Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 10.djvu/666

INDIAN TERRITORY. mineral resource of the Territory. Coal is mined most largely in the southeast and is yielding nearly 2,000,000 tons a year, most of the product being marketed in the Southern States. Gold and silver are also found in the mountain regions, and asphalt has been discovered, but is not yet of much importance.

As the drainage of the Territory shows, the general slope of the land is gently from northwest to southeast. The streams are numerous, but none of them is important for navigation. The Red River flows along the boundary of Indian Territory and Texas. The Canadian River, rising in New Mexico, flows east nearly across the Territory till it joins the Arkansas. The Washita River, emptying into the Red River, drains most of the southwestern part of the country. The Arkansas, passing through the Territory, and the Red River carry off all the drainage. The whole Territory belongs to the humid area of the eastern half of the United States, with sufficient, though not superabundant, rainfall for agriculture. Lying, however, between the 33d and 37th parallels of latitude, the region has a warm climate, the main annual temperature being about 60° F. For and, see those sections under.

. The Territory has the advantages of excellent natural conditions for the development of agriculture. The soil is fertile, and the rainfall is greater and more certain than it is in Oklahoma Territory to the west. In 1900, 36.6 per cent. of the land was included in farms. Most of the farms are owned by Indians, but there are also a number of negroes who own land, and also a certain number of whites who have secured land, principally by being adopted as citizens by act of the legislatures of the several Indian nations. However, the Indians do not, as a rule, cultivate their own farms, but rent them instead to the whites, the latter constituting seven-ninths of the total number of farmers. The average size of farms varies from 42.5 acres in the small Seminole Nation, to 329.2 acres in the Creek Nation.

The climatic conditions are such that a great variety of products, including those of both the temperate and semi-tropical regions, can be grown. The cultivation of the soil has thus far, however, been largely subordinated to stock-raising, and corn has consequently been the leading crop, comprising, in 1900, 1,181,139 acres. The areas devoted to wheat and oats for the same year were, respectively, 247,247 and 160,457 acres, while the hay and forage crops exceeded 400,000 acres. Cotton produces abundantly and is rapidly becoming of great importance, the acreage devoted to its cultivation in 1900 being 442,065. Fruits and vegetables are also very successfully grown. The prairie lands of the Territory afford excellent and extensive pasturage for stock. The number of cattle in 1900 exceeded 1,500,000. In the same year the horses numbered 198,600; mules, 51,500; sheep, 12,600; and swine, 650,000.

. Because of peculiar local conditions, especially the nature of the population, manufacturing has been slow to develop in Indian Territory. However, a good beginning has been made in the decade 1890 to 1900. During this period the number of establishments—including hand trades and houses with a product of more than $500—grew from 20 to 789, the capital increasing from $204,329 to $2,624,265. The census of 1900 reported 348 establishments additional, having each a product of less than $500, The most important industries are cotton-ginning, flour and grist milling, the manufacture of cottonseed oil and cake, and the manufacture of lumber and planing-mill products. The greatest activity centres in the Chickasaw nation.

. The railroad facilities are adequate enough for a higher industrial development than that which now prevails in the Territory. In 1900 there were reported 1500 miles. The principal lines are the Missouri, Kansas and Texas; the Saint Louis and San Francisco; the Choctaw, Oklahoma and Gulf; the Santa Fé and the Rock Island.

. The different nations assess tribal taxes upon non-citizens and those employing non-citizens. These taxes are collected with difficulty, as effort is made to avoid payment. The Indian Agent collected and disbursed $825,020 in 1900, of which amount $139,589 represented royalties upon mineral products.

. In 1902 there were 69 national banks, with loans amounting to $7,277,000; cash, etc., $548,000; capital, $2,779,000; and deposits, $5,896,000. The 20 private banks had in loans. $602,676; cash, $56,354; capital, $203,975; and deposits, $495,810.

. Missionary work among the Indians of the Territory has always been very active. The Methodists and the Baptists are in the majority; Presbyterians, Roman Catholics, Disciples of Christ, Friends, and other denominations are represented.

. Religious denominations, the National Government, and the tribal governments all maintain schools within the Territory. Nevertheless, the educational situation is not what it ought to be. The Territory has been rapidly filling up with a population of whites, who, having no voice in the government, have been unable to secure public school advantages for their children. It was estimated (in 1900) that there were 50,000 white children of school age—three times that number of Indian children of that age—who were thus deprived. A recent act of Congress enabling towns to incorporate, elect officers, and provide education for white children, will be a particular relief. For a time the Indians were allowed to manage their own educational affairs. This was so unwisely if not corruptly done that Congress provided in the Curtis Act (1898) that the National Government assume charge, and accordingly a superintendent of education has been placed in authority over the Five Nations (the Seminoles excepted).

. The population of the Territory grew from 180,182 in 1890 to 392,060 in 1900, an increase of 117 per cent. This great increase was due to the inflow of whites from the States. The Indians in 1900 numbered 52,510; negroes, 36,870: and whites, 302,680.

. The Indians of the Territory consist of the ‘Five Civilized Nations,’ and those of seven reservations. Ninety-seven per cent. of the population, including whites, is found in the four principal nations. The census of 1900 distributes the population as follows: Cherokee Nation, 101,754; Chickasaw Nation, 139,260: Choctaw Nation, 99,681; Creek Nation, 40,674; Seminole Nation,