The Flathead Courier 1911

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THE  FLATHEAD COURIER.
'POLSON   DOES   THINGS"
VOLUME 1,
3SL e>3>^,
 0 7o	
POLSON, FLATHEAD COUNTY, MONTANA, FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 1911.
NUMBER 39
Poison Harbor
Freezes Over
)  s Traffic Is Delayed But Not
Stopped
The thermometer took a sudden
drop Saturday night and a high wind
arcciii o.iiiitMl bj a light smmv pni a
"-■■ coat of ice over Poison bay and by
Sunday morning the I;jI.f was frozen
almost. t<> the islands. On Monday
the i^oniana unloaded her passengers en :|n'_!iv ul'cut :t iiiilf mile
from shore, but the next day the
Qut-.H' liir } i'jIv aiid I Ijrr broke a
channel to tli'- fl(.'Tl> -* Iiif!i up to tlie
present time has been kepi open.
Thy Montana rami1 in to the dorks
Thursday but had .so much trouble
in getting mil thai in tlie future she
will unload sit the narrows, at. which
point she will be met by ;i stage v\ hich
Rob Vinson has started.
Ji. is the intension to keep the harbor open all winter but if this js not
\ possible connections with the railroad
from the narrows will be maintained.
The bay at Somers is still open and
it will take much colder weather
than we have had to close it.
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LOCAL WENT PLAY MAKES
816 HIT
The play put on by local talent last
Friday evening for the benefit of the
school library, made a great hit both
with the audiance and tlie cash box.
The characters were well chosen, each
performing their part well: and the
door receipts readied a hold $125.
But there was one feature of the entertainment, not on the part of the
players, but of some in tlie audience
that had better have been left out.
It might have been fun for those who
put the "stunt" on but the remainder
of the Aiidiimce did not enjoy it, AlM
to say the least it was embarrassing to
the players who, as amateurs, were
likely to be thrown off and spoil
the entire entertainment. Tlie young
people had given much time, some of
them at a pecuniary loss, just for the
sake of the cause and they and the
cause were entitled to better treatment
The twelfth legislative assembly of
Montana was organized Monday v ith
W. H. McDowell, of Silver Boyv,
speaker of the house and Senator
Dolnan president pro teni of the senate.
Governor Norris read his annual
message to the legislature in joint
session Tuesday morning. Some of
the special features of this document
relates to law enforcement or the
vesting of more power in the governor for the enforcement of law, the
reapportionment of the state for legislative representation, the submission
to the people of an amendment to the
constitution creating a tax commission. He also asks for a law permitting the cities of Montana to adopt
the commission form of government
and more stringent legislation for
inspection of orchards.
Death Rate Among The
Indians Increasing
Rapidly
Iroin statistics furnished us by
Father (iriva it is shown that the
death rate among the Indians of the
reservation ir increasing rapidly. He
lias a complete record of the deaths
which have occmred during the past
ten years. The death rate is shown
in the following table:
Year        Deaths Year       Deaths
l!l<>! ... -13 IHOfi  43
1002  34 1907  53
1903  42 1908  39
1904     39 1909  74
1905 44 1910 95
The above i-1 Mart ling information
■elative to the passing of tlie red
man. The increasing death rate is
due to fatal disease infection among
the tribes and it is the universal opinion of all who have given this matter attention that under the present
mode of living among the Indians
their end is not far in the future.
!>i>ease had made inroads this year.
Since the opening of the reservation
many of the Indians are going back
to a more primitive region, thus depletion of the Indian ranks in the
Flathead is plainly maiked.
Flathead Bank Elect Officers
The City of Poison went on the
rocks near Eollins Saturday night
and was badly stove up, three holes
being punched in her hull. She was put
afloat Monday and towed to Somers
where she is now in dry dock, ft is
expected that she will be repaired in
a few days. The boat was tied up
here Saturday noon and the captain
and his men placed under arrest for
alleged violations of the liquor laws
by the IT. S. officers.
That evening at about eight o'clock
they were released and in an effort to
make up the lost time an attempt to
run to Somers that night was made.
The boat was caught in the storm
and the wreck was the result.
