Our Conference meetings began on the afternoon of Thursday, Sept. 16, and by that time we were all on the ground and ready. We had journeyed, camping by the way, some over from the Missouri and others down from the head of the Coteau. The native delegates and visitors were encamped by the river-side, convenient to wood and water and the place of meeting. The missionaries pitched their tents by the house and enjoyed the hospitality of P. A. Vannice and his good wife. At the time appointed we gathered at the church and had a sermon by one of the native pastors--Louis. Then came the business organization, followed by short speeches of greeting and welcome. On the following day the real work of the Conference began. Questions relating to the proper training and education of children, and the training and preparation needful for the ministry, were discussed with interest and profit. The next day, which was Saturday, was taken up in the discussion of two prominent subjects of interest--the homestead act in its relation to Indians, and our Dakota paper. On the first of these topics there was a full and healthy expression of opinion. It was said that the plan of depending on the government for support tended to bad. Said Ehnamane: "If when we are hungry we cry out to our Great Father 'Give us food,' or when we are cold we say, 'Send us clothes,' we become as little children--we are not men. Here at this place we see that each man takes care of himself; he has a farm and a house, and some have a cow and a few chickens. We go into their houses and we see tables and chairs, and when they eat they spread a cloth over the table, as do white people, and there are curtains to the windows, and we see the women dressed like white women--here we find men. We who look to the government for food and clothing are not men but little children, and the longer we depend on the government the lower down we find ourselves." Others differed: they said one could grow into manhood anywhere supported by the government or caring for themselves. Besides, it would not do to be too confident. It was hard work to strike out alone; some had starved, some had been frozen to death, and others had turned back. It means _work_ to become a self-supporting citizen. Perhaps there was as much real feeling expressed when the _Iapi Oaye_ was discussed as at any other time during Conference. Last year it was hoped that by another year the paper would become self-sustaining. Owing to several reasons, however, the subscription receipts for the past year are very much smaller than for the year previous, necessitating the meeting of a considerable deficiency by the missionaries themselves. It was thought best for our native membership to know the facts in order to stimulate action, lest we be obliged to discontinue the paper. However, they would listen to nothing of that kind.