| OCR Text |
Show X REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF INDIAN AFFAIRS. XXXI were so low,tbat,after payiug forthe st~ulnpage,allt~heb;~lancehatodg o topay theexpensesconnected xvithscirliug. salc, &c., aacl thedebtsof the loggers, and all was uot enough, as they remaioed in debt to the traders . , wno furnished the supplies several thousand dollars. Thus, with the exception of the subsistence which the loggers and their families ha^$ received during the logging season, some stock, sleighs, kc., bonght, and the stumpage receired by the tribe, their two years' work may be considered as worse than lost, as during that time all farming opefitions were being neglected, and they were drifting further away from all adaptability for that pursuit. Having: a good outfit, ho~evera, nd having learned much by expe-rience, but particolarlye~th ey were in want and withoutany other pros- . pect that promised a living, the Department again consentt?d to their operatingdnringthewinterof 1884-'85, wheu they bankedabout 4,500,000 feet. Having been suspected on former occasions of firing the woods so t.hat scorched green timber could be cut, and also of cutting more or lees green timber contrary to law and their express agreement, they were closely watched, and on a final inspection of their work it was found that they had banked about 700,OUO feet of green timber, thepro-ceeds of which (aome$5,696) wasdeductedfrom the entire amount owing to them and deposited to the credit of the Oovernment ; but as thie year's work brought goodprices, after paying the tribe $2,776 for stump-age and paying about $7,400 for current expeuses, some $16,500 was left to be divided amongst the loggers. This success, however, may in a g?eat measure be attributed to the means taken by this office to protect the Indians from sharpers when the sale was being made. Onlj legitimate lumber dealers were coun-tenanced. All who it was sapposed needed and could handle the timber were notified; ample time nas given, all was done openly, and the highest bidders got the logs; and as all was done directly through this office, every bid received is on file here, and the correspondence is of record, so that allsuspicion of collusior~b etween the agent or any other Government employ6 and the bidders, which has been suspected on former occasions, was eEectually'prevented this time; nor can any would-be purchaser who did not get the logs claim that he was not fairly treated. It will be observed by the foregoing that many difficolties, uncer-tainties, and drawbacks snrrooud this enterprise, and at best it cannot be of permanent advantage to the Iudians,but rather an injury, by un-settling their minds and unfitting them for more stable pursuits when t.he supply of this class of timber shall bare become exhausted, which will soon be the case. hloreover, it is almost. impossible to pre-vent them from cutting green standing timber, unless constar~tlyu nder the supervision of tho agent or some of the employ6s, which, to.. gether with the other matters connected with this business, entails an. immense amount of extra work, responsibility, and anxiety on the |
