Chief Joseph Hinmton Yalektit by Robert Shetterly

"I have asked some of the great white chiefs where they get their authority to say to the Indian that he shall stay in one place, while he sees white men going where they please. They can not tell me."

Chief Joseph was the leader of the Wallowa band of the Nez Perce Indian tribe during its desperate, daring war with the United States in 1877. A noted orator, the great chief's eloquent attempts at achieving peace between Native Americans and white settlers would fall on deaf ears in the days of Gold Rush fever and rapid western expansion.

The great chief's spirit lives on through his words and their timeless message. "Treat all men alike," Joseph wrote, "I believe much trouble would be saved if we opened our hearts more."