Arizona citizen., 1871-06-03
STONEMAN's REPORT NO2.

quarters Department of Arizona, In the Field, Camp Pinal, A. T., April 9, 1971," is addressed to the "Adjutant-
 General U. $. Army, Washington, !"
 and reprinted here from The-Army- nd-Navy-Journal of May 18th:
 GENERAL: 1 deem 1t proper to state for the information of the General-in-
 Chief the following on the condition
 of Indian affairs ill portion of the Department of Arizona. Within 8 short time past about $50 Indians of the Arevipa and Final bands have gone
 into Camp Grant, and upward of 1000 TarapahoiS have gone into Camp Yer de. They express desire to live at
 peace, and promlse to be "good h. dians and cease depredations. No
 official report has been received by me of the last scout made by Major Green of the First Cavalry from Camp Apache, but l am in receipt of information to the effect that a
 number of the chiefs of the Tontos paid him a visit, and expressed @ desire to be allowed to go upon the
 reservation established by order cf the
 late Mejor- General Thomas, and to
 put themselves under the con- trol of the post of Camp Apache.
 The establishment of an infantry camp,
 now Camp Pinal, has had the effect
 of driving the Finals out of their
 country. and few of them are going
 into Camp Grant, and the rest north
 of Salt river, where they have joined
 the Tontos. They say that we have
 gotten about them Camp Pinal is
 nearly 5000 feet high, and looks all
 over their country), and that they
 cannot live there any longer. Those
 that have given themselves up are in
 the most destitute condition, and Say
 that the rest are equally unprovided.
 The question arises, What is to be
 dCne with these creatures? Shall they
 be fed and retained where they are or
 shall they be told that there is nothing
 for them and be Der1nitted to return,
 or rather be forced to leave, and join
 the rest of their tribe engaged in
 stealing and murdering? They are
 simply Indians, and Apache Indians
 at that, and must be treated and con-
 sidered as such, with all the bad traits
 of the most savage of savages. Let
 any one go among these Indians
 he will see one of them wearing
 filthy shirt, another one all equally
 ragged coat, another one what was once a pair of pantaloons. Now, these
 Indians neither manufactured them
 or purchased them in trade, for they
 have little or no intercourse with traders except for powder, lead, and caps. The chances are, then, that any article of wearing apparel one sees on any Indian has cost human life, either American or Mexican. You see no bucksllin among them, as of yore, for the deer are nearly all gone. Che may travel for days and not see 8 sign of game. Within cer- tain regions they can scarcely kill enough to furnish 8 scanty supply of hides for moccasins. They are not an agricultural people; and what little they planted during the past year has either been destroyed by the drouth or by the troops. The Mezcal," for merly one their main sources of supply, is nearly exhausted in this portion of the country. How then, It may be asked, do they live? The answer is that they gain precarious living by stealing cattle, mules, and horses. Driven by hunger, they will run al- most any distance, and undergo al- most any amount of fatigue to obtain the means of satisfying the cravings of appetite and procure covering for their bodies. If could assure all the - Indians living north of the Gila and east of the Salt river 8 supply of meat and corn and a few blankets each year, I have no doubt that in a short time most of them could be induced to go upon reservation. ! The chances are that at no distant day the number Of Indians in this region [ now asking assistance from Govern ment will be largely increased, and the only course to be pursued, con- sistent with good policy, the dictates of humanity, and the spirit of my instructions, is to consider them as prisoners surrendered, and as such to furnish them with prisoners rations.
 Indians need bread and salt. Savage,
 reacherous, and cruel as these h. dians are, they still have enough of b,,n,o,, mo 4r,.o i,, +I,o;Y oO,,,,,o~; t;o,, 4o