New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1890-04-13

bers it was idle TO expect justice upon wrong
doors. In effect there for time no law,
and the very dcspcratcness OF the SITUATION
alone brought about remedy II was no longer
safe to transport treasure or valuable goods OF
any kind The stage-coaches were regularly
held up" and as often as not road agents
would be sworn officers of the law AT last the
merchants and business men whose own apathy
and remissness counted for much in the evolution
Of this state Of things, finding that the condition
generally was going from bad to worse and that
the lawless element growing holder every
day, had recourse to the now familiar remedy of
Vigilance Committees Mr. Bancroft has treated
these organizations at considerable length in his
interesting work on Popular Tribunals" but
nothing like full account Of the Idaho and
Montana Vigilance Committees has yet been
written In those Territories the criminals had
perfected their organization. They We're anll-
ated in secret societies They had their pass
words grips and signals. They even adopted q
peculiar cut of the beard a mark Of oflliation
Their spies were everywhere, and especially in and
about the express Offices. Swift and early notice
Of every important shipment of treasure was in
this way conveyed to the road agents, who
laid their plans accordingly. Nor was the or
ganization confined to men who bore outward
token OF being the despcradocs they were Not
a few of the leaders appeared 10 be business men
and merchants Many well educated and
seemed wholly respectable. 1t was only when
notorious robber was taken. and list Of all the
band was found upon him. that the ramiilca-
tons OF the plot were understood.
1t became necessary to fight this formidable or
ganization with equal craft and surprising energy.
The Vigilance Committees accordingly threw out
their pickets, too; established their spies in the
camp Of the enemy and whenever sufficient evil
dence to convict was obtained, pounced with sud
den spring upon the malefactors. and in few
minutes hanged them. 1t war without
mercy on the part of the representatives of civ
ilization. but it was the only kind of campaign
that could have succeeded When Plummer and.
Ives, the most astute. subtle and daring OF the
brigands. were seized and swung up, the organ
izaton fell to pieces, and the survivors began 10
look out each for himself The pursuit did not
halt, however. Individual criminals were fol-
lowed, arrested and executed with terrifying
swiftncss and unexpcctcdncss. The Vigilance
Committees indeed, did not succeed in suppress
ing another class OF thieves. whose presence and
immunity indicated q peculiarly low moral CON
dition in the body polite. These Were official
REGULATORS and defaulters. For time il seemed
that no nan charged with pccuninry trusts could
lie conilded in. One after another the guardians
Of the public funds pundercd their deposits and
fed. Even the executive office was not always
free from the faint of this form OF fraud. The
Territorial Legislatures, too appeared eager only
to squander the peoples money. while the county
governments piled up debts with reckless rapid
ity, and despite the magnitude Of their resources
and the high standard 81 prosperity. the people
shrank from paying taxes 1t must he said that
mi Of lic cnidamip If etl,ipa1 1aNity rod
under Democratic auspices. Whether or not the
facts bore the relation OF cause and effect might
prove an interesting and perhaps a profitable
study II is also 20 he observed that where thc
moral tone was lowest strong dsunion scn'i-
mcnt prevailed, and that this and tie Democracy
Of the period were nearly inscparabc.
The Indian wars toward thc close Of the period
in which they prevailed. that is. about twenty
Years ago. came to be complicated and rendered
more difficult to handle by the recurrence OF fresh
governmental experiments in dealing with the
Indian problem generally. II is probable that
the practice OF selling arms ard ammunition 70
hostile Indians always carried on. more or less
secIetly. by greedy and interruptions traders. but
il nay be doubted whether this evil ever attained
the dimensions it reached during tho trial OF the
peace commissioncrships. when, rs related by Mr..
Bancroft in this volume. the assembling of the
Indians for council and trcaty-makirg was rcgu-
arly made the occasion for sort OF fir III which
peltries were bar,ercd for powder and guEs At
one of these councils 10 less than two tons OF
ammunition was thus handed 70 the Indians, who
at once went upon the warpath. Another time
the Commissioners themselves presented tic In
dams with llcg Of powder and balls, and The
grateful savaecs promptly went for tie donors
and drove them out of camp with vollcys Of thor
L.. ,l..I, Il.
n. canpaigns against Sitting Bull that the Sioux
had better rifles than the United States troops, and
once an ammunition train on It's WAY 10 the hosilcs
was ovcrhaulcd but the troops were not permitted
10 connscatc it. and IT may very possibly have
furnished the ammunition with which Custer an!
his command were Shot down on the Lt'lc Biz
Horn. OF that fatal engagement Mr. Bancroft
gives very extended account, and also OF the
operations Of the military throu. hout eastern Mon
tana. where the lighting was most serious and
uersistcnt and where it cost most to tie army.
In nearly every instance tie Governments lack
Of foresight was largely accountable for thcsc
wars II tried 10 DO Justice 10 The Indians know
ing all the time that IL lacked the power 70
sustain its own contracts. IL cond not protect
the Indians against the invasion Of their reSerVa-
tons, and considering the reckless latitude elio"cd
TO those reservations, II ought never to nave
undertaken TO do So 4 firmer and Steiner attitude
at the beginning would have saved much blood
and treasure and national credit IL WIS In
cvitable that the Indians must give way before
advancing settlement and cultivation, and TINS
should have been realized at the outset AS It
was great waste Of life and property resulted from
an Improbable policy, ana dcVel"pmcht was
hndcrcd and made ncedlcssly difficult. But. as
Mr. Bancrofts pages fully show, no obstacles nor
bundcrs could for any length OF time stay the
progress Of these indomitablc young States. Their
natural resources magnificent, the enterprise
and energy Of their people superb, and despite
everything they advanced by leaps and bounds
Perhaps the shadows Of the rebellion did more
harm, at least to IDAHO and Montana. than the
Indian wars, for the dsunion sentiment pene-
traied and colored politics, and thus affected thc
attitude Of the Territories toward the Federal
Government. Many quarrels with Congress re-
c,l,od and como wild and foolish attempts To