The Norfolk weekly news-journal., 1906-08-31
DON'T LIKE BAYONETS
SHoSHoNl SETTLER DOES NOT
TAKE KINDLY TO SOLDIERS.
JANoLE BETWEEN DEPARTMENTS
Or. Maekay, Who is Just Home From
the Reservation, Says There are
Many Things That are Not Equit.
able and Raht at Shoshonl.

Many Things That are Not Equt.
able and Right at ShoshonI.
"The Shoshone reservation is all
right and will make one of the richest
sections of the country In the future"
said DR.. j. II. Mackay who returned
from the west on Saturday, "but right
now there are features of its settle.
mcnt that are rather disappointing, to
say the least.
There was an absence of the usual
crowds at the registration but those
who made the trip to that country
went with the intention of becoming
bona fide settlers. There was "A lack
of the usual excursion froth at Sho-
shoni, but those who came will remain
and become sturdy developers of the
soil 1t is a mistake to believe that
that country is lacking in rainfall. be.
cause 1t has an abundance. While |
was there about four weeks six inch
es of rain was registered
"ShoshOni is now about the size of
Meadow Grove and is thriytf town
The railroad has put up large hand.
some depot, a warehouse 250 feet long
coal Chutes the size of those at Nor.
folk, and other substantial improve
ments which show that the road has
faith in the country
But what is going to retard the
growth of the country is the action OF
IA A., ,,r
the coal lands of the recently opened
reservation from purchase or occupan.
cy by settlers will work a hardship
that must inevitably retard and the
settlement and development of the
country. After the lands had been
passed and the lands thrown open to
settlement after funds were available
to pay the Indians and irrigate the
land, one sinister influence after an
other has come up to chagrin bona tidc
settlers and to operate so that when
these lands are actually secured they
will have cost settlers, all things con
sidered, more than they are worth.
After the announcement that the
lands would be disposed of by private
lottery was made the timber was sold
to private parties, thus depriving set
tiers of one of the great natural and
necessary resources of the country and
giving it to private parties for a few
cents stumpage.
Next came the defective plan of
disposing of the lands whereby pros
pective settlers were compelled to re
main at registration points three
months before they could occupy lands
drawn. For some inscrutable reason
the interior and war departments got
into jangle and settlers were con
fronted with glittering bayonets. The
American citizen does not take kindly
to the espionage of soldiers as the
monuments on Bunker hill will bear
testimony.
To-day there are still grazing on
the recently opened lands vast herds
and hocks belonging to private parties,
Notwithstanding they were ordered to
be removed last May.
"The water rights under the present
contracts are to be very much more
expensive than settlers were led to
believe and now the government with
draws all the coal lands. There re-
mains still forty days in which 1t can
withdraw the copper and oil lands and
leave to settlers country stripped by
corporations of it's timber, denuded of
it's grasses by sheep and cattle men
;tc a1,
so that they cannot be developed.
evidently it was thought best not
to put temptation in the way of set
tiers for fear they might steal some
timber to aid themselves in building
homes, so the timber was sold to
corporation. Perchance the same fine
regard for the morals of settlers
prompted the withdrawal Of the coal
lands until they can be given into the
safe care of a corporation. One of the
reasons that prompted the railroad to
build was the hope of seeing the coal
fields of the reservation opened so as
to be able to get fuel both for the road
and the vast population along its lines
in Nebraska. 1t would seem as if the
government had made GIT with one
hand and then had the other hand dis
count it and raised unsurmountable
obstacles to its acceptance.
"The question naturally arises, have
all these co-incidents arisen through
inadvertance and lack of forethought
or were they brought about through
design, so that some one might profit
by them?
"It would be natural to suppose that
the men who occupy the public grazing
lands and are wearing diamonds,
where one mans profit last year was
nearly 100000, would oppose and OBJ
struct the settlement of the country,
but what have these men to do with
the departments at Washington?
"The country is not a desert, not
withstanding that it has been stripped
of every resource that could be re-