Show THE INDIAN LAND QUESTION A FEW days ago we published in an article in relation to the bill pending in congress which provides for opening to settlement certain indian lands in idaho As stated in the article we did not have accurate information respecting spec ting the lands to be thrown open but from what we bad previously preciously understood regarding the matter we suspected that the move to cut down the fort hall indian reservation was a scheme in the interest of land speculators ula tors particularly in the abe neighbor hood of pocatello ro catello mr W C hawkins of oneida nelds a settlement of marsh valle valley writes us an explanation of the position on of the settlers of that vicinity relative to the matter he states that most of them located upon the lands they now occupy before those lands were included in the indian reservation tiong that the government does not seem disposed to order the settlers alers away but that the indian agents have pursued a very oppressive policy towards them and have har bar them very much since 1879 he states that these officials have charged the settlers fifty cents per head bead as pasturage for their stock which in addition to the other heavy taxes they have to pay has been a serious burden mr hawkins further farther represents that under the present condition a system of land grabbing abbing has been going on which wua will be stopped when settlers are permit permitted tei to make filings that the indians have never wanted the lands now BOW occupied by settlers in marsh that the various bands of indians indiana interested signed a treaty for the relinquishment of tho the same in 1880 since which time the settlers haye have been expecting to be permitted 0 make filings that the settlers have no desire to rob the indians of their lands and that the latter will still have acres for each individual member of the tribes on the fort hall reservation this explanation throws a favorable fjor able light upon the position of the farmers and stock raisers of marsh valley and causes their efforts to secure the abe lands they occupy to appear lusti but regarding the proposition to take a townsite out of the central part of the fort hall reservation near pocatello which I 1 we understand is caiata coiata contained ned in the bill referred to mr hawkins hawking makes no reference probably he and the other settlers sett lera of t marsh marah valley are in no wise interested in the townsite scheme on OB general principles suspicion is groused aroused by proposals to open indian lands to settlers so rarely are those measures founded in justice and ear carried out in equity the one under consideration it ft appears is in part fair and just but there still remains doubt regarding at least one feature of it the pocatello townsite scheme this doubt will disappear only when it is made to appear that that feature has been abandon edor that the indians havo have been paid a fair value for the land taken from them in carrying it out |