Daily press and Dakotaian. [volume] (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1875-1880, 1880-04-12

draft was issued for currency TO pay en-
] ploves.
Now 10 point of fact the agent never paid
q dollar of the money which be certified
that be paid. and which the psyees certified
that he bad paid them. He never received
a dollar from the trader, o. matter If fact.
tor the payment of EN- loyes. mol could be
know. as matter of fact. that the employees
ever received q dollar Of the monev. And
vet the men got their money. the trader 60,
his. and all was satisfactory. free from fraud.
OF any thought Of committing fraud.
INDIAN TESTIMONY
The Indian betraye his human nature 10
a guilelees, transparent sort Of . way. II
never knew him fail to champion the man
in power for the time being, or to fail to
asaail and traduce him 10 room as he Wa
relieved. The Indian exists with an eye toll
the man chance in the warehouse, and in
my experience he seemed to rely a. much
for favor Upon traducing the man Who had
just gone IS upon 6attering the one who had
just come.
I give i, as my sincere CONVICTION, based
upon an extended experience aud obaerva-
ton, that were l appointed Indian agent to
aucceed either Of the military agents now or
recently in charge on the Missouri, l could
in less than one year convict either of them
Of the crimes now charged against Living
ston, could l iod jury sufficiently unsopb.
isticated to believe the unsupported te.ti.
mony Of these aborignes. At the same time
no moun Of Indian teetimoy could shake
my faith in the integrity and upright mo-
tives Of either agent, both of whom 1 knew
as officers of the army before they were de-
tailed to the thankless duties of Indian
agent.
A prominent citizen did not put the csee
any too strong when he said that he would
believe E. E. Hudson in preference to all
the Indians between here and the Pacific
coast. 1 fully endorse that sentiment, and
place DR.. Livingston upon full equality
with Mr.. Hudson.
HOW IS IT I N TIL ARMY?
Considering the stringency of army regu.
l%ations, one would hardly expect technical
irregularities to be 40 common there a. in
the Indian service, but if one supposes them
to be uncommon, he is mistaken. / have
seen q post quartermaster have two hundred
cords of wood in exceps Of the amount on
his papers. In other words be had issued
on paper two hundred cords more than he
had issued in fact, in a given time.
The custom was, before wood was dropped
from the allowance to officers, to issue on
paper, and certify the issue as correct, all
that every mar at the post was entitled to.
In this way the qusrtermaster was always
prepared to furnish all the wood demanded
BY excessive cold or other causes without
running behind. For, under ordinary cir.
cumstances, in this department at least, the
allowance exceeded the consumption.
What was true of wood was to a certain
extent true of other articles issued in speci.
&c allowance By quartermasters and com.
missaries. And yet there wa no fraud
either 10 fact or contemplation, and usually
before receiving the next annual supply, it
vas customary to measure OF take up any
excess on hand.
1t was the same IN the medical depart
ment. At one Of the large hospitals on the
river, after taking charge, l made p%ersonal
inspection of the "store ROOM" and found
that the dependable stores receip,el for By
me did not on the average exceed fifty per
cent Of the amount on hand.
ARMY PAYMENTS.
A large proportion OF army payments are
just as fraudulent q the little wood trans.
sction at Crow Creek.
have known remote gsrIisons that were
not visited by the psymaster during an en-.
tire winter. But the trader would pay the
command, say every v months. without
which, he could do very little business. He
received the pay rolls Of the mep wherein
they certified I rece,viug the sums therein
stated Of =, psymasier. He sent those pay
rolls to bis eastern banker who presented
them to the nearest psvmsster who certified
that he paid the men at the date given. Az
matter of fact be never paid one Of them q
cent. nor did be know OF bis own personal
knowledge that either Of them ever receiv-
ed a dollar 10 money on said roll.
A majority Of officers accounts are paid
monthly ID the same way bv poat traders.
MILITARY AGENTS.
So far-as nv personal knowledge extends
all military Indian agents. occupy govern.
ment houses. and burn government wood.
aud q the same time draw from the mill.
tary department the allowance made BY the
government 10 money for fuel and qusrters
when on detached service away from bar
Jacks Some may consider this wrong. bu,
The army 1oes not 20 think. ssd The suthor
ities have never tnilm sted any belief that II
vas wroes By Sefoslag 10 pay such allow
soees.