The Dupuyer acantha. [volume] (Dupuyer, Mont.) 1894-1904, 1897-01-07

not forgetting the rows of chileS.
Where is tie harm, then, If Pedro and
Ramona sit down in the shade for a
quiet smoke, or ever a comfortable
little snooZe, with the meadow larks
over yonder In the willows, singing
sweetest melodies? MISUNDERSTANDING
na-never do today what you can Just
as well put off till tomorrow. That
Is the Indians philosophy, and, as he
appears to thrive and be happy upon
1t, who shall say his is not the most
sensible way of getting through life?
Go over into the American settlement
yonder and see the white man rushing
to and fro from early morning until
late at night, driving, h%urrying, as
only an American does. Yet what
does he get out of life more than the
Indian? Why not go over into Saboba
consider the Indian, study his ways,
and be wise?
Now the road climbs up on the mesa
above the bottom lands. which have
been titled by the Indians these many
years. The strip Of arabic land is
small, hence none may be wasted in
roads, which are regulated to the bar
rem mesa, where no water is. Down
down elbow n row of cottonwood
~trees-their soft, downy blossoms
floating away on the breeze and max
ing little drifts in the road-marks
the line of the zenja which carries the
water from the river to the little fields
of the Indians. And, by the way,
these poor miserable, ignorant, untu-
tored savages have hit upon a solu-
ton of the land question which is the
acme of fairness, and which all the
combined wisdom of ages cannot well
surpass. 1t is nothing more nor less
|. than a practical and successful ex-
emplification of the theories of these
who do not believe in individual
ownership of land. To begin with,
none of the villagers are speculative
farmers. That is to say, none of them
care to raise larger crops or cultivate
more land than will provide for the
simple wants of their families. None
desire to accumulate beyond that
point. So each year the village chief
allots to those who apply such tracts
of land as they desire to cultivate.
No nan is given control over a larger
area than he actually cultivates, and
there is enough for all. So long as n
man desires the piece of land and will
care for it he retains it, but the
moment he refrains from ~cultivating
the whole or any portion of it, then
it is taken away, provided any one
wants it. But no one owns an acre
of land. 1t all belongs to the control
of the Captain, in whose decisions all
acquiesce.
Scattered along the banks of the lit
tie acquia in the shade of the cotton
woods, are the houses of the villagers,
their walls of gray adobe scarcely dis
~tinguishable from the soil itself. Here
and there a WOman or girl is hard at
work washing clothes in the stream,
and on the limbs of the willows and
guatemotes are spread snowy gar
mentS, mingled with those of brighter
hue, showing that a regard for cleanli-
ness is not at all Incompatible with IN
dian nature, and is equally strong with
the love of bright colorS. Padding in
the water or rolling about in the sun,
sometimes with a single garment,
sometimes naked as the day they were
born, We're plump, brOwn-skinned ba-
bies, their black eyes swapping with
curiosity as the visitors halted a mo-
ment, while anon a band of a dozen of
the little rascals would go scurrying
away into the bush like a flock of star
tied quail. Evidently the boyle man
is as much of a reality with these
N'ubScttio 40 IL thiNl VI Ii
hue.
The schoolhOuse is, of course, visit
ed. 1t is a low, brown-walled adobe
structure, almost hidden beneath the
branches and foliage of great cotton
wood trees near the road. Doors and
windows stand open to admit the
balmy air, and through them glimpses
are caught of a number of jet-black
heads, dark faces and flashing eyes.
There are a score and more of schol-
ars, both boys and girls, and well-be-
haved pupils they are, too. The visit
ors are welcomed at the door by the
teacher, who has devoted years to her
chosen task of educating the youthful
Indians. Brought up in the valley,
only a few miles away, knowing the
Indian dialect and the Indian charac-
ter as well, she has the complete con-
1idence of her pupils end their parents,
too, and so is able to accomplish vast
ly more than a stranger or one whose
entire sympathy is not enlisted in the
work.
The youngsters bend over their books
and states, and save for a quick, shy
glance now and then shot at the stray
ers, take no notice of their presence.
The exercises of the school proceed as
usual. line cnllQren sing, read ana
answer questions in arithmetic, geog-
raphy and spelling intently and with
on embarrassment. A like numbe" of
white children, with ages of cultiva-
ton behind them and the best blood in
their veins, could have done no better
than these youths, who We're the first
of their tribe to imbibe the simplest
rudiments of education after thou
sands of years of savagery. Away in