Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1890-12-16
SITUATION OF THE INDIAS
QUESTION

come familiar with them. In con
sidering the subject, the naked fact
Of the affair should be scanned
Livery Christian should take int,
account the cause Of the initial at
tack upon the old chief. So far n
can be learned It was simniy this
, The noted red man believed i'm
p plicitly that that same Christ who
, was crccifici at Jerusalem nearly
; nineteen hundred years ago was
shout TO become the deliverero Of the
Indians, and restore then, 10 the
ownership Of the lsnds in this coun.
try. In tie attainment of this oh.
soct this sanie Christ was, a;
. no distant day, to destroy the white
/ people. Associated with this belief
there existed species OF peculiar
ceremony, in which dancing was
the chief feature. While engaged
in this rite some OF the participants
would fall into frances, on recover
ing from which they would tell Of
having seen the Messiah and num-
beers Of their friends who had been
dead FOR 4 Iens time. Connected
with tho Messianic belief, il is also
held, by those who accept it, that
the dead Inuians are son 20 be
raised to life and, vito these in The
flesh, enjoy pessco and plenty on the
lands restored TO them. All this
SEEMS TO DO nothing more than the
crude ideas ola savage people of the
Christian Messiah, the doctrine Of
the resurrection from the dead, and
the mil!ennial reign spoken of by all
the prophets.
Il has nowhere appeared that the
lndians We're TO undertake the per
sOnai labor Of establishing them
selves in possession OF the lands.
The new belief inculcates the idea
that the Messiah was to attend to ali
that business himself. 1t looks very
ianeh Us If good many Whit
people had an idea the. there was
something in what Is popularity
called Che messiah craze, Else
why should there be SO much
anxiety to crush it
fhequestion Of the honesty OF the
Indians in entertaining the Mes
sianic belief is one worthy OF con-
sideration. Sitting Bull gave evi. |
dence Of the genuine character
OF his confidence in it. This l
was indicated by his propo-
sitI"n to Agent Mclaughlin
who visited the chief at his clmp
anu stayed there over night without
any idea Of moiestation Of his per-
son existing Sitting Bull made a
deposition, which is, in the dis
patches, being secuted as a wild and
WHY scheme, In a nutshell. it was
this; That the agent ani the Old
chief should make a tour Of the
Tribes from Ons 10 another, and in
Vestlgaie the Messiah doctrine, until
they reached those with whom il
originated. Ii the latter failed To-
produce the tangible proofs Of the
CORRECTNESS @! their statements. then
sitting Bun would throw up MS
views and cease the dances. This
proposal was as straight as any
ming could lie. Ii WAS founI-
u On reason, indicating that the
nan who made it was open !
o conviction on the basis Of evi- 7
fence Ii there had been a genu- ]
ne desire TO settle the question
'eaceaoiy on the part Of thos.. 10 r.
'hom II was made, We see no .ea- u
On why the course pointed out by :
should not have been pursued. i
Instead Of taking this sensible !
letnod, and thus bringing the logic a
iccts TO bear upon the chief, il n
as evidently decided to take a I
lore direct and decidedly bar. :,
irous mode OF disPosing OF II
itting Bull. 4 posse of Inii,, :
dice, dispatched to his camy for a
ie purpose, pounced upon and n
rrest'-i him. II this action was d
OF tlsea 10 order to precipita.e a n
conflict anu consummata r
agedy in which Sitting Bail al
iould be one ii tire vic. a
ns, it is difficult to Imagine a h'
,fis oOsTcHta that would have CO
ore eGectually attained that object - -
cours. the cavalry We're close by. 10
that when the police were getting
e worst Of the fgnt involved in N
/ attempted rescue led by the son IN
the chief-a child OF twelve pe
as Of age-they couli step in ami IA,
up the job by putting in the fin =.
ing touches OF the tragedy. on
1 appears that, through the me. ut
Im Of the telegraph, the Indirn. Jdl
ongins 10 Sitting Bulls band ar. lh'
lily of another grave of!eus-- 49,, =
ley have abInloned their fam. !
: and are now heading for Ia
Bad Lanls." This. in the
1t Of a statement which fol- nm
:, to the effect that ..the hai
Iiers are in hot pursuit. reads inii
grim and senseless joke. The enc
alton makes the fact appear that tina
poor savages We're escaping 70 and
their lives. Ii seemed to be a per.
ce as TO whether they should d
ldon their families anu 20 to th. tha,
lanIs, or re main aud abandon Ter.
families by being summarily zeal
to the spirit world. By going to u
M lands they had at any rate, a NJ
OF preventing for short season be r,
east their wives from being repo
widows and their chi!Iren ~
rless. aN a
&c - Sfe1t danger that the this
iiniry incident referred 20 estat
lead to a bloody war. Those Sir
mr.. flo, g -, | un,
les driven TO desoer,tiop .xt,.,
may resolve to sell their lives aud d
lrly as possible. and thus a., p0siti
to-, s,,..co,.,,, lies v
""o''ei' uiany gress.
; Of bloOdshed may he enacted. line Z
the c
trnr.a