St. Cloud Democrat. [volume] (Saint Cloud, Stearns County, Minn.) 1858-1866, 1864-05-19


And Frcedoms banner streaming; o. er Ws !"
THE CHIPPEWA INDIAN TREATY.
We publish elsewhere in this week S
issue letter written by Hon. Ignatius
Donnelly to Hon. Thaddeus Stevens,
Chairman Of the Committee of Ways
aud Means in the House Of Reprcsen-
tatives, protesting against appropria-
lions asked for tn connection with car
rying out tho provisions Of the new
treaty with the Chippewa Indians -
The letter is plain aud speaks for itself,
aud We need but call the attention Of
our readers to It.
This seems, however, a proper oppor-
tunity for saying what should have
been said long ago, viz. that the ~hote
treaty is ,erong and never should have
been made. There existed no ncces-
sity tor it, and it can possibly 'tezult in
no good, while it must pt6Guce 'gredt
deal Of evil.
What were the bcudfciJl results
sought to be obtslnsa, we can only i'm
agiue. Ifiutended to be ct benefit to
the whites, the removal is asesrss for
no white man cares for the land now
occupied by these Indians. In other
portions Of the State, more accessible
to markets, which constitute tho great
desi;rata Of the thrifty farmer whose
constant endeavor is to have a surplus
which may be converted into cash: lie
thousands of acres Of land much more
desirable. The time has not yet come
when these lands ore den ended by the
onward march OF ciyilizatian, ',ssd Prob.
ably never will be Until the Mississippi
Indians shull exist in little more Viz
If the purpose be t. improve the
condition of the Indians, it is a sad
step. The reservation they now occu-
py is poor enough, conscience knows !;
but it is said to be garden spot when
compared with the sterile location mark
ed out for them by the new treaty. If
tAey can remain where they are aud
grub living from the soil, they de-
serve to be permitted to DO so for it is
more than any white man would care
to undertake. If the Government is
in earnest in its purpose Of stimulating
these Indians to habits Of industry and
iufusing into their uinds u taste for
agriculture by furnishing them with
farming implements, it is bad policy to
place them on soil which will yield no
return for the labor expended in its
cultivation.
The people of Minnesota do not de-
sire this removal, as it places the H..
dams farther from the restraining intlu-
euces by which they arc now surround
ed-makiug all their !, ovcments d.
scure and uncertain-whils it would
conducc to render them disconnected.
The indians themselves 10 not wish to
make the change, as they know full
we'll that it would produce for them
nothing but evil.
Here then is an appropriation Of
Sl57 800, for what, To serve no
good purpose that we c"n possibly sec.
At this timo all useless expenditure
should be dispensed with, and this
seems to US tho most useless that could
be imagined.
No treaty with the Chippewa Indians
Of tho Mississippi-the only tribe now
remaining in the State can be formed
which will b. sanctioned by the people,
save one THAT shall provide for their re-
moval beyond the farthermost bounds
Of Minnesota. That for which the ap-
preparation is now asked, elbows them
Z few miles further north, without bct-
tering their condition or proving Of any
benefit to the white population Of the
State. .a4 r.s> ..
What We ask, and what We think EN-.
bodies the almost universal wish of the
people, is, that, as this treaty c1pends a
large amount Of money with no benefit,
the Indians be allowed to remain where
they are, until their entire removal
from the State can be provided for.
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