VII. “The Pima Indians have a high standard of morality for a primitive people, but I believe such deviations as occur are due to the Indian’s own nature, which is, after all, human nature, and as liable to err as his white brother, whose example we will all agree leaves much to be desired if set up as the standard to which other races should aspire.”
IX. “Yes, in so far as appropriating river water to which the Pimas have a prior right.
X. “Again speaking of the Pimas only, I believe the peculiar climatic conditions here make it desirable that the boys and girls shall receive their training in this locality. It is safe to say that 95% of the boys will be farmers, and such training as they receive along agricultural lines should correlate with their home conditions and this it is not likely to do if obtained in a locality where climatic conditions vary greatly from southern Arizona.
XIII. “I believe the administration is taking every possible step to safeguard the interests of the Indians within the limits allowed by the laws governing and the funds at its disposal, hampered as it is by the political intriguers who now, as always, seek to control the management of Indian Affairs for their personal benefit and gain. Your true reformer is first, and always an extremist; to him a thing is either black or white, good or evil, a crime or a virtue. He knows no gradation of color, no perception of proportions, no knowledge of values. To him the world is made up of entirely unrelated antitheses, and all acts of which he does not himself approve are evil. It is easy for such a person to contend that the Indians have been imposed upon by those entrusted with the management of their affairs and to find evidence to support their contentions. But the broad-minded investigator will recognize the peculiar racial problems with which those interested in the Indians’ advancement have had to deal, will give due consideration to the enormity of the task set them, will weigh carefully the intricacy of the machinery with which the workers have been forced to labor and will hesitate to judge adversely where superficial observation would appear to warrant such a judgment justifiable.”
I regret that I could not produce these lengthy communications in full. But the quotations will give an idea of the Departmental point of view, and that the dangers are fully appreciated, and every effort made to overcome them.
Past Commissioners’ Views
Honorable T. J. Morgan, appointed Indian Commissioner in June, 1889, might be said to have crystalized the policy having as its chief aim, the allotting, and the educating of Indians. He was followed by Honorable D. M. Browning, who served for four years. Honorable W. A. Jones, appointed in May, 1897, served until December, 1904, when Mr. Leupp succeeded to the office. We may dismiss the careers of the Commissioners preceding Mr. Leupp, with a blanket statement that they did not foresee that a policy emphasizing allotting and educating, and minimizing protection, would bring about disastrous results. Mr. Leupp’s administration felt the full force of the evil effects of policies inaugurated by his predecessors. We have already discussed Mr. Leupp’s views, and further comment is unnecessary.
Coming down to Mr. Valentine’s appointment, June, 1909, we find that Mr. Valentine recognized in the full sense the dangers confronting the Indian and strove to combat them. At the Lake Mohonk Conference, October, 1909, he delivered a splendid address entitled, “What the Public Should Know About the Indian Bureau.” In this he admits that his inspection service has been weak and that much of the trouble is due to incomplete, or faulty reports. I have commended elsewhere in this book Mr. Valentine’s health propaganda—for it is largely due to his efforts that Congress became aroused to the necessity of increased appropriations.
The acting Commissioner, Honorable F. H. Abbott, who served from September, 1912, to Mr. Sells’ appointment in June, 1913, carried out the policies inaugurated by his former chief. Abbott opposed wholesale allotments hastily made, as in the past. He took a firm stand against the allotment schemes proposed for the Navaho Indians at the present time.
Mr. Sells’ policy has been referred to at length on previous pages of this book. He was fortunate in his selection of Honorable E. B. Meritt as Assistant Commissioner, who entered the Bureau in 1910 as chief law officer. It was due to Mr. Meritt’s efforts that the application of a railroad for the granting of a right of way for the construction of a line through the San Carlos Indian Reservation, Arizona, was prevented. His work on behalf of the Yakima Indians, in protecting their water rights, was especially effective. He has delivered a number of addresses at Lake Mohonk, setting forth the aims of the Department under the present administration, and cooperates with the Indian Rights Association in its excellent work.