Omaha daily bee., 1883-03-28

reservation, and then come and buy
at my store what he thinks Is better.
OF course the Indian loses on the ope-
ration, IS he gets comparatively little
from the wildcat trader. Those fel.
lows who trade on the outside do quite
q business The Indians cut q good
deal OF government timber and carry
it off the sgency to sell to these parties,
who will buy anything from a dead
hog to q stick of timber.
The schools are pretty good. Sixty
or seventy young Indians are In atten.
dance at the government school; about
fifty at the Episcopal school, and O
number under Rev. Mr.. williamson
instruction. There are besides two
day schools Taught by native teachers.
The missionaries there, Revs. William.
son and Cook, are doing all that could
be expected, and they have the con.
6dence Of the Indians, which IL every.
thing.
"You ask me about the agent2
had rather not be quoted as giving
any idea concerning Mr.. Ridpath. A
special agent, as you know, Is there
investigating the anairs around the
agency, and he will probably finish his
work in about a week. If I should be
obliged to express my opinion regard.
ing his report, / would say that II
will be accompanied by a recommends.
tion for removal. Ridpath doesn't
know anything about Indians and not
too much about business. The In.
dams don't like him and have de-
manded his removal. The police take
no stock In him at oil, and do not act
under his directions. On the night
after the special agent arrived the safe
at the agency, which contained several
hundred dollars, was taken outside
and an attempt was made to break 1t
open with Q sledge hammer. The
back OF the safe vas crushed In but
the money was not obtained. Agent
Rldpath called the Indian police to
look at the safe and express their opin
Ion as to who had attempted the rob.
berry. They looked the ground over for
. few minutes and then said to him
"You did that yourself" They told
the special agent the same thing, and
you couldn't get an Indian on the re.
servation to believe anything else.
There is something peculiar about the
redskins honesty. They are, of course,
inclined to steal, but not one of them
will take any chances. l can have
goods shipped from this city by steam
boat, unloaded on the bank, and leave
them there unprotected all night and
not q thing will be touched. II, how.
ever, an indian get his hands on some.
thing In the store when he imagines
neither l nor my clerks are looking be
will steal 1t.
"The treaty with the Yanktons was
made by the commission with the
chief Strike. the. Rec and the head Een
of the tribe without difficulty. The
work of the head men may be regard.
ed as that of the tribe, because the
former are politicians In a certain
sense, and they won't put their sigma.
lures to anything their constituents
will not support, il they know 1t. I
saw the members of the Indian COM
mission at Yankton the other day and
had q talk with them. They say that
If their treaty isn't good the Black
Hills treaty Isn't. 1t Is pretty nearly
impossible to get the signatures of
three.fourtbs of tribe which Is scat.
teted over as much territory as the
Yanktons. Col. Pattee was out there
eight weeks trying to git signatures to
an agreement with them to sell q part
Of their land to the Poncas and failed.
The Indian commission will 20 to the
Agency next week and will make Q
new treaty with the Yattons. The
members of the commission think the
bill will pass at the next session of
congress without much trouble"