Kamiakin could not keep quiet. By means of gifts he had won over the richest of the Ceeur d'Alenes. He came and spent the winter of 1857-58 with him, and sought without ceasing to communicate to him his own sentiments of distrust toward the whites, even the priests. " They are white like the Americans," he told him; " they all have one heart." Because the Ceeur d'Alenes refused to come out, they were called "women -little dogs who only know enough to bark when danger is at hand." Fresh rumors were circulated every day; but especially after murders had been committed by the Palooses, the excitement grew more and more. Several Indians told Father Joset " that they were tired of Kamiakin's doings." A white man had told them, " Poor savages! It is all up with you now. The troops are coming this year to take possession of your lands." Another, " I have seen them already, soo of them, camped on Snake river." A third white man had assured them that " soo soldiers would come first to Colville; that they would soon be followed by soo more, and so on, until they were strong enough, when they would lay aside the mask and declare themselves masters of the country." Another day " the troops had formed three columns and crossed Snake river at three places, to take possession of the whole country at once." Father Joset could not assure himself whether white men had really said these things; but he has very little doubt that false reports were often spread among
the Indians to excite them to war. A good many Americans looked on war as a good thing for the country, and a means to make money plentiful.
Despite all Kamiakin's efforts, there was no apparent likelihood that the Cceur d'Alenes would let themselves be drawn in; this was far from the case: three weeks before the Steptoe fight, the chief Vincent told Father Joset that " it may very well happen that we shall have to fight the Palooses, who are very sore against us because we will not declare against the Americans."