1923] SMITH, BOTANIZING AMONG THE OJIBWE 41 



at the very season when they might hope to do something with their 

 farms. 



Also, the Chippewa are under no restrictions in hunting and fishing 

 on the reservation. They shoot a deer whenever they desire. An 

 Indian who worked on the roads, went hunting every Saturday after 

 work and always brought home a deer. The meat was often sold to 

 the white camper under the name of "wild mutton," and those in the 

 secret had many a fine meal of venison at twenty-five cents a pound. 



With the present order of things, the Chippewa will never become 

 very well-to-do. The few Chippewa who stick to their business of 

 farming or carpentering, are the only ones in the tribe of eight hun- 

 dred Indians, who have really reached any degree of independence. 

 Fortunately a number of the Indians still retain fairly large holdings, 

 one hundred and sixty acres being not uncommon. Too many, how- 

 ever, have disposed in one way or another of much of their lands and 

 are largely reduced to a state of dependence. 



The Chippewa have a different status with the Indian department 

 than most of our other Wisconsin Indians. While they are wards of 

 the government, in so far as tribal lands and funds are concerned, they 

 are also citizens and all men and women have the right to vote. The 

 government maintains a superintendent and office force and a large 

 school for the education of the children is in session throughout the 

 year. It is a boarding school with separate dormitories for boys and 

 girls, with their disciplinarians and matrons. The very beautiful 

 school grounds are covered with Norway and white pines and sur- 

 rounded by lakes on nearly every side. The road enters the school 

 grounds on a bridge between two lakes and leaves the same way on the 

 opposite side, although a narrow neck of land, leads to the village of 

 Lac du Flambeau. 



This village has a main street which continues to the Chicago and 

 Northwestern station, three miles from town. Along this street are 

 the regular frame residences, with native sweat lodges in their back 

 yards. There is also one large general store and post office, besides 

 half a dozen other stores and a summer resort hotel, the Gautier House, 

 pronounced "GO-chee." The Gautiers are old settlers and descend- 

 ants of the original French explorers. All of them speak Chippewa as 

 fluently as the Indians themselves. There are two garages in the vil- 

 lage, the most recent of which was the cause of a Chippewa council. 

 The Chippewa had to be converted to the idea of progress and did not 

 wholly relish the erection of a noisy garage on their tribal lands. 



One area of perhaps fifteen acres is boarded up and serves as a 



