H. OF R.]

make its own way, with the smiles and friendly countenance of the Government beaming upon every sect and denomination, without giving pecuniary aid to any one. "The number of Cherokees, inclusive of whites, blacks, and mixed blood, is estimated at 11,500. In the treaty of March, 1819, they ceded a part of their territory to the United States. Among other reservations is one of a tract of land, of twelve miles square, to be sold by the United States, and vested by the President in the most profitable stock, as a school fund for the Cherokee nation.' For a population not half equal to that which is contained in a small county in one of our States, this appears to be an ample provision. Our own citizens, in any part of this Union, would rejoice to have such a school fund as this. The Choctaws, it is said, are also well pro

vided for.

Now, said Mr. M., what are we told by that distinguished fellow-citizen, whose keen and penetrating intellect, and whose long experience enables him to speak to us the language of wisdom, and to afford us so much light upon this momentous subject? [He then read from the Literary and Scientific Repository the following extract of a letter from Governor Cass:]

"The lessons of experience upon this subject are too important to be disregarded. In the zealous efforts which are now making to meliorate the condition of the Indians, we have much to learn from the history of the progress and result of the same experiment which was made by the Jesuits. We cannot bring to the task more fervid zeal, more profound talents, more extensive or varied acquirements, nor probably a deeper knowledge of the principles of human nature. But, so far as respects any permanent or valuable impression, they have wholly failed. Very few of the Indians profess any attachment to the Christian religion; and, of those who make this

profession, there is not probably one whose knowledge is not confined to the imposing rites and external ceremonies of the Catholic church. A more vivid impression appears to have been made upon the Wyandots than upon any others; and they preserved for a longer term than any other tribe, traces of the indefatigable exertions of their spiritual fathers. But, even with them, superior as they are in intellectual endowments, and placed by their local situation in contact with a Catholic community, the subject is forgotten, or, if remembered, it is remembered only by a few aged and decrepit persons, like other traditionary legends of their nation."

Upon these remarks, said Mr. M., no commentary can be necessary. I will now pass to one more extract of a letter from Mr. Sibley, an intelligent Indian agent, of long experience among that people, to Dr. Morse, which I have taken from his report:

[MAY, 1822.

of corn, your gardens, your cows, oxen, work horses, wagons, and a thousand machines that I know not the use of. I see that you are able to clothe yourselves, even from weeds and grass. In short, you can do almost what you please. You whites possess the power of subduing almost every animal to your use." But, after this acknowledgment, on his part, of our superior skill in the various arts, and this candid expression of his admiration, he continues thus: You are surrounded by slaves. Every thing about you is in chains; and you are slaves yourselves. I fear, if I should change my pursuits for yours, I should become a slave. Talk to my sons; perhaps they may be persuaded to adopt your fashions, or at least to recommend them to their sons; but, for myself, I was born free, and wish to die free! I am perfectly content with my condition. The forests and rivers supply all the wants of nature in plenty; and there is no lack of white people to purchase the products

of our labor.""

Such, said Mr. M., is said to be the language, such the sentiments of the Indians generally. And what a commentary is this upon the speculations of the theorist! upon him whose fanciful notions give direction to all his actions! What a lesson to the proud presumptuous man, who never thinks of doing good to thousands and tens of thousands of nearer and dearer, and much nobler objects immediately around him, who are fairly within the sphere of his action, and in need of his assistance, but is continually casting ahead before the light breezes of his own inordinate vanity, pretending to vie with his Maker in acts of universal benevolence! Yes, of universal benevolence! How has his imaginary castles been upset and demolished by those plain but irresistible and self-evident truths which have fallen from the lips of an Indian!

When the forests no longer abound in game, nor the rivers with fish, in sufficient quantities will abandon the life of the hunter for that of for the sustenance and support of the Indian, he the agriculturist, and not before. As long as furs and peltries are in demand, and can be had by following the chase, that long there must and will, and ought to be hunters; and were it in our power by forced measures or otherwise, to withdraw the Indian from the recesses of the wilderness, from the pursuits of the chase, and learn him to become a tiller of the ground, what would be the consequence? Would not the white man become a hunter in his stead? And thus while with such eager solicitude we urge, and press, and force, if we could force, the Indians into a state of civilization, do we uncivilize, or, rather, savagize, an equal number of our own citizens. Would not this be the inevitable result? No one, it is presumed, will, or can, deny the fact. And is it not a fact worthy our most serious consideration? I candidly acknowledge that, for my own part, I have no great partiality for such a change, or rather for such an exchange, even were it in our power to accomplish it.

