Kingsbury County independent. (DeSmet, Kingsbury County, S.D.) 1894-1929, 1909-07-23
THE TRUTH
ABOUT THE INDIAN
Emerson Hough Describes
Great Movement to Force
the Red Man West.

Drawing a vivid, powerful picture of
the American Indian during the past
century and branding our treatment Oh
him as a national shame, Emerson
Hough i'll Hampton's Magazine for
April, describes the great movement TO
force the red men west of the Mlssiss-
ippi and Missouri and into klahom
In this first attempt ever made by a
popular magazine to tell the truth
about the Indian. the writer says: We
did not want the country beyond the
Missouri eighty or ninety years ago, so
we told the Indian he could have 1t
forever" To make ii plain to him VIC
said thai these lands should belong to
him $50 long as the grass shall grow
and so long as water shall rum The
Indian believed that, put we never
meant II. In our subconsciousness we
intended to take these lands when we
needed them, but there a not yet
come enough stress for and to give
us reason for formulating our covert
thought.
In order to get In hand the savage
hunters of the northwest, Indian Com
missioner Clark called a great council
of the tribes at Prairie du Chen, at
just about the time the Marquis de La
fayette was visiting America. There
were some three thousand Indians at
tllS COuilCn. ICY e CNoN
Of their inability to understand the
idea of putting a limit to a mans
ownership in the surface of the earth.
The idea of a farm to them was as
foreign as the idea of Heaven is to us.
Up to this time the tribesmen a
roamed as they liked. Their horizon had
no limits. The Indian Of old wore no
hat. Clark told them they must now
wear hats, so that they could not see
ha,ypnd fhn 0AoN nf thair nyx-p lundG He
understood one trait Of the Indian ma
ture which few of us today appreciate.
The indian was a child, and a child
who had always had his own way. He
was the original socialist and single
taXer. Indeed in his creed Of life, no
man could own the soil. Two or three
tribes might use the same hunting
ground, but none was adtudged to own
1T, although all might fight for it.
When 1t came to a question of boun-
diaries, no Indian could understand
what a white man meant. "All the
world is ours" proudly aid the savage
chief.
1t was a large task, that of the Red
Headed Chief, to show him that hence
forth each man must have only "a
small part of that land for his own;
or else, with his tribe, occupy only a
certain district from which none might
itii 'ot oto NAAC "a
Prairie du Chen that after this each
tribe must agree to limits for it's hunt
ings grounds. The Sioux must stop
at uch Inc such a river, the Ojibways
thus and so, the Iowas thus. the Sacs
and Foxes this. Or else, said William
Clark, they must consent to move west
of the Missouri, to a vast beautiful
land offered them by the Great Father,
where the white man would never
come The ancient system of tribal
government was not yet assailed. They
were only asked to move from their
Old homes.
Like children. mournfully and pitt
fully logical, the red chiefs rose and
spoke in the council of Prairie du
Chen. One after another said: Il
leave the land of my fathers. ] leave
the graves Of my people. / go to this
land where the white man will never
ONE.
At ST. Louis still later council was
held. and we gave the Indians about
$40, 900 worth Of useless presents, pres
ents such as children or imbeciles
might value. and explained to them
that, since King George was gone for
ever, we would now take care Of them
and would regard them forever as our
children. The Indians swore to remaIn
true to this government and to no
other. They have kept their oatn.