The daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1873-1877, 1874-03-25
FRAUDS UPON INDIANS.
Hon. William WEIGH Exposes the Duplicity Of
Grant and Delsno in Relation to the
Manas ement Of Indian Affairs.

Inc ZION. w llam w elcn, OF EHllauel-
phia, in letter to Secretary Delano, has
effectually exposed the mendacious charac-
ter of the report made by the commission
appointed to whitewash Indian Commits
sioner Smith. The letter concludes with
the significant illusions to the course of the
Secretary of the Interior and President
Grant in shielding officials who have been
guilty of defrauding the Indians;
Your Commissioners, turning aside from
the subject under investigation, are pleased
TO give the following good advice: This
man is ever profuse in professions of con-
fidence in the President of the United
States Then, why, if his object be in
good faith'to bring about q reformation
in the service, and secure the dismassal of
dishonest officials, does he not go the Pres
ident and lay before him the documents
which are claimed to be sufficient to Sc
cure the conviction of the officials or why
does he not go to the Secretary at the head
Of the proper Department. to whom he had
been equally profuse in professions, and
request that he examine the documents
upon which he bases these accusations
He certainly must know, if his testimony
is Of the conclusive character claimed, the
the dismissal Of the officials accused would
be instantly ordered" This is sound rea-
soning, and perhaps the only thoroughly
sound reasoning in the report 1t seems
TO call for reply, and it will afford me
pleasure to show how fully have hereto
fore acted in accord with the views thus
expressed.
In the autumn of 1870, on my second
semi-ofhcial visit of that year to Indian
Agencies on the Missouri river, then under
my supervision, / discovered that General
Parker, Commissioner of Indian Affairs,
was lending himself to stupendous frauds.
Immediately on my return | went to
Washington, and, as you know, had pri-
vate, earnest talk with President Grant.
He seemed
UNWILLING TO INVESTIGATE
or to have any investigation of Commits
sioner Parker's doings. Owing to i'm
plicit confidence in his friends, he is too
often blind to their wrong doings. /
then laid the whole matter be-
fore you, and, perhaps out of respect to
the Chief Magistrate, you evinced no will
ingness to make the investigation. / fin
ished my semi official report in your office,
and read it to you. As the frauds affected
the Indians then under my care, l could
not rest without trying to remedy the
wrong. l asked you to loan me the report
for publication in the Ddly Chronicle.
You gave it to me for that purpose, saving,
however, that you would have no RESPONSE
billty in its publication. 1t resulted in a
Congressional Investigation, by which huge
frauds in contracts tor freight and cattle
and flour were revealed, and remedies at
tempted by legislation. Out of regard to
the President, the report of the investiga-
ting committee was very mild, although it
set forth all the important facts. The fol-
lowing paragraph is part of the conclusion
reached 10 the mind of the committee
the testimony shows irregularities, neglect,
and incompetency, and, in some instances,
q departure from the express provisions of
law for the regulation Of Indian expendi-
lures. and in the management of affairs in
the Indian Department" Yet this neg
lectful, incompetent, and lawless Commits
sioner Of Indian Affairs was allowed to re-
main in office many months, and until il
pleased him to resign.
Your investigating Commissioners will
thus see that my action at that time cor
responded with their views. When stu.
pendous frauds occurred in the appropria-
tons to the Teton Sioux, and at Grand
River Agency, on the Upper Missouri.
conferred privately with you and with the
Assistant Secretary, Gen. Cowen, about it,
but | never heard of any effort made to in
vestigate these frauds, or to punish the Of
tenders. Recently, when frauds in beef
and flour were perpetrated at the Red
Cloud and Spotted Tail agences, over which
! and my colleagues haye official oversight
and when the Chippewas, who claim me
as their friend, aud with whose missiona.
ries have an official connection, complain.
ed Of being wronged by fraudulent sales Of
their pine timber, l could not rest on al
nnavalhng remonstrance. You know tha
| sought private interview with the
President, and that for months I had beer
pleading with you in vain to obtain a rem
edy In spite of all this / still have hone
that you will remedy the wrong done e
the Chippewas, now that the testimony
taken by the committee of the Minnesots
Legislature has brought to light the trntl
that your commission failed to reveal
Yours respectfully. WIN. WELSH.