But I am persuaded that the civilization of the Indians, if effected at all, is to be the work not only of time, but of necessity. Yes, sir, of sheer,

MAY, 1822.]

of stern necessity. Slowly progressive in its march, and by degrees, almost imperceptible, it will, within the time, and to such extent as their great and good spirit shall direct, come to pass. Let us be careful to throw no obstacles in the way. On the contrary, let us set them a bright example, and that example will have its attractions. We are much the strongest party; therefore, let justice, peace, and mercy, towards them, be our motto. It is our duty to treat them with humanity and tenderness, and not to abuse the power we possess, by wielding it to their injury and destruction. And, sir, if we go beyond this, if we must and will draw upon our country's Treasury to help them on, let it only be done when there is at least a reasonable prospect of attaining the great object we have in view.

Much of the treasure of this people has already been wasted in vain and futile attempts to civilize the Indians. I say wasted, because its application has had no good effect upon them, and has subserved no other purpose, except to fill the pockets of a few favored individuals, who are interested in deceiving us, and all of whom now unite in one general cry for more money-more money-give us more money and the public land, and the good work shall be done! Not that any good is likely to be done so as to be discernible to those who live in our day, and generation. Oh no! But perhaps some small traces of the good effects of our honest and disinterested efforts may be visible to those of our posterity a few centuries hence, who delight so much in looking back through the dark mists and shadows, as they are closing behind them through the twilight of uncertainty, for the purpose of descrying, and of contemplating the virtues and the generosity of their ancestors; and of profiting as individuals of a similar cast always have done, as they now do, and always will do very little by any good example.

How various are the pursuits of various men. One man is engaged, deeply and ardently engaged, in contemplating the scenes which have long since gone by, and over which Time, bald pated Time! is about to throw, or perhaps has already thrown, his impenetrable mantle, for the purpose of hiding those scenes forever from the view of mortals.

[H. OF R.

pecially of those upon whom their acts are to have an immediate and certain effect-returning thanks occasionally, to be sure, for the good with which their ancestors were blessed, and praying for the good of posterity, but without once losing sight of what they consider a great, a paramount, and an indispensable duty, which they owe to the present generation.

Such men as these, Mr. Speaker, will necessarily inquire of you, how do we raise the revenue out of which this civilizing cash is to be furnished? They will not forget that it is raised in part by an indirect tax upon articles of the very first necessity; and in part by taxing those articles from the use of which our citizens derive a very considerable portion of all their comforts, and of all their enjoyments; that it is a tax upon articles of necessary consumption, a matter of very doubtful policy at any time. For in proportion to the increase of such a tax, do we depress our own productive citizens, and discourage and check the increasing population of our own country. Yes, of our own country! endearing name, but always lost sight of when we are chasing a shadow, or pursuing a phantom, from which no good is to be realized. He that will not provide for his own household is said, by the highest authority, to be worse than an infidel. We have a numerous household, consisting of nearly ten millions of souls, for whom, if we do not provide, let us not deprive them of the means which they are industriously striving to provide for themselves.

The citizen of this republic who rears a numerous family in decency, were he to sit down and calculate the amount of taxes annually paid by him upon the articles of sugar, molasses, tea, coffee, pepper, spices, muslins, calicoes, cloths, and so on an endless list-would be lost in astonishment. Yes, he would be lost in astonishment.

I know, Mr. Speaker, that we represent a magnanimous and a generous people. Of taxes they will not complain if imposed for humane, and benevolent, and useful purposes, and applied accordingly. But we are deceiving ourselves, and the people are deceived, in supposing that we promote the cause of humanity, or add any real substantial benefit to the Indians by this idle application of our moneythis wanton waste of the nation's treasure. word or two in relation to those Indians who are dispersed and scattered over that vast region of wilderness beyond the borders of our settlements. And here I do not mean to travel with you upon the waters of the Rio del Norte or along the shores of the Pacific. Nor do I intend at present to run across the path of my honorable and highly respected friend from Vir

A

mouth of the Columbia; though I may hereafter stand at his back, when it shall become necessary to support him in opposition to the Emperor Alexander. But, confining myself to the Indians on this side of the Rocky Mountains -what do they think of our civilizing systems?

