The weekly Minnesotian. [volume], July 31, 1852, Image 2

About The weekly Minnesotian. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1852-1858

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THE MINNESOTIAN.
It Paul, Minnesota.
SATURDAY, JULY 31,1852.
FOR PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES,
GEN. WINFIELD SCOTT,
or nw jiaitx.
FOR VICE PRESIDE]
WILLIAM A. GRAHAM,
OF HORTH CAROLINA.
For the MlnnesotUn.
TbilMUtf Mianewta-Sl. Pul ti tha fcnu
nent Capital.
Messrs. Editors: —Although it is
doubtless a question prematurely agitated,
yet it is already agitated in some circles,
“ What will be the extent of the State of
Minnessota when she is set off for admis
sion into the Union, and where will be
her boundaries and her capital?” Are
we of St. Paul not to expect, in the agi
tation of this matter among speculators
and builders of new cities—paper as well
as of more enduring materials—upon the
newly ceded lands, that efforts will be
made, even before we become a State, to
carry the capital beyond the Mississippi ?
Already I hear of a new town being laid
off, fnr towards the south-west corner of
that portion of the Territory which must ,
owing to many good and sufficient reasons,
be the State of Minnesota, which blazons
forth on paper its “ Capitol Square.”—
Is it to be the capital of Minnesota or the
capital of a new Territory , which disin
terested office-seekers contemplate getting
up soon, in order that they may give
vent to their extra patriotism by entering
into the service of their country ? I be
lieve I can very quickly show, by running
a line around wnat should, and I think
must , be the State of Minnesota, that it,
Itor no other location west of the Mississ
ippi, can ever, with justice, rob St. Paul!
of the honor she now holds of being the
capital. Take your map, trace the fol
lowing lines, and then answer me wheth
er you think a better shaped, more prop
er sized and more convenient State can
be chalked out ?
Commencing in latitude 43 deree* 30
minutes (the botindary line between lowa
and Minnesota) at the point where the
18th degree of longitude west from Wash
ington intersects said line; thence run
ning due north on said degree of longi
tude to the point where it intersects the
47>h parallel of latitude; thence due east
on said line of latitude till it reaches the
northern shore of Lake Superior upon
the 15th degree of longitude west from ;
Washington; thence in a straight line
through said lake, or the waters thereof, j
to the mouth of the St. Louis river,
which is the boundary line between Wis
consin and Minnesota; thence south
wardly along said boundary line to a
{>oint in the Mississippi river where the
ine between lowa and Minnesota strikes
«aid river; thence west on the line of
lowa to the place ol beginning.
You will find, Messrs. Editors, em
braced within these limits an area cover
ing three and a half degrees of latitude and
.an average of about two degrees and three
fourths of longitude, embracing the best ag
ricultural, lumbering and manufacturing
region of the Territory, with St. Paul situ
ated within fifty miles of the geographi
cal centre, either way. 1 confess I was
astonished at discovering this result, and
am rejoiced to find our Northern Metropo
lis so much more eligibly situated than I
had previously imagined.
Perhaps some may think it bad policy
to throw without the pale of the State so
large an extent of country to the north of
us. But it must be remembered, that
this is the country of the Chippewas, and
as such, and the home of other Indians,
the Government, at present, forever de
signs it to remain. It is settled, I be
lieve, that we are to have a permanent
Indian colony upon our northern border,
similar to the one west of Missouri and
Arkansas, which it is not contemplated to
include within the limits of any State.—
The country west of the contemplated
boundary of the State of Minnesota—be
tween our western line and the Missouri
river—will, of course, be erected into
a new Territory, sometime.
Remarks :—Our friend is certainly a
man of progress—looking ahead yet some
•ix or eight years at least. We think he
is unnecessarily alarmed about the capital
being ever removed from St. Paul, al
lhough it may be that such dreams haunt
the vivid fancies of some in our midst,
who are at this moment diseased with
the new town epidemic. But if there
•re any such, they will recover anon,
satisfied, as they soon must be, that St.
Paul will always have strength not only
to hold all she has at present, but to get a
great deal more as she progresses.
