The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-05-13
PROCEEDINGS OF CONGRESS-
THE SENATE.
Mr.. ingalls, Discusses the Philosophy of
indian Education.


! WASHINGTON, May 1.-The Chair laid before
the Senate petition of the American Medical
Association, praying that steps be taken to pre-
vent the spread of epidemic diseases
Mr.. Pendleton presented petition from the
Cincinnati Board of Trade and Chamber of Com
merce advocating increased efficiency of the
navy, and aid for the New Orleans Cotton Elk
position.
| MI. Mcmillan, from the committee on judiciary,
offered a resolution, which agreed to, au-
thorizing the committee to inquire into the facts
forming the basis of the bill recently introduced
by Mr.. Garland to amend the Thurman act
relating to claims of the government against the
Union and Central Pacific railroads. The com
mittee was Authorized to send for persons and
papers.
Mr. Plumb introduced a bill to donate from the
public lands a cemetery site to the City of Ker-
min, Kas. Referred.
Mr.. Morrill, submitted joint resolution rela-
tive to registration of deaths, births and mar
riages. Referred
Mr. VanWyck moved to take up his resolution
directing the Secretary of the Interior to with
hold from the Northern Pacific railroad patents
for certain land grants. Agreed to.
Mr.. Conger said there was legal question in
volved, and he thou -ht the resolution should be
referred to the Judiciary committee for its opin-
ion Besides, it was questionable whether the
Senate should direct executive officer not to
execute the law.
Mr.. VanWycK expressed surprise that there
should be any opposition to his resolution. In
reply to questions put by Mr.. VanWyck to Mr..
Conger, the latter said that, with the approval of
his constituents, he had advocated these land
grants to that road, and referred to the advant-
age the road was to the State of Michigan He
characterized Mr.. VanWyck as "a self-const-
! tuted champion of the public lands" The
matter went over, and the Chair laid before the
| Senate the unfinished business, it being Mr..
| Becks appeal from the decision of the Chair on
! Mr.. HaIriss point of order that q committee Of
conference cannot be appointed on the shipping
bill until the House shall specifically disagree to
the amendments of the Senate.
Pending this question the Indian APP
preparation bill taken up. The
| pending question was on Mr.. Hawley's mo-
ton to increase to $25 600 the appropriation for
| education in Alaska
| Mr. Hawley supported his motion
| Mr. Vest said he would favor the highest
amount the Senate would appropriate for Indian
| education, provided both sexes were educated
| 1t was useless he said to educate the boys and
leave the Indian girls without education. At
the end of the school term the boys went back
! to their tribes and were jeered at and rdculed
| for their white accomplishments and they
wound up by becoming more barbarous than the
! ignorant men of their tribes. Although Prot
| estant Mr.. Vest felt compelled to say the
| Jesuits had shown the only real success in the
| education and civilization of the Indians. Two
| things had contributed to that success-one
| that when their teachers went among the
Indians they did not look back
to civilization, but devoted the
whole period Of their lives to the
work; the other, that they educated both sexes
| Boys and girls, equally educated and civilized
! grew into manhood and womanhood with pros
| pect and anticipation of Christian marriage;
they did not go back to their TRIBES but became
part and parcel of our civilization. This result
could never be reached by education of one sex
! only,
Mr.. Dawes spoke of the great good being ac-
complished by Indian schools.
Mr. ingalls, said the subject was interesting to
T the philosopher and politician. He had been an
I observer OF Indian education for twenty-five
years and during large part of that time had been
a neighbor of Indians. Indian education, he said
produced phenomena rather than results. There
were individual instances of extreme interest
shown by it, but it did not make any
| appreeiable change in the Indian char
acter. Societies. civilizations and philosophers
were not made-they grew they were develop
ments- A thousand years ago the Anglo Saxon
race, to which we belonged, was as savage and
untamable as an Indian was at present. They
were not raised by the efforts of Others Their de
| velopment had been growth from within, de-
| velopment of inherent forces. OF course, it was
! desirable. so far as possible, TO ameHorate the
condition of the Indian tribes; but the system we
| had been pursuing had resulted simply in this
that if an educated Indian returned to his tribe
he found himself an alien and an out
cast, with no eompanionship or association;
no one with whom he could ally himself, and his
last condition was worse than his first; yet if he
came into competition with the white man he was
lost. Mr. Ingalls, thought the best thing that could
| be done for the Indian would be to make
him amenable to law, which he was not now.
| He had heard enough of rather stale denuncia-
ton of the government for its determination of
Indians There had been no such extermfna-
| ton. There were as many Indians on the con
| tiOppt today aS N 14Qfl Tha had
on the contrary, always shown lenieney to the
! Indian. 1t was no use teaching Indians the
| Greek alphabet and the diferential calculus
| serving him his dinner in courses and showing
him how to wear the high hat and the gold
watch of civilization. 1t was just as absurd, and
would be as futile, to do that, as to go among a
| herd Of Texas broad horn steers and endeavor to
| turn them into DuThams and thoroughbreds by
reading Alexanders Herd Book in the cattle
| pens
Mr. Hoar replied to Mr. Ingalls, by reading
! from the report of the chief of the Cherokee
nation, in which the thanks of the tribe are CON
veyed to the government of the United States
| for its efforts toward Indian civilization Mr.
| Hoar supposed the Indians had cost the govern
ment, in wars and losses of all Sorts thousand
| million dollars, yet there were only about
| 200 900 of them. These wars and losses had
| been brought about in the first place by wrongs
| perpetrated by the whites upon the Indians. He
thought it better to endeavor to adapt the Indians
for civilization than TO follow up any further the
! policy that had so long prevailed
Mr. Dawes said the senator from Kansas Mr.
1ngalls) was mistaken as to the history, mistaken
as to the facts mistaken as to the philosophy of
mans being and was guilty of libel on the whole
human race when he intimated that any Of its
members were incapable Of being trained and
| educated
| Mr.. Frye moved that the shipping bill be taken
up, in order retain it's place as unfinished husi-
ness, which was agreed TO, and the Senate ad-
jourRed
THE HOUSE.