New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1870-07-05
MUST NE HATE IN INDIAN WARP

MUST NE HAVE IN INDIAN WARP
If we believe half of the kilograms that come
from the West, we are certainly on the eve OF
a great Indian war; 1t is well enough to re-
member, however, that the western end of the
telegraph line is in the hands of those who
both pr0phesy and want an Indian war. We
are flooded with kilograms Of terrible hOstilites
which subsequent events do not confirm. 1t
was but the other day that We had couple
of these The first told us that some hundreds
of hostile Indians attacked a train, which
dashed over, dispensing them, and killing
them. The next day it ran, that train, coming
to a curve on the road, discovered several
hundred Indians crossing it; the Indians
"shrieked n-when the locomotive engineer
pulled out the plug and dashed at them,
killing seventeen. We would have
demanded a prompt examination into the affair,
and the cOndign punishment of conductors,
engineers, or whoever might be guilty of
carrying on war, on their own responsibility,
in that way, at the time of the occurrence, but
were deferred by the belief that the whole
story was part of the mendaciOus tibbing by
telegraph that Overwhelms us. The Chey-
ennes and Sheridans, and other SOdoms and
Gomorrahs of the Plain, which sprang into
mushroom existence during the construction of
the Pacific Railroad, and which have not yet
been overtaken by legitimate business or
decent population, wilt and wither, and are
diving for war. The drinking saloons, the
gamblers, and the prostitutes out there want
war. An army is about the only kind of
population that they think they are really
suffering for. Then the spectators there who
Ill l.t, 4l,1.l f1,,.
"of the Pacific Railway" want hay, beef,
wood, and grain contracts. If there is not
war, and large army there, these peculiar
cities would blow away, or have to wait until
a decent agricultural population reached them.
Happily for them they have one end of the
telegraph line in their fingers. If they do not
understand how to make their story plausible
and coherent, they make up for it by san
culinary temper and a reckless Imagination.
Before Red Cloud had fairly disappeared from
the railroad they could state that he was plot
ting with his chiefs great and sangunary war.
The army, too, or, at least, many of the
army officers, seem to have an instructive
itching for an Indian war A bill is pending
to reduce the army and muster ont many Off
GERS, and about the only plausible reason for
checking this would be great war on the
Plains. While few officers of character APP
preciate the position, many others, reckless,
ignorant, and unpatIiOtic, seem TO omit no
opportunity to attack any Indians who may
be guilty of the crime of "prOXimity' to the
forts. If we do not have an Indian war under
such circumstances we will be very lucky in
deed. If we have it, for every scalp taken
from the frontier settlements, or settlers
house burned, or stock driven off, those who
in a blood thirsty spirit have provoked this
war are directly responsible. We might have
had, we hope we still may have, peace, and if
we have not, to ignorance, and deep prejudice,
and carelessness, all its crimes and extrava-
gances are due. Frontier settlers call.fOr sol
diers and war. Their prejudices shut them
out from humane and Christian standpoint
of the question, and to the war thus provoked
all its desolations are due. Had we taken a
wise and enlightened view of the question,
the settler could have sat by his cabin in per-
feet security, and the side of peace would not
only be the side of security, but of economy,
justice, and humanity.
We believe the country at large is begin
Ming to understand and appreciate the ques-
ton, but much we fear Congress does not. At
the present moment the House refuses to con-
chr in amendments of the Senate chiefly af-
fectiHe the wild Indians of the Plains-the
removal ,cf some of them to reserves, and the
payment of the pittance that was agreed to