The military commanders in New Mexico from 1864 were as follows: General James H. Carleton, 1864-6; General George Sykes, 1867; General George W. Getty, 1867-71; General Gordon Granger, 1871-3 and 1875-6; General J. I. Gregg, 1873-4; General Thomas C. Devin, 1874-5; Colonel James F. Wade, 1876; General Edward Hatch, 1876-81; General Luther P. Bradley, 1881; General R. S. Mackenzie, 1881-3. All seem to have been faithful and efficient officers, if we may credit the annual reports of General Pope, commanding the division of the Missouri, which included New Mexico. Most of them, however, as was inevitable, antagonized at one time or another the Indian agents or some clique of citizens. For instance, Getty in 1867 and Hatch in 1880 were denounced in public meetings, but sustained by resolutions of the legislature. Details of these controversies are not fully recorded, and if they were, would hardly be worth reproducing.

The California volunteers were mustered out in New Mexico on the expiration of their terms of enlistment in 1865-6, and their places were taken by regular troops. The force in 1867 was over 1,500 men, but was gradually diminished, until in 1875 it was less than 600. Next year, however, it was 1,200, and was increased until 1883, when it was nearly 1,600, and in 1884 perhaps 2,300. These troops, maintained at an annual cost of nearly three millions, were distributed, according to the varying exigencies of the Indian service, at torts Bascom, Bayard, Craig, Cummings, Mc­Rae, Marcy, Selden, Stanton, Sumner, Union, and Wingate. The military headquarters was at Santa Fé; several of the older forts do not appear in the records of this period; and some of those named were new, and others abandoned before 1884. The legislature now, as before, made frequent appeals for increased force, and especially for authority to raise volunteer regiments; with occasional requests for military posts at certain exposed points; but there is no indication that these efforts ever produced any results. Something was, however, accomplished in the way of organizing the militia force.

The Indian population of the territory in 1864-86 may be put at 26,000 to 28,000, with but little variation. The superintendents in charge down to 1874, when the office was abolished, were Michael Steck in 1864, Felipe Delgado in 1865-6, A. B. Norton in 1866-7, Luther E. Webb in 1867-9, José M. Gallegos in 1869, William Clinton in 1869-70, Nathaniel Pope in 1870-2, L. E. Dudley in 1872-4. For the general Indian service, congress made an annual appropriation, which was $75,000 in 1864, about $50,000 a year in 1865-75, $18,000 to $30,000 in 1876-81, and $1,000 to $5,000 later; besides special appropriations, chiefly for the Navajos and Apaches, amounting to about $2,000,000 in 1864-84. The military expenditure, as we have seen, was about $3,000,000 per year.

Respecting the subject of Indian affairs in New Mexico since 1864 as a whole—that is, as distinct from the history of the separate tribes and sections, to be presented a little later—there is not much to be profitably said. In all the general phases of its development, including obstacles, controversies, and results, nearly all that has been said on Indian history in Arizona and other territories for the corresponding period, and in this territory for the preceding period, might be repeated without essential modification. I append some general notes in chronologic order. As a rule, while petty depredations never ceased entirely, the loss of life and property was never serious after the Navajos had been settled on their north-western reservation, and before the southern Apache outbreaks of 1880 and the following years. Finally, all the natives were gathered on reservations or in their pueblos, and Indian wars have become, perhaps, a thing of the past. In New Mexico, as in the other territories, however, the problem of educating and civilizing the aborigines, of protecting their rights as well as those of the citizens, remains to be solved, with but slight prospects of success. Elements and conditions of the problem are substantially the same here as elsewhere; though certain qualities of the Pueblos and Navajos should offer more than ordinary encouragement.

