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INDIAN CIVILIZATION: 
 
 LECTURE 
 
 BY 
 
 Stanley Pumphrey 
 
 OF 
 
 ENGLAND. 
 
 WITH INTRODUCTION BY 
 
 JOHN G. WHITTIER. 
 
 TO BE HAD OF 
 
 THE BIBLE AND TRACT DISTRIBUTING SOCIETY, 
 
 116 NORTH FOURTH STREET, PHILADELPHIA. 
 
 1877. 
 
ff 
 
 WM. H. PILE, PRINTER, 
 
 No. 422 Walnut Street, Philadelphia. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 MAP OF THE INDIAN TERRITORY. 
 
 INTRODUCTION, (by John G. Whittier, 
 LECTURE, (by Stanley Pumphrey,) 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 EVIDENCE ON THE CONDITION OF INDIANS IN CANADA, 
 
 (by /. T. G&kison,) . . . . .37 
 
 LETTER TO THE XEW YORK TRIBUNE, SECOND MONTH 
 
 17, 1877, (by H. B. Whipple, Bishop of Minnesota,) 41 
 
 3G6241 
 
>** 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 THE present condition and future prospects of the remnants of 
 the aboriginal inhabitants of this continent, can scarcely be a mat- 
 ter of indifference to any class of the people of the United States. 
 Apart from all considerations of justice and duty, a purely selfish 
 regard to our own well-being would compel attention to the subject. 
 The irreversible laws of God's moral government, and the well- 
 attested maxims of political and social economy, leave us in no 
 doubt that the suffering, neglect and wrong of one part of the com- 
 munity, must affect all others. A common responsibility rests upon 
 each and all to relieve suffering, enlighten ignorance, and redress 
 wrong, and the penalty of neglect in this respect no nation has 
 ever escaped. 
 
 It is only within a comparatively recent period that the term 
 Indian Civilisation could be appropriately used in this country. 
 How little real progress had been made in this direction, may be 
 seen by the reference in the following discourse to the visit of 
 Commissioner John D. Lang, in 1844, to the Tribes now most 
 advanced. So little had been done, that public opinion had acqui- 
 esced in the assumption that the Indians were not susceptible of 
 civilization and progress. The few experiments had not been cal- 
 culated to assure a superficial observer. 
 
 The unsupported efforts of Elliot in New England, were counter- 
 acted by the imprisonment, and in some instances the massacre of 
 his "praying Indians," by white men under the exasperation of 
 war with hostile tribes. The salutary influence of the Moravians 
 and Friends in Pennsylvania, was greatly weakened by the dreadful 
 
6 Introduction. 
 
 massacre of the unarmed and blameless converts of Gnadenhutten. 
 But since the first visit of Commissioner Lang, thirty-three years ago, 
 the progress of education, civilization and conversion to Christianity, 
 has been of a most encouraging nature, and if Indian civilization 
 was ever a doubtful problem, it has been practically solved. 
 
 The nomadic habits and warlike propensities of the native tribes, 
 are indeed formidable, but not insuperable difficulties in the way of 
 their elevation. The wildest of them may compare not unfavorably 
 with those Northern barbarian hordes that swooped down upon 
 Christian Europe, and who were so soon the docile pupils and 
 proselytes of the 'peoples they had conquered. The Arapahoes and 
 Camanches of our day are no further removed from the sweetness 
 and light of Christian culture, than the Scandinavian Sea Kings of 
 the middle centuries, whose gods were patrons of rapine and cruelty, 
 their heaven a vast, cloud-built ale-house, where ghostly warriors 
 drank from the skulls of their victims, and whose hell was a frozen 
 horror of desolation and darkness, to be avoided only by diligence 
 in robbery, and courage in murder. The descendants of these 
 human butchers are now among the best exponents of the human- 
 izing influence of the Gospel of Christ. The report of the Superin- 
 tendent of the remnants of the once fierce and warlike Six Nations, 
 now peaceable and prosperous in Canada, shows that the Indian is 
 not inferior to the Norse ancestors of the Danes and Norwegians 
 of our day, in capability of improvement. 
 
 It is scarcely necessary to say, what is universally conceded, that 
 the wars waged by the Indians against the whites, have, in nearly 
 every instance, been provoked by violations of solemn treaties, and 
 systematic disregard of their rights of person, property and life. 
 The letter of Bishop Whipple, of Minnesota, to the New York 
 Tribune of Second Month, 1877, calls attention to the emphatic 
 language of Generals Sherman, Harney, Terry and Augur, written 
 after a full and searching investigation of the subject : " That the 
 Indian goes to war is not astonishing : he is often compelled to do so : 
 wrongs are borne by him in silence, which never fail to drive civilized 
 
Introduction. . 1 
 
 men to deeds of violence. The best possible way to avoid war, is to 
 do no injustice. ' ' 
 
 It is not difficult to understand the feelings of the unfortunate 
 pioneer settlers on the extreme borders of civilization, upon whom 
 the blind vengeance of the wronged and hunted Indians falls 
 oftener than upon the real wrong-doers. They point to terrible 
 and revolting cruelties, as proof that nothing short of the absolute 
 extermination of the race can prevent their repetition. But a 
 moment's consideration compels us to admit that atrocious cruelty 
 is not peculiar to the red man. " All wars are cruel," said Gen. 
 Sherman, and for eighteen centuries Christendom has been a great 
 battle field. What Indian raid has been more dreadful than the 
 sack of Magdeburg, the massacre of Glencoe, the nameless atrocities 
 of the Duke of Alva in the Netherlands, the murders of St. Bar- 
 tholomew's day, the unspeakable agonies of the South of France 
 under the demoniac rule of revolution ! All history, black with 
 crime and red with blood, is but an awful commentary upon "man's 
 inhumanity to man," and it teaches us that there is nothing excep- 
 tional in the Indian's ferocity and vindictiveness, and that the 
 alleged reasons for his extermination would, at one time or another, 
 have applied with equal force to the whole family of man. 
 
 The lecture of my friend, STANLEY PUMPHREY, comprises more of 
 valuable information and pertinent suggestions on the Indian ques- 
 tion than I have found in any equal space ; and I am glad of the 
 opportunity to add to it my hearty endorsement, and to express the 
 conviction that its general circulation could not fail to awaken a 
 deeper and more kindly interest in the condition of the Red Man, 
 and greatly aid in leading the public mind to a fuller appreciation 
 of the responsibility which rests upon us as a people, to rectify, as 
 far as possible, past abuses, and in our future relations to the native 
 owners of the soil, to " deal justly and love mercy." 
 
 JOHN G. WHITTIER. 
 
 Oak Knoll, Danvers^th mo. 25, 1877. 
 
INDIAN CIVILIZATION. 
 
 A LECTURE DELIVERED IN PHILADELPHIA, BALTIMORE 
 AND NEW YORK. Fourth Month, 1877, 
 
 BY 
 
 STANLEY PUMPHREY, OF WORCESTER, ENGLAND. 
 
 IN the course of last Autumn and Winter I spent several weeks 
 among the tribes in ' the Indian Territory and Kansas, which are 
 about thirty in number, and comprehend a fourth of the whole Indian 
 population of the United States. They include some of the wildest 
 and the worst like the Comanches and Cheyennes, and some of the 
 most civilized like the Cherokees and Creeks, with every shade of 
 barbarism and semi-civilization between. I have thus had the op- 
 portunity of seeing the Indians under a great variety of conditions, 
 and of mingling with many of those who for long periods of years 
 have worked for their elevation. My companion during the greater 
 part of the trip was Enoch Hoag, who as the head of the Central 
 Superintendency, devoted himself for seven years to the work with 
 earnest assiduity, and gained an intimate knowledge of the Indians, 
 such as few possess. 
 
 I have been encouraged to bring the result of my observations 
 before you, and have consented in the hope that while I cannot 
 claim to be as well posted as I would wish to be, my testimony may 
 not be altogether without its value. 
 
 In conversing about the Indians I have found the impression pre- 
 vailing widely that their prospects are hopeless, that our labor in 
 
10 Indian Civilization. 
 
 their behalf produces little if any permanent result, and that there is 
 nothing before this unhappy race but extinction at no distant date. 
 I do not think this view is well grounded, and I will now endeavor 
 to tell you why I think so. 
 
 THE CHEROKEES AND CREEKS. 
 
 In the eastern part of the Indian Territory, which as you are 
 aware is a section of country lying between Texas and Kansas, five 
 tribes are located, commonly known as the civilized tribes. I do 
 not insist on the absolute appropriateness of the term, but relatively 
 it need not be objected to. These are the Cherokees, numbering 
 18,000, the descendants of the once powerful tribe that occupied the 
 Carolinas and Tennessee; the Creeks, numbering 14,000, whose 
 former home was Georgia ; the Choctaws and Chickasaws of Ala- 
 bama and Mississippi, numbering 22,000; and the Seminoles of 
 Florida, who are about 2500. Among these tribes Enoch Hoag and 
 I began our tour of Christian interest and enquiry. We attended 
 their annual fair at Muscogee, where many of their leading men 
 were gathered together, all of whom were known to my companion. 
 From them we gained much interesting and encouraging informa- 
 tion. At the fair there was comparatively little to remind us where 
 we were. Citizens dress was universal, and a large proportion of 
 the people might have passed undistinguished along Eastern streets. 
 The exhibition was creditable as far as it went, and bore evidence 
 of successful gardening, farming and cattle raising. 
 
 The Cherokees have a good system of Government, consisting of 
 a Chief, and Upper and Lower Houses, and an excellent code of 
 laws framed on the model of the United States of America. Belief 
 in one God and in future rewards and punishments is made essential 
 to rights of citizenship ; liberty of conscience is granted ; the sale of 
 strong drink is prohibited, and the observance of the Sabbath is 
 secured. 
 
 Of the tribal revenue one half is devoted to education and the 
 support of their orphans. They have 81 common day schools with 
 
Cherokees and Creeks. 11 
 
 attendance varying from 13 to 40. In addition to these, two high 
 schools, one for boys and one for girls, are in operation near Tale- 
 quah, adapted for 150 each. These we visited. They are large 
 brick buildings well situate and well arranged, and would do credit 
 to an Eastern State. The girls school is under the care of an ex- 
 cellent Moravian minister supported by a good staff of teachers. In 
 the good order of the place, in the dress of the children, in the pre- 
 vailing neatness, cleanliness and decorum, there was nothing but 
 what was entirely creditable to a Christian school. The orphan 
 institution, also for 150, we did not visit, but it is said to be on a 
 par with the others. A large asylum has lately been built for the 
 blind, insane, and helpless poor. The Cherokees have two news- 
 papers, one published at Talequah, the other at Muscogee. The 
 latter is edited by Wm. P. Ross, formerly Chief of the Nation, an 
 intelligent man, with whom we had much pleasant intercourse. The 
 former is partly printed in the Cherokee alphabet, invented by the 
 ingenious Sequoyah. This alphabet consists of 85 letters, repre- 
 senting all the syllabic sounds in the language, so that when a child 
 has mastered it he has learned to read. Every full blood Cherokee 
 is entitled to a copy of this paper, and to all others it is sold at a 
 dollar a year, the loss being made up from the Treasury. The 
 Cherokee nation is now professedly Christian and a large proportion 
 of the people attend public worship, which is directed for the most 
 part by a native ministry. 
 
