The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1893-10-13
NUMBER 18
CIVILIZING THE INDIANS.

One of the notable events of visitor
at the worlds fair, is the advent of
some four hundred Indian students
from the Carlisle Indian Industrial
school who arrived there during the
first of the week and will spend some
two weeks seeing the sights of the
the great exposition. 1t is safe to say
that nothing during their course at
Carlisle will do more to broaden their
minds, give them idea of the world
in which they live and impress upon
them the advantages of civilization
than their visit at jack
son Park. And this is in no
respect belittling the work done at
Carlisle. 1t has done noble work
and its path is ever broadening.
During the fourteen years Of it's ex-
istence 2.361 pupils Lave been admitt-
ed. 1,4O3 boys and S7S girls, coming
from fifty-nine different tribes. If the
subsequent results of education upon
these students has not been all that
could be desired, it has been more the
fault of the surroundings of the stu
dent after leaving school, than to
Carlisle. The transformation Of the
Indian from the savage state, how
ever, must needs be slow, and even if
many of those who have attended
various schools do drop back into
their old ways upon their return to
! the tribe, as is often alleged, the
effect must be for the better. La his
last report to the Indian Commission
er, Captain r. H. Pratt. superindent
at Carlisle says:
! Marvellous changes have taken
place in the condition of the Indians
in these fourteen years. Twelve
years ago, under orders of your depart
ment, | went to New Mexico after
students from the Pueblo Indians.
The agent accompanied me on my
visits to the several villages, and aid
ed in securing the children. At that
time there Was not one Pueblo Indian
able to read or write in English or
Spanish either,O capable Of assisting
the people to communicate with the
surrounding English-speaking people.
| Now hundreds Of their youth read,
write and speak English fairly we'll,
/ and l receive letters from them daily,
Then there was great opposition to
their ucatiOn, and especially in Eng
lish, on the part Of those who con-
/ trOlled these Indians. Now these
same opponents cidiln 90 be foremost
IN promoting their education and
English-speaking. Then, the princi-
pal of inStructlng the Indian tribes
generally in their own language was
largely adhered to, and the most
violent opposition was made when the
government demanded that only Eng
lish should be taught the Indians in
schools supported by the government.
Now many of those who most earnest
ly opposed this government move are
the StancheSt supper lerS of educating
the Indians in the language of the
country.
To this the Chicago Inter Ocean
adds:
There is really no good reason why
the Indians should not be civilized
and made an integral part Of our ma
tiOnalitY. They are not weak race.
They are amenable to kindness and to
instruction in the ways of cultivated
life. Unfortunately the great work
was delayed until the race had almost
disappeared from the fac of the
earth. Even the friends of the In
dians among the early settlers of the
. continent had inadequate conception
of what could be done for them. The
gentle Spanish bishop, who was their
first friend, could think of nothing
better than the substitution of negro
for Indian slavery, the pious Eliot
made an Indian Bible, when he should
have made grammer, and even Will
liam Penn, while he bought the land
he took and was honest and friendly.
had no conception of the civilization
of the natives. Considering how re-
cent was the beginning of the Indian
civilization the results obtained are
peculiarly satisfactory.