In a former chapter we left the Navajos, or over 7,000 of them, at the Bosque Redondo reservation, on the Rio Pecos, where they had been brought in by the campaigns of Carson and other officers, under the direction of General Carleton, where they were kept as prisoners of war under military management and under guard of the garrison at Fort Sumner, and where were also 400 Mescalero Apaches under Agent Labadi. Subsequently, more Navajos were brought in, and the greatest number at the Bosque was 8,491 in 1865.It was supposed by Carleton and others that not more than 2,000 remained in their old home; but it later appeared that not much more than half the whole number, and these not the most troublesome, had been removed. Finally, for want of accommodations and means of subsistence, orders had to be given to send no more prisoners to Fort Sumner. At the end of five years the number had been reduced by deaths and escapes to 7,304; but the greater part of the decrease was in 1864-5, when there were several outbreaks and pursuits.

As a military measure, to gain complete control of the Navajos, to show them the power of the government, to make them appreciate the value of their old home, to prepare the way for a treaty, and to teach the Indians their true interest in keeping the treaty, General Carleton’s policy of removal, as compared with any other likely to have been adopted at the time, must be considered a wise one; and too much praise cannot be accorded him for his energy in carrying out his plans. But the Bosque Redondo as a reservation had no merits whatever; and as a means of civilizing the Indians, the project proved a total failure. Carleton was disappointed in his belief that he had captured nearly all of the Navajos, and in his hope that their removal would open up a rich mining district in the north-west. Still more was he disappointed in his expectation that when the Indians had been conquered, removed, and supported for a year or two at a cost of over a million dollars, the government would be ready with funds and a settled policy to take them off his hands, and proceed in earnest with the work of teaching them to be self-supporting. The government, as usual, did nothing promptly or definitely.

Moreover, a bitter opposition to the scheme was aroused from the first. Nobody in New Mexico desired the raiding Navajos to remain permanently on the Pecos, especially under the lack of control which experience had taught the people to expect; though the governor and others favored somewhat the Bosque Redondo as a possible stepping-stone to the ultimate removal of the Indians from the territory. Superintendent Steck was a leader in the opposition, finally going to Washington to urge his views; and the controversy between Carleton and his opponents became very hot, leading to much exaggeration on both sides. Meanwhile, on the reservation matters went on from bad to worse. The Navajos were not fanners, and from lack of skill, ravages of the com worm, and various other causes, the crops failed year after year. Most of their flocks and herds had been lost, and the grazing was not sufficient for the animals left. There was the greatest difficulty in keeping them from starvation. They were once or twice attacked by the Comanches and other Indians of the plains. They quarrelled with the Mescaleros, who ran away in 1866, after their agent had been driven off on a charge of irregular dealings in cattle. Under the new conditions the health of the Indians was much impaired, aid the ravages of syphilitic disease became alarming.

Finally, in May 1868, when the condition of affairs had become hopelessly bad, the peace commissioners, General Sherman and Colonel Tappan, arrived, and on the 1st of June made a treaty for the removal of the Navajos to a reservation of 5,200 square miles in their old country, in the north-western corner of the territory. Each Indian was to receive five dollars in clothing per year, and each one engaged in farming or any trade was given ten dollars. The head of a family could select 160 acres of land if he chose, and was in that case given $100 in seeds and implements the first year, and $25 for the second and third years. 15,000 sheep and 500 cattle were to be purchased for the tribe; buildings were to be erected at a cost of $11,500; and a school-house and teacher were to be provided for each 30 pupils, the Indians binding themselves to compel the attendance of all children from six to sixteen years of age. An appropriation of $150,000 was made by congress to pay the cost of removal, and make a beginning of reservation work under the treaty.

