Indian chieftain. [volume] (Vinita, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1882-1902, 1885-01-29

- N|NN INV win ANH|
worst Of Il Is that the cold comes 50
early and stays so late. We can raise
neither apples, pears, nor peaches M
thore. Nor can we raise Indian corn.
and for that reason our Canadian
Northwest can never be n great pork
country. Small fruits. cherries, rasp-
berries, currants and Strawberries. how
ever, will ripen, but we can not hope TO
make fruit abundant. The cold is too
severe to enable us TO raise anything
but the hardest kinds OF fruit and corn
those which ripen early.
1--WE who live in the cities do not
suffer from the cold half as much Ms the
farmers. Wood Is scarce all over the
country, and the farmer Is obliged to
economic his fuel. This Is one of his
greatest hardships. Along the line OF
railway he can get coal. which is now
found in great abundance on the
Saskatchewan. but when the farmer has
10 depend on wood for fuel he has q
hard time Of IL in winter. He somc-
times makes fuel u of his manure
heap in the autumn, after the manner
of the Mennonitcs. by mixing Il with
straw AMI working il into the consist
ence OF peat. This burns well, but in
the end It win be found expensive. lilo
must let his fire go ont every night and
light IL next morning when the Their
momcter may be twenty. thirty, or forty
degrees below zero. His dog generally
| sleeps at the foot Of his bed. Every
thing in the house freezes. II he hap
pens 10 put his lips TO any iron sub
stance before he lights the fire his lips
stick TO It and the skin peels or before
he can release them. II his cellar is
not good he will find everything he has.
In the way Of catables. frozen. Ho
never wears boots. II no did his feet
would freeze. He puts on three or four
pairs Of stockings and a pair Of mecca
sins. II he wants 10 visit a n~eighbor.
who probably lives miles away. he
must travel on s%nowshoes. The mir is so
rareiied that his coming "a be hearu q
mile away. AS he beats down the
in walking the noise will make a dog
bark at the distance Of half a cilo.
The stiffness is depressing. He never
sevc a bird all through the winter, ana
the sigst of a coyote IS always welcome.
The cav, cav of n crow to him Is a
messenger of Joy. for it precludes the
spring. That cav, cav Is the North
west Canadian farmers opera, and no
lover OF music ever listened to the queen
Of the operate stage with mole pleasure
than he does to the crow as il gives out
its cav over the bleak plains OF Man
itoba, Alberta, or Asnaboid. He las,
indeed. the aurora to look at in winter,
and he does not tire of it soon either.
The great streamers Of tremulous light
are his only outside attractions. lhave
seen, moro than once. these streamers
go up from every point of the compass
aud meet at the zenith. where a meteor
OF great briTiancy was formed. This
occurred at Prince Albert, which, with
Edmonton, Is the most nOrtherly settle
ment in the Canadian northwest.
zine Northwestern Canadian is not
a visiting man He spends all his time
in winter between his house and his out
Offices, If he has any. He looks for
ward to splendid fields of wheat and
oats to compensate him for the hard
ships he cndures. But he must be care
full These large yields per acre viii
become less every year unless the farm
ers manure their lands. In Minnesota
and Iowa thirty five bnshels OF wheat to
the acre were not uncommon when the
luuuH III AlO1H DtdAtn MtAt INST blOhtis
and now | suppose that they do not av-
erage more than sixteen. The Amer
lean farmers neglect 10 farm scientific
ally, and worked the land for all it was
worth. 1t is just the same with Us.
The summers are short and bot. II is
hotter in Winnipeg than it is in New
York. But here, too, we are ahead Of
you people in some things. As we
dress for tho winter in furs, we dress
for the summer in a becOming way.
Down here a man is supposed to shiveI
in n tall black hat and kid gloves in
winter with a pair of e~arlays making
him hideous, while in sumner he is ex-
pected TO change the color Of the hat
only, while he roasts under IN Ovcrcoat
which he calls a duster. II Is very diff
ferent with MS. In summer we wear
thick helmets with good ventilation.
and we keep the sun OF Sur heads
while we have plenty Of air. We all
wear light clothes, suited 30 he season,
and flannel observation-disclosures
attached are general even lmong the
wealthy. When these are white they
are becoming, and nothing else Is so
cool. Then we wear white ca nvas shoes.
and il we dress for comfort we also
dress with taste. But we are worried
with flies. They come in millions.
There are black flies, mosquitoes, bull
dogs and sand flies or bits, sad can't see
EN- as the Indians call then.
"As for the Indians, they never bother
us. But do not fancy that She Indians
in the Canadian Northwest are quiet
because of the paternal policy Of the
Canadian Government. Tnat is a pop
ular delusion. The Indiana are quiet.
or have been, because the Hudson Bay
Company, which had Judicial and com
mercial control OF the country for near
~ two centuries, treated them wen. il
was 10 the interest of the Hudson BAY
Company TO be on good terms with the
Indians, and the fact that in their long
intercourse with the Indians the COM
pany had only one Of their number
killed Is sufficient proof Of the friendly
relations which existed between the rod
skins and the whitemen all over the
Canadian Northwest. / have heard
factors. as the managers Of the Hudson
Bay posts are called, say that they al
ways gave trust 10 the Ip6ians In the
old DAYS, and that the Indians always
paid their Indebtedness; that there were
very few disputes, and there hat did
occur were always settled ~ the legal
authorities, and in conformity with The
methods Of the Indian as well as tho @
Of the white mar. You see the Hudson
Bay Company wanted moth NJ from the
Indian but his furs, and so long AS the
Indian was not robbed Of his land he
looked IN the Hudson Bay Company a.
a benefactor. and il was Ia his interest
10 carry out his obligations and preserve
peace and order. We noser had any
trouble with the Indians until the Can
adian Government bought the North.
western territories from the Hudson BAY
Company for 81, 800, 900, the cheapest
purchase ever made. Now a few Of the
Indians dre uneasy because we are tax
ing their lands Hut II does nat amount