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Show OOT~MIBSIONEB OW INDIAN AFFAIRS. 29 "About three and a half years ago I inaugurated, and have since aggressipely pursued, a poiicy of farm and stock-raising betterments among the Indians, the immediate purpose being to make them producers rather than altogether con-sumers. Shortly after becoming Commissioner of Indian AEairs I discovered that the' agricultural and grazing lands on Indinn reservations were not being utilized as they should have been; that the large part of their grazing lands ~, was leased to white men for a minumum'rental, and likewise mnch of the agricultural land; that the Indians were not making proper industrial progress, and that their income from the leased lands was mnch less than should have been derived either when rented or cultivated by themselves; all of which meant lack of progress and large appropriations by Congress, neither of which was in any sense satisfactory, and all demanding radical change. To remedy' this condition, the Indian Office has mide a vigorous and unceasing campaigg, with gratifying results. For example, three years ago one reservation in the Northwest had 2,800 acres under-plow; last year there wss in cultivation by Indians on this reservation 15,000 acres. The advancement is not so great everywhere as there, lJut it is exemplary of the progress being made by the Indians as farmers on practically all the reservations. "It can not he expected that all Indians shall advance from plainsmen to intensive farmers in one generation, but that they are now making tremendous progress is. apparent throughout the entire country, many of them being among the best and most prosperous farmers in the vicinity of their residence, fre-quently comparing favorably with their white neighbors. As stochen they have been even more successful. The Indian is a natural herdsman. He loves horses and readily adapts himself to raising cattle and sheep. During the last three years the Indian Bureau has purchased with funds of the Indians (nota ' doll? of the amount invested being gratuity) more than $2,000,000 worth of cattle, horses, and sheep for tribal herds and individual Iud@ns, most of the purchases being for upbreeding stock and young stuff-heifers for breeding pur-poses; at the same time an industrious effort bas been made to diapose of ln-ferior male animals. Accompanying these activities there has been a wrre-sponding reduction in the leased acreage. The carrying capactty for resewa-tion pastures has been reytimated, rentals increased to a fair price and round-ups and m t s carefully made to determine where lessees failed to pay for the full number of stock grazed under their permits. For example, on 'the San Clarlos Reservation, in Arizona,-charges to grazing permittees were advanced so that the Indians on this reservation now receive $25,000 annually more than at any tlme theretorore, an0 on this same reservation cattlemen have been required to pay $34,000 excess grazing fees. Tbe new leases cover thZ count upon which. this excess payment was made. Long-time sheep leases on a reservation in the Northwest, which recently expired, have been made to new lessees an a com-petitive basis for $36,000 annually, which previously paid $16,000; all of which charges and collections are entirely reasonable and fair "as between man and man" and should be equally-just as between white men and Indians: While the protqtion of our wards is a &st consideration, we have not been un-mindful of theinterests of the stockmen in matters of fencing, water supply, and leases'sufficiently long to realize on their imDrovements arid investment. "Pony stalUons are no longer used, and the horse stock is being so rapidly improved that, on many reservations the- Indian-owneb horses are marketed for prices almost, if not quite, equal to those raised by white ranchmen. The southwestern Indians, notably the Navajos of New Mexico and Arizona, are among the best sheep raisers in the United States. The Navajos own more than 2000,030 sheep, and they are now being unbrea so rapidly that buyers are eager to purchase their wool a t the same price pald ta white aheepmen Two years 65333-1- |