Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-08-11

eminent. Also Congress passed an act
| creating q reclamation project on the
reservation. BY the terms Of the act 1t
took away from the Indians valuable
water rights. 1t appropriated their land
for the building of hundreds of miles
| of irrigation bitches. and 1t took large
areas of their land for reservoir sites.
The Indians were not consulted, nor
| were they paid for the land so taken by
the Reclamation Service. The Govern
ment then spent millions Of dollars
| building this project and every Indian
who had been allotted lands on this
reservation, which the Reclamation
| Service said could be irrigated, were
charged for a share Of the construction
of this project and for maintenance
and operations. In some instances this
| amounted to as much as $125 per acre,
and this regardless Of whether the
Indians land was suitable for irrigation
or whether he wanted his land to be ir-
rigated, and he has been charged with
the maintenance and operation wheth-
er he wanted the water or used 1t.
These sums have been made q lien
upon his property.
It was o plain violation Of the treaty
it was a plain violation of every rule
Of decent conduct among men and
would not be tolerated among nations.
Education-We have Government
boarding schools on many Of the reSer-
| vations. We give the children a sixth
grade education, which, would say. in
most instances is comparable to the
fourth grade in our public schools.
After receiving this schooling q few
are sent away to schools Of higher
learning, but this number Is inconse-
quential. We have not taught the In
dams to farm and have not attempted
to do so notwithstanding the claims Of
| the Indian Bureau. We have so-called
| farmers on these reservations. but none
attempts to show the Indian how to
| plant or raise his crop. They are act
| ing as lease clerks. subagents and as
| officers TO suppress the liquor traff1c.
In 70 years we have not taught the
Indian to be self-supporting
Laxiness Il Encouraged.
He is less 50 today than he was at
| the beginning. We have not taught
| him to work as a mechanic. We are
encouraging him to be lazy and shiftless
| rather than q self-sustaining, self
respecting citizen.
The boarding schools should be done
away with and the education Of the
Indians should be turned over to the
| States. Where Indians have attended
| our pubic SCHOOLS C1ley nave come OUT
better prepared to meet the present.
| day problems of our civilization. Where
they have attended boarding schools
| they have come out with little educa-
ton and no knowledge Of the ways Of
the white man. They are anxious for
an education and should be given it.
1 am convinced that the education
should be turned over to the several
States. They should attend public
schools.
Several years ago introduced into
Congress. bill providing that the
education of the Indians in Montana
should be under the supervision of tbs
State. The citizens of Montana are
interested in the Indians and the
Legislature passed a law agreeing to
assume the responsibility.
For over 10 years the Indians have
been under the tutelege of the Indian
Bureau. When we took them over we
said to them, you are uncivilized. we
| are civilized. There was little, If any.
crime among the Indians, divorces were
unheard of. they were happy and had
! plenty Of food. Today they are hungry
and sick and poor.
Most Indians are not farmers. Many
Of them are mechanically inclined.
| They should be given q vocational