Among the Apaches, Part I [pp. 311-322]

A?iAmong the Apaches.
ADaches, just then brought on the reservatioin, they had found objections that
before had not occurred to them.
And the agent was right, for if the
(,overnment would lift the Apaches from
the slough of ignorance and loathsome
(degradation in which they now wallow,
compulsory education must be resorted
to. Under the strong hand of the law
of force then must be taught to labor
systematically, and when it becomes necessary to educate the rising generation
in the mystery of books, force should
compel them to accept the situation.
Force is the one law the Indian recognizes and respects; it is his law, and
when he fails to employ it, it is because
the power is lacking. No argument will
serve to convince him that the white
man stays his hand for any other reason.
Overcome in battle, deprived of his
arms, and trodden remorselessly beneath
the heel of the conqueror, he bows,vith
humility to the power that has subdued
him, and submits without murmuring to
the will of his master. Under such con'.ions the Apaches can be trained to a
knowledge of steady industry, and incluced to submit their children to the
guidance of the white man, for such development of their mental faculties as
may be possible with this fast disappearing and seemingly doomed race.
The sanitary condition at the time
wdhen the inspector was on duty on the
reservation was fairly satisfactory, no
disease of unusual fatality being prevalent. The most common ailment was
due to bad habits, and it was a fact
w-orth)- of notice that the indulgences
that lead to it were more common
among the bands that were on the most
friendly and intimate terms with the
whites than among the more warlike.
The Yuma, Tonto, and Mojave tribes,
which had been subdued to the point of
servility, were the most notoriously
profligate of all the Indians on the reservation, and it was claimed by persons
long resident among them, that the
ToI, XI\' -2I.
White Mountain Indians, who, next to
the Chiricahuas, are the most warlike,
were freest from the vice of all the reservation Apaches. It may be that to this
fact is due their superior physical condition, which takes rank among the tribal divisions in reverse order to the extent of their reliance on the white man
for protection and support and the years
of their intercourse with him.
In power of endurance, manly bearing,
independent spirit, and mental capacity,
the different tribes assigned to the San
Carlos reservation may be fairly classified in the following order:
ist. The Chiricahuas — Turkey Apaches- who have so long been a terror
to the citizens of Arizona and New Mexico in the United States, and Sonora
and Chihuahua in Mexico, and who boast
even now that they have never been
whipped by any civilized poxver.
2d. The White Mountains - Sierra
Blancas-the friends of the Chiricahuas,
having their homes for the most part on
the mountain streams in the vicinity of
Fort Apache, at a distance of sixty miles
from the agency.
3d. The San Carlos, who halt between
two opinions: race prejudice and the
memory of former glory inclining them
to continue fraternal relations with the
mountain tribes, while the government
bounty they have learned to enjoy is a
temptation to remain at peace that they
are fast losing the power to resist.
4th. The Tontos, who, having been
greatly reduced in numbers by the war
with the whites a few years ago, are so
broken in spirit as to be easily held in
subjection, and may be relied upon for
efficient service against hostile tribes.
5th. The Mojaves and Yumas, two
tribes that have for many years been living on reservations, and yet can claim
no superiority as workers over any of the
other tribes, except the Chiricahuas, but
have on the contrary lost courage and
self-reliance, and fallen to the lowest estate of dependence.
18s9.]
321