In 1887 the Dawes Act legislated wide-scale private ownership of reser

Question

In 1887 the Dawes Act legislated wide-scale private ownership of reservation lands in the United States for Native Americans. The act allotted plots of 80 acres to each Native American adult. However, the Native Americans were not granted outright title to their lands. The act defined each grant as a “trust patent,” meaning that the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), the governmental agency in charge of administering policy regarding Native Americans, would hold the allotted land in trust for 25 years, during which time the Native American owners could use, but not alienate (sell) the land. After the 25-year period, the Native American allottee would receive a “fee patent” awarding full legal ownership of the land.

Two main reasons were advanced for the restriction on the Native Americans’ ability to sell their lands. First, it was claimed that free alienability would lead to immediate transfer of large amounts of former reservation land to non-Native Americans, consequently threatening the traditional way of life on those reservations. A second objection to free alienation was that Native Americans were unaccustomed to, and did not desire, a system of private landownership. Their custom, it was said, favored communal use of land.

However, both of these arguments bear only on the transfer of Native American lands to non-Native Americans: neither offers a reason for prohibiting Native Americans from transferring land among themselves. Selling land to each other would not threaten the Native American culture. Additionally, if communal land use remained preferable to Native Americans after allotment, free alienability would have allowed allottees to sell their lands back to the tribe.

When stated rationales for government policies prove empty, using an interest-group model often provides an explanation. While neither Native Americans nor the potential non-Native American purchasers benefited from the restraint on alienation contained in the Dawes Act, one clearly defined group did benefit: the BIA bureaucrats. It has been convincingly demonstrated that bureaucrats seek to maximize the size of their staffs and their budgets in order to compensate for the lack of other sources of fulfillment, such as power and prestige. Additionally, politicians tend to favor the growth of governmental bureaucracy because such growth provides increased opportunity for the exercise of political patronage. The restraint on alienation vastly increased the amount of work, and hence the budgets, necessary to implement the statute. Until allotment was ended in 1934, granting fee patents and leasing Native American lands were among the principal activities of the United States government. One hypothesis, then, for the temporary restriction on alienation in the Dawes Act is that it reflected a compromise between non-Native Americans favoring immediate alienability so they could purchase land and the BIA bureaucrats who administered the privatization system.   1 
 1. Which one of the following best summarizes the main idea of the passage?

(A) United States government policy toward Native Americans has tended to disregard their needs and consider instead the needs of non-Native American purchasers of land.
(B) In order to preserve the unique way of life on Native American reservations, use of Native American lands must be communal rather than individual.
(C) The Dawes Act’s restriction on the right of Native Americans to sell their land may have been implemented primarily to serve the interests of politicians and bureaucrats.
(D) The clause restricting free alienability in the Dawes Act greatly expanded United States governmental activity in the area of land administration.
(E) Since passage of the Dawes Act in 1887, Native Americans have not been able to sell or transfer their former reservation land freely.

2 
 2. Which one of the following statements concerning the reason for the end of allotment, if true, would provide the most support for the author’s view of politicians?

(A) Politicians realized that allotment was damaging the Native American way of life.
(B) Politicians decided that allotment would be more congruent with the Native American custom of communal land use.
(C) Politicians believed that allotment’s continuation would not enhance their opportunities to exercise patronage.
(D) Politicians felt that the staff and budgets of the BIA had grown too large.
(E) Politicians were concerned that too much Native American land was falling into the hands of non-Native Americans.

3 
 3. Which one of the following best describes the organization of the passage?

(A) The passage of a law is analyzed in detail, the benefits and drawbacks of one of its clauses are studied, and a final assessment of the law is offered.
(B) The history of a law is narrated, the effects of one of its clauses on various populations are studied, and repeal of the law is advocated
(C) A law is examined, the political and social backgrounds of one of its clauses are characterized, and the permanent effects of the law are studied.
(D) A law is described, the rationale put forward for one of its clauses is outlined and dismissed, and a different rationale for the clause is presented.
(E) The legal status of an ethnic group is examined with respect to issues of landownership and commercial autonomy, and the benefits to rival groups due to that status are explained.

