The Word Carrier (Santee, Nebraska), 1890-05 - 1890-06

              The Word Carrier.
VOLUME   XIX.
HELPING   THE   RIGHT,   EXPOSING    THE   WRONG.
NUM11EHS  o-C.
SANTEE AGENCY, NEBEASKA.
MAY-JUNE, 1890.
FIFTY CENTS PEE YEAE.
OUR   PLATFORM.
For Indians we want American Education ! We want American Homes!
We want American Rights! The result of which is American Citizenship!
And the Gospel is the Power of God for
tlieir Salvation.
The criticism heard most frequently in the Indian country on Commissioner Morgan is,"He's got the school
question on the brain." With intelligent men this is not an adverse criticism. The careless method of conducting the schools of the Government ; the lack of system, the poor
force in charge of many schools has
brought them into disrepute. And
the question is one of sufficient importance to have it on some man's
brain, or to have some man's brain
at work on the question. Now the
school question is not the only one
tobeadjusted. But it is time now—
at once—without delay—to have a
thorough and efficient system at
work for Indian education. If the
commissioner puts his thought and
energy on this one question he will
in the end accomplish far more than
any former commissioner.
The letter of instructions of the
Commissioner of Indian Affairs on
the preservation of Indian personal
names is presented as a document
of historic interest to those who two
years ago were engaged in the vernacular contest with the government. This letter not only recognizes the right of a man to his own
name, but the responsibility of
those who stand in the relation of
guardians to protect his native inheritance, and prevent him from
losing his individuality through
the influence of a mechanical civilization which mistakes leveling
monotony for progress. On the
contrary the American nation is
made richer by preserving these
variations in nomenclature. Our
language is enlarged and the interests of history and poetry conserved.
The vice of the anti-vernacular
orders was not in the endeavor to
emphasize the use of the English
language, but in the failure to see
that life is higher than language,
and that language is the expression
and not the creator of tbe life. The
Commissioner's letter we present today occupies the higher plane. It
shows a broad minded conservatism
which treasures that whicli is good
in the past for the enrichment of
the future.
A SIOUX GRADUATE IX MEDICINE.
Boston Special to New York Tribune:
Charles Alexander Eastman, one of
the Boston Unversity graduates in
medicine, is a Sioux Indian, whose
name was Ohiyesa, signifying a winner. He was born February 19, 1862,
on the Sioux Reservation, now a part
of* the State of Minnesota. His father
was the son of one ofthe Sioux chiefs,
and joined in the Sioux outbreak of
1862. The father was wounded, captured and condemned to be hanged,
but his sentence was commuted by
President Lincoln. He remained in
prison four years, when his good conduct gained his release. The mother
of young Eastman died at his birth,
and in the troubled times before the
outbreak occurred the infant was carried by some of his tribe through the
unbroken forests several hundred miles
to British America. Here he lived
till he was eleven years old, when his
father, who had become a Christian,
sought him out and brought him to
Flandrau, Dakota Territory, which
was then a civilized settlement. Here
he received his present name and was
sent to school in Galesburg, 111. From
there he went to the academy at
Meriden, N. H., where he was fitted
for the scientific department at Dartmouth College, which he entered in
1884 and was graduated in 1887. The
Same year he entered the medical department at Boston University. He
will return to the reservations for such
work as he can best perform there.
The above is an unusually true
notice, but omits one important
point that Charles A. Eastman was
for many years a student of Santee
Normal Training School, and owes
the after education he has had at
Beloit, Wis., Galesburg, 111., and Meriden and Dartmouth to his connection with this institution.
The western reader will involuntarily smile over "the unbroken forests" covering western Minnesota
and Dakota through which the infant Charles was carried to British
America. The World's Fair at
Chicago will give Easterners the
opportunity of understanding geography. Their definition of prairie is "A grassy plain thickly covered with trees." We are continually hearing of "sons of the forest" whom we know have to travel
a hundred miles to find a decent
tent pole.
But welcome to our friend and
pupil Doctor Eastman. A large
opportunity for usefulness lies open
before him among his own people.
The government contracts with
the several churches to allow them
to conduct schools among the Indians. It is expressly stipulated
that the government shall designate
the course of study, and apply the
same tests to the persons of teachers
as are applied in all other government schools. Congregationalists,
Methodists, Protestant Episcopalians, Friends, Mennonites, Presbyterians, Lutherans, and Unitarians
all consent to the terms, but the
Eomanists object. The last named
church is unwilling to allow its
course of study or its tests for teachers to be influenced by the government. Therefore congress should
refuse to allow the Eomanists to
conduct any of the government
schools. Appropriations for schools
conducted by unsupervised Eomanists are simply gifts to sectarian
schools. The government gives a-
bout a half-million dollars for contract schools, and of this sum Eomanists receive about seventy per
cent.; read that again, please. All
the rest of the churches above named receive only thirty per cent, of
the half-million. We demur.—From
The Northwestern Christian Advocate.
indian names fob indians.
