Our Indian Affairs [pp. 5-22]

OUR INDIAN AFFAIRS.
with the Indians than the present method of nomination and
appointment to these Agencies.
We have but little space left for the second general subject,
to inquire what more the Church can do for the Indians. First
of all, our Christian people should discard the idea that it is a
hopeless work to convert this people. They are not "a soft
race," like the Sandwich Islanders, but possess a wonderful
degree of native energy, endurance, and capacity of improvemnent. They are not a people destined to "die out," unless
through the vices and mal-treatment of,the white people; on the
contrary, where they come under Christian influences thiey increase in number, as witness the Cherokees, Choctaws, Seminoles, and others; and where they become even partially settled,
they do not decrease, as is shownv by the Omahas, Winnebagoes,
and Navajoes. But were we to concede their short existence a,s
a race, we shall only find a stronger plea for giving themn the
benefits of our holy religion without delay, Next, the Christian
churches of this country should recognize the special claims of
this poor people upon their prompt and vigorous benevolence.
By how many bonds are we related to them-of neighborhood,
of almost exclusive access, of indebtedness for land once theirs
of manifold good for evils inflicted on them by our countrymen;
of the highest obligation of all, that of seeking their eternal
well-being? The happiest results have already followed the
missionary efforts of different churches; thousands of converts
are enrolled as communicants, and beautiful have been many
Christian lives, and many peaceful deaths, of Indian church
members.
All our Christian denominations should take a part in the
work of Indian evangelization. We would have them all represented in the Indian Agencies; and to lessen sectional feeling
we would assign some of the nominations to Agencies for northern and northwestern tribes to denorninations as yet unhappily
only southern in their organization, and vice versa. Whether our
churches should conduct their missions to the Indians through
their Home Conferences and Associations, like the Methodists
and Baptists, or their Foreign Boards, like the Presbyterians
and Congregationalists, or an Indian Commission, like the Episcopa.lians, or a Quarterly or Yearly Meeting, like the Friends,
we deem to be a matter of minor interest-provided in every
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1874 ]
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