Alaska Native Brotherhood Annual f
Convention
The Natives of Southeastern Al
aska are an important factor in the
political affairs of the Territory of
Alaska, and what they do should be
carefully examined.
Those who oppose what is called
the “Indian ticket” should base
their opposition on facts and reason
and not on mere prejudice. We are
printing the resolutions of general
interest here. Let the public ex
amine them and see if the charges
of “herd voting” or “illiteracy” or
even unfair race . interest actuates
the resolutions.
Education
During the entire convention, the
speakers from the 15 towns rep
resented, emphasized the fact that
the most important element in life
was Religion, Man’s relation to God.
and urged the BROTHERHOOD and
the SISTERHOOD to support their
religious organizations.
The second important factor was
EDUCATION. There is danger that
the need of food would relegate this
fact to a secondary place, and so
the various speakers warned the
Natives to keep their need of educa
tion in the first place.
The Industrial School
The Natives therefore passed a
resolution asking for an Industrial
School in Southeastern Alaska, call
ing attention to the fact that the
Indian Schools of the United States
proper are closed to their children,
and the three Industrial Schools in
Alaska are more than 1000 miles
distant, poorly equipped, and not at
all suited to the local needs of South
eastern Alaska.
Attention is called to the fact
that the Bureau of Education is
willfully avoiding the building of an
industrial school in Southeastern
Alaska as the records in Congress
plainly shows. This is done in the
hope that the Thlingets and Haidas
would change their disapproval of
Metlakatla as the site of the school.
Argument for Metlakatla
The Bureau of Education in argu
ing for the Metlakatla site say that
their reason for this preference is
due to the fact that the administra
tion and school building is already
built, and a hydroelectric plant is
now completed and there only re
mains a dormitory building to he
built when the hoarding school will
ho complete.
Argument Against MHlakatln
The rrii 1 i 11 grots and TTaidas answer
in their resolution that the build
ing school is to he huilt for all
time and if the site does not ans
wer favorably to the following re
quirements, it. is utter folly to build
a school and the argument of
cheapness is false and will defeat,
(he purpose of the school.
The requirements outlined in the
resolution are as follows;
1st; Accessibility to regular
steamers.
2nd; Oood harbor for protection
from storms.
Hid; Available water power.
4th; Proximity to trolling, sein
ing, timber, halibut.
nth; Good townsite.
6th. Good will of the people
whom it will serve.
They then claim that only two
places in Southeastern Alaska are
available from this standpoint, to
wit. McHenry’s Tnlet on Etolin Is
land. and the South entrance to
Wrangell Narrows.
Opposition To Other Places
The convention opposed places
like Ketchikan, Wrangell. Peters
burg, and Sitka on the ground that
the school should not be readily
accessible to large towns. The con
vention argued that a new com
munity should be built which would
be 'dominated by the spirit of! the
school.
Membership in Committee and
Officers
The resolutions were all paissed
unanimously, that is, when opposi
tion developed, the resol utionsi^vere
changed until they were satlsfac
lory, or they were laid on the table.
The signers of all the resolu
tions were Louis F. Paul, of Peters
burg, Grand President, S. A. Stevens,
of Douglas, Grand Secretary, Rev.
S. G. Davis, of Kasaan, Chairman
of the Resolution Committee, An
drew Hope, of Sitka, and W. J
Rudolph, .of Wrangell, members of
the Committee.
The convention thought is there
fore well scattered, Petersburg.
Douglas, Sitka, Kasaan, and Wran
gell being represented by actual
signers.
Sheldon Jackson School
Attention was called by resolu
tion to the fact that over one-half
of the persons attending the con
vention were graduates of the Sitka
Training School and its successor,
the Sheldon Jackson School main
tained hv the Presbyterian Church
in Sitka.
“The ALASKA NATIVE BROTH
ERHOOD is deeply sensible of the
great obligations which the Natives
of Southeastern Alaska are under to
that great school and its staff” and
“We ask that hearty support be
given * * * to that worthy institu
tion.”
Bureau inf Education Teachers
Attention is called to the fact that
too many teachers hired by the
Bureau of Education do not hold
certificates and are not qualified to
teach in the schools of the Territory.
This fact together with the fact