The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1881-12-08

hiohC hO suggestion as 10 de
tai, but express the hope that your de-
llberatlOns may result in such IegisIa.
tlon as VIII give early relief to ouI
OVerburdened courts.
THE BORDER TROUBLES.
The acting Attorney General also calls
attention to the disturbance of the pub
nc tranquility during the past year in
The territory of Arizona. A band of des-
peradoes, known as cowboys, probably
numbering from fifty to one hundred
men, have been engaged for months in
committing acts of lawlessness AL. Jru-
tality, which the local authorities have
been unable to repress. The depreda-
tiOns of these cowboys" have also been
extended into Mexico, which the ma
| rauderS reach from the Arizona frontier
With every disposition to meet the ext
| gencles OF the case, | am embarrassed
| by lack Of authority to deal with them
etectually. The punishment of crimes
! committed within Arizona should ordi-
narily, of course, be left to the terrific
rial authorities, but it is worthy of CON
| slderatlOn whether acts which necessa-
rlly tend to embrOil the United States
with neighbOTing governments should
| not be declared crimes against the Uni
| ted States. Some of the incursiOns al
| luded to may, perhaps, be within the
| scope of the law (Reyised Statutes, sec
| tlon 5,2S6) fOrbidding military expedi-
tlOns or enterprises" against friendly
states. But in view of the speedy assem-
bling of your body, | have preferred to
await such legislation as in your Wis
dom the occasion may seem to demand
1t may perhaps be thought proper to
provide that the setting on foot within
our own territory of bTigandage and
armed marauding expeditions against
friendly nations and their citizens shall
he minis In a hla "a = n off
United States.
| will add that in the event of a re-
quest from the territorial government
for protection by the United States
against domestic violence" this Gov
ernment would be pOWeress to render
| assistance. The act Of 1885, chapter 3G,
passed at time when territorial gov
ernment received little attention from
| Congress, enforced this duty of the
| United States only as to State govern
ments. But the act of 1867, CHAPTER 80.
| applied also to territories. This law
seems TO have remained in force till the
revision of the statutes, when the pro-
| vision for the territories was dropped.
| l am not advised whether this alteration
was Intentional or accidental, as it but
seems to me that the territories should
be afforded the protection which is ac-
corded to States by the Constitution, |
| suggest Legislation to that end.
LII seems to me, too, that whatever
views may prevail as to the policy of re-
| cent legislation by which the army has
| ceased to be part of the posse cOmmita-
| tus, an exception might we'll be made
for permitting the military to assist the
| civil territorial authorities in enforcing
the laws of the United States. This
use of the army would not seem to be
within the alleged evil against which
| that legislation was aimed. From the
aVNsa Of ,l,,Ns
| cumStances, 1t is often quite Impractical
bic to summon civil posse in places
where officers of justice require assist
ance, and where military force is
within easy reach.
THE INDIAN MANAGEMENT.
The report of the Secretary of the In
! terror, with accompanying documents.
! presents an elaborate account of the
! business of that department. As a sum
mary of it would be too extended for
this place | ask your careful attention
| to the report. Prominent among the
matter which challenges the attention
| OF Congress at its present session is the
| management of our Indian affairs.
! While this question has been cause of
| trouble and embarrassment from the
infancy of the Government, it is but re-
Gently that any effort has been made for
consistent and promising success. 1t
has been easier to resort to convenient
! makeshiftS for tiding over the tempOT-
| airy difficulties, than to gTapple with
the great permanent problem, and ac-
| cOrdlngly the easier course has been in
| variably pursued. 1t was natural, at a
| time when the national territory seemed
almost illimitable and contained many
millions of acres far south of the bounds
of civilized settlements that a policy
| should have been initiated which more
than aught else has been the fruitful
source of our Indian complications. |
refer, of course, to the policy of dealing
with the various Indian tribes as sepa-
rate natiOnalities, of relegating them by
treaty stipulatiOns to the occupancy of
immense reservations in the west, and
of encouraging them to live savage
life undisturbed by any earnest and well
directed efforts to bring them under
the influences of civilization. The un-
satisfactory results which have sprung
from this policy are becoming apparent
TO all. As the white settlements have
crowded the borders of the reservations,
the Indians, sometimes cOntentedly and
sometimes against their will, have been
transferred to other hunting grounds
from which they have again been dis
lodged whenever their new found homes
have been desired by the adventurous
| SeGlltIS. lueeb ItulONdlS anu Tie lIOu-
tier collisions by which they have often
been preceded have led to frequent and
disastrous conflicts between the races.
1t is pTOfitless to discuss here which of
them has been chiefly responsible for
the disturbances, whose recital occupies
so large space upon the pages of our
history. We have to deal with the ap-
palling fact that though thousands of
lives have been sacrificed and hundreds
of millions of dollars expended in the
attempt to solve the Indian problem, it
had until within the past few years
seemed scarcely nearer a resolution
than it was half century ago. But the
Government has of late been cautiously
but steadily feeling its way to the adOp-
ton of the policy which has already
produced gratifying results, and which
in my judgment is likely, if Congress
and the Executive accord in its support,
to relieve us ere long from the Difficult
ties which have hitherto beset us. For
the success of the efforts now making to
introduce among the Indians the Gus
toms and pursuits of civilized life, and
gradually to absorb them into the mass
of our citizens, sharing their rights and