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Show 20 REPORTS OF AGENTS IN COLORADO. which the sgency carpenter is nnw at work upon. Several Utes have =Ired for houses, snd I only regret that I have not thus far been able to give them wsistnooc in erecting them. During the summer,Ouray, with the sasistaoee of Utes only, built quite s substantial fence around about ten aeles of land, a portion of which he has euitlvated. He is evi-dentlv much pleased the remoral to this valley, and will pe1.8ist iu farming. here tins been much difficulty in taking ear8 of the cattle-herd. They &re of Texas breed, with as yet but a slight tinge of American blood, aud tind plnees of resort io these mountains which are almost inaeeersible. To make domestic stock uf then, otherwise than by thesalectior~o f a. few work csttle is unprefirabie. I t is well that author it^ has been iven to use then, for beef. There is, iudeed, noeali for cows among the Utes yet. When %ere is, goad American cows should be obtained. Perhaps ltad the Indians been used to seeing B U C ~eo we, they wa~lidh ave been in demand. There has been nothing urlusuai it, disease or mortdity. In February there was s. religious festivnl in the vieittity of the agenoy, s sort of Shaker service of singing and dancing, lield lor two or thee days. As to distinctively religious in fluenee upon the Utes, it has been very small. It has bern regarded of erst importance to tesclr them honesty and goad tsitlv, and it is sad that these virtues have not been more prse-tieed by those who have had den1ing.r with them. The Utes can be tsughr to wu,li, but ir must be by very ssteedy and persistent efforts. Probably nothing would be so &'eclunl as rarnperlsstioxt immediately give,) for each day's or hour's ro1.k. They are not ready to work for provisions or annuity goods, for wlrieh they have already bartered their land. I hare the honor to be,~.erpeetfully, your obedient servant, H. F. BOND, United Slates hdion Agent. The Commrs8roaER or.' INnlan AFFAIRS. WHITE RIVER 1,NDldN AGEXCY, White River, Colorado, Angust 31,1876. SIR: I have the honor to submit the following as the annual report of the White River Indian sgenoy, Colorado, fur the yesr ending August 31. 1876. I repart the number of Indians belonging to and cared for at this agency about the same as that reported last yesr, nsmely, nine hundred. Thenumbor of thosewha remain more steadily ator near the agency,with whom we have became well aequaiuted and among whom the progress in our work bus chi~flyb een made, is about six hundred, prinoipally of the Yampa, Grsnd River, and Uintah bands of Utes. Of these, the average is about five or tiue and a half to s family. During the )ear I should think there hsd been a very small aatursl increase among them. On this point, however, I cannot report wirh absolute eer-tainty. The two hundred Indians of the Musehe band, reported last yoar as having ooms to this agency expressing their pur ose to make tbis their home, awirmg to some disst~tiafaotioni n regard to the sale of a porti& of tllcir land in thc ~outhorup art nf their reserve, roooluded, after remaining here about two month*, to go back and make their peace with their chief. Most of the Indians known as Deurer TTtes, and comprising Peah's, Colorado's, and Wash-ington's bands, have reported at this agency, and reolaiued for longer or shorter pe~.iods at a time aboutus. Calorada himselfha8 been ])ere but little; Ponb,not at sll since the cowardly murder of an Indian eamn>ittrd by him in Jnnual.y last ; Yl'xsllingtan has but recently come to the agency. The conduct of the Indians at the agency has been very generally good. They have sub-mitted readily to the direction of the agent. They llsve otle.red no vioienee of any kind to the emplay&, and but in one case, aud that a trhisl affair, lmva offered any to the agent.. Among tltemselves they sro remarkably peaceable, I would say even liindly, in their dispo-sition. I have known of no qunrlel between one India,, and another whiie at or about the sgenoy. The sad a h i r which Ibapp~ned last winter, and wbiob, I am satisfied, was of the most exceptional ehnracter among tilese Indima, w ~ isn no sense the result of 8 quarrel. Peah, no Indian who bears at tbis agency the very worst repot~tion,s hot snd killed an un-armed Indian without provoration. Of tlie conduct of the Irdialis away from the agency, rhen they meet with white settlers, I cannot, of course, judge su full1 and assert so eootidently; bnt I am satisfied that it has been, aimost without exception. good. The most serious eomplaiut that has been made to me witilin the twelve months ia one from the settlers of Middle Psrk, who complain of the Indians of Colorado's and Ungachids bands, that they iudiscl.inlinateiy slaughter the game of the region for the skins and pelts. I find 'that generally the most oumplaint is made by persons who have the least cause for i t ; that storips of insolence and violence of these Indians originate most frequently among those who have never experienced such, but who, on the contrary, have %bused and maltreated them; that the ohargesof tllievinganddepredat-i |