 The standard of Christianity though far from being all we could 
 desire, is probably equal to that of the surrounding States. The 
 bible is widely diffused, and many enjoy reading it in their own 
 tongue. 
 
 The Cherokees are an agricultural people, supported by the pro- 
 duce of their lands and the sale of their cattle. Many have large 
 farms and good orchards. All wear citizens dress, all live in houses, 
 and in the better ones their Agent reports that it is no unusual thing 
 to see sewing machines, and even more costly articles of furniture. 
 Thirty-five years ago Commissioners John D. Lang and Samuel 
 Taylor visited this tribe. They say it was then divided into three 
 
12 Indian Civilization. 
 
 classes, the civilized, the apprentices in civilization, and a third 
 class, which was the most numerous, who had made little improve- 
 ment in dress or manners. Instead of 81 schools there were 13, 
 and instead of the whole tribe professing Christianity only 200 did 
 so. Surely we must admit there has been encouraging progress here. 
 
 With the Creeks the advance has not been less marked. At the 
 time of John D. Lang's visit most of them still wore the blanket, 
 few had embraced Christianity, their old dances were still kept up, 
 and there was but one school in the nation. Instead of this solitary 
 school there are now 33 day schools and three boarding schools. 
 We visited all of the latter and were exceedingly pleased with them. 
 Less ambitious and more economically conducted than those of the 
 Cherokees, they seemed to us better adapted for the wants of the 
 people. The Tallahassee Boarding School, started thirty years ago, 
 has been through almost its whole history under the charge of W. S. 
 Robertson, a Presbyterian minister, and his excellent wife. They 
 have about 100 inmates. In addition to giving a good English 
 education they give the girls an industrial, domestic education, sew- 
 ing, cooking and general housework ; and the boys a farm training. 
 In returning from the school our driver ran into another conveyance 
 and broke ours badly. In an hour two of the boys had patched it 
 up strongly enough for us to get on without further trouble to our 
 destination. " We train them," said the Superintendent, " to meet 
 such emergencies as this. ' ' With thankful satisfaction he referred to 
 the fact that their scholars turn out well, and that most of the rising 
 men among the Creeks had passed under his care. Pleasant Por- 
 ter, whom we had heard make a spirited speech at Muscogee, who 
 farms very succesfully 200 acres, and who has often represented his 
 tribe at Washington, is one of these. Our interpreter, an agreea- 
 ble and intelligent young man, was another. 
 
 With the Muscogee Girls' Institute, near Eufala, we were not 
 less gratified. The Principal of this school is a Creek, J. W. Ferry- 
 man, with well developed Indian features. He has undertaken this 
 post from a sense of duty. He is a man well spoken of by all, and 
 is an earnest and effective preacher in his own tongue. The chil- 
 
Chickasaws and Choctaws. 13 
 
 dren had made good progress in their studies, some of them were 
 doing Algebra, others gave us very correctly the cities of Italy, and 
 the scientific class were answering questions in Hydrostatics. In a 
 long detention at Eufala, from an accident on the line, we turned 
 into a respectable store kept by an Indian, at whose comfortable 
 home we dined. On his shelves we found a Greek Lexicon, and 
 copies of Caesar, Virgil, Horace and Xenophon, and we were told 
 that the brother of our host was really a fair classic scholar. Our 
 detention also gave us the opportunity of talking to H. S. Buck- 
 ner, a Baptist missionary, who has worked among the Creeks most 
 of his life. He spoke of them as a church-going people, and thought 
 a larger proportion of them would be found attending public worship 
 than in the neighboring States. Two white missionaries only are 
 now employed among them, perhaps three or four natives are as- 
 sisted by missionary societies, and all the rest of the preachers do 
 their work from pure love. H. S. Buckner itinerates among them, 
 holding from time to time protracted meetings, in connection with 
 which he gathers the neighboring preachers together and holds in a 
 very simple way a sort of school of the prophets. The Creeks find 
 much comfort in their religion, and their death beds are often happy. 
 Their standard of piety is fairly high, and they are truthful and 
 honest. Family worship is very general among them. Like the 
 Cherokees, they are farmers, and what we saw gave us the impres- 
 sion that they were farming successfully. Their fences were ex- 
 cellent, and the produce of their apple orchards could hardly be 
 surpassed. 
 
 THE CHICKASAWS AND CHOCTAWS. 
 
 The Choctaws and Chickasaws at the time of J. D. Lang's visit in 
 1842, were few of them professing Christianity, and their provisions 
 for education was extremely small. They have now 66 district 
 schools with an attendance of 1500 scholars, and 6 boarding schools 
 with 245 scholars. The Choctaws expend on education from their 
 tribal funds $27,000, the Chickasaws $46,000. The latter is pro- 
 
14 Indian Civilization. 
 
 bably the largest sum per capita subscribed by any state or nation 
 in the world for educational purposes, amounting to an average of 
 $8.00 per head for every man, woman and child in the community. 
 
 Many of the remarks made with regard to the condition of the 
 Cherokees and Creeks apply to these tribes, and also to the Semi- 
 noles. All have adopted citizens dress, I believe all live in houses, 
 all make profession of Christianity. We had the opportunity of 
 meeting with the Choctaw Council through the kindness of their 
 Governor, Coleman Cole, a plain but sterling man. Several of the 
 members of the Legislature are preachers, working without pay. 
 Our interpreter, Judge Folsom, an intelligent man, is one of these. 
 His brother, D. E. Folsom, is an enterprising farmer who has 400 
 acres under cultivation and owns 5000 head of cattle. He has built 
 himself a good house and is a man of some reading, very familiar 
 with Shakespeare, and quick to correct any misquotation from his 
 favorite author. The leading agriculturist of the Choctaws is 
 named Wilson Jones. He lives in a good house, and has 500 acres 
 of pasture and 300 of arable land. A half breed Choctaw named 
 Paul, has 2000 acres in Indian corn. The progress made by all 
 these tribes is the more encouraging because they were almost ruined 
 during the war. Their losses in cattle at that time being estimated 
 at 300,000. 
 
 The Christianization and civilization of the Indians thus far de- 
 scribed is due chiefly to the labors of Methodists, Baptists, and 
 Presbyterians. Comparatively little assistance is, however, at the 
 present time, being given by any of these churches. I believe the mis- 
 sionaries still in the field are doing a very valuable work and extend- 
 ing help that is needed, and I would express my hope that their 
 number may be increased rather than diminished. 
 
 INDIANS UNDER THE CARE OF THE SOCIETY OF FRIENDS. 
 
 I come now to speak of the work carried on under the care of the 
 Society of Friends. The Indians under their charge are divided 
 into eight Agencies. The Kiowas, Comanches and Apaches, all 
 
Indians under Care of Society of Friends. 15 
 
 under the charge of James Haworth ; the Wichitas, Caddoes, &c., 
 under Andrew Williams ; the Cheyennes and Arapahoes under John 
 D. Miles. These three Agencies are in the southwest part of the 
 Indian Territory, and include a population of 8000. 
 
 The Osage and Kaw Agency is under the care of Cyrus Beede ; 
 the Pawnee, at the time of our visit, under William Burgess ; and the 
 Sac and Fox, including also Kickapoos, Shawnees, and some Potta- 
 watomies, under Levi Woodard. These are situated to the west of 
 the Cherokee and Creek reserves, and include a population of 7,200. 
 The Quapaw Agency in the northeast corner of the Territory, in- 
 cludes Wyandottes, Senecas, and several smaller tribes, to the num- 
 ber of 1400, and is under charge of Hiram W. Jones. About 1000 
 Pottawatomies and Kickapoos, &c., form a separate Agency in the 
 northwest of Kansas under Mahlon Newlin. 
 
 I do not wish to overburden you with figures, but carefully pre- 
 pared statistics are often the most telling facts, and I do not know how 
 better to show the progress that has been made than by the follow- 
 ing table, which exhibits the comparative condition of the Indians 
 in 1868 and 1875. 
 
 1868. 1875. 
 
 Schools ...... 4 15 
 
 Sabbath Shools .... 13 
 
 Scholars ...... 105 836 
 
 Houses ...... not reported 1042 
 
 Acres cultivated .... 3,220 I4>5 
 
 Corn, bushels 31,700 320,000 
 
 Wheat " 633 28,000 
 
 Oats " 5,930 
 
 Potatoes, bushels .... !,77 O 17,100 
 
 Hay, tons ..... 750 5 ,000 
 
 Horses owned ..... 17,924 25,921 
 
 Cattle 640 6,580 
 
 Hogs 1,074 12,268 
 
 Last year there was a further increase in the number of schools 
 and houses and in the quantity of land under cultivation, but owing 
 to the season being less favorable the produce was rather smaller. 
 
16 Indian Civilization. 
 
 Thus it will be seen that between 1868 and 1875, crops and herds 
 had both increased ten fold, while the advance in the provision for 
 education and suitable dwellings was not less satisfactory. It would 
 be tedious to attempt to describe the condition of all these tribes in 
 detail. I will select specimen instances. 
 
 WICHITA AGENCY. 
 
 The greatest advance appeared to me to have been gained in the 
 Wichita and Quapaw Agencies. When Friends assumed the charge 
 of the former in 1870, scarcely anything had been done. There 
 was no school, and the tribes, if not quite like the wild Indians of the 
 plains, were not many degrees above them. Through patient and 
 well directed efforts a very different state of things has been brought 
 about. It was after travelling a day's journey from the Kiowa 
 Agency, and on descending into the valley of the Washita, that we 
 came in sight of the Agency buildings. They are situated about a 
 mile from the river, on the slope of a wooded bluff which screens 
 them from the north. The school building stands out prominently, 
 a two storied house with two wings, well adapted for the reception 
 of 100 pupils. The Agent's house, a neat frame building, office 
 and other appointments, lie to the right ; the Engineer's house, the 
 house of the Physician, and one or two others to the left. In the 
 fertile valley below is the Agency farm ; farther to the left is the 
 saw mill, and beyond, the farms of the Indians, whose little houses 
 are sheltered by the wood and by the cliff. The old Indian hut is 
 fast being replaced by log houses, and of these 103 are already built. 
 We called on Wahloope, a Caddo Chief. Five years ago this man 
 attended the meeting of the Executive Committee of Friends, at 
 Lawrence. He said to them, "I have come from a long way off. I 
 came to find a good way for my people. We want you to try hard 
 to help us into that good way. We do not want to do like some 
 other tribes, who delight in killing and destroying ; we want to learn 
 how to build houses, raise corn, and provide for our wives and chil- 
 dren, that they may be happy. I know my young men will be ready 
 
Wichita ^Agency. 17 
 
 to do their part in building houses and farms, and trying to be good. 
 Many of the wild Indians also will visit me to hear my words, and 
 see my place. If I have a good house and farm, comfortable clothes, 
 and a happy family, it will have a great influence on them to turn 
 them into the white man's path, to peace and civilization." He 
 went on to ask that they might be protected from white intruders, 
 and especially from the curse of whiskey. The promise of this 
 speech has been faithfully kept. Not only have about half this people 
 adopted the'white man's dress, and the white man's style of house, 
 but they have brought into cultivation 1,700 acres, and 'are rapidly 
 becoming self supporting. For a considerable period before the 
 time of our visit, the issue of rations had been confined to beef and 
 salt, and they had been grinding corn for the Indians at the Agency 
 mill at the rate of 80 bushels a week. 
 