He has certainly marked off a very
pretty State for the future commonwealth
of Minnesota. The only fault we have
with it, it is a little too scant from east to
west, considering the abundance of Ter
ritory we have between here and the
Missouri river. But to have gone one
degree further west, would have destroy
ed “ Dakota’s” laudable purpose of keep
ing St. Paul “ within fifty miles of the
geographical centre,” and his perhaps
less laudable design of compelling a cer
tain embryo city on the Minnesota river
to hold its position “far towards the
south-west corner” of the State. Or it
may be, he is one of those veritable “ dis
interested office-seekers,” who want a
new Territory out west, and would clip
Minnesota of her fair proportions in that
quarter, in order that he might have “ am
ple room and verge enough” to “ give
▼ent to his extra patriotism.” His State,
from north to south, upon an air line, is
about 250 miles in extent—average from
east to west, 150, thus embracing an area
of 37,500 square miles. This is smaller
than any of the Western States, except
Indiana, which has but 36,000 square
miles. Ohio is next smallest, and has
40,000. Had’nt he better run one de
gree of longitude further west, and from
that up to his present northern line,
which will make a difference of 17,000
square miles in our favor, and give us a
State about the size of Illinois or lowa,
only a trifle larger than either ? We
don’t think it will break the neck of St.
Paul—when we once get (as we will)
all the people west of us firmly associa
ted with us in trade—or magnify that
town in the south-west corner, or any
other town on the Minnesota, one whit
beyond its natural importance. “ Daco
ta” should recollect the old saw’: “ Every
tub must stand on its own bottom.”—
Particularly is this applicable in a new
country, as well to towns as to men.
But we have no solid objections to his
State boundaries, if others have not. We
are particularly pleased with his dimen
sions north and south. The leaving of a
vast country between our northern boun
dary and the British Possessions as the
permanent home of the Chippewas rnl
other Indian tribes, is a measure which
the General Government would, in all
probability, compel us to adopt, even if
we felt otherwise disposed. The coun
try from Lake Superior west to the bor
ders of Red river valley, is fit for nothing
but Indians and wild beasts, and with
them, for Heaven’s sake, let it remain.—
That a new Territory, embracing the
country beyond a line not farther west
than one degree of our correspondent’s
boundary, and thence running north and
taking in the Upper Minnesota valley,
and the valley of Red river to the British
line, will be organized after we are a
State, wc have not a shadow of doubt. But
all these things will do to talk of hereafter.
Facts and Fancies.
During the late freshet in the Redriver
country, the U. S. Custom House at Pem
bina received some injury. The water
rose to the second floor of the building,
and undermined the chimney, which fell
to the ground. The Collector took up
his abode in the second story, into and
from which he made ingress and egress
by the hole cut through the logs for the
chimney. It was many miles distant to
dry land. Owing to the destruction of
crops on Red river, the hunting parties to
the plains, on both sides of the line, are
much larger than usual. It was some
what feared that difficulties would ensue
between the hunters, while absent, and
the Yankton Sioux. These Indians have
committed several depredations upon the
half-breeds during the past year; and it
is not at all improDaDie vnar stiouta itic
belligerent parties fall in with each other,
ala'.tle will ensue. In such an event
the Indians must be the greatest suffer
ers, as the hunters are brave to desperation
and thoroughly armed. Mr. Cavileer in
forms us that the country, by the new
route mentioned in our last, over which
he traveled from the Bois Sioux to Tra
verse des Sioux, is the finest grazing
country he ever beheld—well watered,
and the grass on the prairies not equalled
by any in other parts of the West.
We are rejoiced to learn that it is the
intention of the people of Pembina to send
back to the next Legislature their faithful
representatives of last year, Hon. Messrs.
Rolette and Gingras, ptovided they will
consent to serve. Others would like the
place, but the friends of these gentlemen
feel confident a majority of the people
will call again upon their old faithful ser
vants. In this they act wisely; for we
can assure the Pembinese, that two more
intelligent, efficient and gentlemanly mem
bers were not in the last House of Rep
resentatives. We observed them closely
from the beginning of the session to the
end, and found them ever in their places,
■working faithfully and zealously for the
interests of their constituents and the
Territory at large. It is an honor to
Pembina to have such men in the Legis
lature, and gives the lie, daily and hourly,
to the slanders and abuses heaped upon
her people last year, by the Democrat
and its adherents. These gentlemen will
be much more useful the coining winter,
now that they understand the routine and
business of legislation; and we hope they
will feel it incumbent upon them to lieed
their constituents’ wishes and stand a poll.
