Edited by Wassaja (Dr. Montezuma's Indian name, meaning "Signaling") an Apache Indian.

Vol. 5 No. 5 ISSUED MONTHLY August, 1920

TH E ON LY WAY TO GET T H E I NDIANS OUT OF THE CONTROL OF THE INDI AN BUREAU, IS TO G i:;T T H EM OUT OF T H E CONTROL OF T HE INDIAN BUREAU.

WHAT IS AN INDIAN ? Is an Indian a human beng? Hon. Homer

P. Snyder and Cato Sell s are 'human be­ings. The civilized people are human be-111gs. The Indian Service employes are human beings.

Animals in the zoological gardens are taken care of by human beings, because they are not human. The' reservations are zoological gardens for the Indians. The Indian Bureau has charge of these reserva­tions and uses human beings to safeguard and watch over the Indians as they would the bears, th liem . the- b-irds. the 1n-OR­

keys and other curiosities for the edi­fic a tion of human beings. You can make the public believe that the Indians are not hnman beings from one generation to an­other by repeating over and over the sug­ge,tiveness that "The Indians are not hu­man beings" and pers·istently treating them as though they W("re not human. T eacJ,­ings in America has given the public a wrong conception on the most hospitabl e and friendly race in the world . The In­dian Bureau is licensed by Congress to run the blackmailing dynasty, t·o propagate the criminal microbes and inject sure death into the Indian race, abiding closely to that old saying, "The only good Indian is a dead one." Ah, it is damnable! It is inconceivable! It is t·he boasted civiliza­tion that is savage I God, 0 God, help us not to judge each ot1her, but help us to know each other-heart to heart.

What it is to be an Indian nobody knows unless he he an Indian. One thing is cer-

tain, he has never been taken as a human being or he wou ld have been treated dif­ferently and the American hi story of the Indians would not be the black pages of ·injustices.

He was called a savage; a wild creature in the form of a human being; but ·not a real human being; endowed with the same faculties and possessing lik e bodies as any other beings that we class as ·human be­ings.

It is always practical to keep at a safe distance from a savage lest he creeps upon )'{}a-and takes youi, 1ildcen w.h.a... nevrr saw an Indian, when th ey first time see one in a circus, th ey tremble with fear a nd shy away from the ,horrid creature that th ey have been taught would kill chil­dren or carry them off into ·captiv ity, where th ey would be tortured in the most crue,l way imag inable to sati s fy their cruel a nd wicked natures. The shying, trembling fr'ightened child is told to go and sba ke h a nds with the Indian, with the words, "He won't hurt you."

The adopted people of America have no better opini on of t'he Indians. In their hearts they are glad, "that Indians are kept on reservations where th ey< will harm no one. The reservations are the best places for all Indians. There they wilJ be taken care of by the Governmen•t and they can live and roam in H1e same same way as their forefathe r u sed to. I can see there is no use to educate them. If you do, they wilJ go right back to their blankets. There is no hope for the Indians, on ly to keep

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2 WASSAJA

WASSAJA VOL. 5 No. 5 AUGUST 1920

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them and care for them until dea,th takes them. Poor things! The country owes rhem a living."

This has been about the ex.tent of the education of t1he public relative to the In­dians. No wonder when an Indian -comes into civilizaton that he is looked upon as a curio·sity, He is eyed from 'head to: foot . He is asked if he understands Englis1h If at a tab le, a curious pers,on speaks up: "O h e eats the same as we do! See him laugh! 1 wonder if he can dance a war dance? Is it- not strange, he acts the same as we do? I wonder- if he eve r scalped any per­son? He must be awful wild when he gets mad. Gee! I do not t'hink I would dare to trust him." v\nJJen seen on the street some ·one speaks up, "T·hert:/ goes a Ohfna~ man.". Whit~ children call him "Nigger o: Chinaman. Those quotations may be flippant and t~oughtless ques,tions, but they c.an:y suggestive ness of how much the pub­lic 1s posted on t1he Indian as a man. It shows plainly that the public •has never been taught that Indians are human be­ings, in the likeness of God's creation.

