The Ward County independent. [volume] (Minot, Ward County, N.D.) 1902-1965, 1920-03-04
INDIAN BLAMES
WHITE MAN FOR
MODERNDISEASES
Wolf Point Man Tells of the Condi.
ti0ns on Fort Peck Reservation
Does Not Want to be paint.
ed White.

eQ Wnlte.
Joshua Wetsit, of Wolf Point, Mont.
who is spending few days in Minot,
visited the Independent office Tues
day and we enjoyed an hours visit
with him. He is member of the As
siniboine tribe of Indians who live on
the Fort Peck reservation and told
some very interesting things about
the condition of the Indians at the
present time.
The Fort Peck reservation is IS
miles long and 40 miles wide. There
are 1000 Indians living on the reser-
vation, representing two tribes, the
Yankton Sioux and the Assiniboines.
For whilef the government reported
an increase in the Indian population,
but for the past two years, there has
been no increase.
The Indians receive an allowance
from the government, in payment for
their lands. The reservation has
been homesteaded by the white peo-
pie. One year the payments on the
homestead land amounted to 5000 per
capita among the Indians, but the
crops have been so poor, of late that
the payments have decreased. Last
year the Indians received but 500
per capita. The money for the In
dian children is retained for them and
: the government will pay the money
to them at the time they reach their
majority. In case of illness, funds
may be taken from the children's ac-
counts as needed.
Mr.. Wetsit is 81 years of age and
possesses a very good education,
speaking the very best of English.
His home is six miles west of Wolf
Point, where he has always lived and
he received his schooling in Wolf
Point, riding horse back and forth
to that place daily. A good many
of the members Of his tribe have at
tended the Indian college of Carlisle,
Penn, but the white mans way of
living is not conducive to the good
health of the Indian. More than half
of them contract disease and die up
on their return.
The old Indians on the reservation
inform Mr.: 'Wetsit that In the early
days they never knew Of an Indian
dying from cancer, appendicitis, or
tuberculosis. The Indians of early
days lived mainly on meat and much
of it uncooked. This statement sub
stantiates the one made recently by
DR.. Mayo, that in his belief cancer of
the stomach was caused from eating
hot victuals. In the early days In
dians seldom died except from old age
or accident. There is one old Indian
on the reservation, Plenty Roads, who
though 95 years old, still rides horse.
He lives mainly on meat
The Indians still like to live in their
tents. Although practically every
one of them has a log house, you may
see tent by the side of each house.
They live in the tents during the sum-
mer. The fact that the Indians of
early days lived in tents and out in
the open is responsible for the lack
of tuberculosis. In these times when
the Indians have adopted the white
mans way of living largely, many
cases of tuberculosis have been con-
tracted.
Mr.. Wetsit says that you can never
get the hunting spirit out of the Red
Mans blood" I have just as much
hankering to get out and hunt as
my forefathers had, but the trouble is
there is little to hunt. We have few
deer on the reservation, but for good
hunting we have to go outside," he
said.
II am not citizen Of the United
States, although l was selected for
citizenship as competent Indian q
few years ago." he said. II refused
it. A citizen Indian has to pay taxes.
He may sell his land, which often hap
pens and then his allowance from the
government stops. Too many In
dams become citizens that they soon
lose their property and are hard up.
We call becoming citizens, painting
the red man white The Indians are
taking to farming slowly. Some of
US have broken up 30 or 40 acres of
our land. l farmed 100 acres at one
time but farm very little now, the
crops have been so poor. 1 have go
head of cattle and some horses which
Craze on the range. The white set
tiers must fence their farms for the
Indians stock may run at large"
Mr.. Wetsit says the Indians are
very religious. They have adopted
the Catholic, Presbyterian and Nor
mon faith largely. They have their
schools and churches. They own au-
tomobiles and wear good clothes.
There are some intermarriages, but
mainly they wed members Of their
own tribe. The Indians realize that
the white people did not always treat
them right, but there is no resent
ment on their part now.
Mr.. and Mrs. Walker Return From
Honeymoon.
Mr.. and Mrs. Geo. E. Walker have
returned from the east and south,
where they spent several weeks on
their honeymoon. They were in Cuba
for five days, enjoying that wonder.