a great effort subdu.ed for a moment
the beast, grabbed his knife and
was about to stab /the monster
when the cloud that had darkened
the moon moved away, a gleam of
light lit up the place where they
were struggling, and there, lying
before him, the man saw the mon
ster had a face exactly like the
man. It was himself and its name
was fear.
Questions
In answer to questions, Mr.
Wagner said that the Bureau of
Education had asked for $600,
000 for Alaska for the year 1926
from Congress. Of this $12,500
would be for the reindeer service
and perhaps more. The balance
of $450,000 wou.ld be for educat:on
Of this amount one-sixth would
be spent in Southeastern Alaska,
which division receives more money
than any of the other six divisions.
Mr. Wagner admitted that Met
lakatla had about the same enroll
ment as three other towns in south
eastern Alaska and that Metlak
atla had seven employees against
three for the -other towns. He
would not admit however that there
was any discrimination. He also
stated that Metlakatla had three
years of high school, a service
not given elsewhere. However Mr.
Wagner said ithat the Bureau was
planning to improve the service
at other points. This was well
received by the delegates.
FORESTRY DEPARTMENT
Citizens of Alaska are realizing
more and more that Alaska is in
the grip of the Forestry Depart
ment. If you wish to camp along
the beach in southeastern Alaska,
you must ask permission from the
Forestry Department. If you wish
to homestead a piece of land and
there is a little swnmp land in
cluded in your proposed home
stead, alttho there may not be a
single tree thereon, the Forestry
Department will refuse to release
the land. If you with others have
a fox island under permit from
the Forestry Department, and if
the present heads of that depart
ment don’t like you, they may
reissue the permit and you, will
find yourself deprived of your fox
farm without recourse.
The Forestry Department is
King of Alaska.
They tell millmen and loggers
where they way get logs. They
told one man that he could inot
get his logs from the west coast
of Prince of Wales Island. When
he answered, “What is to prevent
me if I want to go in and make
my bid?" He was answered, “We
will find a way to make you sorry."
He realized that under our present
laws and with our present officials
in that department the Forestry
Department is the Supreme Law
of the Land.
It is not without reasbn therefore
that the Indians who met in
convention at Hydaburg passed a
resolution protesting against the
tyranny of the present heads of
the Forest Department with the
hope that the liberty loving people
of the United States will demand
that hi:fmo.n beings rather than
autocrats be sent to Alaska.
The resolution speaks for itself
and is very mild 'to what the
real conditions are.
RESOLUTION in re Forestry
Department
_There / are certain departments
of the United States government
in Alaska who either are heedless
or else they are strongly preju
diced against the Indians of Alaska
as such. The worst offender in
this respect . is the FORESTRY
DEPARTMENT as at present con
stituted. ;
For example: Thru the power
given to said 'department by law,
the present officials of (the said
department have driven the Indians
of southeastern Alaska from their
homes on many islands. This occurs
where the said department gives
permits or Jeajses granting the
entire island to rank outsiders for
use as fox farms. The clause in
serted in the permit by the
Forestry Department reserving 'the
rights of Indians living otn or
using the island is a mere pre
tense for in practice it has
ALWAYS BEEN DISREGARDED.
In practice the present employees
of the Forestry Department sel
dom make an exam nation of the
desired island, or else some un
friendly and prejudiced forest
ranger is sent to ir^ke an exami
nation. The result is the same,
to wit; that great wrongs are com
mitted by or with the actual
assistance of the T Yiited States
government. The home of at least
one Indian widow w' Ih six children
has been destroyed and her garden
products actually r-ed by the
beneficiaries of the Forest Depart
ment officials on Alaska. Another
Indian* ft vary oJ4 ?mn. Wfts towM
out of his island and his home
and smokehouse actually made to
serve as fox pens. Other cases
are known where fox farmers
have forbidden Indian to land on
ancient camping places or to dig
clams c,n the beach below the
high tide mark.
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED
that the Natives here assembled
in annual convention protest to
the Secretary of Agriculture, to
the Chief Forester at Washington,
and to the Congress of the United
States against this injustice to the
ond that this form of tyranny
which is entirely due to the biased
and prejudiced employees of the
Forestry Department in Alaska.
It is hereby ordered that a
copy of this resolution be trans
mitted to the President of the
United States, the Secretary of
Agriculture, the Chief Forester,
the Attorney General of the United
States, and to the H!on. Dan Suth
erland. delegate from Alaska to
Congress, with the prayer that
proper relief be granted.
Adopted on November 21st., 1925,
at Hydaburg, Alaska.
ALASKA NATIVE BKUTHEK
HOOD.
By Frank Price,
Grand President
Attest: Gideon Du.ncan,
Grand Secretary.
MASONIC EMBLEM SAVED
MAN’S LIFE
NEW YORK CITY, Nov. 20.—
How a Masonic emblem once saved
the life of a white man captured by
Chief Sitting Bull’s Indians wa9 re*
called today with the death of
David Weinberg of Brooklyn.
According to the story, Weinberg
was traveling by stage coach to
Deadwood, S. D., October 22, 1876.
Indians took him prisoner. The red
skins told him he would die in
the morning. He was taken before
Chief Sitting Bull.
Sitting Bull, so Weinberg’s story
went, noticed a Masonic watch
charm on his prisoner and informed
the white captive that he, too,
wns a Mason.
Sitting Bull produced a gold
Masonic ring bearing the square
and compass insignia and gave it
to Weinberg as a token of friend
ship and released him.
No mnn is ever bored as long as
you talk to him about hlmaelf.
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