Evening Republican, Volume 20, Number 53, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 2 March 1916 — Page 3

Uncle Sam's Indian Wards

jJ&fHAT (govern- ’ OVV MENT IS DOING TO MAKE FIRST-, CLASS MEN AND WOMEN OF THE SONS AND DAUGHTERS OF REAL REDI MEN-SOME EXCEL-] k LENT RESULTS. J

U cbmioriT by vestern'* / NEVSPABER UNION

By EDWARD B. CLARK.

So OTHER bureau in any other department of the United States government employs as many men and women in its field of work as does the office of Indian affairs. Here is an office which in a vital way has control of the affairs of 360J100 people who once ownedali of the continental United States. There are about as many Indians in this land as there were the day that Columbus landed, a fact not gener ally known. It is recognized by everybody that the Indian has certain rights of fostering care and of direction along the road to civilization, prosperity and health, and it is for this high and humane reason that the office of Indian affairs, of which Cato Sells is the directing chief, must be administered sanely and helpfully. Evenjtpday American people, notably the Easterners, think of the American Indians in the mass as still being in a more or less savage state, or at any rate, a state of barbarism. The old-time problem had to do largely with the men who constantly went on the warpath and who were a menace to the advancing civilization of the whites. The Indian problem for a long time was in considerable part a war department problem. Today things have changed. The problem largely is with the young Indians, the boys and the girls who must be trained along lines running diametrically opposite to those followed by their ancestors. It is largely a problem of education, and the United States government today is trying to teach the young Indians in order that when they become old Indians they will present no ■uch task of regulation and of government as that which confronted the authorities in the cases of their forefathers. Today there is only one roving band of Indians ■tn the continental United States, and even this band is now at rest within certain limits where ft probably will remain contented.

Of course oh occasion the restless elders among the Indians wander about a little, but the aborigi nes no longer are roamers and wanderers in the sense that they were as late as a quarter of a century ago. The one roving band is that of Chief Rocky Boy, and this little group,of about three hundred Indians has roused pity and made occasional trouble for a good many years. It is a Montana band, and while many years ago congress tried to do something definite for Rocky Boy and his followers, the attempt came to little or nothing, and they kept on roving, a charge if not a menace to the people of Montana. The present commissioner of Indian affairs, Mr. Sells of Texas, a lawyer, a banker and a farmer, transplanted' temporarily at least into a field of endeavor concerning which he knew a good deal before the transplanting, has succeeded in inducing Rocky Boy and the men, women and children fn his following to locate upon government land in Montana, where they have an area equal to four townships on which to dwell, there to till the soil to earn their living. Congress will be asked this winter to set aside this land as a reservation for Rocky Boy, the rover.

As has been said, the chief problem today is ■with the young Indians. If they can be educated properly the Indian problem in a few years will vanish. Recently there was held in Washington a meeting of the supervisors and superintendents and instructors of the greater schools for the Indians throughout the United States. They were called together by Commissionec Sells to consider a reconstruction of the system of study for the Indian children of school age. A course of study has been prepared and has been adopted. It is hoped that it will give to the children of the Indians the best vocational training offered by any jschool system in the United States. Concerning this course of study which has just been adopted the commissioner says: “It emphasizes the study of home economics and agricultural subjects, because any attempt to change the Indian- population of this country from a dependent to an independent people within a reasonable length of time must give special consideration to the improvement of the Indians’ homes and to the development of their lands. The usual subjects of school instruction are not neglected, but they are subordinated to subjects ductjve efficiency and self-support*’ The Indian children of the United States receive primary, prevocational and vocational instruction. la introduction to the report on the new course of sttfdy prepared under the direction of the commissioner this explanation is made; “The primary division includes the first three

grades, the prevocational division includes the next three grades, and the vocational division contemplates a four-year course above the sixth grade. The first group is the beginning stage, the second group is the finding Stage, and the third group is the fitting stage.” There should be interest in knowing how this course of study for the Indians compares with the course which white children follow. In the first six years the Indian course parallels the public school course in all the essentials of academic work. In this period the principles are taught and application of them is made just as soon after the principles are understood. The knowledge of industrial and domestic activities at this stage centers more or less around the conditions essential to the proper maintenance and improvement of the rural home.

