Arizona weekly citizen., 1886-09-18
THE INDIAN POLICY.

tH'aN4h fIcrt n sense or me uulg ol lEt government towards this class of mIr- derrrs. The demands of our people
 ID this respect. have won many strong
 allies, and 1t will not sstonish them il
 the government is forced to adopt new
 policy towards the Indians that embed ies more common sense and justice
 thaa Ihe perverted sentiment now con-
 trol,InS its action. The St. Louis Globe.
 Democrat has gwen this subject much
 attention and its conclusions are mark. ed with sound, practical ideas, and in
 treating of the disposition oi the cap
 tnrcG hostiles it discourses as follows:
 The proper thing 70 do would be to
 turn Geronimo and his companions
 oyer to the civil authorities of Arizona
 for trial and punishment. as white men
 are tried and punished for similar
 crimes The effect of such action would
 be the certain and expeditions hanging
 of the offenGers, in question, of course;
 bl. is not shat what k fairly demanded
 ID the interest of justice and peace?
 2 her guilt is not to be doubted for s
 moment; and the only plea to be made ia favor of any other course concern
 ing tbsM Is the manifestly unressona- ' lie oae that they are soldiers, repre-
 -enting some form Oi sovereignty. and ! having Q right to military protection ! all consideration.
 As a matter Of simple truth, Geroni-
 mo and h.s army" stand for nothing
 an the wHy of national or ritual su-
 thorI;y. The mere fact that they are ! APsches does no. give them the right 10 invoke the name of ths. tribe as a shield Rgalnst the penalties of their ] crimes. They have terrorized Arizona l constantly for over Q year, not US war Uc-s having a definite grievance and ob- serving the established rules ID such eases, but as SO many desperate and ir- responsible cut-throEts owing allegiance 20 here, and iatent only upon ;Ec,, alG ms-sgcre. IL is preposterous 10 DC
 .-I to such creatures the designation of soldiers, and eItenuate their bsrbRr- il-s under the pretext that they were
 lmitte3 in due course of military
 -at.-1- against the United S:a. ga.
 y have not once engaged in an op-I D
 cr-li able fghE ~i,h the troo.s
 0r. .r give shem battle, but haF,
 :stlariy stunned every opposiuui ? o- .l- Eind, and hurled themselves ron the ie'enssless settlers Of ( g territory, sParIng neither age or F,T. ! The re-orl of the atrocities they have l perpeirated makes onsof the most hid l e1us pages of Western history; and yet there are those who insi5t that such l story O. wanton cruelty and bloo5shed | should be dignified with the name | of war.
 |. has happened tims and again that squads of Indian criminals like this one | led by Geronimo have come in and sur rendered 10 avoid q certain capture, and at once they have been placed ID com forlable quarters, fed ard guarded for mpn,hs a' .he public expense, and then turHel iOJss % ,ale the wsr-path again whenever so disposed. This policy was stimulated instead Of repressing the hostile procliyities of the Indians. as the long list Of frontier murders amply demonstrates. It is known that in Ari- zou alone during the las. five years over thousand white persons have been killed and a vast amount of property stolen and destroyed by these bands Of rowing savages; and yet not a single Indian has been properly punished on account of such outrsges. It has not been fo- want Of evidence that justice has utterly failed in this respect. The guilty part:es have been unidentified .n numerous instances, and would have been readily convicted ID any court. Blt the courts are not permitted to take cognizance of the Indinns as per sons. The policy Of the government places them safely beyond legal luris- diction of sny sort, and their crimes are treated Rs mere eccentrcities aud promptly excused and condoned. What TO m is there for wonder that, under such circumstances. they are slow to abandon their barbarOus ways and sc cept the doctrines md practices of civilized life?
 There is nothing 20 much needed in the solution of the Indian problem as a iirra and unconditional assertion of le- gal power for the punishment of crimes committed by such offenders as Geron- imo. The Indian can never be civilized so long as he shall feel that be is exempt from the penalties of laws which white men are required to obey; and the idea of -egtiag him as soldier and a prls rne- of war instead ot thief and q murderer is simply calculated to pro long The record of Indian outraEes and .r fee more innocent and valuable
 @ savage feroclty. II Geronin1 "a !s --lclates had known when they
 .s a1.I tO set out on their recent . .rse es rillnge and massacre that they , ...l have tO answer In the courts hfr ,
 -o men for the property they should and the lives they should take, ay would have remained upon their (
 
 1.l :hst there was DO such iIsk fo [ -a-e.-or, st least, that such q thiag had ( -ever occurred ia similar undeTtaklnE { and that when they should be pressed ' loo closely by ihe soldiers, they would [ ,uly need t) surrender. and throw them [ ,elTa- upon the never-failing mercy oi he United States as military prisoners [ A band of white robbers and assassins | sonld not he dealt with m tha. indul- T yent manner under any conditions. Why ! ,hculd a determination be made m [ 'avor of Indian criminals? The laws { hat protect the people of the frontier ,sainst bsd men oftheir own race should g rtainly do as much for them with re- ' yard to vicious characters of another s ,olor. The fact is. however. thst The T avs are a mockery Tn that particular, s md can not be appealed to for the re- [ iress of wrongs inflicted by Indians, no { natter how grave they may be. nor now [ dearly the personal guilt can be es'so- , lished."