No one can say to the Indian: "You are an Indian, and you belong there and I up here. You are an Indian, you can have that and I have this. You. Indian, can be governed by that law, and another law will gove rn me. You can have the Indian Bu­:eau to rule over you, but I will enjoy/ the Just laws t'hat rule s people of the United States. Don't forge t you are an Indian. Remember yon are a n Indian and not a human being l"

It is a ll bosh to tr eat th·e Indi a ns any longt'r as thou gh they were different from any .othe.r race of human bei ngs, It is cvadmg Justice. President Lincoln refer­ring to boards, burea us and commissions called them "Schemes to defeat -the Gov~ ernrnent." It is by scheming the Govern­ment that the Indian Bureau has existed so long. Cato Sells, Hon. Homer P. Snyder and Board of Ind_ian Commissioners, they a re a ll wrong. to Judge the Indian race as

dependents. If ·the Indians were treated as human

beings at the beginning of the settlement of t'he country, there would be no Indian Bun~au to thwart and tlluottle t<he highest ohject which man seeks f·or, from the In­dian races, namely freedom and citizen­ship.

STARS AND STRIPES You want th e Indians to love the flag.

How can they love the flag if you do not

give them the rights and privileges that that flag' symbolizes? Deprived of the be­token of t1ha t ·honored flag, to the Indian race, it is only, and no mote, than a flutter­ing bqnting of mockery in the blue sky. v\Th en we say this , we are not belittling or dishonoring the sa·credness which embodies the red, white and blue; bu,t we use these forcible words in order that the public may know that the Indian race do not P.njoy t'he true meaning of that most in­spired emblem that stands for freed,om, '!quality, democracy, humanity and justice. Would to God that the publi,c would awaken and see t'hat t'he Indian race is s·hut off from enjoying any of these great principles.

To the President of the United States: You quench the spirit of your high office to the Congress, you keep cold and silen,t as a stcin e, and to the public you remain sense less as cleatih by the intoxication of prosperity, and heed not the cries o,f the indian race for their libertv and citizen­ship:, In., so far as that, the highest office, the legislative powers and the people of the United States betray, dishonor and crush the truest, the noblest, t'he sub­limest and the grandes,t sprit ,of Old Glory, and your enth usias,tic manifestations o,f pa­triotism is all a sham, false and void.

FROM A TRUE FRIEND OF THE INDIANS

August 2nd, 1920. It is a close kin to an insult to an Indian

to require him to sing "My Coimtry, 'Tis of Th ee, Swee't Land of Li"berty, To Thee I Sing," then foreve r withhold that lib erty or freedom from him l

,. How would the Mr. Commissioner feel if he were forced to sing su-c'h c01m­m enclabl e patriotc so,ngs, look pleasant, and say he liked it? If •he had the •true American spirit in him he would resent. s ince h e knows that such acton causes the Indian lieart to li e. But Indians are like other human beings-on account of their obedience to those in aut1hority, by accident or otherwise, they f.orm habits, and a habit is a thing clone without much thought or feeling; they r espect teachers, preachers, superintendents, commissioners. e·tc., for in these they recognize authority not granted them by the Indians, but by white people who have a mistaken notion of r ea l kinrlne ss or helpfulness. \Ve recog­ni ze the fact that · there are thousands of ignorant but honest white people, who really des ire to help tlhe Indians. Any scheme of civi lization• that withholds free­d.om or liberty is a bad one, and, any plan of civilization and Ch ri stianizati,on that does not imply or require sac rifice is a false one. Success; means sacrifice. When we give an Indian, or any other race. some­thing of value for nothing, we cause him to be careless, shiftless, .indifferent and waste ful. It was certainly mistaken kind­ness on the pa rt of our great government when it propped up the Indians in idle­ness ; d1ey were given food and clothing w ithout any sac rifice on •their part ; th ey were like any other people who fail to

WASSAJA 3

appreciate the valu e of a thing when it costs th em nol:1hing ! Cause a person to swea,t for what he wants or needs and he then begins to appreciate. Should the In­dian be condemned because of l:1he faulty plan of civilization when he had nothing whatever to do with the planning? Grant him his freedom and his land holdings in fee simple, and make 'him conform with th e laws of the s tate and nati,on the same as any ot:lher citizen; he can never ap­preciate the full value of public schools until •he pays his sihare for the support of them; his sense of care will qµickly de­velop ,vlhen he makes the sacrifice.

As he is truly an American. he will al­ways be found on the American side in any contention.

Did he net demonstrate this ·truth' so far as he was able in t'he World War? Yet he wou ld even be a better fighter if h e knew and felt that he was) fighting for his

God's plan (not man's) that success or achievement follows commendable sacri­fice; this truth is not ed in the vegetable world as well as the animal, hence man­kind is no exception. Then give the In­dian his lib er ty, "Let him go," and have such sacr ifices· as the successful white man has made. Close up the dicta•tional Indian Office, and save this $15,000,000 a year, or invest this amount for water conservation, water impounding and delivery to land now practically worthless, where the In­dians may have the same chance to us e it and its falling power as the whites.

