Iapi Oaye - The Word Carrier (Greenwood, Dakota Territory), 1875-04

              GmRLER.
Published by the Dakota Mission.
Vol. iy. No. 4.
THE SIOUX AGENCIES.
NO. VII.     VUI.
Devils Lake Agengy, D. T.
This Agency is situated near the
south end of Devils Lake In the northern part of Dakota Territory. It is
eighty miles north of the Northern
Pacific railroad by which it is reached.
The Indians belonging to this Agency
are Santee Sioux, who fled from Minnesota at the time of the massacre of
1862, and wandered for several years
on the borders of the British Possessions, living as best they could by the
chase. In 1867 the reservation at
Devils Lake was set apart for such
wandering Santees as might chose to
settle thereon, and was to be attached
to the Sissiton Agency until there were
500 persons permanently located upon
it. As soon as the Indians were aware
of the arrangement some of them came
to Ft. Totten, which had been previously located at Devils Lake, to receive such goods as were sent them
by government. And in 1869 a number of families were induced to plant
corn there, principally through the efforts of Col. J. C. Whistler, then commander of that post. In 1870 Dr. J.
W. Daniels, Sissiton Agent, reported
that they had attained the required
numbers, and recommended that they
have a separate agency.
In 1871, the Roman Catholic Church,
being requested to nominate an agent,
named Major Wm. H. Forbes, a man
of long acquaintance and great influence among the Indians, who still
holds the position, and enjoys the confidence of the Indians to an uncommon
degree.
The Indians on the Agency now
number a little over 1000, of whom
750 are permanent residents. We
hear very gratifying accounts of the
progress of these Indians in civilization
during the last four years. Eighty-
four families now occupy log houses,
and 152 men wear citizens clothes.
They planted last year 135 acres which
produced, notwithstanding somewhat
injured by grasshoppers, 2,000 bushels
of corn and 2,500 of potatoes. They
have also done much work teaming
and cutting wood. Inspector Kemble
in a late report to the Commissioner,
says: " It gives me much pleasure to
testify to the gratifying progress these
Indians are making, not only in housebuilding and farming, but in cleanliness and comfort in their houses. I
saw Indians living in good log houses,
reared by their own hands, on well
scrubbed floors, eating from clean
white crockery, laid on neat tables,
who years ago were wild men in their
blankets, wanderers over tbe prairies,
or dwellers in dirty teepees. The
transformation seemed incredible, and
certainly much credit is due to the
Agent and the assistants for the good
management which has brought about
such changes."
In respect to education and Christian-
ty we cannot present so pleasing a picture. Except a fe wyoung men who have
seen the gospel light at, the Sissiton
Agency, and learned to read their own
language, all is dark heathenism. The
Agent reports (1873) that "they are
wedded to their traditions," and men-
taku waste okiya, taku sica kipajin.
Price, Fifty Cents a Year.
APRIL,  1875.
Address JOHN P. WILLIAMSON
Greenwood, D. T.
tions "medicine dances," "singing doctors" and " polygamy" as " deplorable
obstacles in the way of Christianizing
this generation." It is however encouraging to know that forces are being brought to bear against these
powers of darkness. A Catholic Mission has been started, and a church
erected; also a manual-labor school
two stories, 40x60 ft. Major Forbes
under date 6f Feb. 20, 1875 writes us
concerning it: " I am happy to inform
you that my Boarding School is in operation—now three months. We have
twenty-six scholars; and I am delighted at the progress under the good Sisters of Charity that is being made.
We teach as yet only in Sioux. Two
of our girls run the sewing machine
admirably, and it is pleasant to hear
them sing hymns of thanksgiving in
concert. I have also established three
district day-schools—native teachers."
The buildings constituting the A-
gency are the old log houses first
erected for the military, to which has
been added the past year a fine Agency
house, two stories, frame, 24x28  feet.
The Teue Spieit.—An Eastern lady,
formerly a teacher in the Episcopal
Dakota Mission, in renewing her subscription to the Iapi Oaye, sends a
salutation that will warm any missionary's heart. She says: " My' heart is
very full of love and kindness for all
my Dakota friends. I am no sectarian,
and love all alike. I would like to
speak to my Indian friends in their
own tongue, but am afraid they would
not understand me. I can work for
them and pray for them, and for the
kind teachers and ministers that our
dear Heavenly Father sends to them.
God bless you all—the shepherds and
the flock."
WAZEYA AT GOOD WILL.
This communication was delayed by
snow storms and snow drifts and other
difficulties; and so in Eastee Month,
we will read about the doings of Santa Claus at Good Will.—Ed.
Christmas was kept at Good Will in
the orthodox way of having a Christmas tree, though whether it was an
orthodox tree remains to be proved.
The Ascension people were the pioneers in that line, and since the fame'of
their proceedings had gone abroad,
these two years past, the'question had
been mooted whether the Good Will
people might not follow their example.
The chief ideas seemed to be that there
should be a " Wazeya," and jilenty of
pie. They made and carried out the
arrangements with but very little assistance from us, and I may say here
that the success of the affair was very
much owing to the perseverance of
Joseph Kioke, who not only had seen
the tree at Ascension, but other Christmas trees in the " white man's country." The day before Christmas the
women all began to bake gingerbread
and pie. Our nearest neighbor, Mrs.
Sheyowin, announced the fact that she
had made thirteen pies, and only stopped for want of shortening. She had
inquired if I had made thirty.    I had
not made a single pie, but had devoted
myself to other sweet things.
