Smyrna times., 1879-08-06
The Indians Again.

With almost every day Of the last week
some fresh instance Of swindling the Indian
tribes by the whites came to light. Seven
hundred horses were stolen from the Red
Cloud agency, and driven past two camps
of our Army. Yet not a finger was lifted to
hinder the thieves. Not an ounce of food
had reached Popular River for the Indians,
but fresh supplies of troops had gone on to
crush any outbreak which might occur in
consequence. These and other such hints
OF the condition of affairs in the West are
received by the press Of the country with a
thoughtfua attention never, as we think
given to them before.
Good sense is contagious The energy Of
Western editor in urging that the Ponoas
should be treated as human beings, and the
decision of Western judge, that every
human being gshould be treated with common
honesty, irrespective of the color of his skin,
have done more to place the Indian on a
proper footing before the country than all
the pow-wows in blankets and feathers with
Great Fathers at Washington, or all the
Indian wars, have done for twenty years.
No man can look into the condition of the
civilized tribes or visit an Indian town
(such as that Of the Poncas until they were
driven out of it by the dishonesty of the
Government without being forced to admit
however reluctantly, that they are neither,
abnormal brutes nor heroes for novels, but
men, as we are-quite as capable of being
made good farmers, intelligent citizens, and
| God-fearing Christians as any Irishman,
German or American among US.
| White Eagle, chief of the Poncas now
in the Indian Territory, recently issued q
protest against his banishment from his
own home. This be it remembered, was no
frantic appeal by beplumed and painted
| ignorant savage. White Eagle is a respect
able, educated land,holder, with civilized
dress and habits like our own, who was
robbed of the house which he built, and the
farm which he had titled and partly paid
paid for with his own money; who was
exiled toa malarious neighborhood where he
saw his children die about him, and who is
to-day forced to remain there. The state
ments are calm, the reasoning is cogent.
There are few public men who could
write q more powerful or convincing docu-
ment. But White Eagle and the Sioux who
joined in the recent Sun dance, are one
race; the civilized Christian American, il
his skin be red, must share in the predju.
dice and cruelty which fall on the savage
There is precisely the same popular blind
ness to injustice now where an Indian is
concerned as there was in old slavery days
if the victim was a negro.
Why is it different with the negro now
) Simply because he is no longer set apart
from other men as "Ward" or chattel
He is a citizen; he can vote. The Indian
even the sun-dancing tribe, is just as ready
: for the polls as were the field hands o.
, Georgia or the Voodoo worshippers o.
Louisiana. Give him the ballot; extend
the protection of the civil courts over the
Reservations; do away with all this absurC
talk of Great Fathers and presents of use
; less jimcracks. Give the thousands of rec
men who, like the Poncas, are eager fo
civilization, chance to enjoy it. Pay the
Indian for his land give him security il
! his home; free schools hang him when h
, ,, kills the white man, and hang the whit
man who kills him. In the name of com
mon sense and humanity, let us be dom
J with the wholesale cheating and starvation
1 of these people, and wars with them whel
. they do not choose to be starved. If tn
Indian had the ballot, he would not onl,
. feel selfrespect which would urge him t
i the habits of the whites, but, as in the cas-
y of the negro, the whites would view hin
with respect which he cannot comman
9 otherwise. The very class who rob hin
y now would seek his goodwill for politica
" purposes. Their motive would be ba
p one, but nobody can doubt that the resul
y would give peace to the red man and to tn
Is country.-N Y. Tribune.