The people's voice. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1939-1969, 1956-01-20
By LEONARD KENFIELD,
Great Falls

Affairs, published in THE PEOPLES
VOICE last week, much remains to
be explained about the handling of
Indian affairs, particularly on the
Rocky Boys reservation.
News releases throughout the state
following the appearance of my ar
ticle in The Peoples Voice, December
80, gave the impression the Bureaus
aid plan for the Rocky Boys Indians
was adequate and fulfilling the
needs. Yet if this were true why was
it necessary for many Independent
citizens to rustic emergency funds
and food to help the starving people :?
Bundles of groceries including
flour, venison, and miscellaneous
items came from Great Falls along
with cash contributions. College stu
dents at Havre are reported to have
raised about $500 for Christmas Eve
aid to needy Indian families. A wor-
ried Rocky Boys Tribal Council par
celled out $1,000 of its operating
funds for groceries and fuel to help
the hungry. They also brought 10
Yellowstone Park buffalo to the
reservation for slaughter and dis
tribution of the meat.
Many of US are grateful the fed
eral welfare checks for some thirty
families finally came through, on
December 80, although strangely
tardy. 1t is my understanding the
welfare payments are being made
every two weeks. Tribal representa-
tives themselves had to go to Fort
Belknap, 81 miles away, two days
before New Years to get the checks.
Had the long trip not been taken
the needy people would have had to
wait until January for the funds.
There is serious discrepancy be-
tween my figure of some 5000 en-
rolled Rocky Boys Indians and Mr..
Cooper's 1,279 Indians enrolled. I
said there were about 1000 residing
on the reservation while he says 689
live there. Our figures agree, how
ever, on the number of families on
the reservation-146.
Was it Al or 48 Rocky Boys In
dian families in dire need that day
of the hearing December 13 at the
Agency office? Should that be a
matter of argument? 1t was sad
day in bountiful America that even
one family was in need. But to sub
stantiate my statement in the VOICE
article that "48 of those 146 Indian
families have no visible means of
support" I offer the following re-
marks from a reliable observer:
81 attended the meeting and these
figures were read off by Mr.. No1te,
Tribal councilman. These are the
figures: In five districts total of
L46 families; government employees |
,r farmers g; tribal officers, 8;
lients for loans, 10; wage work, II;
II payments, 8; unemployment COM
6; public assistance, 81;
eaving total of 48 families with
'ut visible means of support"
Quoting verbatim from his notes
ny non-Indian informant says: "Su-
data-41 admitted
nth no support on the reservation.
he Belknap superintendent says 4
lust apply themselves"
"When the Indians were asked
0 stand up to show whether or not
hey were in need of help, all the
indians in the room (from rs to 1907
TODD up, except or g."
In my article December 80,
ointed out that the dire need ex-
ended beyond the reservation to
ne Indian families in Havre and
nat of the total on and off-reserva-
on Rocky Boys families there were
a who had asked Paul Eagleman to t
e their spokesman for relief. Short 4
: after New Years Day I was told {
Y George Denny, who along with 9
aul Eagleman was endorsed by the {
ribal Council as an Action Com I
ittee to look into the situation, 7
lat further research has disclosed C
ere are 1875 families on the reser- Y
Ltion and in Havre who are in a
re need" t
Since then the coming Of the fed a
al welfare checks is easing the Il
we're hardships of between thirty
d forty families on the reserva- 81
,, fo,o,;1,o. own coil 70 fe