112 
CALIFORNIA ILLUSTRATED. 
matter where they are found the crime of being a red man is a 
forfeiture, not only of all right to property but to life itself. 
Will not some philanthropist rise above sectional prejudices, 
and undertake the regeneration of this truly noble but down¬ 
trodden people? Had I the wealth of an ; Astor I would not 
wish a better or nobler field for immortality. 
The first man I met after my arrival in the interior was an 
Oregonian on horseback, armed with a revolving rifle in search of 
Indians. He had had a horse stolen, and presumed it was taken 
by an Indian; he swore he “would shoot the first red-skin he 
met,” and I had no reason to doubt his word; still the chances 
were ninety-nine out of the hundred, that the horse was stolen 
by a white man. I have no doubt the three Indians above 
spoken of were wantonly shot while walking peaceably along 
their trail. 