4 
 4. The author’s attitude toward the reasons advanced for the restriction on alienability in the Dawes Act at the time of its passage can best be described as

(A) completely credulous
(B) partially approving
(C) basically indecisive 
(D) mildly questioning 
(E) highly skeptical

5 
 5. It can be inferred from the passage that which one of the following was true of Native American life immediately before passage of the Dawes Act?

(A) Most Native Americans supported themselves through farming.
(B) Not many Native Americans personally owned the land on which they lived. 
(C) The land on which most Native Americans lived had been bought from their tribes.
(D) Few Native Americans had much contact with their non-Native American neighbors.
(E) Few Native Americans were willing to sell their land to non-Native Americans.

6 
 6. According to the passage, the type of landownership initially obtainable by Native Americans under the Dawes Act differed from the type of ownership obtainable after a 25-year period in that only the latter allowed

(A) owners of land to farm it
(B) owners of land to sell it
(C) government some control over how owners disposed of land
(D) owners of land to build on it with relatively minor governmental restrictions
(E) government to charge owners a fee for developing their land

7 
 7. Which of the following, if true, would most strengthen the author’s argument regarding the true motivation for the passage of the Dawes Act?

(A) The legislators who voted in favor of the Dawes Act owned land adjacent to Native American reservations.
(B) The majority of Native Americans who were granted fee patents did not sell their land back to their tribes.
(C) Native Americans managed to preserve their traditional culture even when they were geographically dispersed.
(D) The legislators who voted in favor of the Dawes Act were heavily influenced by BIA bureaucrats.
(E) Non-Native Americans who purchased the majority of Native American lands consolidated them into larger farm holdings.

Source:   LSAT Official PrepTest 7   (  February 1993 ) 
 Difficulty Level:   600

anujkhatiwada · Answer

I'll give this a shot 
1. Which one of the following best summarizes the main idea of the passage?

(A) United States government policy toward Native Americans has tended to disregard their needs and consider instead the needs of non-Native American
purchasers of land.
(B) In order to preserve the unique way of life on Native American reservations, use of Native American lands must be communal rather than individual.
(C) The Dawes Act’s restriction on the right of Native Americans to sell their land may have been implemented primarily to serve the interests of
politicians and bureaucrats. - I chose this as the correct answer because the author states: " While neither Native Americans nor the potential non-Native American purchasers benefited from the restraint on alienation contained in the Dawes Act, one clearly defined group did benefit: the BIA bureaucrats", in the last paragraph  
(D) The clause restricting free alienability in the Dawes Act greatly expanded United States governmental activity in the area of land administration.
(E) Since passage of the Dawes Act in 1887, Native Americans have not been able to sell or transfer their former reservation land freely.

2. Which one of the following statements concerning the reason for the end of allotment, if true, would provide the most support for the author’s view of politicians?

(A) Politicians realized that allotment was damaging the Native American way of life.
(B) Politicians decided that allotment would be more congruent with the Native American custom of communal land use.
(C) Politicians believed that allotment’s continuation would not enhance their opportunities to exercise patronage.
(D) Politicians felt that the staff and budgets of the BIA had grown too large.
(E) Politicians were concerned that too much Native American land was falling into the hands of non-Native Americans.

(A) Politicians realized that allotment was damaging the Native American way of life.
(B) Politicians decided that allotment would be more congruent with the Native American custom of communal land use.
(C) Politicians believed that allotment’s continuation would not enhance their opportunities to exercise patronage.
(D) Politicians felt that the staff and budgets of the BIA had grown too large.
(E) Politicians were concerned that too much Native American land was falling into the hands of non-Native Americans.

