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Show 10 Tooele Transcript, Tliurs., January 31, 19S0 Tflae Best Of Two Transmutation in engineering and by Margaret VanNoy Irfilts Writer high- way const met ion. Indians as a whole have made progress laith as a people and on an economic level. This is the opinion of of the Bear, triliel Skull Valley Goshnte Band.' The governing body of the tribe meets together regularly to discuss and vote on matters )crtamiiig to the reservation. It keeps the memliers in contact with one another even though most of them have left the reservation and are scattered. Al.I. ADl'l.T memliers of the trilie have a vote in business matters that the group. For example, come Hercules has a test site on Indian laud which requires close tails between the company and the trilie. Also, the reservation has a new culinary well, ami the hand is trying to get some new homes built to instigate some interest in moving haik on the reservation. Along with this, the group is trying to build up some type of employment so memliers can help themselves. Hercules project has heled by employing some of the Coshut es. OTIIFR employment considerations have to do with farming. Reservation ground is good for farming, and a project to pipe water out of Hickman Canyon will get under way this summer following tests by the Bureau of Reclamation. All of these measures have to lie voted on by memliers. Children must lie enrolled by their parents to lie counted as part of the tribe. They become heirs. Tribal financial affairs are important also, and plans for improvements on the reservation mast go through the people. Lawrence Rear has affiliations with two reservations. He lived on Imth the Skull Valley Indian Reservation, his fathers trilie, and the Deep Creek Reservation which was his mother's home. AFTER ATTENDING school in deep Creek, his family came to Crants-vill- e where he graduated from high school in 1955. For over 20 years he has worked for the Utah Department of e His wife, Fvanclle, a mcmlicr of the North Ute tribe came to Crantsville from Roosevelt. The couple have six children: lairi. IS; Jonathan, 16; Tad, 15; Matt, 1.3, Mignon, ll;and Kristen, H. Actually our lives arent really different from any one else. We have the same types of problems, and the same hopes and desires for our children, Mrs. Rear said. And as with everyone else, sometimes our children disappoint as." . guage. WE HAVE a heritage which we would like to pass on to theni. In talking with my people on the reservation, I hear that when the younger generation goes away to the white school, they tend to forget their Indian ways. They would like to forget I localise the white world is a lot lietter." Although Mrs. Rear left the reservation at 12, she still remembers the dances she grew up with. Accordingly, each summer the Rear family attends the dances at Roosevelt, and she tries to see that the girls participate so that they involved first hand with their Indian heritage. The summer dances involve many , different tribes. Actually the dances, themselves are standard, Mr. Rear said, but each trilie has its own stsle. TRIBAL COSTUMES are also distinctive. We can tell at a glance which trilie any individual Ls from, the Bears said. Each dance has its own special meaning, such as the rain or sun dances. Most all the Indian dancing Ls asking for good seasons. At one time, when bison roamed the west, buffalo dances were very important. There was also a bear dance, welcoming spring. It had to do with the liear ending his hiliemation after a long winter. The Indian Center in Salt Lake City Ls doing much to preserve the Indian traditions. Cheyennes, Navahos, Shoshones, all come together there to mingle and demonstrate their own style of dancing. THE BEAR GIRLS wear the Ute costumes when they dance. Except fur the dances and costumes, we live just like everyone else, Mrs. Rear (minted out. I have heard ladies say they cook Indian. I dont know how you go about cooking Indian'. Other than fry bread, our food is no different." The children do not speak Indian. Sometimes we sit down and have a teaching lesson, but ordinarily it is usually at the instigation of the children. I have been too involved with living to take the time to teach them the lan- WE IIAA'E lived in a white community for so long, the children don't know any other way of life, she said. "Actually they don't seem to care aliout reservation life. Mr. Rear added that it is just the re- verse on the reservations. There, they really don't care what it is like in the outside world. On the Ute Indian Reservation we have everything, Mrs. Bear (minted out. There are oil, fishing, cattle, plenty of water, (which the Central Utah Project is trying to take) and many other enter- , vW aw f - . , . prises. When she came to see the Skull Valley Reservation, she kept asking her grandfather when they would get to the reservation. "We had lieen driving for miles on this little dirt road. There was just nothing there. HER GRANDFATHER replied. This IS the reservation. In spite of that, the reservation is now a sanctuary to Mr. Bear. My sons and I go out there and enjoy ourselves and not lie bothered by anyone. We can do what we want with our land; we dont have to get a permit or ask permission, he said. Freedom to do as he wants includes hunting for game that roams the reservation, a pursuit envied ' :y ; V V .si.'