Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-03-18
APPROPRIATION BILLS
ONE UP IN EACH HOUSE.
DEFICIENCY BILL IN THE SENATE.
Incidental Discussion Of the In
dian Question.
rHB PENSION BILL IN THE OTHER HALL.
THE SENATE.


| Mr.. Sherman, from the committee on finance,
reported a substitute for the bill agains,
''trusts' in restraint Of production and it was
placed on the calendar. Among the pension
bills reported was one giving pension Of S5C
| q month to Mrs. Stevens, daughter Of Col
Baker, who was killed at the battle Of Balls
Bluff.
THE URGENT Dx,IcIEsoY BILL.
Immediately after the morning business the
consideration Of the urgent deficiency bill was
| resumed
| On motion Of Mr.. Paddock an item Of o., ,0OO
was inserted in aid Of the Industrial Home
| association Of Utah territory.
| An amendment was offered by Mr.. Hale au-
thorizing the use Of $1,000 for the relief of the
Turtle Mountain band Of Indians at Devils
Lake agency.
HR. TELLER SAYS THEY ARE BRITISH INDIANA
Mr.. Teller made the amendment the text OF
| some remarks in order to correct Che said
statements made by some pulpit orators and by
some newspaper orators and by some who be-
| longed to neither the press nor to the
| pulpit Those statements were made on
where the Turtle band Of Indians
were had never been Chippewa land. It had
| been Sioux land which had been purchased by
the United States years ago. When he was
Secretary OF the Interior he had Investigated
the case OF the Turtle Mountain band of
Indians, and there were then but three hun
dred OF them-mOstly half-breeds. That number
| had now, according to the published state
ments, swelled to over 1,900, but these were
| not American Indians They were Manitoba
| button were thus opened to them all the Chip
pewas In that country would flock into the
United States The British Chippewas now on
| this side should be sent back to where they
belonged. It was not fair, he said, to talk of
eleven millions Of acres Of land being taken
from the Indians. Every foot Of land that the
Sioux had owned in that region had been paid
for BY the government, which had also given
| them q splendid reservation in Minne-
sota-the White Earth reservation. He
wanted to put on record his denial
of the statement (whether it came from
pulpit or anywher. else) that those Indians
had been improperly treated by the govern
ment Of the United States. The government
had paid them for their lands and was now sup
porting them in idleness and vice, not where
they ought to be supported, but where they
had selected to 60.
THE Governments TREATMENT OF INDIANS DE-
TENDED.
The statement was in keeping with the gen.
eral run Of statements made in the country
with reference to Indians. The more ignorant
man was as to the location
OF Indians and 40 ,, to the his
tory connected with them the better he
thought himself qualified to stand up before
the American people and denounce the gov
ernment for its treatment of Indians. Nowhere
lavish expenditure IN the treatment
OF aborigines as in the case Of the
American Indian. 1t was not true that
they had been treated improperly. 1t is true
that the government had said that the Indians
| should not occupy great extents Of territory to
nj 20
| men. That was inevitable; that was the nature
OF things; that was
IN HARMONY WITH THE DIVINE PURPOSE,
IT divine purpose governed the thing at ALL It
was in harmony with the ideas that the world
was made not for savages but for civilized
men. If those Indians went to the
White Earth reservation Gas they ought
to) they would be among the richest COM
munlties in the country-infinitely better of
than the settlers in any new country.
MIR. Ccckreu-Where are they now?
Mr.. Teller-In North Dakota, in W illow
county. While do not object to this appro-
priation, object to the statements made that
ernment. 1t is absolutely untrue and the man
who makes 1t, whether from the pulpit or in
the press, Is either ignorant Of the facts or is
willful falsifier.
MR.. DAWES Is GLAD.
Mr.. Dawes said that he was glad that the
Senator from Colorado had corrected the mis-
statements made in the public press as to
the Turtle NJ ountain Indians. He referred
to the White Earth reservation as con-
slstlng OF thirty-six townships in Minnesota
and as being as fine a tract Of country as there
was in that beautiful state. To the extent and
capacity OF these thirty-six townships they
ought TO- be appropriated to the lit
tie bands Of indians that were
scattered about the territory. He had not been
able to understand for long time which tract
OF 49, 600 square miles of territory was set apart
for the Sioux Indians until he ascertained the
reason during the negotiations which
had resulted in opening 11,000,OOO acres
OF that territory to settlement The design in
setting apart those 49, 900 square miles was to
gather there not only the Sioux, but the Chip
pewas and the Crows. But, after the ratifca-
ton Of the treaty,
coNoREss HAD CHANGED ITS POLICY
and had sent the Crows somewhere else, leav-
ing the Chippewas where they were, so that
$4,000 square miles were left for
2S,00O Sioux Indians. He had some
doubts whether it was wise to send $4,000 to
the Turtle Mountain Indians, because the
money would 60 to feeding Indians belonging
90 there and feed the 800 Indians that the
United States government should take care Of
and send the others home, he should like to see
that done.
16s WASHbUhN SUEHX.
Mr.. Washburn asked whether Mr., Dawes
thought it wise, under the circumstances, to
agree to the amendment Mr.. Dawes said he
should not oppose it, but he thought tina.
good deal of the money would 60 where it
ought not to 60.
THE AMENDMENT AoRxrD TO.
The amendment was agreed to. Amend
ments we're also agreed to as follows:
For agricultural experiment stations in
Arizona, New Mexico and Utah, CSC, 200, and in
Rhode Island, >16,O00
For preliminary investigations for artesian
wells for irrigation purposes within the area
west Of the 9Th meridian and east Of the foot
hills Of the Rocky mountains, S20, 900.
THE FIsH COMMISSION.
An amendment making an additional appro-
priation Of SSS, 600 for the fish commission
gave rise to long discussion, in the course of
which Mr.. Chandler argued that that
commission should be placed under
the charge Of one OF the depart
ments Che thought the Navy Department.,
while Mr. Plumb thought that 1t would come
more properly within the jurisdiction of the
Department. Of Agriculture. The amendment
was agreed to.
rHg BILL PAssHD.s
All the amendments having been disposed of
the bill was passed.
On motion of Mr.. Allison, the vote of the
Senate yesterday agreeing to the House amend
ment to q bill for . public building at Cedar
Rapids, Iowa, was reconsidered Con account
Of some informality) and the bill was recom-
mitted to the committee on public bujldinps