The star of Pascagoula. [volume] (Pascagoula, Miss.) 1873-1878, 1875-12-11

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y saFnssfig feeamaiend some seffsa Nhfi
wNN settle this Eisch iifls question and ~
hege us from % f~fceedlaglr dissrfeeHtis
snd embarrassing duty. feel quito miif.
hsd that all The euumfrF south N fle ffii8w
Stone River from tho Hlsek nHi- n 90
Cheyenne - fsr ecsfa he tDx Horn VALLEY,
and . rhapss q. far wesi = tlafk Fprk u ~
Yellowstone, v g1ids beanngs but a. " ths
smouat " gold deposit I eannot sagt n mas
ie great, o. " may be- small. This arca y
also. ~ many pltees, we'll timhered, hai
NAM beautiful valleys ~ mther high att
tnde, with good soil add abundance " run
ming water. Nearly The whole Of h wei
adapted ~ zrazinR purposes the gruzH being
principally bunch grass, With 10 little rain
In the faii and winter ~ ~ JET the grass cure
on the ground and make better hay on the
stalk thar II cut and cured Nv the usual man.
ner. The winters are, ! have every reason
10 believe. very cold, but the temperature
j. uniform; the cold weather l. found 70 be
less injurious Ia stock, where there Il ne
shelter, than u mildor climate where cattle
are subjected to the changes Of alternate
freezing and thawing, n where
the rains rot the grass. make this state
meDt from having studied this country for a
long time, and in order that my superi0rs,
who will, before long, have to deal with the
question Of the Black Hills, may be able Ia
better appreciate the interests of all con-
cerned, be they white or red. The sioux
indians, numbering about % 600, now hold
this extensive and perhaps very valuable
country, and, in addition, the belt eastward
from the base Of the Black Hills OF the
Cheyenne to the Missouri River, which
would make about 10000 acres OF land for
the head of each family, and perhaps much
more, without one single acre being Guilt
waited, while the maximum amount given by
the Government to an adult white settler is
only 100 acres, on which he has to live, build
a hut, put up fences, till the ground, and
pay taxes. Hence much of the trouble OF
protecting Indian reseryations; the hardy
pioneer having very little consideration for
the red man who has so much and is still so
idle and worthless.
THE INDIAN
1t would have been better if the Indians
had been considered a part of the population
OF the United States, and dealt with gener-
! ouslv; and when forced on reservations
which is always the case-let them be reason
able in size, subject to especial rule and gov
eminent, until they are fitted to obey the
ordinary laws of the country for the control
of all our people. But, at present, we see
the ridiculous anomaly Of having the most
stringent laws, municipal, State, and Fed
eral, with penalties such as Imprisonment in
peIllenlldTles, anu even Tue SdllOWSs lOT inc
government of intelligent white people,
while we are attempting to govern
these poor, wild savages, without any power
over them, or any laws at all. The Observa-
zion of many years in my own command,
and throughout most of the Indian cOun-
try for the last twenty years, has left the
impression that this system Of eiyilizing
the wild portion of our Indian in
habitants has not met with a success which
gives a fair equivalent for the expense,
trouble, and bloodshed which has attend
ed it. L believe there is true humanity in
making the reservations reasonably small,
dividing them into tracts for the heads of
families, making labor gradually compulso-
ry, and even compelling the children TO go
to school. To accomplish this purpose, to
civiliZe, make s~elf-supporting, and save
many more of these poor people than other
wise will be saved, | believe ii best to trans
fer the Indian Bureau to the military, and
let it be taken under the general admins
tration of the army, governed and controll-
ed in responsibility of accounts in accord
ance with our present system. The Indians
will thus be humanely and honestly dealt
with, and l believe if this had always been
the case, there would have been but few of
the troubles and bloody records which have
characterized the civilization of the Indians
in the many years gone by.
To meet the troubles which will originate
from the Black Hills question, and to be in
advance of them when they come, and be
better able to deal with them, | directed,
without expense to the Government, an eX-
ploration Of the Yellowstone River last
spring, and selected two sites for military
posts, one at the mouth of the Big Horn, the
other at the mouth of the Tongue River,
both in the Valley of the Yellowstone. These
stations can be supplied by steamboats,, and
will have so important a bearing on the set
Element Of the Sioux Indian question that |
...n4 tl,t lN,,,orAE1 In pa1l-
ed upon to give authority for their establish
ment and the necessary funds for their con-
struction.
INDIAN CAMPAIGNS.
In the Department of the Missouri, the
campaign against the Cheyennes, kiowas,
and Comanches, was finished early in the
spring, and the ringleaders and worst crimi-
nails separated from the tribes and sent to
Fort Marion, Fla. This campaign was not
only very comprehensive, but was the most
successful of any Indian campaign in this
country since its settlement by the whites;
and much credit is due TO the officers and
men engaged in 1t.
II MEXICAN BANDITTI.
Nearly all the troops i'm the Department of
Texas, except those along the Rio Grande
frontier, were engaged in this campaign.
Those stationed along the Rio Grande River,
the boundary line between the United States
and Mexico, have had the humiliating duty
of attempting to protect our citizens and
their property from raids by people of a for
eign country, who come over the boundary
in armed parties to steal cattle, and do not
hesitate to attack and kill our citizens when
necessary to accomplish their purposes.
The low stage of water in the Rio Grande
and its great length, 300 or 100 miles
makes the duty of protecting II difficult, in
fact almost impossible, with the few troops
available for the purpose. In speaking of
this duty as a humiliating one, l do not mean
that il Is not perfectly legitimate-for any
duty is such which has for its object the pro-
lection of the lives and property of the peo-
pie on an international boundary line-but
when il is considered that these armed par
ties, as soon as they are pursued, take ref
uge on the opposite bank of the river and
there. within sight of our troops who dare
not cross, Craze and slaughter the stolen
cattle with impunity, the service is very
Notifying to those engaged in the protec-
ton Of that frontier. This condition OF af-
fairs has been going on for the last twenty
years. =.
General of the Army the cheerfulness N
alacrity with which all duties were perform
ed by the officers and men under my COM
mand during the last year; and 1 think the
high standing of honor and integrity attained
Is deserving of commendation. The result
of NV observations makes me believe the
moral standing OF the officers and men in
the service higher at the present time than
at any period within my knowledge. / am,
Colonel, very respectfully, your obedient
servant, p. H. SHERIDAN,
Lieutenant General Commanding.
Peach-and- Tdpioca Pudding.-To l