Sioux City register. [volume] (Sioux City, Iowa) 1858-1871, 1866-05-05
INDIANS OF THE soRrH- WEST.

lHDlANs OF THE. aoRTH- WEST.
W. copy the following letter to the N.
Y. Tribune, from corrssp ondsnt evident
y veil posted ~ to the management and
nisnanagemsnt Of Indian affairs 10 tho
North west -
There have been 20 msuy misrsp rssso-
ta.ions and 30 many false statem ents
made in regard 70 Indian affairs in tho
northwest, or, a. It is better known, the
upper Missouri country, thss : few facts
which cannot be disputed, eeuing from
persons who had tho best means Of jad-
giog, may BE- Of interest to those Who do
not believe in the doctrine upheld BY
some, that total determination Of the To-
dams il the only means BY which w can
have peace in our Indian country. There
age good Indians and bad ones, good Mig
gers aud bad soes, good white men and
some very bad ones.
These lines are written BY one who has
no interest whatever with the lndisns, in
q pecunisry point Of view; whose daily
bread does not depend on the Indians or
tho amount Of annuities Congress in its
wisdom may deem fit to appropriate for
their benefit.
Iii generally very we'll known now
hcw the terrible Minnesota massa ore Of
1852 vas brought about; hov the 6antee
Sioux were driven from one tract Of land
to another tract still further west, till At
last it WAS tho intention to drive them
back. west of tho State lins, to the bleak,
open prairie, where the soil 10 Of such .
nature that nothing will ever grow, and
where the Indians would have to starvs,
or 10 entirely dependent on the Govern
nent for their support.
These Santee Sioux we're not like tho
prairie Sioux, accustomed to hunt the
buffalo, but lived near the timber, hunted
email game, trapped, 6sbed, and oul.ivst-
Cd the soil TO some extent.
as the white settlements near tho villa
gee on the Mississippi river increased, the
GOV e,ous eyes Of specula,ors desired thsil
rich lands. Some Of the chiefs were in
duced to sign treaties giving up their
lands, which treaties they could not uu-
derstand, for they could not speak Eng
lisb, much less read it, and thus we're 1t
the mercy Of these Spectators ADD their
Interpreters. Often has this been tho
esse. We frequently hear Of delegation
Of such . tribe Of Iodisos visiting their
great Father at Washington, making such
. treaty By which they moved from their
lands, and the Government gave them %
much q year, would educate and eivi lie
them, and make them useful farmer. -
But how often have We seen this latter
part Of the treaty accomplished In
sumo respects We treat the Indians - .
foreigs power. We take the poor fools
TO Washington, treat them with the great.
ct respect, to make 40 impression on
them, and then send them home loaded
vito presents, alter making . treaty With
.hem, in "fIsnguage they don't under
eta d, through an irresponsible Interpreters
who may be interested in not interpr citing
the truth.
This is all wrong. The Wild, uncivil-
issd Indian is but child compared with
an educated white man, and our Govern
nsns should treat them Us children, pro-
tect, encourage, and improve them, aud
when they are tad, punish them.
There are cases where Indians who
Lave thus signed treaties have not been
aware tina. they had sigued asay their
own RICH. and title and that Of tbsir pso>
pie to their Iands, till the demand came
from the government, backed BY . mill
ssry force, ~ move trum their pleasant
homes, their birthplace, tie land OF their
toreiathers, aud 10 out iuio The bleak,
open Lrsiris, there " sesk new home
isis to be wondered q. that Indians
treated in this way during the long win
Ter months, while they were suffering
from hunger, their cLildren dying from
Starvation, should prowl around the white
settlements, ON The lands which were
tiers short time ago, and steal from
u oss who to them appeared to have plsn.
y, = chicken, y pig, " III ox2 What
gro, Or even white man, would not, NJ.
der .he same circumstances, do the ssms1
snd i il thus mai some Of our Indian
~a1s cv,unshced. True, in al treaties
,uads with The Indians, Governments
I. Iowa them cel tain sums Of nonsy, year.
y, - tecompeuss for The lands taken
from them, but how much Of this appro-
priation ever reaches the Indian? Il you
w,sa 70 know, spsnd > lew years II ~
indian Agency.
the M.nnesosa Sioux, starved, driven
to desperation, ~ lsst broke OUT il open