The St. Charles Hotel, at St. Anthony i
after considerable difficulty, has at last
been placed in possession of Mr. Clark,
the gentleman we mentioned as having
taken it some weeks since. He will now
go ahead and continue to keep it in the
superior style he at first intended. No
doubt it will be a house every way wor
thy the patronage of the public. It be
comes necessary to mention these facts,
owing to rumors having gone abroad that
Mr. Clark was not to have the house.
Dakota
On Tuesday morning the Dr. Frank
lin, not wishing to be out of fashion,
made a short call at Pig’s Eye bar. The
Dr. is the lightest draught boat in the
trade, and if she gets to sticking our
river is in a bad way truly.
We trust it will not be forgotten, that
the pews of Mr. Neill’s church are to be
leased on Wednesday afternoon at two
o’clock.
“A National Union Convention will
be held in the City of Philadelphia, upon
the Ist day r of August, 1852, for the
nomination of Daniel Webster for the
Presidency of the United States, and a
suitable candidate for the Vice Presiden
cy, for the support of the Union Party
of the Nation, in November next.—
Delegates from 10 States now hold them
selves in readiness for this step; other
States are requested to choose suitable
representatives without delay. Friends
of the Union, and of its great Champion,
you are now called upon to give evidence
of your devotion to that cause, which has
enlisted the talents of the most eminent,
and the sympathies of a mighty nation.
The immediate formation of local Webster
Union Associations is earnestly recom
mended.”
We received the above anonymous call
through the post office the other day, in
the form of a printed notice, enclosed in
a scaled letter envelope, for which we had
to pay five cents pos*age. It is post-mark
ed “ Philadelphia;” and we see that other
editors, in different parts of the country,
have been imposed upon in the same way.
We have always heard that Mr. Web
ster’s friends are rich—very rich, and
bold, outspoken men, who are not afraid
nor ashamed to avow their sentiments
and preferences in a responsible way, at
all times and in all places. Now, one of
two things must be the fact: The coun
try has either been sadly imposed upon
in regard to their wealth and character,
or the above irresponsible call does not
emanate from them. They either got
rid of all their small change, trealing to
oysters andchampaignc at Baliimorc, try
ing to get their idol nominated by the Na
tional Convention, or they never had any,
or the above is a “ weak invention of the
enemy”—a regular “ Yankee trick” of
Frank Pierce’s, who perhaps would have
paid the postage, had he not wanted all
his spare pennies to buy candy for the boys
“ who have no candy,” and are “ entire
strangers to him.” Be this as it may, we
‘•greenhorn editors out West” regard
this anonymous call of a convention of
“ delegates from ten States,” who were
never appointed by the people, in about
the same light that Gen. Scott looked upon
Santa Anna’s “highfalutin” pronuncia
mentos. “ God and Liberty!”
We learned yesterday that the Jenny
Lind and Black Hawk were both aground
at the Rapids, thirty miles up the Min
nesota river. They grounded going up.
The Black Hawk left here on Wednes
day, having a gooJ cargo and many pas
sengers, (including several ladies) among
whom were Rev. Mr. Riggs, missionary
at Lac-qui-Parle, and family. Mr. R.
has just returned from the East, where
he has been for several months, superin
icinling lUo publication Of Ihe U A kola
Lexicon.
The rain on Thursday morning has re
vived things in the country wonderfully.
We never saw corn look better in any
country. Minnesota promises this year
the best corn and potato crop she ever
produced. And here, from the Pioneer,
the up-country folks can know where to
go to mill with their corn :
A Flour Mill at Sauk Rapids,
Benton County.— Dr. Borup, who is
behind no man in making and introduc
ing improvements really beneficial to the
Territory, lias bought and sent up to
Sauk Rapids, one of Todd’s celebrated
patent flouring mills, to be propelled at
present by horse power. There is now
encouragement for our neighbors in Ben
ton county, to develop the capacity of
their excellent land for wheat. It will
be a great thing for all that region, to
produce and manufacture all their own
wheat. This they would have done so
before now but for want of mills. By
next year Dr. Borup designs to build a
good flouring mill, to be propelled by the
water of the Mississippi, at Sauk Rapids
—a water power unsurpassed by any
other we have ever seen.
