Dallas herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1849-1873, 1872-02-24
Remarks or The Hon. John q.
Conner on the Indian ApprO--
priatiOn BllI I'm Committee OF
the Whole, Jan. 30 1871.

simply wish to call the atten.
ton of the House 10 4 fact which ]
referred to in tho discussion last
year during tho pcndcney OF
similar bill, This so.called "peacc
policy which has been inaughrated
bv tho Administration and forced
upon the country is not q peace
policy in fact 1t isa policy which
enables and invites the Indian tribes
aual tered upon the reservations
adjacent to my district, the district
OF one of my colleagrce, and many
other districts, all along the from.
tier, from the lakes to the Rio Gran
de, to raid upon our settlements,
pillagc our plantations, drive off
our horses, murder Our mon, carry
away our women and children into
captivity. Within sevcn,y'fve
miles of the town where | reside
wo have almost every month visi-
tation of these hostile Indians from
Fort Sill, where there is n regiment
of United States troops quartered,
for what PURPOSE ! cannot tell, un-
less it is to see that the Indians on
that reservation draw their supplies
with promptness and regularity,
We send our citizens over there
and they Identify the stolen prop.
crLy acco di' e to all the rules of
evidence Our horses are found
there in charge Of the Indians, who
have stolen them. We identify
them; bit in steps one ofyour broad
brimmed commissioners and re-
qu;res W. to ransom or buy our own
property.
Since this policy was Inaugural
ted unmhes Of little children and
women have been captured by the
Iudians and carried tb that reserva-
tion. Their friends and lations
followed them of course, and when
the Indians brought them into mil
ilary or Indian headquarters what
do you suppose occurred? There
on The flagstaff hoated tho banner
of the Republic; there were your
regular troops, properly otficerod,
prepared, ready, and anxious to
vindiratc the powor and honor Of
their Government; there, too, were
the captive mother and children,
and there also were tho friends
ready to carry them back, not to
their former home, because that
had been burned, destroyed and
piIlaged by tho Indians who had
"aptnred them, but to the white
settlements, where they would not
be subjected to those horrible and
revolving atrocities which ! will not
mention. Now sir, there is an act
ual picture not d.N IN FROM lmagi-
nation. But it does not stop there.
There is yet another scene in this
bloody peace drama. 1t isthis: the
friends and relations are compelled
to ransom the captives-one hun.
dred or two hundred dollars for n
child. The Indian goes unpunish.
cd. receives II reward for his scrvi-
css, in Tho shape ot now and fresh
suppl es, stmddlcs n stolen horse,
and returns to Texas to re enact
his bloody but peaceful war-danco.
| say tho Indian is rewarded for
these atrocities by this policy, and
speaks in great praise of tho "big
| chief at Washington" whom he re-
CARDS as his friend for protecting
him iii his schemes of theft and mur-
der. As Il consequence tho lndiona
have of late directed their ehtl gies
and turned their efforts in the di,
rection of stealing children instead
of horses, because child will com.
man cne hundred dollars when Il
horse will only command twenty
five.
By this mornings mail received
a letter from one Of my old frontier
constituents, and in its home y way
bears upon its fare the impress OF
truth. send II TO the CierK desk
to be read; for 1t tells It's own story
The Clerk read as fol'cwsl
PLor POINT, TEX. Jan. 20 '72
SIR: | thought | would drop you
line to let you know how things
are going on hero. Between Christ
mas and New Year tne Indians
came in, killing two mon near Fort
Richardson. They then came on
down the country within ten Oh
twelve miles of this place, and drove
out a very large drove Of horses
The ciji2cas Followed as soon as
they could collect. but night over.
took them before they overlook the
thieves. aud so the thing was up
This is the kind of protection twelve
companies OF soldiers nj Fort Rich
ardson, at a cost of 81 400 per man
give us. If Congress would Civ,
Texas half of the amount paid to
the Army, we would protect our
selves
A month ago they came ii, and
ran over Colonel Mckinney and hi: