The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1899-08-24

me white pine FORESTS are
nearly allunder the ownership of
capitalists, and few of them
have not been invaded especially
along the lake regions. Spare
pieces of pine unclaimed are still
found in the far north Turing the
adventurer, possessed of a few hun
dred dollars to make claim, and pay
the government price of one dollar
and quarter. Mills are every
where polluting the clear inland
waters, and leaving the country
desolate and almost uninhabitable
as the soil is too poor and the sea-
son too short to yield much return
to the husbandman.
Lake Bemidji-named after an
Indian of that name, whose old
bark cabin still remains as a relic
on the shore, is fine lake north of
Cass, about seven miles long by
six wide. 1t has become quite a
resort since the two railways came
in last year. There is much wild
game in the vicinity and good Hsh-
ing for pike and black bass. The
Mississippi flows through the lake
from the lake Irving, on its way to.
Cass, reaching here its farthest
point north before the turn again
to the east and south. Manysanoe
trips are begun here, or south at
ltasca, going down the rapids, then
through the Cass to Brainerd and
on. The forest openings abonnd
with blueberries which are gath
cred by the Indians and shipped
from near railroad points, lshbuld
think by the ton weight. The In
dams get four and five cents Eper-
quart in trade for them the ground
in the forest is also bright With
the s:arlet wintergreen berry.
Birds are scarce, but wild flowers
abound, the bluebell, the wildrose
and nameless wild flowers of the
North American wood spring up in
your path or grace some little dell,
and wealth of graceful blue flags
hold in their arms the decorated
branches of fallen trees the wild
ducks go humming by and the
klouk, louk of the wild goose is
heard occasionally, sly wolf or a
black bear is disturbed, the deer
are plenty and occasionally a
moose rewards the hunter. One.
of the oldest hunters and trappers
in this region said that every fall
he sat IN his door yard by the lake
and took enough wild ducks with
his rifle to put down a solid barrel
of dressed fowl for the winter, and
moose meat when he cared to 90
after it, but that the coming Of the
lumber fiends and the saw mills
would soon destroy the opportunity
for the exercise of all his sports
manlike instincts.
The Indian in his home is a
study. He tries to adopt the ways
OF the white man in dress and in
his log house. much to the loss of
his picturesqueness, and the inter-
est we have in him as the noble
savage. He hangs around the sa-
looms in quite civilized ways, goes
home often drunk in his wagon.
Pitiable victim of the pioneer civil
lization in its effect upon a savage
race, who are ignorant, superstitious
initiative, and live in their PHYSICAL
sensations and passions. The ed
ucated indians and half breeds are
shreWd money getters and prey
upon the ignorant mass, being sharp
at trade. The money received
from the government changes
hands almostimediately after being
received by Indians. 1t does not
represent to them the furtherance
of any future need, they have no
flu ure but to live on in idleness.
The lumbefmen say that once in a
while an Indian is a faithful worker
but rarely. Probably our method
with the Indians in herding them
in reservations is wrong. They
ought to be made to mingIe in with
other populations. The present