3. Which one of the following best describes the organization of the passage?
 I chose D here because the author states the clause presented, then provides his own clause(the BIA agenda)

(A) The passage of a law is analyzed in detail, the benefits and drawbacks of one of its clauses are studied, and a final assessment of the law is offered.
(B) The history of a law is narrated, the effects of one of its clauses on various populations are studied, and repeal of the law is advocated
(C) A law is examined, the political and social backgrounds of one of its clauses are characterized, and the permanent effects of the law are studied.
(D) A law is described, the rationale put forward for one of its clauses is outlined and dismissed, and a different rationale for the clause is presented.
(E) The legal status of an ethnic group is examined with respect to issues of landownership and commercial autonomy, and the benefits to rival groups
due to that status are explained.

4. The author’s attitude toward the reasons advanced for the restriction on alienability in the Dawes Act at the time of its passage can best be described as 
 I couldnt figure out what A meant, but I chose E, because the author seeems to beleive the Dawes act was not enacted with the NA people in mind but because the BIA wanted to get bigger and more money, thus he was highly skeptical of it 
(A) completely credulous
(B) partially approving
(C) basically indecisive 
(D) mildly questioning 
(E) highly skeptical

5. It can be inferred from the passage that which one of the following was true of Native American life immediately before passage of the Dawes Act?
  They lived in tribes and did not necessarily own their own land 
(A) Most Native Americans supported themselves through farming.
(B) Not many Native Americans personally owned the land on which they lived. 
(C) The land on which most Native Americans lived had been bought from their tribes.
(D) Few Native Americans had much contact with their non-Native American neighbors.
(E) Few Native Americans were willing to sell their land to non-Native Americans.

6. According to the passage, the type of landownership initially obtainable by Native Americans under the Dawes Act differed from the type of ownership obtainable after a 25-year period in that only the latter allowed
 B, its in the passage 
(A) owners of land to farm it
(B) owners of land to sell it
(C) government some control over how owners disposed of land
(D) owners of land to build on it with relatively minor governmental restrictions
(E) government to charge owners a fee for developing their land

7. Which of the following, if true, would most strengthen the author’s argument regarding the true motivation for the passage of the Dawes Act?
 A, because if they passed, and NA moved from their lands then legislators now could purchase or have this land?? 
(A) The legislators who voted in favor of the Dawes Act owned land adjacent to Native American reservations.
(B) The majority of Native Americans who were granted fee patents did not sell their land back to their tribes.
(C) Native Americans managed to preserve their traditional culture even when they were geographically dispersed.
(D) The legislators who voted in favor of the Dawes Act were heavily influenced by BIA bureaucrats.
(E) Non-Native Americans who purchased the majority of Native American lands consolidated them into larger farm holdings.

PUNEETSCHDV · Answer

my answers

1. Which one of the following best summarizes the main idea of the passage?

(A) United States government policy toward Native Americans has tended to disregard their needs and consider instead the needs of non-Native American
purchasers of land.
(B) In order to preserve the unique way of life on Native American reservations, use of Native American lands must be communal rather than individual.
 (C) The Dawes Act’s restriction on the right of Native Americans to sell their land may have been implemented primarily to serve the interests of politicians and bureaucrats.  from last para
(D) The clause restricting free alienability in the Dawes Act greatly expanded United States governmental activity in the area of land administration.
(E) Since passage of the Dawes Act in 1887, Native Americans have not been able to sell or transfer their former reservation land freely.

2. Which one of the following statements concerning the reason for the end of allotment, if true, would provide the most support for the author’s view of politicians?

(A) Politicians realized that allotment was damaging the Native American way of life.
(B) Politicians decided that allotment would be more congruent with the Native American custom of communal land use.
 (C) Politicians believed that allotment’s continuation would not enhance their opportunities to exercise patronage.  only one line mentioned about politicians and thats in last para
(D) Politicians felt that the staff and budgets of the BIA had grown too large.
(E) Politicians were concerned that too much Native American land was falling into the hands of non-Native Americans.