Old Indian Jim says he lives better
than any of his brother red skins, even
though they have two legs apiece to his
one. The reason is—there being no pen
sion laws among the Dakotas providing
for the support of their wounded and
disabled in battle—that when the Chip
pewas deprived Jim of half his under
standing, he had to turn white man—
that is, go to work—to get a living. The
result proves that Indians can become
white men when thrown upon their own
resources, and deprived of their abilitv to
lead the roving life of a hunter and hu
man scalp-taker. No oi.e who knows
Jim, will deny that he is as respectable a
white man as there is about St. Paul, bar
ring his heathenism and want of educa
tion.
Friday morning—a boat is aground at
Pig’s Eye bar, supposed to be either the
Franklin, No. 2, or Ben Campbell. Rather
too early in the morning for the Ben, al
though Cupt. Smith will push her through
every trip, in order to get back to Galena
before Sunday. The pilots have bad
luck at that bar, although there was three
and a half feet water in the channel on
Wednesday, when the Nominee grounded
■ enough for any boat in the trade.
The Ben Campbell was the boat
aground, the smoke of which was seen
from St. Paul early yesterday morning.
She got off and arrived at two P. M.
Capt, Smith informs us that there is
scant three feet on this bar, and the wa
ter falling at the rate of three inches in
24 hours,
I j The West Newton had hard luck on
|; her trip up last Friday and Saturday,
t machinery out of order, getting sground,
i &c. The Nominee beat her into St.
Paul some four hours, making much bet
, ter time than most people supposed she
could this low water, and again proving
, that those who pronounce her a slow, or
i \ even an ordinary running boat, do her
great injustice. She crowed loudly when
, she came in. But it was her turn to suf
fer next time. Coming upon Wednes
day morning, she grounded between four
1 and five o’clock, on Pig’s Eye bar, four
miles below St. Paul, where she laid all
day. The Newton, which had left Gale
na nine hours and ten minutes behind
her, came along side of her at six o’clock,
had the luck not to stick hard, and pass
ed over with a shout and a hurrah, of
course. The Newton left Galena at ten
minutes past eight Monday evening, and
arrived at St. Paul, ten minutes past sev
en. Wednesday morning. When we
mention the lime of boats leaving Galena,
we wish it understood we always set
down the exact hour, as given by passen
gers of the respective boats upon which
they travel. The time of arrival here,
of course, we note ourselves. We wish
to represent the matter fairly, and with
out prejudice to either side. The fierce
opposition now going on between the
Nominee and Newton is deprecated by
many, and not a few refuse to travel on
either of them, but wait and take the oth
er boats at higher prices. Nevertheless,
we have the most unbounded confidence
in both Capt. Preston Lodvvick, of the
Nominee, and Capt. C. S. Morrison, of
the Newton, as faithful and careful offi
cers. In carrying out the instructions of
the owners of their boats, they will not
meet with any accident, if they can help
it.
Will the editor of the Galena Adverti
ser please inform us who “ Koleps” is ?
The charge put forth in his article head
ed “ West Newton t>*. Nominee,” is a
lie, so far as we are concerned, and we
should like to expose the perpetrator of
it. Who is he ? No mincing of mat
ters, friend H> ugh ton.
Chauncey Godfrey, Ihe murderer of
his wife, wrote a letter from Hall’s Land
ing, near Wabasha Prairie, to one of our
citizens the first of the week, stating
that he was there, and would return and
go to work, if it was advisable. The
letter was brought up by the Dr. Frank
lin, Tuesday, whereupon three of our
citizens, Messrs. Dun well, Cave and De
Webber, started down on the boat, and
succeeded in capturing the culprit. They
brouglil ln'm tip ypsti»rfl;iy by (ho Camp
bell. He has been committed.
The hot weather of this month has
been severely felt all over the country.
Editors are growling awfully at the
warmth under which they are compelled
to indite their editorials, and talk of in
dicting the clerk of the weather. One
in New York lets out thus : “ W-h-i-e-w !