For years the adult Indians resented all efforts to secure their consent that their children should attend the Indian schools. In December, 1890, there was an’ Indian uprising produced by various conditions and fostered by what was known as the ghost dance craze. On the Pine Ridge reservation in South Dakota at that time the Indians were divided into two camps on the question of allawing children to attend school at the agency. Those who refused to allow their children to go to school looked upon those who were in favor of the school plan as enemies of the Sioux race.

When the Indians that year were upon the warpath, the children of the peaceful ones continued to attend school at the Pine Ridge agency. One day a band of warriors left the main body of Indians in the field and swept down by the agency and fired a fusillade into the school building, which stood on a bluff. Happily one of the’ schoolteachers had seen the Indians hiding behind a clump of willows on White Clay creek and had sounded an alarm. The school children were hurried to the basement of the building and thus escaped injury when the structure was riddled with bullets.

This incident is spoken of only to show the vast difference that has been created by time and by the advance in civilization. Today Commissioner Sells reports that the vast majority of the Indians' are anxious and urgent that the little ones shall go to ihqjr lessons. The problem how Instead of being she of how to induce their parents to let them come, concerns Itself with providing school room for all of those who seek to fit themselves for the life’s work. Aggressive steps have been taken toward the development of ’ improved vocational training plans which it believes will accomplish the education necessary to instill in the Indian youth the responsibility qt self-support and citizenship. Emphasis is being placed on agricultural and domestic science. This program will be carried out in all the Indian schools. Next summer teachers’ institutes will be held

THE EVENING REPUBLICAN, RENSSELAER, IND.

in different parts of the West and all the Indian school superintendents and teachers will attend to exchange views with a view to bettering the service. In addition to this the best-known educators in the country will be Invited to attend the institutes and address the teachers. The final effort is to give the Indian exactly what he needs to better his way, health and industrial prosperity being two of the main objects. The idea is to hurry the day when the Indian no longer will be wholly or in part a consumer of things provided for him, but will become a producer in his own behalf. There are many farms for the use of Indian pupils. They usually consist of large tracts of fertile land capable of raising every crop that the climate in which the school..is..lQcat.e.d will permit. In some cases these farms are well Irrigated. Every school, Commissioner Sells says, has been or will be furnished with all the equipment necessary for tilling the farms to the fullest extent, and they will be furnished with stock so that lessons can be given in the care of animals and in their raising. It is believed that a substantial showing along these lines can be made. Every farm is expected to grow all the crops that it is possible to raise in the localities in which they are situated, corn, oats, wheat, alfalfa, clover, timothy and so oh. The schools are expected to raise all the potatoes and other vegetables with which to supply the tables _of the pupils. At the Chocloco Indian school on ffiS edge of Oklahoma last year the pupils put up for their own use 20,000 gallons of vegetables and fruits. This, of course, was in addition to the fresh material which was on the table during the ripening season.

In a letter to the superintendent of the Indian schools. Commissioner Sells says: “I believe there is a splendid chance for increased efficiency of our school service by special effort and co-operation along the lines indicated. I must insist that you give the development of the school farm your most careful attention to the end that the highest degree of efficiency and results be accomplished. There is absolutely no excuse for a waste acre of overlooked opportunity on the school farms. We need all they will produce and we cannot justify the purchase of anything we can raise. It is inconsistent to expect the Indian boys and girls to return home from their schools and do more than they have witnessed their teachers doing for them when they are supposed to be qualifying themselves for industrial equipment and self-support." The Indian schools prepare the children for vocational and industrial work. They are expected, and the records show that the expectation is not vain, to go back to the places from which they came, there to become self-supporting, to take the same Interest-in life’s work that the white man does and thus eventually to solve forever what has been known for some centuries of American life as the Indian problem. * .

