The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1898-12-22
NOT THE SAME
Report Of Special Agent Jenkins
Differs From That of
Others
Who Were Sent to Investigate
Affairs at the White Earth
Reserve.
Only Small Percentage of In.
dians Employed in Logging
Operations,
And These Were Cheated in Va
rious Ways--Anxious for Hon.
est Logging.

WASHINGTON, Dec. 20.-Special Indian
Agent Jenkins. in a report just submit
ted to Commissioner of Indian Affairs
jones on the investigation of the timber
operations on the Chippewa reservation
IN Minnesota, makes some statements
radically differing from those in other
reports. He says that during the last
fiscal year 4S.919, 096 feet of reservation
pine timber cut and banked there We're
sold'at an average of s.. rs per thousand.
There were 80 camps in operation, and
there was IS 1-3 per centage Of the
wages due the laborers in the camps
after the settlement. On the diminished
reservation. the special agent says there
were 22,262, 907 feet cut and banked,
sold at 1896 per thousand, and the
laborers We're paid 9514 per cent of the
amount due them on the settlement.
He states the trouble was in the
management of the camps and
in the system itself. Owing to the
inability Of many of the camps to pay
out, and as under the rules the laborers
claims were the last to be paid, scores Of
Indians working there did not receive
the wages they expected and hence Sc
rious complaint arose. Of SO camps in
operation the past fiscal year, many en-
ployed less than 10 per cent Indian
labor and very few had over 30 per
cent, the Indian labor average being 10
to 90 per cent. The system of stores
maintained by the camps, with their
exorbitant prices and credit to reckless
Indian buyers, is stated to have caused
great dissatisfaction. The bills pre-
scented to the agent for settlement by
the various supply companies who fur
nished the camps with the necessary
groceries, etc, during logging opera
tions, were not as rule properly item
lied and while they cannot be said to
be exorbitant, the special agent says
they are loosely made out, with no ap-
parent check on purchases and give
abundant opportunity for fraud and
COLLISION"
Chief Source of Complaint.
The chief source Of all the Indians
complaints was that the green timber
of the reservation was being ruthlessly
C1b AON IL ouo oCSCIoy Cu p1CCCuSC
of being dead and down timber. At
five councils held with the Indians from
various portions Of the reservations,
Mr.. Jenkins says they, to man, vehe-
mently protested against further cut
ting of the so-called dead and down.
They are convinced, he said, that more
than one-half of the timber cut at the
camps has been of the best green and
growing pine, and that they are realiz-
ing little or nothing from it. On
many of the tracts of the dimin-
ished reservation, the agent says, he
found these complaints well founded,
ard that evidences of clean cutting of
everything merchantable were abun-
dant everywhere. Of 5000 or 1900 logs
he found cut and skidded on several
tracts, fully 60 per cent were from green
trees. ......
THE Indians are, however" he con-
cluded, '.desirous of having the timber
operations resumed on the basis of COM
mon sense and common honesty. They
favor the selling outright of all this pine
timber at not less than 81 per thousand
for Norway and 50 for white, as it
stands, or the putting in Of mills by tn.
government under the Menominee plan.
Either would result satisfactorily"