Eastern times. [volume] (Bath, Me.) 1846-1857, 1854-01-05


Report of.the INDIAN Department.
The report of the Commissioner of the In
dian Department is very lengthy document,
devoted shiefy to a general view of the pres
ent condition of our Indian relations, and a
STATEMENT of the operations of this branch Of
shesPublic ssrvice during the past year. The
followiugis brid abstract of its contents =
The report estimates the whole number Of
Indians within oul limits to be 400, 600, about
1900 0fsrwhoso still ihger in the States to
tbe Eastward Of tie Mississippi
in New York, Michigan and Wisconsin. The
number in Minnesota, and along the western
frontiers 20 aFexas is lie, goo; those of the
plains and Rocky Mountains, SO, 900 lin Tex
sas. So, 0D0S in NeR Mexico, $4,000; in Cali
ifofnia. Ad0, 900 in Utah, gl2!O00, and in On
egon and Washington, $4,000. Peace and
tranquility have generally prevailed among
the. tribes aloEg our. extensive inner frontiers,
from lake Superior to Texas. Among those
more Remote, and more recently brought under
the supervision Of the Department, fewer oc-
currences Of q painful nature have been repor-
ted than might have been anticipated. t
Efforts have been made to treat with the In
dams west Of Iowa and Missouri, for the ex-
tinguishmept OF the Indian title to still further
porilbps. y, Of the lands in that quarter but
without present success 81 .isd old IN
The acquisition of Texas, New Mexico, and
our Pacific possessions, and the vast annual
emigration which presses over the Indian re-
servations on IFS journey thither, render it alb
hat Tndi hoe nr1n pd
from the path Of the emigrants as far as prac-
tlcable. In the present condition of the Indian
no good results to him from his contact with
the emigrant, while the latter is always en-
barrassed on his journey and frequently in
jured blythe presence the former. rf.ae
There is but single agent for all the In
dams Of the upper Arkansas and Platte rivers,
and the immense region lying between the
frontier tribes and the Rocky Mountains. For
the better protection of the overland emigrants
to California and Oregon. it is, recommended
that the agency be divided and another agent
be located for the Indians on the upper waters
of the Platte river. 0ia aAGi9af Ell Aa
Attention. is called to the fact that the Greeks
and other ,sem-cullivatcd- tribes on the from
tier have adopted and enforced stringent laws
prohibiting the Introduction or sale of ardent
spirits in the Indian Countrywide at the
same time they are amenabe to the laws Of
the whites, and are thus liable to two arrests
and punishments for the same offence. The
Indians will not submit to this, and serious diff
sculties have already arisen caused by efforts
of the United States Marshal to arrest Indian
offenders. ~ reVrt 1u r a1ai rsaf
The three small tribes of Senecas, Shaw
nees and Quapas, are among the most agrcul
tural tribes of the West. They will realize
from their crops of the past year sufficient
quantity Of grain, vegetables, &C., for their
own consumption, and some for sale. Most of
them have large stocks Of cattle, horses and
hogs. mi
With regard to the Texas Indians, the re-
port recommends that system of colonization
be adopted, placing them in suitable locations,
limited in extent and distant from the white
settlements, and teaching them to devote them
selves to the cultivation of the soil and the
raising of stock. I-Hu ua .e...
At the last session of Congress, an appro-
priation CT $3.50, 600 was made to defray the
expenses Of removing the Indians in California
to five military reservatioRs,' of not more than
twenty-five Thousand acres each, and subsist-
ing them there. 1t appears that suitable To-
cations cannot be found in North California
al and colonization will, therefore, it is APP
pretended, be attended with greater difficulty
and expense than was expected, and instead
of there being ample terriT5Ty for the purpose,
belonging to the United States, as was sup
posed, it also seems that in the only sections
of country proper for the location of the Ind-
ans, it may be necessary, in order TO obtain
the necessary reservations, TO incur consider
able expense in making extensive purchases
of existing claims to the lands, founded upon
presumption rights and Spanish and Mexican
grants. 4H4s H
The results of long and ample experience
have shown that the money annuity system
has done more to thwart the efforts Of the
Government to civlize the Indian tribes than
anything with which it has been obliged to
contend. However inadequate the pittance,
he looks forward to it in the vague expecta-
ton Of its suf1iciency, and lives on fron year
to year an idle and dependent being. Every
annuity coded by the government to an undo
mestcated tribe should consist chiefly of
goods, agricultural implements and assistance,
stock animals and the means of moral, men
tai and industrial education and training. ",
The whole amount payable and TO be cx-
pended for'and on account of the Indian ser
vice, the present fiscal year. is 81 ,0l5, 735 so
Of which $532 boz 81 is for money annuities,
$I36, 676 so for goods and provisions, $780,
96l 50 for educational purposes, $94,3l8 81
for agricultural and mechanical assistance,
and $I89 $40 so for other miscellaneous pur-
poses for the benefit of the Indians. ni.
The amount now funded or held in trust for
the benefit of the Indians by the United States
and on which an annual interest is paid from
the Treasury, is 50 ,565, 600, which sum the
Commissioner recommends to be invested in
safe and profitable stocks, nI
MoRE CoUNTERFEITERs ARREsTED.-On