The Ronan pioneer. [volume] (Ronan, Mont.) 1910-1970, 1913-08-15
SECRETARY LANE AND
HIS PARTY VISIT ROMAN

AsSAS"A Woo AOI1OA GU 4OOoN<s
by a visit from Secretary of tn
Interior Lane and his party, com
posed of Mrs. Lane, Assistan
Secretary Miller and Mrs. Miller
Private Secretary Myers an,
Chief Engineer Davis of tn,
Reclamation service.
The secretary and party cam,
onto the reservation via Kalis
pell and the lake, arriving a
Poison at 1890 in the morning
The Poison Chamber of Com
merce had a delegation awaiting
them at Somers and accompanied
them across the lake. The dele
cation from the Roman CONNER
cial club met them at the dock
under arrangements made pre-
vious to that time, and extended
the courtesy of transportation
for them all from Poison to St.
Ignatius. 1t seems that nc
special arrangements had been
made by the Poison committee
for the party to make any ex-
tended stop in that city, but
owing to the fact that many
reservation people were in Pol
son to meet the secretary and
party and wished to hear what
he might have to say concerning
the problems of the reservation,
the Roman delegation had no de-
sire to disappoint them nor the
Poison people who had met them
at Somers. A hurried consul
tation was held and it was de-
cided that the party should re-
main in Poison for lunch and the
speeches which had been pre-
pared were made on the steps of
the Grand View hotel, at which
hotel lunch was served also.
After lunch the party was to
make an auto trip to the tunnel
below Poison on the Flathead
river and from there make the
start for a trip over the country
west and northwest of Roman
and on into this town and from
here to St. Ignatius and Ravalli.
Mayor Carter of Poison made
an address of welcome and Presi-
dent Harbert Of the Poison
Chamber of Commerce in short
talk outlined the program of
what the people here desired in
the way Of reforms in the man.
agement and operation of the
Indian land, reclamation, timber
and other questions which have
been the subject of many COM
club meetings and reso-
lutions.
At the conclusion of Mr.. Har-
bert's speech, he introduced the
secretary, who, in quite leng-
thy speech, outlined in part the
policy of his department so far
as the administration of the af-
fairs of this reservation were
concerned. He spoke plainly
and those who heard him were
not left in any doubt as to his
Intentions. To epitomize what
le said and intends to do, it was
gathered that he will not favor
many of the suggestions which
he white men of the reservation
lave petitioned should take
,lace. He intends to make an
'tfort to induce the Indian to {
arm his own lands, to become ,
elf sustaining and take his {
lace as a citizen along with the
White settler. He says he is j
pposed to the white man who is
ere to speculate on the Indians t
and and is opposed to the leas- t
ng of the Indian lands. He {
avors the reclamation project 6
0 far as it will reclaim the land I
t the Indian, saying frankly r
hat this is an Indian project and r
or the Indian solely. If there il
any surplus water left after /
he Indian has been furnished, t
1en the white man will be con- il
dered. He advised the Indian f
go to work, dwelling particu- N
lrly upon the necessity for him Ii
Ding so, if he would receive any
lrther assistance from his de- Il
artment. d
While he spoke with candor a