with tractors or any. farming implements for 50 years. None of those reservations have been, and still they have a farmer over there that is supposed to show the Indian how to farm.

Mr. LEMKE. Has each Indian in the reservation his own piece of land now?

Mr. CASTILLO. Yes.

Mr. LEMKE. If we say you can now be free from this wardship. each Indian would have his own piece of land and there would not be any trouble about it at all?

Mr. CASTILLO. No trouble at all. That is the way we have been living.

Mr. D'EWART. Thank you very much, Mr. Castillo.

Mr. CASTILLO. Thank you.

Mr. D'EWART. I believe that finishes the testimony this afternoon. The committee will now be adjourned until 10:30 tomorrow morning. (Thereupon, at 4:35 p. m., an adjournment was taken until Thursday, April 10, 1947, at 10:30 a. m.)

EMANCIPATION OF INDIANS

THURSDAY, APRIL 10, 1947

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,
SUBCOMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS OF
THE COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC LANDS,
Washington, D. C.

The subcommittee met, pursuant to call, at 10:30 a. m. in the committee room of the House Committee on Public Lands, the Honorable Wesley A. D'Ewart (chairman of the subcommittee) presiding.

Mr. D'EWART. The committee will please come to order. We have with us this morning, first, Mr. John C. Williamson, of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, who wants to make a brief statement.

STATEMENT OF JOHN C. WILLIAMSON, ASSISTANT LEGISLATIVE DIRECTOR, VETERANS OF FOREIGN WARS

Mr. WILLIAMSON. Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, I appreciate very much your permitting me to set forth the opinions of our organizations with respect of emancipation of Indians' legislation. For some years every national encampment has adopted a resolution asking that the veterans of World War I and World War II, who are Indians, be emancipated. The action of our national encampment is the result of repeated resolutions that are adopted every year by almost all of the departments west of the Mississippi River.

There are a number of phases about this type of legislation with which I am unacquainted. I do know one thing, however, that I am a veteran of World War II, and I am a free and unrestricted American, and I know that the Indians who served in this war are not free and unrestricted Americans. I hope that this committee will at least start the ball rolling and approve some legislation at least to begin something that we all know must be inevitable. That is all I have.

Mr. D'EWART. We have held a 2-day session on this very subject using as a basis for our consideration the Case bill, with which you are doubtless familiar.

Mr. WILLIAMSON. Mr. Case introduced that bill at our request. Mr. D'EWART. We heard Mr. Case one day and we heard the bill the second day. We have that all before us at this time. It is now our idea to take Mr. Case's statement and the Bureau's statement and see if we can work out the differences and make real progress in making this idea of giving the Indians their rights that we believe they desire and are entitled to at this time.

We are glad to have you here and glad to have this statement, and we will include it as part of the record on the Case bill.

Mr. WILLIAMSON. Thank you, sir. Our organization will appreciate anything that you do.

(Thereupon, the committee proceeded to further business.)

EMANCIPATION OF INDIANS

THURSDAY, APRIL 10, 1947

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,

SUBCOMMITTEE ON INDIAN AFFAIRS OF THE

COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC LANDS,

Washington, D. C.

The subcommittee met, pursuant to call, at 10:30 a. m., in the committee room of the House Committee on Public Lands, the Honorable Wesley A. D'Ewart (chairman of the subcommittee) presiding.

Mr. D'EWART. We have with us at this time a group from Nebraska. Congressman Karl Stefan is here to present them, but first he desires to make a preliminary statement, following which he will present some of his guests, whom we welcome and are very pleased to have with us today.

STATEMENT OF HON. KARL STEFAN, A REPRESENTATIVE IN CONGRESS FROM THE STATE OF NEBRASKA

Mr. STEFAN. Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, I deeply appreciate your courtesy in giving us the time today to present the case of the Omaha, the Ponca, the Santee Sioux, and Winnebago Tribes, who are located in Nebraska and who are located in my congressional district.

Nine members of those four tribes arrived in Washington today, Mr. Chairman, for the purpose of appearing before your committee to tell you briefly of their problems and their hopes, and bringing also to you the messages from their people.

Among them are Charles A. Walker, chairman of the Omaha Indian Tribal Council; Charles J. Springer, secretary of the Omaha Indian Tribal Council; Amos Lamson, member of the tribe acting as spokesman for all four tribes.

From the Ponca Tribe are Otto Birdhead, president of the board of the tribe; Joseph LeRoy, member of the tribe.

From the Santee Sioux come David Frazier, chairman of the Santee. Sioux Indian Tribal Council; Thomas H. Kitto, member of the Santee Sioux Indian Tribe.

And from the Winnegabo Tribe, Frank Beaver, chairman of the tribe; and William St. Cyr, vice president of the tribe.

Mr. Chairman, the major subjects these constituents of mine wish to discuss and are prepared to discuss include the retainment of the Indian Service, retainment and effecting the act of Congress of June 18, 1934, land purchase, inherited land purchase, homes, health, education, extension and industry, social welfare, law and order, taxes, tribal and individual claims, roads, definite objectives for termination of Federal control of Indian affairs under laws, treaties and

practices, tribal and local authorities, and stabilization of programs and cooperative procedures.

Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, it is my distinct honor to be an adopted member of all four of these tribes. It has been my honor to be acquainted with many of the members of this tribe. I have know them intimately for over 50 years. Some of them who have already passed to the Great Beyond served with me in the Philippine campaign. Some of them who are here represent the fathers, the brothers, and relatives of many Indians who served their country in the Spanish-American War, in the Phillipine Insurrection, in the First World War, and in the Second World War.

Many of their relatives have died in these wars which I have mentioned. Many of them have become invalided as a result of wounds. Many of them are sick.

Many of these people, Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, represent those who worked in war plants, men and women who both worked in war plants during the war, many of them tilled the soil in order to produce food for Americans and our allies. They considered themselves and want to be considered, Mr. Chairman, as Americans.

I am very happy to introduce them to you.

In our beautiful committee room, Mr. Chairman, members of the tribes to which I belong view these beautiful pictures of these walls with admiration until, Mr. Chairman, they find one picture to which they object. These people represent Americans who live with their white brothers as neighbors. They have come here, these representatives of four tribes, some of them who have been on the warpath years ago. They have buried the hatchet, they have come together as brothers, pleading one cause, and they ask respectively, Mr. Chairman, that pictures such as this which bring up cruel memories be erased from committee rooms such as this.

It is now my great pleasure, Mr. Chairman, to introduce Mr. Frank Beaver, representing the Winnebago Tribe, who will make the first presentation.

Mr. D'EWART. Mr. Beaver, if you will come forward please, we welcome you here before us today.

STATEMENT OF FRANK BEAVER, CHAIRMAN, WINNEBAGO INDIAN

TRIBE

Mr. BEAVER. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, we represent the Omaha, Ponca, Santee Sioux, and Winnebago Indian Tribes in the State of Nebraska. We appreciate the friendship and cooperation of Hon. Karl Stefan, our Congressman, in arranging for us to be heard by the members of your committee on matters of great importance to the members of our tribes.

We believe it is not necessary to take the time of your committee to recount all the treaties, laws, and many years of administrative practices in order to establish the relationship existing between the Federal Government and the Indian people. Many agreements, commitments, and acceptances prove this relationship which is the basis for our appeal to you.

We desire to submit the following major subjects for consideration: 1. Retain Indian Service.