Any man who can deliberately sit down
and write editorials when the thermome
ter is at 90, or thereabouts, can meet a
dun with stoical indifference, or go to
sleep and dream of angels while half a
dozen laundresses are scrubbing and
scolding in the next room ” Another in
Massachusetts makes a miserable attempt
at alliteration as follows : “ Yesterday,
says the Springfield Republican, was hot.
Fat women felt fuzzy, and fanned furi
ously. Lean women leaned languidly on
lounges, or lolled lazily like lilies on a
lake. Shabby, slipshod sisters sat silent
ly and sadly sweating in the shade, while
soiled and sozz'ing shirt-collars, and
sticky shirts, stuck to such sap heads as
stirred in the sun. Babies bawled busi
ly, and bit bobbins and bodkins till bed
time. Literary gentlemen who under
took a severe task of alliteration became
exhausted in the middle of a weather
paragraph, and gave it up for a cooler
day.” Thursday morning our sufferings
in this quarter were relieved by a copi
ous thunder-shower, and during the day
enervated nature was braced up by a fine
breeze from the north. On Wednesday
afternoon the thermometer, at different
exposures about town, stood at ninety
e ght in the shade!
Mr. Sibley has taken the initiatory
steps to have a land office established in
Benton county. One is certainly much
needed in that quarter. The following
resolution has passed the Senate:
Resolved , That the Committee on Pub
lic Lands be instructed to inquire into
the expediency of establishing a new'
Land District, embracing the county of
Benton, in the Territory of Minnesota.
Resisting Temptation. —lt is statad
that Madame Goldschmidt, (Jenny Lind)
has been offered ,£12,000, ($50,000,) to
sing for twelve nights at her Majesty’s
Theatre in London ; but that she had de
clined the tempting bait, and had expres
sed her intention not to appear in public
for some time.
We see paragraphs of this species of
small talk, in referenoe to Jenny, running
through most of our exchanges. Some of
the papers even go so far as to tell the
cause of her refusal to appear in public
at this time.
Illness or Gen. Scott.— On Tues
day, Gen. Scott was quite ill of dysente
ry, at Washington.
Mr. Webster has made public in the
Boston papers, a statement that the Brit
ish Government has commenced enforcing
its construction of the treaty of 1818, in
regard to the fisheries on the north-east
coast, by which it seems that every Amer
ican vessel caught fishing any where in
that region north of three miles beyond
our side of the line, is to be seized and
confiscated. One vessel has already been
taken. Mr. Webster does not ajree to
this construction, and says that the matter
will immediately receive the attention of
the government. As the colonies, as
well as the home government of Great
Britain, have now a considerable naval
force in the vicinity of the fisheries, in
tended to carry out their designs, Mr.
Webster publishes this statement in order
that our citizens may be on their guard.
Some of the papers are apprehending a
rupture between the two countries, grow
ing out of this affair; but we hardly
think England and the United States are
going to fight over a few codfish and
mackerel. “Old Dan,” when he once
gets the Presidential kinks out of his
head, will straighten it all up with his
pen in a few hours,leaving the “success
ful military chieftains”—of whom he ap
peared to have so great a horror in hi*
r.ecent Boston speech—nothing to do in
the premises.
J. S. Lockwood has been removed
from the office of Postmaster at Prairie
du Chien, and B. W. Brisbois appointed
in his stead. Good lick, that. The
prospect now is, that wc will not be out
of the world half of next winter. Mr.
Brisbois, the appointee, is well known to
many of our citizens as one of the most
active business men of the Northwest.
It will be seen by a notice in our ad
vertising columns, that Mr. Geo. 11.
Spencer will open a Grammar School on
Monday, the 9th of August. We trust
lie will receive the encouragement the
enterprise deserves. Mr. Spencer’s quali
fications as a teacher are too well known
to our citizens to need commendation
from us.
James Scott Harrison, the only survi
ving son of President Harrison, is the
Scott and Graham elector for the second
district of Ohio.
Rey & Farmer have an article of Min
nesota manufactured cheese, brought in
by a citizen of Red Rock Prairie, which
is equal to the best Western Reserve.—
This will be a great dairy country some
day.
The Berlin, —This little craft has
gone to St. Paul, and will probably run
in the Minnesota trade.— Galena *ldv.,
Wednesday.
Ilav’nt seen her yet, Friday evening,
The Dr. Franklin No. 2 received a
slight injury in crossing the Rapids the
last trip up. She discharged at Galena
and returned to St Louis lor repairs.