 For an account of the commencement of the Wichita school I 
 may refer to Thomas Battey's book, "A Quaker among the 
 Indians. ' ' The small school of six or eight untamed children whom 
 he describes, has now become an orderly company of 100. They are 
 under the charge of two English brothers, who, with their sister, are 
 pursuing the work with much energy, enthusiasm and success. Their 
 reading, spelling, and arithmetic were all good, and their writing 
 excellent. S. A. Galpin remarks of the Kiowa school that the pen- 
 manship is superior to white schools of corresponding grades. Still 
 more is this the case at the Wichita school, and many specimens of 
 drawing shown us were very creditable. They had a fair grounding 
 in grammar, and were well posted in the main features of the geo- 
 graphy of the United States and of Europe, they answered Scripture 
 questions readily, and repeated the Ten Commandments and some 
 other passages. The teachers seem to enjoy their work heartily, 
 thay find the children tractable, and decidedly easier to manage 
 than as many whites. In answer to my question as to what was their 
 greatest difficulty with them, they said, that since they cured them 
 of running away, they had no difficulty to speak of. The girls do 
 the bulk of the housework and soon become handy. They are also 
 
 taught needle work. 
 2 
 
18 Indian Civilization. 
 
 I wish I could give you the picture of our meeting for worship 
 with them on the Sabbath Day. The body of the school room was 
 filled with the children, looking clean and neat, nicely dressed, and 
 their long black hair well combed. On the platform were the Agent 
 and his family, the teachers and employees, the Chiefs, the inter- 
 preter and ourselves. Round the room Indians stood, sat. or 
 squatted \ many of them decked out with their ornaments, of which 
 these tribes are especially fond. The worship was solemn, the be- 
 havior and attention all that we could wish. Wahloope addressed 
 them, and so did Black Bear, a Delaware Chief, who also offered in 
 his own language a very feeling prayer. I give a portion of his 
 sermon. 
 
 "Life with us all is getting shorter. I remember when the 
 Caddoes had large towns, and the Delawares, and the Wacoes. Now 
 we are few. And why is this ? It is for our sins, my brothers, for 
 our sins. I fear the displeasure of the Lord ; but when I see our 
 children well taught I hope again. Let none say it is too late to 
 turn to God. Let none say it is too soon." Those who have 
 watched Black Beaver's character speak of him as a true Christian 
 man. 
 
 In the evening we had a still larger meeting, some of them coming 
 four, six and even twelve miles. One of the lads of the school lately 
 employed the leisure hours of his vacation in reading the New Testa- 
 ment right through. Another who had left school and 'opened a 
 store, wrote a letter which was shown me. It was well written and 
 expressed. Though he had begun to trade, he said, he was not going 
 to let that hinder him from serving God. He meant to continue to 
 follow and obey Him. More knowledge had been given to him than 
 to some of his red brethren and he wished to use it to help them. 
 He was planning a religious journey with a minister from another 
 tribe, for whom he was going to interpret. 
 
 Among the Sac and Foxes we found another young man similarly 
 disposed. Through his influence many had been led to make an 
 .open profession of religion, and he had gathered a church in his 
 .house, with whom we mingled to our comfort. 
 
Quapaw ^Agency. 19 
 
 QUAPAW AGENCY. 
 
 I can speak in as encouraging terms of the Quapaw Agency as 1 
 have done of the Wichita. Here, as among the Cherokees, all live 
 in houses and all wear citizens dress. This little community of 1,400 
 individuals last year had 6,700 acres under cultivation, and raised 
 78,000 bushels of corn. Many of the Senecas especially, have good 
 farms, probably on a par with any in the Territory. We were also 
 much pleased with the appearance of those on the Ottawa and 
 Peoria reserves, where a commencement had scarcely been made 
 seven years ago, and now there are large well farmed fields and good 
 frame houses. But perhaps no tribe has made more astonishing pro- 
 gress than the Modocs. The war with this tribe and the treacherous 
 assassination of Gen. Canby, are fresh in our remembrance. We 
 recall the long and determined resistance in the lava beds, which 
 cost the United States a larger number of their troops than there 
 were Indians in the tribe, and how Capt. Jack and his followers were 
 at last wearied out rather than conquered. The terrible sufferings of 
 those dark days the Modoc children even now can hardly be per- 
 suaded to refer to. Removed to the Territory late in 1873, tne 
 remnant of the tribe have displayed in peace much of the same 
 energy and determination they displayed in war. They show a 
 decided disposition to work, and are raising corn and cattle. Bogus 
 Charley, the Chief, put up a good sized house for himself, and when 
 it was finished built a still better one for his ponies. Steamboat 
 Frank, another prominent member of the tribe, was repairing his 
 chimney when we called to have an interview with such of the tribe 
 as could be collected under his roof. They told us they felt leaving 
 their own country in Oregon, but they tried not to think of it, and 
 wanted to settle down here. They liked our talk, and it was their 
 wish to live so as to please the Great Spirit. All their children are 
 sent to school where they learn readily, are easily satisfied, and give 
 very little trouble. 
 
 At the Quapaw and Wyandotte Missions are good boarding 
 schools, where 60 and 100 children respectively, are taught. In the 
 
20 Indian Civilization. 
 
 one school the children read well in the Fifth Reader, and in the 
 other they were using as a reading book, an elementary History of 
 the United States. They defined words creditably, worked sums 
 in reduction and decimals, and showed equal proficiency in mental 
 arithmetic. The industrial training, so excellently given by the 
 Creeks, is adopted here ; the boys are taught to farm and the girls 
 to do housework and sewing. In both schools much pains has been 
 taken to impart religious instruction, and the children answered 
 bible questions well. I was at the Quapaw Mission at Christmas 
 and thoroughly enjoyed my visit. Kind friends in New York and 
 Baltimore had thought of the Indian children, and wishing to make 
 them happy at this festive season, sent them many presents. A fir 
 tree was brought from the forest, the top of which touched the 
 ceiling, and its branches spread half across the room. To these the 
 presents were attached and the tree was lighted up with many tapers. 
 The smaller children sat on the floor beneath its boughs, and the 
 larger ones round the room. Several of the parents and other in- 
 terested friends were present. They sang their simple hymns and 
 listened attentively while we spoke to them. It would have done 
 the hearts of the kind donors good to have seen how the little swarthy 
 faces brightened as the treasures were handed down. Several of the 
 older girls had made useful presents for each other, and their English 
 visitor received a motto beautifully worked by eight girls, in colored 
 silk. The words were "In God We Trust." 
 
 Religious services are kept up at six points in this Agency, three 
 of which are under the charge of Indian preachers. We held meet- 
 ings ourselves at several points. At the Ottawa school-house two 
 Indians addressed the company. One of these encouraged the 
 boys of the school who \vere present, by commending their good 
 conduct. He was their near neighbor, and could say that they 
 gave him no trouble, and that he never missed so much as an apple 
 from his orchard. Some people, he continued, complained of 
 their present lot. They remembered the old times when all the 
 land was theirs, and there was abundance of game. But if the white 
 man had taken away some things he had brought them others. 
 
The Wild Tribes. 21 
 
 Through him they had received the knowledge of the true God and 
 of our Saviour Jesus Christ, and some of them felt they could part 
 with every thing for the sake of this. Our friends in the Quapaw 
 Agency have had many cheering evidences of blessing in their re- 
 ligious work. When Asa and Emmeline Tuttle came here seven 
 years ago, the Ottawas were in a very degraded state and sadly in- 
 temperate, but through their faithful labors, sobriety has been re- 
 stored and the church revived. They found a ready helper in 
 Judge Wynd, chief of the tribe, a spiritually minded man, who has 
 left a good name. An interesting illustration of the words "sor- 
 rowful yet rejoicing," was lately furnished in this neighborhood by 
 an Indian, who soon after his conversion was laid by with severe 
 illness. His body was racked with pain, but his mind was at rest. 
 " While one half of me," he said, "is suffering very much, the other 
 half is very glad. ' ' The Agent told me with much satisfaction of the 
 evidence of right principle in these Indians in the earnest desire they 
 had shown to clear off their debts ; all the more commendable, be- 
 cause a large sum due to them from a religious denomination, on 
 the expected payment of which they had gone in debt themselves, 
 was still unpaid. 
 
 THE WILD TRIBES. 
 
 Thus far I have spoken of tribes which have been the longest un- 
 der the care of Friends, and who had to some extent been under 
 civilizing influences before they took charge of them. We will now 
 inquire, what has been the result of work among the Indians of the 
 plains, the wild warlike tribes of the Southwest ; the Kiowas and 
 Comanches, Cheyennes and Arapahoes, whose raids into Texas were 
 the terror of the frontier settlements, and at last brought down 
 upon them the strong arm of the military. Here, as yet few of the 
 Indians have made any profession of the Christian faith, and scarcely 
 to any extent have we succeeded in inducing them to forego their 
 old style of dress and mode of dwelling. Their subsistence is also 
 in the main still supplied by the Government, and the remainder is 
 
'22 Indian Civilization. 
 
 procured by hunting. But there is an altered sentiment in the tribes. 
 The same people who a short time ago were utterly averse to edu- 
 cation, are now desirous that all their children should be sent to 
 school. Warriors who cared for nothing but war and the chase, 
 have become men of peace. Those who scorned the idea of culti- 
 vating the soil, are clamoring for ploughs and spades. " We like 
 your talk," said Little Crow, the Comanche chief, after our con- 
 ference with his tribe. "We want to live in peace, we want to 
 grow corn, raise cattle, have our children taught, and take the 
 white man's road. This is the mind of us all." "We are not 
 going to think of war any more," said Big Mouth, the stalwart chief 
 of the Arapahoes, after hugging us in his strong arms. " The Sioux 
 are foolish to think of fighting. Let them come and live peaceably 
 in the Indian Territory. I can say of all here, they are my broth- 
 ers ; give us ploughs and let us get to work. ' ' 
 
 His neighbor, Big Horse, the Cheyenne chief, less energetic in 
 his eloquence, has been more so in his example. He approved all 
 we said. He had been doing his best to persuade his people to 
 take the white man's road. He begged that the Government would 
 keep their word with them, and let them have not only food duly 
 delivered according to promise, but also wagons and implements of 
 husbandry. This was the burden of every speech. Col. Misner, of 
 the Cheyenne Fort, was admiring a medal that had been presented 
 to another chief named Whirlwind, a man of considerable native 
 force. " Yes," was the reply, " its a nice medal, but I can't under- 
 stand one thing. You see, 'he said,' pointing to the devices on it, 
 it shows ploughs and spades and hoes,, and Washington promised 
 he would send a heap of them. They have never come, and we 
 think our Great Father ought to keep his word." 
 
