The Bolivar bulletin. (Bolivar, Tenn.) 1888-1946, 1896-10-02

/ Two udJlOuS say Il guess we nd0 DSA-
ten leave the whole matter to COM
mission" The commission is appoint
ed, and the commission examines the
affair, and the commission reports,
and pay we ought, pay we must, pay
we do. Not pound of powder burned.
no one hurt so much as by the scratch
of pin. Arbitration instead of bat
tie.
So the Samoan controversy in any
other age would have brought Ger
many and the United States into
bloody collision. But all is settled.
Arbitration instead of battle.
France will never again, l think,
through the pcccadillo of an ambassa-
dor, bring on a battle with other ma
! tions. She sees that God, in punish
ment at Sedan, blotted out the French
empire, and the only aspirant for that
throne who had any right of expecta-
ton dies in war that has not even
the dignity of Eeing respectable.
What is the leaf that England would
like to tear out of her history? The
! Zulu war. Down with the sword and
up with the treaty.
We in this country might better have
settled our sectional DIFFICULTIES by ar
bitration than by the trial of the
sword. Philanthropy said to the
north: PAY dow a certain amount of
money for the purchase of the slaves,
and let all those born after a certain
! time be born free" Philanthropy at
the same time said to the south: You
sell the slaves. and get rid of this great
national contest and trouble" The
north replied: Il won't pay a cent. :"
The south replied: II won't sell. :"
War! War! A million dead men, and
national del which might have ground
this nation to powder. Why did we
not let William II. Seward. of New
York, and Alexander ii. Stephens, of
Georgia, 60 out and spend few days
under the trees on the banks of the
Potomac and talk the matter over and
settle it, as settle it they could, rather
than the north pay in cost of war
81, 700, 600, 900, and the south pay 81, 75O,
100000, the destroying angel leaving
the frst-born dead in so many houses
all the way from Penobscot to the Ala
bama. Ye aged men whose sons fell in
the strife, do you not think that would
have been better? Oh, yes! we have
come to believe, think, in this coun-
try, that arbitration is better than
battle.
l may be mistaken, but l hope that
the last war between Christian nations
is ended. Barbarians may mix their
war-paint, and Chinese and Japanese
go into wholesale massacres, and AT
CHAN and Zulu hurl poisoned arrows,
but l think Christian nations have
gradually learned that war is disaster
to victor as we'll as to vanquished, and
that almost anything bought by blood
is bought at too dear price. wish
to God this nation might be model
of willingness for arbitration. No
need of killing another Indian. No
need of sacrificing any more brave
Gen. Clusters. Stop exasperating the
red man and there will be no more
arrows shot out from the ambush
ments.
A general of the United States army
in high repute throughout this land,
and who, perhaps, had been in more
Indian wars than any other officer,
and who had been wounded again and
again in behalf of our government in
battle against the Indians, told me
that all the wars that had ever oc-
Cured between Indians and white men
had been provoked by white men, and
there was no exception to the rule
While we are arbitrating with Chris
tian nations, let us toward barbarians
carry ourselves in manner Improve
cative of contest.
Let me put myself in their place: /
inherit a large estate, and the waters
are rich with fish, and the woods are
songful with birds, and my corn fields
are silken and golden. Here is my
sisters grave. Out yonder, under the
large tree, my father died. An in
vader comes, and proposes to drive me
off and take possession of my property.
lie crowds me back, he crowds me on,
and crowds me into a closer corner,
until after awhile say: "Stand back;
don't crowd me any more or I'll strike.
What right have you to come
here and drive me off my prem
ises? l got this farm from my father
and Ire got it from his father. What
right have you to come here and
modest me?" You blandly say: "Oh, L
know more than you do. l belong to
a higher civilization. 1 cut my hair
shorter than you do. l could put this
ground to great deal better use than
you do" And you keep crowding me
back and crowding me on into closer
corner and closer corner, until one day
l look around upon my suffering fam
lily, and, fired by their hardships,
hew YOU in twain. Forthwith all the
world comes to yeur funeral to
pronounce eulogium, comes to my
execution to anathematize me. You
are the hero, / am the culprit. Be- !
hold the United States government |
and the North American Indian. The !
red man has stood more wrongs than |
1 would, or you. We would have |
struck sooner, deeper. That which is |
right in defense of a Washington home !
is right in defense of home on top of |
the Sierra Nevadas. Before this dwin-
ding red race dies completely out, | !
wish that this generation might by |
comIaon justice atone for the inhu- |
mainly of its predecessors. In the /
day of Gods judgment l would !
rather be bloOd-smeared Modoc |
than Swindling United States officer
on an Indian reservation! One was a /
barbarian and a savage, and never |
pretended to be anything but bar |
barian and a savage The other pre-
tended to be a representative of a
Christian nation. Notwithstanding |
all this, the general disgust with war
and the substitution of diplomatic /
skill for the glittering edge of keen /
steel Il a sign unmistakable that 1.-The |
day is at hand.