National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1879-01-10
TINE INDIAN CONTROVERSY.
Secretary schurzs Reply 60 General Sheridan.
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR,

port of Lieutenant. General Sheridan for 1870"
which purports to be an answer to certain in.
quiries made by me in n letter addressed to
you dated on November l6, 1873.
In his annual report General Sheridan made
the following statement.
Tho Indian situation Mt the present time ig I am
sorry to say. unsatisfactory. The indian Depart
nlenU oNnlg 70 want OF suuclent HpPIoprmuous,
sctiicrnc,,is II, tb Wltcr contr co.,o,,t o,
icy during the last wear and In some places loss of
life and loss Of property. attended with dreadful
crimes and crielues. There mas been an
a,r,I''I'c"o{ aI VI aoop Nv H. 'nG & uge''civs, i
made The Indians i'm como eosas desnarnta and
almost any race of men will fight rather than
starvc. Il seems to me, with wise management that
| tlS amounts appropriated Py congress ought TO DC
] ~ u pI'euJ'y i ~ aiP,vw P W @ t,v AZ
Ilvorcd: but the reports of the department com
manders, forwarded herewith would indicate
different result except In the Red Cloud and spot.
W ;v NIL ha oaIs %, 5iouNi WI Mi,V' a. ahousl s
have bccn bnmornd n,il ihcr ncrcosi,y insoicnca
constantly threatens TO bring about breach of the
peace.
This statement contained the following dis.
tinct propositions: That the amounts appro-
priated by Congress for supplying the Indians
seems to Lieutenant. General Sheridan "sulii-
cient If practically applied to the exact pur-
poses specified and regularly delivered. 9.
| That "tho reports of the department command
ers indicated different result except in the
case of the Spotted Tail and Red Cloud bands
of Sioux" 3. That the failure of the Indian
| Department practically TO apply the appropri-
atons deemed by General Sheridan sufficient,
and to deliver the supplies regularly, except
| in the case of the Spotted Tail and Red Cloud
Sioux, gave to the settlements in the West
ern country constant anxiety and lead in
some places TO loss of life aud property, attended
with dreadful crimes aud crueltics during the
last year.
| 50 understand General Sheridan's official
statement and believe ii can scarcely be con-
| strued otherwise. | then addressed through
you, to General Sheridan respectful request
| TO furnish me with the specifications required
| to substantate so grave aud sweeping u charge,
so that If really at all the Indian agencies in
General Sheridan's military division, except
two, the appropriations made by Congress,
which TO General Sheridan Seemed sufficient"
! had NOT neon nractir,Iiv onnIicd to tbc nur-
- NV tan, ~ 1HtS ~ ono P.
poscs spSoiheI, OF P%rVy uINertc' anu my
| regularly dellvercd thereby causing such
| dreadful consequences, this Department might
obtain the information necessary to enable it
| to hold the guilty parties to account aud to
| remedy the evil.
l have carefully read General Sherldan's 8
supplemental report made in response to
| that request. There are, | think, fOrty-hve
Indian agencies in General Shcridan's military
division. His charge would seem to apply to
all except two that is to say to fOrty-three
But | feel warranted in saying that General
Sheridan, after an evidently most diligent
search for the records of correspondence. has
not been able to sustain his general charge
with regard to a single one of those forty three
agencies during the period named in his an
nual report and / am confident every fair
minded man, carefully reading his supple
mental report" will agree with me in this con-
clusiou. General Sheridan now says that he
did not mean his statement as l. from literal
Interpretation of his language, had construed
| it. This disclaimer must of course be accepted.
But General Sheridan seems to have in other
instances used language similarly liable to an
Interpretation now unacceptable 10 him. In
| his annual report he said with regard to the
removal of the Red Cloud and Spotted Tail
bands of Sioux from the Missouri River;
| Ihad hoped that the agencies of these Indians
would have been retained on the Missouri River,
where tney eoulu nave neen leu anu lookeu aiteI
~ va y s, P,S Trs ts s
fear iabored systnmatieally last summer and fail
to work up the result which has been attained.
This statement as Il reads means If ANYTHING
that General sheridan had reason to think
that "tbe traders and contractors labored sys-
tcmaticallv Last summer and fall To work mn
the result obtained" and that "the result oh.
famed" namely, the removal of the Spotted
Tail and Red Cloud Sioux from the Missouri
River to n location of their own choice was
owing to such "worl,inp nm" rcnlied that
this measure had been ordered by the Presi.
dent in accordance with n promise made TO the
Indians. at their request. ,ipon the urgent nd.
vice of General Crook General sheridan now
saws tbnt ho did not mean i'm this Instance
what his language obviously implied and the
disclaimer must be accented again.
In another official document relating 70 con.
solidation of the Kiowa and Commanche and
the Wichita agencies ordored by fine President
unon the advice Of this Department, General
Sheridan exnresses himself with regard TO tbi,
. measure as follows. az am well satisfied n fte,
an cynerience of more than twenty wears tbat
the principal objection TO troops at Indiar
agencies and the removal of Indian agencies
away from military nosts has for its main mo
tive n desire To cheat and dofraud thc Indian,
by avoiding the presence of officers who wonlf
naturally See and report it.n Tins obviousl,
; Indicating his opinion that this consolidated
Involving the removal of the agency from For
sill was nrompted by such motives.
ITpon remonstrance by this Departmen
/, AGAINST so Insulting an imnutation Gonern
!, Sheridan replies that he did not mean In thi
! Instance what his Language obyionsly indi
Gated. The disclaimer must be accepte,
aooin -. but mnv be n,rdoncd for saving lin
lift is SO difficult TO draw correct conclusion
from what General Sheridan saws as TO wha
he mems IL was certainlv unlind on his mar
TO accuse me in AN official report of ''disin
penuousnessp for assuming that he mean
what he said. Tie word "disingenuous', woul,