(}aines  thereupon  inquired,  ^^  Who  is  Black  Hawkf  is  he  a  chief,
and  why  does  he  sit  in  councilf  Black  Hawk  then  arose  from  his
seat,  and  gathering  his  blanket  around  him  stalked  out  of  the  room
without  deigning  a  reply.  When  the  council  reconvened  on  the
following  morning  Black  Hawk  was  again  present  and  said:  <^My
fiather,  you  inquired  yesterday  who  is  Black  Hawk,  and  why  does
he  sit  among  the  chiefs.  I  will  tell  you  who  I  am.  I  am  a  Sac.  My
£ather  was  a  Sac  I  am  a  warrior  and  so  was  my  father.  Ask  those
young  braves  who  have  followed  me  to  battle  and  they  will  tell  you
who  Black  Hawk  is.  Provoke  our  people  to  war  and  you  will  learn
who  Black  Hawk  is."

The  result  of  the  conference  was  that  Black  Hawk  refused  to
leave,  and  Gen.  Gaines  informed  him  that  if  he  and  his  band  were
not  on  the  west  side  of  the  Mississippi  in  a  short  time  he  would  be
compelled  to  remove  him  by  force.  GHie  American  commander
also  wrote  to  governor  Besmolds  requesting  the  assistance  of  the
volunteers  and  intimating  that  it  might  l^  necessary  to  call  for
more  troops  as  Black  Hawk  was  Endeavoring  to  secure  the  co-
operation of  the  neighboring  tribes.  It  was  hoped  that  by  this
augnaentation  of  the  forces  the  Indians  might  be  intimidated,  and
thus  prevent  the  effusion  of  blood,  and  in  case  of  actual  conflict
the  army  would  be  enabled  to  act  with  greater  efficiency.
