Devils Lake inter-ocean. (Devils Lake, N.D.) 1909-1915, 1910-08-26
Investigation Started by Senator
Gore Opens Up CeHtgrys
Record of Studded Rob.
beEy of Lands.

wv yHEN Senator Gore Of Oklaho-
WNS ma made the charges which
w brought In the nHme Of Vice
President Sherman ne open
ed the story Of the Ereutest middle
IN al the muddled history of the white
INNS career OF colonization
When Helen Hunt, who fought for
the Indian Us no one else ever fought,
published her Century Of Dishnnor"
the public conscience WIS stirred, and
En effort WIS made 10 DO the right
, thing ny The mEn who. after all wRs
here Erst-to give him hand and let
+ him live ID il In short, We stopped
i,aing hhd and began to be stupid
For no sooner had the Indian been
? sclemnlF given the land almost with
+ tsars Of sAzmed apology. than ne let
It be taken away again right and left,
nit Or miss We forgot all about him
as soon as he was duly ward Of the
nation, We had said he was protected,
and under vhe magnificent aegis Of
this declaration he was. Of course, for
evsr safe.
High Commissions Cause Row.
Then began the sort Of thing that
eliminated when the McNurray firm
announced that it would sell the Choc-
Ia" and Chickasaw lands for them.
charging only 10 per cent Of the price
paid The syndicate that wanted to
buy was willing to pay $3O,OOO.OOO for
the rich coal and asphalt lands that
are said by some to be worth from
100000 to s3O,OO0OO0 more. and
for putting through this deal-so de-
sirable. they explained, from the In
dian point Of view-the McMurray
firm wanted only the fee Of 5000, 900.
Senator Gore objected, and hence the
trouble. But there have been deals
like this a-plenty and no Senator Gore
to protest
This same McMurray has had sue
cessfuI financial relations with the In
dams in the past. he was,-with four
others. indicted for obtaining an enor-
nous fee from the Five Nations in
connection with the registration law
some years ago. 1t is a long story.
but one worth telling.
When the Five Nations were moved
westward-ho to- make room for a CIV.
tlization that had no particular use fol
them they were paid for their lands
and were given over 100000 acres
In what is now Oklahoma. Here they
were to live as they wanted to live
and hunt or farm. just as they liked
unmolested by the white man.
As we grew and waxed fat We ex
tended anxious eyes toward Oklahoma
The Indian land WAS. unfortunately
for them. very good land. No sooner
did We grasp this fact than we fell
we must take up the white mans bur
den.
Indians Tribunals Abolished.
The red man had a certain govern
ment Of his own. sort of commune
government, not undemocratic. n,
thought 1t pretty good Anyway +
suited him. But it stood in the way
Of progress" and so it had to go, let
ting in the aforesaid progress with {
flourish Of lying, perjury. graft ane
other concomitants of civilization quit.
amazing to behold
It was done in this fashion: Begin
ming in 1887. certain severalty act.
were passed comforting citizenship OF
any Indian who would give up triba
life and take up land individually. Ii
1891 this offer was extended to thu
Five Nations in Oklahoma, and in 1S9;
the famous Dawes commission. headed
by Senator Henry L. Dawes Of Massa
chusetts. was appointed for the pur
pose Of extinguishing the tribal titles
to lands and allotting the same ir
severalty to members Of the tribes.
1t is not to be supposed that the In
dams had anything to do with this ar
rangement. The white man took. alonf
with bis other burdens, that of decid
ing that, the Indian should sell his
land.
+ So it was sold. Some of it was Il
come into the market almost immedi
ately and some within five years or 81
and some in twenty or more years, bu
4 practically all was to be sold in course
Of time. Over two-thirds of it hal
been disposed Of now. ~
And the money! Well, the indians
are more likely to become charges or
i the state than to buy automobiles
There were only 100000 or so OF. them
and over 100000 acres Of land have
been sold, but the Indian didn't gel
/ n One woman sold land worth i,
asphalt beds from 100000 to $4,000
! She was paid $1.100. but not all il
cash-oh, no! For so large a price al
| that the purchaser explained that she
must take part in the form of notes.
s$s Blind Woman Cheated. .s.., : y;
| Another woman was blind and very
very old. Two white men explained
to her that she was entitled to q
pension by virtue Of her late husbands
service during the civil war. They pre-
4 scented 4 paper for her to sign, assuring
her that she would get her pension OF