Secretary or the Navy. —Hon. J.
P. Kennedy, of Maryland, has accepted
the office of Secretary of the Navy, and
entered on the duties of the same. The
appointment is a good, as well as a popu
lar one.
Homestead Bill. A Washington
correspondent of the N. Y.Tribune thinks
the Homestead Bill will pass the Senate.
Baltimore, July 23.
Gen. Scott and suite arrived here last
night, and took the boat for Old Point
Comfort. He will positively not be at
Niagara. His health is pretty good.
Above 300 Whigs left here to-day to
attend the Lundy’s Lane celebration.
Congress.— July 19th, the Deficiency
Bill passed both Houses, and was ready
for the signature of the President. The
Indian appropriation Bill passed the
House.
Providence, July 23.
The officers appointed to see the Li
quor Law enforced, seized upon 200 gal
lons excellent brandy yesterday.
Land Warrants are in demand and firm
at $130a5142. —JV*. Y. Tribune, 23 d.
Boston, July 22.
The America arrived at half past 10,
A. M.
By telegraph, per America, from Dub
lin, on Thursday, it appears that, in an
election fight in that city, one policeman
was killed.
A riot at Wstgan, between the Orange
men and Catholics, was quelled by the in
terposition of troops who were called in
and fired small shot.
The Arab Chiefs Abdel Kader and
Hamet Brurula state prisoners in France,
had a quarrel in prison; the former
stabbed the latter, who has since died.
Charleston, July 19.
The Florida Convention has endorsed
Gen. Scott’s nomination, and have nomi
nated Major Ward for Congress.
Death or Jddge McKinlev. —John
McKinley, one of the Judges of the Su
preme Court of the United States, died
at Louisville, Ky., on the 19th inst., of
apoplexy.
The Governor of Louisiana has ap
pointed W. Dunbar as Judge of the Su
preme Court, vice Preston deceased.
In the United States Senate, early next
week, Mr. Sumner, of Massachusetts,
will bring forward a motion for the re
peal of the Fugitive Slave Law, and will
sustain it by an elaborate speech on the
true relations of the national government
to slavery. Mt Sumner has been indis
dosed for some time past, but his speech
has been prepared with great labor, and
will undoubtedly create some sensation.
A girl with a pair of mammoth whis
kers growing upon her face, is exhibiting
in Rochester. 8
Mlaaesata ladiaa Affair* la Caagres*.
On the 16th, the Indian Appropriation
bill was before the committee of the
Whole in the House. Mr. Filch, of In
diana, made a charge of stupendous fraud
against Col. Medill, (Commissioner of
Indian Affairs during Mr, Polk’s admin
istration) in his negotiations with the
Menomonee Indians for their lands in
Wisconsin. Mr. Filch, who is a Demo
crat, was met in his charges by Messrs.
Johnson, of Arkansas, Olds and Sweet
zer, of Ohio, and Phelps, of Missouri.
During the debate, Mr. Siblet took oc
casion to urge upon the committee, as will
be seen by his remarks which follow, a
matter of vital importance to the welfare
of the Indian tribes within our borders.
We copy pll of his speech that relates to
the subject:
Mr. Sibley. I have not risen with
any design of making a set speech or of
consuming much of the time of the com
mittee. I deemed it but right and proper
in me, however, in view of the fact that
an attack had been made upon a gentle
man who formerly occupied a distinguish
ed position under this Government, to
yield a portion of my time to the gentle
man from Ohio, [Mr. Sweetzer] to ena
ble him to reply to the very serious
charge made against Colonel Medill, by
members of the Committee on Indian Af
fairs of this House. It was but justice
to the absent, that the reply should go
forth to the country simultaneously with
the accusation against him ; and to effect
this object, I very cheerfully permitted
the gentleman from Ohio [Mr. Sweetzer J
to occupy as much of my lime as he might
deem necessary to devote to the defence
of the former Commissioner of Indian
Affairs. Being myself ignorant of all the
facts connected with the transactions be
tween the Government and the Menomo
nee Indians, I have nothing to say on that
subject. I propose to detain the com
mittee for a short time in the discussion
of another matter of very general inter- j
est to the country at large, and particu- j
larly to the Indians themselves. Sir, the
aboriginal tribes upon ibis continent, and >
especially those inhabiting the northern \
portions of it. are subjected to a great a- J
mount of suffering, because of the want
of food and proper clothing. This is a
subject which I had the honor of bring
ing be'orc this House during the last Con
gress, in a speech I made up-<n the gen
eral topic of our Indian relations, when I
took occasion among other things to state,
that the miserable condition of the wild
tribes of the West was far from being
realized by Congress and by the country.