It is rumored that Captain Swanson
will bring suit for damages against
the officials who held him here, claiming that they were responsible for
the wreck, as they had no authority
to tie him up.
Discuss Projects at
Valley View School House
Chamber Of Commerce
Meeting Well
"Attended
The open meeting of the chamber
ber of commerce last Monday evening
was well attended and much enthusiasm shown in favor of-county division. W. A. Johnson presented forcible argument for new members and
unity of action. Messrs. West, Pipes,
Trow, Silver, Maynard, Lowary, Mc-
Michael, Kaiser and Stritzel in short
but pointed speeches showed be3Tond
dispute that now was the time for
the organization of a new county.
The question of sending a committee
to Helena to work in conjunction
with Hon. F. L. Gray for the formation of Lake county was postponed
till the next meeting.
PRESBYTERIAN SERVICES
Services every Sunday evening and
every other Sunday morning.
Sunday school 10, a. in. Preaching
in evening 7:30, Jan. 8, text, Luke
1&3&— Son remember.
There was an interesting meeting
at the Valley View school house Friday evening, December 30.
There were over fifty people pres*
ent and they first organized into a
business session to discuss roads, irrigation system and the furnishing
of wood for the public school. A
petition for a road from Buffalo
Ferry was presented and discussed
and while it was favored by a majority Mr. Van Horn objected to giving
the road on the w est side of his 80-
acre tract, so the original petition
was dropped and two separate petitions drawn up, one from Buffalo
Ferry to the place of protest entered
by Mr. Van Horn and t be other to
read from ferry road to where it intersected the government reclamation road east of Mr. Laundry's place
and on to Poison through the Keeler
Gap.
There was some discussion of the
irrigation system and then the wood
proposition for the school was disposed of by a number agreeing to
turn out on Thursday of the following week with saws, axes and teamB
to get up enough for the winter's use.
After the business was disposed of
the social session began with refreshments being served by the ladies.
Then came Mrs. C. A1 ward who in
an interesting manner read a story
previously written upon the blackboard. The names of the characters
in the story being left blank to be
filled in by the audience; this feature
creating much amusement.
A short time was spent in dancing
by those who enjoy that exercise;
the music being furnished by Mr.
Kelly on his violin. During theeven*
ing the petition for county division
was circulated and very liberlly
signed.
The stockholders of the Flathead
County State Hank held their annual
meeting on the 2nd inst. and elected the following directors for the
ensuing year: A. I). Maynard, Aug.
Peterson, C. M. Sutherland, F. L.
Gray and M. A. Myhre.
On the day following the board of
directors elected the following officers: Aug. Peterson, president; A.
I). Maynard, vice-president: M. A.
Mjtbre, cashier; V. T. Mather, assist.
• ashler.
The stockholders are well pleased
« ith the progress made and the biisi-
iness established in one year, and
they consider the outlook for 1911
belter than ever.
The Wedding was Postponed
Gene Desarmo has had the time of
his life ti\ing to convince his friends
that he is. not a benedict. It all
fame about from the issuance of a
.!carriage license, only that and nothing more, except the imaginative
powers of a Bee reporter. He, the
Hee reporter, saw by the records that
;i license had been issued and seeing
a space filler in it proceeded to fill it.
The facts are the wedding was expected to come off on the 26th of
December but the bride to be, who
had been in poor health for some
time was taken very n uch worse so
that the marriage had to be post pon-
ed for a time, but Gene lias had the
write-up and congratulations just
the same.
Ferry Boat Case Settled
The case of Esau James against
Tom Eeed ended in the distiict court
yesterday with a verdict of one dollar
for tlie defendant. It has been an
expensive difference of opinion for
the two men. James leased his ferry
boat at Poison to Heed. Becoming
dissatisfied with the way it was being run, he brought action in replevin to , recover, possession, and
claimed $3000 damages. Heed fought
the case, and in turn demanded $3000
damages for the taking of the boat;
The court, four lawyers, the principals, a large number of witnesses
from Poison, and the jury, spent several days on t lie case. The totaL expense of the trial was large, and the
result is a verdict for a dollar Inter
Lake.