CHEATING HIS STOMACH.

landlady—Yon didn’t wear glasses when you ewne fiertt, J<r. Newbord.Why do you wear them now? ' —— Newbord—l want to make the food look as large as possible. There are about 85,000,000 German-speaking people in the "World and about 82,000,000 speak ing Spanish. .

Kin Hubbard Essays

TH’ WORLD T'DAY

It's been about thirty-five years since ole Marsh Swallow used t’ drop in Cale Fluhart’s sanctum of a mornln’ an’ look over th’ only daily paper that come t’ town an’ then put his steel rimmed spectacles back in a tin case an’ remark: "Well, Cale, It looks like th* world wuz goin’ t’ h-1.” I reckon a good many folks arrive at th' same conclusion t'day after they skim over th’ newspaper headlines. Yet Ipok back at th’ things that have happened since ole Marsh Swallow's day—things that threatened th’ very life o’ th’"nation —an’ then look at th' world t’day. She chugs along as merrily as you please without even a loose fender. We’re all too ready t’ view with

"Ole Marsh Swallow Used t’ Drop in Cale Fluhart’s Sanctum of a Mornin* an' Look Over th’ Only Dally Paper That Come t’ Town an* Then Put His Steel Rimmed Spectacles Back In a Tin Case an’ Remark: "Well* Cale, It Looks Like th’ World Wuz goin’t’ H I.”

alarm. We give up too easy after readin’ th’ newspapers. Jest because some feller kills his wife an* shoots himself in th’ arm is no reason why we should all prepare fer th’ worst. Fads an’ panics an’ crime waves come an’ go' an' are soon fergotten. In spite of all th’ newspaper headlines to’ th’ contrary th’ world is growin’ better an’ It’s a great privilege t’ live in it even if you’re peddlin’ lead pencils. There’s an ever increasin’ demand fer croquet sets, an’ skilled scientists are devotin’ ther best licks t’ th’ prolongin’ o’ human life. Th’ softenin’ influence o’ women an’ girls in th’ trades an’ professions tends t’ sweeten labor, easy modes o’ transportation brings friends an’ relatives t’ th’ closest intimacy. It’s some world. This is th’ age o’ runnin’ in debt, which proves our confidence in th’ future. Th’ elimination o’ waste has

Our Mania fer Amusement

That our modem mania fer entertainment is fast underminin’ th’ spiritual an’ commercial life o’ th’ nation beyond a doubt is th’ opinion o’ Rev. Wiley Tanger, who, last night, addressed th* graduatin' class o’ Dal Plum’s barber college. After deplorin’ th’ passin’ o’ th’ ole family circle an' th’ underskirt Dr. Tanger said in part as follows: —-: ■ - .. ; -. “Followin’ close upon th’ heels o’ our craze t’ be amused, has come a brazen an’ almost brutal Indifference toward work. T’day a job is regarded as merely a steppin’ stone t’ a vacation —t’ swell clothes an* a good time. Sunday is marked by th’ hurryin’ an’ scurryin’ o’ those on pleasure bent. Decoration day has lost ' its Identity an’ Saturday night is an orgy. Th’ player planner with its ragtime rolls has backed th’ library ont’ th’ back porch, an’ a stack o’ phonograph records has th’ place o’ honor oh>th’ cen-

“Th’ Thirst fer Pleasure Has Long Since Infested th’ Broad, Profitable Farms o’th Countryside, an’ th’ Tanned an’ Brawny Sons o’ th’ Wealthy Farmer Perch Dejectedly on th’ Barbed Fences an’ Sigh fer th’ Con jested City With Its Smells an’ Tribulations, While His Daughters Droop an' Fade at th’ Prospect o’ Endin’ Ther Days So fer Removed From th’ Centers of Danger an’ Merriment."

