New Britain herald., 1922-06-30
MENOMINEES BUILD
 UP LAGG|NG CAMP
Government Supports Business for American Indian Reservation


 Menominee. Indian Reservation. Keshena. Wis. June S0,-The federal government operates, on this Indian reservation, a complete northwoods logging industry, including saw mill valued at a quarter Of a million dollars.
 II is n successful money making in- dustry. which since about 19l4 has put more than two million dollars net profit in the tribal fund of the Menominees, Its purpose is not pri- marily 10 make money, but to afford an opportunity for Menominees to learn business.
 This government lumber camp works in a tract of 227,000 acres of timberland. with about 50 miles of railroad to haul out the logs and the rail head at Neopit, in the heart of the reservation, The work is con- ducted by white men, under the gen. eral supervision of Edgar A. Allen, su- perintendent of the reservation, and the logging operations under G. A. l Clutches, manager of the operation, a University of Michigan man. White lumberiacks and contractors have done the largest portion of the work. for the Indians have not taken to umbering readily.
 The Menominees are encouraged not only to work in the camps and the mill for wages. but to undertake oper- sibility mparatively small tracts are assigned for this purpose. where an Indian undertakes to clear the logs and deliver them to the railroad. hiring his own help, and furnishing teams and equipment This requires capital, skill and business ability. It is not necessary for the Indian job | bers to have capital to start. If they can convince the superintendent of their responsibility, the government advances the means for them to try to make good and to become inde- pendent There are several Indian iobbers now at work. One of these camps is conducted by Carlisle graduate, who was notable ball player in his college days, and who now plays summer baseball with the Neopit Indian team.
 Among the staff of white men in the lumber camps is former New York state theatrical man, who re- tired after making some money, be- came interested in doing supply work for the camps, studied farming out of books, and this summer has thir teen or fourteen acres under cultiva ton about the camps to supply fresh vegeta bles.
 Superintendent Clutches conducts the major part of the numbering oper- ations and watches the market for disposng of the lumber. His part of the training work is to show the 1n- dians the right way. for he says there is one right way of getting out logs and about fifty that are wrong. He showed some of the camps a few fundamentals that raised the amount of their production something like four fold, without increasing the labor or the expense. These other loggers were not taking everything as they went, nor clearing the brush and leav ing the land ready either for refor- estraton or farming. The brush and the occasional logs that they left null tiplied their work incredibly.
 Washington maintains an active supervision over the entire establish ment At one of the wood camps pine log was used to make a watering trough. Charges were filed that good pine logs were being wasted for water ing troughs, and an investigation was held.
 Congress determines how fast these Menominee forests shall be cleared, and reservation officials estimate that at the present rate, sixty years will be required for clearing. Congress all so determines how often and how much money from the lumber profits shall be distributed among the Men ominees. One year this amounted to about $500 a hand, while on other | years it has been as low at $1o each, | and on some years nothing at all