The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1909-04-07
INDIANS IN A ROW
POttawatOmie Tribes in Fed
eral Court.
Ship-she-wah-no Says He Owns
Reservation.
FILES AN EQUITY SUIT
Claims He Is a Son of the Great
MaW-Zhaw.
At One Time Leader OF the
Famous Prairie Band.

An equity suit filed with George =.
Sharitt. clerk of the United States cir
cult court, at the federal building TINS
morning involves a tribe OF inuiahs
and a large tract Of land in jackson
county known as the PottaWaloiiiie
Indian reservation and the result Oh
the suit is waited with great interest py
Indians all over the weSt-it concerns
big reservation that has Deen Ioushe
over and discussed time and again 1or
the last ten years cut.
1t seems that an Indian named snip
she-wah-no claims all OF the iaho
known as the Pottawatonie reserva-
ton and he has petit1oned Ior ms
rights to the higher courts. A hulipel
of his tribe claim that they are the
rightfuI owners of the land and they
have made life miserable for him for
manv years He has turned at last
and through his lawyers, Crane q
WOODBURY. Brothers, we'll known nrm
who have many dealings with the IN
dams and who are hailed as the Great
Peacemakers among their tribe, the Dig
Indian has filed his petition.
Many years ago. when the woods OF
the west and the prair1es OF the MO
die west were still trampled by stray
Cling bands of Indians who SWerved
around the forts up through Nebraska
and down through Kansas into Okla-
homa. a great old Indian chief named
Maw-zhaw was leading his band OF
redskins-and they gained great dis
tinction under the nom de plume
Prairie Band of the Pottawatomies.'
This prairie band resembled the old
white Company" of England in their
spirit, their loyalty and their firmness.
They knew no foe-they fought every
thing in sight. They saw no odds
they spurred their ponies into armies.
This looks like a lack of civilization
and a dip into the old Indian war times
but 1t is motif is simply a little re-
view of the famous Prairie Band of the
reddest of the red-the Pottawatomies.
In the month of February, 1887, by an
act of congress the great old Indian
was allotted the land now known as
the reservation. The old Indian took
great pride in the land because it was
his favorite camping ground in the
days of old and his only wish was to
gather his tribe about him and spend
his last days in their midst and in the
atmosphere of his days of old.
The Son Was Born.
Just before Maw-zhaw had ceased
his many battles and his ravages over
the land he became the proud possess
sor of an Indian son--he was born
near the great Colorado river and his
streams By some manner or means
the name Ship-she-wah-n was invent
ed for this unlucky red skin-for who
wants to have "she'' in his name?
But all those days of strife have
passed and old Maw-zhaw has gone
long since to his happy hunting
ground-only to fight again the battles
of his youth. His son Ship-she-wah-
no was left along in the world to take
up the rights, lights and benefits of the
ship-etc did not have his battles to
fight with the bow and arrow all
decorated in war paint-instead he
dove into dealings with the white man
fire water. His dealings made him
white in everything but actions and
color-in other words he became
commercially white and lawfully
white. The tribe is still there-that
is the descendant of the old original
tribe and they have also listened to
the call of the Indian lawyers who
know no end of ways to create the use
of interpreters and the use of the
judges gavel.
AS a result the tribe has gradually
fallen apart and the love of their fore
fathers has been separated by the
GOODNESS and the rawness of the laws
of the white man-far colder than the
liquid cheer of the bottled alcohol
so loved by all of the Pottawatomies,
At last the day has come-the law
has taken hold and Ship-she- wah-no
has filed an equity suit against his
brothers. He claims that he owns the
premises, the title of the lands and all
the improvements. He as the only iogi-
cal son of the great Maw-zhaw should
have his land-just as his father had it
before him.
The defendants whose names are
partially-TaW-was, Pe-wah Sket-to,
We-zo, Lesargeo. Rulo and II Pappans
together with a few others all submit
the came claim. They all raise their
hands in defiance and say they are the
only descendants of the Maw-zhaw. No
one knows. Maw-zhaw is not here to
claim his children and no one lives to
prove the fate of their names and their
birth. All any one knows is that Ship
she-wah-no claims his brothers have
no right, no estate. no title or inter-
est whatsoever-and his brothers have
reversed the argument.
George Sharitt said this morning that
it looked as though there would be
good big job for interpreters in this
case. All Indians like to talk at the
same time. No Indian will talk alone
his brothers always come to his as
sistance. But Ship-she- wah-no has
asked for writ of subpoena of the
United States circuit court directing
the defendants to appear and answer to
the arguments of the great Ship-she-
wah-n o,-and his request will be grant