the characterization of the indian as a 'noble redman' is vastly over blown.
That was an observation made by some white people about Indians about 50 to 100 years after they had all been killed out or relocated.
I read a book called "Scalp Dance" which was about the war for the great plains. It was mostly about the battles but one of the things from the book that stuck with me was how angry westerners were with eastern politicians "one hundred years separated from the war whoop" who wanted to pursue a policy of benevolence towards the Indians in the west. The people in the west who actually had to deal with them and were being burned out, raped, abducted, tortured, and murdered by them wanted to kill them all.
