The New York herald., 1874-08-26
The Indian Battle at Wichita
Agency.

Agency.
There is grave significance in the despatch
our correspondent forwards concerning the
attack OF the Indians on the United States
troops IN the Indian Territory. General
Davidson, after long and troublesome
march, arrived in the vicinity of a large band
OF hostile reds in the Wichita Agency, and
Immediately called upon the chiefs of the
band to surrender and return with him to
Fort Sill. But one chief put in an appear
ance, who, after listening to the reasons given
for the necessity of the return of the tribe.
briefly assented to the proposition and with
drew, apparently with the intention of COM
municating his resolve to his companions
Scarcely had the negotiating chief turned his
back on the interpreter, however. than the
troops were vigorously attacked on all
sides by the Oconees, whom they were
preparing to escort back to the tort As
Dy prearrangement number of
hlowas and Comanches also engaged the
soldiers as allies of the Oconees and assisted
III keeping up a harassing fire for several
hours, ending in the loss Of four of our men
ported. The Oconees, or No-co-nees, have
for years been hostile to the settlers, and ap-
pear to be a branch of the Comanche family,
which family is divided into seven bands, and
numbers from one thousand six hundred
to one thousand eight hundred. The Kiowas
are nearly rs numerous and as determined
now as they have ever been to resist the ad-
vance of civilization. With these combined
forces in the field, animated by the bitterest
animosity against the rule Of the white man,
it is not to be wondered at that the scalping
knife has been unsheathed and the bloody
work for which they have been agitating COM
menced.
Here we have the beginning of what may
prove disastrous and expensive war, and MS
in the case Of the Modocs. treachery has led
to bloodshed even while the peculiar peace
policy of the Quakers was being enforced. The
officer in command, We are told, ''magnani-
mously" "endeavored to settle the difficulties with
these Indians in peaceful manner, and his
solicitations were answered by shower of
bullets. Is it possible that the officials of the
Indian Bureau refuse to be instructed by
these oft-occurring tragedies on the Plains
Have they such tenacious faith in the in
tegrity of the Indians that the pat-em-on-the-
back doctrine Is to be continued even amid
barbarous assassinations and treachery such
as these3 1t is not two years since grand
council was held at Leeper Creek, short
distance from the scene of Saturdays battle,
at which the Kiowa, Arapahoe, Comanche,
Waccoe, CaddO and numerous other tribes
attended and preached to the Special Indian
Commission, and Professor Parish in par
ticular, on the virtues and peace-loving in
stincts OF the reds the encroaching habits of
marauding white men and the meanness and
contempt exhibited towards them by the gov
ernment That powwow was failure, be-
cause the Commissioners could do nothing but
promise great generosity on the part OF the
government at some future time, and give
some weak assurance that the buffalo should
be preserved to them as far as possible But
it was obvious that the buffalo could not be
preserved as game for the Indians, and it
would be misfortune to the settlers in the
extreme West if they could, for if these ami
mails were exterminated the Indians would be
compelled to accept the terms and fare of
military rule Oh well-defned reservations. At
this council Little Raven, Lone Wolf and
others laid great stress on their desire to aid
in securing the general good behavior of their
own and neighboring tribes, and yet we find
some Of these same bloodthirsty villains on
the scene OF action against Davidson's troops.
Yesterday, as it were. these chiefs promised
peace and obedience; to-day they attack and
murder the officers of the government, vir-
tually under q condition of surrender. And
then there is Santanta and Big Tree, the
wretches who ought long since to have been
hanged. in the same locality to assist and en-.
courage the others in their campaigns Of death
and destruction. We hope that our officers
in the field will do their utmost to exter-
inmate the whole faithless, cowardly set
which has been SO long fed and petted at Fort
Sill.
The CoNFILCrs BETWEEN THE NEGROES and
the whites in the South are receiving great
attention from the press and the politicians of
the country, and deservedly SO, for the ele-
ments Of discord that perpetuate the constant
i'll feeling between the former slaves and the !
planters will absorb the best intellect and
available for their eradication
General G. A. Sheridan, in an interview which
y,riDf To day ,,rooa,,t, c.c.o