Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly vol. 8.djvu/16

 8 T. W* DAVENPORT. see an Indian plow ? If not, it would amuse you. He fastens ropes to the plow clevis, and the other ends to the Indian saddles which are tied together with raw hide strings, and the squaws lead the team. The buck tips the plow up onto the nose, and in this way the ground is scratched over. The method of sowing his grain is unique too. He stands in one place and sows a circle, and then moves to another point and sows another circle. They see the white employes doing work in a proper manner but poor 'Lo' refuses to learn.. They are good hunters but poor farmers/' said Mr. Barnhart, and I afterwards learned that his description was about correct. As soon as the receipts were signed, the agent, his brother and the clerk went away on horseback and I was left in com- mand. To fill the vacancy in the office of farmer, I appointed Mr. Dow Montgomery, who had come to the agency on the recommendation of Surveyor General Pengra, and had been at work as field laborer at $35 a month. Dr. Teal was solicited to remain, and he consented to do so on one condition, viz : that his wife should be given the position of teacher of the Indian school. The Doctor was requested to wait until the next day for an answer to his proposal, as I had not investigated the case of Mr. Pinto, an applicant of long standing. Mr. Pinto was found to be fully competent, and the victim of those political promises, which everybody ought to know, are never intended to be fulfilled. Besides, his wife, the mother of a large family, was a consumptive invalid requiring the constant care of the older children. Mr. Pinto 's case was an irresistible appeal to my sympathies, and he was given the position which Dr. Teal wanted for his wife. Other things being equal, as respects the public service, human necessities are likely to decide every case submitted to me. Mr. Pinto was instructed to have the school room warm by 9 o'clock, five days in the week, and be there ready to teach every one in attendance, and furthermore to talk to the parents and as far as possible stimulate a desire for education. By the treaty with these three tribes, they were promised two school houses and two teachers, but as there was one