"It is further agreed by and between the parties to this agreement that the sum of one hundred and fifty thousand dollars appropriated or to be appropriated shall be disbursed as follows, subject to any conditions provided in the law, to wit: lst. The actual cost of the removal of the tribe from the Bosque Redondo reservation to the reservation, say fifty thousand dollars. 2nd. The purchase of fifteen thousand sheep and goats, at a cost not to exceed thirty thousand dollars. 3rd. The purchase of five hundred beef cattle and a million pounds of corn, to be collected and held at the military post nearest the reservation, subject to the orders of the agent, for the relief of the needy during the coming winter. 4th. The balance, if any, of the appropriation to be invested for the maintenance of the Indians pending their removal, in such manner as the agent who is with them may determine. 5th. The removal of this tribe to be made under the supreme control and direction of the military commander of the Territory of New Mexico, and when completed, the management of the tribe to revert to the proper agent." |
-Excerpt from The Treaty of 1868, Article XII
This image is a page showing article five from the 23 page long Treaty of 1868.
(Page from The Treaty of 1868. Digital image. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2017.)
(Page from The Treaty of 1868. Digital image. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2017.)
The Long Walk has ruined many lives from the Navajo Nation, and didn't benefit the United States. After The Long Walk, the U.S. and the Navajo came to an agreement through the Treaty of 1868. The Navajo tribe was the only Native American tribe to end its removal by agreeing to a treaty. The Treaty stated that the Unites States would give back a portion of Navajo homeland, which was given official recognition so they would be able to restart their lives again. The United Stated also relinquished the Navajo people with livestock, and tools like axes and shovels. The Treaty also gave the U.S. permission to construct a railroad through Navajo land, which has been constructed. The United States didn’t end up benefiting from forcing the Navajo to go on The Long Walk as it had originally anticipated because of the money spent on giving the Navajo livestock and tools. The United States expected the Navajo to start a new life in Bosque Redondo, but that didn’t happen. The Navajo refused to live anywhere but their land, because they believed that it was holy land. When the U.S. realized that their plans for the Navajo weren't going as expected they agreed on making the Treaty of 1868. The United States had also planned on using the Navajo's land for resources like mining which they never got to do. The Long Walk ended up harming the Navajo in ways the U.S. never anticipated and didn’t end up benefiting The United States in the expected ways. (Remembering the Long Walk and Hwéeldi)
The federal government has still not fulfilled its 1868 treaty promises to the tribes.
-Jennifer Denetdale, Historian (The Native Press)