Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1899-08-10
SINGLE COPY FIVE CENTS
NUMBER /
Fair Haired Indians.

Tom McRae, as he is universally
called, is one Of that bright array Of
men who gathered about Judge Cul-
berson as their chief when the Judge
was the great chairman of the fddici-
ary committee McRae is a sober sid
ed, clear headed, hardworking Scotch
Irish Presbyterian who acts on both
parts of Oliver Cromwell's famous or
der to his soldiers, Trust in God. but
keep your powder dry" On Sundays
McRae is to be found leading a Sun
day school class, but he keeps his po-
litical armory in shining condition. His
speciality is the public lands, and he is
the leader in congress in a task diff
cult of accomplishment, but full OF
glory-thes establishment of statehood
for Oklahoma, including the civilized
tribes of Indians On that question
the self styled humanitarians of the
east make a man of common sense
very weary. They shed copious tears
over the wrongs of the poor red man
and hold up their hands in holy horror
whenever any of us southwesterners
propose TO open up that garden of the
gods to white settlement, seeming TO
think that people have forgotten how
they plundered the New England In
dams of their lands. Oklahoma, in
Guiding all the Indian Territory, would
make one of the finest states In the
Union, and it would pour a stream of
wealth into Kansas City and st.
Louis. 1t is shame that such a mag
nifcent domain as the territory should
go to waste right In the heart of civ
ilization. Most of those noble red
men, over whose persecution Messrs.
Hoar & Co. bIubber, are about as much
Indians as | am-that is, fiaxen haired,
blue eyed, fair skinned Caucasian In
dams. These blue eyed Indians are
the ones who fight against statehood,
and they are the 'sbIg Injuns," for the
real Indians have a law that any In
dian can have as much land as he will
fence. The genuine Indian wouldn't
fence the garden Of Eden, but the
squaw men do fence and desire to
fence "all he land joining theirs" and
crowd Mr.. Red Man to the hills.
AfAHmSast AeprG8GntaEtFG8s
One Caucasian Indian owns a farm
by the fence tenure % miles long and
Is broad In 1894 he sold 100000
bushels of wheat, to say nothing of
horses, cattle and hogs. Governor
Renfrow, who is a level headed Ar
kansan. asked this particular Indian
why he opposed statehood. He replied
in a language which Logan, Black
Hawk or King Philip could not have
understood Because it would cost me
$4,000 per wear in taxes" So Grandpa
HOar ct al. would deprive millions of
industrious white people of happy
homes in order that such bogus In
dians may roll in wealth. If McRae
can secure statehood. he ought to take
rank among presidential possibilities.
Arkansas has a penchant for diplo-
macy Hugh A. Dlnsmore. who repre-
sents the Arkansas side of ''the land
of the big red apple" was once minis
ter of Korea and is one of the most
graceful and accomplished men in the
house.
He is the ranking Democrat on the
great committee on foreign affairs and
in the next congress viii be chairman.
for among the political probabilities is
the fact that we will control the house
in the Fifty-seventh congress. That
position will make Dinsmore one OF
the leading and most influential mem-
bers Of congress, as he deserves to be
by reason of his capacity, learning.
experience and integrity.
While free traders in most things.
the Arkansans evidently believe in
encouraging one home industry at
least OF her six representatives in
the present congress four are natives
of her soil. greater percentage Of
domestic statesmen than any other
state west of the Mississippi can boast