Durant weekly news. (Durant, Choctaw Nation, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 190?-1944, 1913-08-15
THE 81 sEWs VS. ,I,a 1'a11a. .n','

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and would be detrimental to the In
dians and call for an apology from
the Federal GoyernmentT What be
desires is to separate the real Indian
from the white Indian and to relieve
the Federal Government Of the duty
of administering the affairs of the
competent. self-reliant Indians. He
would cented public attention upon
the solution Of the problems of those
Indians incompetent to solve them for
themselves. He thinks that the amount
of dissipation of funds under such an
arrangement would be no greater than
that of IA similar number of average
white citizens of Oklahoma or any
other State who had an estate sud-
denly thrust upon them while wholly
unacquainted with business methods. ,
Mr. Ferris says that for nineteen
years the Indians of the Five CiSilized
Tribes have been told by campaign
orators and by departmental heads and
others that their affairs would finally
be adjusted so as to free them of the
trouble of journeys to Washington
Since statehood. he SAYS, the Oklahoma
delegation has been agreed that these
affairs should be settled. but each
time when legislation was advanced
TO accomplish such ends "the. sos. en-
ployes of the Federal Government IN
Oklahoma" he asserts who are ad-
ministering those affairs, at once set
up a howl, at once set up protest
and import into the State excitable,
irrational, inexperienced people who'll
ly unacquainted with Indian problems
and affairs, and call their attention
to some isolated or exceptional case
to the end that they might return to
Washington, make a scandalous report
and secure widespread newspaper pub
licity to the effect that the winding up
of affairs IN Oklahoma means disaster
to the Indians -a Oh coi.se,. ar
O. Mr.. Ferris declared that the 81 ,30S,-
900 expended among the Five Civiliz-
ed Tribes In a single year foradmin-
istrative purposes is an unreasonable
sum, and" he says, n am not sure
but what the expenditure Of such an
amount in a sovereign State over % a
people so nearly competent as these
is shameful and disgraceful'' .g cu
Mr.. Ferris calls attention to the fast
that the State Of Oklahoma has one
United States Senator who is an In
dian citizen, three Congressman who
are Indian citizens, the president of
our constitutional convention was an
Indian citizen, the present governor CT
our State is an Indian citizen, the
former Speaker of the House of Rem
resentatives OF Oklahoma is an In
dian citizen, and 1t will not be denied
by any man who knows the facts that
in the Five Tribes half of our state,
the leading bankers, lawyers, doctors,
merchants and business men are In |
dian citizens" The poor and ignorant
Indian, he says, is the exception, not |
the rule.
with the full-blood Indians a rule
should be prescribed" Mr. Ferris con-
tinues. first, that his money should |
be loaned where it would bring the
highest rate of interest and accumu-
late every possible return to him;
second, the land of an able-bodied In
dian should not in any case be rented
and his payments should be withheld
and his funds withheld and paid to
him in proportion to the industry man
ifested and in proportion to the land
actually cultivated on his farm"
This would stimulate industry, Mr..
Ferris contends, and industry would
certainly solve the problem for the
full-blood Indian. He believes that
civilization, self-reliance and indepen-
dence among the Indians of the Five
Civilized Tribes under the most min
ute detail and expert supervision of
the Federal Government have gone
backward rather than forward" He
suggests the appointment of commits
sion to separate the white intermar-
ried Indian mixed-blood citizen and
the competent full-blood Indian citi-
zen from The incompetent, dependent
full-blood Indian. as means of insti-
tuting his proposed plan Of admins
tration Of their affairs.