Evening star., 1894-11-03

been productivity from the Tulalips, Mad
isons, Swinomish and Lummis, $50 from
the Yakimas, KIckatats and Wascos, and
400 from the Puyallups, Chehalis, Nisqually
Squaxons, S'KIallams and S'Kokomish.
Making New Voters.
In Idaho 80 well-to-do Nez Perces have
lately come into citizenship and suffrage.
In southern Montana 800 new Indian voters
have blossomed out at the Crow re5er-
walton since the last congressional cleo
ton. In North Dakota $50 Sioux have been
enfranchised at the DEVILS Lake agency,
and in South Dakota alone 2, 700 more Sioux
have been prepared for suffrage. OF these
$50 are Lower Yanktonai and Lower Brules
at the Crow Creek agency, % are of
various Sioux bands at Rosebud, $50 are of
the Sisseton and Wahpeton branches at
the Sisseton agency and ZOO are Yankton
Sioux at the Yankton agency.
Over in the northwestern part of Mime
sofa $50 Chippewas of the Mississippi Otter
Tail, Pillager and Pembina varieties, have
been newly armed with the ballot; in north
western Michigan 80 L'Anse and Vieux de
Sert have been similarly uplfted, and in
Wisconsin 425 Oneidas and Stockbridges
and 3GO Chippewas have obtained the
fresh dignity of suffrage.
Coming southwark, in Representative
Case Broderick's congressional district, in
northeastern Kansas on the Pottawatomie
and Great Nemaha reservation, we find
23O new Indian voters among the prairie
band of Pottawatomies, Kickapoos, lowas
and SacS and Foxes, and In Congressman
G.. ID. Meiklejohns district in northeastern
Nebraska, surrounding Omaha, We encoun-
ter 30 voting Omahas. 500 Winnebagoes
and 335 Santee Sioux and Poncas.
Next year an additional batch of Indian
voters will be matured in several states,
inGsmuch as the process of allotting lands
in seVeralty and investing the owners with
California the Hoopa Valley and Round
Valley Indians and some more Mission
remnants will be ready for voting; in Ore
gon some Klamath and Warm Springs
braves; in North Dakota some more Sioux
at Fort Berthold; in South Dakota a fur
ther installment of Lower Brule and Rose
bud Sioux; in Wyoming lot of Shoshones:
in Minnesota some additional Chppewas,
and in Kansas the remainder of the Potta-
watomie and kickapoos of adult age. The
Six Nations of New York which contain
LOO men over twenty-one years of age, are
in all respects fit for citizenship. and when
ever they get ready and choose to apply for
1t they will get 1T.
Much Like White Men,
Some cdd stories are told of the manner
i'll which certain bodies of new-made In
dian voters have exercised their right at
the polls. AS a rule they cast their votes
pretty much as they may be Influenced by
the surrounding whites, or according to
the political complexion of the ruling ad-
ministration in state or nation. Sometimes
they are polled republicans, then as
democrats, and again as populists. But
this is only natural and to be expected. A
couple of years ago, at the Santee agency
in Knox county, Nebraska, the whole outfit
of voting Sioux there was swung one way
by the Indian agent. Theo. Roosevelt Of
the civil service commission. and Mr.. Her.
bert Welsh of Philadelphia, the eminent
Indian-loving philanthropist at the head Of
the Indian Rights Association, and known
to the tribes as "Gray-Hat," happened to
visit the agency shortly afterward and the
agent gleefully described to them how easily
he had induced the whole tribe to vote the
republican ticket. By signifying his wishes
the agent explained, to few leading Iaen,
he readily controlled the vote of ALL Mr.
Welsh. in relating the incident, says that
the agent took his breath away by the
frankness of his declaration, and that ii
was evident he saw no impropriety in his
conduct. In number of cases the situa-
ton has been really worse. At the Puyal-
lup agency, at Tacoma. Wash, the agent
reported to the Indian bureau that proba bly,
oEe-thlrd or those voting there were affect
ed by corrupt influence-bribery, either
downright or indirect, or the hope and ex-
pectatlon or immediate personal gain in
dependent OF any public consideration. But
10 say sweepingly that the whole Of the new
Inulan vote Is cast without intelligence
would be far from the truth The fact IA
the Indians register and pay their polI tar
with creditable promptness and the char
acter OF their vote, like that Of other races
necessarily depends on the character of the
sdVlsers who obtain their confidence No
doubt a considerable proportion of them re-
gard their vote as q proper merrba nta HE
article, to be disposed of in the best narlret. :.
but this 10 also said to apply to MANY pros,
porous white voters, and hence cannot he
called distinctive Characteristic of the
Indian voter. Ae