Puget Sound weekly Argus. [volume], July 31, 1879, Image 1

About Puget Sound weekly Argus. [volume] (Port Townsend, W.T. [Wash.]) 1876-1882

Image provided by: Washington State Library; Olympia, WA

                
E 2k ~ RGUS.
VOL. 9.
ll! pI'IILISIH-ID EVERY Tul'lisDAY AT.
Port Towmeml, Washington Territory.
A IJLIZN \V E! 1!,
EDITOR A .\'D l’lml’lll ETOR.
'.'-n oNIIWrII-Ilon . -» 83.00 per mum].
in mlvnnce: aixmmnlelfinL
RATES OF ADVER'I‘XSINGI
one hwh. tlr~‘t inwrtlnn. .. .. .. . .. ..$1.50
Eulnsubwlnunt hum-[inn .. .. .. .. .. .50
'l'mmiont :ulvoernu-ntx tn lnsmo
Insertion must he :m-onumniml by ('.‘h‘h.
“All AMIIIIII-I settled Mommy-m
AIASKA AND HER INDIANS.
Now that the missionary efforts of
Dr.Liinlsley. Rev. S. lackson and
others, in behalf of the Alaskan In
dians. are nttrnctihg so much atten
tion, we have thought it a proper
time to re-produco the following lot
ter from Hon. James G. Swan to Ma.
jor Wm. Gouverneur Morris, Special-
Agent of the U. S. Treasury Dc
purtment. The letter was written in
unswer toe. request from the Major,
for an expression of views upon the
subject, and was emln'nliwl in the re
port which he officially presented be
fore the U. S. Senate, upon the “Pill;-
lic Service and Resources of Alaska."
The report in question was triuisniit
ted to the Senate on the 41h tiny of
Fehrnnry last, was referred to the
committee on ()oinnwrcv, and order
ed printed; it is therefore pnlilic
property. Maj. Morris, in inrrmlnu
ing the letter lmlow, says: "Judge
Swan has haul much experience with
the lmlians on this coast. l have
great respect for the views he mlvun
tree. and rely very much upon his
judgment." The letter rmnls:
NEEAII BAY, W. 'l‘., Oct. 19, ’7B.
MY DEAR “Mutt: I will now on
(letwor to reply to your letter of the
l2th,in which you request me to.
give you “the estimate of tho, tllllll
her of Indians in Alaska. and where
located," and also “to ntl'ur any sug
gestions or remarks I may desire in
make concerning those Indians and
their future management.” I then--
for. respectfully submit the follow
my:
First;ns to their number. The
only infurmutionl here which may
be considered as reliable. lit-cruise it
is official. is contuined in Dall’s Ito-
Wrt on the Tribes of the Extreme
orthwest, which is pnhliahrd in
VOL 1 of Contributions to North
American Ethnology, by '.‘luj. J. \V.
Powell, by instructions of the De
partment of the Interior, 1877. In
this interesting and valuable report
{on will find all the information that
.as been published to the present
tlme respecting the Alush In-liaus,
vthich he classes as "Oratrinnsf’ or
tribes living on the son coust (ul
thongh he does not give his reason
for using the term “()rari-ms," n
Word I do not know the meaning or
tpplicetion of), and Indians, and
gives the whole number as—
Totel Alaska Indians - - - 11,650
Total Alasku ()rarians - - - 14,054
Total native population - - - 23,704
The ()rerians are, lst. The Innuit;
20. The Aleuts.
'Tho lnnuit are the most western
tribes, and are classed by Dell with
the tribes of the adjacent const of
Astn. The whole Itumher ot' Innuits
he places at 11,0300. The Aleuts are
the eastern, 0r Unalashknns, and the
Western, or Atkuns.. Of these there
{'9 24.7123. making a total of Ora,-
MHS. 14,031.
Ilia Indian tribes of Alaska are
(ltvnled by “all into two groups, the
T'llltr‘tannl 'lf‘linlwts. The former
I‘m the more nurtlwrly tribes, from
LOOk‘S Inlet and ('nppor riror north,
""dllm lattor nro t.h.- triiws from
Lnok's Inlot to tho wuihvrn lmrdel‘
“I !\_la~4ka, and are the triims more
Ptlftlcularly mut with by travelers to
Slum, \Vrnngel and the Prince of
Wales Archipelago.
PORT TOWNSEND, W. T... THURSDAY. JULY 31. 1879.
The 'l‘innet number - - ..- - 6,100
The T’linltets --.. .. . 5,550
Total No. Alaskan Indians - 11,650
But, in speaking of the native
population of Alaska, it is proper to
cull them all “Indians” to prevent
confusion. Dull adds to this whole
number of natives, which, as before
stun-d, is 25,704, as follows: e.p:.,
Russians, 50; half breeds, or creoles,
1.5 m”; citiz-ans. including military,
250, equal, 1,800, making a total pop
ulutiou of the Territory, 27,504.
