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Show BEPOBT OF THE OOMMISSIONER OF INDIAN A3'FAIRS. 15 was struck by his appearance of earnestness. He was first put in as a 1 helper on a steam drill. He became much interested in the machine, l and studied it whenever it was taken apart. This attracted the atten- I tion of the driller, who, altho he could speak no Navaho, under-took to explain by signs how the mechanism worked, and Skate seemed to grasp the ideas with wonderful promptness. A little later the experiment was made of letting him run the drill under the.care of the driller. He presently became so expert that~when another drill was installed he was put in charge of it, and he takes the great-est pride in keeping the machine in order. He has stayed at his task constantly,and says that he likes the work better than any he ever did. This man is pronounced by the superintendent not only good for an Indian, but a good hand measured even by the white standard. With opportunity open before him he would undoubtedly go far as an ex-pert mechanic if he could be taught to speak English. Poor Skate, however, is suffering from cataract of the eyes. I have given orders for his treatment for this disease, on which I feel justified in spend-ing, if necessary, a little of the money set apart for. the civilization of the reservation Indians in Arizona and New Mexico; for it seems to me thab when a case of this kind of progressiveness is found, the Gov-ekment could not make a better investment than to encourage it by the removal of the obstacles in its way as far as that is possible. The lack of initiative common t,o all Indians is often regarded as a drawback. It makes an Indian valuable as a foreman, however, if he has the other qualifications, because he does not know anything, and will hot attempt snythiig, but to do as he is shown. An. igno-rant or half-educated white man often makes serious trouble by trying what he regards as a better method than that prescribed by his supe- . riors in cases where he has no comprehension of the forces at work. When Mr. Harper was in the midst of his tunnel he struck quicksands and a bad rock formation, and sent for two experienced white miners. These men tried vwious methods, always with poor results, until they became afraid to work in thehumel any longer. He then put a man in charge who had never seen that kind of work at all, but who was willing to carry out his instructions literally, and with Bert Fred-erick~ a s night foreman and all Indian laborers the work was pushed on to completion with no more mishaps. The lesson taught by the experiment with Indian labor at this dam is unquestionably that if the Indian can be weaned from his habits of irregularity of days 'and hours, induced to postpone or rearrange his religious festivities so that they shall not interfere with the demands of his employment, and taught the white man's idea of lay-ing something aside for to-morrow mstead of spending all to-day, he can b6 made into a very valuable industrial factor in our frontier country. His physical defects, as they are found to exist among |