The removal was immediately effected, 7,304 Navajos arriving at Fort Wingate, where the new agency was temporarily established, on the 23d of July, under the care of Agent Dodd. From this date the Navajos have lived more or less quietly on their reservation, and with the exception of occasional misdeeds of renegades for a few years, their old-time raids for plunder and their broken treaties were at an end. They have grown rich as a tribe in flocks and herds, and from a military point of view have given the government no trouble. Over 16,000 in number, and constantly gaining, they fully understand, as they did not in earlier times, that war is likely to prove fatal to all their interests. Their reservation annals have been similar in most respects to those of other tribes. The Navajos were more intelligent and industrious than the Indians of most other tribes, but their great advantage, or that of those attempting to control them, was their inclination to raise live-stock. In 1884 they had a million sheep and 35,000 horses, though the latter were practically of no use to them. The possession of so much wealth made them fear war. In agriculture they were not so successful, though showing commendable industry under adverse circumstances, cultivating at times over 10,000 acres. The farming lands were, however, of limited extent and scattered in small patches; the water supply was inadequate and irregular; frosts and various pests were frequent obstacles; and the crops were usually more or less complete failures. Their chief disadvantages were the gross immorality of their women; their addiction to strong drink, though some progress was made in checking this evil; the inability of the chiefs and rich men to control the masses; their living in widely scattered bands from the necessities of farming and convenience of grazing; and their habit of burning every house in which a person had died, preventing the wealthy Indians from building permanent homes. Except in the partial adoption of the white man’s dress, there was no modification of their old customs. Toward their civilization no progress whatever was made. A school was in existence much of the time, but the attendance was very small, the tribe not compelling attendance, as promised in the treaty, and the government not fulfilling its treaty obligation to build school-houses and furnish teachers. The old buildings at Fort Defiance were always in a dilapidated condition; and the agency was so near the reservation lines that outside whiskey-traders were given too great facilities. The reservation was several times extended, until it covered an area, for the most part sterile, of over eight million acres. The railroad along their southern border brought both good and evil to this people. The Navajos still live, in the old way, where they have lived for centuries; and while their prosperity in some respects has been remarkable, it is to be noted that all is due to their own original and inherent qualities, and nothing to their contact with a superior race. Here, as elsewhere, prospects for the future are not encouraging.

 

JICARILLAS AND UTES.

 

The Comanches, Kiowas, and other tribes of the eastern plains were somewhat troublesome in 1864-6, and several expeditions under Carson, McCleave, and others were sent against them from Fort Bascom as a base by General Carleton; but later, so far as New Mexico was concerned, there were no hostilities, though complaints of trading in stolen goods occasionally appear.

The Jicarilla Apaches, from 750 to 950 in number, and the three bands of Utes, numbering from 1,500 to 1,800, continued to live for the greater part of the period under consideration in the northern portions of the territory, with agencies at Cimarron, east of the Rio Grande, and at Abiquiú, or finally at Tierra Amarilla, in the west. What has been said in an earlier chapter respecting the character and conduct of these Indians requires no modification or supplement here. They were always nominally at peace, though committing many petty thefts, and accused of many depredations of which they were probably not guilty; they were worthless, drunken vagabonds, especially the Jicarillas, visiting the agencies only to receive their annual allowance of goods, and spending their time in hanging about the settlements, where they were a great nuisance, or—especially the Utes—in hunting expeditions; and they were always averse to settlement, work, or removal, preferring and claiming the right to roam at will, and to receive liberal annuities on condition of abstaining from depredations.

