ALEXANDER JOHNSON
Secretary National Conference of Charities and Correction
The fourth report of the commissioner of charities of the new state of
Oklahoma is an interesting document and much of the work reported is
unique for it is work not done in a similar way or not done at all in
any other state.
The plan of having a single commissioner do work ordinarily done by a
secretary and a board exists only in two states—New Jersey and Oklahoma.
In Oklahoma the work has been developed along some lines that are
intensely interesting, although it seems doubtful whether the conditions
anywhere else will lead to this plan being copied.
When Indian Territory became a part of Oklahoma, the lands were allotted
in severalty to the Indians of the various tribes. Much of the land is
almost worthless, but there is a great deal that is valuable because of
the presence of oil, deposits of asphalt, building stone, coal, etc.,
while a large part of the old Indian Territory is among the best
agricultural land of the state.
The temptation to exploit these Indian lands, to purchase them from the
Indians at a tenth of their value, has been somewhat offset by the
action of the United States government. But among the Indians were a
large number of orphans. Their land has been cared for by guardians,
some of whom have succeeded in getting themselves appointed, with
motives anything but benevolent toward their wards.
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