Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-08-18
HOW MILES WON THE DAY
DIR. BLAND PROVES DAWES
FULL OF BLANDISHNTENTs,

Papers which were Meant to Raze the
! Scalp of the Wicked Indian Agent In
nOcentIy Handed over to the Chuck
ling Senator and COnfded to the
Waste Basket.
WASHINGTON, Aug. 17.-At the time
the row between Agent McGnlicuddy, of
the Pine Ridge Agency, and DIR. t. A.
! Bland, of this city, was published, Sena-
tor Dawes In an Eastern paper defended
the former, and made some unpleasant
references to the latter and Chief Red
Cloud. DR.. Bland has written a card in
reply. While trying to justify himself
and Red Cloud he is very caustic and
makes some very severe charges against
Mr.. Dawes. He says that the defense of
| MeGillicuddy set up by Mr.. Dawes is
characteristic of its author and is therefore
not very reliable. He then SAYS: 81
Will note first that Mr.. Dawes attempts
to discredit me and thus weaken the
| force OF my statement of facts by dis
cending to personal abuse. To this l
shall not reply. But he says that while
l have some notions about Indians that
seem kind, yet make trouble with every
body who is trying to help that people
(the Indians).
WHEN DAWES WAS TROUBLED.
"This statement reYives the recollec-
tlon Of time not remote when l did give
Senator Dawes some trouble, not when
he was helping Indians, but when he was
doing just what he is now sustaining, a
bad agent. He seems to be the special
champion OF the class of agents who
save up from $4,000 to $4,000 a year
from salary of $4,000 year. The case
refer to is that of Agent Miles of the
Usage Agency. Miles was reappointed
agent OF the Osages in January 1888, on
the recommendation of Commissioner
Price, who knew that there was at that
time on file in his Office the most
serious charges against Agent Miles
and abundant proof that those charges
were true. More than year before that
time Commissioner Price had admitted to
me that the charges were all substan-
TALLY sustained by the official evidence
on hle IN his office. Because ! insisted
that Miles be retired and an honest agent
appointed in his place, Mr.. Price thought
that was making him trouble, and cot
quite out of temper.
THE VISIT TO DAWES.
con hearing of the reappointment of
Miles, l called on Senator Dawes and filed
with him, as Chairman of the Indian
Committee of the Senate, a statement of
the facts in the Miles case. He said. Il
y i
lay your communication before my COM
mlttee., He did not lay my communica-
ton before his committee as a body, nor
ala he show 1t or speak of it to any men,
per OF his committee. He did not bring
Miles case before the Indian Committee,
nor did he ask any member of the COM
mlttee to sanction the confirmation of
Miles. make this statement on the
authority of the Clerk OF the
committee and every member of the COM
mlttee except Dawes. Instead of placing
Miles name and record before the com
mIttee for consideration and action as
was his duty, and as he had promised me,
Henry l.. Dawes, Chairman of the Indian
Committee of the United States Senate,
protested philanthropist, defender of In
qlan rights, ETC., smuggled Miles name
IN with some other names then before the
Senate, and by that contemplate trick he
got him confirmed as agent. Less than one
hour after he had gotten Miles confirmed
and before l had heard of it | sent my
card to him, and had a talk with him in
the marble room of the Senate about the
case, and filed with him some additional
evidence against Miles. He said: Il am
very much obliged to you, and l will Law
your communication before my commit
tee.' To my great astOnis ishment the even
ing papers of that day announced the con-
frmation Of Miles.''