, 1890-12-04
OUR CONGRESS
Business Transacted at
Washington.
ARMS FOR THE FRONT
Indians Were Driven to Re-
volt by Starvation
TO REDUCE LETTER POSTAGE
The Copyright Bill Passed in the
House-A Bill for the Pur-
chase of Silver.
TO REDUCE LETTER POSTAGE

tariff bill in relation to a rebate on manu-
featured tobacco, Allison said the con.
ferrees on the part of both houses agreed
to that section of the bill, but that it had
been omitted in enrolment. He had no
doubt the matter would receive early at.
tention.
Cullom introduced bill to reduce
letter postage to 1 cent. Referred.
An interesting discussion took place
on the subject OF the threatened Indian
war, apropos of the joint resolution to
issue arms to the states of North and
South Dakota and Nebraska Voorhees,
having charged the situation to the fact
of the Indians being starved, was replied
to by Dawes and Pierce. The debate
closed at 2 o'clock by the election bill
coming up as unfinished business.
Hoar. in charge of the bill said, In
view of the fact that on reporting the
bill at the close of tho last session. he
had addressed the senate upon 1t, he
would now forego any opening OF u de-
bate, but would answer whatever OBJ
lection had been made to the DILL on the
democratic side.
Hawley, from the committee on mill
tly icIoiNNh anu Hbhtb w uuNt
put upon passage the joint resolution
authorizing the secretary of war to issue
arms and ammunition to the states of
North and South Dakota.
Manderson moved to include the state
of Nebraska.
Mr.. Voorhees, said If the proposition
were one to issue q hundred thousand
rations of food to starving Indians, it
would be more consistent with Christian
civilization. He referred to the state
ment of General Miles, in a published
interview, that the Indians were driven
TO revolt by starvation, and said it was
crime on the part of the government
to stand by ana do nothing except fur
nish arms to whites. The Indians had
been suffering for years in silence. There
was blood of outlines somewhere in
connection with IL. The hostilities into
which the Indians in the North west
were being starved would result not
merely in the destruction of the lives OF
many Indians, but the lives of thousands
of American citizens and hundreds
OF American soldiers. That condition
of things had been brought about by
niggardly pnrsimoniousness, or dishon-
est policy. He knew not which policy
had been pursued to take the lands of
the Indians and not pay enough for
them to keep the Indians from starving
when dispossessed of their homes.
Mr.. Hawley spoke briefly. saying he
had no objection to the remarks of the
senator from Indiana, except they were,
perhaps, Il little exaggerated.
Dawes. chairman Of the committee on
Indian affairs, very much doubted ii the
shortness of food was the origin of the
trouble, or that the supply of food would
be cure for it. Tie difficulty with the
Indian service all along has been the
constant change of policy. Heretofore,
for years, IL has been impressed upon
congress that the best way TO treat an
Indian was to starve him into self-sup-
port. "Root hog, or die had been the
phrase put over the door of those who
administered the affairs of the Indians.
The policy had been to cut down, year
by year. the rations required by treaties,
and give notice to the Indians that
much, the difference to be supplied by
the labor of their own hands. He
thought 1t well to hold out every induce
ment to the Indians to turn them from
dependence on government rations and
supply their own support, and that 1t
was well to resort to all devices within
the limits of justice and reason to induce
them TO do it. As to the suggestions in
the public press, that the government
had failed to keep its promises
made to the Indians by the
Sioux commission, ETC., he said
the commission had made all sorts
of stipulations with the Indians One
of them was written out in plain Ian
guage and enacted into law by congress,
and that the stipulation commission had
taken 1t out to the Indians and asked
them to accept IL. The Indians had had
cause of complaint because of the nom
fulfllment OF other agreements, and the
commission told them it had no author
ity as to those matters, but that 1t would
use its influence with the government in
those cases.
When the Indian representatives came
to Washington with the commission full
discussion was had, and an agreement
was embodied in the bill, which was
submitted to congress by the president.
The bill thus framed was to the complete
satisfaction of the Indians and passed
the senate, but where il was now he did
not know. He knew. however, that the
skirts Of the executive and of the senate
were clear of any attempt to depart one
iota from the assurances given to the
Indians by the commission He. Dawes,
saw the Indian troubles with full APP
prehension of danger and OF the neces-
sity of some present relief to bring
around composure among the Indians
and extricate them from the lead OF such
bad Indians as Sitting Bull and Red
Cloud, who were bane and the curse OF
the tribes.
Mr.. Voorhees, replied to the feeble at
tempt ut sneer" ON the part of Mr. Dawes,
and said the latter knew the situation
just as well as he did for General Miles
had told the pubic the Indians had been
made hostile and preferred TO die fight
ing than to die of starvation. These red
men could enter the field with 6,000
fighting men well armed, and with the
advantage of their knowledge of the
country they could fight 9, 900 of the best
American troops on terms of equality.
He asked the senator from Mass act u
setts to state whether these Indians had
enough to eat: whether Miles was right
or wrong. and whether the Indians were
being starved into belligercncy.
Mr.. Dawes said the great difficulty in
dealing with those 5000 Indians who are
rebellious Is that they have nothing to
eat. They are away from their tepees.
They belong to that class OF Indians
who never did days work in their
lives.
Mr.. Pierce, of North Dakota, said he
had sometimes wondered why the white
peOpla In Nh M rauinn Al id not The selves