1972-07-28 Char-Koosta News

              Treaty Hunt, Fish Rights To Be Tested
Elmo—Armed with written permission from the Tribal Council, and BIA superintendent, councilman Pat Lef-thand, Elmo, is trying to reestablish the ancient Kootenai tribal right ot hunt and fish in the Fisher river area.
Lefthand says that an old trail leads directly from Elmo to the hunting, fishing and berry gathering grounds of the Fisher. Lefthand said the trail has been used for centuries by his people and the right to aboriginal food gathering privileges was assured in the Hellgate treaty of 1855. The Elmo councilman added that although the tribes have secured the rights to hunting and fishing on the reservation, there has not been a recent test of the treaty provision for traditional off reservation ranges.
During the early '40s, Lefthand recalled, his uncle, Sakalai Lefthand and a party went up the old trail into the Fisher to hunt. They were arrested with fresh game and taken to Libby. According to Lefthand, the Tribal Council informed the authorities of the treaty provisions and the case was dropped.
Included in the council's written authorization is a commitment to assist with legal fees if the Lefthands are arrested by state authorities.
Flathead Irrigation Project,
the Confederated Tribes hold unto themselves all uses of all said waters of the Flathead Reservation, such uses include
but are not limited to sale, rent Act q{ im (the Am
distribution, recreation and fish mentact) These are the waters
v continued on page 10)
Excluded from this blanket affirmation of ownership were waters taken by the federal government by authority of the
On May 26 of this year the Tribal Council of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes signed a resolution stating its ". . .Position of Reservation Waters..." In part,
the document". . .Resolved, that   and wildlife purposes.
Published By The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes, Dixon, Montana 59831
(Chcrrlo) (Koostahtah)
CHAR—KOOSTA
Snlish. Kootenai, Pend 'd Orielles Tribes
Voulme 2. Number 6_Moon of the Servkeberry - 28 ,...„J_„„.  PgjjCE  10c
People of Tribe to Decide on Judgment Check With BIA Pending ^ Ignatius Polling of the People        Judgement Pow
Wow Slated
following a disagreement during
Dixon-The    fate    of    an the July 18 meeting.    Coun-
$11,249,913.81 judgment check oilman E. W. Morigeau, Poison,
from Montana Power will be suggested to per capita out 90
decided in a series of district Percent of the check.   During,
meetings this month. discussion however, Councilman
The amount of the check Tom "Bearhead" Swaney, St.
represents 11 years difference Ignatius, said he felt the people
between the rate the utility had in his district would Prefer to
been paying the tribe for Kerr invest the money-  Meetings in
Dam and a new rate set bv the the eight reservation districts
Federal Power Commission. are to be held before the end of
The figure also includes a four tne montn-percent annual interest. Montana    Power,    in    a
The tribal council decided to
statement issued after the US
open the question of what to do Supreme Court refused to hear with the judgement    monies their appeal on the case, said the
ment, the money then available to the tribe.
being
Labor Dept. Finds Fault In Area Indian Hiring
products industries were Dixon—A team of Labor especially slow incomplying to Department investigators last new federal regulations, week reported that fair em- Gremley said that a three day ployment practices among eight survey indicated that "all the large employers in the Flathead large timber operators will have Indian Reservation area were to take some serious steps to "not very satisfactory." improve their hiring practices
In summing up the use of as regards to both Indians and Indian labor in and around the women." Gremley specifically reservation, William Gremley, referred to Plum Creek, Van Deputy Assistant Director for Evans and the Intermountain Compliance Operations with the Company as being deliquent in Office of Federal Contract comDlvine with new Executive Complience, said the   lumber    (Continued on next page)
check would be in the hands of the FPC by the end of the month. The FPC will then credit the money to the tribe's account with the US Treasury Depart-The judgement check stems from an Oct. 4,1967 ruling by the FPC giving the tribe a rental hike on Kerr Dam of $711,625 (from $238,375 to $950,000). The order included a provision for six percent interest from the expiration of the original contract in 1959. The utility was granted a stay from the order in 1968 to give the courts an opportunity to review the case.
The review process dragged on four years until, in June of this year, the Court of Appeals upheld everything in the FPC order except the six percent (Continued on next page)
St. Ignatius—The recent Montana Power rate adjustment judgment will be discussed at a St. Ignatius district meeting Wednesday (Aug. 2).
Tribal Councilman Tom "Bearhead " Swaney , who shares the St. Ignatius district with Tribal Council Chariman Harold "Junior" Mitchell JR., said the meeting will be held at 8 p.m. in the Community Center.
Swaney said he would like to talk to his people about the possibility of a long-term investment of the monies as an alternative    to    per-capita
(Continued on next page)
Zectran Back Again
Dixon—A proposal to use the insecticide Zectran on tribal forests affected by the spruce bud-worms was approved last Friday by the Council's Economic Development committee.
The council, which must still approve the plan, last year decided not to go ahead on a U.
(Continued on next page)