About noon on Christmas day, the
tree was brought from the woods, and
soon the work of decorating it began.
The doors were kept closed except to a
privileged few. Long before six o'clock
a crowd had collected before the school
house; and as soon as the bell rang,
and the doors were thrown open, the
people all poured in, filling every seat
and every inch of room on the floor,
apparently. But even after the house
was crammed to suffocation, the family
from " Tipi tanka," numbering some
thirty odd, found room to sit or stand.
A number of speeches were made,
with singing between. A choir of
young men sang with vim as well as
good will, though not always mindful
of pitch or time. The speech of the
evening was made by Michel Renville,
who closed by saying that he sometimes
doubted whether a church was a suitable place to eat in, but the "Wazeya"
always gave good advice, so on that
account he should be  thought well of.
When at length the curtain, (which,
by the way, was an old tent,) was
drawn aside, there was revealed not
only the tree but a veritable Santa
Claus, who was greeted with a subdued murmur of satisfaction. He was
suitably dressed in furs, with an immense cap on his head and a pipe in
his mouth. Having uttered some sage
remarks, and informed the people that
there were three wagon loads of provisions for them to eat, he passed
along, throwing cakes right and left,
to the great delight of the children,
and made his exit through the door.
I doubt whether anyone looked for his
reindeer steeds, all attention being now
directed to the tree. Which, consid
ering that it was neither fir nor cedar,
but a dry ironwood, presented quite a
creditable appearance. There were dress
patterns and pictures, Testaments and
bead-work, stockings and gloves, picture-books and toys, &c, &c. When
at last nothing was left but the dry,
leafless branchec, the eatables were
carried around. Candies and nuts
were lacking, as there were none to be
had inside of sixty miles. But their
absence was doubtless more than made
up hy the quantity of pie.
I judge that the people generally
were well pleased with their evening,
as I hear they talk of having another
tree on the next Christmas!
THANKS.
Me. C. P. La Geange, of the Sisseton Agency, expresses deep interest in
the Iapi Oaye. " I would like to see
the paper self-sustaining and growing.
Already we feel anxious to read the
news contained in the English department. How much more welcome must
it be to those who have no other reading matter. Praise be to those who
have been its stay and growth from the
first."
Rev. Daniel Renville, pastor of
the Good Will church in Dakota,
thanks Mes. Rev. Geoege Bushnell,
of Beloit, for the very valuable present
of a copy of Scott's Commentaky. He
writes,  " I am  very thankful to hear
that Mrs. Bushnell makes me so nice a
present—the nicest present that I will
ever get in my life. I thank our
Heavenly Father for it, and pray for
Mrs. Bushnell, that she may get her
reward in another world, for what she
has done for me. Nobody knows how
happy I was when I received your letter."
An Oegan foe the Dakotas: The
Ascension Church, in Dakota-land, are
now occupying their new and beautiful
house of worship, some account of
which has been given in the Iapi Oaye.
Naturally they now feel a desire to
have other things in accord. Among
the necessities for the service of song,
is a cabinet organ, they say. And so
they are making the effort, and ask for
help. Last sabbath evening, at the
Sabbath school concert in tbe First
Congregational Church of Beloit, at
the request of Prof. Whitney, the superintendent, the case was stated. Very
promptly the school voted all their
Sabbath collections from the middle of
February to the first of July to this
object. Rev. J. B. Renville, and his
people of the Ascension Church, will
say to this Sabbath school with a great
deal of heartiness, Pida-un-ya-keyape;
which is, being interpreted, " Glad-us-
you-make."
Tun American Bible Socieiy are
just finishing the plates of Joshua,
Judges and Ruth, translated by Dr.
T. S. Williamson. This will give us
the whole of the New Testament in the
language of the Dakotas; and of the
old from Genesis to Ruth, and from
Psalms to Isaiah inclusive. Of the
remainder of the Old Testament, a considerable part is nearly ready to go into the hands of the printer. The Bible
Society are doing for the Dakota peo-
jile an excellent work in giving them
the Leaves of the Tebb of Life.
Fort Totten, D.'T. Jan. 31. Mitakuye Miniwakan makoce kin en o-
yate wanna Wasicun wicolian nina
econpi, hecen wanna Dakota wicohan
ayustanpi iyececa. Hehan wanna
wacekiya tipi ohna anpetu wakan eca
nina cekiyapi. Dakota hoksipidan qa
wicinyanna ota en wicayuhapi hena
Dakota ia dowanpi, qa candowankiya-
pi ko unpi, hecen nina oiyokipi ecee
do. Hehan Jan. 28 anpetu kin he en
wowapi yawapi ekta wai, unkan wicinyanna tankinkinyan ikce taku kagege-
pi qa unman is kohan wowapi yawapi
qa dowahjfi ece. Hehan oyate teku
wanji ayustanpi iyececa, heon wicasta
koska owasin unkiciyuwalipanicapi,
pejimihnaka wacipi he wake do. Hehan owakpamni wanjikji en atewicayapi sicapi keyapi; tuka Miniwakan
kin den lyohahinsma ateyapi tuka wicasta nina waste, iapi waste ecedan on
tuka ewicakiya.
" Wojuha Kinhan" dehan kipi sni-
Tuwe iapi tawa kipi sni ca Iapi Oaye
waliteda sni, tuka miye hecasta wastewadake.    Tokesta oyake kta.