H. OF R.]

Let them answer for themselves. The words of a principal chief of the Fox tribes, as related by Mr. Sibley, will show you their aversion to our laws, and the repugnance they feel to what we call civilization. "The Great Spirit (said Wah-ha-lo) put the Indians on the earth to hunt, and to gain a living in the wilderness; and I always find that when any of our people depart from this mode of life, by attempting to read and write, and live like the white people do, the Great Spirit is displeased with them, and they soon die."* Here we discover that submission to laws, however mild and equitable in their provisions, is, in their estimation, | the most intolerable bondage. The various cords and links by which, under the social compact, all civilized societies are united, they look upon as so many galling chains, as the very badges of slavery, and therefore not to be endured. These wild, but proud and lofty spirits, indignantly spurn what they are led to consider a dull and ponderous load. Mr. Speaker, I know not how to hold the mirror up to nature. But little of my time has been devoted to the study of her laws. I cannot pretend to say whether in the organization and construction of the interior man there is so great a difference that the white and red man cannot be brought to think and act alike, under similar circumstances. But I will say, that all our attempts to make them think and act alike, under circumstances so dissimilar, is not only vain, but I may be pardoned for the expression, it is in my opinion an exceeding folly, if not presumption.

There are certain animals which, in their exterior appearance, bear as strong a resemblance to each other as does the white man and the Indian, and yet by nature they are wholly irreconcilable. Not to mention certain quadrupeds of this description, I will barely point to some of the feathered tribes. The wild duck, for instance-how soon it dives to hide from you. The partridge conceals itself while the shell is yet upon its head. But more especially the turkey. Do we not see what we very properly call the wild turkey often brought into life by, and raised with, those of the domestic breed, without having seen one of its own kind? And yet, we find that, as soon as it arrives at sufficient strength and maturity, scorning the barn

[The circumstances were these: Some Panis chiefs and

warriors from beyond the Mississippi having come to Wash

[MAY, 1822 yard, though strewed with abundance, it leave the roost of its companions, and bounding aloft it perches on the top of some distant towering tree-on the branches of the proudest monarch of the forest within its reach. This is repeated again and again. Wandering from the side of the gentle brood, he strolls in pursuit of other objects, which, though he has never seen, he is by the irresistible force of nature led to believe do somewhere exist. With desire keen and strong, he seeks, and, if successful, he bids farewell, a long farewell, to all his old companions, and returns to them no more. And thus it is that whole broods have, from time to time, been brought into life and raised up on the farm, and have as invariably disappeared. Where are they now to be found? Though I will not indulge in the afflicting belief that such a destiny as this does really await our red brethren, yet I do most sincerely believe that such is the barrier which nature interposes between the two people, together with the powerful force of habit operating upon them, that all our attempts to civilize those Indians, who are dispersed and scattered in the wilderness, will be fruitless and unavailing. And, therefore, in plain and common language, I do most respectfully give it as my humble opinion that we had much better mind our own business; yes, we had much better mind our own business. And equally vain will be all our attempts to civilize those within the interior of our country and surrounded by our settlements, unless we first remove certain artificial obstacles which we must see, and perhaps can remove. I mean that we must radically change our present system of policy-the political relations existing between them and us. educate them, instruct them in agricultural and mechanic arts, furnish them with the implements of husbandry, and try to convert them to Christianity; and, after all, unless we secure to them the benefit and protection of our laws and municipal regulations, and, in this way, ingraft them, like so many twigs, upon the stalk, or upon the branches of the stalk of the republic, all our efforts will be without effect.

We may

roe was induced to have them assembled at the Presidential mansion, and to deliver them a speech in favor of quitting

the hunter state, and betaking themselves to ploughing and hoeing for a comfortable living. When he had finished, a chief answered him briefly, and to the point, "that all that might do very well for the white people; but, as for himself, he would never bruise his hands digging in the ground, while he could find a buffalo to kill, or a horse to steal."]

without the pale of our laws. Aliens in their own country, they can do nothing; they may recede, they cannot advance. If the Govern ment will give them, individually, a just and reasonable portion of their lands of their respective reservations, laid out in its proper metes and boundaries, and take them under the jurisdiction and control of the laws, grad.

H. OF R.]

MONDAY, May 6.
Collection of Duties, &c.

The House then went into a Committee of the Whole on the bill from the Senate to provide for the collection of duties on imports and tonnage in Florida, and for other purposes; a bill to authorize the building of light-houses therein mentioned, and for other purposes; and a bill further to establish the compensation of the collectors of the customs, and to alter certain collection districts, and for other purposes.

