National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1879-05-09
AFFAIRS IN ALASKA
Facts About the Indian DimcuI.ies.

A letter written at Sitka, Alaska, under date |
of April IL, 1879, by an intelligent resident |
there, furnishes information relating to thee |
cited state of that section of country which |
is not without interest. The residents there |
stand in fear of the Indians and rely upon the |
United States for protection, under its cove
nant to afford safety to life aud property in
that Territory. The writer statos:
According to the records of the Greek
Church, which have been furnished by the
Greek priests, we have in the immediate vi |
cinity two hundred and forty.eight persons
who are, according to the provisions of the
treaty between Russia and the United States,
entitled to the protection of the United States
Government. Not only arc their lives guar
anteed protection, but their property also.
We have ffty-fve native-born Americans
and twenty.seven naturalized. All this in
cludes the men, women, and children. or the
above number of 1870 persons we have fifty who
are able to bear arms in defense, four of which
are boys and several men over fifty years of
age. OF this fifty, sixteen are employed at
| Cutting & Co.'S salmon canning establishment,
eight miles from here twelve Of us will go to
Silver Bay, fourteen miles from here, where is
situated the works and mines of the Alaska
Gold and Silver Mining Company, of Portland,
Oregon, and two mines belonging to San Fran
| cisco companies. All these firms have expended
large sums of money TO develop the resources
| of this Territory. The Alaska Gold and Silver
Mining Company have already expended over
$4,000 in developing their mines, and Cutting
& Co. havea large establishment and havo been
to great expense in their undertaking. There
Is man on board the Alaska, q guest of Cap
tain Brown, who claims to be a special cor.
respondent Of the New York Herald, who gives
his name rs T. b. ii. Stenhouse, and who will
no doubt give an unfavorable report to the
newspapers throughout the country A
few hundred dollars will sometimes nc
complish wonders with newspaper re-
porter. If he says Alaska is barren
country he tells a falsehood, as in n short time
1t will he proved that mines as famous as those
on the "Comstock" will be developed. All over
this island are minerals in abundance, either
gold copper, silver. or iron. Vegetables can
be grown hero in abundance for the wants of
the people. but what is the use in growing them
and have the Indians come and take them be-
fore your eyes aud you cannot stop them ?
Wheat cannot he made success here, as the
: summer season is too short to admit the cereals
s ripening; but hay can be grown In abundance.
But to return to our condition as q commu-
, nifty. If we take twenty-eight men ont OF
Sitka, what force is left TO protect the women
d and children2 We of the mines can protect
9 ourselves against any number of Indians, be-
cause at close contact We can enter our tun-
o mel aud defy them; while they cannot see us,
VIC can see them and pick them off with our
q rlUeS Az Tue canning tStaDllSnmcnt the men
employed there would have no show, rs they
are almost unprotected. With twcnty-eigbt
. men away from town what could twenty-five
v men do to defend their lives, as well as those
, of the defcnseless women and children, from
" the hands of 300 bloodthirsty redskins. whose
u number could be increased 10 several thousand
u in short timer They will never attack II!
openly but it will be in the night time, when
we are asleep, and when we are in condition
:, almost unable to protect ourselves. Wer,
i we en- mdSse we could get the women amt
q children into the custOm-house Ia Lighthouse
for place of safety for them, aud then defent
: them and ourselves At the last outbreak,
3 short time ago the whites were notified by d
= friendly Indian that such an occurrence wOult
take place that night, which gave the people
chance to come together the Russians, seek
n ing shelter at the priests house. while tho bal
l. ance collected at Colonel Balls, at the custom
y house. When the red devils, in all their wa
paint and hooting and yelling, nCared tn
's stockade gate, an old ludian threw himself ii
l. the breach and endeavored TO keep them back
= They turned ON him aud cut him so badly tha
no died a short time after. Seeing what the!
II had done, they ceased. The nearest protection
l. was in the British government in sending thei
e ship.ofwar Osprey for the protection of Sitka'
inhabitants, and whose gallant commando
came with all haste and when his ship on
l. tered our harbOr her topmast WAS lowered an
le her guns ready for action, as ho was en- ger fu
,a the fray. From what Captain Seldom, of th
u" revenue cutter Oliver WolcOt says in lette
u dated March 10, it must be so. Here it is
"rho Englishman is impatient, and at ever
N proyocation wants TO hght" If he were left I
;" his own inclination we would have had fg
N long ago. / don't know but his notions III
A. best after all. Clean them out and talk aftei
y. ward. Tho Osprey's commander told Colont
Ball that If he wanted the Indians cleaned on
" he would send detachment of men ashore 0
~ one side of the Indian village aud would the
e. take his ship opposise, aud once no opened fiji
=. on them he thought that there would be ne
w over four or five Indians who would get ava,
It Prayers have assembled on high for the salet
ss of the officers aud crew OF tho Osprey, for the
prompt action and for the Interest they too
Ia the deienseloss situation of the people {
M Sitka They came prepared to take on boar
;" all our women aud children and take them I
W place OF safety, as well us to protect the
he lives aud the lives and property of their hu
et bands and brothers. In short, they camo
" protect in the full sense of the word the liyt
b. of American citizens oil American tcrrtor.
~ acquired by purchase. 1t cannot be said thI
~ any of the English sailors were disgrace
1t. the ship to which they belonged, rs not one
ia their sailors so far forgot himself us