The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1877-10-13
OUR INDIAN POLICY.

There Is. no escaping the CONVICTION
that our Indian policy hu been mis-
take from The very frat Apparently
the government has never yet deter
mined whether the Indians sustain the
relation Of conquered encmies, bolliger-
ant enemies, on ooproprIotos Of the
country Sometimes our policy would
Indicate that we regard them IN one
character then tho other and then
finally M having in both their race and
tribal capacities, equal, at least, II not
superior civil rights 10 the citizens
proper OF the country, The weak,
yacillaling, sentimental policy Of the
government, which obtained for NJ least
a quarter OF century before our late
civil war, produced two very grave and
serious effects, First, it proved TO the
uniutorod savage mind that the govern
ment regarded their strength rs being
formidable, and the evidence Of 1t WAS
plainly soon in the elaborate dcIenscs
prepared against their possible incur.
sions. Second, it taught the savage that
in a contest with tue white man, he was
invincble, because personally he had
more strength and endurance The
savage was taught Ivy this criminally
weak policy, that whore the white man
could muster thousands of warriors, he
could parade millions. That proper
ton has been maintained in every cons
siderable contest which has as yet 90,
cured between the government and the
Indians, Until now, Mt this late day,
Sitting Bull, Joseph and other eminent
scalper5 Haunt defiance in the face Of
the cOmmander-n.chiel of our armies
whenever they feel ready for war, or q
desire to handle scalp They are
governed in their notions, not by any
consideration efthe possibility of defeat
or disaster, or even casual loss, but
solely 10y the fitness Of the seasons, tho
condition of the grass and the stage OF
the moon, or the supply ofwa material
furnished them at the United States
agencies.
Apparently the government has never
fully determined whether it will sub,
due them by force of arms or by moral
suasion, and the mild turn the other
cheek policy of the christian church,
Generally this vascillation has resulted
in the unnatural, ifnot unholy alliance
between the rifle and the bible, ard
both together have procured defeat al.
most unbrollen 10y even the laintest
CLEAN of success The department
even went so far in this line Of folly as
to cndeavor to unite both characters in
the single person of the great christian
soldier sent to chantise the Ne2 Perces.
General Howard failed, simply because
marching and tcmporizing 10y day, and
praying by night, could never convince
Joseph and his followers that our forces
were stronger or Drawer than they 1t
was not until Miles, a man of sterncr
stun, took charge Of the expedition
that Joseph was run down to his lair
and captured.
This result indicates plainly the true
policy to be pursued in regard to the
whole question of Indian turbulence
and trouble, Send force into the field
sufficiently strong to kill or capture
the entire force in war paint,
and send the survivors to their
reservations and station with force
sufficiently strong to keep them there
without the possibility of escape. This,
and this only, will solve our difficulties.
Alter century or so of such experts
once the bible may be able to work its
benign mission to them; at all events we
will then be toler ably independent OF
the result, and can con template either
success or failure with complacency,
War is the science of barbmity and
nothing but physical force, stronger
bottalions, will solve the Indianproblem,