The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1912-04-16

1000 Ill WAdI 10 lOW OiOW w uS COun'
ty, MINI. He is therefore eighty.
seven years old, is still in fairly good
health and takes an active interest in
public questions affecting his people.
The old chief is progressive in his
ideas, and believes that the interests
OF his people will be best served by
them adopting the white mans ways
He can see no future for them as
old-style Indians, and has strongly ad.
vocated all progressive legislation
such as the allotment acts and the
Clapp act, and also all measures for
the education of the Indians.
Five million dollars of the funds OF
the Chippewa Indians have been ex.
pended by the Indian Bureau without
any accounting to show who received it.
The Indians have been trying to Sc
cure an accounting for several years
past and Congressman STEVENSON has
been very active in the matter. i
But in spite of their efforts the In
dian Bureau has so far been able to
avoid an accounting of these funds.
It is the idea of the Indians that the
attacks on Congressman Stevenson
by Judge Burch and Congressman
Graham are for the purpose Of dis
crediting him and preventing him from
forcing an accounting for the $4,000, 1000
of Indian money spent by the govern
1aent officials. " -.
Origin OF the STEVENSON Act.
Under the treaty of 1867, establish
ing White Earth reservation, each In
dian was to have 100 acres of land
whenever he had'cultivated forty acres,
or forty acres whenever he had culti-
waited twenty acres, or twenty acres
whenever he had cultivated ten acres.
This is what is called the cultivation
clause, and only about 200 Indians
ever secured their full 100: acres un-
der this clause. The Nelson act of
Jan. IA, 1889, provided for allotments
Of only eighty acres each, but that
law was not to take effect until ap-
proved by two-thirds of the male adult
Indians of each tribe or band. When
the commissioners, Senator Rice, Bish-
op Marty and Mr.. Whiting, held the
council with the White Earth Indians
they refused to agree to the law, un-
der which it was proposed to cede
100000 scres of land in Northern
Minnesota to the government, unless
they were promised the 160 acres
mentioned in the treaty of 1867. They
promised, and thereupon, in consid-
Grafton thereof, the Indians signed the
agreement. and the Nelson act went
into effect. The land was coded to the
United States IN trust to be disposed
Of; the agricultural land to home
steaders at $1.25 per acre, and the
timber land to the highest bidder.
When the secretary of the interior
proceeded to allot the land to the In
dams of this reservation under the
law he issued instructions and direct
ed that each Indian should only have
eighty acres. The White Earth In
dians went to Washington and made
a protest. and invoked the promises
made by the representatives of the
government. The secretary of the in
terror and the commissioner of Indian
affairs asked the commissioners, Sen
ator Rice, Bishop Marty and Mr.. Whit
ing, if they had promised 100 acres
to each, and they wrote back and said
that they had SO promised, and re-
ferred to the printed council proceed
ings, and said further that they
thought they had the right to
so promise and waive the cultivation
clause of the treaty of '67. The secre-
tary then. in 1892, wrote letter to
the senate committee on Indian affairs
requesting that q law be passed au-
thorizing him to carry out the prom
Uses of 100 acres of land made to the
Indians, and Senator Dawes Of Massa-
chusetts, then chairman Of the senate
committee on Indian affairs, intro
duced and secured the passage through
the senate Of a bill which is exactly
the same proposition as was after
wards passed and which is now known
as the "Steenerson act OF 1904. The
Dawes bill failed OF consideration in
the house. It was again introduced
In the senate III 1897, and on motion
OF Senator Nelson vas again passed,
hut it again tailed OF consideration In
the house Later on II waa three
Stines introduced n tho hsuso 81 TIRES