The Vinita weekly chieftain. [volume] (Vinita, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1902-1905, 1904-08-11
INDIANS MUST WORK.
WARDS OF NATION ORDERED TO
BE sELF-sUPPoRTINo.
Those who Are Able to Earn a Liv-
ing will Receive No More Ra-
tions-some Worthless
Red Men.


lie has done Il reluctantly and under
protest He has done It contrary to
the advice OF his father and his grand.
father, But back OF his father and
his grandfather Is the great father at
Washington, who says that II man
will not work neither shall he eat
The rations haye been cut of from
those who are able TO work, So the
Indian has cast aside his blanket and
with It the leisure Of more centuries
than the white man can count He has
accepted the new order Of things as he
accepts everything else. with a philos.
ophy which looks like indifference.
"The white man offers you work
now" said old Chief Red Cloud. when
the young lAen came to him for coun.
sell and they take away the rations
that were promised under the Black
/ Hills treaty They viii give yor work
for little while. then You must find
4 it for yourselves. They will give you
nothing They will DO nothing for
/ you"
4 But the time has gone by when the
word Of the chief was final law. The
I young men went to work. on the Pine
/ Ridge reservation about one-fourth OF
the Indians are selfsupporting. They
work on the roads grading and driy.
ing teams, for which they get $3.50
day Several OF them have been
employed building dams and reser-
voirs over the reservation A few do
a little farming and raise cattle.
II is diffeult TO make farmers of
them while they own land from which
white man could not make a living.
They have not worked long enough
yet TO demonstrate positively what
they can do. but their possibilities
seem limited. Most Of them are IRE
sponsible and immature They lack
the cleverness OF the old Indians and
seem to have gained nothing in its
place
you have seen one generation OF
Indians grow up aud take its place in
the world. some one said 10 an old
clergyman Who has devoted his life TO
the Sioux. What do you think edu.
cation has done for ,hem97
The clergyman shook his head. II
don't know, he said "In some re.
spects the young men are much worse
than their fathers They have learned
many vices OF which the old Indians
knew nothing Perhaps in some ways
they are better. but J don't know
The prosecuting attorney Of wyo.
ming, while at Pine Ridge last fall IN.
gestigating the causes OF the lnciplent
war between the Indians and the sher.
in made a speech to pupils OF the
Ogallala boarding school IN which he
made suggestion as to how the Sioux
nation might become wealthy. He
suggested that the old tendency toward
tribal relations BE- used to form 4 huge
corporation for raising cattle on the
Pine Ridge reservation. Most OF the
reservation land Is good for grazing.
and with The amount they have and
What cattle they have to begin with
they could organize a company hire
an experienced caftleman rs manager
and Ia ten years be independents
rich
In the meantime. however. there ls
suffering among the Sioux. The re-.
tions are Inadequate and most OF the
Indians Incompetent
Tie Indian women are being encour
aged to take up thelr beadwork aealn.
which for q long time was DISCOURAGED.
Indian women teach il to their daueh.
ters and girls ID tho boarding schools
ofar 90 for sale No one bat an Indian
women can do the genuine beadwork.
which .a en- hackshln. but The woven
FoFE which has become 4 fad among
vh.'a women e. the traders say. ruin
loe ihe sale Of the genuine article
G.5s on the Pine Ridge reservation
ar Iao being taught hasketry. an ART
Which fhe Sioux never knew. and the
state r'autural college has been
asiai furnish sweet grass seed. 10
b. fawn along the creeks ana used
for mak.Hs baskets
Among The Indians who under the
new regime are trying hard 10 make
O lif.ng D. ola Nrs Sitting Bull widow
q che last of the hostile Sioux. She
Is peaceahio old squaw and sits in
her little cabin out on the reservation
making gorgeous beaded moeoaslns.
for which there is a limited sale.
When the announcement was made
last spring that the Indian must 20
10 work the Northwestern Railroad
company camo forward with an ofar
70 help solve the problem.
During the summer the eompanv
employed about 100 Sioux from the
Pine Ridge and Rosebud reservations
They we're employed as section hands
and coal shoyeiers and made $50 a
day coalshovellne was most popu
lar with them They we're not In the
sun and the work was not contluuous
They could shovel awhile and then 81,
around IN the shade and smoke cigar.
ettes.
Frozen Banana Custard.