| Show indian of today like his forefathers proves hes faist class man more than red men most of them volunteers are fighting for their native land as soldiers sailors and marines by ELMO SCOTT WATSON released by western newspaper union HE recent announcement by the war Depart department meiA that THE maj clarence L tinker jr of the united states army air forces was missing in action in north africa was a tragic coincidence in that just a year ago the war department announced that his father maj gen clarence stinker LT L tinker inker commander of the army air forces in hawaii was missing in action ile he had led a flight of army bombers to attack the wake island and he was killed in the battle of midway inheres interesting too is the fact that the tinkers father and son were north Amet american ican indians and at the time of his death general tinker was called the greatest I 1 indian fighter in the present war but although they are outstanding examples of the fighting red man modern version they are only two 0 of f an estimated indians in the armed forces of the united states and them wait to be drafted for service but enlisted voluntarily taken by itself that number does not seem large but in proportion to the total number ol of native americans in the united states today it is a more imposing record if an equal proportion of white men lied had likewise voluntarily enlisted we would have an army of nearly tour four million volunteers in addition to the millions who are in the army through selective service incidentally an interesting situation in regard to the enrollment of indians in uncle sams service arose soon after the selective service act of 1940 was passed into federal court in new york city one autumn day in 1941 marched five brilliantly dressed indians to watch a white man fight for their rights according to the white mans rules they were descendants of the warriors who away back in 1784 made a treaty with the united states by which the young and struggling federal government recognized the iroquois indian confederacy as a sovereign ov and independent nation independent unconquered nation they had come into court to maintain by legal means their identity as members of that confederacy which as an independent unconquered nation was subject only to its own lawmakers and not to the congress of the un united I 1 ted states on the records of the court the case appears as a writ of habeas corpus for one warren eldreth green a 21 year old onondaga indian who had been drafted into military service the previous may young green had no particular objection to entering the army arayas as a matter of fact a number of his fellow tribesmen had bad already voluntarily enlisted but he was being used as a test case to challenge the right of the united states government to conscript the young men of an independent unconquered nation white counsel for the indians argued that the iroquois confederacy had been treated as a foreign nation until 1924 when a law was passed conferring united states citizenship iz on indians no such law he contended could apply to members bers of the six nations without their consent on this premise he argued that the law was unconstitutional and therefore members of the onondaga cayuga seneca mohawk oneida and tuscarora tribes could not be numbered among the citi 4 afi M tf W N P I 1 it 1 14 GERONIMO zens who might be drafted under the selective service act the case was taken under advisement by the judges who heard the arguments that was late in october 1941 then came pearl harbor alter after that fateful day nothing more was heard hear dof 0 o the case the tribesmen of the six nations may have regarded themselves as members of an independent unconquered nation living within the united states but they were amer as well as first americans in that respect they were like the of the red men who had not waited for pearl harbor to join up to tight for their country even before the japs attack on hawaii it was estimated that one out of every ten eligible indians between the ages of 0 21 and SS 35 were already serving in the armed forces descendants of noted chiefs among them were descendants of many a famous indian leader whose name has come down in history because he was a patriot who rallied his warriors to defend their lands against the encroachments encroach ments of the white men one of the greatest of these was tecumseh of the shaw I 1 R N KIUTUS TECUMSEH nees who tried to organize a confederacy of all the indian tribes in the ohio valley in the early but whose plans were upset when his brother the prophet launched his surprise attack upon the sold soldiers lers of gen william henry harrlson harrison and was badly defeated at the battle of tippecanoe in 1811 one of the first of the fighting red denof men of today who attempted to enlist in uncle sams armed forces was kiutus tecumseh a descendant ant int of the great shawnee leader he was rejected tor for military service however because he was partially disabled by wounds he received while serving aboard a navy sub chaser during world war 1 I there was a time when the narno name of geronimo Geron was a name of hatred and terror in the great southwest for this apache le leader soler blazed a trail of death and destruction through new mexico and arizona run to earth at last in 1886 by soldiers under the com command mandof of gen nelson A miles the apache devir devil wag ivas held as a prisoner of war in florida alabama and finally at fort for t sill okla until his death in 1811 1911 thirty years year s later romer homer a mescalero apache and a direct descendant ant of geronemo Geron was one of the heroes who fought at bataan and corregidor out in nevada a county and a city perpetuate the name and fame of winnemucca great chief of the clutes who in his day was a first class fighting man today that lighting fighting tradition is carried on by his bis great great grea grandson stanley winnemucca who Is a fighting merine marine although more indians have gone into the army than into the mines or the navy there is at least ona one who holds high rank in our sea forces he is francis J mee a chippewa born in detroit lakes minn a commander in the navy the model american F rn soldier if the indians in world war II 11 follow the precedent of those who fought in world war 1 I then some of our greatest heroes of the pres X MAJOR GENERAL CLARENCE L TINKER ent conflict may be copper skinned soldiers sailors or marines for more than indians heard the can call to arms in 1917 and among them was odis N leader a choctaw who was foreman of a cattle ranch in oklahoma it Is an ironical fact that soon after we declared war on germany this 17 first arst amerlean american wa was s the victim of rumor that he was a german opyl spy I 1 to prove his loyalty he gave up his business and enlisted he saw action at can egny ugny at soissons at st mihiel and in the argonne he was twice wounded and gassed and when the french government sought a model american soldier of whom an oil painting was to be made ta hang on the walls of the french federal building where types ol of all the allied races were to be represented sergt odis N leader was chosen for that honorl other indians who received the croix de guerre included sergt james M gordon a chippewa who braved shell fire to rescue a wounded french officer chester armstrong fourbear a sioux cited for his bravery as a messenger at bellicourt john M harper a ute marty beaver a creek bert hayman a seneca modoc gus gertier Gert lez iez a pueblo bugler joseph a choctaw and corp N nicholas cholas E brown another choctaw who w was a killed in action and received th the aawar award d posthumously winners of and croix de guerre among those who received the distinguished service lee cross of their own united states as well as the croix de guerre guerra of france were joe leon a crow and na chiv hiv A ta a hopi and thomas D saunders a scion of the most formidable fighters the united states army ever encountered in the days of the old frontier the here is his record as given in general orders of the second division corporal thomas D saunders company A second engineers while a member of the first wire cutting platoon made his way forward in a advance of the unit until he was in line with and in company with private wilkerson company B second e engineers n gi were the first soldiers to enter jaulny saulny then infested with snipers and swept with wicked mi machine gunfire being occupied by rearguard rear guard detachments of the enemy they alone captured 63 german prisoners after searching the caves of a hospital with persistence and courage this at jaulny saulny france on september 12 1918 corporal thomas D saunders company A second engineers at st etienne a armes on october 8 1918 he bravely conducted a patrol under heavy fire during the night he made a reconnaissance close to the enemy of the position which his section was to occupy in the front and returning conducted it to that position M AMI 1 F ODIS N LEADER |