 With what implements they had they have gone to work. The 
 193 acres under cultivation at the Kiowa Agency in 1874, became 
 503 in 1876, and the yield of corn advanced from 1000 to 5000 
 bushels. 
 
 At the Cheyenne Agency 50 acres became 423, and the yield was 
 7080 bushels. So anxious were they to make a beginning, that in 
 
The Wild Tribes.. 23 
 
 default of better implements, axes and sticks have been used to stir 
 the ground. 
 
 A proposal made by J. D. Miles, that they should earn the arti- 
 cles they wanted, by becoming the freighters of their own supplies, 
 was entered into very warmly by the tribes, and it is to be hoped 
 the Government will be disposed to accede to it;* they need and 
 desire employment. The tide now sets strongly in favor of civiliza- 
 tion, and if we are wise we shall take it while it is full. An hour's 
 guidance to day may be worth all the persuasion and effort of to- 
 morrow. 
 
 But it is in the schools that the greatest hope lies, and the greatest 
 triumphs have been won. A year and a half ago Alfred Standing 
 commenced his work at the Kiowa School. The children came in 
 total ignorance ; none of them knew a word of English ; and their 
 teacher was equally unacquainted with their languages. The pro- 
 gress that has been made is surprising. They are reading in the 
 Second and Third Readers ; they spelt words of 4 letters, writing 
 them on their slate, and getting 9, 10 and n right out of the dozen. 
 They worked correctly short sums in addition, and counted up to 
 100 in English and in their own tongues. In writing they showed 
 greater proficiency than in anything else. The children behave 
 well, and their teachers find them willing and obedient ; they are 
 happy and rarely have any quarrels. Great pains are taken to in- 
 struct the girls in sewing, and the boys are set to work. So anxious 
 were the Indians to have their children taken in, that the premises 
 have been stretched to their utmost capacity. The girls sleep in 
 the house ; the boys in a draughty lean-to put up in a very tempo- 
 rary way, and where their hammocks are arranged in two tiers one 
 over the other. The agent, Jas. M. Haworth, says the hardest work 
 he ever has to do, is to turn a child away because there is no room. 
 At the close of the first session, when the parents came for their 
 children, he told them how thankful he was to be able to restore 
 
 * A clause in the last Appropriation Bill makes the needed provision for 
 freighting by Indians. 
 
24: Indian Civilization. 
 
 them all in good health, and that they had had no sickness to speak 
 of the whole term. 
 
 Horse-Back, a Comanche Chief, replied, speaking very gratefully 
 of the kind care the children had received, and also acknowledging 
 his gratitude to a higher power. The interpreter asked him if he 
 was thinking of the sun. "No," he said, "we must look higher 
 than that, to the Great Spirit who made the sun." 
 
 I think we may here see the evidence of the good influence of the 
 religious meetings that have been held, and of which James Haworth 
 writes : "Besides our regular morning meeting which many Indians 
 attend, it has been our custom to have one meeting each Sabbath 
 for religious instruction especially for the benefit of the adult Indians, 
 in which they have manifested very great interest, both in attendance 
 and attention ; and instead of fleeing with fright, or trembling with 
 superstitious fears, as they did a year or two ago when the guidance 
 and blessing of the Great Spirit was invoked, they bow their heads 
 in reverence and in some cases respond with deep feeling. ' ' 
 
 Here I may introduce an extract from a letter received last month 
 from the same earnest worker. 
 
 " One of the best meetings we have had was last Sabbath in White 
 Wolfs camp. When we drove up we found the prairie on fire and 
 his corral burning. He and several of his people were trying to 
 extinguish the fire and we got down and helped them. After getting 
 it out I told him of the good meeting we had in the morning and 
 that we had come to have one in his camp if he was willing, but I 
 supposed after working so hard they would be tired and we had 
 better defer it. ' No, no/ he said, e come now. ' They soon collected 
 the people and we had a blessed time. We spoke of the scene we 
 had just taken part in ; the heart was compared to the corral and 
 sin to the consuming fire. The application was quickly understood. 
 White-Wolf replied, < he did not formerly think much about these 
 things and never had made such a talk as he was going to make now. 
 He had been thinking for some time and asking the Great Spirit to 
 guide his mind aright and to give him a good heart. He wanted 
 to travel on the road that would lead him to the happy home of the 
 
The Wild Tribes. 25 
 
 Great Spirit, and not to go on the road that would lead him to the 
 home of misery of the Great Bad Spirit. What had been said was 
 for their good, and by following it they would be happier. Every 
 night and morning he asked the Great Spirit to have mercy on him 
 and his people, and to show them what he wanted them to do.' He 
 spoke with great earnestness and his eyes filled with tears. I walked 
 towards him, clasped his hand in mine and called him my brother. 
 He put his arms around me and pressed me to his breast as also did the. 
 others. This man till lately, has been one of the worst of the bad. 
 We know not the depth of his convictions nor what the future may 
 reveal, but all agreed that he acted as one deeply feeling what he 
 did." 
 
 The Cheyenne school which numbered only 35 scholars in 1874, 
 now has 112; an extensive and well planned enlargement of the 
 school buildings having been recently made. Industrial training is 
 the speciality of this school. In 3d month, 1875, Homer Segur 
 began his experiment of a school farm. Eleven Arapahoe boys were 
 persuaded to set to work and stood to it manfully through the deri- 
 sion of the young braves and the jeers of the squaws. They planted 
 50 acres, and realized a crop of 600 bushels of corn, 20 bushels of 
 potatoes, 100 wagon loads of pumpkins, and 40 loads of water 
 melons. The lads received the whole crop in payment for their 
 services, and the proceeds were expended half in clothing for them, 
 and half in cattle. Last year the Cheyenne lads were quite ready 
 to join also. They cultivated 120 acres, getting nearly 30 bushels 
 of corn to the acre, and raising an abundant and varied supply of 
 vegetables for the school table. The boys now own 29 cows and 
 calves, 1 8 pigs and 40 young ones, and take great interest in caring 
 for their stock. The girls make the bread, cook, keep the rooms 
 in order and mend the clothes. Odd jobs are found for the little 
 ones, such as keeping the gardens free from caterpillars and grubs. 
 The appearance of the children, as might be expected from those 
 kept so well employed, is thoroughly cheerful, and they enter heartily 
 into the new games their teachers have introduced. 
 
26 Indian Civilization. 
 
 GENERAL SURVEY OF THE QUESTION. 
 
 Thus far I have spoken of what I have seen. The facts I have 
 related have been gathered on the spot. In the words of another 
 visitor to the same field when giving a similar account : "I know 
 what I have written is no fancy sketch. It is a joyful reality." 
 These things demonstrate not only that the civilization and chris- 
 tianization of the Indians is hopeful, but that in many instances it 
 has become an accomplished fact. Much more might be said. Let 
 it be remembered that a great deal of successful work has been done 
 outside the limits of the Indian Territory. I would gladly have 
 referred in detail to the work in Nebraska, pursued in some respects 
 under greater difficulties than ours, and have told you of wise 
 measures adopted there, through which Indians who 8 years ago 
 were untamed savages have become the proprietors of comfortable 
 homes. I could have told you how the Senecas of the Cattaraugus 
 Reservation in New York, are now taking their place by their white 
 neighbors; that their farms and stocks compare favorably, and their 
 daughters are going out to teach in district schools. I could have 
 dwelt on the successful missionary work of the Methodists in the 
 Round Valley Reservation, California, where out of a population 
 of 1000, the Agent is able to report that he has not heard an oath 
 or seen a case of intoxication, for two years. 
 
 Especially should I have enjoyed describing the remarkable re- 
 sults of the work of the Missionary Bishops, Whipple and Hare, in 
 Minnesota, Dakota and Nebraska. 
 
 INDIANS IN CANADA. 
 
 Time forbids, but before leaving this branch of the subject, I 
 must very briefly allude to the success that has attended the policy 
 pursued in Canada. The Indians of the British Dominions are, in 
 proportion to the population, three times as numerous as the Indians 
 of the States are to theirs ; yet while the United States have had 
 almost constant wars, on the other side of the St. Lawrence there 
 
Indians in Canada. 27 
 
 has been constant peace. Through the kindness of a former Indian 
 Commissioner, William Welsh, of Philadelphia, access has been 
 given me to the valuable evidence furnished by J. T. Gilkison, for 
 14 years Visiting Superintendent of Indian Affairs in Canada, who 
 has had under his direct charge 3,300 of the Mohawks, Senecas and 
 other tribes.* 
 
 The following are some of the questions put to him, together with 
 his replies. 
 
 " Have you ever known or heard of any case, during this century, 
 where the whites had any reason to fear incursions from the Indians." 
 
 Ans. "No such occurrence has ever taken place in Canada 
 within that period. Their relations have been friendly; the Indians 
 being treated with consideration and kindness." 
 
 "Do you consider the Indians have perfect confidence in their 
 just treatment by the Government?" 
 
 Ans. ' ' Most assuredly. ' ' 
 
 " Do they believe that whatever is coming to them will be re- 
 ceived, without losing weight or value by passing through the 
 Agents of Government?" 
 
 Ans. " Certainly ; clear statements of accounts are furnished them 
 half yearly, so that they may know what is due. ' ' 
 
 While treated as wards, and receiving as such exceptional care 
 and assistance, the Indians of Canada are looked upon as a part of 
 the Nation, having rights as much entitled to respect as those of 
 any other class. The cupidity of land speculators, and the rapacity 
 of frontier bush-rangers, are never allowed to override their claims. 
 Suitable reserves, once set apart are thenceforth sacred. They 
 cannot be sold without the voluntary consent of a majority of the 
 male adults by special vote, and with the approval of the Govern- 
 ment, which approval would be withheld unless a change was evi- 
 dently for their benefit. The Government have never attempted to 
 force the Indians to surrender their lands. 
 
 Added to these excellent regulations, they enjoy the benefit of 
 equal laws. They are punished for crimes and protected from injury, 
 
 * See Appendix. 
 
28 Indian Civilization. 
 
 just as others. Thus treated, we are not surprised to find that they 
 give no more trouble than an equal number of the whites of the 
 lower classes. Their condition steadily improves, and the popula- 
 tion of some tribes is on the increase. The Christian religion, being 
 commended to them by justice and kindness, they are disposed to 
 accept it. 
 
 "Confidence begot of faith kept, and justice observed, has ever 
 been and will ever be, we trust," so say the people of Canada, " the 
 bond of union between us and our red children." 
 
 I need not remind you in how different a spirit the Indians of the 
 United States have been often met. It would be an ungracious task 
 for me to attempt to go over the sad story of their wrongs, perhaps 
 an unfitting one, since my own nation has too seldom been clear- 
 handed in these matters ; neither could I hope to say anything half 
 as forcible as what has been already said by Bishop Whipple in his 
 letter to the New York Tribune of last winter.* I trust that his in- 
 dignant protest against wrong doing, and his earnest pleas for justice, 
 mercy and truth, will not have been made in vain. 
 
 Sioux COMMISSION REPORT. 
 
 In this connection I will only further quote the words with which 
 the Sioux Commission close their Report, dated from Washington, 
 the i8th of 1 2th month, 1876. 
 