The military have been removed
since Dell's estimate was made, but
the addition to the population since
the cunncries at Sitku and Kluwack
have been ustablished, and the influx
occasioned by the minerul discover
ies, will make the total for the whole
populatimt at the present time not
fur from the amount estimated.
The sucomlquostion, “As to the
best method of manugiug the Indians
ul Alaska,” is one of deep interest;
one which requires much study and
careful consideration; and no con
clusions should be hastily made. in
accepting your kind invitation to ex
press myself on this momentous
question,[ shall bus to ask your
permission to allow mo to state how
1 have acquired the information re
quisite to enable me to advance an
opinion upon so gruve a. subject as
the management of Indians.
Since 1852, at which time I first
came to this Territory (than a part
of ()regon),l have devoted a con
siderable portion of my time to the
study of lndiun habits and customs.
to ethnology, arclaeolgy, and all
matters pertaining to the history of
this people, especially the. natives of
the northwest coast. In 1855 l was
with the late General Isaac l. Stev
ens, when, as Governor of Washing
ton Territory and superintendent of
Indian affairs, he made treaties with
the several tribes west of the Cas
cade range, and subsequently was
with him in \‘l’ashington as his pri
vate secretary at the time he. as
Delegate in Congress from this Ter
ritory. aided in having those treaties
conlirmed by the. Senate. The sub
ject of those treaties was the topic
of our frequent conversation, and no
man knows better than myself what
Governor Sterens‘ true intention
was concerning them; and I can safe
ly and truly state, that had the trea
ties he made been carried out in the
spirit and intent with which he made
them, much good would have been
effected with the Indians, and it is
this non-fulfillment of those treaties
which has been the prime cause of
all tho trouble we have had with the
Indians in this Territory. 1 was
then, and am now, opposed to all
treaty-making with the natives, and
1 published my views in a work on
titled “Tho Northwest Coast,” which
was issued by I'larpers in 1857. ()1)
pages 349 and 350. and from the last
paragraph on page 367,1ny views are
{scaly expressed. [lfyon have not
a copy of the book, you can obtain
one either at Mr. Webster’s or at Dr.
Mirror’s]
My observation and experience
since then have proved to me that my
views as there expressed are correct;
that it is folly to thin k of making any
more treaties with Indians, and, so
far as Alaska is considered, I see no
objection to be attained by repeating
a worn-out farce of treating with a
people who are living in a territory
which we have aequirod the fee
simpla of by the purchase the United
States made of Russia, in which pur
chase no mention is made of any ro
served rights of Indians or any other
people. The land belongs to the
United States, and no treaties are
necessary to extinguish Indian titles.
\Ve must therefore, meet this
Alaskan question other than by the
time honored custom of making I
solemn treaty Within. horde ot breech
lr-ss savages in the same formal mar;-
nnr and with more imposing cem
mouey than we are wont to do with
such Lyn-at nations as Great Britain,
Frauen, (.iermany, and Russia. \tht,
then. shill be that method, and line:
can it be carried into ellr-ct, is the
subject which your letter invites me
to i|§scilss.
i think that the Indians themselves
can give us some useful hints regard
ing the manner of treatment which
would not only be acceptable to
them, but would, in my judgment,
lead to the hap iest results.
In 1875 I had) the honor of being
appointed a special commissioner of
the United States for procuring arti
cles of Indian manufacture for the
National Museum. to be exhibited
at the Centennial Exposition in Phil
adelphia, and proceeded in the
United States revenue steamer Wol
cott, to Aalaska, in a cruise during
the months ofJune and July of that
year.
During that cruise we stopped at
many of the villages of various tribes,
and whenever we had any conversa
tion with the Indians it was. the uni
versally expressed wish that the gov
ernment would send them teac era
and missionaries, as the English had
sent to Indians of British Columbia,
and they particularly referred to the
missions at Fort Simpson, and at
Matlahcatln, British Columbia, the
former under the charge of Rev. Mr.
Crosby, of the \Vesleyan Methodist
Society of Ontario, Canada, and the
latter under charge of Rev. Mr. Dun
can, of the Episcopal Missionary So
ciety of London, England.
Fort Simpson being one of the
principal trading posts of the Hud
son‘s Bay Company, and situated
but a few miles from the southern
boundary of Alaska, is the place
where a greet many of the Alkskian
trilws resort to sell their furs, and
hare there seen for themselves the
superior condition of the Tsimseau
lmlinuu, lioth at Fort Simpson and
Mauluhcatla, and it was undoubtedly
a jealous spirit, induced by the un
l'nomhlu comparison of their own
uncivilizml state, in contrast with the
great improvement of the Tsimseans,
which caused them to be so unani
“mus in their applications to us for
government aid in sending teachers
to them.