ter table once held by th’ family Bible. Th’ the-aters run th’ year around an’ music an’ vaudeville are served with our chops. After ever* little task comes a longin’ fer diversion. Women can’t shop without a film between ever’ purchase. Our very churches have kitchens an’ stereopticon lanterns. A movin’ picture the-ater thrives where three grocers failed before. Th’ thirst fer pleasure has long since infested th’ broad profitable farms 6* th’ countryside, an’ th’ tanned an’ brawny sons o’ th’ wealthy farmer perch dejectedly on th’ barbed fences an’ sigh fer th’ conjested city with its smells an’ tribulations, while his pect o’ endin’ ther days sq fer removed from th* centers o* danger an’ merriment. In th’ busy factory arf dingy sweat shop men an’ women count the minutes till knockin’ off time when* they are t ! hurry home an’ doll up. an

By KIN HUBBARD.

made such gigantic strides that even a cold baked p’tato may be utilized. This is an age o’ supervision an’ inspection. Even folks who board know what they’re eatin’. Civic pride an' 3 Idve o' personal adornment is penetratin’ fer in’ th’ rural districts. Red ramblers cling about th’ most brnnhW homes, while th’ farmer who’s unacquainted with th’ twists an' turns of a loud four-ln-hand la th’ exception. Life savin’ machinery has replaced th’ ole time churn an’ washboard. Carpenters quit work in th’ middle o' th’ afternoon, an’ primes are kept under glass. Great charity organizations look after th’ cold an’ starvin’ who fergit t’ work in th* summer, an’ scheme*

o’ ever’ sort are provided fer those who neglected t’ iearn a trade. It's a great world. An industrial relapse bas been scheduled t’ foller ever’ labor savin’ invention, an’ moral ruin has been in-, variably linked frith ever’ social spasm, yet here we are. Don’t git a warped view o’ life on account of a few scattered crimes. Don’t lose interest in life because some wife murderer gits paroled, or a bank wrecker gits a new trial. Don’t become a sallow calamity howler with a clogged liver an’ a vibratin’ Adam’s apple on account o* th’ tango, ankle watch an’ isinglass stockin’s. Ther’s still lots o’ good in th* world outside th’ case belt Wear th’ smile o' optimism, even if it does make you look like a young widower.

join th’ merrymakers on th rialto. “A feller used t’ sort o’ give up an* settle down at forty, after a few love affairs an’ a couple of excursions, but t’day a feller is young as long as he kin git shaved an’ dress th’ part. Even th’ mothers o’ t’day indulge in our fantastic excesses as long as they kin git a switch, t’ match an’ are able t* button ther backs. About all that remains o’ th’ old order o’ things is th* American breakfast, an* it has been modified until its hardly worth gittin* up fer. Oh, fer th* ole-time mother who regarded duty as a mere episode, an’ oh, fer th’ ole-time father who changed th* appearance o* th’ whole neighborhood ever* time he wore * collar. “‘What Shall We Do t’ Be Saved?* Is no longer th* thought uppermost in our souls. Th’ question o’ t’day is, ■What Shall We Do TNIGHTT ’* ? Ajany o’ our representative citizens.

deeply regret Dr. Tanger’s remarks, j an’ regard his address as bein’ dis- 1 couragin’t’ capital. President McGee | o’ th’ Excelsior-Comfort Factory chai- ] lenges th’ truth o’ many o’ Dr. Tang- 1 er's assertions, growin’ particularly 1 heated as he denied that any one oHj his three employees hurried home I after work t’ dress up. He also went 1 so fer as t’ say that t’ his certain | knowledge over one-half o’ his em- 1 ployees had never seen a film mwftj less a case. However, th’ sentiment I agin Dr. Tanger cooled an’ softened ! considerably toward evenin’ when fid! wuz learned he has dyspepsia. 1 (Copyright; Adams Newspaper S-ervieedM

Knew It Was Something French.

Knew It was sometning rrencn. j “I am afraid your Cometip. has not enough savoir-faireJ*l| “Dear me! Do you think well bavt»« to wait until the war . is her more from Faria." ■ "