Playhouse 90

In the final months of the American Civil War, Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes live peacefully on large areas of Colorado, on land given to them by Treaty by the U.S. Government. However, U.S. Cavalry Col. John Templeton, who commands a fort in the region, intends to forcibly move the Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes to another area. Col. Templeton is a hate-filled, bitter man who resents his isolated posting. He is bitter for having failed to distinguish himself and garner any glory during the Civil War battles. He sees a chance for himself to win praise from his superiors by removing the Indians from their fertile lands and settling them in a bad area known as Sand Creek. The vacated fertile lands can then be allotted to white settlers and farmers. The visiting Indian Agent from the U.S. Government's Indian Bureau advises against such a move, fearing revolt among the Indian tribes. But Col. Templeton insists that his intentions are meant to prevent an Indian War. He claims to have reliable reports of increased Cheyenne and Arapaho raids into areas settled by whites. He insists that by moving the tribes to Sand Creek he can better watch them to prevent future mischief. Unconvinced by these arguments, the Indian Agent tells Col. Templeton that the Indians will remain where they are and are not to be attacked unless they go on the warpath. The Indian Agent suspects Col. Templeton of future political ambitions and reminds him that it's not up to him to move Indian tribes but only to police the region and protect white settlements. Begrudgingly, Col. Templeton agrees but warns the Indian Agent that he will move against the Indians at the first sign of armed hostility from their part. At the fort, a new officer reports for duty. Lt. Norman Tucker is a graduate of West Point military academy and a fair honest man. Col. Templeton senses a chance to provoke the Indians and claim they have gone on the warpath. He orders the inexperienced Lt. Tucker to go to the main Cheyenne encampment and forcibly fetch the two main Cheyenne chiefs for a conference with the colonel at the fort. Col. Templeton knows that such important chiefs can't be forced to comply with the summons but he doesn't enlighten the inexperienced officer about it. Col. Templeton hopes to send Lt. Tucker into a death trap, thus giving Col. Templeton a reasonable excuse to attack the Cheyenne and Arapaho villages in force. Col. Templeton eventually decides to move the Cheyenne at Sand Creek anyway. A few days later, a few cavalrymen steal five Cheyenne horses claiming they found them roaming around. This act puts them in direct conflict with the Cheyenne braves guarding those horses. Outnumbered and outgunned, the Cheyenne relinquish their horses but they sneak into the fort at night and steal the horses back. Unfortunately, they kill a fort sentry, giving Col. Templeton the excuse he needs to send his whole regiment against the Indians at Sand Creek.