The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1879-01-18

easy in Connecticut as with US. and II this
woman gets out in any period OF time near
the average she will scarcely have been
punished too severely.
Statesmanship Needed in Managing
the Indians.
This abused word has been so ''soiled by
vulgar handling" that we hesitate to en-
ploy it except on the most necessary occa-
sions. So many use the word who have no
conception of the thing that there has come
to rest upon the term Statesman" shade
or tinge of derision. Still it is q legitimate
word for which there is no precise substi-
tute, and in asserting the need of statesman
ship in dealing with the Indian problem
we attach to it its proper meaning OF
large grasp of difficult situation,
fertility OF resource in adapting means to
ends, and the courage, vigor and steadiness
requisite for carrying out far-seeing
policy. There is call for all these high
qualities in the management OF our Western
Indians.
The government of Canada has been sue
cessful in dealing with the British North
American Indians, but in thnt part of the
continent the Indian problem has been SO
simple as to require none Of the higher
attributes of craftsmanship. The tribes
which roam through the vast stretches
of wilderness in that portion of
North America have not been molested
by the intrusion of white settlements
into their hunting grounds, and there has
consequently been very little to alarm their
jealousy. The Canadian government has
had little to do with the Indians beyond
regulating the trade in furs and peltries,
and as it has acted in uniform spirit Of
justice and fidelity to engagements it has
had no Indian troubles of any consequences.
A great part Of our own Indian difficulties
have, no doubt, resulted from bad faith
toward the tribes, and this part of the
trouble might have been avoided by steady
justice and considerate treatment But the
straightforward Canadian honesty, wise and
commendable as it is, cannot be ranked as
craftsmanship, because there there are no
difficulties to be COPIED with.
The Indian problem in this country is
altogether dissimilar. We are pushing our
settlements into the heart of the Indian
country, and our miners and agricultur-
lists need to be protected against the dan
gerous neighborhood Of savages. Those re-
gions are getting exhausted of game, and
the pressure of hunger will make the Ind
ians holder and more desperate in their
raids, while the spirit of vengeance aroused
by their robberies will keep the
whole of that Western country in
flame Bloodshed and incendiarism will
reign unrestrained as the country fills up
ment stakes time by the forelock" and set
ties the Indian question effectually within
the ensuing Eve or ten years. 1t is a sub
ject that cannot safely be postponed, and it
is so hemmed in with difficulties as to re-
quire all the sagacity and vigor implied in
the word craftsmanship.
The only period in our history when
we had any real statesmanship in
the management Of Indians was dur
ing the administration of General
| jackson. Our Southwestern States were
then afflicted with evils similar to
those which now exist in the Far West.
The four great Southern tribes-the Creeks,
the Choctaws, the Cherokees and the Chick
asaws-held lands within the limits of
| Georgia, Alabama and other States, and
there were incessant disputes and conflicts
between them and their white neighbors
| General jackson conceived the bold project
Of removing them all beyond the Mississippi
It was a task of great difficulty, having been
strenuously opposed by all the superfne
humanitarians of the time-by Clay, Web
ster, Calhoun and the whole wing party,
and by the Supreme Court of the United
States, which rendered a judgment in favor
of the treaty rights of the Indians. But
jackson, nothing daunted, stood by his
policy. "John Marshall" said he, ''has
rendered his decision; now let him enforce
it," President jackson was 30 strong and
popular on other grounds that he carried his
Indian policy through, and the last vestiges
of the tribes were conducted across the
Mississippi in the closing year Of his ad-
ministration. The consequence was that
there were no more Indian troubles east Of
the Mississippi, and the tribes which he re-
moved have since made considerable ad-
vances in civilization.
How Will IL Ends