Omaha daily bee., 1902-08-14

The middIemen in the neighborhood
Of the winnebago and Omaha Indian
reservations, who are handed together
to despoil the Indians In the leasing and
purchasing Of reservation lands, stin
continue at their rascally work. The
recent exposure Of the conspiracy by
which the competing bidders who pre-
scented themselves 1t the sale Of Omaha
Indian lands at O'Nefll were bulldozed
and bought on and the lands were
knocked down to members Of the ring
at a ridiculously low price does not seem
to deter the gang from fresh attempts
to rob the Indians. Although the
fraudulent sale at O'NeiTl is sure to be
annulIed by the secretary OF the interior,
the gang Of favored spectators are
making a fresh onslaught on the Win
nebagoes in the sale Of lands belonging
to the heirs Of deceased members Of
that tribe.
The h~igh-handed methods by which
these depredations on the helpless and
ignorant winnebagoes are being con-
Quoted, by and with the ~connivance Of
Agent Mathewson, are a matter of pub
lie notoriety. Instead Of protecting
the Indians by placing them in direct
communication with intending pur-
chasers. the middlemen are given every
advantage and allowed to intervene be-
tween the Indians and the purchasers, so
as to make enormous profits with con
paratively no outlay and no risk. Two
cases in point have Just been reported.
one Of these by an old resident of this
city. who makes the following state
ment:
About the 9Th Of August l went to the
winnebago reservation and called at the
agency for information as to- the Indian
lands that are to be sold under the recent
order authorizing the sale Of deceased In
dang lands. The agent, Mathewson, was
away at Pender, and his clerk introduced
me to an Indian interpreter, who, he said,
would, on the payment Of 500 for his serv-
Ices, show me a tract Of land that was for
sale.
/ accepted the proposition IND was told
by the Indian hat l could get the quarter
section Of land, 16O acres, for between
Sc 900 and $500. When we reached the
farm we found one OF the SPECTATORS with
another Indian on the ground. while the
owner. an Indian woman, was absent. We
returned to the agency and when the Indian
woman reached there l was informed that
the and was sold. Upon inquiry, | learned
that the land had been bargained for on
the same day by one Of the middlemen. I
then made an offer Of $4,000 for the tract.
but they hustled the woman into the
agents office and had her sign the deed
with a crossmark for 81, 800 or $4,000.
One of the Indians spoke up and said:
This is q shame. This man Is willing to
give $1,000 more than she is getting" but
the man at the once said It was all done.
The same afternoon the middleman who
bought the land offered to resell II, to me
at $50 per acre, which would be $4,000, but
I declined to take It at that price.
The second is ven a more fragrant
case OF downright ~rascality. One OF the
tenants living on the Winnebago reser-
walton, who had improved an eighty
acre tract and erected several buildings
thereon, was anxious to buy the land.
Upon inquiry at the agents office he
was told that a middleman, whose name
we suppress, had bought it for $1,000.
The tenant thereupon purchased the
Iand from the m~iddlenan for $500 spot
cash, although the Indian owner only
received $1,000 for 1t. To cover up the
infamous transaction, the middleman
compelled the tenant purchaser to sign
an affidavit that he did not pay any
bonus to anybody in making the pur-
chase.
Strange that such rascality can be
perpetrated with impunity under the
very eyes Of the Indian agent. For
tunately, the secretary Of the interior
has the last word to say, and we feel
sure that he will set aside all these deals,
as he is certain to set aside the con-
spiracy by which the lands worth $50
to $40 an acre were knocked down at
SIS an acre at the O,Neill land sale.