“Irrigation. The plans for the irrigating of the Indian land at San Xavier have been well studied and the report of the Superintendent of Irrigation is on file at the Indian Bureau (Senate Document No. 973, 62d Congress, 3rd Session). We recommend the adoption of the plan there suggested, but only if the trust patents can first be extended. In other words, it is obviously undesirable for the Government to expend a considerable sum of money for irrigating Indian lands which in the course of two years may become the property of the Tucson Farms Company. It is true that better irrigation will increase the value of the Indian lands and the Indians will secure more for their property than they otherwise would, but it is to be feared that this increase in price will simply accrue to the benefit of the saloon keepers at Tucson and other persons eager to prey upon the Indians. In order to save these self-respecting, industrious and peaceful Indians from demoralization and vagabondage, we earnestly recommend: (1) The extension of the trust patents under which they now hold their lands, and (2) the prompt adoption and carrying out of the plans by which they will obtain an adequate and reliable supply of water.
“Schools. The Government maintains only two small day schools for the Papagoes, whether living on the reservation or upon the public domain. A few elementary schools are also maintained by the Catholic and Presbyterian Missions. It is not necessary for the Government to duplicate these schools. They cannot, however, reach more than a small proportion of the school population. Without further and more careful survey of the best centers of population, we do not wish to recommend the establishment of any considerable number of Government day schools. They will naturally be established where permanent water supplies can be developed. We believe, however, that provisions should at once be made for the opening of day schools at the villages known as Indian Oasis and Coyote, which are natural centers of population within the proposed new Executive Order Reservations. We understand that plans have already been formed for the establishment of the first of these schools.
“Health. The health conditions among the Papagoes are not different from those on other Indian reservations. There is a great deal of tuberculosis and trachoma, and there are no hospital provisions whatever. We earnestly recommend the establishment of field hospitals at San Xavier and at Indian Oasis. These hospitals should be of slight construction, but they are greatly needed for the welfare of the Indians.
“Liquor. The Indians living on the Papago Reservation and on the public domain seem to be well protected because of their remoteness from white settlements, their own good habits, the vigilance of the Agency officers, and the influence of the missionaries. The Indians living near Tucson, Casa Grande or Maricopa are much more exposed to temptation and are too often demoralized and vicious.
“Native Industries. It is highly desirable that the Papagoes should be encouraged both in the industries by which they have always sustained themselves and also in the arts which they practice. They are remarkably successful desert cultivators. They have more to teach Whites about desert farming than the Whites can teach them. Nevertheless, there are certain methods of farming which can be brought to their attention by skilful and tactful Government farmers, and we commend the present activity of these officers. In particular the Indians can be helped in the use and conservation of water, and in the securing of water for domestic purposes apart from its use for stock. The Superintendent of Irrigation has now at his disposal a small appropriation which he is using to discover and develop new sources of water supply and in teaching the Indians to separate their own drinking-water from the water used for the stock.
INDIAN BUILDINGS OF RECENT CONSTRUCTION
On an allotment near Wewoka, Okla.
“The Papago Indians are at present a primitive, but self-supporting people. The Government does very little for them. Their livelihood is now seriously threatened. A failure on the part of the Government to protect them in their land and water rights, will be most disastrous. The Indians will become homeless outcasts and a menace to all southern Arizona. There is abundant evidence to justify the conviction that neglect of the Papagoes at this time will result in the corruption and degradation of these worthy Indians, and write another chapter of disgrace in the history of our dealings with our Indian wards. Now, before irreparable harm is done, is the time to act. An ounce of prevention now, will be worth pounds of cure later. To prevent the threatening abuse, to protect these deserving Indians and to promote their permanent welfare, it is necessary; 1st, To establish Executive Order Reservations on that part of the public domain where some 5000 Papagoes have always made their homes, and provide for their efficient administration. 2nd, To extend the trust patents of the Indians holding allotments at San Xavier and provide for the adequate irrigation of their lands. 3rd, To establish schools at Indian Oasis and Coyote, and hospitals at San Xavier and Indian Oasis.”
The Pueblos present a very interesting spectacle. Living as they do in a number of stone and adobe villages, carrying on a highly developed communistic life, practicing ceremonies the like of which does not exist elsewhere in America, if anywhere in the world—they have been the subject of numerous ethnological investigations. Mrs. Matilda Stevenson published a volume through the Bureau of American Ethnology relating to the ethnology of these strange folk. The late Frank Hamilton Cushing lived for years in Zuni Pueblo, was adopted, mastered the language, joined the secret society, and presented us with a great deal of valuable and technical information. After Cushing’s death, Doctor J. Walter Fewkes spent years in studying the various Pueblos. Mr. Charles L. Owen of the Field Museum, Chicago, and other investigators have approached the subject from various angles. We have, all told, a score of books relating to the life and beliefs of the Pueblos; their famous snake dance has been repeatedly described until it would seem that not a single detail has escaped publication. Others have concerned themselves with Pueblo arts, the origin of the Pueblo and the relation between the Pueblo and the Cliff Dweller. Few tribes in America have been more thoroughly studied, and it is safe to say that the various departments of the Smithsonian Institution, the past thirty years, have published 5,000 or more pages relating to these people. As the peculiar customs are handed down from antiquity, we shall study them in detail at some future time and adhere to our rule of confining this book to the modern Pueblo. The following report submitted by Messrs. Eliot and Ketcham is self-explanatory and covers their activities, their needs, and warns us against the dangers with which they are threatened.
“Land. The primary need of all the Pueblos is for a determination of the boundaries of their grants. The encroachment of squatters on the Indian lands is constantly increasing and producing friction and litigation. These trespassers are not always blameworthy because the limits of the Indian lands are so indistinct. There is urgent need of surveys and of definite marks or bounds with indestructible monuments. When these have been established, vigorous action should be taken for the eviction of trespassers who have not established a legal right to occupancy. We earnestly recommend an appropriation for the immediate survey of all the Pueblo grants.