Omaha daily bee., 1886-08-22
SWAPPING RABlES.
How DIR. V. t. McGillicuddy Endca

ored to Prevent it at Pine Ridge.
A special from Washington was pub
1ished in an Omaha paper, yesterday
morning, that Captain Bell the present
agent at Pine Ridge, had reported that,as
result of the census of the Sioux In
dians, it was shown that 1900 ratlons
more than the number of Indians at the
agency had been issued daily for seven
years past bv DR.. McGillicuddy, the late
agent. AS each ration is worth thirty
cents, the presumption most natural was
that the doctor has been pocketing about
$3.50 daily, or about 100000 a year. DR..
V. T. McGillicuddy happened to be in
Omaha yesterday morning, and was
shown the telegram in question, and
asked what it meant.
The doctor laughed, and sald:'I ought
to he a pretty rich man at that rate,
oughtn't l? Two hundred thousand
rations year ior seven years; the length
of my lncumbency at Pine Ridge,
sum Of s1,4oo, 900. I have failed
to discover any such amount. But speak
ing seriously" the doctor said, II have
no doubt that the count made of the
Sioux by Major Bell, which shows 1900
fewer Indians than are borne on the
rolls, is quite correct. For years, we have
made annual census of the Sioux at Pine
Ridge. This census, like every other cen
sus, is made Ly a house-to- house visit of
the Indians. Of course, as the rations de-
pended upon the number of the Indians,
it was to their interest to have the num-
ber appear rs large as possible. Time
and again have urged upon the Indian
bureau to haye rigid census made of
ha India or both thn Dinn P,Ip nd
Rosebud agencies. deemed it necessary
that both should be made on the same
day, because, otherwise, the Indians
would swap their babies in order
to increase the ratons at
the other agency. Until Major
Bells incumbency it was impossible to
secure this end and, consequently, | was
issuing my rations. AT the close of my
term at the agency, ] was issuing rations
to no more Indians than | was years ago,
although, during that time Pine Ridge
had received large numbers from Sitting
Bulls camp and frcm the Northern
Cheyennes. As matter of fact the
number of rations issued was smaller
than those called for by the books, and
this was one of the complaints made
against me by Red Cloud, ! have only
to say that all the rations on the books
rs issued were issued and consumed by
Indians mt Pine Ridge. The brief issue,
as everyone knows, was taken out
of the agents hands. Army officers
superintendent, receipted for and branded
the cattle with the U. S. brand ard it Is
practically impossible that there can be
any illegal disposal of the stock thus
branded. As for the rations and supplies,
they are stored in government ware
houses, guarded by patrol of Indian
police, and issued to families only on
tickets issued by the agent, In conclu-
sion," said DIR. McGillicuddy, ''if any
charges can be formulated against me, l
can easily be found Mt Rapid City. ]
promise lively fight on any such issue
at Pine Ridge, if the rations of whose in
suiiiciency the Sioux alrcrdy complain,
are cut dewn on bosis of 1000 fewer to
eat them. You can't gauge an Indian &
oppehte by that of white man."
IN .,a,. cont IN 9lOOtL for ona yaar will