The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1868-11-25

notable fact, however, that they always forget
the whiskey rings and general governmental
corruption in their desire to show their
jealousy of our commercial advancement. We
hope TO see a few trials Of the charges thus
preferred, and let these trials come first upon
the judiciary that any stain which may be cast
upon them may be refuted for If We cannot
depend upon the honest administration of the
law, then has the moment arrived for revolu-
ton.
General shoridan's Report tho Indian
We publish to-day in full the report OF Gen.
eral Sheridan to Lieutenant General Sherman
on the progress Of affairs on the Plains from
March 2, when General Sheridan assumed
command Of the Military District Of Missouri,
to November IL, the date of the present
report. 1t is perspicuous document, charac-
terized by the straightforward and simple
style of the soldier, imposing upon the reader
not word too much and emitting nothing that
can complete full and succinct history of the
Indian troubles which have been seriously
embarrassing our Western settlers, our frontier
army and the Union Pacific Railway during
the past four months. General Sheridans
command is somewhat extensive in area. 1t
embraces New Mexico, the Indian Territory,
Kansas, Upper Arkansas and Missouri. It
happened that the recent troubles centred in
the district of Upper Arkansas, where Gen.
eral Alfred Sully was in command, with his
headquarters sometimes at Fort Harker and
often of late in the field. This district was
infested, if we may use the term, by those
tribes, portion of which are in arms against
us-namely, the Cheyennes, Arapahoes,
Kiowas and Comanches, while small bands Of
the Sioux and Northern Cheyennes also made
this region their hunting ground and have
since joined in the hostities; and here the
Indian battle field Of 1868 was and is located
This district, says General Sheridan, was
for these reasons the most difficult to
manage in his whole command, not only
because of the hostility of the saw
ages, but in view of it's extensive
frontier, westward to Colorado and. southwark
to New Mexico The duties devolving on Gen
eral Sully and his officers may be imagined
from the fact that there were not less than six
thousand warriors in the field, all we'll equip
ped and each man having some ten or more
spare horses for q remount. Against this
force Sully marched his troops greatly inferior
in number as they were, south of the Arkan-
sas, in September, where he did good service
in several skirmishes, but from the difficulty in
bringing up achievements from so many dis
tant points it was impossible to reach and de-
stroy the Indian villages, as was expected
General Sheridan, therefore, very properly
complains that the troops at his command were
at that time entirely inadequate to the service
demanded of them. Since then more regular
troops have been ordered to the Plains by
General Grant, and Governor Crawford, of
Kansas, has organized a militia force which
will relieve, to some extent. the regulars from
post duty and leave them free to operate
against the Indians.
While Sully was pursuing the ssvages south
OF the Arkansas Captain Graham, OF the Tenth
cavalry, was protecting the stage line to Den
yer with a small force. Being attacked by
powerful band Of Indians he defeated them,
killing eleven and wounding large number.
1t was about this time that the attack by seven
hundred Indians was made on Colonel George
A. Flo. syth and his party of scouts on the
Republican river General Sheridan re-
counts all the incidents of this gal
liant transaction, which have already
appeared at length in the columns of the
HERALD from our special dispatches, and
pays just tribute to the bravery of Colonel
Forsyth and Lieutenant Frederick N. Beecher,
who, it will be remembered was killed in the
action. General Sheridan testiies to the well
known treachery Of the Indian character by
citing two cases where the Kiowas, Comanches
and Arapahoes broke faith with him, showing
that they are not to be trusted, coaxed nor
made peace with. The first case occurred
when General Sherman sent an officer from
the Peace Commission to Sheridan, offering
the Kiowas and Comanches provisions for the
winter If they would retire to their reservation
at Fort Cobb. They accepted the Offer but
we have the words of General Sheridan for it
that it was only decoy to get their families
to place of safety, when the warriors imme-
diately joined the hostile bands. ''When at
tempted" says General Sheridan, ''to get the
Arapahoes and Kiowas, who met me at Fort
Dodge, to go on their reservations on the
promise that would feed them they accepted
the proposition, and yet they were the very
first to attack Sully on his march,"
For these reasons Sheridan is opposed to
peace commissions, especially to their action
Il. r.ll md ha hou aviJ optlv
no more faith than we have in the Indian
Department, for he says ''the Peace Com
missioners, the Indian Department, the mill
tary and the Indians make q very balky
team" He deprecates the whole present
system because there are ''too many fingers
IL thn ninr and fno much money 10 he made