Eleanor Myers Testimony, Joint Hearing before the Subcommittees of the Committees on Interior and Insular Affairs on H.R. 7552

Eleanor Myers Testimony, Joint Hearing before the Subcommittees of the Committees on Interior and Insular Affairs on H.R. 7552

Termination of Nevada Indians

Eleanor Myers (Lovelock Paiute) testimony on terminating Nevada Natives

83rd Congress, 2nd Session

Joint Hearing before the Subcommittees of the Committees on Interior and Insular Affairs, Congress of the United States

Government Printing Office

April 16, 1954

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Public Domain

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English

Congressional testimony

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Lovelock Paiute Colony, Nevada

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Chairman Young. If not we will proceed to the next colony which is Lovelock. Is there any witness here who represents Lovelock colony?

(Lady comes forward from the audience.)

Mr. Jex. Would you state your name.

Mrs. Eleanor Myers. Eleanor, E-l-e-a-n-o-r, Myers.

Mr. Abbott. Is it Mrs. Myers? M-y-e-r-s?

Mrs. Myers. Yes.

Mr. Jex. You reside in the colony of—

Mrs. Myers. Lovelock colony.

Mr. Jex. That colony is not organized under the Wheeler-Howard Act, is it?

Mrs. Myers. No.

Mr. Jex. Did you have a tribal meeting or a colony meeting for the purpose of selecting delegates to come here.

Mrs. Myers. Yes, we did the other day.

Mr. Jex. When was the meeting held?

Mrs. Myers. Last—when was it? Just about—oh, not long ago, just a few days ago.

Mr. Jex. Was there a resolution passed by those in attendance?

Mrs. Myers. No, but they have what—I have brought these statements. I brought them. They are taken from the meetings we have had.

Mr. Jex. Your statements are excerpts from previous meetings wherein expressions of opinions of the tribal—

Mrs. Myers. Yes, they are opinions.

Mr. Jex. Do you have any written authority to appear in behalf of the Lovelock colony?

Mrs. Myers. No written, but I was elected to come.

Mr. Jex. You were elected at this meeting some 2 or 3 days ago?

Mrs. Myers. Uh-huh.

Mr. Jex. Did your authority extend to complete, uninstructed authority, or did they tell you the position the Lovelock colony would take and you were supposed to transmit it to us?

Mrs. Myers. Yes, I was supposed to translate it.

Mr. Jex. I would suggest, Mr. Chairman, we receive the written expressions of the tribal positions and examine those for the record.

Mr. Abbott. Mrs. Myers, do you wish to make an oral statement?

(Document handed to Chairman Young by Mrs. Myers.)

[p. 1235]

Mrs. Myers. What I have got to say is written down there on the paper.

Mr. Abbott. Do you want to summarize it briefly, or would you like us to look at it and then perhaps ask you some questions?

Mrs. Myers. Well, I think I would like to summarize it myself.

Mr. Abbott. All right.

Mrs. Myers. Well, we of the Lovelock colony learned about this bill 7552 from one of the people from the Nevada Agency, Indian agency, from Stewart, and they came over and explained the bill to us, and the termination of Federal supervision. When they—and we think we understand it, and we understand if the bill should pass we would be without the service and the benefits now received from the Government; that on the land which we live on, when—if we patent our individual properties, the land will have the same status as any individually owned land on which a State tax is paid, and old-age-assistance individuals will not be required to pay tax. Most of our families are in agreement with the plans for termination of Federal service if we can be better prepared for this extreme change before the actual termination is accomplished. Our request for better preparedness is tied up with the needs of definite assistance to meet the needs of our colony and person. The reason we make the request is we are merely existing on a 20-acre piece of Government-owned land out on the south edge of Lovelock, Nev.

Mr. Abbott. You are referring to what is called Lovelock colony?

Mrs. Myers. Yes.

Mr. Abbott. That is 28 acres?

Mrs. Myers. Twenty acres.

Mr. Abbott. Twenty acres.

Mrs. Myers. Our non-Indian neighbors have houses with rooms enough for their families. We live in 1 or 2 rooms and crowd in our children. Sometimes there are 9 persons in a family living in 3 small rooms, and our neighbors have houses which are constructed to keep out the cold and snow and rain, but our houses are not constructed to keep out the cold and the rain. Our neighbors have sewers and water mains all over town, but we have none of these. We still use the old-fashioned washtub in the kitchen for bathing. We still have outside toilets. Our neighbors have fire protection for their property, police protection, well-lighted streets. We have none of these. We are unable to meet the expense even of a part of these things which our neighbors have because of seasonal and irregular labor. Our people live on this tax-free land because we cannot earn in 8 months the same as our neighbors earn in 12 months. Our average income is about $2,700.

Mr. Abbott. What is that figure, please?

Mrs. Myers. $2,700.

Congressman Rhodes. Per family?

Mrs. Myers. Yes; but some of—I think it is mostly the women that are earning all this. They have regular jobs. Some of the men don’t even work part of the time.

Congressman Rhodes. Why don’t they?

Mrs. Myers. Because the jobs are seasonal.

Congressman Rhodes. What jobs do they do when they are working?

Mrs. Myers. Ranch, mining, and in the mills, any mills.

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