To Protect the Orchards
1 hat the state of Montana is making every effort to protect tlie fruits
of the state against disease is proven
by the following from a recent issue
of the Inter Lake:
"Before leaving town yesterday
State Fruit Inspector M. L. Dean
left word among the grocery stores
and all handlers of fruit that vigorous prosecution will follow the
discovery that any foreign apple or
other fruit containers are being used
for sending out goods to the people
of town or the country. Mr. Dean's
investigations convinced him that a
number of such boxes are being sent
out, and it is due to this practice, it
is said that codling moth and'other
fruit pests have been introduced into
certain orchards here.
District Inspector Dickey today
was emphatic in his denunciation of
the practice. Mr. Dickey said that
the state law plainly makes it obligatory upon any person receiving
fruits in boxes and crates from outside of Montana, to destroy the containers as soon as the fruit has been
sold from them, regardless of whether
they show .evidence of having contained infected fruit or not. lie
pointed to several growers both in
town and in the country, whose trees
had become infected with the codling
moth from Washington apple boxes
that had merely been left in the
wood shed."
PIONEER OP A TREE
Against County Division
But Wants County
Seat
It Was Different on This Side
Flathead county's new officers were
sworn in Tuesday
A New School District
L. H. Padgett has circulated a petition for the establishment of a
school on the school land near D. L.
Darst's place three miles northwest
of Poison. The territory between
the section line running west from
Couture's and the timber on the
north comprises the district. Mr.
Padgett had no trouble to fill the petition. There are twenty-four children of school age in the district. A
movement is under way to organize
another district adjoining on tlie
soutli.
Bro. Bathbone of the Konan
Pioneer is riled. "Yes, riled from
center to circumference, and so
badly riled that he doesn't care who
knows it; and to get relief he is
"williu" to give his kingdom, not for
a horse, oh, no! there are plenty of
horse« on the reservation and no little 'old cayuse will restore our brother's equilibrium. Such attacks require
heroic measures. Appendicitis isn't
in it as compared to Bro. Bathbone's
condition. His appendix is all right,
so t)is surgeons will not get a job,but
there must be carving done and done
quick'y if our brother is saved. It
isn't -nuch that he is asking for, just
a county seat. He doesn't care a
whoop for county segregation, in fact
he is opposed to it. He feels so sorry
for the business men of Kalispell who
"worked for the bridge across the
rive'r at Poison and lor road improvements in that vicinitj" and his sympathy also goes out to Missoula and
Say riders counties for what they are
going to lose if the new county is
formed; and yet he wants a county
seat. Just how he expects to get it
without division deponent saith not.
But perhaps lie, as U. S. Commissioner, has something up his sleeve that
we ordinary citizens know not of.
Or it may be that the Alaskan king
of whom the little village in the valley makes such boasts knows bow it
is done.
But whether, or no, the citizens of
the Flathead reservation and Poison
in particular should stand up and
take notice that:
"]f there is to be a new county
formed and a new county seat to be
mack-, thjen Konan wants it to be
striclytiifderstood that it is here tlie
conn v seat should be, located. There
ai^imyy good reasons fpr us to ..advance whicli would be unassailable why
Konan should be the county seat of
the new reservation county when it
is organized, all of which will be
dealt with in due season."
Now just when the "season" will
be ripe the sage of tlie Pioneer
does not say. But we presume
from his pleadings for Kalispell
and Missoula that it will be when the
steel bridges to be built in the upper
valley are completed and Missuola's
beautiful court house is paid for. And
incidentiy when Konan has dropped
her swaddling clothes and is able to
walk without hanging on.
That consistency is not found among
Bro. Bathbone's jewels is shown in
ids argument in parallel columns of
Vlie Pioneer. He tells on one side of the
great extent of territory asked for by
the proposed new county; on the opposite side he says it will cost just as
much to run a "little county as a big
one."
Again the Pioneer states that "they
calmly propose to take in Flathead
Lake." Now Poison don't propose to
throw Flathead Lake overboard; not
even to get Ronan to sign tlie petition.
