Education for Extinction: American Indians and the Boarding School Experience, 1875–1928

by David Wallace Adams

Columbia challenges the Indians to name individuals of their race equal to those white heroes “that have made me great and established my throne in the New World.” In the developments that follow, it becomes clear what Columbia’s standard is for a place of honor in Indian history. One by one they come forth. There is Samoset: “I said to my paleface brother, welcome Englishmen.” There is the chieftain who says to Washington: “We welcome you to our country.” And an Indian convert recites a Bible verse in Algonquian. In the end Columbia is convinced. She gazes upon a group of Indians dressed as farmers, teachers, and mechanics. Their pleas for a place of honor and citizenship seem too reasonable to deny, and she says to her Indian wards: “You have gained your cause. Your past, your present, and your purposes for the future prove your right to share all I have to give. Take my banner, and your place as my citizens.” So ends “Columbia’s Roll Call.”