Morning journal and courier., 1886-04-20
THE RED mEN,s WRONGS.
Miss Collins, Formerly of Dakota. Gives a Thrilling Address at North Church Chapel.

1 Miss Collins, Formerly of Dakota. l Gives a Thrilling Address at North 1 Church Chapel.
 I A meeting of the New Haven branch of ] the Womens Indian association was held in | the chapel of the United church yesterday 1 (Monday) afternoon at 3 o'clock. The meet | ing opened with the singing of "There Is a Green Hill Far Away by Miss Dutton. Dr. | Munger, the chairman of the meeting, then introduced Miss Collins, who was for twelve years missionary to the Dakota Indians and who is soon to return to the work again. Miss Collins spoke without notes in man ner which engaged the absorbed interest of her audience After very telling illustra- tions of the power of good examples upon the Indian taken from her own personal knowledge Miss Collins spoke of the way in which the government had driven the Indi- ans from Minnesota, where they were able to work, to hunt, to fish and to support their families entirely, the men attending to the necessities of provision, while the women cooked what ever they brought home for food, to the sterile country of Dakota, where they might tramp for day and a night and find no drop of water on the way, where there was no
 
 self-supporGing men, where all these families must depend on government supply. In some cases the Indians have to tramp ninety miles to the nearest agency for supplies. When they reach the agency they have often to wait several days for the agent to get. ready to hand out two weeks rations-'ttwo weeks" rations, lasting often less than 8 week, compelling the Indians to live in a half-starved condition the rest of the time. When the missionaries at one time begged grain from the govern ment that they might teach the Indians to raise wheat and to support themselves. It was handed over to them in small quantities The Indians broke the ground themselves, sowed the wheat, tended the crops with the greatest care until they were ready to reap. Then the Indian men tramped over to the agency to get the promised government reap CT. The agent delayed them from day to day, complaining of the trouble of getting out the reaper, until the men left at the wheat fields were obliged to go out and cut the grain with butcher knives and whatever cutting implements they could devise in or der to save the crop at all. Then there was no means of covering the wheat promised by the agents, and two thirds of it spoiled before the agent could be induced to provide the promised thresher. The next year when the missionaries asked for seed grain the agent replied that they could use what they had raised the year be- fore for seed. This was but one of the many instances of injustice to which Miss Collins referred. She reminded the audience that even if the grain were all raised successfully, stacked and threshed, a white man could steal it entirely without the government al- lowing an Indian to sue for damages, or to present any claim for his rights. Miss Collins spoke further at length and her address was followed by few remarks by Dr. Munger urging substantial sympathy for the cause. Prof. Brewer then spoke for few minutes relating briefly several shock ing cases of cruelty and injustice to the Indians, which had occurred in sections of the far West in which he had travelled through. The meeting then closed, all ex- pressing themselves as having been deeply interested and their sympathies for the cause deepened.