No Siree, we are going to stay by the
Lake and Konan may have her Artesian well.
And then .Bro. Bathbone wants
some "Aggers." He don't care a cent
which side of the ledger they are on;
just so he gets riggers. Tlie farmers
and business men of the reservation
country may be credited on Kalispell
and Missoula's balance sheet.
But what's the difference just so
county segregation is postponed till
Konan can grow some.
On the other hand, dropping the
possibilities of Konan's future out of
the question and looking at it from a
business standpoint what's the matter with Lake county beginning as did
Missoula, Saunders and Flathead. No
\ one expects the new county to start
'nut with a palatial court house with
all the trimmings. Instead the county
government will pioneer and improve
as tlie reservation improves. That it
takes money to run a county we all
know; but if it be true, as the Pioneer
says, "that the people of the three
counties wili not stand idly by and
permit" this division; then there
must be something in it for them.
And whatever that may be is out of
tlie pockets of the taxpayers of tlie
proposed new county.
]< or be it known by all interested
that when a new county,isestablished
it has to pay its proportion, according
to its assessable property, of all the
indebtedness of the territory from
which it is formed. So the quicker
we cut loose the better,
A striking contrast was observed
in the weather conditions over Montana during the recent cold snap
which papers in tlie cold places are
calling a blizzard. Over on the east
side of the mountains they had
weather you read about. At Helena
the thermometer fell to 1!) below zero
and at Havre it dropped to 38 below.
A general blizzard swept tlie northwestern    Mississippi   Valley   states.
On tlie west side of the range there
is a different story to tell. On New
Year's morning a straggler from the
eastern blizzard started down the
valley from Canada and pushed the
mercury down to two below for one
hour but before anyone scarcely realized it a Chinook put the cold visitor
completely out of commission and
since the weather has been line
and as the new coiners say, "We
have never seen it in this fashion."
Stock is doing fine on the range, the
grass has yet a green tinge, the only
snow is on up lands and boats are
making regular trips on the lake.
This weather item is published for
the benefit of the Courier's many
readers in distant lands to show thein
what we have in climate here.
(I. S. Marshal Gets Big
Haul of Booze
Last Saturday Assistant Farmer
Gillette and Indian Police Pierre of
Konan and a U. S. marshal named
Gordon, swooped down on Poison
and created quite a little excitement
by gathering in quite a quantity of liquor.
They made their first apperrance at
the dock where they seized a barrel of
beer, twasuit cases and twx) packages
of whiskey. They searched a large
number of places in all parts of town
but only in one ut her instance did they
uncover any quantity of liquor, this
being a cache of 175 bottles of whiskey which they secured in a small
shed in the west part of town, Monday morning. Tlie liquor was all taken to the (J. S. commissioner's office
where it was condemned and destroyed.
A number of arrests were made and
the trials are set for next Monday.
A Sort of Gold Brick Game
The "Fort George" land promoters
have come and gone. The striking
bills and festive dodgers have gone
the way of all such, and the alluring
tale of the smooth tongued agent is
heard no more. Just how much business was done in Poison we have
not learned, but according to W. P.
McCauley in a letter to the Inter
Lake you are "gold bricked" if you
were caught by the "Fort George"
bait.
Here are some of the things Mr.
McCauley says:
"At Fort George we spent some
time looking over the country and
talking with old settlers. We found
the country bluffy and rolling, and
covered with pole spruce and cotton-
wood, entirely worthless for com-
: (tier-dial pu rposes,- and -mi ihr a ,uLa u
light soil overlaying hardpan of the
hardest kind. The clay is so hard
that tlie streams do not cut it away,
and the stuff wet and moulded into
bricks has stood for thirty years, a
priest told me, built into walls.
When Mr. Peters, a Hudson's Bay
man at Frazier lake, cleared a few
acres and burned the timber, the
soil was so light it was entirely
burned, and at tlie time 1 was there
lie was clearing more land and having Indians drag away the timber to
burn elsewhere. This man told me
that only a few seasons in his 30
years' residence there had he been
able to raise potatoes owing to cold
summers. He had ten acres of the
best situated land to be found, and
said that only occasionally he had
raised a little carrots and lettuce,
etc. 1 was told by the priest at
Fort George that they'could not depend upon raising anything and that
every winter the Indians had to be
supported by provisions sent in by
the government. Tlie re is no soil
to grow anything upon, and no water
to irrigate it with if the soil were
good and most of the land is waterless except by the digging of wells
from 100 to 300 feet deep.
