Document 3: Report of the Secretary of War, Lewis Cass (Modified)
The Indians have either withdrawn as our settlements advanced, and united their fragments with some related, friendly tribe, or they have attempted to establish themselves upon reservations, in the useless hope of resisting the pressure upon them, and of preserving their strange customs.
Those Indians who live nearest to us have generally suffered most severely by the corrupting effects of alcohol, and by the loss of their own principles of self-control, few as these are. Almost all of them have disappeared, crushed by the onward course of events.
Not one instance can be produced in the whole history of the interactions between the Indians and the white men, where the Indians have been able, in districts surrounded by white men, to withstand those causes, which have elevated one of these races, and depressed the other.
Shall they be advised to remain or remove? If they remain, their fate is written in the history of their race. If they move, we may yet hope to see them made new in character and condition by our example and instruction, and by their efforts.
Source: Lewis Cass, “Report of the Secretary of War.” November 21, 1831.
Guiding Questions - Answer these questions in your graphic organizer.
1. According to Lewis Cass, what happened to Native Americans who lived near white settlers? (Paragraph 2)
2. What do you think Lewis Cass meant when he said, “If they remain, their fate is written in the history of their race”? (Paragraph 4)
3. According to the information in THIS DOCUMENT ONLY, why did the U.S. Government pass the Indian Removal Act?
4. Find at least one quote from the document that supports your answer to Question 3.
Those Indians who live nearest to us have generally suffered most severely by the corrupting effects of alcohol, and by the loss of their own principles of self-control, few as these are. Almost all of them have disappeared, crushed by the onward course of events.
Not one instance can be produced in the whole history of the interactions between the Indians and the white men, where the Indians have been able, in districts surrounded by white men, to withstand those causes, which have elevated one of these races, and depressed the other.
Shall they be advised to remain or remove? If they remain, their fate is written in the history of their race. If they move, we may yet hope to see them made new in character and condition by our example and instruction, and by their efforts.
Source: Lewis Cass, “Report of the Secretary of War.” November 21, 1831.
Guiding Questions - Answer these questions in your graphic organizer.
1. According to Lewis Cass, what happened to Native Americans who lived near white settlers? (Paragraph 2)
2. What do you think Lewis Cass meant when he said, “If they remain, their fate is written in the history of their race”? (Paragraph 4)
3. According to the information in THIS DOCUMENT ONLY, why did the U.S. Government pass the Indian Removal Act?
4. Find at least one quote from the document that supports your answer to Question 3.
Next Step - Document 4: Senator Sprague's Speech to Congress