The record-union., 1898-04-26
POSSIBLE INDIAN TROUBLES.

POSSIBLE INDIAN TROUBLES.
The humane people who have been so
long. and earnestly engaged in the work
of civilizing the Indians have great rea-
son to deplore the outbreak of war. The
military agents in charge of our Indian
wards have, as a rule, proved highly eff
! give their time and money and energy
to the work of lettering the conditions of
the Indians at first bitterly opposed the
change from civilian to military control,
they have lately admitted that they are
convinced that the change has been ben
efcent and has helped them in their
charitable efforts greatly.
This military supervision will now, it
is feared, be largely withdrawn. Most
| of the army officers have been called to
! the Atlantic Coast, and things in the
Indian sections it is feared win suffer
along all lines. True, it has been given
upon to fill vacancies and State and Ter
ritorial troops be sent to supply the
places of regular soldiers. But these
new men will be without experience in
managing the Indian, and hence the fear
that on the borders conditions will go
from good to bad
! This very much exercises the humane
people They fear that the firm but
] L +I,l
stood and sympathized with the Indians
will be succeeded by incompetency, and
that outbreaks and bloodshed will follow
and the civilizing process come to an
end. They fear also, with good reason,
that the politicians will now take hand
and push themselves and their hirelings
and servitors to the Indian front, and
that the old swindle and starvation sys-
tenn will work into power once more.
The tricksters, it is alleged, have al
ready managed to get a bill before Con-
gress that appears to be an entering
wedge in this direction.
However now that the humanitarians
have called attention to the facts and
pointed out that the cattle men have
evil designs upon the Indians and the
Indian appropriations, there should be
hope that the schemes Of the schemers
will be checkmated. It may not be pos
sible to fill at once and acceptably the
place of Major Camp at Pine Ridge
effectively, or of Major Williams among
10 Of 10 Dol Il in
among the Kiowas and Comanches, or
of Major Woodson among the Chey-
ennes and Arrapahoes. But we should
hope that good and firm men will be
are called away by war; men who will
stand between the traders and the IN
dians as these capable officers of the
army have done so successfully. So
| too, it will be bad for the Omahas and
Winnebagos in Nebraska, if Captain
Mercer is withdrawn. In his case a local
politician is said to be slated for the
place, whose methods will certainly be
bad if the mans usual style of man
aging things is extended to Indian man
agement
Publicity Of the threat to the Indian
service will do much to avert the dam
| age which the Indians friends fear. Let
| them continue to stir up the matter,
| and we apprehend that the Administra-
tion Of President Mckinley will find time
to intervene and provide for continu-
ance of the methods of the military
agents. Perhaps these gentlemen will
not be removed, though it is known that
they are all anxious for service on the
Atlantic side, as is natural War is
| bad enough at its best, but to have it
operate to unsettle the whole line of
policy that has served us so well re-
garding control Of the Indian tribes, will
be an added i'll for which there should
be no excuse.