief Joseph and his people resisted this removal and engaged in a series of battles against the U.S. Army.
In the passage, Chief Joseph describes the dire situation his people were facing during their retreat. They were exhausted and cold, lacking blankets and proper shelter. Many of the Nez Perce had fled and were missing, possibly freezing to death in the harsh conditions. Chief Joseph expresses his weariness and his desire to take a break from the fight to search for his missing children, fearing they may have perished. The passage reflects the devastating consequences of the conflict and the immense suffering endured by the Nez Perce during this time.