Evening star., 1934-06-24

From a Drawing in Lesle's illustrated Newspaper.
prominent. Others sought the limelight, as in
every walk of life
If Custer was ambitious, he was also honest
a fighter not a politician; and So when he
found incompetent and unworthy men serving
as Indian agents for the Government, he did
not hesitate to. insist upon their removal.
When he ordered to Washington to testify
before Congress in the Belknap scandal, though
he did so reluctantly, he gave his honest opin-
ions, but for them he was displaced from the
command of the Eastern column, "then,"
has been said, in process of organization, at
Fort Lincoln, and forbidden, by order of the
President, to follow the troops on the march.
Gen. Terry was placed IN command of the
expedition" are further told, but afterward,
in response to the earnest entreaties Of Custer
to be spared the humiliation of seeing the
troops march without him, the Presidents
order was so far modified as to permit him to
go with the expedition. in command of the
7th Cavalry"
4 lANY reasons have been assigned for the
iNi bringing on of this particular uprising
and massacre and perhaps all are more or
less true Broken or unfufilled pledges upon
the part of the Government certainly a
contributing factor. and specifically the break
ing of the provisions of the treaty of 1862
when the rights of the Indians were deemed
of minor importance in the extension OF the
Northern Pacific Railroad westward from the
Missouri River in Dakota to the interior of
Montana, west of the Yellowstone River. The
failure to provide food, blankets and other sup
plies as promised helped to agitate the already
restless Indians and send them on the warpath.
Naturally, politics had much to do with
keeping the Indians continually stirred up; but
undoubtedly back of all was the underlying
principle which seems not confined to any
particular people-that might is right! From
the first permanent settlement of this country
at jamestown, nearly 327 years ago there have
been Indian uprisings and when the savages
were not massacring the whites, the latter were
annihilating the red men, and after all, how
ever sympathetic We may feel over the matter.
so far as the American Indian was concerned.
it was largely and ultimately question of
the thwarting of progress or Of the survival
Of the f1ttest, and the latter Won out, just
as 1t has always done, but not without paying
dearly for every foot of land taken from Poor
Lo" Some one has said that q good Indian is
a dead one which is certainly heartless way
to look at it, and unless qualify the state
ment with a great number Of exceptions we
make a grievous error, for the paleface has
had many redskin friends.
THE news of the great Custer massacre did
! not reach Washington until IL days after
its occurrence and then the account as pub
lished in The Star was q meager one, though
as full as the known facts would then permit.
It came through special correspondent Of the
Helena (Montana) Herald from Saltwater.
Mont, and said:
"Muggins Taylor a scout for Gen. Gibbon,
got here last night direct from Little Horn
River Gen. Custer found the Indian camp OF
IS lodges on the Little Horn, and Immediately
attacked the camp. Custer took five COM
panies and charged the thickest portion OF
the camp. Nothing is known Of the operations
of this detachment, only as they trace 1t by
the dead. Maj. Reno commanded the seven
other companies and attacked the lower por-
ton of the camp. The Indians poured in o
murderous fire from all directions, and besides,
the greater portion fought horseback.