Permit each tribe to elect a trustee or council to see that the laws of the state and nation are obeved.

In ten years there would not be any need of such a trustee.

C. W. CROUSE, Phoenix, Arizona.

wn home, and far •bis ow.n_prnp=y,.- .....,.--+-..u.,u.,~ . it .not a queer sort of· owners·hio that DE- It appears that the present generation PRIVES THE OWNER OF THE RIGHT of Indians are leaving the woods and com­AND LIBERTY TO SELL his land and ing into · th e· camps of the white peo,p lc. grant title in fee simple? This Indian This is not anything new, as some woulQ c-hild has been led about for fifty years, think. Were we to go back into history .and it is time tha:t he is walking al·one ! ! of the first settlement of the country, we Give his freedom. and let him walk or would read of intermarriage of whites and fall. It will be necessary that he fall Indians. We would read t'hat the several times and get many bumps 'before Mississippi was settled by the French. he can fully appreciate and be careful. They married Ind ian women, and their

Many well meaning people of !:'he eastern offspring can be traced to the presen,t time. part of the United States will say that The lineage of French and Indians are this plan is too rough and painful, and al- many on the Canadian border. In New low me to say they use t'he same sort of York state we will find fami lies of Indian judgment used when tlhe dog lover cut off blood. In the south, whe re Indians were only an inch of the tail each day so that the plentiful, races intermarried with the In­pain would not be so great to Fido. The dians. In the wes,t it is not uncommon to writer knows from sixteen vears of ex- see families of Indian blood. perience and observation that when an What has become of the children who Indian is paid real money for what he have Indian blood in them? They are' not earns that he will make as mucht and good on the r eservations. Clearly speaking, they use of it as the average white man. Of are in cities and towns, and are the life course many waste, gamble, steal, just like of these places. You cannot detect them their white tea,chers. and many are so as having any Indian blood cours ing shift less that they would soon have no- through their veins. Sporadically, we see thing but a desire to get something for and hear of men and women who have nothing-again i.11s:Llik _}Y.hite_b The Indian who is willing to make the sac rifice (work) wou ld accumulate and be a big owner, while his careless and shift­less neighbor would have nothing. The white man enjoys freedom, and this is hi s condition. The writer s-tarted the Apache Indians in' cattle raising. Wherever it was possible the Indian was required to make a sac rifice, and those who have made the most sacrifices 'have made . the greatest successes. One Apache, by name Oltaha, was so successful that he was able and did actually buy $20,000 in Liberty Bonds, and he had a big bank account lef't after pay­ing for the bonds. Ther e are other In­dians in that vicinity who have had t<he same opportunity that Ol'taha 1has had anrl enjoys, and othe rs there 'hav e eaten or sold their cattle so closely that they have prac­tically nothing. Human nature cannot be changed. ln fact, should it be changed? Every sa ne being is a selfish one; God made us this way, and it is right: "Thy \Vill be Done on Earth." It seems to be

1 i a n an c est a rs bnLw_e..r..e__:w.,::-.ill!LeLJt:..SJ..t:.1.L-~~--1

enough for thorough investigaton we would surprise oursel ves to find millions of peo-ple in the United States who can claim the pedigree of the red blood of America. It shows very plainly that in America the Indians were the first who were to melt into the great melting pot of nationalities. l n some wav or another •the "ear marks" of Indianism can be traced. Then it is safe to conclude that our cities and towns are inhabit ed by people who have Indian lin eage from way back into the past.

It takes several generations to lose sight of the Indian part when intermarriages occur with Indians. There was a time · when you could see on ly black-haired chi l­dren in t h e Indian schools, but to-day you will see Indian children with all shades of hair studying in ,the same room. This is enough proof that the Indians are chang­ing by the process of amalgamation.

You can keep a person at one place for a certain length of time by hypnotism, but you cannot keep a person at that same

