Daily Yellowstone journal., 1886-11-14

hGBt thCu -
Now, their cattle are all gone, their
horses reduced to the lowest possible
number, and without game of any de-
scription in the country their sole de-
pendence for subsistence is on the
half-rations issued to them at the
agency. The consequence is that they
are in continual state of dissatisfac-
tion-a hungry Indian always has a
bad heart-and troubis is constantly
brewing. The killing of cattle and
sheep belonging to white settlers Is OF
constant occurrence, though only oc-
casionally brought home to the Offend
ers. This breeds spirit of antagon-
ism in the whites and renders a collis-
sion possible at any moment from
which may come the direst results to
life and property. We all know taat
during the past three years troops have
frequently veen called to the agency
TO repress the openly expressed hostil-
ity of the young bucks of the tribe,
aud that to-day more than half the
garrison of Fort Keogh is on duty at
the agency, in response to Agent Up
shaw's urgent kilograms TO the depart
ment. Yet it is roposed to take these
savages, who are in need OF almost
constant military surveillance, and
scatter the n throughout white set
tlement, with the professed endeavor
of making them live by the sweat Of
their brows.
The policy of the Indian department
in creating or attempting to create a
reservation where while settlers have
already made permanent -ettlement,
is something h'rel pfore unheard of in
the history of the country. The In
dian has been forced westward before
the advancing tide of civilization,
until humanitarians have wept, but IL
has remained for this day and admin
istralion to bring him back TO contest
lUt vi Nlt
occupation Of the soil by the hardy
pioneer. The eXtinguishment of In
dan titles is what Montana is looking
for, and not the "reation of new title
in locality that MS closely settled
by whites before these Indians ever
set foot in it. The Cheyenne reserva-
tion as it now exists nn the Rosebud,
covers "A tract of land on which, prior
to its creation by President Arthur,
numerous white settlers were located;
the prior rights of these settlers was
recognized by the executive order and
their holdings confirmed Ia them al.
though within the limits Of the reser-
walton. Today, within sight of the
agency buildinas stands Il school
house presided over 10y IA young lady,
aud attended by twenty-five white
children; and yet, in the face of this
signal evidence 0f the settlement and
civilized condition of the country, the
Indian department seeks, not only to
preserve this res rvation, but to ell
large il so n to take IN the white set
tlement on Tongpe river aud reclaim
the whole 10 barb.sism.
The people of Miles City have IA
more than ordinary interest in the
matter. The occupation OF the valley
of the Rosebud for reservation pur-
poses has virtually closed one artery of
business to our town. and like occu-
patton OF the Tongue river valley Will
shut out entirely The profitable traffic
from the headwa ers of these streams.
/ he bald pretence that the location OF
the Indians pu Tongue river is that
tney may { rm and support taem-
selves, is TOO threadbare To even war
rant consideration; everyone VINO
knows anything aboIt the country
knows the utter fallacy of attempting
to subsist Oh the product Of the soil
unaided by irrigation; in the best agEi-
cullura portion of the county intelli-
gent white labor aided by agricultural
machinery has failed OF success, aud
the most saDguine are now willing To
admit that agriculture without irrlga-
tion is not practicable. The present
location ofthe Cheyennes on the Rose
bud is in canyon where irrigation is
an engineering impossibility, and If it
were practical =, the water rights on
the stream have already baen legally
filed to such an extent as TO
leave no wa.er for them, and on
Tongue river there is less than one
thousand acres unoccupied, and prac-
tically no river front on which to take
out ditc., so that If the agricultural
schemes OF the friends and promoters
of this programme even contemplated
30 advanced n move as the irrigation
of the bottom lands Of the Tongue and
Rosebud, It is at the outset shown to
be impracticable. What then will
this programme result in? The only
outcome that presents itself to those
who know the --ldians and the coun-
try, will be the stringing of about half
of the 60) CheyenDes along twenty
miles of TC2g'ie river bottom where
ever unoccup ID land can he found,
where during the summer they will