.. . Each dance has its own meaning whether it been handed down from generation to generation. Mrs. Rear laughed as she told of swapping stories with a neighbor. She tells me stories almut the Indians that have been handed down from the Utah Pioneers, and I tell her stories almut the whie people which have come down to me. A long time ago the tribes started out as clans who tried to stay together, Mr. Bear said. Every tribe had its own (0ry which was jealously guarded, and so the tribes became enemies. The Sho-- t shones from around here never did get along with the Sioux or the Crows. These Shoshones came from Wyoming and banded together, finally becoming known here as the Goshutes. Problems for Indian children leaving the reservation and coming to white schools are not as severe now as they once were. At one time they were disciplined for speaking Indian or exhibiting any Indian traits or superstitions. Now this is changing, Mrs. Bear said. The by whites. The government is now encouraging the Indians to trace their genealogy. It is hard. In the past the tribes did not keep Not only that, but it was taboo to talk about old people, BUT LIKE everyone else, the tribes have their tales and history which has terri-reeord- s. older generation , , - . ;-- is is part of a religious ceremony or for entertainment. Title IV has lieen instituted during the last three years to help Indian children get through elementary and high school. It called for Indian aides only, but there were none to qualify, Mrs. Bear said. For the Rear family, life is full and busy. Along with school, the boys are into Karate and have earned their purple Kristen is just belts, and starting her karate training. ALL THREE of the boys have the distinction of being Eagle Scouts. Mr. Bear is an avid hunter and sports fan. He also spends much time reading and studying Western history, especially Indian hLstory, There is an impressive array of literature in his home. eight-year-o- ld Evanelle Bear is busy just raising her family, but she occasionally finds time to work at beading. She has made mocassins, belts and hair bands for the girls. WEVE HAD good luck so far with the way were raising our family, Mr. I guess 1 lielieve in the old of adage spare the rod and spoil the child, but Im really not as strict as that sounds, he added. The Bears are active memliers of the LDS Church. 1 go by what our religion says, teaching the children about their Father in Heaven and that their body is a temple - things like that, said Mrs. Bear. "You know, no matter what you do, you do the best you can. It depends .ss. Sometimes on how you put it children resent it. "They have a mind of their own and are going to do what they want - at least in part, but because of our religion, I dont feel we are raising them along. We have help. THE BEAR home is a place where children are oliedient but also independent and free to follow their own inter- Bear said. ests. Weve lived in two worlds, the Bears said, and right here, we have the best of both those worlds. encouraging the younger generation to get an education in the white schools. At the same time, the younger generation is learning more toward their Indian heritage and traditions. OUR WAY of life right here is the best, Mrs. Bear said. She added that she was appalled on a return visit to the reservation to see their problems. Alcohol, The Bear family likes life in the white mans world, but are also proud of their Indian heritage. Lawrence Bear holds Kristen 8, Mignon 11, sits next to Evanelle Bear who holds granddaughter Jennifer. The boys are Tad 15, Jonathan 16, and Matt, 13. drugs, and suicide are prevalent there. Those who come from reservations are more liable to get into trouble than those raised in white communities. Indian students can get health care through the government with clinic or dental work being paid through the Indian Health Service. Getting through high school can be a struggle for the Indian, but if he can make it, it is clear sailing after that. There are many programs for Indians in the areas colleges, and a regular Bureau of Indian Affairs is opening up at the University of Utah. AND THERE are also free Indian high schools in