The Warner sun. (Warner, Brown Co., Dakota [S.D.]) 1885-1???, 1888-08-17
The Sioux Reservation

htS 1890 RCSGTNdTlOn.
Senator Dawes, chairman Of The
senate committee on Indian atfaiT
says: II wish to deny most ernpbat.
really the report that i have express
ed an opinion that the bill should be
passed by congress opening the Sio1v
reservation without the consent
the Indians. have said nothino ~
the kind. will say, however. that I
would regard the refusal OF the Tndi.
ans to accept the terms offered them
by the bill which recently passed con.
gress and vas approved BY the prasj.
dent BIS calamitous to tie Indians
The terms offered them are exceedingly
liberal. By acceptingthem the Indians
will be provided for forever, and NO
aggression on the part OF their enter.
prising white neighbors can rob than
Of It's beneficent provisions. They
are surrounded by half q million pro.
gressive people OF an aggressive race.
and the logic Of events points to their
total loss of the LAND upon which
they live in the immediate future. I'm.
less they sci! their lands, as provide
for in the bill. they will, / fear. be
robbed OF them. 1t must be remem.
bered when suggestions are made con.
corning the passage of a bill ope
ing the reservation without the
consent OF the Indians that thetreatv
st%ipulations of 1868 reauirethe assent
OF three-fourths of the Indians 90 the
o,orSpu Of tbair pagarvo4;o.
be remembered that while it is posi-
bic that the house or senate, or both.
might permit the passage of bill dis
regarding thosel treaty stipulatieas,
the president might disapprove OF
such a bill. | do not undertake to
speak for the president, but mention
that as incidentally possible. Hence,
the obstacle to the passage and APP
prevail of such a bill must be appar.
emit to all, and it is actually absurd
to quote me as saying that / would
favor the passage OF such a bill with
out qualifications. There are numer-
Gus things TO be considered in this
matter. There are men here who are
under pay to obstruct the passage Of
any bill opening the reservation. /
ann Horned that one man was paid
$1,000 by Red Cloud for such servi-
ces. 1t must not readily be forgotten
that the Indians are under the
influence of had chiefs. John Grass
and Sitting Bull are all powerful with
them. One of those chiefs planned
the Custer massacre and then sneaked
away. The other executed 1t. When
Senator'S Logan, Angus, Cameron ard
myself were out there Sitting Bull and
John Grass made the same speeches
they have recently made. / have
those same speeches in my COMMITTEES
oom At that time the Indians were
in favor Of agreeing to the bill which
recently passed congress, but since
then they havebeen unduly influenced,
and are now acting in what / consid-
er q suicidal manner towards their
best interests. j am in hopes that
they will yet see their error and
consent to the propositions which
have been made to them. They were
placed upon that reservation with
the hope and expectation that they
aid live by the chase and be far
removed from the westward march OF
white enterprise, but already they are
surrounded. There is scarcely q jack
rabbit for them to hunt and kill.
They occupy a country four times
as great in area as Washington and
there are only $4,000 OF them.
There are townsin my county contain
inc that many people. 1t is absurd
to suppose that they can hold such
vast possessions. Unless they agree
to the provisions Of the bill, which
certainly is liberal in its consider
alton of them, they will, ! fear, lose
all and be panpcrized. ] are not to
make any further observations upon
the ~questionin its present con-
dition.'