The Seattle star. [volume] (Seattle, Wash.) 1899-1947, 1914-02-24
BY Fred l.. Boalt


TACOMA. Wash, Feb. - ,--The
Indians of Western Washington
hay, been In pow.wow here since
SATURDAY. They have gathered To
demand plain justice OF the white
man.
See" they say. I'VE come not In
feathers and with painted faces. ms
of old. but In white mems coats ana
derby hats. We are not ms We
were when the treaty OF isho was
signed. We are civilized. modern
aud progressive.
We come not TO threaten. or To
beg. but 10 confer as thoughtful
men, following strictly the rules OF
parliamentary procedure In our dc
| alterations, TO adopt constitution
and bylaws and to elect officers.
we ask full rights TO do as We
see III with our allotments OF land
We ask 10 be relieved OF the over
iurdship OF the Indian Office"
Then spoke In the tribal tongue
Tyee Tahola II. OF the Quinault
tribe, who has lived a turbulent cen
fury:
III there Is any fraud in this meet.
INK. Il will not be done through
Christ"
The Tyee. who 10 blind. has been
good" Indian for quarter OF a
century. He CAV. his personal &C.
count OF the indian treaty made
July I. 1855. with Territorial Gov.
ernor Isaac |. Stevens. OF which he
was one OF the signerH.
Chief George Charley. Of the
shoaiwatcr bay Indians. and the last
Of the royal line OF the Chehalis
and Shoalwater tribes. said
''Onr young men and young WON
en- can take care OF themselves Hut
what OF the old with whom tho
government has not kept faith"
Once the cia,sops were a numer.
GUS and powerful tribe. Now but
one clstSop remains
Il am n CiatSop man" said Bob
saiakey. 10. IAN the rest are
dead"
These and others spoke OF the fail.
ur. OF tho government TO fnlsll its
promises. and OF the old people who
suffer from sickness and poverty
We ar. a p.rishing race they
said Tho government had been
nixgsrdiy with It's doics OF blankets
and beef.
A, last up rose Philip Howell. .
young man and a Clailsm from Port
Gamble. and he hurled straight talk
into the teeth OF tho old men who
had spoken.
Il come among you. my brothers"
he said. "as ono Of the representa-
tIves OF a tribe on Puget sound--shc
Cisilama We have been overlooked
altogether by tn. government. A
. nou-rescrvation Indian I speak"
He reviewed the history Of treaty.
making which has left the Indians
dependents In q land which they
had once owned
strictly speaking" the Ciaiism
went on. "you are not y par, Of the
body polite You are regarded a.
dependents and are spoken % N
wards OF the nation
"And that 10 how the majority Of
the people zee ~. - we hold onto
the rim OF iifs. whiriieo round with
the earth and dropping of one BY
one Into the turbulent svhIripoois Of
stupidity. ignorance ard darkness
that sucks the sweetness from "
and vomiss up the hosry husks ~
our lives with the refuse Of misery
and desth.
Let Us wipe out tho silly tears
OF self.pisy and observe the gran.
deur OF thos. lives In the center Of
our sphere OF existence. Let us DO
away with the secret ~nmi,y and
listen TO the melody OF their life,
"Oh! !. too. have fsthsrsd Q
arudae against them from time I'm
memorial. but slnce I have tasted
some Of the sievstlnq r,asirns Of
their philosophers. u has put the
arudae 70 shame.
The United States n a young
nation. DO yon hear your white
brothers whimpering and whining T,
Poverty Poverty IL no dishonor
n yon travel with II by the laws
Of nature. But poverty built from
your own character IL disgrnceful
y notice that one purpose Of your
call 10 the tribes IL 10 perpe,uats
our ancient traditions
Don't You see. my brothers. that
that IL n yoke we have been bur.
dened with too long? Would you
perpetuate traditions based on II.
lusions. fearful monsters OF the
earthly dream; those bones that
were slaves TO the dream OF Ilfe7
The quicker we forget their soul
orgies, their medicine men. voodoos
and devil doctors: their weird
ehsntings and numbIinQs against
the shadows and the night. their
1nostlcisnns, maunderines. Illooloa al
mysticism and ontoIooIcal fantasies
for that's the stuff our traditions
are made of-and the sooner we
cast them Into the abyss OF forget
fuIness, the better for w and our
future generations.
Rouse. my brothers, Live In the
present, oh. I know that the spirit
OF the Indian has long been crushed