3. Which one of the following best describes the organization of the passage?

(A) The passage of a law is analyzed in detail, the benefits and drawbacks of one of its clauses are studied, and a final assessment of the law is offered.
(B) The history of a law is narrated, the effects of one of its clauses on various populations are studied, and repeal of the law is advocated
(C) A law is examined, the political and social backgrounds of one of its clauses are characterized, and the permanent effects of the law are studied.
 (D) A law is described, the rationale put forward for one of its clauses is outlined and dismissed, and a different rationale for the clause is presented.  first para law, 2nd para rationale, 3rd para its dismissal and 4th different rationale
(E) The legal status of an ethnic group is examined with respect to issues of landownership and commercial autonomy, and the benefits to rival groups
due to that status are explained.

4. The author’s attitude toward the reasons advanced for the restriction on alienability in the Dawes Act at the time of its passage can best be described as

(A) completely credulous
(B) partially approving
(C) basically indecisive 
(D) mildly questioning 
 (E) highly skeptical  as from 3rd para he thinks the given reasons are flawed

5. It can be inferred from the passage that which one of the following was true of Native American life immediately before passage of the Dawes Act?

(A) Most Native Americans supported themselves through farming.
 (B) Not many Native Americans personally owned the land on which they lived.   2nd para Their custom, it was said, favored communal use of land.
(C) The land on which most Native Americans lived had been bought from their tribes.
(D) Few Native Americans had much contact with their non-Native American neighbors.
(E) Few Native Americans were willing to sell their land to non-Native Americans.

6. According to the passage, the type of landownership initially obtainable by Native Americans under the Dawes Act differed from the type of ownership obtainable after a 25-year period in that only the latter allowed

(A) owners of land to farm it
 (B) owners of land to sell it  first para last line
(C) government some control over how owners disposed of land
(D) owners of land to build on it with relatively minor governmental restrictions
(E) government to charge owners a fee for developing their land

7. Which of the following, if true, would most strengthen the author’s argument regarding the true motivation for the passage of the Dawes Act?

(A) The legislators who voted in favor of the Dawes Act owned land adjacent to Native American reservations.
(B) The majority of Native Americans who were granted fee patents did not sell their land back to their tribes.
(C) Native Americans managed to preserve their traditional culture even when they were geographically dispersed.
 (D) The legislators who voted in favor of the Dawes Act were heavily influenced by BIA bureaucrats.  last para summary
(E) Non-Native Americans who purchased the majority of Native American lands consolidated them into larger farm holdings.

auradediligodo · Answer

Hi everyone,
Got all correct in 14 minutes.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

P1

In paragraph one we are given that with the D-act in 1887 adult natives were given a 80 acre territory. But they did not have the right to sell it until 25 years of partial-ownership.

Brief summary : D-act and partial ownership for adult natives

P2

Here 2 reasons for the partial ownership are given:
#1 BIA was afraid that the lands would have been sold to non natives
#2 According to BIA natives did not like private property but desired communal property

Brief summary : 2 reasons for partial ownership

P3

In paragraph 3 we are given one reason for the author to be skeptical about the 2 reasons examined in P2. The author thinks that selling to non natives would threaten the native system but selling among natives is okay.

Brief summary : The author is skeptical about the reasons given for the partial ownership

P4

Paragraph 4 examines the other possible reasons for partial ownership. We are given that the bureaucrats benefitted from the partial ownership. We know that bureucrats want to increase budget and staff to compensate for a lack of power and that politicians want to increase bureaucracy to increase their patronage. Lastly we are given that a possible explanation is that the partial ownership was a compromise between the non natives and the bureaucrats.

Brief summary :Real reasons behind partial ownership

Main point

The main point is to investigate the real reasons behind private ownership

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1. Which one of the following best summarizes the main idea of the passage?

Pre-thinking

Main point question

Refer to main point and to paragraph summaries above
 
(A) United States government policy toward Native Americans has tended to disregard their needs and consider instead the needs of non-Native American purchasers of land.
 Out of scope

(B) In order to preserve the unique way of life on Native American reservations, use of Native American lands   must   be communal rather than individual.
 this is a detail and it is inconsistent

(C)   The Dawes Act’s restriction on the right of Native Americans to sell their land may have been implemented primarily to serve the interests of politicians and bureaucrats.
 In line with pre-thinking

(D) The clause restricting free alienability in the Dawes Act greatly expanded United States governmental activity in the area of land administration.
 Out of scope

(E) Since passage of the Dawes Act in 1887, Native Americans have not been able to sell or transfer their former reservation land freely.
 partial scope and inconsistent

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2. Which one of the following statements concerning the reason for the end of allotment, if true, would provide the most support for the author’s view of politicians?

