A BEAUTIFUL STATE OF MIND

Bill No. 3855 has received a great deal of favorable discussion in Congress, for its purpose is in keeping with the usual attitude of that body whenever the interests of the Indian conflict with those of the white man: "To ascertain and settle land-claims of persons not Indian within the Pueblo lands, land-grants, and reservations" is the statement in its preamble, but outsiders have pronounced it a poorly disguised attempt to rob the Indians of what little land they have left. And this, in spite of the possession by each chieftain of the tribe of a silver-headed cane--a gift received by his predecessor from Abraham Lincoln as a guarantee of ownership, for ever and ever.

But Congress, lost it seem ungenerous, has decided that if the Indian is to be deprived of his lands, he shall at least retain possession of his favorite drug, "peyote". Even this momentous decision was only reached after more than an hour of argument, which raised the question "What is peyote?"

One senator had the idea that it was something like the whisky made by bootleggers another that it was made of some kind of bean, and a third that it was an essence of sunflower seed; investigation, however, decided that it comes from a certain part of a cactus blossom, which grows somewhere along the Rio Grande. Its effects were clearly explained by the recorded statement of an Omaha: "After eating thirty-six peyote I got just like drunk, only more so, and more good than when I drink whisky." Another senator had heard that "the effect was to bring about a very beautiful state of mind, so that after the use of this drug the whole thought of the individual was centered upon everything that is beautiful and good."

Since it was found impossible, however, to determine "whether peyote was deleterious to the Indian's physical and spiritual welfare", the senate voted unanimously to strike the "prohibition of peyote" from the Interior Appropriation bill, and to save the $25,000 that had been appropriated. This action also provides further "compensation" besides that given by bill No. 3855 for the proposed loss of the lands. Peyote is to be the additional indemnification. "It produces a beautiful state of mind", and with this the Pueblos can be happy, even if they are elected from their reservation.