In the chronologic record of Ute and Jicarilla affairs there is nothing requiring notice except the efforts to effect their removal and final settlement There was no improvement in their condition, and no effort was made to improve or educate them. They were simply given a small annual supply of goods, and thus induced to keep the peace. Their homes were on private lands, and it was understood by all that they must go elsewhere. They were generally unwilling to make any change; when they were favorably disposed the government failed to act promptly until the Indians had changed their mind, or perhaps selected some destination that had never been favored by them. The Utes at Abiquiú pretended at times a willingness to settle on a reservation in the San Juan valley, but this was not acceptable to the government, though often recommended by agents. It was deemed desirable to move them to the reservation of their tribe in Southern Colorado; and in 1868 a treaty was made to that effect; but the Utes refused to go, alleging that the treaty had been fraudulent, and dissatisfied because an agency site had not been chosen on Los Pinos Creek, as promised. Their view of the matter was sustained by many, including the legislature. In 1872 the agency was moved from Abiquiú to Tierra Amarilla, farther north. In 1873, by another treaty, the Utes promised to go to Colorado after a while; but again became disgusted with the choice of an agency site, and with having to go north for their goods before final transfer. By several acts of congress, however, of 18778, and by abolishing the southern agency, they were finally removed to the Colorado reservation in April to July 1878; and New Mexico was thus rid of them. The Jicarillas it was at first desired to remove to Bosque Redondo, but they were unwilling to go there, and General Carleton was unwilling to receive them. In 1870 the Maxwell rancho was sold, and this still further complicated matters, as the Indians had an idea that they were the real owners. The suspension of annuities in 1871, a measure adopted for effect on the Utes, greatly disgusted the Jicarillas. In 1872 the Cimarron agency was nominally abolished, and an effort was made to move the Indians south to Fort Stanton or Tularosa, but most of them were permitted to go to Tierra Amarilla, though rations were still distributed in the east In 1874 a reservation of 900 square miles was set off east of the Navajo reserve and north of the river; but nothing further was done toward moving the Indians, who seem to have been willing, though refusing to go south. There was an act of 1878 require them, on the departure of the Utes, to be sent to Fort Stanton, and 32 of those at Cimarron went there; but the rest refused, and on the suspension of supplies committed many thefts. In 1880 they desired a home in the north; five chiefs visited Washington; the act of 1878 was repealed; and in July a new reservation on the Rio Navajo was selected, to which they were removed in December. Here they lived until 1883, when, against the views of the military authorities, they were again transferred to Fort Stanton, where they have since remained. (On April 13,1887, the day that this page goes into type, the newspapers announce that they are to be returned to the northern reservation.)

Their number was given as from 7,000 to 9,000; but in the earlier estimates and counts the Zuñis seem to have been omitted, and the real number may be regarded as having increased from about 8,500 to somewhat over 9,000. They are still the same peaceable and inoffensive, industrious, simple, credulous, and superstitious people that they have always been. In their character and primitive manner of life there has been no essential change. They were neglected during this later period by the priests, and the work of protestant missionaries has but slightly affected them; though at Laguna a body of so-called protestants became strong enough to engage in certain controversies. Except in paying an agent’s salary, appropriating $10,000 in 1871-2 for implements, and paying a part of teachers’ wages, the government did nothing for them, and they have given the military and civil authorities no trouble. Their land grants were patented and surveyed, though a few boundary disputes occurred later, and the Indians have been often imposed upon by trespassing settlers. For some seven or eight years from 1867 a decision of the supreme court that the Pueblos were entitled to the privileges of citizenship caused much trouble, because, while they did not desire these privileges, a way was opened to great wrong to them in suits with settlers tried before local courts. I have not found the final decision, if there was one, by the United States courts; but there seems to have been no complaint since 1875. In education, from about 1873, earnest efforts were made by the presbyterians, aided by the government; and schools were established at several pueblos with considerable success, especially at Laguna, Zuni, and Jemes. Some 20 children were also sent to Carlisle, Pennsylvania, to be taught; and in 1881 an Indian boarding-school was founded at Alburquerque, where in later years over 100 pupils from all the tribes were gathered; and at latest accounts the results were most encouraging. This is almost the only ray of light penetrating the blackness of prospective Indian affairs in New Mexico.

 

THE MESCALEROS.