I

4 WASSAJA

place all the time. The Indian race is tired and wish no longer the slavery and prison life of the Indian Bureau. It is a sure deat'h to them to be under th e yoke of the Indian Bureau. He'd rather take his chances in the world as a man. He is tired of being kept in the nursery stage that the Indian Bureau is trying to keep him in. (The sugar teet that the Indian Bureau has been ke eping in the mouths of t'he Indians is sweet no· longer, but very bitter.) The younger generation, seeing the effect of this tutelage of th e Indian Bureau, are tired of it, and are trying to throw if off by separating themselves from the r eservations and going into the cities and towns. The reservation life is empty for them; it holds no more attraction or incentives for the young than i't does for the old. The old people sit, and while they sit they pray, for death to take them away from t-he awfulness of thi s present life; but the spirit of the younger generation is not d ead yet, and it is str iving with al! its might to survive . Like th e independent farmers who move into the towns, so some of the Indians do after r e nting. or having the agent lease their land for them, move into cities or towns, and work at the trades they a re be~t adapted for. T•his shows t-hat the Indian race can apply itself and adjnst itself to any environment that they are placed in. It is only visionary and scare-crowy to say that the Indians must be prepared for civi lization and that they will be cheated out of their property. We ask you t'his : Which is worse to cheat the Indians out of-their liberty or their lands? Thi s ought to be sufficient proof­th eir go in g away from the reservatio ns and making their own ways in the world, that they are capable of solvi ng their own salva t ion r ega rdl ess of the Indian Bureau's constant and emphatic denial of it.

This moving into cities and t own by th e Indians may be hard on th e Indi a ns at first, but in the long run they wi ll be gainers hy coming in contact, by learning am! competing with the people with whom they will be compe ll ed to deal with in their new life . It is by coming in contact with the people of the world and the whirr of commercial life that stirs one from their s leep of lethargy to life's grea,t opportuni­ti es. It awakens one to st ir their la.tent powers 1:'o a newness of life; that life is real, tha,t we must be up and doing. Greed does not wa it for any one-we must be b rave warriors, having the g reat characters of our forefathe rs. 'We must go forward in th e right road, hard or smooth . we must face th e bl izzard of life., we must face the future witli hope that reaches to God. We must live as true Americans. We must set the standard of r ea l Americanism . There­fore, get y e ready and plunge into the fray to gain, your fr eedom and citizenship now. March on and stop not, until this is gained -thy cause is just a nd thy cause is thy ri g ht s. Other races may waver, but as r ea l Amerca ns we mu s·t stand as true as the sun, moon and stars in th eir circuit run . to the principles of a ll that is right and ju st with ma n to man .

COMMERCIALIZE THE INDIANS Money is the standard value of the world.

To live in civilization we must have money. We a re living in an age of mon ey madness. The control of this mania has not been reach ed. It seems that Money! Money! is th e cry th a t rings a ll over the world. Day in and clay out we are gasping and reaching out to get mor e money. The capitalists and the working people are sk irmishing a nd pushing each other aside for the a lmighty dollar. Such a whirl of infection seems to saturate our very beings. Therefore it is natural for all of us to want what othe r s are seekng for. It is creeping into Indian life, so much so that th ey a r e going into commercialism. Play­ing the same hand as the other fe ll ow.

Fellow Indians, get money! make money ! Get millions! get billions! But pause­think ! T•here are greate r things than money. In the realm s of higher things, where the soul and rights of man a re con­cerned, money has no place. Money is earthly, and the othe r is heavenly.

Great objec t s in life pertaining to the Indian race do es not requir e commercial­ism. Indian commercialism is jumping the track of noble and high aims for the In­dians to that of making monkeys out of the Indians for t'he purpose of graft wo rk , and say that you are doing it to keep the Indian ra ce.

V•,,Te were not born yeste rday. Commercia l­ism is saturated with selfis1rness . It is speculative. You lose or you do not. It is playing wi th the uncertainty, and tak­in g tlhe Indians along.

One of the greates t requisites in going through life is "Keep a leve l head." Know what is right a nd w rong; what is helpful a nd what is harmful; what is gen uin e and what is fa lse. In o ther words, know your place, und erstand human nature, and be not decei ved.

'vVe fear that some of us Indians are be­ing led into commercialism, and we are dragging the Indians a lo ng as drawing cards.

To use the Indi a ns as drawing cards is all right, but to claim that you are h elp­in g the Indians by such method you are a ll wrong. You are not helping the In ­dians at all. Yon are helping yourself at the expense of the Indians.

\ Vhen we use a great object such as free­dom and citizensh ip of th e Indian race com­mercially. you use th e object as a mop-rag. You be li tt le the object, and it shows that you hav e not the right spi rit of that ob­ject. Commnciali sm. cannot wear the shoes of freedom and citizenship. If free­dom and citizen ship . is ga ined by the In­dian race it will not be by the road of commercia li sm. Merit is the companion of great and noble objects. If our aim is to help the Indian race to gain their freedom and citizenship, it must come through the merit of all that is right a nd ju st. The sp irit must come from Goel. In the great ca use of freedom and citizenship for the Indians, God must lead us, and not com­mercialism.