The Tomahawk., 1903-10-16
COMMUNICATION.
Mr.. EDIroR;

Mr.. EDITOR;
Dear Sir-It appears to me that
something ought to be done to stop
the extpayagant exp .Editures OF
the Indians money on rhe Leech
Lake and Red Lake Chippewa In
dian reservations in this state OF
Minnesota. The Indians here are
helpless as to having any effect
whatever on the Department as to
change in the rulings under the
Morris bill, regulating the cutting
of the timber and. preventing the
Forestry people from taking 23l,-
400 acres OF their land and 5 per
cent of the timber on 200. 900 OF
t his amount: also 10 sections
around the lakes that contain sew
eral millions of timber (pine) that
they hold in tact and will not be
cut. and under the rulings made
by the Secretary the lumbermen
are compelled to CLEAN up all the
tops and defective timber left on
the ground and burn the same as
fast as the cutting is done. This
ruling applies as well on lands lam
where the timber is to be sold o.:
December 9TH, 1903. under the
General Land Office as well as all
the land included in the Forestry
reserve. which means 200, 900 acres
to be cut over less the 10 sections
and the 25, 900 acres of, classified
agricultural land, The estimate
cost of clearing this land in accord
ance with the rules regulating the
same is from $1.5O to $3.50 l,er
thousand feet. OF course where
the timber is defective and blown.
aecessitating the cutting of4waste
of large per cent OF the timber.
this means a heavy expense le g,
clear the land Of so much refuse.
and all of this expense must neces-
sarily be borne by the Indian, for
this reason: the people who con-
template bidding on the timber
contained in the Forestery seler-
ton as well-as that outside the
Forestry, have concluded to offer
$500 to $3.50 less per thousand
feet, the estimate cost Of cleaning
up the land, to protect themselves.
These people have appealed to the
authorities | believe to have that
part of the regulations cut out, as
it makes it so uncertain and so in
defnate as to how to bid,- not
knowing to what extent the eA-'
pense Of clearing up the ground
might be. In some instances
where so much old windfalls and
blown down timber has accumul-
ated for years, a great quantity OF
the land has been logged at diverse
times by people under the dead
and down contracts thus leaving
enough green timber standing to
class such lands as timber land:
and bidder who bids on such a
tract must, in picking up the scat
tering pine, be compelled by the
regulations to clean up the debris
accumulated for years in cutting
d e a d and down timber, and in
those cases it will cost S25 to $50
per acre to clear the ground--when
perhaps there would not be from
one to 4 or trees per acre or per-
haps 9 to 3 thousand feet. This is
easily explained on the Forestry
selection. as they claim to have no
funds to pay for clearing up the
land and want the Indian to pay
for it, who today, at least 80 per
cent of them, are living as they
did fifty years ago, living on boiled
fish with what little flower and tea
they can get in trade for fish and
berries in the season, thinly clad,
not sufficient clothing to keep them
comfortable in the winter, and it
is not an unusual thing to see them
begging for something to eat.
They in this condition-with 8 to
10 million dollars worth of land