 "It is an eternal law of the government of God that whatsoever 
 a nation sows, that and nothing but that, shall it reap. If we sow 
 broken faith, injustice, and wrong, we shall reap in the future, as 
 we have reaped in the past, a harvest of sorrow and blood. We are 
 not simply dealing with a poor perishing race ; we are dealing with 
 God. We cannot afford to delay longer fulfilling our bounded duty 
 to those from whom we have taken that country, the possession of 
 which has placed us in the forefront of the nations of the earth. We 
 make it our boast that our country is the home of the oppressed of 
 all lands. Dare we forget that there are also those whom we have 
 
 '* See Appendix. 
 
(Popular ^Responsibility. 29 
 
 made homeless, and to whom we are bound to give protection and 
 care? 
 
 "We are aware that many of our people think that the only solu- 
 tion of the Indian problem is in their extermination. We would 
 remind such persons that there is only One who can exterminate. 
 There are too many graves within our borders over which the grass 
 has hardly grown, for us to forget that God is just. The Indian is 
 a savage, but he is also a man. He is capable of civilization. Amid 
 all the obstacles, the wrongs, and evils of our Indian policy, there 
 are no missions which show richer rewards. Thousands of this 
 poor race, who were once as degraded as the wild Sioux, are to-day 
 civilized men, living by the cultivation of the soil, and sharing with 
 us those blessings which give to men home, country and freedom. 
 There is no reason why these men may not also be led out of dark- 
 ness to light. If the men of past generations had reasoned as this 
 generation reasons, none of us would rejoice in the blessings of 
 Christian civilization. 
 
 " A great crisis has arisen in Indian affairs. The wrongs of the 
 Indians are admitted by all. Thousands of the best men in the 
 land feel keenly the Nation's shame. They look to Congress for 
 redress. Unless immediate and appropriate legislation is made for 
 the protection and government of the Indians, they must perish, 
 and our country bear forever the disgrace, and suffer the retribution 
 of its wrong-doing. Our children's children will tell the sad story 
 in hushed tones, and wonder how their fathers dared so to trample 
 on justice and trifle with God." 
 
 POPULAR RESPONSIBILITY. 
 
 Years ago Bishop Whipple visited Washington to plead the cause 
 of the poor Red Men. Secretary Stanton said to a friend of Bishop 
 Whipple, "What does the Bishop want? If he has come here to 
 tell us that this Government is guilty of gross crimes in its dealings 
 with the Indians, tell him that we all know that this is true. Tell 
 him that the U. S. Government never redresses any wrong until the 
 
30 Indian Civilization. 
 
 people demand it, and that when he can reach the heart of the peo- 
 ple, these wrongs will cease." 
 
 I want to urge upon you, my friends, to do what in you lies to 
 reach the heart of the people, so that an imperative demand may 
 go up to your rulers that a policy of mercy, justice and good faith 
 shall henceforth be strictly carried out. 
 
 The rights of prior possession cannot be ignored. In occupying 
 the lands of the Indian, and thus depriving him of the only means 
 of livelihood known to him or to his fathers, you incur an obliga- 
 tion to support him until you have taught him a better way of sup- 
 porting himself. The costliness of this process is often complained 
 of; I wish people would look as closely to the cost of war as they 
 do to the cost of peace. Bear in mind that it cost $50,000,000 to 
 subdue 2,500 Seminoles in Florida, and that Gen. Sherman and his 
 associate Commissioners reckoned that in the war with the Chey- 
 ennes, it took a million dollars to kill a man, and you will quickly 
 come to the conclusion that it is far cheaper to feed and to civilize 
 than it is to subdue and exterminate Indian tribes. Exaggerated 
 ideas of the expenses of the present system are currently entertained 
 from the fact that large sums of money held in trust for the Indians, 
 at Washington, which are their own property, and in no sense 
 come out of the National Exchequer, are included in the appropria- 
 tion accounts. 
 
 The proposal has been made to turn over the Indian service into 
 the hands of the military. This would be a great mistake. The 
 arbitrary despotism of martial law is as much opposed to the spirit 
 of civilization, as civil law is essential to it. To quote the words 
 of the Sioux Commission when arguing against the proposal : "The 
 War Department, as its name indicates, is unsuited for the work of 
 civilization ; officers of the army are not fitted, either by inclina- 
 tion or training, to teach Indian children to read and write, or 
 Indian men to sow and reap." The testimony brought out in the 
 report of the Board of Indian Commissioners for 1875, i g strong 
 and concurrent that the presence of soldiers retards civilization and 
 introduces vice. 
 
Indian A gents. 31 
 
 INDIAN AGENTS. 
 
 The Indian Agent should combine the self-sacrificing spirit of 
 a missionary, with practical business ability. To him belong the 
 general direction of the agency, the choice of his subordinates, 
 "the erection and care of buildings, the supervision of farming and 
 mechanical operations, the purchase and care of stock, the proper 
 receipt and distribution of supplies, the management of schools, 
 the keeping of accurate and complicated financial accounts, and 
 the furnishing of information and advice to head-quarters." He 
 must be a man of firmness of hand and kindness of heart ; able to 
 win and keep the confidence of a race distinguished by keen insight 
 into character, and to influence and control them with tact and 
 skill. To state these requirements is to assert that the army is the 
 wrong direction in which to look for the men that are wanted. 
 Possibly no better plan can be devised for obtaining Agents than 
 the one adopted by President Grant, of asking the religious de- 
 nominations to suggest names, under a moral responsibility for their 
 honesty and efficiency. We admit that sufficient care and judg- 
 ment have not always been shown, and that in some denominations 
 greater regard seems to have been paid to the interests of the indi- 
 vidual than of the tribe he was to serve ; yet we have the testimony 
 of the Secretary of the Interior in his last report, that considering 
 the very inadequate salaries allowed, it is matter of congratulation 
 that even so intelligent and capable men have been secured. When 
 the right men are found they should be kept ; they should receive 
 enough to enable them them to support and educate their families 
 with comfort, and should not be subject to removal with every 
 change of administration. In dealing with Indians it is especially 
 important that the plans pursued, and the people employed, should 
 be as little liable to change as possible. I was witness to the sus- 
 picion with which a newly arrived officer was regarded at one of 
 the agencies. "We don't know where this man came from ; we 
 think he got here in the night ;" said one of the chiefs, as he made 
 his complaint to the old Superintendent. 
 
32 Indian Civilization. 
 
 PERMANENCE OF LOCATION. 
 
 What has been said with regard to permanence of officers is still 
 more the case as regards permanence of location. If there is one 
 thing that I would urge with greater emphasis than another, it is 
 that the policy so happily pursued in Canada may be adopted, and 
 that when a suitable reservation has been selected for a tribe, it may 
 be kept for them inviolately. 
 
 Let us hear no more complaints like those which have reached us 
 from the Round Valley Reservation in California, where 20,000 
 acres of good arable land have been lately confiscated, without the 
 smallest show of justice, and where Commissioner Bristow, of Rhode 
 Island, says the white settlers seem bent on crowding the Indians 
 into the Pacific. So universally has this same sort of thing been 
 done, that they say out West, if you want a section of country oc- 
 cupied, you have only to make an Indian Reserve of it, and white 
 settlers are certain to pour in. Exaggerated reports of the value of 
 the land in the Indian Territory are already afloat, the certain 
 precursors of more determined attempts at its invasion. The ex- 
 pulsion of the 2000 settlers from the Osage Reserve, was a valuable 
 lesson, and it ought to be repeated whenever the occasion arises. 
 
 Where lands are divided in severalty the Indian ought not to be 
 allowed to sell his lands. When the citizen Pottawattomies had 
 received their share of the tribal reserve, designing white men soon 
 persuaded them to sell, and the consequence to the tribe was very 
 disastrous. 
 
 CIVIL LAW AND ITS ENFORCEMENT. 
 
 The laws of the United States ought to be put in force in the 
 Indian Territory and other Reservations. On this subject I heartily 
 concur with the sentiments of Superintendent Nicholson. We found 
 the Delawares in a very discouraged state from the feeling of inse- 
 curity of life and property. Bad white men invade the territory to 
 steal horses and cattle, almost certain that their crimes will go un- 
 
Appeal to the Society of Friends. 33 
 
 punished ; and we heard of several recent cases of murder and at- 
 tempted murder, which have not been brought to justice. 
 
 Laudable efforts for the benefit of the Indian Tribes have again 
 and again been frustrated by the introduction of strong drink among 
 them. Access to whiskey means extinction to the race ; it should 
 be a penal offence to sell liquor to an Indian anywhere. 
 
 Provision for the education of the children should be made in a 
 generous spirit ; so also should provision for the supply of imple- 
 ments of husbandry ; when the Indians show a disposition to work, 
 it is the worst of short-sighted policy not to furnish them with tools. 
 
 The rations that are needed and that have been promised should 
 be sent on time. Much misery has been caused by failure of punc- 
 tuality in delivering food. On the other hand, rations should not 
 be continued any longer than the actual necessity lasts. We wrong 
 the Indian if we fail to stimulate him to self-support. We want to 
 make a citizen of him, not a pauper. 
 
 Medicines also should be duly supplied ; 400 Pawnees out of a 
 population of 2000, died in the year of their removal from Nebraska. 
 The memory of my visit to their agency will never be effaced from 
 my mind. Literally, " the air was full of farewells to the dying 
 and mourning for the dead;" 14 died in one day shortly before 
 our visit. The words of the chiefs to us reminded me of the wail 
 of the children of Israel in the desert, "We are consumed with 
 dying. We die, we perish, we all perish." And all this time, the 
 quinine that would have counteracted the malarial poison was not 
 to be ha^. The authorities at Washington do indeed need to be 
 reminded that their negligence and delays incur misery and death 
 to these poor people. 
 
 APPEAL TO THE SOCIETY OF FRIENDS. 
 
 In conclusion, I have a few words to say in a special manner to 
 my own brethren in religious profession, the members of the Society 
 of Friends. We have a traditional, I may say a historical interest 
 
 in the Indian. Two hundred years ago, within the bounds of the 
 3 
 
34 Indian Civilization. 
 
 City of Philadelphia, occurred a scene to which the poet and the 
 painter, the statesman and the historian, have alike delighted to do 
 honor. Beneath the Elm Tree of Shackamaxon, William Penn 
 enunciated those pure and holy principles, which he had learned 
 from the Sermon on the Mount. Having faith in the universal ap- 
 plicability of these principles, he tried " the holy experiment" of 
 putting them in practice towards the white man and the red alike. 
 " We meet," he said, " on the broad pathway of faith and good- 
 will ; where no advantage is to be taken on either side, but all is to 
 be openness, brotherhood and love." 
 
 The treaty that was there signed was kept. "The only one," 
 as Voltaire said, "made without an oath, and the only one that 
 was never broken." Bancroft has done justice to our relations 
 with the Indian tribes, and records that no drop of Quaker blood 
 was ever shed by them. They still look to us as their friends. A 
 Quaker is received by them with confidence because he is a Qua- 
 ker. "The Quakers are your friends," said Black Beaver of the 
 Delawares, in 1872. " Their fathers and ours bound themselves to 
 be friends forever. Their treaty was never broken. The Indians 
 have never taken any Quaker's blood, and the Quakers have always 
 been true friends to the Indians. Our Grandfather at Washington 
 knew this, and for this reason has sent them among us. He knew 
 that they would do right by his red grand-children." 
 
