Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1864-04-07
THE DIFFERENTIATION OF THE INDIANS.


A correspondent of one of our Boston religio-
political contemporaries, writing frsm the West,
alludes as follows to the progress OF emigration In
that direction, and to the impending fate Of the
Indian race in this country:
"A dozen steamboats, advertised TO sail from Lesv
enworth aud Omaha with the opening Of sprng LOT the
headquarters of the Missouri and Yellow Stone Ihou-
sands of wagons loading for three months Ioui
thousands~ are making up their outfit al 81. Taui
westward ia the cry There will be conflicts with the
Indians There will be relentless warfare many Pr
neer will fall before the riffs of the savage, put 'no ia
will be Obliged to WELD For ages he has hsd an opPor
tuny to develop the riches of earth, which no mas Tram
Piled under foot He has not improved ms oPPor'l.ny,
cultivate and improve it, 1t the command In tho DO
ginning The nation that does not obey must go down
Obedience is the only insurance OF lilo Against inc mo-
ton as well against the individual the decree goes
Cut il down. why cumbereth it the groundF IL 10 SAD
to think of the extinction of race but there can DO no
change Gods nmutable laws The Indian must acooPt
he can be civilized he has been savage too long In
dvduas may accommodate themselves to the new order
of things. but as their fate is inevitable"
Human compacency doubtless finds its account
in thus identifying "the immutable laws Of God"
with the cupidity and crime which, under our
Indian SYSTEM fast driving the aboriginal race
this country from the face Of the earth Its easy
to adopt theory of Divine Providence which
makes us, in our own eyes, the instruments OF
executing His DEGREES when we are all the while
only gratifying our own selfish and wicked pas
sions And yet to all who thus adopt this easy
method of self.delusion the solemn questioning
and reproof of the Holy Book is directly addressed
!" What hast thou to do to declare My statutes, or
that thou shouldst take My covenant in thy mouth
Thou sittest and speakest against thy brother
These things hast thou done and kept silence;
thou thoughtest that was altogether such an one
as myself; but will reprove thee and set them in
order before thine eyes"
!" 1t is doubtful" says the Boaton writer, off
the Indian can be civilized. He has been .
savage too long" This is precisely the argu nent
Of the pro-savery fanatic. 1t is doubtful if the
negro can ever be any thing but . bond slave
He has been slave Of slaves too long" And yet
this very writer prefaces his CON placent acquies-
cence in the doom of the Indian with hopeful
visions of the emancipation of the negro race as
the result and aim of the present war in our coun-
try. To this effect he says:
These are eventfu years Liberty and slavery are at
Fsudalism and democracy are IN deadly conflict
Four millions of human beings belonging to despised
race passing from bondage TO freedom. Society il
soughing of disease burning out the cancer which has
corrupted the body polite Reorganization beginning
Great problems presenting thems elves for solution
How shall the life of States beginf What shall be
the condition Of the freedmen in respect to cltzenshp
How shall society lay aside the old order OF things and
ad apt itself to new conditions These questions upon
u.s. aud they must be met manuly and settled in the
spirit of the age But it is not my purpose In this article
to discuss them desire rather to take an outlook in
| another direction"
And the outlook" he takes in the direction of
the West discloses to him nothing better than
the prospect of the speedy extinction Of the Indian
race. With regard to the "despised race" of
Africa this country, he thinks, has solemn and in
spring duties. The question in this case is
" what shall be the condition of the freedmen in
respect of citizenship? How shall society lay aside
the old order of things and adapt itself to new
conditions2' "These questions he adds, care
upon us, and they must be met manfully and set
tied in the spirit of the age" But with regard to
the Indian race no such questions are suggested
to this philanthropist They are appointed to
determination. "The spirit of the age" speaking
by the mouth Of this, prophet proclams that it is
doubtful whether the power Of Christianity is
adequate to redeem the Indian from barbarism.
He has been savage too long" And this is said
in the face of the fact that no earnest and continu-
GUS efforts have been made in our country for
the civilization and chrstianization Of the Indian
| tribes