The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1903-03-27
FRIDAY, MARCH 81, 1908.
TIME TO ACT.

tons from all over the west for ces-
sion of Indian lands and their opening
to settlement. By that time the full
import of the recent decision of the
United States supreme court will have
been realized and the people of states
where large Indians eserv are still
maintained may be depended upon to
ask of congress that it exercise the
right which the court has declared is
vested in it.. 1t is safe to say that
among the foremost and most insist
ent will be those from eastern Mon
tana, to whom the court has pointed
cut the way for obtaining that which
to secure they have been p%etitioning
and working for yearse-opening of a
portion of the reservation held by the
Crows. To them the court has said
that it is not necessary to enter into
a treaty with the Indians to secure
such lands as they do not need
and which the whitemen do need and
should have. By it's edict the court
has declared that congress has full
and complete authority to open any
Indian lands it may desire, so long as
such opening is made without total
disregard of the rights of the Indians
and that proper care is given that JUS
tice and equity shall prevail. In 9TH
or vynr6c II ic fhn d1fv of orncc
to see to it that the Indians as indi-
viduals are permitted to retain suf-
ficient land to enable them to earn a
livelihood from the soil and that the
money derived from the sale of their
lands is expended in a name to ben
eft them, they being held to be mere
wards of the government and conse-
~'quently without capacity to direct
their own affairs.
AS The Gazette has pointed out on
several occasions. the present tribal
holdings of lands by the Grows are far
in eXcess of their needs and that JUS
tice, both to the Indians and the state,
demands a material reduction of such
holdings. No one knows better than
the Indians themselves that cession of
a large part Of their reservation would
he to their benefit. The money to be
derived from the sale of their sur
plus lands could be expended in the
direction of improving the severalty
holdings and the completion of the
irrigation system absolutely necessary
to make the land retained by them
productive. This, with the stock that
could be bought for them would soon
place them in a position of independ-
ence of the government and instead
OF being a charge on the nation they
would speedily become self-sustaining
and rich, something desired by the
Indians as much as by their white
~nelghbors. for of all the western In
dians none, perhaps, have so far adj
Vanced along the "whiteman's road"
as the Crows. In another respect they
differ also from the reservation In
dians. They are anxious to progress
and to this extent have seconded ev-
cry honest effort made to assist them.
in the direction of selling lands they
do not require, in order that thew
may secure the money needed to
place them that much nearer in a
position of absolute independence.
They, as much as the settlers have
been disappointed in the repeated |
failures made to cede part of their
reservation and may be relied upon
to offer no obstacle in the way of rati.
flying any subsequent treaty that may
be undertaken in that direction.
In order that the most intelligent
effort may be made toward securing
restoration to the public domain of
that part of the Crow lands not nee
essary for the support of the tribe to
which they belong the people of east
ern Montana must bestir themselves
between now and the time for con
gress to convene. They must work,
and work hard. 1t will be necessary
to securt data and satisfies to present
to congress, for although the law
says that congress has the authority
to take from Indians lands they do not
need, it is doubtful whether congress
would care to exercise that authority
arbitrarily and without some sem
blance of right and justice. With the
facts and figures that can be secured
such q strong argument in support
OF the efforts of the people a be
made that congress will find it difficult