Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1909-10-20
LOCAL OFFICIALS WHO RUSH
FEDERAL OFFICERS TO JAIL
LEARN OF THEIR MISTAKE.
INDIAN BUREAU HOT AFTER
MEN WHO SELL TO INDIANS
Government Agents Know Enough Of
Law to Keep Within Their Rights
Johnson and His Many Marrow Es-
representation Near Many Reser-
vations Extremely Bad.
Especial Correspondent

Especial CORES poE dence.J
Washington. Oct 2O.-There is just
one department of the government SER
vice in which the capacity to get one
self into Jail now and then is presump-
tive evidence of peculiar efficiency as
public servant. That is the division of
special agents for the suppression of
the liquor traffice among the Indians.
In the last few months, a special
agent of this bureau who kept uniform
ly out of Jail and out of conflict with
the state authorities, has been the ex-
ception. This is because the Indian
| is making especial efforts to enforce
the law against liquor selling to the
Indians and on their reservations. These
efforts have precipitated number of
sharp conflicts with local authorities
who didn't fancy the idea of federal Of
flcers coming into their Jurisdictions
and adopting strenuous means of en-
forcing federal statutes. AS a rule, To-
cal authorities have been showing the
most amiable disposition to cooper
ate with the federal authorities, but
there have been striking exceptions
The Indians reap the greatest benefit
from the crusade; but whites who live
adjacent to reservations also find that
conditions are fast improving as a re-
suit of the betterment of the habits of
the Indians
johnson Leads the Crusade.
of ha e nf io1
agents for suppression of the liquor
traffic is William +. Johnson, whose
headquarters are at Salt Lake. The
wonder in Johnson's case Is that he
hasn't been killed half dozen times.
He has had most remarkable chapter
of adventures, in which he has been in
conflict with the Indians, with state
and county authorities, and with the
indignant liquor dealers. Recently he
Went into the White Earth reservation
region in Minnesota, smashed a line of
saloons in true Carrie Nation fashion,
got locked in jail for his pains. secured
release on writ of habeas corpus, and
is now bringing suit against the local
authorities for false imprisonment.
Johnson is fighter thru and thru
They say of him that he has the faculty
, lof looking down a gunbarrel, from
the muzzled end and smiling as
sweetly and serenely as any man ir
America can do. He is credited with
jollying several highly competent gun
, play artists out of their intention o
pulling the trigger. He is about thu
Invest wire in the service. He has eigh
! or nine assistants. and they are all KEEP
! busy working out Johnson's plans
Johnson himself sets them an exampl,
that the rest of the corps seem anxious
: TO initiate Many night he has slep
) in the woods, on the prairie, gun il
5 hand, watching for the enemy to appea
:, in force; for there is no form of ven
delta that gets so bitter and vindictiv
5 as one of these liquor feuds out on tn
. frontiers. Somehow Johnson has al
ways got away with a whole skin
sometimes by reason of a superior agil
: ity in getting his own gun into actor
, and at other times because of tn
, charming bonhommie with which
, when he is at the wrong end of tn
gun, he talks the other fellow out Q
. shooting him.
Keeps Within His Rights.
Johnson, anyhow, knows the law an
knows ms rights. He never ONerStep
8 either 1t often happens that the locs
|, authorities within or near reservation
:, don't understand these so we'll, an
(. they imagine that Johnson and his me
:. are tresspassing when they are no
), This misunderstanding is responsible
= for the trouble. Thus in the case of til
recent ruction in the White Earth res
y ervation country. johnson was actin
J. entirely within his rights, by virtue
y an ancient treaty between the govern
ment and certain Indian tribes, govern
ing the sale of liquor within cede
lands That treaty had been so lor
"a honored in the breach that it had bee
!, forgotten by everybody save Josnso
= The local authorities lost no time NAL
v ing an example of this intruding fee
"a eral official; but in the end they di
v covered their mistake.
of A case very similar to this occurrt
10 in Marshalltown, Iowa, where anoth
special liquor agent was arrested +
@ his efforts to suppress the traffic. The
Ii 4