Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1880-03-11
Indians at s School.

ranged almost in square. A long
drive leads from the gate to the center
winding in its course around a dilap.
idated though picturesque old stable,
whose period of usefulness is about over
To complete the picture, an Indian, clad
in Uncle Sans uniform PAGES on guard
up and down before each building. Odd
as this sight naturally seems to O
stranger, to the citizens of Carlisle il
has become so familiar that it excites
scarcely any comment. The cluster OF
yellow buildings is the Carlisle barracks,
and the Indians who pace up and down
before them are members of the school,
into which the barracks has been turned,
carried on under the supervision and at
the expense of the United States Gov
eminent. The school at present consists
OF one hundred and fifty scholars
men, women, boys and girls. 1t was
opened last September, most of the In
dams coming direct from the West.
A few OF them, however, were sent up
from the school at Hampton, Va.
The institution is under the charge
OF Captain X. H. Pratt, of the United
states Army. There are six
school-rooms in all, located in the Sec
ond story of the longest building on the
grounds. When your correspondent
entered the first room the lady in charge
was busy at the blackboard solving the
mysteries of addition for burly In
dian about twenty-one years of age, and
did not notice his entrance. "Now.
my DEAR" she was saying, "you see
you have not got that quite right.
Three and two, you know, don't make
nine; three and two make five.n
There were probably twenty scholars in
this room, most of them young men.
They all seemed eager to learn and
paid the strictest attention to what their
instructress was saying. In the next
room there was commingling of girls
and small boys.
"Do you see that girl in a green
dressP' asked the teacher, pointing to
tall, ungainly maiden, of probably
eighteen or nineteen summers, "that is
the daughter of Spotted Tail" Miss
Spotted Tail, who was placidly printing
her A. b. C's. on slate, looked up and
smiled family at the visitor, though she
understood scarcely a word of what
was said. She has lately been
joined in matrimony to the half-b breed
employed at the barracks.
One day Miss Spotted Tail with some
other Indian girls was sent to do some
scrubbing; her husband, however, in
he said his wife was of royal
blood, that she was the daughter of a
chief, and he only wanted her to learn
what the white ladies do. The teacher
after dismissing a class which was reeit-
ng, put her pupils through their calls
henic exercise. The manner in which
hey acquitted themselves far surpassed
n unity of movement that of many of
'ur white schools, which have. been
irilled far longer than they. Not once
Turing the proceedings was the stoliditv
# any face disturbed, except one wee
title fellow, rot more than four or five
ears old, whose mouth spread in a
road grin of delight as he proudly ma
leuvered before the interested specta-
ors. Some curious methods have to be
dopted to overcome the numerous OBJ
tacles encountered in instructing the
aborigines." When they first arrived
was found necessary to give them En-
lish names, as their Indian ones were
npronounceable to an English tongue,
nd being translated, would make, in
lost cases, a whole sentence. The Indi-
ms were notified that their teachers
'ould read out list of names
nd they could choose whichever !.
anne they liked. The result
as startling. General Grant aud
resident Hayes now do honor to the
ountiful board supplied at the barracks,
lille Edith, Evangeline, Gertrude, and
ertha sup lovingly with John Smith, b
axe Jones, Bill and Tom. The method a
instruction at the school is on the
kindergarten order. If a teacher wishes c
} teach her scholars to spell show ~ q
lie draws picture of bow upon the a
ackboard, and writes in large letters
bow" above it. Pointing to the word, o
zen to the picture, she conveys to them Z
Re idea that the word signifies the pic a
re. The Indians are regularly mar v
laled to prayers in neat little chapel, 1
l the wall of which, over the pulpit, is q
ainted in large letters: "Glory to God, a
l earth peace, good will toward men," Il
hus far the school has been a complete Z
ccess, and, if it continues as it has
zen doing, promises to furnish salts q,
Glory solution to the troublesome :,
Indian question" There is a rumor :,
ing around that the authorities at the =,
cracks have hired out Indian laborers :,
neighboring farmers for ten cents e,
y. Some of the troublesome element :,
nong the working class are conse- :.
ently aroused, but the report as vet :,
cks confirmation.-Cor. Phiza6leInbin =,