The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-08-05
THE STORY OF A CRIME
How the United States Government Despo1ed the
 Gerokees of Their Lands.
By savoyar.l.

By Savoyard.
 All our hearts have bled, all our eyes have wept. as we heard the story of Evangeline. as related by Longfel- low. It Is the old story of the ages mans contempt for Justice. The Ro- mans practiced 1t in Judea and wher- ever the Roman eagles penetrated It was the policy of Spain in the old It wherever she planted her flag in either Ind. It is the simplest policy in the world--the tyranny the strong. vis- zation is guided by DO other lamp. than the survival of the fittest. Naboth has vineyard, hard by the palace Of Ahab. Naboth is Jezreelite, and Ahab is King of Samaria, Ahab covets Naboth' s land. and being the stronger, he pos sesses 1t.
 The story of the Cherokee tribe of American Indians Is one of the most cades of the last century they owned the soil and inhabited region several times the area of the State of Indiana. that was Included in parts of North Carolina, Tennessee, and Georgia. How long they had been there, God knows. That they had there run the race. set before them centuries before the birth of Columbus Is certain. That they were happy there, after the fashion of their standards. before the Babylonish cdpIlNfIY. we cdn well HndkIut- Due soon after the nineteenth century mad put in motion its car in the grand chariot race of destiny, thing that we boast as Christian civilization found 1t necessary to rob these folks of their heritance It was simple thing to do treaties were entered up, trades be- twene guardian and ward. disputes be- tween guardian an dward. disputes be- by 1890 the Cherokees had left less than s,000.000 acres, when they had held dominion over many times that area.
 They had a government and consti- tution: they had a civilization and a press: they had language and legis- lature: they had churches dedicated to chrst ,snS snS Sss tspes 9T they had ceased to follow the chase as the chief mission of their tribe and had engaged in agrlculture. horticulture, treaty pledge of the United States all lowing them civilized pursuit of hap piness. They had the guarantee and the protection of the government of the United tastes, its army and its navy:
 But the white men of Georgia resolv- ed to possess Georgia regardless or the natural and treaty rights of the red men, just as this generation of white men down there are resolved that the black man shall not be a partner in their civilization except the whfteman s table. We saw the same thing in New England when some very Christian folks had a misunderstanding with a certain King Philip and his Pequoids. Georgia determined to abolish the the Cherokee lands. The issue was then presented to the Federal govern ment, and that issue was this: Shall we compel Georgia to be honest or shall we take the Indians and send them across the Mississippi?
 It was agreed to rob the Cherokees rather than to fight Georgia. As pre- liminary. the Georgia Legislature en- acted laws to oppress the Indians, who could not testify in the courts; their ministers of God were forbidden to preach, and many other petty tyranniss The constitutionality of these statutes was tested in the Supreme Court Of the United States, and when that tribunal held them void, President Jackson re- marked: John Marshall has rendered his opinion: now let him enforce 1t. Whether Old Hickory said that or not, it is certain that he acted on that carry out the judgment of the court Georgia proceeded to hold 1t in con- tempt, and the governor of that State notified the authorities of the United States that he would execute the laws of Georgia, that Marshall had declared void, by military force if necessary. This was not nullification of Federal statute, as Calhoun advised; but 1t was defiance of the edict of the Supreme bench of the Federal establishment, just as grave a challenge of Federal authority.
 It was now up to President Jackson to fight Georgia or persuade" the Cherokees. He chose the latter alter native and selected as -his agent for if he had raked the country with g fine -toothed comb he could not have got a better instrument for eovin and fraud and all sorts of rascality. Jack nnf Int fn aan fhaY1 he instructed Schermerhorn to deal fair ly with them. A minister of the Cos pei, Schermerhorn was supposed to have conscience and to have some con- meum ct tuum, but he was utterly with out principle-that has been ascertain ed by an adjudication of the United States Supreme bench.
 Schermerhorn went among the Chero- kees In 1895 and drew up treaty that the tribe unanimously rejected in heard of what was going on and stern ly admonlshed his agent that he must be just, but Schermerhorn refused to l fraudulent ratification of his treaty | by intimidation and bribery. He issued 1 call for a convention of the tribe though the Cherokee polity was the ernment. The tribe held aloof; but Of the 10000 Cherokees he got togeth- CT some 300 men, women, and children To these he made presents and threats They had no authorit yto bind theiI people, but the willy preacher succeed. ed in cheating twenty Indisns. then and | there assembled, into signing his ras, calty treaty. How many of us gooo folks Caucasians, Christians, could stand the test and resist bribery in that way-of 20, 900 only 20 unfaitful!
 By this treaty Schermerhorn acqutr- ed for the United all the lands of the Cherokees in Georgia. Alabanla, Ten nessee, and North Carolina. embracing farms, houses, villages, orchards