Department op the Interior,
OFFICE OF INDIAN AFKAIHS,
Washington, D. C, March L9,1800,
To Indian Agents and Superintendents
of Schools:
As allotment work progresses it appears that some care must be exercised
in regard to preserving among Indians
family names. When Indians become
citizens of the United States, under
the allotment act, the inheritance of
property will be governed by the laws
of the respective States, and it will
cause needless confusion and doubtless
considerable ultimate loss to the Indians if no attempt is made to have
the different members of a family
known by the same family name on
the records and by general reputation.
Among other customs ofthe white people it is becoming important that
Indians adopt that in regard to
names.
There seems, however, no good reason for continuing a custom which has
prevailed to a considerable extent of
substitutiug English for Indian names,
especially when different members of
the same family are. named with no
regard to a family surname. Doubtless, in many cases, the Indian name
is difficult to pronounce and to remember; but in many other cases the Indian word is as short and euphonious
as the English word that is substituted,
while other things being equal, the
fact that it is an Indian name makes
it a better one.
For convenience, an English "Christian name" may be given and the Indian name be retained as a surname.
If the Indian word is unusually long
and difficult, it may perhaps be
arbitrarily shortened.
The practice of calling Indians by
the English translation of their ludian
names also seems to me unadvisable.
The names thus obtained are usually
awkward and uncouth, and such as
the children when they grow older will
dislike to retain.
In any event the habit of adopting
sobriquets given to Indians such as
"Tobacco," "Mogul," "Tom," "Pete,"
etc., by which they become generally
known, is unfortunate, and should be
discontinued. It degrades the Indian,
and as he or his children gain in education and culture they will be annoyed by a designation which has been
fastened upon them and of which they
can not rid themselves without difficulty.
Hereafter in submittingto this office,
for approval, names of Indian employes to be appointed as policeman, judges,
teamsters, laborers, etc., all nick-names
must be discarded and effort made
to ascertain and adopt the actual
names or such as should be permanent
designations. The names decided upon must be made well known to the
respective Indians and the importance
of retaining such names must be fully
explained to them. I am aware that
this will involve some expenditure of
time and trouble, but no more than
will be warranted by the importance
of the matter in the near future.
Of course sudden change can not be
made in Indian nomenclature; but if
agents and school superintendents will
systematically endeavor, so far as
practicable, to have children and wives
known by the names of the fathers and
husbands, very great improvement in
this respect will be brought about within a few years.
I have submitted this subject to Hon.
J. W. Powell, Director ofthe Bureau
of Ethnology, which gives special
attention to Indian linguistics. His
reply is appended hereto.
Eespectfully,
T. J. Morgan, Commissioner.
Department of the Interior,     ")
United States Geological Survey, [•
Washington, 0. ('., April 4,1890.  J
Hon. T. .1. Morgan,
Commissioner 0/ Indian Affairs,  ll'asli-
iugtou, D. C.
Sir:—I beg to acknowledge the receipt of your favor of March 24th, with
inclosure relating to the adoption by the
Indians of a system of family names.
The old practice in vogue of attaching sobriquets and and nick-names to
the Indians can not be too severely condemned, and I am pleased that you are
about to take steps to substitute another
and better method.
The matter is important, not only in
its relation to the inheritance of property, but also because it will enable
much more accurate census enumerations to be made in the future, and because it will tend strongly toward the
breaking up ofthe Indian tribal system
which is perpetuated and ever kept in
mind by the Indian's own system of
names.
Undoubtedly it will be better, whenever possible, to retain the Indian
name as a surname, adding an English
christian or given name. Occasionally, however, it will be found advantageous to make the latter also an Indian
name.
In selecting aboriginal names 1 do
not think it will be necessary to limit
the choice to such names as Indians
already bear. Excellent names may
frequently be selected from the Indian's
vocabulary of geographic terms, such
as the name of rivers, lakes, mountains,
etc., and where these are suitable and
euphonic, I think they may with advantage be substituted for personal
names which are less desirable. Little
difficulty, however will be experienced
in shortening Indian names in the interest of brevity and euphony, and the
Indian will be found to readily adopt
names so changed. I agree with you
that in general it is unadvisable to call
Indians by the English translation of
their Indian names, though in the case
of animal names and some others, as
deer, hawk, etc., it is not objectionable.
I believe that when the end sought
to be obtained by the adoption of
family names is thoroughly explained
to the Indians they will be willing to
co-operate with the several agents in
the attempt to select proper names for
themselves and families.
Yours with respect,
J. \V. Powell, Director.
The Christian Endeavor Society
of Santee has received ten dollars
from the society in North Walton New York, to which Miss Benedict formerly belonged. These
gifts from our friends have enabled
us to print our constitution, and in
other ways to extend the influence
of our society among the Dakotas.
The Lord Jesus did not die to Americanize men, but to save them from their
sins, and the supreme concern of the
Christian church is to have sinners
washed in the blood of the Lamb and renewed by the incorruptable seed of God's
word. If they are thus redeemed, they
will surely make good citizens. The republic is safe if the church permeates its
heart with the leavening and saving
power of the gospel.—E. J. Wolf.