New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1867-11-21

cepts it as evidence of the inyeterate 6endsh-
ness of the Indian race.
Most of the fighting of the Indians with
each other and with the whites arises from the
fact that, by depriving them of their hunting
grounds, we are constantly reducing them to
poverty and starvation. The wealthy tribes
those which have hocks and herds-give us no
trouble. Their very property makes them
peaceful. But starving tribes, like men suffer
ing from cold and hunger, must steal. How, then,
may Indians be induced to accumulate property
One mistake made in this respect by our Govern
ment and missionaries has been the effort to
turn them from nOmad savage life, at one
bound, into full-hedged civilized life. as
farmers and villagers, without passing them
through the intermediate stages The Indian
can very readily be diverted from hunting wild
cattle to herding and pasturing tame cattle
from barbarous to a pastoral me- But ne
cannot be suddenly hOisted into civilization,
changed from a vagrant of the wllds INTO
supporter of churches and schools, from a
hunter and trapper into plowman and mer-
chant. The aim of the Government should be,
therefore, to lead the Indian, by easy grada-
tons, out of the savage life into the still,
and herdsmen. For this they show ready
adaptedDess and anatural inclination Through
out South America and Mexico the Indians
meet the whites on this intermediate plane,
and are their equals. From thence they
gradually pass into civilization. A notable IL
lustration of this we see in President Juarez Of
Mexico, whose father and grandfather were
herdsmen, and whose ancestors were savages
The system Of making treaties with the In
dians as Independent nations, should be gradu-
ally abandoned, and instead thereof they should
all be placed under military government
under the charge of the War Department
They need-and as our settlements increase
will need still mOre-the strong arm of military
government to protect them against neiGhborng
tribes, against the vagabOnds and criminals OF
their own tribes and against spontaneous
guerrilla warfare from the whites. To this
end military posts permanently established NJ
points accessible to all our Indian country,
and in charge of Regular Army officers, and an
Indian Bureau corresponding in organization
TO our Freedmcn's Bureau would greatly con-
tribute. Through these means the Indian races
might be assisted in their efforts to grow herds
of cattle, and horses and swine, and fiocks or
sheep and goats, and become valuable addl-
ton TO our national industry. The "magnlll-
" cent distances of the great West leave them
still time and room to emerge by natural steps
from satagery to civilization before their lands
will be taken up for farms and towns But to
accomplish this great and humane end the
whole Indian question needs to be acted upon
as one qucstion-with unity Of design and
permanent policy. In accordance, we believe,
with the views of nearly all the officers OF our
Regular Army who have had experience in In
dian affairs. this could not be better done than
by creating an Indian Bureau within the War
Department, having absolute charge of all In
dian Affairs, under the control of some ex-
perionccd. humane and sagacious soldier like
Gen. Sherman. One leading object Of such Il
bureau would be TO make the Indians immc-
diatcly peaceful and profitable by encouraging
and protecting them in entering upon the oc-
cupation of shepherds and herdsmen, for
which they have already shown every required
capacity. and in which many of the tribes, al
most unassistcd have made commcndable pro-
uTpsS.