OCR Text |
Show COMMISSIONER OF INDIAN AFFAIRS. 47 The situation in Minnesota, so far as our operations are con-cerned, changed but little. The condition among the Indians has become worse, and reports indicate that the Indians have but little difticulty in obtaining liquor. As about 75 per cent of the Indians in that State are citizens, and operations under the provisions con-tained in the various treaties with the Chippewa Indians have been held in abeyance pending the final determination of the case of Geralds et al. v. Johnson et al., our only hope lies in the enforcement of the State law. Our work along this line, however, has been to a certain exteaL hampered by the passage of a law by the State de-claring it to be a misdemeanor to employ a decoy. Decoys are in many instances as essential in our work to suppress the sale of liquor to Indians as a special o5cer. It requires the services of the o5cer to procure the evidence and the services of the decoy to produce the evidence. There are innumerable instances where the o5cer has every reason to believe that certain individuals are tra5cking in intoxicating liquors with the Indians, and yet it is next to impossible to procure evidence of that fact su5cient to warrant prosecution. In such instances the decoy, who in every instance should he a person about whose race there is no question, is an essential element and renders valuable service. I have taken steps to eliminate to a certain extent one of the objectionable features of this work, and which has been the subject of criticism. Heretofore many deputy special o5cers were employed on a fee basis, namely, they were paid a certain fee for a certain service performed. While this method still continues, it has been reduced and the chief special 05cer authorized in its stead to employ deputy special o5cers on a monthly basis at varying salaries, at not to exceed $75 per month. It is hoped in the near future entirely to eliminate the fee system. I ought also to report that we were successful in securing a con-viction in this city for the sale of liquor to Indians, showing two things, namely, that the Indian, though hundreds of miles distant from his home, has not lost his lust for firewater, and is able to procure it under the dome of our Capitol, and that the laws as now m force are applicable anywhere. The Indians continue to appreciate our efforts in their behalf, as shown by the petition of the Lac du Flambeau Indians for the en-forcement of the provisions in the treaty of 1842 applicable to Wis-consin regarding the sale of liquor to Indians. The fact that the case of Gerald et al. u. Johnson et al. was undisposed of prevented the o5ce from taking any action on their request. Concerning peyote or mescal, the o5ce has continued its endeavors to obtain information from every available source, and believes that |