In It report made by me to the
L‘mnmissioner of Indian Affairs on
my return, which was also published
in tho l‘nrt. Townsend Anous. Sept.
3,1877, Idwolt at length on this
Sllliji‘cl. and strongly recommended
that our government adopt towards
the Alaska Indians a similar policy
tnthnt so successfully enforced in
British Columbia. at the two missions
of Mutlakutla and Fort Simpson,a
short account of which will serve to
explain the method which I would
suggest. our government adopt in its
{murv management of the Alaskan
trilms.
ln October, 1857, Mr. William
Dunn-an, missionary, schoolmaster
and cult-chist, and graduate at High
burg EniHCUpul Training College of
the Church Missionary Society of
l..z.»ndon, was selected to fill the post
of teacher and missionary at Fort
Simpson, and, with no other aid. than
ttno stipend paid him by the society
and occasional donations from chari
table nc-rsons in England and Vio
toria. he has succeeded in making
thu ln-l‘mns under his charge a self
snstanning pmple, and their settle
nn-nt is a nn-dcl which many of our
piunrcl' c-nuxnunities might emulate
with nrolit.
ln Slay, 1860, Mr. Duncan, finding
the locality of the post at Fort Simp
son unsuited to this purpose, re
moved to his present place at Metla
kniu. some 20 miles south, where he
established a town. Here, acting in
turns us minister, schoolmaster, physi
cian, builder, arbitrator, magistrate,
tradvr, and teacher of various me
cnunic arts, he has labored so suc
cessfully that they now own a
schooner trading regularly to Vic
toria; they haw a joint stock trading
house, a soap manufactory, black
smith shop, saw mill, an octagon
shaped school house, with cost near
ly S4OOO, a building 90 by 30 ft,
uscd as a court house, for public
meetings, and to accotmnodatu
strangers, a mission-house 64 foot by
3‘2, containing seven apartments on
tho. ground floor, a spacious dormi
tory above, and outbuildings. Also
a church, wonlcn factory, where they
weave blankets and common llannel
on -; nmchiuc supplied them by the
pro yrietors of the Mission mills at
San Francisco, a rope and twine fac-
tory, a. tanner], a boot and shoe fac
tory, and a. variety of other useful
things impossible for me here to par
ticularizP.
The British government recognizes
Mr. Duncan’s great work, anddirects
all its officials in the navy and army,
who may be on the coast of British
Columbia, to render him such aid as
he may need. But there his conneo
tion with his government ends. He
has done this work with the volun
tary aid and contributions of the In
dians, and is by their help rendered
independent. of any outside support
to carry on the mission work. There
are no paid oflicials, no annuities, no
treaties, and no thieving Indian
agents, but the whole is managed
just as any community of white peo
ple manage their town affairs.
After Mr. Duncan left Fort Simp
son, he was succeeded by Rev. Mr.
Crosby. of the Wesleyan Mission.
\Vhat I have written of Mr. Duri
can can be said of Mr. Crosby. Both
these gentlemen are doing a great
and marked good in their respective
missions and the only way in which
the Dominion Government of Cana
da takes care of them is through its
efficient Indian Commissioner, Dr.
John W. Powell, of Victoria, who
annually visits those missions and
all the coast tribes in the Dominion
steamer Sir James Douglas, and who
is ready at all times to eo-oparate
with Messrs. Duncan and Crosby in
enforcing the laws of the Dominion
relative to Indian affairs.
The coast tribes of British Colum
bia are quite as savage as those of
Alaska. They all have trade and in
tercourse with each other, and their
manners and customs are identical,
and, as the Aiaskan Indians are
desirous of having schools and teach
ers as the British Columbia Indians
have, it seems to me to point out the
true method by which our govern
arnment can manage those natives.
1 am averse to all treaties and res
ervations, with their expensive ma
chinery of agents and employee paid
by the government, and of paying
annuities to Indians to encourage
them in idlen‘ss. That policy has
been the rulin one since the days
of George vgashington. We all
have seen the great error and the
little good of that policy, but beve
been unable to avert or amend it.
But Alaska is an exception to our
Indian population. Separated from
the States and Territories by British
Columbia, her Indian Tribes have no
affinity with or knowledge of the
working of our treaty system, and
they present a fresh field of opera
tion.