Mr. CAMBRELENG moved to strike out of the 9th section the words "New York." Mr. C. remarked, that he considered any attempt to amend the bill hopeless; but he thought there were some very strong circumstances in favor of excepting the revenue officers of the port of New York from the general reduction now about to be made. No gentleman would accuse him (Mr. C.) of a disposition to oppose any bill tending judiciously and justly to retrench the expenses of Government. He regretted that this bill had been kept back so long as to preclude debate. He would only detain the House a few moments. The salaries of these officers were regulated in 1790, and they have never been augmented or diminished since; in 1802 they were limited as they now are; it would be recollected that this was during Mr. Jefferson's Administration. Mr. C. was not the eulogist of that or any other Administration, but he believed it had been properly deemed an economical Administration. By looking to the history of the revenue of the port of New York, it appeared that in 1790, the amount of the revenue collected was $470,000; at that time in the whole United States, the revenue collected was little more than three millions. The revenue collected at the port of New York last year, was $7,200,000, and he presumed that during the present year the revenue would be between nine and ten millions, or equal to the half of the whole revenue of the United States. He asked whether, under these circumstances, it was proper or just to reduce the salaries of these officers. There were no officers under the Government who more faithfully earned their salaries-there was no department of the Government, Treasury, War, Navy, or State, with all their auditors and clerks, which performed as much labor as was executed at the custom-house at New York. As we had a few days since virtually rejected the bill reducing our own compensation, he hoped the House would, for this session, at least, forbear to touch the salaries of officers whose labors and responsibility had been so much increased in thirty years. It was a mistaken policy to change the salaries of revenue offices.

Mr. CHAMBERS again moved the previous question, which was sustained by the Houseyeas 67, nays 46.

The question, "Shall the main question be now put?" was then taken by yeas and

[MAY, 1822.

nays, and decided in the affirmative-yeas 85, nays 51.

The main question, "Shall the bill, with the amendments, be ordered for a third reading?" was then put, and it was carried in the affirmative.

On motion of Mr. WALWORTH, a recess was ordered until 6 o'clock.

EVENING SESSION.

Cumberland Road Repair Bill-President's Veto.

On motion of Mr. TRIMBLE, the several orders of the day were postponed for the purpose; and the House proceeded to the reconsideration of the bill, entitled "An act for the preservation and repair of the Cumberland Road," which was returned to this House by the President of the United States on the 4th instant, with the objections which appear upon the Journal of the 4th instant, and which said bill is in the words following, to wit:

An Act for the preservation and repair of the Cum

berland Road.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America, in Congress assembled, That the President of the United States be, and he is hereby, authorized to cause to be erected, on the national road leading from Cumberland, in the State of Maryland, to the river Ohio, so opinion, will be necessary and sufficient to collect many toll houses, gates, and turnpikes, as, in his the duties and tolls hereinafter mentioned, from all persons travelling on the same, to be erected at such places as he may determine; Provided, That the number of such gates and turnpikes shall not exceed twelve, nor be less than six; and that such gates and turnpikes shall be erected at a distance not less than ten miles from each other.

SEC. 2. And be it further enacted, That, as soon as the said gates and turnpikes shall be erected, the President of the United States is hereby authorized to appoint, or cause to be appointed, toll-gatherers, to demand and receive, for passing the said turnpikes, the tolls and rates hereinafter mentioned, who may stop any person riding, leading, or driving, any phaeton, cart, wagon, sleigh, sled, or other carriage horses, cattle, hogs, sheep, sulky, chair, chaise, of burden or pleasure, from passing through the said gates or turnpikes, until they shall respectively have paid the same, that is to say: For every space of twenty miles in length of the said road, the following sums of money, and so in proportion for any greater or lesser distance, to wit: For every score of sheep or hogs, six and a quarter cents; for every score of cattle, twelve and a half cents; for every led or drove horse, one cent; for every horse and rider, six and a quarter cents; for every sleigh or sled, for for every dearborn, sulky, chair, or chaise, with one each horse and ox drawing the same, three cents; horse, twelve and a half cents; for every chariot, coach, coachee, stage wagon, phaeton, chaise, or dearborn, with two horses and four wheels, eighteen and three-quarter cents; for either of the carriages last mentioned, with four horses, twenty-five cents. For every other carriage of pleasure, under whatever name it may go, the like sum, according to the