Saint Paul weekly Minnesotian., 1858-06-19
Mr.. Sibley's Last Messase---LavWs for
Indians.

those touched upon yesterday, Is the TACT
which he tells us positively is fact, that he,
MIR. SIBLEY, has absolutely issued procla-
nation for the prosecution of Indians who
may murder Indians or commit murder or
depredations on whites "wHhin the limits Of
The State.
Now, we agree with our FREUD SIBLEY up
on the propriety OF repressing the incursions
of savages through our country, and of pre-
venting them making war paths through our
cities and towns into each others villages,
principally, as he says, for the purpose of
numbering helpless women and chldren.-
This most certainly must be PIT stop to, and
though Mr.. SIBLEY has taken good care to
publish his proclamation for the enforcement
of the existing laws only in Democratic pa
pers, which are mostly those which have the
least circulation in the State, yet by adding
the pl oclamation of the MINNEsoTIAN to his,
urging, as we hereby do, all officers of the
law to be "active in apprehending and prose-
cutting" all Indians thus offending, We hope
our joint efforts may prove successful in excl
ting those officers to perform their du-
ty. But while We commend his efforts to
stimulate the enforcement of the laws in this
particular we should have thought more
highly of his sincerity, had he displayed some
especial activity in having the Sioux at Shak-
opee arrested whilst in the very act of dane
%bo nf GbippaxV0 whom, fhpv
boasted of having murdered within our terri
tory; nor should we then have complained
if the next moment he had turned around
and also arrested the Chippewas who attack
ed them in retaliation whilst engaged in their
disgusting orgies.
Here was favorable opportunity to have
indicated our laws upon offenders of both
tribes and to have struck wholesome ter
ror into the minds of the entire Indian popu-
lation of our State. If he had been in ear
mest, the thing was possible-eminently prac-
teal. Why did he not do the deed ? Why
let them all go off with impunity? There
are those who think that had the Chippewas
alone been the culprits, his action would have
been prompt enough: indeed, he did arrest
some of them; but as it would have been too
shameful to have let the Sioux 60 while their
enemies only were held to answer to our
laws he preferred, it is thought, this time to
let both escape rather than jeopardize the
safety of his old friends and customers, when
he was their Indian trader. The first oppor
tunity hereafter, doubtless, when the Chippe-
was can be caught derelict in some offence
within our jurisdiction, without the Sioux
being also implicated at the same time, it Is
suspected that the Sioux Trader will be won
derfully prompt to exercise upon the hered
tary enemies of the "poor Shoes" the entire
extent of his little brief authority"
In the same paragraph about his Indian pro-
clamatlon he likewise advocates 'the passage
Of an act to extend the laws Of the Safe over
all the Indian tribes within our boundaries
and to confine them to their own lands, un-
less allowed by special exception to be alb
sent from their reservation"
All this sounds extremely well, but what
Il, c, it mean
The criminal laws of this State are at this
tine extended over all the Indian tribes
whenever aud at the instant, that any of their
number leave the bounds of their own Re
servatiOns !
Every resident of Minnesota, be he white
or black, Indian or mulatto, born in America
or across the ocean, native or natural. ed, is
al enable to our laws for the protection of
each and every member Of society: amenable
the moment he or she comes within the linn
its of our State.
This is the law now-does Mr.. SIBLEY
propose to reenact it or commit any absurdity
of that kind?
Or does he propose the greater absurdity
of attempting to extend our State laws into
the Mdian territOry-to regulate the internal
policy of the Indians themselvcs,-abolish
their community Of property,-repress steal
ing from each other-puniSh assaults and
homicidcs upon each other-and generally
make them behave themselves well towards
each other, and towards all the rest of man
kind?
If he does not mean this, then in the name
of common sense what does he mean ? 1t
would, we acknowledge, be no small gift to
the Indian race, to bestow upon them the
boon of tav
The great obstacle to Indian civization,-
has been, not the ant of Christianity not of
education-not Of wealth-but the want of
lar. We are not certain, even if you civil
ze them but that you will have for your
pains only an inferior race after al but
to expect TO civilize or christianze them at all,
without first protecting the industrious from
being imposed on by the idle, or molested
by the vicious-their crops trampied upon
their cattle shot for food or in revenge, their
houses burnt, and themselves inSulted or
outraged, which is the condition of every
we'll disposed Indian who seeks to be indus
trious or tries to accommodate himself to the
inevitable advances of civiization--is nom
sense which every man, missionary or lay
man, who has ever tried the civilization
game, Will pronounce to be nonsense of the
first water, ard both money and labor sadly
thrown away. Two hundred years of fruit
less experiment sustains this view; and
equally establish that the first step to Ciyili-
zation Of the Indians is the e1teasion of law
'ver them--.protectiag them from each other.
If this is what the Indian Trader intended
by his phraseology of "egtendiag our lars
ore~ all The Indian tribes aci,hin our Jounda-
ries," we are certainly disposed to award to
him the need of gooa iatent,on if we are
compelled in the same breath to tell him that