The Indians

Tho following ia the full text of President Grant's Mg talk i the Sioux chiefa iit tho eouneil n Washington last week: I want to say to tho Indians to-day somefhing uboiit the object of In-inging ' them here, nul .1 few wörds i'(ir them to r think about, bnt nothing for tlicm to reply tu at prefleiit. I have always been a friond to tho Indiaus, and mn vory ' iciiiH to do what I tliink best for their good. The country wkefe they now live, ' iin they nust be well awaro, is entirely ' iiii-;ii:ilile of supporting them, nhould ' Hie government nol pienso to give them ' nid. l'.y the tieaty of 18f8, elothing was grauled to them for thirty yeare, and ■ provisión l'or only live years. -The food and provisión, thorefore, whioh have ''. boon given to them for tho last two years havo been a gratuity on tho part of Congress, and these may be taken from them at any time without any violation ot the treaty. My interest now is to mako some arrangement with thom by which they and their ohildren wül be secure for the fiitnrt!. As I said in tin; beginning, it must be evident, to them if the supplies of f ood should be withheld by the government, il wonld be eulirely impossible t'or tne imliiuiH to live wiiere tliey are. Another thiug tu which i would cali attention in this: They lunst, ,see that the whil'' penple oiiliiiuiibcr tho Indians now about 200 to 1, taking all tho ludiaiiü witldn the 'lerritories owned by the United fótates. This number of whites is inireasing ,so very rapidly that before iiiuny ymis it will be impossible to li.N. on :uiy point witliili the limit of om' tcij'ritory whero you MB ]ievent their going. It will become nccessary that the white people shall go J'rom one phue to another, whetheroccupied by tho ludians or not, thw .sume as from ono SLato to anotlier. For this reason it Í3 vcry desirable that tliey should bo situatod where they wonld bo able to get support beyond any contingeney. I do not propose to ask them, without their consent, to loave their homes where they were boni and raiweil, butl want to point out to them the advautages to themselves and to their children. Jf they will accept such arrangement Út ni:iv lie )iopos"d to tliein, there is territory south ot' wluu'e they now live where the ulimato is very much better, where the gr.'iss is much better, and where game is moro abuudant - largo game, Bueh as butlaloes -wlier! there is good pasturage for animáis, and where ; teachers eau be sent among tlie Indians j to iufitruct them in tho arts of i tion, .the means of self-preservatiou and self support. This year we have had great ditliculty in keeping tl! white peoplo from going to the Black Hills in search of gold, but we have so far prevented them from going. Every year tliis samo difliculty will be encountered until the right of tho white people to that ooiuih Vn'Uui'", ar.'l may, in tho end, lead to hostilitios betwoen the white people and tho ludians, without any special fault on eitlier sido. If Such troublo should ocenr, and becomo general, it would nec.essarily load to tho withholding, for the time being at least, of the supplies wl i ioli the government has been sending.to them. All this trouble I want to avoid. I want to seo them well provided for, in such a way that the arrangemeuL will have to bo I ed by my suecessor and othor administrations for the futuro. I want the ludians to think of what I have said. I don't want them to say anything to-day. I v:mt them to talk amoug themselves, and be'prepared to hear from tlie Secretui-y of the Interior and the Commissioner of Indiau All'airs, who aro authorized to speáK for me, and will be governod by niy advice. Tliis is all I want to say to them.