 A prominent share in the care of the Indians has been assigned 
 to us. It is a great trust. The Chief Clerk of Indian Affairs bears 
 testimony that we accepted it " as a great trust," and I 3411 thank- 
 ful to know that the encomium is merited. We cannot be too 
 earnest in the use of right means. We cannot be too careful in 
 our choice of men. To quote the words of my friend Joel Bean, 
 when writing on this subject : " Our eye must be kept single, our 
 object pure, and our trust fixed upon the Lord. We need Divine 
 counsel to direct ; and men that can stand like flint against temp- 
 tation ; men of clean hands and a pure heart, to represent a holy 
 cause among a benighted people, and before the emissaries whom 
 Satan sends to spoil them." 
 
Appeal to the Society of Friends. 35 
 
 Much of our work has been well done. No fraud, I believe, can 
 be proved against us. No Quaker agent has returned from the 
 field enriched with unrighteous gain. We have shown our capacity 
 to educate these people, and to train them to self-support ; but we 
 have done little, comparatively, to Christianize them. The results 
 of some of our longest established missions are not such as we can 
 point to with much exultation. I think we have learned some les- 
 sons, and are beginning to adapt our means more wisely to our 
 ends. The old maxim, " Civilize first, then try to Christianize," 
 must be thrown away, and we must accept the axiom that " Chris- 
 tianity is at once the shortest road to civilization, and the best secu- 
 rity for its maintenance." We fail in the most important part of 
 all, if we fail to bring these people to our Saviour's feet. Remem- 
 ber how George Fox, by example and precept, urged upon our 
 fathers to teach the Indians that Christ died for them, and that the 
 Holy Spirit is sent to them as well as to us. It is Christian teachers 
 who above all are needed ; men and women who will accept the 
 elevation of these people as their mission, and give themselves to it 
 as a life work. 
 
 My whole heart went out towards a beloved brother, who had 
 nearly fallen a martyr to his devotion ; as he told me that he so 
 loved the Indians, that he would willingly labor in their behalf till 
 death. It is a work that calls for self-sacrifice and untiring patience. 
 Energy sometimes flags under the difficulties, and under the discou- 
 ragements the eye of hope grows dim. But the maxim of the pio- 
 neer missionary to the Indians, the venerable Elliot, still holds 
 good : " Prayer and pains, with faith in Jesus Christ, will accom- 
 plish everything." 
 
 One word more : A plea for sympathy for the workers. I ask 
 you to remember their isolated situation, in those far-off wilder- 
 nesses. They are separated from the comforts and blessings of 
 civilized life. Their religious privileges are few. Beyond the nar- 
 row circle of their fellow employees, they have no companionship 
 but that of the Indian. Privations, difficulties and discouragements 
 abound. 
 
36 Indian Civilization. 
 
 I have dwelt this evening on the bright results, but I could not 
 tell you of all the toil and hardness through which those results 
 have been achieved, nor of all the shadows that are wanted, to give 
 the picture the completeness of truth. One of the Agents told me 
 that nothing but the belief that they were on the line of their duty, 
 and more usefully occupied than they could be elsewhere, would 
 induce them to remain ; and at another place they said they were 
 so harassed through being inadequately supported, that they were 
 almost ready to give up in despair. 
 
 You have tried, I know, to strengthen their hands, by your cor- 
 respondence and your gifts, and what you have done has been most 
 highly appreciated. I want to encourage you to go on and abound 
 still more. This work is a work for the whole church, in which 
 we should be found laboring with one accord. It is the cause of 
 the oppressed ; and in giving ourselves to it we shall be found co- 
 laborers with Him concerning whom it is written : " He shall de- 
 liver the needy when he crieth ; the poor also, and him that hath 
 no helper. He shall spare the poor and the needy, and shall save 
 the souls of the needy. He shall redeem their soul from deceit and 
 violence, and precious shall their blood be in His sight." 
 
Appendix. 37 
 
 EVIDENCE ON THE 
 
 CONDITION OF INDIANS IN CANADA, 
 
 BY J. T. GILKISON. 
 
 Questions and Answers to and from J, T, Gilkison, Visiting Superintendent of 
 Indian Affairs, County of rant, Ontario, Canada; having under his charge 
 about 3,100 Six Nation Indians, and 200 of the Ojibewas, in all 3,300. 
 
 ist. How long have you been Superintendent? 
 
 Fourteen years. 
 2nd. Over what Tribes have you charge? 
 
 The Six Nation Indians, consisting of Mohawks, Oneidas, 
 Senecas, Cayugas, Onondagas, Tuscaroras, and some Dela- 
 wares. Also, a band of the Ojibewas called Mississaugas. 
 3rd. How many in number? 
 
 In all about 3,300. 
 4th. Of how many acres does their reserve consist ? 
 
 52,000 acres of excellent land, surrounded by white neighbors. 
 5th. Are they increasing in numbers? 
 
 The average natural increase of the Six Nations is about forty 
 
 per annum ; the Mississaugas about stationary. 
 6th. Do they live on farms, or do they subsist by hunting? 
 
 They have farms, and cultivate more or less land ; a very few, 
 occasionally, go some distance to hunt the deer, and trap 
 for furs, 
 yth. Of farms, how much land does each family hold? 
 
 The Reserve is divided into the usual concessions, and lots of 
 100 acres, the regulation being that quantity as the maxi- 
 mum for the head of a family. 
 8th. On what terms do they possess their reserve? 
 They hold title in common, from the crown. 
 9th. Can they sell their holdings to another of their tribe, or to 
 
 any other Indians, or to a white? 
 
 The rule is, not to sell or exchange without authority ; Indians 
 of other bands, and whites, are by rule and law excluded. 
 
38 Appendix. 
 
 ioth. Have they deeds of their farms? 
 
 No, the Reserve is held in common, but, the individuals are 
 located, and under new regulations, will have location 
 tickets, duly recorded in a book for the purpose. 
 
 nth. Can their holdings be inherited by will or otherwise ? 
 
 The usage has been so, an Indian will having no legal effect, 
 but recent legislation defines the succession to lands and 
 chattels, the widow and children, or near relatives partici- 
 pating. 
 
 1 2th. If the whites desire to buy the lands of the Indians, and 
 should press the Government to admit such purchase, and 
 remove the Indians to other lands, would the Government 
 likely do so ? 
 
 Indian Reserves cannot be sold without, in the first place, 
 the voluntary wish of a majority of the male adults, by a 
 special vote ; and secondly, by consent of the Govern- 
 ment ; while, it is certain, that even if the Indians desired 
 to sell, the Government would not sanction it, unless the 
 act was for their advantage and benefit. The Government 
 have never attempted to force the Indians to surrender 
 their lands. 
 
 1 4th. Do you consider the Indians improving as farmers, and as 
 
 Christians ? 
 
 Yes, on the whole they are doing so ; some of them being 
 good farmers, and in morality and sobriety, a decided im- 
 provement. 
 
 1 5th. Are Indians subject to punishment for crimes, and are they 
 
 protected from injury by whites ? 
 
 Yes, all are dealt with alike according to the laws of the 
 Dominion. 
 
 1 6th. Do you consider the Indians under your care give more 
 trouble in the administration of the laws than an equal 
 number of whites of the lower classes ? 
 
 I do not, though they are subject to the influence and temp- 
 tations of designing bad white men. 
 
Appendix. 39 
 
 1 7th. In what respect does the Government treat the Indians 
 
 differently from the whites ? 
 
 As already stated, all are alike subject to the common laws 
 of the country, but the Indians are communities, under 
 the special care of the Government, whose policy has 
 always been that of a good parent, and every effort is 
 made to promote their welfare and prosperity, in the hope 
 they will some day become self-reliant and independent. 
 In the meantime, they have their reservations, no muni- 
 cipal law, but their local or domestic affairs are regulated 
 by an Indian Council, frequently presided over by the 
 local or visiting superintendent, minutes of proceedings 
 taken, which are sent to the Indian Department. 
 
 1 8th. Have you ever known, or heard of any case during this cen- 
 tury, where the whites had 'any reason to fear incursions 
 from Indians ? 
 
 No such occurrence has ever taken place in Canada within 
 that period, because their relations have been friendly, 
 the Indians being treated with consideration and kindness. 
 
 1 9th. Do you consider the Indians have perfect confidence in their 
 
 just treatment by the Government ? 
 Most assuredly. 
 
 2oth. Do they believe that whatever is coming to them, will be 
 received, without losing weight, or value, by passing 
 through the agents of Government ! 
 
 Certainly ; for it is the desire and practice of the Government, 
 to give the Indian bands full information as to their affairs 
 and moneys, even to furnishing them with copies of their 
 accounts current, half yearly, while they also see the annual 
 Indian Blue Book, published by authority of Parliament. 
 The Agents, or Visiting Superintendents, take a personal 
 interest in affording all information, assistance and advice 
 in their power. 
 
 2ist. From your observation, what has been the influence of re- 
 ligion, as presented through the Church of England, among 
 the Indians? 
 
40 Appendix. 
 
 Quite as favorable as with a similar body of whites, consider- 
 ing the serious defect in the want of parental authority ; 
 children being allowed to have too much their own way, 
 very natural in the Indian race. 
 
 Through the benevolent efforts of the New England Company of 
 London, England, the education and spiritual welfare of the Six 
 Nations and other Indian Bands have been greatly promoted ; 
 hundreds of children have been, and are being taught, the ordinary 
 branches of education, in a number of schools, and in a well con- 
 ducted " Institute," where, in addition, boys and girls are instructed 
 in farming, and house or domestic work, productive of gratifying 
 results. 
 
 The Six Nations, with the Mississauga Band, are probably the 
 largest body of Indians in any one settlement in Canada, and are a 
 law abiding people ; and with their Councils, Agricultural Society, 
 Ploughing Matches, Temperance Societies, Schools, Churches, 
 Bands of Music, &c., have thus all the elements of civilization and 
 progress. 
 
 It should be stated, that about 800 of the Cayugas, Onondagas, 
 Senecas and Oneidas, are Pagans, and worship the Great Spirit, 
 with the forms and ceremonies of their fathers, but they are a well 
 behaved people, emulate, and live in harmony with their Christian 
 brethren. 
 
 For further information and details, reference may be made to 
 the reports in the Government Blue Book for 1876; to a narrative 
 of the visit of the Governor General to the Six Nations in 1874; to 
 printed report of an Indian Council with the Superintendent General 
 of Indian Affairs; and to printed report of a ploughing match. 
 The Agricultural shows of the Six Nations, held each year, rival 
 those of their white neighbors. 
 
 J. T. GILKISON, 
 
 Visiting Superintendent and Commissioner, 
 
 Indian Affairs. 
 
 INDIAN OFFICE Brantford, Ontario, Canada. 
 DEC. ist, 1876. 
 
Appendix. 41 
 
 PEACE WITH THE SIOUX, 
 
 LETTER FROM BISHOP WHIPPLE. 
 
