Year: 1876

,
where life consists of dress parade and
mounting guard. We do not want these
soldiers, and they are needed on the Plains.
The order sending the troops from Fort
Hamilton is n wise one, and is the first evil
dence we have seen that our authorities rise
to the dignity of the situation. Let all
the Northern forts be stripped in the
same manner. There is no danger of
the forts running away or of any one taking
them. Let the Southern States be remanded
to local militia and with this force under
the command of o soldier like Sheridan let
us 60 in and settle this Indian question for
ever. The averment that it will cost money
is an insult to our common sense and pa
triotism. 10 be sure it will cost money; but
how much better to pay five or even fifty
millions and end the business than to have
these Indian wars from year to year, drain
ing the Treasury, retarding our progress,
generating corruption and dishonoring our
civilization?


With Sheridan in command, and q good
large army under him, let us then enter
honestly upon the Indian business. We do
not counsel policy of determination or un-
kindness or passion F; we do not counsel re-
venge; nor should we forget that we are dealing
with savages, not Christians and that cruel,
merciless and bloody as they have been, it
is their nature, as ours is justice, humanity
and mercy. But we should be firm. This
war should not end until every Indian in
this Republic is under the military control
of the United States. We must have no
more reservations, no more treaties, no more
presents of guns or powder. We must take
the Indians by force and put them under
direct military control. There are fewer
Indians in our country than there are in
habitants in Brooklyn, and if Brooklyn can
live in the space of few square miles we
can easily carve out section of few thou
sand square miles and there convey all the
tribes. The laws which govern us should
govern them. All the poetry and senti-
upon scalping another two or three
executions would settle it. The bravest
young warrior would think twice about
going on the warpath against other warriors if
he knew that the possession of scalp would
insure verdict of murder and his execu-
ton. The simplest way is the best in the
long run, although it may be expensive and
troublesome now. The Indian, no doubt,
has been wronged. No doubt the crimes
against him will always blacken our history.
But we do not propose to wrong him now.
We only say that he must come under our
laws or fall before our laws. We have con-
doned Indian independence long enough.
We have wreathed cruelty, butchery, inhu-
manity, assassination with flowers of senti-
ment too long The poor, simple, trusting,
INGENIOUS honest Indian who wcBhips the
Great Spirit and yearns for the happy hunt
ing grounds is dream, and in his place we
have a savage, pitiless, brave, unpausing
monster, whose JOY is massacre and whose
present life is a libel upon Christianity
and civilization. Now, when the country
mourns the inhuman destruction of Custer
and his command; now, when we see the
whole Indian strength rising against us and
giving every hour its new tale Of murder
and crime; now, when our settlements are
abandoned by panic-stricken settlers-now
is the time to end this question, and forever.
The way to do it is to give Lieutenant
General Sheridan the whole army-twenty,
thirty, fifty thousand men--and bid him 90
out and make war and not return until he
has secured peace which can never be
broken.