Year: 1872

laid down by the treaty make the business Of
the contesting parties and of the Tribunal
plain sailing. And yet though we may
obtain it earlier, it is probable that we shall
not secure Judgment from the Tribunal
before Christmas.


The Indian Troubles-shnH We Adopt


sheridan's Curcs


The constant recurrence of Indian raids ON
our frontiers, attended with murder and IA
pine, shows clearly that serious defect exists
somewhere in the policy pursued towards the
squald savage whom, with poetic license, We
dub ''the noble red man." Philanthropists
few years ago became alarmed lest the privi-
legged murderers Of the Western prairies should
become extinct under the too rigorous applica-
ton of border justice. It appeared right
enough to the eyes of this class that white
man should be punished whenever he was
guilty of a crime, but in the case of the red
man the case was held to be widely different.
With Christian forbearance which would
have been, Christianly speaking, above all
praise had its enunciators not been at safe
distance, the authors Of the peace policy re-
fused to apply the savage, but eminently
human, law of San eye for an eye" in the case
Of poor Lo. The noble savage, instead Of
being hanged or shot in a summary manner
when found guilty of having murdered mere
unromantic Industrious settler, was to
be invited to long powwow, talked
to at length by ''friend," and, having been
furnished with new scalping knife and
blanket, dismissed with the advice to go and
sin no more. This system is found to be very
popular among the braves, who perceive that
not alone may they enjoy the pleasure of scalp
ing the peaceful inhabitants of the borders,
but that the United States government stands
ready to reward them with blankets and rum.
The more white scalps chief takes the more
rum and blankets he is entitled to. Under this
system it is not to be wondered at that the
troubles on the frontier threaten daily to be-
come more dangerous and deadly While the
Quaker agents are quietly filing their pockets
the Indians are plundering and numbering
without hindrance or opposition. The De-
partment turns deaf ear to the cry of our
perishing frontier population, or dispatches
the pious General Howard to inquire the cause
of the disturbance. And so the mingled farce
and tragedy continues, while the night sky is
red with the flames of the frontierman's cabin.


Even if the military post commanders were
inclined to act energetically in the suppression
of these horrors, the force at their disposal
would not enable them to Do s. So effectively:
Thousands Of troops are placed in the South
to sustain the conscienceless carpet-baggers,
instead of being employed in protecting the
frontiers. If the officials at Washington could
be made to understand that the army is in
tended to be used for the safeguard of the
people, and not as the tool of q political fac
ton, we would doubtless soon have an end to
the present disgraceful state of affairs. The
evil is specially felt along the Texas border,
which lies open at once to the attacks of the
Indian and Mexican marauder So great is
our respect for the sacredness Of foreign terri
tory that we calmly allow the border land to
be made the base Of operations for murderers
and robbers who prey upon our people. Bands
OF savage Indians and scarcely less savage
Mexican freebooters, dash across tho Rio
Grande, plunder the unfortunate Texans, and
disappear with their booty, safe from pursuit OF
interference To such an extent has this been
carried that the wild tribes now know that
they really run no danger in making raid if
only they can reach the Mexican frontier,
where they find at once ready market for
their plunder and refuge from vengeance. >


In view of these almost daily violations Of
our soil by Indians or cattle robbers coming
from Mexican territory We allow our hands to
be tied by international law, while the "Greas-'
ers'' laugh in their sleeves at the long-suAering
Yankees. The outrages committed on our
citizens are source Of profit to many Of
the high civil and military Mexican officials,
and, whatever the intentions Of tho cen-
trail government of that unhappy country
may be in our regard their semi-independent
subordinates on the border will certainly not
suppress the raids unless we compel them by
force. 1t Is well known that the principal
sinners in the matter of raids into Texas are a
branch of the Kickapoo Indians, at present
located in Mexico. Endeavors have been
made to place this dangerous tribe on reserva-
tions in the United States, where they could
be kept in order; but the local Mexican au-
thorities have done their best to defeat all at
tempts in this matter. Cortina, who holds the
commission of General from Juarez, is more
than suspected of being concerned in tho
cattle-stealing raids along the Rio Grande
This rufian, although acknowledged by Juarez


is notorious thief and cattle litter. But
while this is well known to the Texan au-
thorities q sentimental regard for the rights OF
nations is allowed to save this brigand and his
allies from the punishment they so richly de-
serve Nothing could well bcmore unsatisfactory
than the action of the administration in these
bor,ler trouhlea II 10 noncenqa A., ba oond;nv