Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1865-07-28
II INDIAN War.

The Indians on the Plains appear to be
too numerous for our troops yet, though
reports say the latter have lately been
considerably increased in number. They
have had added to their number, it is true,
a division Of one thousand mounted in
fantry and a brigade of Sheridan's cavalry,
perhaps a thousand more; but that does
not begin to be enough to operate against
the large number of savages with whom
they will have to deal, in the immense.
great wild country which they make their
home, and whose every fastness they well
know. Their numbers are not sufficient,
because since they have arrived in the In
dian country, they have been unable to
stay the depredations Of the redskins and
punish them for their IMMUNITY. While
the newspapers of Colorado, Utah and
Montana come to Us with numerous &C.
counts Of murders, robberies and destruc-
ton of property by the hostile sayages'
they give us no accounts of their proper
chastisement. We suppose the troops are
distributed in small companies protecting
Government posts or along the line of the
Overland road, acting as guards to coaches,
or defending telegraph stations. The
trouble is, there are not enough of them
yet. On the goth of last March General
Connor assumed command of the troops
in Nebraska, Colorado and Utah, and all
that portion Of Dacotah lying west of the
9th degree of longitude. He had over
1900 miles of direct mail and telegraph
line to protect against hostile Indians,
(along the line,) estimated to number
5000 warriors. Thus he had about
a half million square miles of territory
TO guard, its numerous forts to gar
rison, its thousands Of miles of stage
route and telegraph line to protect, and
an immense number of coaches to escort
and defend (; and with how many men?
All told, $500! And for these $500
troops, it is stated, very inferior provisions
had been provided, and scanty supplies Of
all things necessary TO carry on operations
away from the forts aud stations, had
been furnished. It will not do. Better
provisions must be made for the support
and efficiency Of the soldiers, and their
number at least sextupled very soon. or
the warm season wall have passed away
and the people west Of the Rocky Noun
,ains will have to suffer from Indian dep
relations until the middle Of another
summer at least. The troops that have
been arriving now and then from the East
| since the fall Of Richmond, have been too
few in number. On the 18th Of June,
1000 troops arrivedAAt Laramie from the
Army of the Potomac, and about the
same time a brigade of Sheridan's cavalry
reached Leavenworth en- route for the
p~rairies further west. This brigade con-
sisted of four regiments of Michigan cav
airy who had charged with Sheridan in
six,y-three well fought battles. They are
brave men, but not numerous enough to
deal with the enemy in the immense scope
of country where they must be followed
and fought. These are all the troops from
the East Of whom we have any knowledge
of arriving at the West. To keep the In
dams from descending on every point
which becomes unprotected, requires that
they shall be followed up, hunted down.
and exterminated, OIL taught a wholesome
lesson Of fear. The most effective as well
as the least expensive way Of doing this,
evidently, is to put men enough after
them at once to completely "clean them
OUT" That certainly is the only way to
bring the wal to q close this present sum-
mer, and that is what can and should be
done.