The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1903-05-10

States bureau OF Indian education.
| Washington. Although her headQuar-
| tiers are ostensibly at the national CAPT.
tai, Miss Reels real headquarters are
mostly where General Pope said his
were-''in the saddle" 1t is nothing for
the interchangeable superintendent of In
dian training TO ride forty to fifty miles
a day over mountain and desert
among her copper skinned youths and
their parents, far away from railway or
even stage track She aims to visit
every one of the 300 government Indian
schools once a year. In one year she
travelled $4,000 miles.
What woman can do for genuine high
ar education when she is not discrimi-
mated against by medieval sex preju-
dice Miss Reel proves. For almost the
first time in the history of government
dealings with the Indian there Is now a
serious attempt made to foster in the
wild red soul the instinct for a nxed
home. a home that the male Indian
must maintain by his own labor, while
the female Indian keeps the house and
makes the home. When you can make
a young Indian feel that he must sup
port his family or do without one,
you've got him for civilization
To this end the main part OF Miss
Reels efforts are directed. Soon after
taking charge of Indian schools she
prepared a course of instruction con-
sisting of thirty-one branches. These
embrace, first of all, a knowledge for
both boys and girls OF elementary
branches. Then this clear seeing wo-
man would have all the Indian girls
learn to cook, sew and keep house In
clean, decent fashion and make a home.
AS yet the girl bachelor is not fea-
ture among Indian maidens. There
fore. says Estelle Reel, they must learn
the family business properly.
At the same time the superintendent
captures the youthful brave and makes
him learn a trade or occupation OF some
sort whereby he may take care OF his
squaw and her interesting progeny
Agriculture and stock raising are thus
far the vocations among our coming
Indo-American citizens. Miss Reel
was one of the first to note the folly
of taking young bucks from the reser-
vations, conveying them east and Civ
ing them a fair school education, then
simply turning them loose and letting
them go back to the reservation and be-
come idlers. The noblest, most neces-
sary education of ALL industrial and
moral training. had been ignored in the
mad haste to turn out so many Indian
youth who knew how to read and write.
The result was deplorable.
The national superintendent plan is
to teach the red children TO work with
their hands first, last and all the time:
to train into them that habit of regular
labor which lies at the basis of all civil
lization. At the same time she would
not restrict them. For those who show
capacity for the requirement of liter
airy, scientific and professional knowl-
edge or for the trades requiring more
delicate manipulation there is provided
a plan for the attainment of such
knowledge. If political mutations do
not whirl her out of office ere she works
out her scheme, the present and the
immediate future will stand as the pc
Rod in which the Indian at last ceased
to be either a problem or a government
ward and became a man, standing upon
his own feet, a civilized human being.
No man superintendent of Indian
schools could have done what Miss Reel
is doing. Her strongest hold is TO go
into the wigwams of the Indian women.
gain their confidence and liking and
make them see how much better IL is
to trust their children to the training Of
civilization. Among the widest, most
degraded peoples ii is still the mother
who has the say concerning the chill
dren, and the lower in the scale Of in
telligence the woman is the more surely
she will trust a woman rather than a
man of any kind. 1t has remained for
civilized woman TO turn from her own
sex and declare she would trust a man
before a woman
At any rate these wild women trust
Miss Reel utterly when she goes into
their wigwams and tells them that
their children viii have power 20 cope
with the white man and get their own
back again If they learn TO use the
white mans own weapons As woman
TO woman she appeals to them. and
they listen and acquiesce.
One department of Miss Reels edu-
cational scheme deserves special men
ton on account Of its artistic value In
the largest cities OF the Union are en-
poriums for the display and sale of
hand wrought Indian goods. II you
have ever stepped into one OF these
places. you have been amazed at the
beautiful workmanship shown in Nav
aio blankets. Eskimo fur garments.
feather robes OF state. baskets, totems.
arrows. headdresses, boats. pottery.
stone hatchets and many other objects.
Not even the oriental rugs and fancy
articles that bring such high prices are
as artistic and solidly useful as many
Of these Indian industrial products II
is the intention Of the national super
intendent TO foster by all possible
means the old time artistic and in
genious hand work among our native
Indian races From New Mexico 20
Alaska. from Maine TO California. there
are red people who can make quaint and
useful articles. each set OF a styls pc
culiar to its own district. which are
exquisite from the artistic standpoint
a revival Of ancient Indian arts and
handscrafts is an undertaking very nov
81 and attractive and useful. u may
be made 10 contribute considerably 70
the maintenance Of the civilized Indian
families
EsteIle Reels personal history il a.
interesting as her work. Fate was kind
10 her in the start and placed the the
alter OF her tasks IN the west. where wo-
men are not ruled out on account OF sex
Had she started as a teacher ia, say.
New York city che might 20 this day
have been presiding over & primary
school. supporting . mother and kelp-
less sister OF brother on wages about
equal 20 that O. q prosperous shopziri
while one 81 her Own former boF pupils
Nigh; have been put over her head as
her superior.
But 10 Fate had better gifts for this