Pre-thinking

Strengthen question

Author's view on politicians: politicians wants to increase bureaucracy in order to increase patronage
 
(A) Politicians realized that allotment was damaging the Native American way of life.
 Opposite

(B) Politicians decided that allotment would be more congruent with the Native American custom of communal land use.
 inconsistent

(C)   Politicians believed that allotment’s continuation would not enhance their opportunities to exercise patronage.
 this strengthen the author's belief that politicians have in their best interest patronage

(D) Politicians felt that the staff and budgets of the BIA had grown too large.
 Out of scope

(E) Politicians were concerned that too much Native American land was falling into the hands of non-Native Americans.
 Out of scope

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3. Which one of the following best describes the organization of the passage?

Pre-thinking

Structure question

D-act---->reasons----->reasons to be skeptical about the reasons----->true reasons
 
(A) The passage of a law is analyzed in detail,  the benefits and drawbacks  of one of its clauses are studied, and a final assessment of the law is offered.
 Not In line with pre-thinking

(B) The history of a law is narrated,  the effects of one of its clauses on various populations are studied, and repeal of the law is advocated 
 Not In line with pre-thinking

(C) A law is examined,  the political and social backgrounds of one of its clauses are characterized, and the permanent effects of the law are studied. 
 Not In line with pre-thinking

(D)   A law is described, the rationale put forward for one of its clauses is outlined and dismissed, and a different rationale for the clause is presented.
 In line with pre-thinking

(E)  The legal status of an ethnic group is examined with respect to issues of landownership and commercial autonomy, and the benefits to rival groups due to that status are explained. 
 Not In line with pre-thinking

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

4. The author’s attitude toward the reasons advanced for the restriction on alienability in the Dawes Act at the time of its passage can best be described as

Pre-thinking

Author's attitude question

The author is skeptical about the reasons given in P2
 
(A) completely credulous
 Not In line with pre-thinking

(B) partially approving
 The problem with B is approving. While the author understands the reasons why natives are not allowed to sell the properties to non natives it does not think that this is the real reason behind the partial ownership. "partially" is a trap

(C) basically indecisive 
 Not In line with pre-thinking

(D) mildly questioning 
 Not In line with pre-thinking

(E)   highly skeptical
 In line with pre-thinking

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

5. It can be inferred from the passage that which one of the following was true of Native American life immediately before passage of the Dawes Act?

Pre-thinking

Inference question

"A second objection to free alienation was that Native Americans were unaccustomed to, and did not desire, a system of private landownership. Their custom, it was said, favored communal use of land."

So probably before natives shared their lands
 
(A) Most Native Americans supported themselves through  farming .
 Not In line with pre-thinking

(B)   Not many Native Americans personally owned the land on which they lived. 
 In line with pre-thinking

(C) The land on which most Native Americans lived had been bought from their tribes.
 Not In line with pre-thinking

(D) Few Native Americans had much contact with their non-Native American neighbors.
 Not In line with pre-thinking

(E) Few Native Americans were willing to sell their land to non-Native Americans.
 Not In line with pre-thinking

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

6. According to the passage, the type of landownership initially obtainable by Native Americans under the Dawes Act differed from the type of ownership obtainable after a 25-year period in that only the latter allowed

Pre-thinking

detail question

natives could not sell their land
 
(A) owners of land to farm it
 Not In line with pre-thinking

(B)   owners of land to sell it
 In line with pre-thinking

(C) government some control over how owners disposed of land
 Not In line with pre-thinking

(D) owners of land to build on it with relatively minor governmental restrictions
 Not In line with pre-thinking

(E) government to charge owners a fee for developing their land
 Not In line with pre-thinking

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

7. Which of the following, if true, would most strengthen the author’s argument regarding the true motivation for the passage of the Dawes Act?

