Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1911-08-03
PASSING or GOVERNMENT lNsri.
TUITION FOR TAMA RED
MEN. T.,
ONE INSTANCE WHERE
MUsouAklEs WON OUT
Upset White Mons Plans to Compel
Children to Leave Reservation for
eeheol-Expsnsivs Building Erected
on Grounds Near Toledo Now Idle
Other News.

ent there is no Indian school at Toledo,
Iowa. The big building which has been
used for that purpose ia all but desert
ed. There Is no one except Orville r.
Greene, superintendent Of the school,
and he is only supervising the packing
preparation for a rest until a new
school can be built.
Here is one instance where the In
dian won out on fight. Long has the
Indian been oppressed" He has seen
his land slip away from him chunk at
ter chunk. to the white brother. He
has never had the power to prevent
things. But he upset some of the white
mems plans when they tried to compel
him to send his children away to school.
The Sacs and the Foxes of which the
reservation at Tama City is made up
are a gritty bunch. They are set in
their way. They try to have their own
way and when their liberty is trampled
on they make a fuss. The government
tells the Indian where he shall live,
tries to tell him what he shall wear,
and does dictate to him just what he
can drink so far as intoxicating liquors
are concerned. The government also
tells him how he must educate his chill
dren. This last is a bitter pill to swal-
low. The Indian, like every father and
mother. thinks he knows best.
Seventy. Acre Site.
The government purchased seventy
choice acres Of ground a few miles out
Of Toledo, Iowa. Here was erected a
fine big building. This was to be an
Indian school. 1t was school for some
years. The government spent on an
average of $4,000 year to maintain it,
The Indians tried to pay as little at
tention to it as possible. The children
of the Indians had to be almost tied
and gagged to be taken to it. In fact
not so many moons ago they got up a
revolution about the school. The In
dian children ran away and the parents
refused to send them back. Then the
agents OF the United States stepped in
and took the parents and placed them
In jail. The Indians got out on Writs of
habeas corpus and told the government
to be burned" Then the government
stopped $50 year which each Indian,
big. little or indifferent got 1t is whis-
pered that the Indians told the govern
ment officials to go jump into the lake
and take the money with them. At any
rate the government has abandoned the
Toledo Indian school. A big building is
to be erected right on the reservation,
which takes In 1900 acres of ground
1t Is a picturesque part of Tama
county. The Indians have not inter-
fered with nature a great deal. They
evidently figure that they can not i'm
prove on her mood when she formed
that part. Everything grows wild,
plums. cherries. crabs. Strawberries and
all the other things that were so COM
mon few years ago. The Indians live
In their own primattve style They
have not changed a great deal 1t is
true that some of them have homes
with phonograp hs, pictures on the wall
and other evidences Of newer exist
ence. Joe lesson Jr., even has an au-
tomobile. He was out making as much
dust as the white men In fact he
would stand and left the white men far
behind. They do say that lessen i'm
poverished his family of ponies for a
couple of generations to come, to get
the machine, but that may be just an
it must be paid for, or he would not
have 1t.
Raise No Hogs
The Indians have some good land
and some poor land 1t will perhaps
average up as good. Some of it Is hilly,
other Is slightly rolling and some of it
Is level as a floor. They do not set any
great records at farming They, in fact,
do as little as possible. Some Of them
have we'll managed farms, but SO far
as could be seen they were in the mi
nority. They are ready to move. None
of the houses look as tho they were
built for any permanent living place.
A small spot Is cultivated for corn A
few horses are about. Few cattle are
seen and not hog. altho Indians love
their bacon and ham as we'll as the
next person. They will also cook ev-
erything they eat in lard If they can
get lard. Why they do not raise a few
hogs Of their own Is perhaps their bus
mess. but they do not raise any. One
OF the party expressed sympathy for
the way the Indians live. But he was
sat on promptly by the rest Of the par
ty. The indian does not want, does not
expect, nor ask for sympathy. In fact
all he asks Is to be let alone. II his
condition is not satisfactory to him he
considers that his own business. His
wants are simple and few. His $50 for
himself and wife and each little In
dian furnishes him with spending
money and dscourages race suicide.
Uncle Sam furnishes the land for him
to farm in a quantity as large as the
Indian wants. There are no taxes to
pay. He can get most Of his clothes
from Uncle Sam II he works It right.
Uncle Sam takes good care Of him and
has special laws for his protection. All
around, says Mr.. Healy, the Indian is
not a bit abused.
Five Miles From Reservation.
The Indian schoo! Is, CT was about
i've miles from the reservation proper.
It should never have been away from
the reservation The Indians did not
like to have their children away to
school where they could not tell each
night what they were doing, no matter
If they did trust Orville Greene to a
large extent. AIr. Greene did not say
there was any great falling of in the
attendance at the school the past year.
He had seventy-two pupils last year.
This - pretty good average when 1t
ID considered there are only about 3s2
Of the Indians and speaks we'll for their
ability to raise families.
great aaInDlv If at,,(p u IAu< ~,