Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1905-06-10
Wimebago Affluence Leads to
Drunkenness and Encourages
Naturally Lazy Tendency
THE LAND NOT TILL
Commissioner Leupp's Order That the
Indians Must Go to Work Causes
CONSERVATION Among the Winneba-
goes-Whites Want Their Lands =
Other News.
Special to Times-Republican.

Special to Times Republican.
Sioux City, June 1o.-As result OF
Commissioner Francis e. Leupps or
der that the Winnebago Indians must
go to work and farm their lands the
white men may be kept from securing
| control of the thousands of acres of
rich land comprising the great Win
nebago reservation. In fact. 1t may
never be thrown open for settlement or
| offered at private sale, as has been the
hope of the white men for many years.
This year $4,000 acres of land, the
most fertile and beautiful upon which
of the affluence and drunkenness Of
| the Winnebago Indians. Over 20 per
| cent of the land owned by the Win
nebagoes may be broken and would
raise as good crops as any land in the
great corn belt. They own nearly
100000 acres, but less than 5000 has
ever seen pillow. This vast area would
produce annually 3,760000 bushels of
corn, or, at a low estimate, 1,SS0,000
bushels of wheat to feed the whites of
cities and villages.
Have Only Gardens.
But the Winnebago Indians have
money and the great reservation re-
mains intact, with here and there an
American farmer owning a small farm.
Now and then half civilized Indian
n ri foI,
city folks have in their small back lots.
This is planted by the squaws in most
cases, and never cared for thereafter,
unless the squaw has the enterprise to
pull few weeds.
Thousands of bushels of the finest
wheat and selected seed corn are is
sued to the Indians every spring by the
United States government by sending
the grain and taking the money out
of their allowances. Some of this is
planted, some of it is fed to the stock
and the rest finds it's way to the bins
of the traders or American farmers
on the reservation. The few fields of
corn planted by the Winnebagoes are
irregular in shape, generally situated
on hillside where no grubbing of
trees was necessary to make an open
field. The farms are not even sur
veyed. and the roads to the agency and
to the reservation towns run as did the
trails of the pioneers, in any direction
to avoid bad hills and deep streams.
Indians Discuss Order.
All this must be transformed into a
vast area of farming country, says the
commissioner of Indian affairs, and
those who know Francis e. Leupp
know that it will be done if he re-
mains Indian commissioner, or mem
bers of the lazy band will starve with
plenty about them.
Small groups of the Indians gathered
around the Winnebago agency yester-
day and discussed the declaration of
the commissioner that they must work
off little fat and become men instead
of the most perfect types of drunken
lying, louis. The order did not seem
to please them. Some of them talked
of defiance, and those who are too old
to work chuckled at the CONSERVATION
created by the order.
Joe Harris, one of the Oldest Indians
on, the reservation, who has had more
wives than Brigham Young, was there,
with all his gala day regalia, looking
like a CanQlQdL6 LOT lll0 Improved vi
der of Red Men. He waited all morning
to see the commissioner, and ridiculed
the young men who seemed worried
over the order of the commissioner.
While the reds were collected about the
agency, as farmers gather about
crossroads store, young Indian, l..
close friend of Joe Harris, was talking
to a number Of bystanders. The idea
of work was worrying him, for he wore
a white shirt and linen collar, and a
gem glistened on his hands, we'll mani
cured and carefully kept
Gle says we are citizens" said the
young man, land have the same rights
as the white men. We can buy liquor
over a bar If a saloon is allowed to
operate here We own our lands and
many of us can sell them if we choose.
And yet he says he will make us work.
How can he do it? We have our mon
ey coming to US and we have plenty to
live on. We are citizens. How can
the commissioner make us work cur
farms? We don't want the reservation
plowed, unless the white men plow it.
We want it as much like a hunting
ground as possible. How can the com
missioner cut off our allowances 1T we
don't cult our drinking? The money
is ours and our congressman will get
it for us. We are lazy, we don't need
to work because we have money, but
tho white men would be the same way