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Show 18 REPORT OF THE J about 700 souls of the Pah-Ute tribe, under the headship of Oderkerno. They appeared well pleased with th8 purposes of the government towards them, and accepted their presents with promises, apparently quite sincere, to continue on peaceable terms with the white settlers. On a subsequent day a similar talk was held with the Pal-Ute Indians of the reservation on Tnuckee river, under the head chief Wuna-mucka, a man of much native sagacity, and well disposed towards the whites. They number about ,500 souls, are a better description of people than the other Pah-Utes, and are situated on a reservation of a desirable character. Wuna-much made satisfactory declarations of his purpose to pre-vent all interference on the part of his people with the overland stage and the telegraph, which passes through their country between the Atlantic and the Paclfic States. Care has been taken to remove white trespassers from these and all the other reservations in Nevada. The Waehoe trihe present a painful con,trast to the other Indians, even of this region. They are a poor and degraded set of creatures, living on insects and spontaneous products, and can do hut little harm to anybody. No reservation has yet been assigned to them, and Governor Nye strongly discourages their location on the Pyramid Lake reservation. In the opinion of the same officer, the Pah-Utes should be placed on the road to a higher civilization without further delay, by a judieious supply of farming implements and cattle, and articles of domestic utility. Schools should he established on the reservations as in other superintendencies. Indian affairs in Dakota for the year past have been satisfactory. In the Upper &Iissouri agency, where the tribes have no treaties with the United States which confer annuities upon them, but only treaties of amity from which they derive but a few eoods aunuallv. the seculitv for continued neace is not strone. It would be good>olicy to locgte these 1nd;aus within rese&ations at an ear& day. The numerous rumors of alleged hostilitiea by the Indians on the settle-mints to the northwest of Dakota are untrue, or at- least gross exaggerations. In northwestern Iowa it is known that for several years past Indian incursions have been frequcut, but their depredations during the past year have been com-paratively unimportant, which is mainly due to the vicinity of two Indian reservations, (the Yancton and Ponca,) which operate as a protection to the white settlements not easily appreciated by those who have never resided upon the Indian frontier. A few bands of Sautees, who do not participate in the distri-bution of annuities to Indians residing on the IvIinneaota river, are the only actively hostile Indians in that region. A boat containing annuity goods was, with its contents, accidentally destroyed by fire, and communication with Fort Benton thereby snspended, and consequently no report has been received from the agent in that quarter. I was so fortunate, however, as to be able to replace the goods that were lost by this accident through the courtesy of afessrs. Chon-teau & Co., of St. Louis, who have a large stock in that country, to which they allomed me to resort, upon condition that goods similar in quality and quantity to those necessarily used ehall be supplied to them upon the resumption of na+ gation in the spring, so that by this arrangement no trouble with the Indians of that vicinity need be apprehended. The Poncae have but recently gone upon their reservation. They have already some three or four hundred acres of laud ploughed, and there is reason to believe that in the course of another yea their condition will be materially improved. The Yaucton Sioux are doing well; they have abont eight hundred acreg of land under cultivation, and it is believed that the whole tribe, of which a few bands have hitherto been refractory, will veT shortly settle upon their reservation. A portion of the goods intended for this tribe, estimated at from four to six thousand dollars in value, was acci-dentally destroyed by the sinking of a boat, and some tro~iblew ith the Indians was anticipated in consequence of the loss, but by the prompt action of their agent the danger has been averted. Some apprehensions of an ontbreak among |