I respectfully su gest that the
British Columbia plan, which has
proved I 0 eminently successful, be
adoped. I would recommend that
the various religious denominations
send out missionaries, so that every
tribe may be supplied. In order to
do this, a commission should be sent
to Alaska to ascertain just where and
how many of these missions should
be established, and then each mis
sionary society be invited to select
and send men fitted for the work,
who would go in the same spirit, and
with the same capacity, executive,
ministerial. and financial, that
Messrs. Duncan and Crosby have,
and the whole to be under charge
of one general superintendent, who,
like Dr. Powell, should visit every
mission once or twice each yet-Jr and
report to the government in Wtslh
ington. Such missions Slluuld be
aided by the government to enable
them to start in a proper manner,
but there would be no necessity for
any great appropriation, for, as at
Metlakatla and Fort Simpson, the
mission should be self supporting.
From my own knowledge and ex
perienco and long ohservations,l
feel justilied in asserting that the
Alztsknn Indian are now just in that
state in which they would receive
teachers most cordially, and would
do as much as the 'l‘simsenlns have
done for the missions at Fort Simp
son and Motlnkutln. Thi< plan is no
theory of mine, nor is it a new thing.
It isa plan which hats lmon in success"
to] ”permit”! in lliitidiColulnliin for
many yours, and is one peculiurly
aduped to the Indians of Alaskumnc
N 0 'l4.
which many of them hare seen in
successful operation, and one “'lllt'll
they heartily indorse, and wish to
have introduced among them. (in
the score of economy. it is: multimil
ly superior to any systmtl we now
have regarding Indian management,
and, as regards henefitting the in
dians in every respect, we limo. mify
to refer to the missions already «I
lnded to for proof of its tiM'vllhn. v.
But above all things, this ”stem is
to be recommended for its 'iret-dmn
from change.
The question is often asked, and
never with more pertinence than at
the present time, when the subject of
turning over the Indian But-mm In
the War Department 'will lw a lt'ntl
ing topic in the next (Xingu-M.
“What good has been done to the
Indians by the peace policyand u in
do we not see better results ‘.’” Thr
answer is apparent to the most ens
ual observer; it is the constant
change of agents and the constant
change of policy of every new in
cumbent in the office of Indian Com
missioner. What is wanted time
than anything is permanence of plnn;
and to accomplish this, a poln‘y
should be adopted of having gmul
men like those named remain in po
sition during good behavior, or m
long as they are accomplishing gmnl
and beneficial results. This cannot
be done under our present systmn,
where every agent feels that his ap
pointment is only for four years tunl
a change of administration is sure to
turn him out of otlice. It is this
change, more than anything ela'r‘,
which has induced so many men of
weak moral stamina to pay more nt
tention to enriching themselves
than doing their duty and carrying
out. treaty stipulations. This cltatltgv
has more to do with our Indian trhu
bles than most people imagine. The
Indian mind is not given to change,
least of all sudden change of policy;
he may change his habitation and
roam about, but his mind is stuicul
and fixed; and it is only by a lung;
series of years, and the most cure~
t'ul and discreet exercise nt‘ judg.
ment by those placed over him, tllnt
he can be induced to give up the
wild legends and traditions of his
forefathers. and to adopt the man
ners and customs of civilized life.
[concluded next'weekJ
PROFESSIONAL CARDS.
W. H. ROBERTS,
TEACHER 0f PIANO IND ORGAN.
Port Townsend, w. T.
Tuning done on muonnble terms
H“ Agent for Decker Bros. and Enwrunn
Pmml and Palm Organs, on cash or humu
moul pkm.
W’n-lvgmphlc Correspondent of mm all
forum Aswrlaled Pms.
In
G. MORRIS HALLAR.
ATTORNEY AND COUNSELLUR AT LAW
Proctor In Adxuimlly.
Money loaned. llenl Emma bought and mid
Farms to Lease,
Collection made. L'on\'l-yum-Inu.&c.
PORT TOWNSEND, W. 'l'.
_.__.__.__...._. ~ .
James M. Gassaway, M.D.
In charge U. 6'. Marine Hosp/fu/
$870103.
PHYSICIAN & SURGEON
OlllceuWater Sh, Opposite l’nstoniu-v,
I'UII'I‘ TOWNSEND, W. 'l‘. am
I
Dr. Thos. T Manor
Managing Surgeon
Port Townsend llnspirul
Port 'l‘o\vnucn(l. \\'. 'l'.
can In: consulted, night or uluy, ul “mm. l
M..—..—...................... .
Good Board and Lodgings can
be obtained at
BIBS. MYERS?”
' ‘l:\\"ll'l.\'l‘ IIIHIIIH-Llh \\'H.l. H\ h . ‘.‘
l kulmu~ plum-uquh-r I'v-UI‘I “hr \ 1..» .r
'..:u.:~w.m ln- xuliamclunl) :LIH'H‘XWI ...
Terms Very Reasonabie.
:,~.: an um! 01' ‘.nII. Imuunjiulcly lmgi. Hum
I'ulnm a Inn.
I'UII'I‘ 'l'|)\\’.\’~.l£.\' D, W. 'l‘.