The Sun.
London, England, 1869-12-25 00:00:00

INDIAN AFFAIRS.

The problems presented by our relations to the Indian
tribes which still inhabit portions of the Western States
and Territories aro every year making more imperative
demands for a fixed general policy that shall give some
reasonable probability of
,an early and satisfactory solu-
tion. The completion of one of the great lines of rail-
way to the Pacific coast has totally changed the condi-
tions under which the civilized population Of the country
come in contact with the wild trihes.. Instead of a slowly
advancing tide of migration, making its gradual inroads
upon the circumfetence of the great interior wilderness,
the very centre of the desert has been pierced. Every
station upon the railway has become a nucleus for a
civilized settlement., and a base from which lines of ex-
ploration for both mineral and agricultural wealth .ro.
pushed in every direction. Daily trains are carrying
thousands of our citizens and untold values of merchan-
dise across the continent, and must be protected from the
dagger of having hostile tribes on either side of the
route. The tango of the buffalo is b...ing rapidly re-
stricted,i and the chase is becoming an uncertam,re
i-
mice to the Indian for the sustenance of his f.amil). if
11,
he is in want he will rob, as white men
.do the L.()
circumstance'', and robbery is but the beginning of war,.
in which savage baibarities and retaliations so.in cause
a cry of extermination to be raised along the whole
frontier.

It has long been the policy of the Government to re-
quire of the tithes most nearly in contact with white
settlements that they should lix their abode upon definite
reservations and abandon the wandering life to which
they had been accustom, d. To encourage them in civili-
sation, large expenditures have berm made in furnishing
them with the means of agriculture and with clothiii4
adapted to their new mode of life. A new policy is not so
much needed as ao enlarged and more enlightened applica-
tion of the general principles of the old one. We are now
in contact with all the aboriginal tribes within our bor-
ders, and can ni longer assume that we may, even for a
time, leave a part of them out of the operation of our sys-
tem. I understand this policy to look to two objects:
First, the location of the Indians upon fixed reservations,
so that the pioneera and settlers may be freed from the

~,~.~ r

terrors of wandering hostile tribes; and, second, an earnest
effort at their civilisation, so that they may themselves be
elevated in the scale of humanity, and our obligation tl
them as fellow-men be discharged. In carrying out this
lolicy a great practical difficulty has arisen from the fact
that in most instances a separate reservation was given
to each tribe. These reservations have been surrounded

and gradually invaded by the while settlers, and the In-
dians crowded out of their homes and forced to negotiate
for a new settlement, because their presence, their habits,
and their manners were distasteful to their now and more
powerful neighbours.

It is believed that the only remedy for this condition of
things is to encourage the Indians to assemble upon larger
reservations, where their numbers will be aggregated, and
whore the more civilised of them will iefineuce the others
in striving to progress in the arts of peace. Congress has
already passed an act to enable the civilised Indians of the
Indian Territory, properly so called, to form a general
organisation, with most of the elements of a territorial go-
vernment; but the requisite appropriations of money have
not been made to carry the plan into effect. I would
earnestly recommend that no further delay be made in this
matter. The ass-elated tribes, of which the Cherokees
have taken the lead, aro those best fitted for a fuller experi-
ment in self-government. They are already familiar with
most of the forma of executive, legislative, and judicial ac-
tion in use among us, and I believe them well prepared to
dispense with the tutelage of our agents, if they may have
a delegate of their own upon the floor of the House of 11e-
preselltatives to speak for them. Beth they and wo are suf-
fering for the lack of such direct representation. The white
constituencies which are nearest to them are the ones
of all the nation whose interests are most in opposition,and
whose personal tendencies arc most hostile to theirs.,'! be
representatives of such constituencies would be more than
human if they were not influenced by this fact. Eepre-
sentation chosen by the tribes themselves,- and responsible
to themselves, is the only mode of making the country
acquainted with their condition and with our obligations
to them. In such a territory the tribal organization would
easily merge into the country, and the territorial legisla-
ture would not be very different from the grand councils
at resent in vogue among them. The Indians north of
the Platte River aro not yet prepared for a similar concen-
tration ; but the time cannot be far distant when two or
three principal Indian tribes may properly embrace all the
tribes east of the Rocky Mountains. Without such a
system they will inevitably go through the old process of
being first surrounded and then overwhelmed and de-
stroyed by the white immigration. As they advance in in-
telligence they will need no urging to adopt this plan, for
they will see as plainly as we that the existence of their
race depends upon it. The same policy of concentrating
the tribes will apply to the country west of the IlockY
Mountains, and will be equally necessary whenever
and wherever the feuds existing among them can be
so far settled that they can live together in peaceful
neigh bourhc od. Upon such permanent reservations fa, nts
should- be allotted in severalty as soon as any disposi-
tion to ,agriculture is awakened, and every inducement
offered to stimulate the desire for property of a flied
character.

