Till- CoITKR RIVI-R INDIANS.
HV MINN1K II JC'NKS.
The tea cher c»f the Copper Center
Government School has umler his
supervision about 225 Indians. They
have their homes scattered along the
Copper River as far as 65 miles to the
South, and 35 miles to the North.
You can see from this how inadijuate
is the provision for their education.
Th- camps within .1 radius of five
miles from Copper Center furnish
homes for }S Indi ins, and situated
near enough t<> the school to attend
somewhat regularly are about 20
chi die 11.
While ther have made miirh im
provement 111 their homes in the last
few years there is still much to 1>e
• lone before they van he called well
kept and sanitary The Indians are
poorly clad and many times without
sufficient food to keep them from act
ual hunger. Hv putting forth proper
effort i i season they could provide an
abundance ot some kinds of food but
even when their families are in need
the men will often tefuse work when
it is offered them.
In this vicinity, the Indians make
their living hy hunting, fishing,
trapping, the sale of moccasins and
trinkets, and doing such work as
wood cutting for the white people.
I>y putting a little time and effort
to gardening they could raise some
kinds of vegetables in abundance,
hast year we ! ad gardens plowed on
the government farm and seeds fur
nished, but further than those plant
ed and tended by the children, under
the teacher’s supervision we were
not able to work up an interest in :i
garden.
In icligion the Copper Center In
dians < .1 ii to he of the Russian
Greek Church. The prie9t came in
here once or twice, hut as it has now
been over two years since he visited
them their faith iu him seems lobe
on the wane. They are superstitious
and some of their customs are bar
The outlook would be dark indeed
were it not for the ray of hope giveu
us by the children. Certainly they
come to school dirty, half starved
and iusufliciently clothed but they
are learning in school what it means
to work. and when they have learned
to enjoy work they are well started
on the road to civilization. How I
wish we hid a Kodiak Orphanage
where they could be properly cloth
ed and fed. but we must make the
best of present conditn us.
Mr. Jones, myself, and our two
little children spent the Christmas
holidays in Scat He, and when we
wtie about to return we asked the
cliarch of which we are members for
a box of clothing for the Indians.
The\ filled two boxes and now when
a child is needing clothes for school
l use the sewing v lass to fashion the
garments to our needs. A bread and
butter sandwich to each child makes
the work better and if they do rot
properly wash and comb at home
the v c an clean up after they arrive at
school The work is not so pleasant,
u : the results so large as we would
desite but there is a slow advance
ment.
The debasing work of the immoral
class of while men is a big hindrance
to the proper developement of the
young people The numbers of the
tribe are fast diminishing as a tesiilt
of improper living, and I often won
der with a heartache what is to be
come of the Copper River Indian.