Riverside, California; wart, Nevada; and Brigham City. Lawrence Bear works with his people as n body. of the Goshute 6 ? Its time for the old soap guard, confuse and bewilder and then destroy. They asked the questions, and no question was too personal. If you managed to keep your head through all that, then the tactics changed. They would argue, even insult, (I once had a Bible salesman tell me I was going to hell.) and if that didnt work, they would settle down to wear you out. They apparently were taught Never take box again. Its hard to write something humorous when you have reached your boiling point. My mother told me there d be days like this. She taught me I d have to take the bitter with the sweet, but some things are pretty hard to bear - like pushy, overbearing, sneaky salesmen. FAR BE it from me to knock the great profession of salesman- ship. It certainly has a definite place in any free society. Its just that every once in a while, I run afoul of an epidemic of selling that seems to be based on the philosophy that theres one bom every minute. I take exception to the prevalent underlying idea that the buyer is not intelligent enough to make his own choices. Fortunately we now have ordnances that protect us from the hucksters who flood of used to try the ingenuity of the poor little housewife a decade or so door-to-do- ago. or WHEN YOU opened the door i NO for an answer. SOME WERE really crafty. to one of those con men, ethics flew right out the window. If you were to survive, it was fight fire with fire; There was no way short of slamming the door or brandishing a shotgun in their faces to get rid of them. At least, most of those who seemed to find their way to my door were crafty and deceptive; their idea was to get the victim off Just try to find out what it was he was selling before he was ready to tell you. He was always making an educational survey or something, and after spending a great deal of time getting you to agree how important education is, he would spring his little trap. You are one of the FEW chosen to have in your home. . . etc. THEN TRY to find out how much it was going to cost. You got answers like You can have it for as little as 11 cents a day. Or, a small down payment and a few dollars a week. . Or whatever he was selling really wouldnt cost you one cent: In fact you would make money hand over fist. Yes, those good old days are gone forever, thank goodness, or are they? WHERE HAVE all those salesmen gone? those hucksters who used to intimidate, coerce, and threaten the quavering, defenseless little housewives? I know where they are: Apparently they have opened schools to train the new breed of telephone demonstrasalesmen, and are else tors or busy writing they at-ho- commercials for television. Their students have learned well. The tactics have not changed. They are still at it, trying to sell me something I dont want, dont need, and cant afford. I RESENT it. I resent the insincere voice on the telephone informing me that I have been chosen or selected to receive a gift, or that I QUA- LIFY to receive a gift, (to qualify. you must be among the living.) How insulting to anyone over the age of five! I resent being pestered by subsequent calls when I tell the caller Im not interested in a demonstration. I RESENT having a salesman show up at my door, claiming to have an appointment. I resent being told that the demonstration will take only a few minutes when in fact it takes anywhere from 90 to 150 of those. I resent being called by my first name by someone Ive never seen before and hope never to see again. I RESENT personal questions about how much I use of a certain item such as soap, or how much I spend for anything. I resent someone cleaning my oven, or my floor, or my refrigerator just to show me how much dirtier it was before. I resent being told You must not have understood, when I refuse to buy. I RESENT having a stranger ask to use my telephone to call in and report a failure to sell. I resent being reported as not being able to understand how much money I could save, etc., like a naughty child who has not done his homework. I resent being handed the phone and told the boss wants to talk to you, as much as to say, Now youre going to get it. I RESENT being questioned by the boss and asked if I can be happy with my decision. I resent this intrusion of my privacy: I resent someone taking advantage of my good nature. Above all, I resent being treated like an idiot who is not smart enough to see through these sleazy tactics. I RESENT it, and I shall never, never buy a product from any salesman who uses that approach. Well, now that thats out of the way, I guess Ill go over and visit my friend Irma and take a look at her new $1900 water softener which she bought after a three hour demonstration the other night. |