Adapted from The Affidavit of Charles Pitt Regarding "The Palmer Treaty, 1855" at Warm Springs, Oregon:
Palmer reached down
And raked up three piles of sand.
And he said, "Can you count the grains
In the three piles? No, you can't.
The white man in number
Is greater than the grains
In the three piles of sand.
And you can't count them.
The white man will come into your country
Like salmon go up rivers.
The great father in Washington
Is like a great chief,
But he can't stop them from coming in.
And you will be covered over by them
For they are so numerous."
Copyright by Nicholas Gordon. Free for personal or non-commercial use.
Audio and Video Music: Elegy. By Wayne Jones. Music free to use at YouTube.