The Washington herald., 1911-06-11

medicine in Virginia for sixty years. He
was beloved by all who knew him. be-
ing a clean man bodily and mentally
He never talked scandal and never lis
tened to it. My uncle gave me spending
money, which was a bad practice and
distressed my mother, who believed that
every cent l spent should be earned by
some task at school or at home. When
my father died-he was then president
Of the railroad he had helped to sur
vey-his estate was in great confusion
MY mother surrendered her dover, say
| ing that the debts of a husband were
the honorable debts of his wife. She
taught music and supported her two sons.
| With her help and by means of scholar
| ships. my brother and myself got
| through college. William o. Owen, my
| brother, studied medicine and entered
the army as surgeon. 1 read law and,
accompanied by my mother, who was a
member of the Cherokee Nation, emil
grated to Oklahoma, where both of US
taught school and where 1 practiced law
and edited the Indian Chieftain, a weekly
newspaper. Later, 1 was made Indian
agent of the Five Civilized Tribes When
Oklahoma was admitted to the Union, 1
became a candidate for Senator and
won the nomination at a Statewide pri-
mary, receiving plurality of about 10000
votes"
The Greatest of All CherokeeS.
"Who,' I asked, was the greatest OF
all the Cherokees?'
"Oh, Sequoyah, or George Guess, as
he was called in English" Senator owen
answered. He was a half-breed and the
inventor of the Cherokee alphabet. Born
in 1170. he died in Northern Mexico in
1S43. He had owned a small farm in
Georgia and was known as a silversmith
of unusual taste ana ability. When hs
was fifty-six years old. he invented a
syllable alphabet in eighty-five charac-
ter, each character representing a sound.
The alphabet is said to be the most per-
feet ever devised for any language AL
though Sequoyah could not speak Eng
ish, he employed the characters he found
n an old English spelling book His
alphabet was used to print a part OF
he New Testament and a newspaper
with other Cherokees, he moved
Vest at the point of the bayonet By
treaty, in 1885, many of the Cherokees
urrendered their lands in Georgia, and
greed to move beyond the Mississippi
river. John Ross was one OF the chiefs
( that day. About 1900 of the Chero-
ees however, refused to leave Georgia. q
hey remained and became known as
he Eastern band. Ross and 1000 Of his
'ibe also objected to the treaty, declar-
lg that it was obtained by fraud. The
overnment in Washington sent a body
troops under Gen. Winfield Scott to
'mpel the Indians to keep their word.
ne journey of 700 miles was made In
le heat of midsummer. Four thousand
the Cherokees perished on the way.
My grandfather, Thomas Chisholm.
II his property just as IL was and went
Arkansas. Sequoyah, the inventor OF
e alphabet, also moved at that time.
xty-five years afterward, / was one Of
e lawyers to bring suit against the
vernment for misapplication Of the
and bonds held In trust
the Eastern Cherokees. i worked
ven years on the case and recovered
10000 for my clients. The lawyers
IRE paid S5oeo0 in fees. $4,000 OF the
lount being paid to me-"
Were the Indians as cruel "a the
lites have represented them to be-"
ked.
They were no more cruel than any
ople OF the same degree of fntelli.
nee at the day In which they lived
hen they went on the warpath It wSs
IN purpose to kill-it Is the same
IN the white men, OF course They
re trained to be brave, to fear no
;. and courage so created and stimu-
ed often got them into serious
uble.'
toOwusht. Isll. by James B. M01Uw.l