As to climate, about a half mile
from Fort George I found ice and
snow under an overhanging bank of
the Frazier river on July 8, and at
Fort Frazier the thermometer dropped to seven above freezing on July
4. The previous winter the thermometer registered 80 degrees below
zero at Fort George. Frosts are every day occurrences. Old Indians
and priests told me that during the
00 years of settlement by post keepers* few had ever succeeded in raising
anything and that it had been given
up.
1 don't know about the California
and Florida lands, but I do know the
Fort Gorge lands and Nachaco and
and Buckley valleys, and they are
barren and worthless, a series of
bluffs, pot-holes, mud glacieis and
gravel bars covered with worthless
scrubby timber that would have to
be cleared off, and I'rym 100 to 300
feet from water, except along the
river."
The Courier stands for the enforcement of the prohibitory laws as laid
down by the government when the
reservation was opened, aiid believes
that the majority of the people of
Poison do also, but the methods used
by this special bunch of U. S. officers
was contemptible and unwarranted
The display of tire arms which they
made on the street and when they
made arrests was entirely uncalled for
as was also the placing of irons on
prisoners who had not made the
slightest show of resistance. These
acts stamped them either as cowards;
or novices who had been readlngsome
Nick Carter literature.
The manner in which one of the
fellows posed for his picture with a
gun in one hand and a pair of "cuffs"
in the other showed plainly that lie
was sure "new at the business." They
seemed to be trying to impress on the
bystanders what mighty bad men they
were.
The arrest without warrant and
placing in jail of one of Poison's most
:cycled. c.iUzens, and the comm!*-
siouer's refusal to give bail was an
outrage.
By such acts they created sentiment
against themselves, but not against
the cause they were supposed to represent. For the majority of the people of Poison wish to see the
liquor traffic stopped.
The Kalispell and Missoula papers
have been publishing some very exaggerated reports in regard to tiie raid
made on the liquor importers at Pol-
son. Where the officers secured
quarts they made it out gallons, and
tlie number of arrests was also about
trebled by them. They also report
thirteen arrests at Konan which must
be a mistake as the incoming stages-
do not report that burg deserted.
Through a misunderstanding the
petition for county division as published in the Courier last week was
misleading. We were informed that
there was a petition out including
the territory described and understood that it had been embodied in
the original petition and did not
learn, until it was too late to rectify
the, mistake that the petition of the
northern tier of townships was a separate one asking to be iucluded in the
new county.
Bussed Huntsinger was called to
Kalispell last Saturday by the sad
message informing him of his mother's sudden death, it seems that she
had not been well for a few days but
was not thought to be seriously ill
until a few moments before her
death. Mrs. Huntsinger leaves her
husband and six children, all except
one daughter in Iowa, being residents of the Flathead. The funeral
was held in the M. E. church in
Kalispell Sunday.
SIGN YOUR NAME
The Courier is in receipt of an article signed "A Subscriber." It relates
to the recent raid made by the U. S.
officers. "While the Courier would
like to publish the article it is absolutely against the rules to publish
any articles unless the writer, at
least, notifies the editor who he is.
A union Sunday school was organized at the Valley View school house
southeast of Poison on Sunday, Jan*
1. The follow ing officers were elected
for a period of three months: Superintendent, .Marvell Tarr; assistant
superintendent, Luella J. Linton;
secretary, Harry Mathews; treasurer,
11 lima Peden. Kev. Welch will
preach at that place on Sunday, Jan.
S, at 3 p. m. Sunday school will con*
vene at 2 p. m.     Everybody welcome.
Mrs Thos. D. Bare was one of the
first to cross the soutli part of the
lake on the ice. She took a three-
mile skate from Joe Smith's across
to Poison Monday.