The Morning Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Okla.) 1919-1927, 1920-12-12
PECULIAR STORY
OF THE 0SAGE
Fate Raised Them From
Penury to Great
Affluence.
NOT GOOD FARMERS
But Riches Cnderneath I'm
promising Soil Poured Wealth
Into Their Pockets.

PAWHUSkA, Dec. 1f.--No Usage
medicine man, with his incantations
and powers OF witchery, nor any
Usage kettle woman. with her VII
i,ge ioNes and her jesting SONGS
could have prophesied. in the tri-
nails days before 1907. the thing
Indians whose gradual walk to
wealth has placed them upon the
pinnacle of "A dying race.
Usage Indians are becoming so
rich, the flow OF gold into the
Osage nsiion gaining such proper
ions. that Indian authorities at
Washington are concerned, and
Hlans are now under advisement
through which this torrent OF
wealth may - diverted to other
causes than actual gold payments
which are increasing with years into
The pclson;< Golfers OF each Usage
Indian and his heirs.
But ne for the Usage Indian was
either easy nor peasant for many
years before oil first spouted from
The land now known as the Usage
nation. Although every Usage In
dian, directly or through lineage,
-
1920, with the prospect that their
individual share for the entire year
would be $4,000, az his or her share
rom OH and leases OF the Usage ma
,ion. Before this fluid of gold was
discovered the life OF the Usage In
dian was one OF toll with unap-
preciahlc returns.
ON their lands In Kansas, until
1901. they grew small crops VII.
difficulty. Now and then the gov
ernmcnt gave each member of the
tribe small check, aggregating $40
a year, from money which had bee I
raid TO the government by cattle
raiscrs who leased grazing rights IN
the Indians reservation. Then the
change came. TIL" government de-
Cdcd to move the Usage Indians
down into Okla homa, to permit
them TO grow up in n new state. The
tribe was small and 1t may have
been the governments viewpoint
that iu a new land, these hardy
,illcrs would absorb the newly
opened territory.
An entire county. larger than the
state Of Delaware, was set aside for
the tribe and was named Usage
county \ strict census Of the tribe
was taken ana IL was found that u
numbered 2.229 men, women an?
children. Each was given 657 acres
Of land. school was opened for
the Indian children, and the Usage =
settled down to "a life devoted To
farming. questioned now, these
Osages will tell you that the soil
was not good that there were too
many hills and too much timber and
100 much underlying stone to make
!, promising farming land.
When the bsages accepted their
new assignment. they declare tho
government promised To protect
,hcm until 1881, after which they
should he considered American c.ti
2ens and capable of, carrying on
their own affairs and tribal govern
ment
With these unfavorable soil con-
dltluns pioneer Osages say that the
period OF the next eight years were
filled with their hardest struggle for
existence. This existence was ekcd
out through slavery to the unfruita-
ne lands, barely returning sufficient
70 Keep the tribe alive. old Usage :
'eI. And then, five years ago. fate.
IN the form of an oil man, stepped
M lie drilled for oil on the Indian
'.and, and found it. Washington, the
controlling seat of the Usage tribe.
was Immediately bcsieged with de-
mands for oil leases. These leases,
after review of the best method 20
sraht them, were sold at auction.
some of the prices even in that early
uay being fabulous. In 1915 ;hc
tf'd return from sale of these leases
iY'ae II possible to pay $17.025 to
eNry Usage, man, woman and child,
%" before 1907. rhe government
had decided to pool the oil interests
" INC Usage Indians. making one
mans iuck the duck of all.
Money in such abundance asound
cu the Indians. Some of the wise
men were skeptical, the Osages say.
believing 1t a trick, or the Great
white Father is getting ready 10
make US move again and is trying to
uuy our consent" However, the
wealth that followed made these
'"S' checks look insignificant.
IN 1915 Oil began to flow from
many more wells. The tribe. when
production became greater, was to
receive onc-sixth Of all the oil taken