The herald., 1897-06-20

mund Carlisle's famous messags to tho
interior department from La Plata
county, Colo: IT your troops don't
come and take care Of these Indians.
will" In that instance the troops came.
In this instance they have come also. but
as usual. after the worst trouble was
over.
The citizens Of Montana have no criti.
cism to make Of the troops. but they do
object to the red tape that shields the
murderers of white men and threatens
with death the settlers when they essay
to protect that which is their own. Nat
urally. the most intense excitement ex-
listed among the settlers here, and still
exists. though in less degree. The In
dams have laughed in the settlers faces,
When threatened with punishment they
have said they would do as they liked,
because, the government would protect
them, and that is precisely what the gov
ernment has done. In the face of the
fact that the men who have been trying
to make this state a peaceful country
have been forced to send their wives and
babies from their homes to places Of
safety, the government authorities for a
long time refused to even attempt to ar.
rest the murderers because they had not
received word from Washington to do so.
The identity of the murderer of Hoover
some people seem to think, is not alto
gether clear and an Indian known as
Badger is said to have been arrested. Az
matter of fact, nothing of the kind has
transpired. The murderer Of Hoover will
not be caught until Little Whirlwind has
been taken into custody That state
ment will stand regardless Of all asser-
tions to the contrary. His arrest il
likely to bring about serious trouble, If
the Indians should really make up their
minds to fight. Just now they are In the
hills, forty miles from the agency. I'm
less induced to leave them and surren-
der. they never can be taken without
loss Of life.
Careful inquiry into the immediate
cause Of the present outbreak shows
that In addition to the warlike senti-
ments which White Bull has sought to
inculcate In his young bucks other
chiefe, old-time ones, too, have sought
to stir up strife by reciting bloody
deeds in their own career. For years
the Cheyennes have given trouble as
soon as the enow melted from the hills
in the spring-time and the grass was
green enough to sustain life in theeir
ponies. Usually the outbreak begins
about April, and since April II, 1890, the
government has maintained a perma-
nent camp at the agency Of the Tongue
river reservation. The permanent camp
Is garrisoned from Fort Custer.
One Of the most potent aids to dis
turbance among the Cheyennes 10 the
medicine man Porcupine. He was the
originator of the Messiah craze and the
ghost dance which took possession Of ths
Indians Of the west in 1890, and culmi-
mated in the Wounded Knee fight. The
influence of Porcupine and White Bull
Is not confined to the Cheyennee alone.
1t Is felt throughout the western tribes
and they have melted most Of the up
risings Of recent years
White Bull is essentially bad Indian.
AS the Indian phraseology puts it, he
has bad heart. He hates the white
man and all that civilization which ac-
companies him. Such a thing as work
he scorns He regards the Indians as
much braver than the white man, and
believes 1t only to be because of force Of
numbers that the Indian has not assert
ed his supremacy. The people Of this
section of Montana believe that the best
solution OF the Indian problem 20 far
as they are concerned, Is to kill White
Bull. The soldiers are willing to do 1t.
In the meantime the government does