The Bemidji daily pioneer., 1915-02-06
INDIAN REQUESTS
TO BE: CIR TED
ROGERS
Walker Lawyer, Former Chief Of the
Minnesota Chip pewas, Returns
From Washing ton q Hopeful.
EVERY HELP BEING GIVEN
Seek to Secure Accrued Interest
Redskins Have Faith il Admins
tration Of Commissioner Sells.

sssss.s.s lZ2E
Confident that Minnesota Chippe-
was will be granted requests which
they are making Of congress, Ed
ward Rogers, the Walker attorney,
former chief Of the redskins, and one
of the legislative committee chosen
at the annual general conference
held in Bemidji last summer, has just
returned from Washington. The bal
ance of the committee, consisting of
Henry Warren of Bena, Nat Head of
Red Lake, B. L. Fairbanks and Will
liam Potter <of White Earth, will re-
main at the national capitol until
the Indian appropriation bill goes out
of the senate committee. Z,
Called Upon Officials.
Mr.. Rogers says that the commit
tee called upon the commissioner of
Indian affairs, the secretary of in
terror, the senators and congressman
representing districts where Indians
are located and also the committee
upon Indian affairs, which was then
in session. The Indians were most
favorably received by all these men
and the committee :
The one thing that impressed the
Indians most was the desire and will
ingness upon the part of the officials
and congress to give to the Indian
his just dues. Congress will adjourn
March 4 and it is notpossible to get
any new legislation through unless it
be in the shape Of rider upon the
Indian appropriation bill.
Want Accrued Interest.
The one big thing which the In
dians will take up while there will
be the matter of accrued interest due
them. There seems to be differ
ence of opinion in thesinterpretation
of the act of 1889 with reference to
reimbursements ouf the accrued
interest. The department has held
that the government be reimbursed
for interest advanced to Indians out
of this accrued interest, while the
Indians hold that the government
should be reimbursed not out of the
accrued interest, but out of the prin-
cipal and that the interest should
have been paid annually This is of
vital Importance to the Indians this
year. For with wages of labor in the
woods less than half what it was last
year and the impossibility of getting
work even at these wages the Indians
are in poor and in some cases desti-
tute condition. The payment OF this
accrued interest at this time would
be God-send to them; it would tide
them over the winter and not only
that, but it would also help the COM
munities within which the Indians
live. /
Under the Interpretation of the act
of 1889 as held by the Indians there
should be paid to them some $685.
224, which would amount to about
$50 per capita.
Like Cato Sells.
Mr.. Rogers says Cato Sells, Indian
commissioner, is striving in every
way to help the Redmen. ''He is al
ways on the job to make them better
citizens, to give them what is their
due, and will do all in his power to
better their conditions" Mr.. Rogers
said. 'The Indians have in him all
the confidence in the world, and they
feel satisfied that he will do the right
thing. The Indians realize that he
had done good thing by keeping Ii
Quor away from them and they hope
that he will agree with them in the
Interpretation of the 1889 act with
reference to the accrued interest, and
still further relieve their existing
conditions.
"The Indian, in his simple nature,
attributes the conditions as existing
today to the change of administration,
and he is not alone in this belief. If
this interest can be paid, and there
| is no doubt but what it could and
should be paid, this sentiment would
J y