Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1900-02-24

removed to this city from Watseka In
1850, becoming member of the Ham.
llton h Cunningham banking house.
In 1893 he was elected President Of
the Illinois Bankers Association. and
ut the expiration of his term he was
elected member of the Executive
Council and a delegate to the American
Bankers Association. He has been
twice elected Mayor Of Hoopeston.
~6
Under the advice Of the best and most
courageous Of the friends Of the In.
dian, an act for the allotment Of their
tribal lands In severalty to the Indians,
under certain conditions, was passed
by Congress In 1884. Since that time
many Of the tribes have apportioned
their lands to their Individual members,
and have given up the tribal life. As
the Indians to whom lands were SO al.
lotted were forbidden to sell or other.
wise ALLEVIATE their land under twenty
years, and as steps were taken to start
them as farmers. II was supposed that
the measure would do more to cfvilixe
and make them self.supporting. under
existing conditions, than anything else
has done. Fifteen years have gone by
since the first allotment Of lands, and
the public men who were the authors
and most earnest advocates Of the sew.
crafty law have lately expressed deep
encouragement with the result. Al.
though the Indians cannot yet sell. they
can and do lease their allotted lands
to white men. There are reservat lions
In the West where practically oil the
farms are rented to white men, while
their owners and their families retro
to unassigned parts Of the reservation
and live In the old wild way. Mean.
time the Vices Of the white men are
communicated to them more readily
than ever before. and they arc without
the tribal government and the restraint
Of strong men Of their own race which
often went with II. As whole, the
condition Of the Indians Ia undoubtedly
Improving, but there are some cases In
which. under the allotment system,
they have actually refrigerated. The
fact Is now apparent that It 10 dlficult
to make self.supporting farmer Of the
Indian In one generation. The Indian
stlll needs safeguards against corrup-
tlon. and above oil he needs practical
and simple instruction, at his home, In
the few industrial occupations which
he may be able to follow.
The American author can no longer
complain Of neglect, according to the
statistics furnished by the Bookman.
which publishes monthly list OF the
books most generally In demand a.
shown by the reports Of news dealers.
These reports prove that In November.
1895. the Ave most popular books were
all by foreign authors. A year later
two Americans had found their way
into the list. The same condition pre-
vailed In 1897. showing that the Ameri.
can authors were able to hold their
own. In 1908 the leading sales EN-.
braced three works by American au.
thors, Kipllng's Days Work" and
Weyman's "Castle Inn" alone repre-.
senting the English authors. The dnal
triumph came In 1900. when the ave
books with the greatest sale were all
Of American authorship. These are
Richard Carvel." "Janice Meredith"
David Harum." "When Knighthood
Was In Flower and "via Crucls." 1t
Is especially noteworthy that of these
five books three are on American sub
jects, In which the keenest interest ia
now being taken. One Of the healthi-
est signs of the times Ia that each book
which Ii included In the list ID whole
some, clean and untainted with that
French realism which was so much In
demand a few years ago. Books Of
that character no longer find an enOr-
nous sale In the United States. The
public sentiment demands something Of
a different character. Whether the
time has come for distinctive Ameri.
can literature Is pr0blematical, but no
one can deny that with the close Of the
century We are laying substantial
foundation for II.
~
Yankee ingenuity 10 proverbial. and
Is trait of which .Englanders
may fairly be proud. Nevertheless,
there is one Geld Of invention In which
they do not shine-the invention Of
proper names. This was often prac-
ticed In New England In old times. 1t
has now become distressingly popu-
lar habit In the West OF course, 1t 10
easy to understand how proud parent
may think no name in all history, ira.
dition or romance quite good enough
for her own particular baby; but that
baby, when she grows up-it 10 almost
invariably she-will seldom thank
her parents for their effort to distin.
guish her with something novel and