The Anaconda standard., 1895-12-14
Montana State NeWs.

Some agricultural understudies have
been sent to the reservations from
Washington to teach the Indian farm
ing as 1t is taught in government re-
ports: but after a few weeks the tu-
tors concluded that the job was irk-
some. and when a government job gets
In that condition, civil service reform
is cheerfully accepted.
These professors of farming would,
for instance. start in by teaching the
aborigines how to tickle the virgin soil
with a breaking plow. whereupon the
old buck. with no clothes on. to speak
of. to retard his wild progress or ham,
per his impetuous course, would pro-
ceed to play ball with great impatience
and vigor. He would strike out a fur
row by some out and in curves and up
and down drops that filled the whole
field with CONSERVATION and dread.
SO intent does the Indian become in
his work. that he Is liable to let his
pinto bronchos roam at will. He is
considerably exercised in pursuit of
his labor-and the team-and 1t is
sometimes very difficult to keep apace
with them. The perspiration which
oozes from the Indian at this time.
mixed with the paint and perfume
which he carries upon his person,
gives him a perturbed appearance that
is highly favored with a sonorous odor
that often proves distasteful to the
eastern graduate. At last the Indian
discovers that he can stop his plow
by lowering the point, so he inserts 1t
under a convenient boulder and re-
tires. Then the buck goes to his tepee,
batters his wife's head against the
stew kettle and sits for the remainder
of the day in moody silence. He
might sit under a tree, but there isn't
one convenient
Ilxrf - L. IL A. "a
nice. new. blue moving machine,
with a seat on it, Then retire for the
purpose of observation and safety to a
high and immovable hay stack. The
wild-eyed cayuses are hitched just as
far away from the works of the ma
chine as they can be located. The
Indian clutches the lines, the machine
feels the thrill of life along it's keel,
and so do the horses. The machine
gives out the first sounds of life, which
quickly rise to a reactionary roar.
The red man sits the machine grace
fully. his gay blanket Tapping pictur-
esquely to the breeze. Stones fly in
the air as the machine disappears up
the gulch to reappear on the brow of
the hill and to descend with added
velocity sufficient to cut path
through the willows along the creek
bottom. On comes the Indian cutting
wide swath of tepee, dogs. papooses
and squaws, with an indiscriminate
disregard of conventionalities seldom
witnessed even In Maud Muller's time
We have seen Indians make some
fast time in their haying expeditions.
and have made some correspondingly
fast time ourselves; but not having a
stop watch with us, was never able to
take IL officially.
The hay rake is another implement
on the farm that the Indian takes
kindly to. Indeed, IL he could have
his way about ii and Uncle Sam was
less exacting. and If there was as
much of a "rake"-off for the contrac-
tor. the Indian would take the hay
rake in preference to the moving ma
chine any day. But the child-like
aborgine is. and always will be. the
victim of corporate greed.
The rake has less draft to hamper
and clog its progress. 1t does not
carry so much of a dead weight handi-
cap and some exceptionally speedy
time has been made in the free for all
hay rake events on the reservations.
Out of these things the Indian gets
modicum of enjoyment, but set him
to work digging potatoes and he or
ganizes walk out. He argues that
potato digging partakes too much of
the flavor of trade" and is therefore
beneath the dignity of a true born
dTlStOCfdt. he I1dkeS MS WlIc put on
her bloomers and extract the potatoes
from the ground, as they are needed.
The Indian delights in martial life,
but there must be some sore-back cay
uses 10 fight for, or he don't soldier.
Besides he wants to be an officer and
| drink "champagney water" with the
best of them. An ordinary private he
calls dog and any effort made by
the government to make him one OF
| the rank and file, ranlxles in his breast
But in football we see an opportu-
| nifty to bring out the hidden reserve
I force of the Indian. We have no doubt
but that the railroads would give .ex-
| cursion rates to all the people of the
| East who would like to see the Indians
play. and we suggest as a starter that
| the Crows challenge the Sioux. There
| would then be no opposition against
throwing the whole Grow reservation
| open to settlement to the whites
There would be no Crows left to
| claim IL.