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Show REPORT OF THE COMMIBJIUNER, OF INDIAN AFFAIRS. LIX $2,000,000 for Indian education. The popular impression of the Indi-ans obtained from Wild West Show exhibits is that they are incapable of civilization, and this impression works directly and powerfully against the Government in its beneficent work. I have endeavored through the various agents to impress up011 the minds of the Indians the evil resulting from eonnectingthemselves with such shows and the irnportltnce of theirremaining at home and devot-ing their time and energies to builtling honses, establishing permanent homes, cultivating farms, and acquiring thrifty, industrious habits, thus placing themselves in fit position for absorption into our political and civil life. (See Appendix, page CLXv.) TRADE. The aystem of restricting trade with Indians on reservations to per-sons who hold a license issued by the Commissioner of Indian Affa,irs is a relic of the old system of considering au Indian as a ward, a reser-vationas a corral, anil a tradership as a golden opportunity for pliioder and profit. Reserves were then remote from white settlements, robes and pelts were abundant and were bartered for articles of t,riiIing value, competition was almost nnknown, and close supervision of Indisrl trade was well-nigh i~npracticable. Now most reservations liave towns in their immediate vicinity; hunting has virtually ceased; the Iudiau wants staple articles and can offer in exchange only other staples of his own raising, trinkets of his own manufacture, money of his own earn-ing, or his fast diminishing "cash annuity ;" he can buy and sell in towns or on the reservation as he chooses; and as his time, at his own valuation of it, coi~ntsfo r little, he will go where he can get the best rates or the most credit, without regard to a few miles of distance. Recent inspection reports from many agenoies have represented prices charged by licensed traders as being naturally regulated by the competition of neighboring tumns, rather than by the fixed scale pre-scribed by the Indian Bureau ; consequently, in such instances, the supervision of Iudian trade now required relates mainly to the per-sonal character of the trader and his employ6s, their iufluence among the Indians with whom they are allowed to live, their observance of rnles prescribed by this Bureau, and their abstaining from dealing in intoxicating liquors or other contraband articles. Licensed Iudian trade is losing its distinctive characteristics. It is the policy of the office to treat it as a mere matter of business and toallow changes in traderships to take place as they do in other branches of business. Licenses are granted for one year only as hith-erto; but if a trader has honestly observed the' rnles of the office his license is renewed, unless he voluntarily surrenders it or sells out to some one else. In the latter case the office is ready to license t,he per-son to mhom the sale is to be made, provided he can furnish a good bondandsatisfactory testimonials. For the usual letter on this sub-ject see Appendix page OLXXXIII. This policy, which gives to the |