Pre-thinking

Strengthen question

We need to find new information supporting the idea that this law was passed to benefit the bureaucrats and the politicians
 
(A) The legislators who voted in favor of the Dawes Act owned land adjacent to Native American reservations.
 Not In line with pre-thinking

(B) The majority of Native Americans who were granted fee patents did not sell their land back to their tribes.
 Not In line with pre-thinking

(C) Native Americans managed to preserve their traditional culture even when they were geographically dispersed.
 Not In line with pre-thinking

(D)   The legislators who voted in favor of the Dawes Act were heavily influenced by BIA bureaucrats.
 In line with pre-thinking

(E) Non-Native Americans who purchased the majority of Native American lands consolidated them into larger farm holdings.
 Not In line with pre-thinking

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It is a good day to be alive!

RITESH24 · Answer

can anyone explain the reasoning for 7th question??

Sajjad1994 · Answer

Explanation

7. Which of the following, if true, would most strengthen the author’s argument regarding the true motivation for the passage of the Dawes Act?

Difficulty Level:   Easy

Explanation

(A)  No. Then they would probably not want to restrict the ability of the Native Americans to sell.

(B)  Unimportant. If anything, this supports the idea that the passage of the Dawes Act might be damaging to the Native Americans’ communal way of life, one of the alleged concerns that the author dismisses.

(C)  This answer choice is not relevant to the BIA and their power.

(D)  Correct. This indicates that the BIA was strongly in favor of the passage of the act, which strengthens the notion that the act served their interests.

(E)  What was done with land purchased from Native Americans is not relevant.

Answer: D

Hope it helps

notshynotme · Answer

Could someone explain Q.4 why D is incorrect? I thought E is too strong with the word "Highly"

Sajjad1994 · Answer

Explanation

4. The author’s attitude toward the reasons advanced for the restriction on alienability in the Dawes Act at the time of its passage can best be described as

Difficulty Level:   700

Explanation

This is a  “tone”  question that asks about the author’s attitude toward the official explanation behind the land sales clause of the Dawes Act. You quite possibly were able to answer this one without a look back to the passage; the whole main idea of the passage revolves around this very attitude. The only reason the author offers her own interpretation of the motivations behind the land sales clause is because she is very dissatisfied with the  “official”  explanation. That immediately rules out any choice with a positive sentiment, such as (A)’s  “credulous”  and (B)’s  “approving.”  It also rules out neutrality, namely (C)’s  “indecisive.”

No, the author’s attitude is negative regarding this issue, and so the question boils down to how negative: Is she  “mildly questioning” (D)  or  “highly skeptical” (E) ? You may have needed to return to the text to select between these two remaining choices, but you shouldn’t have had any trouble finding clues in the third Para and the beginning of the fourth. In particular, notice how in line 38 the author calls the official explanation  “empty.”  This is enough to confirm the author’s attitude as highly skeptical;  “mildly questioning”  is much too weak. If the author only  “mildly”  questioned the official rationale for the clause, the opposition in the third Para wouldn’t be so strongly stated, and the author may not have seen the need to provide her own hypothesis. And she wouldn’t have used the word  “empty”  to describe the official explanation.

When asked to describe the author’s attitude toward something, first break it down to positive, negative, or indifferent. This should help you eliminate between 2 and 4 wrong choices. Then, if necessary, look for clues in the passage to narrow your choice down to the winner.

Critical readers understand how even small words can provide a world of meaning. Think about it: If you were arguing a point with a friend, and your friend said your argument was  “empty,”  you would not get the impression that he was  “mildly questioning”  your notion. No, he’s basically saying  “it stinks”  and so  “highly skeptical”  is a better description of his opinion. And the same is true here. That one little word in  line 38  confirms  (E)  as the correct choice.

Answer: E

In 1887 the Dawes Act legislated wide-scale private ownership of reser

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In 1887 the Dawes Act legislated wide-scale private ownership of reser

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