Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-10-29
CATHOLIC INDIAN SCHOOLS.
Commissioner Morgan Says There 10 NO
Discrimination Against Them.

Commissioner Morgan Says There is NO
Discrimination Against Them.
HE DENIES CHARGES IN THE CATHOLIC K1ws~
FAyoRs THE PUBLIC SCHOOL sYsrEM FoA r.
D1ANs AS WELL As WHITES. AND n oProsHD 10
CONTRACT SCHOOLS OF AIT DISSEMINATION.
The Church News, o Catholic weekly pub
lished in this city, contains in this weeks issue
two column editorial in which it is asserted
that the policy which those in charge of the
public schools for the Indians are pursuing Is
SO directly antsgonistic TO the principles on
which our federal institutions are founded that
we have every reason to hope it will be re-
versed after the public understands the bigotry
by which it was inspired"
1t is then charged specifically that the Rev.
DR.. Dorchester, the superintendent Of Indian
schools, represents q spirit 20 hostile to Catho-
lie thought that he seems TO be unable to do
justice to the Catholic Indians. Commissioner
Morgan, it is asserted. has proved equally a.
bigoted as the superintendent and appears
equally as anxious to exclude Catholics from
the Indian schools. The writer charges that
the present management of the Indian schools
10 seotarian aud that recently eleven out Of the
fourteen
CATHOLIC TEACHERS WERE DIscHARoEp.
Reference is made to publication and lectures
made by both Com missioner Morgan and Su-
perintendent Dorchester, in which they argue
that Romanism is a menace to free institutions.
The conclusion reached by the writer is that
men who believe that there is danger to the
republic to be expected from Romanists" will
not in official life act impsrtially toward those
they believe to be o menace to the nations
peace. The writer further argues that the
spirit OF republican liberty il violated when q
citizen is appointed to Office or discharged be-
cause OF his religious faith. It il maintained
that the Catholics, as American citizens, have
a right to complain when prejudice against
their religion is allowed to influence the ad-
ministration of public Office.
coMMIssIoNER MORGAN DENIES.
STAR reporter this morning called Com
missioner Morgan's attention to this pubiica-
ton. He glanced over II and then remarked
that he Lad said so much on this subject that
he did not care to say anything more
Il am perfectly willing, however" he went
on Ito say now as / have said so many times
before since have been at the head OF the
India Office thai have not made a removal
because man was a catholic Or because q man
was democrat. My aim has been to retain
all employees who are fully qualified and to
appoint only men of that character in filling
vacancies. have refused to enter into any
SehuuSb Will newly OTkdulZ6Q QeuOmlQaLlOu8l
schooi or contract schools. as they are known, to
distinguish them from the schools solely con-
Quoted by the government because / am
IN FAVOR OF THE PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM.
In educating the Indians to citizenship see
no reason why they should not be taught in
the same sort Of schools az the children of
American citizens. am therefore opposed to
the system which encourages grants Of money
BY the government to private elementary
schools Of airy character. The number OF In
dian schools conducted by the government il
one hundred and ffty-nine. The contract
schools number seventy-one. I renewed the
contracts with all existing schools, but refused
to make contracts with proposed new schools
Presbyterians, Methodists Episcopalians. Bap-
fist, as we'll as Roman Catholics, applied to me
for such contracts. but refused.
CATHOLICS HAVE THE LARGEST SHARE OF THE
APPROPRIATIONS
at is true" continued Mr.. Morgan. "that
the Catholic schools receive a larger share Of
the appropriation than the schools of any other
denomination. This 10 shown by the amount
paid by the government to the Catholic con-
tract schools. The appropriation for 1890 10
divided thus: Bureau of Catholic missions
S356, All, including $4,000 special appropria-
ton; missions of the Presbyterian church,
s41.65O; American missionary association.
$26, 4S9; Cathedral chapter of South Dakota
(EpiscopaD, "a, $50; American Unitarian asso-
cIa,ion, ST, 400; B. G. Hobbs (Friends), S13 1863.
including special appropriation of $4,000;
Whitis school, Indiana (Friends), $4,000;
Halstead, Kansas (dennonites). S4.375; mission
school at Wittenberg. Wis. Iutheran), S7.56O;
s. D. Human (Episcopai) $3.50; J. A. GIllfillan
tEpiscopaD, $19. lie; Society of ME. church.
$3.50; total, s505.99 In the year 1886 the
Catholics received Sl1S,343 ont Of total ap-
preparation of Sl74,Sl9; in 1887, Sl94,635 out Of
$685. TIA; in 1888, 1921, 1853 out of 1922 1924; In
1889, S347, 672 out of 4476.l9O"
''THE NUMBER or CATHOLIC TEACHERS
in the government Schools" added the COM
missioner, "has increased recently in much
greater proportion than those of any other de-
nomination. But in all tho changes which
have been made, and none have been made re-
Gently, endeavored to act for the best interests
of the service and without reference to re-
1igious belief II more Catholics have been
dismissed than Protestants it was probably due
TO the fact that there were more Catholics in
the service. 1t il not known positively what
is the proportion of Catholic and Protestant
teachers that have been dropped from the
rolls. Inever made any inquiry as to q teachers
religious faith, but DIR. Dorchester, in a recent
letter, a copy Of which l have. says that un-
doubtedly more Protestants than Catholics
have been dropped"