River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1895-06-13
THE COMING INDIAN.
He viii Wear a Dress Suit and Live In



There is not so much romance sur
rounding the Indian as there was fifty
years ago. and there are few red men
to-day who would answer to the de-
scriptiOn of painted warrior in one of
COoper's novels. Since the Indians
have been placed on reservations aud
put in charge of agents of the govern
ment, greater changes have been seen
in them. and il does not look as if it
would be long before all the members
of the Lo family are patronizing the
tailor. the dressmaleer, the upholsterer
and the house decorator, just as their
pale-faced brethren and sisters do.
This is especially noticeable to any,
one who looks at the advertisements
for bids for Indian supplies which are
published every spring. Among the
items in last years advertisements
were white linen and turkey-red hama
kerchiefs, hemmed; calico, gingham,
fast colors and good quality; Kentucky
jeans, hickory and calico shirting and
mosquito bar.
Everything. too, it was announced,
must be of the best kind and style.
Miss Minnehaha must have a gingham
dress that will wash; Mrs. Old Horse
in-the- Mud a white handkerchief of
fine linen. and Mr.. Man-to- Hold Your
Horses delicate pink netting to hang
around his couch SO that the mosqui-
toes will not disturb his peaceful
siumbers.
We have never been accustomed to
think of an Indian as without his
blanket, but the Indian bureau is try
ing To discourage the practice of wear
ing blankets on anything but the beds
on the reservations. The Indians do
not take kindly to this. but they try to
secure some compensation for the hard
ship to which they are thus subjected
by securing slumber robes of the most
brilliant colors-
Here are some of the things which
the wards of the nation needed last
year: Nine hundred and twenty pairs
mems buots; $50 pairs mems arctics;
$50 pairs women's arctics; 1900 pairs
women's shoes, sole-lined; 900 dozen hair
brushes, ], 100 gross dress buttons, 1850
coarse combs. .275 fine combs, 100 dozen
bottles indelible ink. O. dozen mirrors, Al
gross darning needles. I.390 dozen sew
ing machine nee les, 5000 dozen spOcls
cotton, 9.i30 pairs of suspenders, $50
dozen closed thimbles, IS dozen open
thimbles. 10 dozen clothes brushes, IS
dozen tooth brushes, gross hairpins, 3
gross buttonhole twist, gross safety
pins. 1.5OO yards ribbon, IS dozen so
yard spools scarlet silk and 10 gross
collar buttons.
After reading this we must revise
all the opinions that we have formed
about the noble red man 1t was Gen.
Sheridan who said that the only good
Indian was a dead Indian.
But here are live Indians who must
be good and respectable. because they
use tooth brushes and lose their collar
buttons under the bureau, and part
their hair before the mirror. the while
their wives are wearing thimbles and
darniug their husbands hose, and
making the wigwam cAeery with the
whir and the rattle of the sewing ma
chine. Civilization has evidently not
been a failure in aboriginal house
holds
But there are other things in the
lists of supplies which seem foreign to
Indian tastes Requests for 100000
pounds of soap and 10000 pounds of
washing soda are startling, and the
crockery list is full of interest. In it
are To be found plates of every variety
breakfast. dinner, tea, soup. sauce
and pie. Then there are students
lamps, hanging lamps. bracket lamps,
shoe backing. stoves. cocaine. chlorc-
form. pepsin, beef extract and sugar
coated pills
Twenty-Five years from now the nov
elist who sits down TO write a story of
Indian life will have TO picture the
red man as wearing dress suit in the
evening and living in a brown stone
frOnt--Golden DAYS