Cañon City record., 1898-05-05
INDIANS PASSING AWAY.
Tribal Relations VIII Soon Be En-
tirely Severed.
An Illinois Statesman and an Indian
Doctor Discuss the Situation
Both Favor the Disints-
grafton of Tribes.

Congressman Cannon, of Danville, in
his speech before congress On the In
dian appropriation bill, recently
prophesied the extinction of the In
dian race within SO years. DR.. Carlos
Montezuma, of Chicago, who is full
blooded Apache, agrees with the Hi
nois representative in the proposition
and expresses the belief that four or
five decades hence the Indian question
will have found its own -o.uiion. The
Indian is i-. &, re susceT q civiliz-
ing influences than the a. fian race.
DR.. MonteZ as belle, e that there
will be cl:- PaFa..vr i amalga-
nation Of tie IlGiSL with the
whites. L ,-i4 lie ten
years ago is ~srs,-:ic= II coded
Indians far eXreodeG th lreeds,
those who lave mis- = E.aud l-v great
ly ou'-a-.l.r those whn hcast full
blood.
Mr.. C-zaa in his 5 sc,, advocat-
ed ths ,-t----ilg g up of 49, -,'stions
and a.; belief th.a .eg as
India VS. 10 ex-
ist as ~, eunizcd tn, would
not pr lIs cons re sys-
TEN pa- l.l' resu; les. Gated
som .e4 by which ak L In
diar -, b assigned !. j.. tract
of land j. ralty. IL a.. IL ese con-
tentions DR.. Montezuma indorses the
stand taken by the Illinois congress
man, and he agrees with him fully in
the further statement that education is
lost upon the young Indians who are
returned to their tribes.
Mr.. Cannon says: They drop back
to the condition of the tribe from which
they came. They do not lift the tribe
up; the tribe pulls them down" DR..
Montezuma says this is unfortunately
true. The returned student is the sub
ject of suspicion ard riG,Cu,e. and the
Indian is as sensitive to II the highest
race on earth. II Tie iI.:ICh cf Chris
tianity over the westerG world, DR..
Montezeuma points out, the conversion
of every nation-Saxon, Celtic, Goth
and Norman-was effected by teachers
from strange lands. So il is with the
Indians. The educated Indian cannot
return to his tribe and be teacher, for
they will not accept him as such. DIR.
Montezuma's conclusion is that the
best place for the educated Indian is in
the east, apart from kin, and that the
this slow but sure bringing into civiliza-
ton of individual members of the dy
ing races.
But DR.. Montezuma takes issue with
Mr.. Cannon at the point where the lat
ter attacks the Carlisle school and the
lesser institutions established by the
government for educating the aborie-
ines. The Carlisle school, he says,
has done more good in proportion to its
sphere than any other educational in
stitution in the United States. The wis
dom of the methods adopted by its
founders has been proved by decades of
experience. The basic idea of the Car
Isle institution was the removal of the
pupil from every association and sur
rounding of his barbarian life. II took
him from the wilds of the forest and
placed him in the midst of civilization.
In that respect ii far excelled the reser-
vation schoolhouse. whose work was
hampered by the conflict between its
aims and the barbaric tendencies and
associations of the pupil. However, DR..
Montezuma was ready to agree, the
good results of five or more years train
ing at Carlisle would count for naugft
if no better future than return to his
tribe opened to the pupil.
Yes" said DIR. Montezuma, "let the
tribal relations be forever severed, let
the Indians lose their identity as peo-
pie, and let them become pant, instead
of ward, of this great nation. Why"
he continued. laughingly, some of the
best families of Chicago are proud Of
their descent from Pocahontas. Per-
hon IN drnd hau LINZ
age from Spotted Tail or 'Little-Man-
Afraid-of-H viii be the boast
of some of our first citizens"
DIR. Montezuma was born IN Arizona
and was captured from his tribe by the
Pumas when five years old. The cap
tors sold him for $50 to Mr.. Gentle, OF
Chicago, and he was reared in this
city, attending the public schools, fin
ishing at the state university and later
acquiring his technical training in Chi
cago Medical college. The civilization
of his people is his highest wish.-Cbi-
capo Post