 

Of the Apaches, the Mescaleros are the only band besides the Jicarillas whose annals can be presented separately. The Mescaleros were in many respects similar to the Jicarillas. They sometimes, however, engaged in farming, and they also at times joined the other Apache bands in their raids. Their number was between 600 and 800. About 400 were gathered at the Bosque Redondo until November 1866,when, on account of their quarrels with the Navajos, they left the reservation, and became roving and hostile. In 1871 over 300 were reunited at Fort Stanton, and the number increased to about 800 in 1872. Here a reservation was set off in 1873-4, and the Indians were kept under control more or less, and a little progress was made in farming and education; though there were almost continuous feuds with settlers, miners, and other Indian bands. The reservation boundaries were several times changed. In 1879-81 many of the Mescaleros joined the southern Apaches in their raids; and many serious complications resulted, it being difficult or impossible to distinguish between the guilty and innocent, and there arising many controversies between the agents and the military on these points. The location of the reservation so near the frontier, where the Indians were exposed to the raids and solicitations of the renegade bands, was most unfortunate, and a change was often urged, but never effected. From 1882 there was a slight renewal of good conduct and comparative progress; in 1883 the Jicarillas were brought to this reservation; and from that time neither band has caused any serious trouble.

The southern Apaches of New Mexico, exclusive of the Mescaleros, consisting chiefly of the Mimbrenos and Mogollones together known as the Gilenos but including at times a portion of the Arizona Chiricahuas, numbered from 1,500 to 1,800. Their annals are much less definite than those of other tribes, as they were generally more or less beyond the control of agents, and spent a part of the time in Arizona and Mexico.

In 1864-9 these bands were generally hostile, but were hard pressed by the troops. Depredations were constant, but the loss of life was slight. Then in 1870-1 about 1,800 of the savages, tiring somewhat of war, were fed at Canada Alamosa, in the region of Fort Craig. By Vincent Colyer a reservation was selected at Tularosa, where about 500 the rest going on the war-path were transferred against their will, and lived in discontent and trouble during 1872-3. In 1874 they were returned to near their former home, and a reservation was set off at Ojo Caliente, and here they lived in comparative quiet, though without any real progress until 1877. Then the unwise concentration policy caused the Hot Spring reservation to be broken up, and 450 of the Apaches were forcibly removed to San Carlos in Arizona. From this time until 1882 southern New Mexico was for the most part a bloody battle-ground. The successive outbreaks and raids of Victorio, Nane, Loco, Chato, Geronimo, and others are mentioned in my note, and more details are given in the chapter on Indian affairs in Arizona. Since 1882, though the renegades from Arizona have several times raided the frontier district, there has been comparative peace. The management of the southern Apaches has been a difficult problem; but the Indian department has much to answer for in the disasters of the last decade, since most of these may be traced to unwise removals against the wishes of the Indians, in disregard of promises made, and against the protests of the military authorities. Of the Apaches, only the remnants of the Jicarillas and Mescaleros remain in New Mexico, and these under control on their reservation. Serious outbreaks are probably at an end. The problem of ultimate improvement remains unsolved.

 

1864. Gen. Carleton's mil. operations extending through this and the following years. 1865. Interview of Gen. Davis with Victorio, Nane, etc., at the copper mines, and efforts to induce the Apaches to go to Bosque Redondo. The chiefs gave some encouragement; but depred. continued. Carleton declined to permit Supt Steck to go for a talk with the Mimbres, who must surrender without conditions.

 

1866. Intention to make a campaign against the Mimbres and estab. a post. A Gila reserv. spoken of, but no Ind. on it. 1867. No change, but continued hostilities.

 

1868. Agency at Limitar; constant depredations.

 

1869. Ind. thought to be tiring of war. Chiefs interviewed by Agent Drew and willing to go on a reserv. at Hot Spring, which is recommended.

 

1870. Over 500 Mimbres and Mogollones, with a few Mescaleros, being fed at Canada Alamosa. Gen. Pope has no hope of estab. the Apaches on a reserv., but agent thinks differently. Agency consolidated with that of the Mescaleros 11 July, but there is no further trace of this change.

