The Arizona sentinel., 1905-05-10
Hot Water Gets SIS For His Hair.

Judge Moves OF the Superior court at
Riverside rendered a decision last Sat
urday in the case of Aqua His, a Yuma
Indian, against Superintendent Spear,
awarding the Indian $2J damages for
having to submit to forced haircut.
The attorneys for the Indian were Fl.
Wupperman of Yuma and G. S. Wilson
of Los Angeles.
Aqua His 1.-THE English of which is
Hot Water) belongs to the NcGill clan
of the Yumas, who do not take kindly
to the regeneratiug haircut and other
| features of the so-called white mans
civilization, and often rebel at the
authority of Colonel Spear. Hot Water
has been true to his name and has kept
the uperintendenti immersed in trouble
much of the time. 1t was given in evil
dence at the trial that Hot Water and
some of his followers had attacked and
captured two Indian policemen who
tried to interfere and stop their gam
bling. They disarrned the policemen
and held them prisoners over night.
Colonel Spear dealt out no punishment
for this fragrant act OF INSTRUMENTATION.
but he gave Hot water "a good talking
to" and Hot Water promised to reduce
his temperature and be good. But he
wasn't good long. Later Hot water
fairly boiled over when he saw an To-
dian policeman dragging Il Yuma boy
before the tonsorial tribunal to have
his locks amputated, and he attacked
the Indian and released the boy. For
this offense Colonel Spear ordered Hot
Water confined and sentenced him to
haircut. With the aid OF Bob Hatch,
several policeman and pair of shears
Hot water was shorn. Feeling the dis
grace keenly, he returned to his tribes
men shame-faced, humbled, but with
the hot spirit of revenge ranking under
his dress suit. Hot water brOoded over
the loss of his hair for time and then
decided to take the white mans way of
getting even. Having thus decided, he
brought suit against Colonel Spear for
damages in the amount Of S2500-and
has just been given $25.
Whether the success Of Hot Water
will precipitate deluge of suits
against Colonel Speer by other Yumas
whosc locks have been amputated, de-
ponds, perhaps, on the decision of the
supreme court, TO which no doubt this
case will be appealed.
Judge Noyes in rendering his decis=
ion said, in part:
GAS a regulation Of the reservation,
no punishment such as plaintiff suffered
is allowed, because such regulation
must not be Inconsistent with law 1t
is not the law. to cut an Indians hair
any more than tits TO cut the hair of
any other human being"
'"Fhe president the secretary of the
interior sud the commissioner of Ind ian
affairs in the first instance, or the In
dian agent in the exercise of his own
authority, have no right to violate the
constitutions 4. -. Their power
may and undoubtedly does extend up
to the point of maintaining order {.
and enforce such rules as are aimedeto
govern the reservation in civil affairs
and also in the police and sanitary mat
ters but it is right here where
the law draws the line of demarkation
between mere regulations thatare nom
vfolatiYe of personal rights and person
al liberty and the illegal assumption of
power which, in it's very essence and
purpose, depriEes the Indian of every
right vouchsafed to every other cfti-
zen ard inha bitaht of the land"