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NATIONAL HISTORY DAY 2016
with the superintendent was tenuous given LaMere’s discipline, desertion, and attendance problems early on at the school. But
LaMere described his time at Haskell as “the best days.”24 According to his file, he joined the Kansas National Guard in 1917
without the permission of the superintendent.25 Peairs accused LaMere of deserting school for the service and was skeptical
that LaMere would pass the examination for acceptance into the service.26
In an ironic turn of events, LaMere later wrote to Peairs to request help with getting out of military service because “we are not
doing very much here just foot drill and little gun drill is all.”27 Peairs poignantly replied:
S
…I am not in a position to take any steps towards getting you released from the army. Having volunteered,
my judgment is that the best thing for you to do now is to make the year of service mean just as much as
possible by being studious, and being faithful in meeting whatever opportunities come to you….The one great
weakness with so many Indian boys throughout the country is that they are too prone to begin [sic] a thing
and then become discouraged and want to give it up before completing it.28
hortly thereafter LaMere was sent to serve overseas with the American Expeditionary Forces (AEF). In describing what it
was like to be “now here at the front,” LaMere wrote, “we are still thinking that we will be back to gods [sic] country some
day when this cruel war is over.” In the same letter, he also shared his observation s on encountering European culture while
abroad: “The people here are very queer the French people and also the English people. They are wearing wooden shoes and
drink wine all the time just as we drink water. The only French word that I learn is we [sic] which means yes.”29 On October 25,
1918, Peairs replied:
I am glad to hear from the boys in the Army and especially from those who are over in France. I suppose…
you have been through several battles and I hope have been “Over the Top.” It certainly looks as though a few
weeks or months more of successful campaigning…would end the awful war. We are hoping for such a result
and then for you and the rest of the boys to come back to your native land to enjoy the efforts of the work of
the Allied Armies, namely: PERMANENT PEACE.30
Luckily, the Superintendent was correct in his assessment. LaMere’s international encounter ended on November 11, 1918,
Armistice Day, just 17 days after the Peairs penned that letter.
After the war was over, LaMere asked to reenroll at Haskell to continue his education. Peairs, in seeking a way to help pay for
LaMere’s education, wrote. “I understand that the boy in question...the mother and her present husband are poor and cannot
afford to pay for the education of this boy….In view of the fact this boy gave up his school to enlist to the Army and so served
for a good many months...”31 However, LaMere’s file indicates that he continued misbehaving once he returned to Haskell after
his service. In a sad turn of events, there is no documentation to indicate that he graduated from the institution, though he
continued to exchange brief correspondence with Peairs until 1922.32
Student case files from BIA-owned and -operated boarding schools, like Haskell, offer a unique perspective on how American
Indians encountered and explored a major historical event such as WWI.
Hervey Peairs began his career with “Indian Services” in 1877. Peairs served in a variety of capacities with Indian Affairs, including Haskell Institute, and retired in the summer of
1931. “Friends Unite in Honor of Peairs,” Lawrence Journal-World, June 1, 1931.
26
Hervey Peairs to Charles LaMere, 15 June 1917. Letter. Charles LaMere, Student Case File
27
Charles LaMere to Hervey Peairs, February 23, 1917. Letter. Charles LaMere, Student Case File
28
Hervey Peairs to Charles LaMere, 25 October 1917. Letter. Charles LaMere, Student Case File
29
Charles LaMere to Hervey Peairs, 16 August 1918. Letter. Charles LaMere, Student Case File
30
Hervey Peairs to Charles LaMere, 25 October 1918. Letter. Charles LaMere, Student Case File
31
Peairs. Hervey Peairs to Charles LaMere, September 22, 1919. Letter. Charles LaMere, Student Case File
32
Much of the correspondence relates to whether or not the State Legislature of Kansas passed the Bonus Bill.
25