 

1871. From l,200 to 1,900 Ind. at Canada Alamosa, who, however, ran off when Colyer's escort appeared. Cochise and his Chiricahuas submitted this year, and came in to the Canada. Colyer, the peace com., decided to fix the reserv. farther north-west, at Tularosa, because of the unsuitableness of the Canada for agric., and the proximity and opposition of the settlers, who at a public meeting complained of thefts of cattle and crops, and made preparations to use forcible measures.

 

1872. About 450 Ind. removed in April, much against their wishes, to the new reserv. at Tularosa. The rest, including Cochise's band, had run away to avoid removal. About 1,000 went for a time to the Mescalero reserv., and many resumed their raids.

 

1873. From 600 to 700 on the reserv. very discontented; depred. frequent. The efforts of Maj. Price to enforce the return of stolen cattle caused all to run off, but 700 were caught and brought back.

 

1874. Ind. transferred, in accordance with their wishes, to the vicinity of the Canada, and a new reserv. of 750 sq. m. set off at the Ojo Caliente, or Hot Spring, where they behaved better, and even worked a little. Cochise died this year, and a Chiricahua reserv. was estab. in s. E. Arizona.

 

1875. Apaches quiet; 1,700 on the Hot Spring reserv., receiving their rations and committing no depred. A little farming. Whiskey causes some trouble. Settlers ejected, and new buildings being erected.

 

1876. General peace and a little progress. A slight trouble in April was promptly quelled by military. About 250 Chiricahuas came to Hot Spring, when their reservation was broken up, a part of the tribe being removed to S. Carlos, and the rest going on the war-path.

 

1877. Ind. acc. to agent 'idle, dissolute, and drunken,' yet some encouraging results in agric. Gen. Pope pronounces them 'squalid, idle vagabonds, utterly worthless and hopeless'. In April-May 450 of the Hot Spring Ind. were forcibly transferred to S. Carlos in accordance with the policy of concentration, the rest running off before the removal, the 450 soon escaping from S. Carlos, and all resuming their raids. There were many fights, Victorio being in command of the hostiles. About 200 surrendered in Oct., and were returned to Hot Spring, but part of them ran off again. A party also came in to the Mescalero reserv.

 

1878. Victorio in Feb. surrendered, but on the attempt to remove them from Hot Spring ran away again. In June they came in voluntarily to the Mescal, reserv., and it was decided to let them remain; but were frightened off by the coming of county officials, the chiefs being under indictment for murder, and fearing arrest. After a destructive raid they were driven into Mexico.

 

1879-80. Congress decided against a proposition to move the Apaches to the Ind. territory. Down to Sept. 1879, acc. to Gen. Pope’s report, there were no very serious troubles, though petty depred. never ceased; but then Victorio with 60 Ind. came from Mex., and attacked the herders at Ojo Caliente, killing several and driving off 46 horses. He was joined by 100 from Mex. and by a large party of Mescaleros, and a bitter warfare ensued. Col Hatch took command and killed about 100 Ind., driving Victorio into Mex. Hitherto the scattered Mex. herders in southern N. Mex. had been spared by the Chiricahuas, to whom they rendered much aid; but now their Mescalero and Comanche allies spared nobody, and from 70 to 100 settlers were killed. Victorio twice recrossed the frontier and was driven back, being finally killed in Mexico. The newspapers in these years are full of items respecting these raids. A volunteer force was organized by the legisl.

 

1881-2. In July 1881 and April 1882 the renegades, now under Nane, made bloody raids across the border, and were driven back. They had been largely reenforced by the Mescaleros and by Chiricahuas from S. Carlos, under Loco. The Hot Spring reserv. was now abolished, and all Apaches not at S. Carlos or on the Ft Stanton reserv. were treated as hostiles. In 1882 an arrangement was made by which the hostiles could be pursued across the line.

 

1883-5. No troubles except with the renegades from Arizona under Geronimo and Chato, who committed many atrocities on the southern border, notably the killing of Judge McComas and family in April '83.