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Show I REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF INDIAN AFFAIRS. CXXXVII 1 ennes. Awaahoes. Comanches, Kiowas. and others. and listened to their s t a t e i ~ e ~ ~gtri~dvoafll ces, their pleas fi;rj~lstice, and their eutwatier tor help. While uudoubte(lly some of their cou~plaintsa re unfounded, and many of their appealsfor&ssistance nnwarrauted, the fact remains'that there is too much reason for them to feel that they have been wbjected in very many cases to cruel and unjust treatment. While not des~riug to conceal the defects of the Indians, or to deny that they hare been sometimes wantonly cruel; that they have shown a laclc of many sterling qualities, and an absence . ~ tfh e progressive spirit which char-acterizes the Anglo-Saxon, I can not refrain from expressing my pro-found co~~victiotuh at if we had suffered at their llands what they have sntfered at ours, we would have been neither so patient nor so forbear-i~ n-r as thev have been. - The woicler is, not that tire oxcite~nentr egarding the coming hIer~in11 ahould have been ~nnnit'esteda nwllg tbem, I~utr ather that it IIIIS l n k ~ ~ ~ so xnild a form and lras been soeasilv cootrolled. So far a,s mv own ob-sc. rvation hasertendecl, i c is ~ I cJo.~ ~rictiotuha t thcre Lnu bee11 no occ,i. r i o ~vr~ba terer for ally alartn, and t11at the agents with their Tn1li31p1o lice have been abundantly able to hold in complete control those under their charge. The only danger to be apprehended is that intluei~ces from without, emanating from those who in some manner might be ben-efited by the Indian uprising or the movement of troops, or by the ex-citement growiug out of "wars and rumors of wars," may precipitate a needless conflict and bring on a disastrous and costly war. Of course this is said in regard to the Indii~nsw hom I have visited. I have not been among the Sioux of the Dakotas. Sixth. The present policy of the Government of breaking up grad-ually the Indian reservations, allotting lands in severalty, extinguish- , ing the Indian title, destroying tribal relatious, dealing with the In-dians in their individusl capacity, absorbing them into the aatioual life as Amerioan citizeus, and giving to their children an English edu-cation is foundedin good sense, is dictated by the spirit of hrrmauity, and requires only to befaitl~fullyi,n telligently, and persistently carried out to secure the desired end. Euough has already been accomplished to show that the ~ l a ins entirelv feasible. and there is nothing in the ~ ~ ~ present 8ito;ltion to jvarrnnr rile ~over ;~menint deviating <;om rhA ~ ~ o l iacd,o~pt ed or in wnvcring ill it8 prosecution. The work llas becn wiselv n1a1111edth. e foun(l;~ri~a~rue sL cine well laid. and everv conaid-eratiCnAof economy and philanthropy uGgea the continuance of that policy. One disastrous Indian war might be more expensive than the entire work of educating the whole rising generation and of preparing them for intelligent, self-supporting American citizenship. Seventh. I have seen nothing whatever to shake my faith in the effectiveness and final triumph-of the present svstem of Government schools. The work should be carried forward rapidly and vigorously until ample provision has been made for all Indian children of school age, and there should be at once a compulsory law, which will enable the Com~nissionero f Indian Affairs, wherever it may be necessary, to force attendance at school. This will seldom be required, but the fact that he has the power to compel atteudance will be sufficient to insure the filling of the schools. Not ouly should there be more schools, but there should be better schools. The policy of the Government in the past has been open, per-haps, to the criticism of building cheap and small buildings, provid~ng insufficient facilities, paying low salaries, end failing to reqmre a suffi-ciently high degree of efsciency in the school service. The Iudiane |
