The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1879-01-10
Secretary Schurz in Reply
to General Sheridan.
CAUSTIC CRITICISM ON THE "ANNUAL REPORT. y
A Zeal Awakened Under the
Present administration.
CHARGES OF MlSMANAGEMENT ANSWERED.

Secretary Schurz. in his letter to the Secretary OF
War in reply to the supplemental report of Lieuten-
ant General Sheridan the subject OF the misman-
agenent Of Indian affairs says that the statement in
the Lieutenant Generals annual report contained
the following distinct propositions:-
FSrst-That the amounts appropriated by Congress
for supplying the Indians seem to Lieutenant Cen
eral Sheridan sufficient, practically applied to the
exact purposes specified and regularly delivered.
Of ns in the
of the Spotted Tail and Red Cloud bands OF
Sioux
practically to apply the appropriations deemed by
General Sheridan sufficient and to deliver the sup
plies regularly except in the case OF the spotted Ian
the Western country constant anxiety, and led IN
places to loss of life and property, attended
with dreadful crimes and crueltes. during the Last
year.
1 so understand General sheridan's official state
ent and believe it can scarcely be construed other
wise. l then addressed, through you. to General
Sheridan respectful request to furnish me with the
specifications required to substantiate grave and
sweeping u charge, that if really at all the Indian
agencies i'll General Sheridans military division ex-
cept two the appropriations made by Congress;
which to General sheridan seemed sufficient, mad
not been practically applied TO the purposes speci-
fed, partly diverted and not regularly delivered
sT ha th
to enable it to hold the guilty parties to account and
to remedy the evil.
I have carefully read General Sheridan's supple
mental report made in response to that request.
There are. think. forty-fve Indian agencies in
General Sheridans military division. His charge
would to apply to all except two-that is to
to forty-three But feel warranted in saying that
General Sheridan after an evidently most diligent
search Of the records Of correspondence has not been
able to sustain his general charge with regard to
single Of those fortythree agencies during the
period named in his annual report, and
confident every fair-ninded man carefully read
ing his supplemental report will agree with me in
this conclusion. General Sheridan says that he
did not mean his statement l. from literal inter-
probation of his language, had construed it. This
disclaimer must, of course, be accepted. But Gen
eral Sheridan to have in other instances used
Language similarly liable to Interpretation now
unacceptable to him. In his annual report he said
Spotted Tail bands of Sioux from the Missouri
River
have been retained the Missouri River where they could
have been fed and looked after ut comparatively small
tractors who labored systematically last
and fall to work the result which has been obtained
This statement. it reads, means, If anything,
that General Sheridan had reason to think that "the
traders and contractors laborcd systematically last
summer and fall to work up the result and
the Spotted Tail and Red Cloud Sioux from the
Missouri River to location of their own choce-was
owing to such working up" l replied that this
measure had been ordered by the President in
cordance with promise made to the Indians at their
request upon the urgent advice Of General Crook.
General Sheridan now says that he Gid not mean in
this instance what his language obviously implied,
and the disclaimer must be accepted again.
In another official document relating to consolda-
ton of the Kiowa and Comanche and the Wichita
agencies ordered by the President upon the advice
OF this department General Sheridan expressed him
self with regard to this measure as follows
/ well satisfied, after experience of than
aai the osI na to rSoIs at In
from military posts has for its main motive desire to
officers. who would naturally see and report it.
Thus obviously indicating his opinion that this
consolidation involving the removal of the agency
from Fort Sill wac prompted by such motives. Upon
q remonstrgnce by this department against in
sulting imputation General Sheridan replied
that he did not In this instance what his
language obviously indicated. The disclaimer
must DO accepted again. But may be
pardoned for saying that it is SO difficult to draw
correct conclusions from what General Sheridan says
as to what he means. it was certainly unkind on his
part to accuse me in an official report of ''disin-
genuousness" for assuming that he meant what he
said. The word "disingenuous" would ordinarily be
taken as an offensive term. But the cases above
stance also General Sheridan did not mean 1t. aud
there let 1t rest.
CHARACTER on THE SUPPLEMENTAL REPORT.
These cases being thus disposed Of may now turn
to what General Sheridan further says in this "sup-
Elemental report" The sweeping assertion made IN
his "Annual Report led me to expect new in
formation which IN ght be turned to advantage in
improving the service. But that expectation has been
disappointed. General sheridan has collected from
his es number OF extracts from letters and briefs
of reports OF subordinate officers. The state
ments made by him and the military officers
substantiated, only contain complaints about
agents who have already been dismissed and
have already been remeded by this department. The
"supplemental report comes. therefore. late for
practical purposes. and 49, in this respect. az much
out OF date as last years almanac. append to this
letter a statement made by the Commissioner OF In
dian Affairs from the records Of this department 1t
takes up after another all the charges contained
in the supplemental report inclusive Of the letters
OF Lieutenant Lee and Colonel Miner, and IL fully
substantates what L say The Commissioners COM
ments the letter of Lieutenant Lee. which was
written about weeks after the appearance OF Lieu
tenant General Sheridan's annual report. and thus
gives some color to the apprehension 4 expressed
that the General had made the charges first and might
have to look for the evidence aterward is particu
larry interesting. 1t is also worthy OF that
Lieutenant Lees letter refers TO Indian tribe
which was, according to General Sheridans annual
report, very well. perhaps even too well, supplied
under the present administration. and which was,
since came into office, under Lieutenant Lees
agement until recently.
1t may have escaped General Shcridaas notice that
in June. 1877, Iappointed commission to inquire
into the condition of the Indian service. That in
quiry was very thorough and commemorative. 1t
laid open many abuses ana defects led to impor-
tant changes in the personnel OF the office well
Improvement in the business methods and the sys-
tens of supervision and accountability. These
changes ana improvements could, OF course, not
be effected in day, but they have gone rapidly
range than the complaints of military officers
tanned III General Shermans supplemental report
seemed TO call for.
It's perhaps, just to General Sheridan TO. assume
that during the sx weeks devoted to tho search FOR
old evidence against the Indian Bureau and To the
preparation of new testimony he could not find time
90 inquire into The improvements introduced by the
present administration of this department. although
he miaht have easily had the information had lie
asked Tor It, Had he been able to do his Of
Justice would have suggested to him the propriety of
appending to each complaint in his "supplcmental
report a statement OF the action meanwhile taken
thereon by this department in punching offenders
and in correcting defects in business methods In
that case his supplemental report would have pre-
scented very different aspect.
zEAL.
General Sheridan had evidently not informed him
self about these things, and only thus 1t be
planned that during several years previous TO the in
coming Of the present administration, when the large
majority of the of fraud and misnnan cncnt
alluded 10 IN hs supplemental report occurred,
very many OF which passed with IMMUNITY, and not
one of which led TO criminal prosecution, he had,
although advocating the transfer of the Indian SER
vice, not single word of denuncation for them in
his annual reports; while now. under this admins
tration, when the thieves are at last on their
way TO tho Penientiaiy, when dishonest or income
petent agents held 10 account and dismissed
without mercy, when the ring men and fraudulent
claimants unite in chorus of against the In
terror department and struggle TO get out of its
clutches, when tle leaks and opportunities for fraud