The Minnesota pioneer. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn. Territory) 1849-1855, 1850-11-21

Delay of Indian Payments.
- ss.ssssses
Circumstances alter cases" To q FEEDER
oil officer NJ Washington, sho receives hrs
quarterly salary, a delay of the money due
TO him, for few days or even weeks, is a
nader of small n,anieni; Cor he can, if be
.1likess call NJ pairp's and anticipate the pay.
men,, al a moderate shave; but the Indians
of minnesota, who depends upon the chase
ln,sd upon slGovernment annulies Tor his
winters supply of food and rlotbing, and
who ,hiist be supplied before steamboats, are
locked in the ice, or else remain m ,les,ilu-
,ionahreugh the winter, is ruined by these
fs,cIav.. There is to Puiro for The Sioux,
the Wipnel,aso or the Chippewa, 10 call
l.Dn, Cor s:!yances OF cash for the next ar.
nuity. The traders may grudginsly adj
vance them some goods -trnJcrs hare adj
avaRced immense amounts in this way; but
they always do SO reluctantly and 10 save
the Indians from downright Starvation
The traders make such advances reluctant
~; because they cannot afford to trust out
their goods and supplies, even a, large
advance upon the cost, upon security so
uncertain. and subject themselves to the Ger
'rainty Of much delay in receiving pay for
their goods, and 10 the accusation Of ,lc-
-irauding the Indians and even TO the risk
OF ultimately losing such debts altogether
But i, is here a well known fact, that if it
were not FOR advances Of clo,hing, am,nuni-
ton ao.l other necessaries to the Indians,
Indispensable to furnish them with their an
nuai outfit for the fall hunts, they would lit
Ierslly starve to. death. whenever their pay
n'enss are delayed, as they have been, to
our knowledge, this year and The last year;
and for how many years preceding, we
know not. News has just reached us from
tine nor:h, that he ChipPewas, who are gen.
orally a quiet, well disposed people, went
armed aud seized several cattle belonging to
the government and killed them for beef
No person man, doubts hut that they
were iinpelicd 10y hunger, TO do this; veri-
flying the old adage, THAI necessity knows
40 tawsH Here now, IL is winter, and not
dollar Of their stnnuiries which nv the SOL
ef,,n treaty stipula,ions of .he government,
oughtfo have been pa,d months ago, have
any Of these siestiinte tribes received
We do no, believe, as some do, who haze
watched carefully for years, the manage
,nent Of indian affairs, that our goveren-
nlent intends TO favor a policy which viii
eventually exierminate these poor, God for
saken remnants Of III. tribes that once held
proud dominion over the whole Of this
broad coutincDt. What we complain of
we think. is only the result Of negligence
official negligence, produced by want Of
knowledge, at Washington, of the charac-
ter, the condition, the dependence and help
lessness Of these tribes. The Indian policy,
had as the whole system is. land worse
could no. be nyente,lD is rendered the more
intolerable Ly its incomplete and tardy exc
eution. Here the government takes the
land Of the Indian, takes away his game,
mud says TO him, stake an equivalent,
take pension--sit down in your wig
wan and | will bring regularly, twice
year, an ample supply of food and
clothing for you" When a tribe Of Indi
ans consent TO this arrangement, they arc
as dependent for food and clothing, as
town pauper would bc, with his hands cut
off. Our plan Of treating the Indians, as
we before said, would he, to teach them
civilization, the arts aud selfreliahcs. We
would have every papoose, cutloos from the
strip of bark TO which the Indian mother has
bound lis little limbs, aud removed entirely
away from the wigwam and its associations
and have it nursed ana fed and dressed and
educated amongst the whites, and like a
Christian. Fa;s systan, steadily, univcr-
sally adhered to for one generation, would
place all the Indian tribes, for all coming
Tine, spon footing Of equality with our
selves, in all respects. But until this, or
some other sensible plan is adopted, for the
management Of the Indians. we think it of
vast importance, not only ror the sake Of the
moral effect upon the Indians,by maintaining
treaty stipulations, with strict fidelity, and
not only to save them from the rapacity of
traders, but to their very existence, tina.
they be managed by capable agents and
that they receive their payments, their
whole payments, exactly when they are due,
without any fraud or delay whatever.
49,. ~ LOCAL AFFAIRS. re ssr