El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1899-09-01

In addition to the several Indian
schools in the southwest maintained
by the general government there are a
number of secular and non-sectarlan
eharacte in southern California. Ari-
IONA and New Mexico. One of the
most extensive of these is located at
Banning, near Los Angeles, and was
founded by Miss Drexel, daughter of
the Philade lpnia millionaire. 1t 1s
conducted under Catholic auspices, by
Rev. B. F,oriau Hahn. " has about
$50 pupils, is q mixed school, and the
pupils are taught gardening, house
work, and other occupations, as well as
the ordinary branches OF learning.
Near Banning ia also the non-sectarian
school for Indians. At all the various
Indian agencies, says the Denver
Times, are secular schools, conducted
partly at government expense, and
partly at the expense of the Indians
living on the reservations, and by those
located upon their own lands.
Within the past decade the Indians
of the southwest have made excellent
progress in the matter OF education,
when it is considered that they are the
offspring of ancestors whose mental
faculties have never been developed
and are themselves only just emerging
from savagery. The Indian mind is
naturally sluggish and slow to COM
prehend, to receive knowledge, or to
adopt the customs and manners of the
white race.
The most extensive Indian school in
the south west is near Albuquerque, N.
M, and contains some three hundred
pupils, whose ages range between
and 25 years. A few, however, accord
ing to their own reckoning, have even
passed the age of 30: but as they count
by moons, it is reasonable to assume
that they are not so old as they claim
to be. Recently the government COM
pleted a school building there at a cost
of S25 900. This sschool is under the
charge of q Mr.. Crueger. as superint-
endent, and the pupils composing it are
from the adjacent Indian villages of
Zandia, Isleta, Pecos and Acoma, tn q
latter supposed to have been built on
the site of one of the "seven cities of
Cebola.''
Indian children are only given one
name by their parents, and this Is dis
Garden by them on entering school, and
one is selected which is supposed to be
more civilized and euphonic. This,
however, is not compulsory. They
generally prefer unusual names, an
select the longest ones they can find.
When receiving an oral lesson n
which occur such names as Henry
Clay, Daniel Webster, Andrew jack
son, "Stonewall" jackson, or Bis
they are apt to select from
these the one which best con- |
forms to their ideas of rhythm,
and by the name thus selected they are |
known. Before entering |
school the boys discard their Indian |
costume of cotton pan balloons and moe
casins and adopt that of the pale face. |
The girls adopt the more fastidious |
for instance, as Nile, |
Yosemite, California, Venice, etc. ,-l
these they hear in their lessons and |
are appropriated by them as the second |
step toward advancement in the scale |
of civilization, the first having been |
the substitution of the garments of
their pale faced sisters for their moe |
casins and black cotton dresses.
Pupils are always pleased to receive |
visits from their parents, but they soon |
shame or embarrassment because of |
heir dress and manners. This must
not be taken as an Indication of any |
ack of filial sentiment, but is a natural
'esult OF the influence OF civilization OF
;heir minds.
; There is connected with this school
Uniformed corps of, Indian cadets.
These cadets are given supervision of
he grounds ard prescribe the punish
nent to be inflicted on pupils for Of
z nses committed against the reguls-
ions of the school. The Indian idea
avors severe punishment, and these
adets are no exception to the rule. If
pupil runs away from the school the