 Wacouta continued to lead the remaining members of his group.In 1837, along with Mahpiyamaza and other prominent Dakota, he made a trip to Washington, D.C. At the U.S. capital, the Dakota were pressured and eventually agreed to give up lands east of the Mississippi River for annual cash payments.Some of the money was to be used for "education and civilization", which became a point of contention for the Dakota.