 ORIGIN AND HISTORY OF THE WAR INJUSTICE OF THE GOVERN- 
 MENT TREATIES BROKEN CONFIDENCE DESTROYED A PER- 
 PETUAL PEACE ADVOCATED. 
 
 To the Editor of the Tribune : 
 
 SIR: The Sioux Indians had the solemn pledge of the United 
 States that they should be protected in the absolute and peaceable 
 possession of the country which was set apart for them by the treaty 
 of 1868. That treaty was made by some of the highest officers of 
 the army, men of national fame and untarnished honor. It could 
 not have been made had not they pledged a soldier's honor that 
 the faith would be kept. The Constitution of the United States 
 makes these treaties the highest of all authority, and declares that 
 they are binding upon every citizen. The ordinance of 1787, which 
 is equally binding, declares that the Indian tribes shall be protected 
 in person, property, and life, and that their property shall never be 
 taken from them except in war which has been duly authorized by 
 Congress. I know of no instance in history where a great nation 
 has so shamelessly violated its solemn oath. We first sent an army 
 into the country which we had pledged no white man should enter 
 to seek for gold. They found gold. The discovery was heralded 
 by the press. A greedy host of adventurers flocked to the "Eldo- 
 rado." The press, the people, and the rulers seemed to have for- 
 gotten that these red men held the title to these lands by the guar- 
 antee of a nation's honor, as well as by the undisputed possession of 
 centuries. It was the old story of Ahab coveting Naboth's vine- 
 yard. Ahab excused his conscience by calling Naboth a churlish 
 fellow, and he crowned the infamy of robbing by murder. These 
 are hard words. When did Congress authorize war against the 
 Sioux ? When did the Executive give orders to carry desolation and 
 death to the women and children of the Dakotas? 
 
42 Appendix. 
 
 The history of this war is this: In November, 1875, Inspector 
 E. C. Watkins wrote to the Indian Office, that Sitting Bull and the 
 Indians with him in the.Powder River country, were guilty of depre- 
 dations upon the settlers in Montana. He said that they were few 
 in number, and recommended that they should be punished. Every 
 motive of humanity and justice demanded that we should be careful 
 to protect the innocent and only punish the guilty. That Fall there 
 was an inadequate supply of provisions at the agencies, and the 
 Indians went out to their unceded territory to hunt. They went 
 as they were accustomed to do with the consent of their agents 
 and as provided by the treaty. An order was issued December 6, 
 1875, by E. P. Smith, Commissioner of Indian Affairs, that unless 
 the Indians returned to the agencies before February i, 1876, they 
 would all be regarded as hostile. That officer is dead, but he told 
 his friends the order was a sad mistake, and that he had been de- 
 ceived by others. The Indians had gone away from the agencies 
 to secure food and skins for clothing. The United States had set 
 apart this very country as a hunting ground for them for ever. Eight 
 months after this order to return or to be treated as hostile, Con- 
 gress appropriated money for the seventh of 30 instalments for 
 these roaming Indians. It was impossible for the Indians to obey 
 the order. No one of the runners sent out to inform the Indians 
 was able to return himself by the time appointed, yet Indian women 
 and children were expected to traverse a treeless desert without fuel 
 or proper clothing under the penalty of death. Gen. Sheridan 
 says in his report that the tropps found the weather so severe as 
 late as March, that they were frost-bitten and had to return to their 
 posts. If well-clad soldiers, with tents and supply trains, could 
 not remain out in March, we can judge of the feasibility of Indian 
 families traversing that vast desert in the depth of winter. 
 
 BEGINNING OF THE WAR. 
 
 When this order reached Cheyenne Agency, Agent Bingham 
 wrote back, " It has surprised me and my Indians that the Govern- 
 
Appendix. 43 
 
 ment thinks that war is possible. I have never seen these Indians 
 more friendly disposed. ' ' Even the Indians who were in the Powder 
 River Country and were directed to return .to the agencies, received 
 the message without any signs of irritation. They did not dream 
 of war. They said, " We cannot come now ; we are hunting ; we 
 will return early in the Spring. ' ' This order furnished the pretext 
 for war. Early in February troops were concentrated, and by March 
 the war was inaugurated. On March lyth, an Indian village was 
 attacked. An Indian village means a collection of tents occupied 
 by men, women, and children. We cry out with indignation when 
 savages follow the rule of savage warfare and attack one of our 
 villages, and murder women and children. Is the act any more 
 humane when civilization attacks Indian settlements and kills Indian 
 women and babes ? Is the crashing shell or the merciless minie- 
 ball less cruel when it tears the flesh of the Indian's wife and child 
 than when the tomahawk and rifle kills the white mother and babe? 
 The Indians say that that village was composed of people who were 
 coming back to the agencies in obedience to the order of the Com- 
 missioner of Indian Affairs. 
 
 The war, thus begun, forced all the Indians in the Powder River 
 country into a hostile attitude. Then came the massacre of the 
 lamented Gen. Custer and his gallant army. Even this disaster did 
 not make us think about justice. A cry arose for extermination. 
 The year's war has accomplished the usual results we have killed 
 a few scores of Indians, including men, women, and children. We 
 have hardly had an engagement which was not an attack upon an 
 Indian village. We have boasted of our glorious victories when we 
 have burned and destroyed the food, the clothing, and the shelter 
 of these Indians, and turned them out amid the horrors of a Dakota 
 winter to die. We do not torture the wounded and the dying, but 
 we employ the merciless savage to do it for us. The Pawnees and 
 the Crows, the savage enemies of the Sioux, are incorporated into 
 our army. They are paid, and fed, and clothed by us, and we are 
 responsible for their deeds. Recently a telegram announced that a 
 number of Sioux chiefs came to our camp with a flag of truce to sue 
 
44 Appendix. 
 
 for peace. All were brutally murdered by our Crow scouts. Would 
 we not hold another nation responsible for the acts committed by 
 the allies whom they had employed? It will be said it was a mis- 
 take j that the officers of the army felt a righteous indignation at the 
 act. I believe it. There are in our army some of the noblest men 
 that ever lived. I pay, and always will pay, all honor to such men. 
 They hate this wretched Indian warfare. They feel ashamed and 
 humbled when they are sent to carry on war which they know is 
 the result of violated treaties. The people and the Government 
 commit injustice which would be regarded as a just cause of war by 
 any civilized nation. 
 
 The war, which is unjust in its inception, must always be a war 
 of blunders and wrong. We do not attempt to redress the wrong. 
 Take one instance. The whole nation knew of the Sand Creek 
 massacre by Colonel Chivington in 1864. They knew that this 
 massacre has no parallel in modern times. Women were ripped 
 open and unborn infants taken from their wombs. Babes were 
 butchered in their mother's arms. Scenes took place which Gen. 
 Sherman says would have disgraced any tribe in Africa. These 
 brutal acts were done by volunteer enlisted troops, under the nation's 
 flag ; the soldiers wore its uniform. Was any reparation made ? 
 Was any Indian widow or orphan pensioned ? Was any property 
 paid for? The war which grew out of that massacre was carried on 
 until Black Kettle and his band were killed. Gen. Harney said of 
 this chief: " I have worn the uniform of my country fifty-five years, 
 and I know that Black Kettle was as good a friend of the United 
 States as I am/' Col. Boone had known Black Kettle for years. 
 He said, with tears, " He was a good man ; he was my friend ; he 
 was murdered/' 
 
 Unjust war always tends to acts of cruelty. We have this Fall 
 committed fearful wrongs against the Sioux Indians who have re- 
 mained peaceably at their agencies. In July there was a rumor that 
 the ponies of the friendly Indians would be taken from them. The 
 agent at Cheyenne appealed to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs 
 to know if the rumor was true. The Commissioner went to the 
 
^Appendix. 45 
 
 President. The President told him to write and assure the Indians 
 of protection. He asked the Commissioner to see Gen. Sherman 
 and tell him the President's decision. They agreed upon a dispatch. 
 The pledge that they should be protected in their property was 
 made in the most solemn manner by the agent, for he had the 
 highest of all authority, the President of the United States. This 
 pledge was repeated by the officers of the army. When the Sioux 
 Commission was sent to make a treaty for the Black Hills, Judge Gay- 
 lord, the Assistant Attorney General, went with them as their legal 
 adviser. Before he left Washington he called upon the President 
 to learn his views. The President told him to assure, all friendly 
 Indians that they would be protected in their persons and property. 
 The Commission made the same pledge. In violation of these 
 pledges, 2,000 ponies were taken from Cheyenne and Standing 
 Rock Agencies. They shared the fate of all property taken with- 
 out color of law. No inventory was kept of individual property. 
 Of 1,100 ponies taken at Standing Rock, only 874 left Bismarck 
 for St. Paul. No provision was made to feed them on the way. 
 The grass had burned on the prairie and there were several inches 
 of snow on the ground. The small streams were frozen, and no 
 water was to be had until they reached the James River. There 
 was no grass, and no hay could be purchased until they reached 
 the Cheyenne River, more than ten days' travel, and then nothing 
 until they reached Fort Abercrombie. No wonder that there were 
 only 1,200 ponies out of 2,000 that left Abercrombie, and that of 
 these only about 500 reached'St. Paul. The wretched, dying brutes 
 were made the subject of jest as the war horses of the Dakotas. 
 Many died on the way, many were stolen, and the remnant were 
 sold in St. Paul. It was worse than the ordinary seizure of property 
 without color of law. It was not merely robbery of our friends 
 in violation of the plighted word of the President, in violation of 
 the organic' law of the nation, in violation of justice it was cruel. 
 The Indians are compelled to camp from 10 to 40 miles away from 
 the agency to find fuel. They have to cross this distance in the 
 
46 Appendix. 
 
 coldest weather to obtain their rations, and without ponies they 
 must cross on foot, and some of them may perish. 
 
 A LASTING PEACE POSSIBLE. 
 
 So the war goes on and a just God looks down from Heaven and 
 sees it all, and will reward us according to our work. There is an 
 old-fashioned book which some of us believe, and it tells us that 
 nations reap what they sow ; just that, nothing but that. We talk 
 about mistakes mistakes in politics, mistakes in business but the 
 real mistake is in forgetting God. Business is at a stand-still in the 
 East, the West is desolated by the locusts, whom an old prophet 
 calls the Lord's great army. Is it not time to hear His voice, 
 "What is it, O man, the Lord doth require of thee ; to deal justly, 
 to love mercy and to walk humbly with God?" Why may we not 
 make an honorable and a lasting peace with these poor outlawed 
 Sioux? It can be done. It only needs justice, government, pro- 
 tection of the innocent and punishment of the guilty; a policy 
 worthy of a great Christian people. There are men who can settle 
 this whole question justly. We are not dealing with a few poor 
 savages. We are dealing with God. These poor red men are men 
 for whom Christ died. Our religion is a sham and a snare if it does 
 not embrace in its love the heathen at our doors. 
 