Sir, but two short years have passed
since that speech was delivered, and my
observation and the information I have
gathered since that time, have entirely cor
roborated the statements therein contained.
I have seen whole bands of Indians, com
prising men, women, and chilren, reduced
to a state of emaciation from hunger,
shocking to behold in this fair land, which
God has blessed with an abundance of all
the elements necessary Cor the support of
human life. I have witnessed the vora
city with which these poor creatures have
seized upon and devoured garl a;c the most
disgusting, from which the very pampered
dogs of your cities would turn awav with
loathing. It would be some consolation
to be able to assert with truth, that re
duced to these extremities, there was still
no reason to believe that any bad actually
perished from the want of some kind of
food capable of sustaining 1 fe. Unfor
tunately even that solace is denied ns.
1 have reason to know from statements
which have been made to me by respec
table men in the Indian country, that du
ring the last year in the Territory which
I have the honor to represent upon this
floor, there have been from sixty to one
hundred deaths among the Indians, from
actual starvation. I may be met here with
the statement that these calamities befall
them because of their improvidence. I
have no disposition to deny that such is
the case to some extent. Everybody
who knows anything about the character
of an Indian is aware that he acts up to
to the scriptural maxim of letting “the
morrow take thought for the things of it
self.” If he has but sufficient to feed
himself and his family for one day, he
does not trouble himself much about what
he is to have of fare for the next. That
is especially the case with the Indians
who depend exclusively upon the game
lor subsistence. Now, I have reason to
know, that many of the large western
prairies which formerly abounded in wild
animals are now entirely denuded of them.
The consequence is, that within two or
three years bands of Indians who relied
entirely upon the buffalo, elk, and ante
lope for their daily supply of food, have
been reduced to the last stages of desti
tution.
I propose in an amendment I shall of
fer to the bill under consideration, before
I take my seat, to appropriate the sum of
SIOO,OOO, to be applied by the Secretary
of the Interior to relieve such cases of
suffering as I have described among the
Indians in any part of the United States.
I have taken particulor care likewise to
provide that, no part of this money shall
be paid out by the Secretary unless state
ments from entirely reliable sources shall
be brought to his notice, showing the ab
solute necessity of the expenditure.
Mr. Sibley here went into a brief but
triumphant defence of the character of
men engaged in the Indian Trade, which
had been violently assailed during the
debate by Mr. Phc'ps, of Missouri. He
then concluded his remarks as follows:
Now, sir, I desire to advert to another
fact connected with the Indian treaties
which have been made, and are constantly
being made with the Indians. There is
a great mistake in the public mind about
the amount of compensation which the
Indians receive under these treaties. It
is generally supposed that they are paid a
price for their lands somewhat approxi
mating to that at which the Government
holds its public domain. Why, sir, so far
from that, the average rates paid to the
Indians for land, since the foundation of
the Government, have been about eight
cent* an acre; and yet we constantly hear
complaints made of the large appropria
tions that are required to fulfill these
treaty stipulations. Gentlemen seem to
forget that we have taken away the homes
of these poor wretches, driven them west
of the Mississippi, amongst wild and
hostile bands of Indians, who fall upon
them with scalping-knife and with toma
hawk, and that their principal dependence
for subsistence is on the small annuities
which they receive from this Govern
ment.
Mb. Murphy. I desire to ask the
gentleman a question. He appears to be
well acquainted with the Indian charac
ter, and I understand his proposition to
be to make provision for those that art
suffering among them. I desire to ask
the gentleman if the tendency of this
provision will not be to increase the suf
fering ?
