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The case of the Poncas seems Entitled to Especial 
Consideration at the hands of Congress. 
They have always been friendly to the whites.
It is said, and as far as I have been able to
learn, truthfully, that no Ponca ever killed
a white man.  The orders of the government
always met with obedient Compliance at their 
hands. Their removal from their old homes on
the Missouri River was to them a great hardship. 
They had been born and raised there.
They had housed there, in which they lived 
according to their ideas of Comfort. Many of them 
had engaged in agriculture, and possessed cattle 
and agricultural implements. They were very 
reluctant to leave all this, but when 
Congress had resolved upon their removal, 
they finally overcame that reluctance 
and obeyed. Considering their constant 
good conduct, their obedient spirit, and 
the sacrifices they have made, their are certainly 
entitled to more than ordinary care 
at the hands of the government, and 
I urgently recommend that liberal provision 
be made to aid them in their new 
settlement."

Extract from Annual Reports of Hon. Carl Schurz, Secretary of the Interior, Nov. 1877.