The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1905-02-05
PRACTICE WILL
I BE CONTINUED
Roosevelt Says Catholic Contracts Are
All Right.
A LETTER TO HITCHCOCK
LEGISLATION FOR THE INDIANS
NEEDED.

The president says that inasmuch as
the legal authority exists to grant the
request of the Indians, unquestiOnabIy
they are entitled by moral right 10
have their moneys used TO educate
their children at the schools they
choose. The president directs that the
interior department continue the prac-
tice unless congress directs otherwise
or the courts hold that the decision
of the department of justice TO this
effect is wrong.
The president also urges the passaS Sc
of the Lacey bill authorizing the allot-
ment of annuities in seYeralty to the
Indians in the same way as their land
is allotted
RooseVeIt's Letter.
The presidents letter follows:
White House, Washington, u. c.
Feb. 3. 1905.-To the Secretary of the
Interior: l have received from you
the letter of the commissioner of In
dian affairs Of Jan. 81, 1905, in rela-
ton to the inquiries of the Honorable
James 5. Sherman as to the author
ity for granting contracts for educa-
ton of Indians in donOminational
schools This letter of the commits
sioEer of Indian affairs asks that the
general questions raised in Mr.. Sher-
mans letter of Jan. % be united with
the special question raised by the com
missioner in his letter OF Jan. y and
presented to the president for submis-
sion TO the attorney general.
THE letter OF Jan. 81 concerning the
payment of a claim filed in the Office
of the commissioner of Indian affairs
in connection with the contract with
st. Labras school on the Tongue River
reservation stands by itself and viii
be submitted TO the attorney general
for his consideration and report
The Original Petitions.
''As regards the general question. ]
have received from the attorney gen
eral under date of Feb. a letter, z
copy of which is enclosed. Early in
1902 petitions on behalf of the various
Catholic and Episcopal schools were
brought to my attention by certain
ecclesiastics and laymen, who request
ed the interior department to distrib-
ute the ratiOns and annuities through
the mission schools of their SeVera
churches when the children were ii
the care of those schools The attor-
ney general decided that this TeQUes
was illegal and could not properly b'
granted. Over q year afterwards thu
request was made originally on behal
of certain Catholic schools il
! 1903. also on behalf of Lutheran
school i'm 1907 that Where there wer'
| Indian moneys held in trust for TIL
1
| the interest on these Indians moneys
! being distributed among the individual
| Indians or i'm such other ways as TIT
! secretary of the interior might di
| rect. and where certain Indians peti
| toned that the moneys so distributed
! port of the particular denominations
/ school which they desired their chill
| dren to attend, this petition should b.
| granted.
Question Was New.
THE question raised was, of course
| wholly different from that original!
| raised on behalf of the Episcopa
| church and of the Catholic church
| This new request was submitted to tn
/ department of justice, and the depart
/ nlent decided, as set forth in the &C
companying report. that the prohi
! bitiOn of the law as to the use of pub
| lie moneys for sectarian schools di
| not extend to moneys belonging 10 tn
/ Indians themselves and not to the pub
| lie, and that these moneys belonging
! to the Indians themselves might b
| applied i'm accordance with the deSir
| of the Indians for the support of tn
| schools to which they were sendin
! their children. There was, in m
judgment, no question that, inasmUc
| as the legal authority existed to gran
/ the request of the Indians. they wer
| to have the moneys coming TO ther
used for the education of their chill
! dren at the schools of their choice.
Must Be Genuine.
Care must be taken, of course, t
see that any petition by the Indian
! is genuine and that the money appro
priated for a given school represent
| only the pro rata proportion to whic
! the Indians making the petition az
| entitled. But if these two condition
are fulfilled il is. in my opinion, jus
| and right that the Indians themseIve
! should have their wishes respecte
when they request that their own mon
| ey-not the money Of the public
applied TO the support of certai
schools to which they desire to sen
their children. The practice will b
continued by the department unles
congress should decree to the contrar!
or, of course. unless the courts shOul
decide that the decision of the depart
ment of justice is erroneous
Legislation Needed.
1T is. however, greatly to be desire
that the bill introduced by Representa-
tive Lacey and providing for permi:
sion to allot these annuities in SeN
crafty TO the Indians, exactly as
now done with land, should be enacte
into law Its enactment and admir-
any question Of this character. f.
each individual Indian would then
left free to use the money to whio
ne is entitled outright on his own il
| itiative, instead of having it used f.
him by the secretary of the interio
| in consequence of his petition. 1 ca
nestly hope that congress will at ono
enact this bin into law.
THE special case of the st. Labre
school stands by itself, the questio
| being whether the contract entered il
| to is one authorized by the finding
| the department of justice in Januar
1904. or whether it is one of thO'
| cases forbidden under the decision
the department of justice of Januar
| 1902 The attorney general will specs
lily report the category in which tn
case comes. O.
(Signed)
THEODORE ROOSEVELT
Leupp interviewed.
Commissioners of Indian Affai