The late Peace Commission negotiated treaties With all
the principal tribes east of the Rocky Mountains, and wore
guided in their action by the general views stated above,
which, indeed, may be said to have been accepted by all
disinterested persons who have had any opportunity 0,
examining the subject. The treaties woro duly ratified,
and so became the solemn contract between the United
States and those tribes. It is deeply to be regrett"d that
specific appropriations were not made to carry out strictly
the terms of the trestle., for, although the general appro-
priation of two millions has been used asfar as possible in the
fulfilment of the obligations incurred, the Commissioner
of Indian Affairs has been met at every step by distrust
of the good faith.of the Government, and all promises
regarding the future have been doubtingly received and
answered by the inquiry, what agreement could be more
binding. than that made under the authority of Congress
by so distinguished personages as the Ambassadors of the
United States ? Everything attending the Peace Commis-
sion was of a nature to excite the imaginations of the
Indians, and to impress them with the. belief that no',
more than ever before, we were thoroughly in earnest in
our negotiations. The disappointment is proportionally
great, and the comparative qpiet which has been maintained
throughout the year could only have been secured by
greatly increased care and untiring effort on the part of
the officers of the Indian Bureau and of the army officers,
who have co-operated with the greatest zeal in carrying
out a peaceful policy.
A savage is the last person with whom any doubt of our
exact good faith should be allowed to remain. In deal-
ing with him it seems quite essential that he should find
both our promises and our threats absolutely certain, and
so learn to invest the Government with something of the
divine attributes of justice and omnipotence.
In the organization of the Indian Bureau itself, at the
beginning of your administration, it was deemed advis-
able to depart from the usual mode of selecting and .ap-
pointing the superintendents and agents. The tribes iu
Nebraska and Kansns, and some of those most recently
placed upon reservations in the Indian Territory,. were
placed under control of members of the Society of Friends;
the others were given in charge of military officers, who
were waiting orders under the laws for the reduction of the
army. These sweeping changes were made because it was
believed that the public opinion of the country demanded
a radical reorganization of this branch of the service. The
selection of the officers of the army was made partly for
economical reasons, as they were on pay though not on
duty, and the salaries of many civil officers could thus be
saved, and partly because it was believed they furnished a
corps of public servants whose integrity and faithfulness
could be relied upon, and in whom the public wore pre-
pared to have' confidence. The Friends were appointed
not because they were believed to have any monopoly of
honesty or of good-will toward the Indians, but because
their selection would of itself be understood by the country
to indicate the policy adopted, namely, the sincere cultiva-
tion of peaceful relations with the tribes, and the choice
of agents who did not, for personal profit, seek the service,
but were sought for it because they were at least deemed
fit for its duties. The two yearly meetings of "Friends
were asked to select men in whom they had confidence,
and who might become at once the business agents of the
Government and zealous missionaries of civilization.
persons so selected were appointed by you, by and with
the advice and consent of the Senate, and although it was
somewhat into in the season when they were sent to their
pasts, enough has been seen of their labours to make it
certain that the mode of selection was not a mistake. Pis
due to these soci• ties to say that they have at their
own cost sent officers of their own body to inspect the
wok of the agents as far as it aimed at the civilization
and instruction of the Indians. The moral support and
encouragement thus given to the agents must be valu-
able.

In accordance with the same general plan of bring rig
moral influence to bear upon the conduct of Indian
affairs, the present Congress authorized you to appoint 3
commission of philanthropic citizens, to serve without paYr
in such supervisory and visitorial duty as might be as-
signed to them. No difficulty was found in securing the
services of men of the highest character and known bene-
volence. By an executive order they were authorized to
inspect all the accounts and records of the Bureau, to be
present at the purchases of Indian goods and advise as
to the conduct of the same, and to visit and inspect the
tribes in their reservations and examine the business of
all the agencies. The officers of the department were also
directed to give respectful heed to the suggestions and
reports of the Commission. No direct responsibility,
either pecuniary or administrative, was put upon this Coin-
mission, because it was believed that their usefulness
would not be increased thereby. They now constitute
an entirely disinterested body of intelligent advisers, with
full power to throw the light of the most searching scru-
tiny upon the conduct of our relations with the Indiana,
and to give the public, through their reports, the most re-
liable knowledge of the condition and progress of the
several tribes. It is believed, also, that their efforts
cannot fail to stimulate the public conscience, and to
give greater unity and vigour to the voluntary efforts
made throughout the country in the cause of In ;ism
lization—a result desirable in itself, and certain to make
easier and more satisfactory the duties of the officers of the
Bureau. • CI VI-

The administrative efforts of the department in this re-
gard have therefore been directed, first, to the substitution
of new officers in the ageicies, selected by a new rule, and
one which it was believed would inspire public confidence;
and second, to organize a reliable mode of visitation and
supervision, which would give the purifying influence
of the most public scrutiny, and the great advantage of in-
telligent and philanthroptic advice as to the affairs of tribes
of fellow-men, who have no more direct representation or
more satisfactory way of making their condition and wants
known to the country. The experience of the last sum-
mer, imperfect as it has necessarily been, warrants confi-
deuce in the system adopted. The report of the Commis-
sioner, with the reports of the inspecting committees sue,
other documents appended, show that the general condi-
tion of the tribes is much more peaceful than we had reason
to expect. No general or formidable hostilities bsve
broken out, and it is believed that the influen. e of nearly
all the older and more experienced chiefs has been in favour
of peace and of friendly appeals to us to carry out our trea-
ties with them. Sinai! bands of several tribes have been.
guilty of pillage and murder, and have been severely and_
justly punished by the troops; but even these collisions
have not disturbed the quiet of the greater portion of the
Indian country.