The Salt Lake herald-Republican. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1909-1918, 1910-09-04

Il is doubtful whether any consider
able number Of the Indians will work
their holdings to advantage. In gem
eral they are averse to farming. and
the Flatheads have always been dis
posed TO neglect their fertile valleys.
prcferring to calculate wealth by
heads OF horses. regardless or quality.
The owner OF ZOE Cayuses Is deemed
richer than II he had the same num-
Der OF acres under cultivation.
The country is extremely we'll
adapted to stock raising. but nothing
effective can be done i'm that direc-
ton until the ill-bred ponies that are
very destructive TO- the range and i'm
l pair the quality OF the stock, are dis
posed OF. The land IS unusually pro-
ductive and easily TILED. At least one
I half Of 10 is sufficiently watcrod by
nature and q project Of the govern
meut Will bring the remainder under
/ irrigation. I'm an probability the
/ Flathcads will follow the example OF
/ the Umatillas and others by leasing
| their lands to energetic white men and
/ loafing on the proceeds.
Something like $4,000 will be paid
/ TO Indian owners Of land lying 90 the
] north of Ravalli in the acquisition of
I the new national Bison range which
Z has been authorized by Congress. It
] is a curious fact that the United
/ States government allowed the largest
/ herd OF buffaloes I'm existence. num-
/ beriug more than $50. 90 be shipped
| out Of the United States from this
/ very range a short while before the
I act Of Congress referred 20. The ami
mails were bought by the Canadian
/ authorities. but they had hardly
] reached their destination before our
I government began to regret its failure
l TO secure them. Canada was asked TO
D d
quest was quite reasonably declined.
I Then Senator Dixon of Montana put
through a bill for the creation OF
new buffalo park on the Flathead
! reservation. The government must
now depend upon private owners FOR
the nucleus OF the herd.
Il is quite generally supposed that
the buffaIoes of North America were
hunted out Of existence. Large num-
bers were ueedlessIy killed by hunt
ers. but the greatest destruction was
wrought in a deliberate effort 20 ex-
terminate the noble beasts. Half n
century ago. when the movement OF
our people across the great plains was
beginning 60 assume considerable pro-
portions. herds Of bison We're COM
monty encountered upon the prairies.
The reservation system was then i'm
fits infancy. and great deal or trou-
BILE was experienced I'm keeping the
Indians within the boundaries pre-
scribed for them Parties Of them
/ frequently rode forth to the newly
settled districts molestinE or alarm
/ ing the white pioneers. When these
rowing bands were rounded up and re-
| turned TO their reservations, they in
variably advanced the excuse that
| they had been on n buffalo hunt Il
I was to deprive them OF this tempta-
I tiou and preteXt that the soldiers Of
| the frontier posts and the neighbor-
/ ing settlers organized parties that
went out with the express purpose Of
! Strengthening as many OF the animals
| as possible In this way many more
I bison were slain than ever fell to the
/ rifles OF hunters.
IL is difficult 60 understand why the
/ Flatheads are SO named. Their Crani-
| ums are quite normal I'm shape and
! there is no evidence that they ever
practiced any method OF deforming
/ themselves. When the whites first
/ came into contact with them the
l tribe was remarkable FOR the fine
I physique and viEor OF its members
] While probably never numbering more
I than $500 souls. Of whom not more
l than 500 at any one time could have
/ been active braves. the Flathcads were
/ courageous and warlike. In the old
days they had many n bloody encoun-
I wv WIN the pow tItNl AltNfN OF Bldfk-
l feet and Crows. but. although the
/ Flathcads were generally outuum-
| bcred IN these fights. they never failed
/ TO give good account OF themselves.
They have been consistently friend
| Is to the whites from the time that
I the footsore and hungry members Of
/ the Lewis and Clark expedition sought
suCcor from them. In 1855 they read
I ily entered into n friendly treaty with
] the United States and induced two
| other tribes to join them in a cession
Of what is now western Montana 60
I our government. Twenty years later
when chief Joseph and his NeZ Perces
made their famous raid through the
/ Bitter Root valley. the Flatheads were
urged 10 join them. Chief Charles
not only refused to do so. but he as
sured Chief Joseph that n white set
l tier I'm the Flathead country should
be injured in person or property by
the intruders he would let his war
riors loose upon them.
From the earliest period OF the mi
I grafton westward Of our people. set
i tiers have located I'm the Ritter Root