Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1898-01-15
SOME WISE RED MEN.
INDIANS WHO LOOK OUT FOR THEM
SELVES.

Some Who Own Cattle, Sheep and Farms.
Prosperous Band That "Lves In Hot
Water"-The Whole Business In the
The American Indian has been in
''hot water" ever since the first white
visitor to this country found him living
here 1t has not always been the fault
of the white man that in some localities
where the red men We're formerly very
numerous they have been quite exter-
minated. At times, indeed, they have
been killed without cause and made
slaves without right, as in Mexico and
the West Indies.
We recall that most of the English
settlers of America started out by treat
ing the Indians with fairness, or at least
they did not intend to murder or make
slaves of them, as did the Spaniards of
the southern countries. The pilgrim fa-
theirs paid Massasoit for the land and
corn they took and William Penn made
treaty whereby he acquired large
amount of land. To be sure, the prices
paid were very small and in the light Of
modern times seem quite inadequate,
but that they paid any price at all
when they might have taken it by force
shows that they were moved by a spirit
of fairness
Yet i'll spite of a spirit of friendliness
and mutual forbearance the red men
continued to dwindle and melt away be-
fore the advance of their white brothers.
1t was the inevitable progress of civiliza-
ton before which the Indians could not
exist The mode of living of the aborig-
ines conduced to this end. Now there
was that same Massasoit, who, though
great chieftain, yet lived in wretch
ed hut and subsisted upon the scanty
gleanings of the soil and sea.
Like him lived all his barbarian
brethren i'll the east, along the Atlantic
coast and as far west as the Mississippi
valley. But when the territory i'll which
lie our present states of New Mexico
and Arizona was reached it was found
that some of the Indians were dwelling
i'll permanent villages of stone and mud
houses. These, then, are about the only
ones who have maintained themselves
white mans civilization
After our great government was
founded and we'll established we did all
we could to make amends for the losses
the Indians had suffered at our hands,
and instead of taking from them with
out pay their lands and hunting grounds
we bought them. In certain states there
are settlements of Indians who are Sc
cured i'll the possession of vast tracts of
land and who are making good progress
i'll education and the arts of peace.
There, for instance, are the Cherokees,
who as tribe are far richer than any
equal body of white people in this ooun-
try; who have schools and colleges, i'm
mense and fertile farms, and live hap
PLY and peacefully by themselves. One
OF their number years ago invented a
Cherokee alphabet and their rulers
seem wise and upright.
Those who still persist in leading a
wild and 1oaming life even are looked
upon as the wards of our government
and are protected in their rights so far
as possible. Schools and educational in
stitutions of advanced grade have been
founded for their exclusive use, and all
have been assigned reservations upon
which no white man is allowed to in
trude with the sanction of authority un-
less he has been appointed to care for
the Indians themselves.
These reservations are scattered
throughout the country, particularly in
the west and southwest, and the Indi-
ans now, instead of being permitted to
roam about i'll savagery and Incidence,
are encouraged to till the soil and pro-
vide for their wants. Agents have been
appointed to defend their rights, dona-
tions of tools and agricultural imple-
ments have been made for their use, and
schools have been established at their
very doors, which they are compelled to
attend.
So it will be seen that we have at last
done much to atone for the inevitable