Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1884-07-08
GENERAL LOGAN AND THE ZUNIS

WASHINGTON, July 6.-The republican
press having declined to defend Gen. Logan
against the charge that he participated in
an attempt to rob the Zuni Indians of their
lands, the republican candidate has been
compelled 10 protect his own reputation in
the form of personal explanation to the
Senate. Senator Logan confesses the main
charge, which was that an attempt was
| made to deprive the Iuni Indians Of their
farms and that Senator Logan's son-in-law
tried to profit by the palpabe mistake of a
surveyor. 1t would have been more pleas
ing if Senator Logan had frankly conceded
| the Justice in the correction Of the surveyors
error and announced that no member of his
| family would deprive peaceable lndians Of
| land and water that is necessary to sustain
them and which is their property.
General Logan denies that he is person
allv interested in the proposed ranch but
year ago, in Il published interview, he
said, 81 have looked at the lands and | like
them. will have them if can get them"
and he did for long time try to accomplish
that purpose. At the time the preemption
was made the lands were not upon the res
ervatiou. They have since been included
| by proclamation of the President, and III
defending his son-in-law the Senator has
used his Senatorial influence to have that
| that mistake was made in the survey, but
he has opposed the correction Of that mis-
| take
Senator Logan calls James Stevenson, OF
| the Geological Survey, as witness to tes-
| tify that the charge against him is unjust.
| NIr. Stevenson was General Logan's guide
| when be first visited the disputed territory,
| and was with him when he selected the
| location which his son-in-laW attempted TO
preem5t Mr.. Stevenson tries TO get Gen
eral Logan out of his difficulty, but he is
also trying to get General Logan's son-in-
| law the Zuni lands. In Il letter to the Sec
retary of the Interior he proposes plan by
which Senator Logan can have his cattle
ranch and the Indians may be provided
with sufficient water to irrigate their farms
at a cost Of $40, 900 to the Government. Mr..
Stevensons ingenious plan is thus described
by him:
'In order to avoid further conflicts between
the Zunis and the white settlers, and to
enable the department to revoke the order
under which recent disputes have arisen, I
| recommend that sum of $4,000, or SO
much thereof as may be necessary, be ap-
propriated for the erection of dam :: few
miles above the village of Zuui, where the
Rio Zuni emerges from the lava beds, and
the constructing Of irrigating bitches Oh
each side of the river for q distance of
twelve miles. These bitches, according to
an estimate made by Mr.. ID. ID. Graham, an
engineer residing among the Zunis, would
irrigate about three thousand acres on each
side OF the creek. Il enclose small dia-
grams showing the place for dam and
bitches, also the letters from Mr.. Graham on
the subject.) These bitches would derive Il
supply Of water from the entire sources of
the Rio Nutria and the Rio Pescado, which
would he ample TO rrigate from three to five
thousand acres in the immediate valley Of
the Rio Iuni in the vicinity Of the principal
Zuni village. The area of land through
which the Rio Nutria flows, and which, ac
cording to the survey, is not within the reser-
walton, snot large enough, and could not be
occupied in any mannerso as to deprive those
below that point of any perceptible amount
of water. The construction Of the bitches
and dam referred to would enable the Iunis
to occupy and cultivate the land near their
permanent home. while present circum-
stances compel them to resort to distant To-
calities, where they obtain only q meagre
supply Of either moisture or water"
II thus appears that General Logan has
not in fact given up the effort to capture the
Zuni lands, in spite of the Presidents or
der. But why should the governmentspend
$4,000 10 secure Logan's son.in-law part
of the Zuni property? The angry letters
which Gen. Logan wrote the Secretary ofthe
Interior at the time the reservation was re-
stored are not on file in that department
with the other papers relating to the case,
but were marked personal and destroyed
at the time they were received. 1t is for.
tunate for Gen. Logan that they do not still
exist as witnesses against him. The Secre-
tary of the Interior never did any one q
greater kindness than was conferred upon
Logan by the destruction of those letters.-
Cor. ~ !. Herald.