The star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1908-1909, 1908-06-06
RICHEST INDIAN SPENT
$1,000 FOR VALENTINES,

'Talking about sales" said a small
bookseller, whose stock of valentines
had been exhausted before the demand
had been fully supplied. did you know
that one of the largest single orders OF
valentines ever heard about went to an
Indian? I don't know that many white
men could have afforded to spend as
much and those that could would prom
ably have invested the. money IN a more
permanent form, a diamond ring or
necklace. Two thousand dollars is not
a small sum for even a rich man TO-
spend on tokens of affection, and when
those tokens are lace paper and tinsei
cupids. it seems lot more. But thai is
what James Bigheart, Indian CHIEF, ana
richest redman in the country at the
time, spent for valentines while he was
in Washington In connection with allot-
ments of his peoples land. He was a
picturesque and interesting man MINI
self, and his ready spending naturally
attracted attention. He sent the valen-
tines to members of his tribe and to all
the prominent statesmen whom he had
met In connection with his mission. OF
course, the trade were all interested in
| his order, both because of its size and
| because he was an indian. l recalled
| the incident when I read of his death
| the other day. But when l read that
the property he had left was estimated
at SO, 900, 900, I decided that a $4,000 order
| did not mean so much to him"
James Bigheart, reputed to be the
| richest redman in the land, died at his
home heal Bigheart. in the Usage Ma
ton, January 20. During his long life
of sixty-seven years he did more than
make a large purchase of valentines.
He was thrice elected chief of his peo-
| pie, he fought in several battles of the
Civil War;, he represented his people
in their conferences with the white men
at washington, and he amassed a large
fortune, consisting mainly of oil lands.
The Usage Indians are the richest in
the country, and he vas the iches OF
the Osages. Their reservation in
Northeastern Oklahoma consists of l.
47O.05S acres. Divided among them this
would give to each a farm OF l,0oO
acres. This reservation was purchased
from the Cherokees under the treaty
of 1886 and paid for with money re-
ceiyed from the sale of Usage lands in
Kansas, where they had lived until
they moved to Oklahoma in 1871. The
government, holding money belonging
to them, has paid to each member OF
the tribe an annuity of 5000 apiece, SO
that a family often has had, besides its
interests in the land, an income of
S. 1000. Their farms they rented to
white men, thus increasing their in
comes and their Fastening decline.
George w. Dorsey, of the Chicago Uni
versity, who has written of them, says
that their wealth making is possible
for them to pass their days in idleness,
drinking and gambling, has contributed
to their degeneracy.
To be three times a chief of the
Osages was in itself a proof that James
Bigheart was an exceptional man
among his own pepople, as 1t is an
elective office, to which I'M one who is
twenty-one years of age is eligible. The
tribal form of government of the
Osages consisted of one principal chief,
called governor, and fourteen coun-
cilmen, elected by the tribe, to make
laws by which it's members are gov
erned. The term of office was two
years, hence Bigheart was chief six
years. A court of Indian officers con-
sisted of a chief justice, two associate
justices, a clerk and five sheriffs, one
for bach of the five districts of the
, reservation. The sheriffs tried all
minor o~ffenses and acted as a probate
court for the settlement of estates and
other matters.-Chicago Record Herald