New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1880-04-19

Congress, in refusing the necessary apprOprl-
atiOns to carry out the treaties with the In
dams, is denounced by those who know some
thing of frontier life as calculated to lead to
war and massacre. 1t is believed that some
of the members of the District of Columbia
Board of Commissioners will resign or be re-
moved. Commissioner LIE Due has reported in
relation to the extent of the cattle plague.
THE DEMOCRATIC INDIAN POLICY
REFUSING NECESSARY APPROPRIATIONS FOR sup
PLIES, BREAKING TREATIES, AND FORCING IN
DIAN WARS AND MAssACREs.
fFRoM THE REGULAR CORRESPONDENT OF THE TRIBUHE.l
WASHINGTON, April 1S.-Before the annual Indian
Appropriation BILL passed by the House of Repre-
sentatives is taken up by the Senate the people of
the country who believe in honorable and humane
treatment of the red man, and who never grumble
at the expense of fulfilling to the letter every agree
ment which the Government makes with him. ought
to be fairly warned what the majority in Congress
is ,lOng. For it 10 apparently determined to con-
tinue, in aggravated form, the policy which, year
after year. has provoked the savage TO hostility by
starving him OH reservations that are destitute OF
every means of subsistence, and by breaking every
treaty that has been made with him.
The history of nine out Of ten Of all the In
dian wars that have occurred during The last decade
may be written in a few words. The red man. Oc-
cupying the land that has belonged to him
and his ancestors from time immemOrial, from
which he has been removed to suit the con-
venience of the white man, has been found
to he an obstruction to advancing civilization. Un-
willing to migrate, he has been deceived or per-
suaded into dong sO when the removal has not
been forcble one, by the promise OF ample suDsist-
ence annual supplies of clothing, blankets and
other goods schools for his children and houses to
shelter himself and family. For these he has in al
most every instance surrendered lands worth many
times as much as the compensation promised
These agreements BY the Government, however,
have rarely, il ever been fulfilled. The savage has
either been on short ratOns all the time or has
been without supplies several months in the year.
Hunger was one of the causes which drove the
Northern Cheyennes and Arrapahoes from the In
dian Territory in 1873 The annual supplies of the
Utes were in storehcuse at the railroad and inacces-
sible TO them for whole year. not long ago; and
short supply of food drove Victoria and his band OF
ApaChes upon the warpath.
RECORD or BROKEN PLEDGES.
Instead of giving TO each Indian suit of clothes
every year, the Government has frequently dis.
tributed what Is equivalent to only one-fourth or
one-half of suit. Houses rarely built when
they are promised, agricultural implements and
stock are not furnished and not one school is pro-
vided where ten were promised. Prevented from
| getting his food by the chase destitute OF the
means or the knowledge which would enable him
TO raise il out Of the ground. and furnished with
only enough subsistence to prevent starvation, but
not enough to prevent constant hunger 1t is
not strange that the Indian should be restless and
discontented. especially when the Government fails
N keen faitb with him In almost every other par
tiCuaT
For some Of this the Interior Department and the
Indian Bureau have been responsible in the past.
With large discretion in the distribution OF the APP
| nominations they have sometimes neglected to send
food or medicine to particular tribe when need of
| n was most pressing and when they had the means
at their disposal. In other Instances they have al
lowed contractors to delay for months the delivery
Of goods or supplies when the Indians were suffer.
| ing for them But the Indian authorities have not
| always been to blame.
Il has frequently happened that after tho Score
tarv of the Interior and the Commissioner of Indian
! AHoIrs have informed Congress Of the smallest sum
that could be safely appropriated for the support Of
some restless and dscontented tribe, for the full
flment of treaty obligations, that body has delib-
eraely refused TO grant tire amount asked fOrJ and
| tbat Is lust what the House Committee on Appro-
| priations sustained by n majority OF the House
| itself, has been engaged in this week. One or two
a1amples will be sufficient to show the policy that
| has prevailed.
| REFUSING NECESSARY APPROPRIATIONS.
Bv the treaties of 1868 and 1877 the Government
agreed to furnish annually to each male of the Sioux
one suit Of clothes, consisting OF coat, pantaoons,
| flannel shirt, hat and q pair Of homemade socks,
| and 20 each woman an equivalent amount OF cloth
| ing. The Sioux with whom this agreement was
made include among others the bands of Red
| Cloud and Spotted Tail, very powerful tribes,
which only three or four years ago had made no adj
| vance I'm civilization and were constant menace
TO the frontier The promise Of clothing was one of
| the indu ccments by which they were persuaded to
settle on their present reservation give up their
savage ways and engage in agricultural pursuits.
The Indinns have performed their part of tho con-
| tract most Conscentiously.
The number of Sioux to be provided for under
the treaty is 81 GIL and the sum appropriated last
| wear, when goods of every kind were much cheaper
than they now are, was $l30OOO, OF So 90 for each
| The Secretary of the Interior informed the COM
mttee that this had proved entirely inadequate,
! and asked that il be increased to $15O00O. When
| Mr. Baker moved to make tho appropriation
GoO ono greater it was opposed by Mr. Wells, who
had charge of the BILL and by Mr. BlOunt and hero
oro some samples of the arguments they advanced.
| Mr.. Wells said
Tho gentleman from Indiana, we'll rs other gentle
me t W gbatever know tho wild Indians Of the Sioux
milton win net wear this clothing II give it to them
Tncy VIII mp their pantaloons ana use tnen iOr
| leCgugs, or sell them Tor ruIn'
When tho item for subsisting these same Sioux
Indians was reached, Mr.. Baker moved to increase
the amount appropriated from $1,OOO,OOO to
S1 O05. .OOO the amount appropriated for the pres
! ent year, and showed that even that amount would
be insufficient to furnish them the rations fixed by
the treaty. To this the democrats replied, first,
that the treaty stipulated that when the Sioux were
| Ian Ia han, mn rnti SlOnl6
issned 70 those who refused to work and second,
that if they did work they did not need the sub
| sistenee.
| AoANaRnous DEMOCRATIC POLICY.