The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1888-10-26
The Reservation Zeal 1. or

the Zeal In ON
The opening of the Sioux reservation
Il busted" for the present. In fact the
present outlook indicates that it will be
very cold day when it is opened. The
sixty.ons chiefs and head men who
sailed down to Washington two weeks
ago, attiEed in Cleveland campaign hats,
bandanas and DIRT, to have abig pow.
WOW with Secretary Villas and the pre.i.
dent. utterly refu,ed to accept any of
the liberable propoait ions made to them.
The Sioux bill as passed by congress pro.
vides that the Indians shall receive
among other thing-such as cattle, i'm
plensnts, money, etc.-50 cents per
acre for the land. The great majority
of the Indians refused to sign the treaty
in the hands Of the Indian commissioners
on general principlss--or c~ussedness-
which ever you may choose to call it.
When the party of redskins reached
Washington they gave as their principal
reason for refusing the treaty, the low
price the government proposed to give
for their land. They demanded S1.25
per acre-the same rs the government
received from settlers. After most of
them-from 8. Bull down to our neigh
Dor, W. Ghost-had aired their views be-
fore Secretary Villas, he laid the matter
before President Cleveland. The prssi.
dent instructed the secretary TO inform
Mr.. Bull and his followers that he had no
power to treat with them, but that he
would recommend to congress some
changes in the bill if they were ready to
accept the law when so changed. He
would recommend to congress to so
change the act Is to prescribe that all
land taken BY settlers during the first
three years shall be paid for at the rate
of 81 per acre, all taken in the rext two
years. at 70 cents per acre; and all taken
after five years. at so cents per acre. He
would also recommend that So, 600, 900
be set apart to the Indians credit in
stead OF 81 600, 900, cut of which $40
would be be paid esch man, woman and
child within elk months after the reser-
walton opened Also, instead of a yoke of
oxen, each Indian could have 4 pair Of
American mares. and a double harness.
Another amendment proposed by the
president was that all lssd taken by the
Indians in SO v crafty should not be taxed
for county. territorial or government
purposes for twenty years Other MINOR
changes the president offered to make,
but they still demanded s1.95 per acre to
be paid at once, and there all negotia-
lions ended.
Reports from Washington soy that
both the president and Secretary Villas
have nc projections to paying s1.25 an
acre for the land-though the govern
msnt could never get that much out of it,
rs q large part of it is unfit for any
but grazing purposes. and the land is to
be opened for homesteads only-but
they refused to accede to the Indians
demands because past experience has
shown that the moro you give an In
dian the more he wants-like Oliver
Twist, he 10 always demanding more.
Not this alone. but so long as an Indian
has funds to draw from he will not do
anything for himself. A big fund of
money placed to theis credit will retard
the breaking UP OF the tribal relations.
All experience has shown this.
As sald at the beginning, the outlook
is dark for the opening of the reserva-
ton. Even should the Indians agree to
tile plans proposed by the president it is
quite likely-extremely probable-that
when q new bill was passed by congress
they would wan something else.
Of course we will be told now by a
few western enthusiasts that congress
will pass 9 law at the text session
opening the land without the Indians
consent, but there isn't one chance in a
hundred of such o bill ever getting
through congress, oven if the president
would sign it when 1t passed. There is
no question in the minds Of all right
thinking people acquainted with all the
facts in the case but such a law ought
to be enacted and the present plan of
handling the Indians abandoned, but
there are slight hopes of it. The only
hope lies in enlistiug the influential
newspapers throughout the East, there
by awakening Congress to the necessi-
ties of the case.
A special from Washington Wednes-
day says: Sitting Bull was most en-
phatic in his opposition to the proposals
of the government. and was ably Sec
onded by Chief Gall. These W seem
to exercise more power over their fell
flows than all the rest together, and
while the great majority of the visitors
originally favored the proposals of the
secretary. they feared to thwart the de.
signs Of the two powerful chiefs. 1t IS
barely possible that the Indians At the
agencies may decide that the better
course to pursue will be to accept the
proposals which were rejected yesterday,
and in that event there may be further
negotiations, but the general impression
is that congress will do nothing more at
the coming session, and that the whole
question of the opening Of the Sioux
reservation is settled in the negative 70,
some time to come"
Sensible Suggestion.
Here is a plan that might be adopted
in Dakota with profitable results. IL
speaking of public schools q correspond