Mr. Sibley. I will answer the gen
tleman from Georgia very cheerfully. If
I had any idea that such would be the ef
fect of this provision, I should certainly
not offer the amendment. I will state to
the gentleman that as to the matter of
fact, there can be no difference of opinion
among men who are at all acquainted
with the situation of matters in the West,
that this state of things does exist. Not
a year passes by. that scores and scores
of these Indians do not perish from actual
starvation, and I ask the gentleman
whether he thinks that in view of that
state of things, this Government should
fold its arms and refuse to make a small
appropriation to meet such exigencies as
these ?
Mr. Sweetzer. With the permission
of the gentleman. I will stale that I have
a near relative living in his neighborhood,
from whom I received a letter a few days
since, concerning the Indians in that lo
cality. He writes me, that in conse
quence of the treaty made last fall, the
Indians have not made so much provision
for their subsistence as they have done
hitherto, and that consequently, large
numbers of them are not only suffering
from hunger, but are actually dying. 1
believe that the Indians need the aid of
the Government, and I shall vote for the
amendment of the gentleman from Min
nesota.
Mr. Sibley. I have no dnnbt the
gentleman’s information is correct. I
will state to the committee lhat I was
present at the time the Upper Sioux
treaty was made, which has just received
the sanction of the Senate. I know that
when the Indians arrived at the grounds,
a great many of them were scarcely able
to walk from pure exhaustion. Many
women and children were reduced almost
to skeletons. There were present, when
the treaty was made, from two thousand
to three thousand Indians, and the com
missioners were obliged, as a matter of
absolute necessity, to send out teams to
meet them laden with supplies to save
them from death by actual starvation on
their way to the treaty ground. I men
tion this as a single instance of the des
perate straits to which the wild tribes of
the prairie are reduced. If the facts
could be obtained in an authentic form
from all parts of our extended country,
it would be found that other tribes are
suffering in like manner.
Sir, this Government has assumed to
itself the guardianship of these poor In
dians, and should take immediate meas
ures to meliorate their condition. With
an overflowing Treasury—with vour
teeming granaries, and all the elements of
prosperity abounding in your inidst,for
very shame let not the American Congress
reluse to contribute something to alleviate
the awful sufferings which, unrelieved,
bid fair soon to destroy utterly the rem
nants of that noble race whose homes you
are daily invading and appropriating to
your own benefit. The sum proposed in
the amendment N.ns I have before stated,
tfiIOO.OOO. If by the expenditure of a
part, or the whole of this amount, the
lives of hundreds can be saved, who will
regret the outlay ? It no such exigency
ar ses as to require the money to he de
voted to that sacred purpose, it will re
main in 1 lie Treasury, and Congress will
at least have the satisfaction of knowing
that its duty has been performed.
I now send up the amendment, and ask
that it may be read:
“lor the subsistence of the Indians
of any tribe residing within the limits of
the United Slates who may hereafter
he suffering for want of food and proper
clothing, to be expended under the direc
tion of the Secretary of the Interior,
.■jt 100,000: Provided , That in no case
shall any portion ol said sum be paid out
unless a reliable statement shall be made
to the Secretary of the In’erior of the
existence ol such a state of suffering
amongst the Indians as is contemplated in
this clause.”
This amendment not being concurred
in by a majority of the committee, on the
17th, the bill being again up, Mr. Sibley
again offered his amendment, modified as
follows, the proviso remaining unaltered:
“ For the subsistence of Indians of any
tribe residing within the limits of the
United States who may hereafter be in a
starving condition, to be expended under
the direction of the Secretary of the In
terior, $50,000.”
A debate of some length ensued, in
which Messrs. Sibley, Durkee, Giddings,
\ enable, and Stanton, of Ohio, supported
the amendment, and Messrs. Phelps,
Johnson, of Arkansas, Jones, of Ten
nessee, Johnson, of Georgia, and Dun
ham opposed it.
The question was then taken on the
amendment, and it was rejected. Ayes
47, noes 76.
The favorite digging place in Australia
is Mount Alexandria ; there the gold is
turned up by tons. A party of five gen
tlemen made three hundred pounds each
in five days. Beggars have actually be
come rich. It would seein as if, at last
Providence had reversed the order of
things, and that henceforth labor is to bo
capital.
Cholera —We obsere by the Cincin
nati papers that the cholera has been pre
vailing with much fatality in Hopkins
ville, Maysyille, and at Millersburgh,
Ky. In the former place the negro popu
lation has suffered greatly.