OCR Text |
Show REPORTS OONCERNING INDIANS 1N UTAH. Uncomyahgre Ute, Ouray Agency: Ma es over 18 years ........................................ 287 Females over 18 years ...................................... 264 Males 6 to 18 years ......................................... 87 Females 6 to 18 yeam ....................................... 94 Males under 6 years.. ...................................... 32 Females under 6 yeara.. .................................... 31 White River Ute, Ouray Agency: Males over 18 yearn.. ....................................... 7 Females over 18 years ................................ 5 Males 6 to 18 years. ........................................ 2 Females 6 to 18 years.. ..................................... 3 This is a consolidated agency. A clerk is in charge at the Our?y Agency. There are three bands of the Ute under my ~hargeas agent, vlzl the Umta, White River, and the Uncompah e They are all qmet, peaceable Ind~ans. There are a few of the White River 1n8ans that would like to make trouble, and they would do so if it were not for the fear of the result. But I am happy to say there are only about fifteen or twenty of them, The Indians still continue to improve in .their farming, and more of them every yem want to have farms assigned to them. I wign farms to the Indians and they Improve them. Of course it is the understanding t M when the Indians are finally allotted theae lands will be allotted to the Indiana that improved them. The Indians have a good market for everything they rame on account of Fort Du Cheane being located in the center of the farming district of the reservation. It is very difficult to get the Indians to save their seed for the next year. I will next spring ask your Department to spend $6,000 of their roceeds of labor money for the purpose of pur-chasing seed wheat, oats, alfalfa, an8 otatoes. The Indians would be much more genefited if.the Department would order that all the proceeds of labor money should .@ used in improving farms; and give them the mone only in return for work, even lf you had to hire them to lmprove their own farms andrpey them with their own money. I have taken the names of a large number of Indians from the ration roll, and will reduce it more as soon as school begins. I will endeavor to make every ahle-bodied Indian work for all he gets exce t the annuity and proceeds of labor money, which I am compelled to pay him. P make three cash payments a year to the Indians. The buildin at Uinta A encv and the Uinta and Ouray ?choolsare in fairly good condition, thefuildings at 8urap A r y , wtth a few exceptions, are enhrely worth-less. I have recommended a num r of times that the agency be moved to the Ouray school. All the progressive Indians that belong to that agency live nearer to the school than they do to the agency. The Unita A ency and school should have waterworks. The building8 are in much danger of ire, and with a very little expense a syatem could he put in that would rotert them. We have lenty of water, and wlth a fall of over 100 feet to the mig, the expense would not%e great. I think I have about broken up the liquor traEc among the Indians. We only had two trials for thst offense last year. One man went to the penitentiary, the other one was indicted by the United States grand jury, but in the trial the'jury cleared him. There are two schools on this reaennation, viz, the Uints and the Ouray. These Indians are very much opposed to the schools, and it is very difficult to get them to send their children to school; in fact, there are a large number of them that can only be put in school by force. I have coaxed and threatened ever slnce I have been here. I have discharged Indian employees, for refusing, and have withheld all favors from Indians who refused to lace their children in school. But I am firmly convinced that nothing but £om wiE reach s number of them. I don't think the reservation schools do as much good ,as the nonreservation schools do. It is very di5cult to keep them irom talkln them ownlanguage. And durin vacation they o back to their camp, and whe nn! t ey come back to school in the fa71 they seem to gave forgotten much that they learned the year before. As you have positions of superintendents of the two sohools, I recommend that the agency physicians beput in charge as aating superintendents. They have plenty of time to attend to this m addition to their other work. Irrigation.-We have not endeavored to open up any new ditches the last two yeala, but have simply kept the old ones in good tepazr. The old ditohw furnish water enough for the number of Indians that are now farming, but within a year or twp spme new ditches will have to be mde, A large number of theae Indians |