A Thousand Miles

A Thousand Miles — page 5 — Indians Give the states sovereignty Mr Lumpkin pumped his fist in the air Senator Sprague interrupted I still have the podium Mr Lumpkin Hear me out Progress states rights and money should not dictate our government’s policies about basic goodness and human rights With that angry statesmen on both sides of the issue shouted at one another Amid all the chaos Senator Sprague jumped on top of the podium His face was blotchy and red Gentlemen gentlemen he yelled Take your seats Take your seats Shocked by Senator Sprague’s position on top of the podium the statesmen gradually calmed down They smoothed their wigs and brushed off their coats When all was settled Senator Sprague finished his argument 8

A Thousand Miles — page 6 — The United States must uphold her treaty agreements Period To do otherwise would go against all we fought for in the Revolution It is right and just to protect Indian Territory from settlement and from development by white settlers We must honor the ideals on which our nation was built Senator Sprague returned to his seat He looked upset and he knew he had a long battle ahead of him By May much to Senator Sprague’s dismay the House of Representatives voted and passed the Indian Removal Act Then the Senate followed President Jackson signed the act into law With one stroke of his pen the President changed the destiny of Native Americans 9

A Thousand Miles — page 7 — Chapter Two Breaking the News December in Georgia was usually pleasant The normally hot-as-fire temperatures had cooled to mild Some evenings it was downright cold Dustu loved this time of year He didn’t start to sweat as soon as he left his cabin And the white people were friendlier too They enjoyed the mild winter and they were in the Christmas spirit Dustu walked over to his mother’s chicken pen Twelve hens of various shades danced around his mother She was scattering cracked corn and old vegetables across the chicken yard talking to her hens as she moved Dustu liked watching his mother with the hens There was something simple and just 10

A Thousand Miles — page 8 — Hullo my love She smiled and wiped Thank you dear heart I’ll fetch their water for you Dustu plain nice about it His mother was a tall woman with strong arms and shining smiling eyes She always made him feel very loved Mama Dustu chirped as he approached the chicken pen Need some help her hands on her apron volunteered Dustu jogged over to the water pump lifted the pitcher and pumped as hard and as fast as his small five-year-old arms would go The water from the ground was cool fresh After filling the pitcher he carefully walked back to the pen As he poured the fresh water in the dish he said Mama Papa told me to find you He said he had news to share with you 11

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