Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1886-10-06
WHOLE NO u,O64.
GENERAL MILES.
He Relates Bis Version of the Geronimo
Surrender.


ALBUQUERQUE On. M, October 5th.-
General Miles was asked to-day by a repre-
sentative of the Democrat what he thought
of the pablished statements OF bulletins
assumed t5 have been written upon official
Information furnished at the Was Depart
ment, as to his capture of Geronimo.
These reports,' replied the General
" emaEate fjom the brain OF Some znscru-
pulous ana enVIouS person. whose object
appears to be 70 dis tort the truth with in
tention of injiring me, regardless of the
just praise due the troops for their extYaor-
dinary serylces' IN achieving permanent
peace in the Southwest. Many Of the state
ments are entirely devoid of truth,
i2nu others are weak arguments and
4labored theories. The preterlse that
the surrender OF Geronimo and the.
Other hostiles was other than the result of
the gallant and arGacas operations of the.
troops III the field is simply childish. One
might imagine, from reading some of the
statements made, that the red handed
Apaches have been sil summer trying
10 get up cheap-rate excursion to
the yellow fever districts of Florida Surely
no intelligent man would believe that the
Apaches who have been roaming over this
mountainous region for generations, mas
ters OF the situation, would have thrown
down their arms, sacrificed their prosper
ity. surrendered their liberty, accepted per
petusl banishment from their native coun-
try and placed themselves and their fami-
lies at the mercy of the Government, un-
less they had been subjugated by the mill
tary forces. The mildest punishment evil
IDENTIFY in store for them far exceeds in
severity that ever before inflicted upon any
body of Indians in this country
General would you mind giving me.a
copy of your official report of the surren-
der?' was asked.
II am quite willing that every official
act of mine in this enterprise should be
known TO the public. Iwould much prefer
that my official report should be published,
and then the extracts and distorted state
ments should be thrown out. The people
of this country are quite intelligent enough
to draw their own conclusions, and it is not
necessary that official documents should be
filtered through a personal brain. Some
ingenious enemies there have SO eolored it,
in part, as to best answer their personal in
terests."
Would you mind saying in what re-
spect your course has differed from your
Instructions"
Z" / am glad TO answer that question, in
order to put al rest very inaccurate state
ment. l was given absolute discretionary
authority TO conduct the campaign. Even
General Sheridan, who commands the
army and knows more about Indian mat
ters and the topography Of this country
than all the army officers in Washington
put together, declined To give me any
specific instructions
"What has been the effect Of the removal
upon other tribes of Indians ,"
:" 1t has stricken terror into those living
in The adjacent country. Even the power
ful Navajoes, of 20 coo souls. are now afraid
they may DO something for which they
will be liable to be sent away from their
native country. l already regard it ss more
effective than ifforty executions had taken
place"