Comanche Chief Tosawi reputedly told Sheridan in 1869 , " Tosawi , good Indian , " to which Sheridan supposedly replied , " The only good Indians I ever saw were dead . " In '' Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee '' , Dee Brown attributed the quote to Sheridan , stating that " Lieutenant Charles Nordstrom , who was present , remembered the words and passed them on , until in time they were honed into an American aphorism : '' The only good Indian is a dead Indian '' . Sheridan denied he had ever made the statement . Biographer Roy Morris Jr. states that , nevertheless , popular history credits Sheridan with saying " The only good Indian is a dead Indian . " This variation " has been used by friends and enemies ever since to characterize and castigate his Indian-fighting career . " Sheridan was promoted to lieutenant general on March 4 , 1869 . In 1870 , President Grant , at Sheridan 's request , sent him to observe and report on the Franco-Prussian War . As a guest of King Wilhelm I of Prussia , he was present when Emperor Napoléon III surrendered to the Germans , which was gratifying to Sheridan following his experiences with the French in Mexico . He later toured most of Europe and returned to the U.S. to report to Grant that although the Prussians were " very good brave fellows who had gone into each battle with the determination to win , ... there is nothing to be learned here professionally . " He criticized their handling of cavalry and likened their practices to the manner in which Meade had attempted to supervise him . However , he referred to theirs as a " perfect military system " and had a high opinion of the officer corps . His words on the French were much more harsh ; he criticized the French army for not taking numerous opportunities to halt the German advance , for advancing slowly and clumsily themselves , for not taking any of the numerous good opportunities to cut the enemy 's unguarded lines of communication , and for routing frequently . He remarked : " I am disgusted ; all my boyhood 's fancies of the soldiers of the great Napoleon have been dissipated , or else the soldiers of the " Little Corporal " have lost their elan in the pampered parade soldiers of the ' Man of Destiny ' . " In 1871 , Sheridan was present in Chicago during the Great Chicago Fire and coordinated military relief efforts . The mayor , Roswell B. Mason , to calm the panic , placed the city under martial law , and issued a proclamation putting Sheridan in charge . As there were no widespread disturbances , martial law was lifted within a few days . Although Sheridan 's personal residence was spared , all of his professional and personal papers were destroyed . When Chicago 's Washington Park Race Track organized the American Derby in 1883 he served as its first president
Great Chicago Fire
Great Chicago Fire
Philip Sheridan