Morning journal and courier., 1890-07-25
THE FIPrx.rIRsr CONGRESS.

The Indian ApProprfasion Passed In
she senate-A Number OF Amen dments
Added-PassaEe by the House Of she
Bankruptcy Bill-The TarfE Bill
Laid Before the Senate as the UnAn.
ished Business.
WASHINGTON, D. c., July 24.-Ar. Nor
gan introduced bill to fx the limit of value
and to provide for the free coinage of silver,
and IL was read and referred to the COM
mittee on finance. It recites that the mar
ket value of silver bullion is rapidly sp-
preaching the value of gold on the standard
relation fixed by the laws of the United
States, and that there is no provision of law
for the coinage of standard silver dollars or
the purchase of silver bullion by the gov
eminent when the value of silver bullion ex-
ceeds one dollar for 371N grains of pure all
yer. It therefore provides that the unit of
value in the United States shall be the dol
lar of 612k grains of standard silver, or
258 10 grains of gold; that those coins shall
be legal tender for all debts, public and pri-
vate, and that any owner of silver or gold
bullion may deposit 1t at any mint to be
formed into dollars or bars for his benefit,
and without charge. He called the special
attention of the finance committee to the bill,
which he said was the same as had already
received q majority OF seventeen in the
senate.
The senate resumed consideration of the
Indian appropriation bill, the pending ques-
ton being upon the insertion of an item of
SO, 900 for, the prosecution of q suit in
North Carolina to enforce certain rights Of
the Cherokee Indians in that state.
Mr.. Dawes, after consultation with Mr..
Ransom, modified the amendment go as
merely to appropriate $1,000 to pay the
legal expenses already incurred in tine suit,
and it was agreed to.
The next amendment to provoke discuss
sion was one increasing an appropriation of
800, 600 for the support of Indian schools
to $3.50, 600, including the construction of a
school building at the Blaokfeet agency,
Montana.
Mr. Vest opposed the amendment as the
introduction of q system intended to abolish
denominational education among the Indians.
After remarks by Messrs. Davis, Teller,
Jones of Arkansas, Dawes. Blair and Mitchell
the amendment was agreed to.
The next amendments to provoke discus
sion were to strike two items, one for Sc, $50
for the support and education of sixty Indian
pupils at st. Joseph's normal school at Rens-
selaer, Ind, and one of $12, 500 for 100 In
dian children at the Holy Family Indian
school at Blackfoot agency, Montana.
Mr.. Dawes stated the reasons why the com
mittee had recommended these amendments
The committee desired, he said, not to GO
any further than the present condition of
affairs In appropriating government money
for the maintenance of schools of particular
religious denominations. If the amend
ments were adopted the existing state of
things In that particular would be precisely
what it was last year. Every contract with
the various denominations had been renewed
on the old terms except as to one school and
the reason why the contract with that school
was not renewed was because it had taken
pay for sixty students while it had only
forty.
Mr.. Davis inquired to what denomination
that school belonged.
Mr. Dawes said he had abstained from
making that inquiry. he did not desirs to
know to what denomination it belonged.
At o'clock the tariff bill came up as un-
finished business and was laid aside until to-
morrow.
Mr.. Dawes went on to speak of the rela-
lively large appropriations made for Catholic
schools, the amount for 1889 being 1855 900
as against s2O4, 600 for schools of all other
denominations. When the present mansge-
ment of the Indian bureau had come into
power, 1t had encountered public sentiment
in reference to that great discrepancy which
had come near precipitating very angry
aud Improbable and unfortunate discussion
| OF the great question WQetn6T the
government should be connected with psro-
| chial schools ct all. The present Indian
bureau Was in favor of dlvorcing the govern
ment absolutely from them al, bat had found
| it impossible to do so. In order to avoid
| such discussion the policy had eeea sdopt-
ed of maintaining the condition OF things
precisely As it was, but of not eularging the
connection of the government with deuomi-
national schools.
M n.
went on to say) had shrunk from doing any
| thing that might awaken a religious discus
| sion on the subject of Indian schools. L,
| could do nobody any good. That was the
reason why the committee had recommended
| the striking out of the two items for public
schools in Indiana and Montana.
Mr.. Teller asked Mr.. Dawes whether he
knew of any other religious denomination
| that would undertake those schools.
Mr.. Dawes replied in the negative. adding
| that he was not trying to struggle In favor OF
| any Protestant church.
Mr. Reagan declared himself opposed to
| any connection between church and state
and to all denominstional schools. He would
| have all the Indian schools carried on under
the control of the United States government
| As to the argument that the work could bt
done cheaper and better by religious demon
| iuation, he said that IL that argument were
to prevail it would apply equally as well &c
| the common schools of the country. That
was an admission that ought not to be
made.
| Mr.. Davis declared that he had no patience
with sectarisn talk in relation to Indian
schools. The government was not making
/ itself a party to sectarian denominations. i,
| was a matter of business, and business of q
| very serious character.
The Indian children who were wards of the
nation and If the government chose to edu
cate them in Catholic schools, Methodist
schools or Baptist schools it had a right &c
do 30. The government had q right to TAXI
advantage of the facilities which the pioneeri
of Christianity offered to it. As to the con
nection between church and state Mr.. Davi
said that from the beginning of time 1t wal
only when the influences of time had beer
brought to bear on the minds of the indians
that they had made the least step TOWARD
civilization. When he saw a man STOPPING
down to raise up that degraded race it die
not matter to him Mr.. Dsvis) whether tina
man wore the surplics of the Catholic priest
hood or the simpler garb of the Prstestan
| minister.
Mr.. George endorsed fully the position
taken by Mr.. Reagan in opposition to an,
scheme by which the money of the peopl
of the United States would be appropriated
to any particular denomination for the pur
pose of civilization and Christianizing In
dams.
Mr.. Call as q member of the committe
on appropriations declared himself oppose
to striking out the two items for India
schools in Indiana aud Montana. He re
garded church organizations as the Yer
, | life of free institutions. All religions wei
great agencies of civilization and improv,
ment and the Indians were not going to
hurt whether they were educated by Catht
lios, Episcopalians, Presbyterisns or Friend
. The movement was, he said, blow at tt
: Catholic church and had originated in
. prejudice 1t was war by the governmeI
= against the Roman church and as such he vi
] opposed to it.
y Mr.. Jones of Arkansas argued that the Il
= dams should be allowed to select the schoo
q to which their children should be sent ar
Q If they choose to send them to denomin
8 tional schools the government should 90
f tribute to their support.
e Mr.. Turpie argued against striking o.
: the item for the school in Indiana aad n
It Power against striking out the item f
Montana.
/. Finally the vote was taken and q
amendments were rejected-yeas 10, nays
Is So the items for Rensselaer,, Ind, Bsnnin
- Cal. and Blackfest agency, Mont. ARE retain
Z in the bill.
10 There being no further amendments 7
g ported by the committee on appropriate
D, the reading of the bill was continued to
y close without any discussion or interruptio
t. Mr.. Pettigrew offered an amendment q
propriating $40, 900 for the Santee tribe