 Years ago I visited Washington to plead for the poor red men. 
 Secretary Stanton said to a friend of mine: "What does the Bishop 
 want ? If he has come here to tell us that this government is guilty 
 of gross crimes in its dealings with the Indians, tell him that we all 
 know that this is true. Tell him that the United States Govern- 
 ment never redresses any wrong until the people demand it, and 
 when he can reach the heart of the people these wrongs will end." 
 
 The whole country knows that these Sioux Indians cannot become 
 civilized where they are. They cannot subsist there by the chase. 
 We can build vast almshouses and gather around them a mass of 
 savages, under every bad influence, certain that the irritations of 
 our Indian system, the failure to make appropriations, or some 
 
Appendix. 47 
 
 blundering crime, will in time bring us oft recurring Indian wars. 
 We can perpetuate our present policy of raising and training wild 
 Indians. We can raise savages to murder our people, and spend 
 millions of treasure in repeating our stupid policy. Is there no 
 better way ? In the South-West there is as beautiful a country as 
 the sun ever shone upon. It has been solemnly set apart as .the 
 future home of the Indians. There is more reason to keep it for 
 them, because the solemn compact which for ever dedicated that 
 territory to the Indians was made to atone for one of the darkest 
 crimes against the Cherokees and others. One half of that territory 
 is absolutely at our disposal. Any Indian tribes can be located 
 upon it at the good pleasure of the Government. Indians may be 
 settled on other unoccupied portions of the territory with the 
 consent of the owners, and by a just payment of its value. A small 
 fragment of the Sioux wish to go there. They can be made the 
 pioneers for others, and the whole Sioux nation ultimately find a 
 home there, as fast as they are prepared to live by the cultivation of 
 the soil. 
 
 If the Sioux remain on the Missouri permanently there is but one 
 way in which they can become a self-supporting people. It is to 
 make them herdsmen. It is a life peculiarly fitted for a nomadic 
 people. 
 
 It could only become a success under a careful and well devised 
 system. A considerable appropriation must be made to buy Ameri- 
 can cattle. A wise plan of distribution be adopted to give them to 
 the most reliable. They must be protected by the strong arm of 
 the law from lawless Indians and whites. It will require greater 
 care, because the vast emigration to the Black Hills will lead hun- 
 dreds of whites to engage in the same avocation, and there will be 
 great danger of conflict. There are Sioux who will never willingly 
 leave Dakota, and these should be allowed to remain, and must be 
 made stock raisers. There are those who wish to become farmers, 
 and these must be given a country where agriculture is possible. It 
 is said that if a few hundred friendly Sioux are sent to the Indian 
 Territory it will endanger the safety of the white settlers in the 
 
48 Appendix. 
 
 neighboring States. The Sioux Indian has no superior among the 
 wild red men of America. He can be influenced by kindness. No 
 wild man has greater respect for law. After the awful massacre of 
 Minnesota, which stands without parallel in American history, and 
 which was the result of our robbery, fourteen hundred of the worst 
 of these Sioux fled to Canada. They were given a reservation . They 
 have been loyal to the Canadian Government and law abiding. The 
 Secretary of the Interior for the Dominion says, that when it was 
 thought best to have a portion of them removed to a new reserve 
 some of "their white neighbors objected because they had been 
 found so useful." 
 
 In 1864, Gen. Sibley selected 150 of these Sioux as scouts and 
 placed them in camps along our Western border. They had orders 
 to kill any Indians who entered the State to murder the whites. 
 Only one body of Indians evaded their watchfulness of these three 
 were captured by whites and hanged at Mankato, two were killed 
 by scouts, one escaped, and one was taken prisoner and brought to 
 a camp of scouts. This prisoner found his own uncle in command 
 of the camp. He said, "My uncle I am glad to see you; you will 
 save my life." His uncle replied, "No, my nephew, I am a soldier 
 and my orders are to kill any man who comes to make war on whites. 
 You have done this and you must die. ' ' He raised his gun and 
 killed him on the spot. 
 
 THE SIOUX FAITHFUL. 
 
 The officers of the army know that there never have been any 
 more faithful men than the Sioux scouts. Gen. Stanley and Gen. 
 Sully repeatedly bore testimony to their fidelity. Gen. Terry issued 
 a general order in 1874, which was to be read on parade at every 
 post, thanking the Sioux scouts for their fidelity and courage in 
 danger. The lamented Gen. Custer wrote a letter to the Rev. S. 
 D. Hinman after his expedition to the Black Hills, in which he says 
 of the Sioux scouts from the Santee Agency, that he doubts if there 
 is any village in the country which has so many young men of like 
 
Appendix. 49 
 
 exemplary character, and he speaks of how his heart was touched 
 by hearing these Indians singing in their worship "Rock of Ages/' 
 and "Old Hundred." If some of the Sioux hate us, it was our 
 lying, our robbery, our cruelty, which have made them our foes. 
 For more than 35 years the officers of the North-West Fur Company 
 bear testimony that they were wont to boast that their hands had 
 not been stained by the blood of white men. You may begin back 
 to the massacre of Lieut. Grattan in 1853, and there are few out- 
 breaks which have not been the result of our own blunders or crimes. 
 Even those which cannot be traced to some direct act of cruelty or 
 robbery (as was the Minnesota massacre, when we took from these 
 Indians the avails of 800,000 acres of land, and then withheld their 
 annuities for two months after they were due, and at the eleventh 
 hour took other trust funds to supply one-half of the annuity which 
 had been wrongfully taken,) are the outcome of a policy which leaves 
 Indians without government, without personal rights of property, 
 without protection, and subject to every influence which can change 
 heathen men to savages. I have asked scores of brave officers, who 
 have grown gray in the service, if they knew of a single instance 
 where Indians have been the first to break the treaty, and they have 
 always answered, No. 
 
 If amid the irritation of the present war some officers speak with 
 bitterness and hatred of the Indian foes, "we must appeal from 
 Philip drunk to Philip sober. ' ' After a year of searching investiga- 
 tion as to the causes of the then existing Indiar war, Gen. Sherman, 
 Gen. Harney, Gen. Terry, and Gen. Augur wrote: "That the 
 Indian goes to war is not astonishing ; he is often compelled to do 
 so ; wrongs are borne by him in silence which never fail to drive 
 civilized men to deeds of violence. Among civilized men war 
 usually springs from a sense of injustice. The best possible way to 
 avoid war then, is to do no act of injustice. When we learn that 
 the same rule holds good with the Indians, the principal difficulty 
 is removed. But it is said that our wars with them have been 
 almost constant. Have we been uniformly unjust? We answer 
 unhesitatingly, Yes." These words were written before the last 
 4 
 
50 Appendix. 
 
 great robbery of the Black Hills, and before the seizure of their 
 property in violation of the plighted faith of the President of the 
 United States. 
 
 The Sioux who believed in and trusted the late Commission, have 
 made an agreement to cede to us the Black Hills, and unless that 
 agreement is honestly and fairly carried out these Indians will lose 
 all faith in white men. It will be to them another confirmation 
 that the name of "white men" is a synonym for "liar." There is 
 more reason to take every means to secure again the confidence of 
 these Indians, which has been so outraged by the seizure of their 
 property in violation of law and the solemn pledges which were 
 made by the authority of the President. The Government owes to 
 its own reputation that it should honestly pay these Indians the full 
 value of their ponies. It will be money wisely expended, even as a 
 precautionary measure to prevent the continuance of this war. Un- 
 less some decided steps are taken, we shall have a war upon us which 
 will cost millions of treasure and thousands of lives. 
 
 Neither President Grant nor General Sherman is responsible for 
 the seizure of the ponies of the friendly Sioux. It was done with- 
 out their knowledge. It shows the objection to placing friendly 
 Indians in the charge of subordinate officers of the army. The 
 lives of some of these ponies were sacrificed to army routine. An 
 officer was 'asked why he did not feed them. He answered: "I 
 had no orders to feed them, and if I had fed them, I must have 
 paid for it out of my own pocket." 
 
 This Spring will see a mighty exodus of our people to the mines 
 of the Black Hills. Every route which leads there will swarm with 
 its thousands and tens of thousands, and unless the war is ended 
 and peace made, this nation will hear such a wail of sorrow as never 
 entered our ears from Indian massacre. We have tried robbery and 
 know its fruits ; let us try justice and mercy, and reap their blessed 
 fruits. I would not prophesy evil. God knows our cup of iniquity 
 is full enough without prophesying more. I do fear that the clamor 
 to prevent a few hundred Sioux from going to the Indian Territory, 
 of whom the Santees are civilized Christian men, and others are our 
 
Appendix. 51 
 
 friends, is simply that white men have fixed their greedy eye upon 
 that Indian paradise, and will never give up their plans until it too, 
 shall be wrested from its lawful possessors. Have we learned noth- 
 ing from the past ? There was a day when the people of Georgia 
 passed a law forbidding any one to teach an Indian. A missionary 
 brave, noble Worcester was put in jail as a felon because he 
 feared God rather then men, and continued to tell the heathen of 
 the love of Jesus Christ. The case was appealed to the Supreme 
 Court of the United States, and the Chief Justices, Marshall and 
 Story, declared the law of Georgia was unconstitutional. The 
 President refused to execute the mandate of the Court and iniquity 
 triumphed. But in the sure retribution of God, He ordered that 
 from the top of Missionary Ridge, the home of this martyrized 
 servant of God, there should descend an avenging army to lay waste 
 that goodly land and humble it in the dust. Has there ever been 
 a wrong which will not be avenged? Not one; and there never 
 will be until the cry of the poor ceases to enter the ear of the Lord 
 God of Sabaoth. 
 
 It is because I honestly believe that these Indian wars are unjust 
 and unnecessary that I do plead for a wiser and a better policy. A 
 crisis has come. We shall settle the Indian question wisely and 
 justly so as to bear the scrutiny of God, or we shall reach out our 
 hand, for self-inflicted curses upon ourselves and children. I should 
 do wrong to my own heart if I did not say that despite all the wrongs 
 of an Indian system which leaves Indians without a vestige of govern- 
 ment, without personal rights, without power to protect the innocent 
 or to punish the guilty, without power to prevent the violation of 
 treaties, President Grant deserves the thanks of the friends of the 
 Indians for having tried to secure justice in the administration of 
 Indian affairs. His efforts have enabled Christian men to do much 
 to civilize and christianize the Indian tribes. Hundreds of Indians 
 have been saved, and men who eight years ago were as wild and 
 savage as the Sioux, are to day rejoicing in the blessings of a Chris- 
 tian civilization. 
 
 Pardon my long letter. If I have written strongly it is because 
 
52 Appendix. 
 
 I do feel deeply. I do not war with individuals, nor do I blame 
 the army. The power of the system, which is a web of blunders, is 
 stronger than men, and the hate engendered in all savage war is 
 more powerful than pleas for mercy. Our rightful king is the 
 "Prince of Peace," and His words are, "Do good to them that 
 hate you." The officers who made the treaty of 1868 said " that 
 when we learn that this law is as universal as humanity, it is worth 
 more than whole volumes of theories about Indian character. ' ' The 
 outlook is dark, but behind all the clouds is One who loveth those 
 who do righteousness and will bless them who make peace. 
 
 H. B. WHIPPLE, Bishop of Minnesota. 
 Faribault, Minn., January joth, 1877. 
 
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