Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1889-05-17
THE CHEROKEE INDIANS.
GLIMPsEs OF THE RED MAN I'M A
'''-- 80 CIVILIZED STATE
Cherokee Life and Government I'm
tho Indian Territory "A Good
School Systom and ProsperItv

u
tho Indian Territory "A GOOD
School System and Prosperity.
Tahlequah, the capital OF the Cherok ee
in the Indian Territory, is lovely littl,
village. nesting amid a range of flint
covered hills. The capitol building /,
as fine State building as might hav,
been seen few years in some of on,
Western States. The chief, at the time
OF my visit, was Hon. ID. w. Bushy
head. Dir. Bushyhead has proven him.
self to be quito statesman. Ho took
greas pains to instruct us in his name,
OF running the government. There is
perhaps no government in the world SC
lndependent and yet SO dependent as the
Chcrokees.s. They have q large SURPLUS
on hand or at interest, enough to more
than run their government, for schools
and support of the blind are never fully
expended: After paying every appro-
priation they have a surplus of several
thousand dollars left. They rent tho
Cherokee strip for almost enough to paw
all the current expenses of the nation.
and in addition to this they have vested
funds which bring in large amount of
revenue. Their citizens pay no taxes.
they haze no paupers, and consequently
no poorhouses. All the land is held in
common, and each Cherokee is entitled
to oil the land he can cultivate or rent.
be 1t 100 acres or 10000. If their present
prosperity continues, with all the facilities
at their command (Which they seem capa-
BILE Of taking advantage of, they will in
a few years become race of millionaircs.
Chief Bushyhead was q half-blood
Cherokee and half Scotch. He was
boin i'll Tennessee on the 18th day of
March, 1926, and was educated at one
OF the mission schools. He made an OK
cellent official, and was in 1887 sue
ceedcd by Hon. Joel d. Mayes, for a
number of years Chief Justice of the
Cherokee Supreme Court, who is the
chief at the present time. There are a
number of Cherokees who have become
famous and among them is Colonel
William p. Boudinot, who, as musician.
according to his training, has no
superior There are many excellent
musicians among the Cherokees, and
when he was a young man Boudnot
stood foremost among them
The Cherokee Government is re-
public. The chief executive is the
principal chief, who corresponds to the
President of the United States or
Governor of State The second in
power is the assistant chief. They have
a national council consisting of o Senate
and lower house. They have Supreme
Court to which all litigation from the
lower courts can be appealed, consisting
of three judges. their lawyers and
judges are all men learned in tho law,
many of them being graduates OF law
schools in the States. The nation is
divided into districts which correspond
to counties, and there is sheriff to each
district, and circuit Judge appointed
over every three or four districts. All
officers are elected, either by the people
or by the National Council, except few
appointed by the chief who have to be
confirmed By the Senate. We. found
many ambitious politicians among the
red men The Senate is composed chiefly
of white Cherokees and is by far the
ablest body. The House of Representa-
tives, consisting of one from each dis.
trlct, is made up mostly of full bloods.
The Senate and House are both opened
with prayer. The Senate has Presi-
dent and the house Speaker, elected
from its own body. There are three
clerks and two Interpreters for each
body. ~ bill is read in English and
then translated and read in the Cherokee
lnnguage. which makes the mills of the
gods in Tahlcquah grind slowly There
arc no blanket Indians among the
Chcrokccs. All wear citizens clothes,
and some of them dress much better than
their Immediate white neighbors
We visited the missions and public
schools of the Cherokces and found them
all in excellent running order. The male
and female seminaries are magnificent
buildings, the former about one and the
latter four miles from the capital Fifty
students are admitted free to the male,
and fifty to the female seminarics free.
by saying free, we mean free OF books,
board and tuition. The tuition and
books are free to all Cherokee children
who will go, and we have the first to
find yet who did not attend some school;
but fifty are selected, whose board is
paid during their tuition by the nation.
The Cherokee school system is some
thing Of which they are Justly proud.
All children are boarded in the building
and are under the direct supervision Of
the principal of the school. The princj-
pals of these schools get $1,000 a year,
and are boarded at the expense. of the
nation. The principals are white men.
but many of the assistants are native
teachers. The native teacher is gaining,
and it will not be long until the white
man will be removed from his comforta-
BILE position Of net thousand a year.
Not only are the principal aud teachers
boarded at the expense of the nation,
but all their families, which make the
positions much sought after by pcda-
gogucs with large families. One of the
assistant teachers in the female seminary
was Miss Ella Adair, one fourth Chero.
kec lady. Miss Adair was what might
be called belle She had none of the
Indian features, and we found her a we'll
educated and refined young lady. She
was very beautiful, possessed oxcellen
conversational powers, and made very
agreeable companion.
In contrast land after all the contrast
is not so very great) was Miss Julia Six
killer. a full blood Cherokee lady. Miss
Sixkillcr was pretty girl even if she
was a full blood Indian, aud has since
married white man named Ivic. She
was graduate, very intellectual, but
quiet and, reserved, as most full bloods
| are.
There are many handsome ladies
among the Cherokees, and then there are