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Show REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF INDIAN AFFAIRS. XLIII ment system tends to break top tribal relations. It has the erect of creating individuality, responsibility, itncl a desire to accumitlate prop-erty. I t teaches the Indians hatiits of industry and frugality, and ~timnlatest, hem to look forwa'rd to a better and inore useful life, aud, in the end, it will relieve the government of large annual appropria-tions.:' All Indians may not at present 1)e prepared to use to t~dvau-tage lands allotted to them intlividnally. Bnt luany of them me, and where prepared for it, the Indian sllonld l~s v ea home of his own, as the white nlan has. In many of the treaties wit11 these people no provision is matte for the allotment of their lands. I u others, wl~icli contain such provisions, the amolint,is entirely inadequate to the mnrlts and necessities of the Indians, being in some instances as lorn as twenty acres. A great many tribes occupy reservations created by the Presideut. Tl~r reis no antbority of law for tliu allotment of the lands mit.liin tlds class of reservations. Many of t l ~ ere servatiolts npon which tliere is anthority for a division of t.he lantls in sex-eralty 11:~ve never been sorreyeel and snbtliri(led, and ill nillnerous cases rrltere tlris bas bee11 (lone tlic mo~~;~n~esntittsl,~ es, and ot,her marks of the snrvey lhaye beeu desCro~eda nel obliterated by the elen~rntv or otherwise, so that even rrhere treaty stipulatioos au-thorize allot~nentsth er cannot be made from this cause. Tho corre-spot~ denceo u the files of this officea llow t,l~avte ry lnany of the Indian tribe8 are clitinorous for t l ~ael lotmeut of t'heir lands in severalts-. Why not, then, eneonrage thein ill this adraucecl step towards oivilizationP Give the Iudian his land iu se\-eralt.3-. I ~ e ht im feel his inrlivid~i?tlit~ and respousibilit,y, and a senso of proprietorship. Enconrage him to go to work and earn his living and proride for the fntnre want,s and neces-sities of hirnself and fantily, and ab:~ndon his shiftless, do-nothing, cle-pendent life. Upon the subject of property, i\Ialthus says: According to all paet experience xnd the treat observations which ran be made an the motives which 0perat.e upon the lmam,u tulind, there o:cu be !lo well-fonndcd bop" of obtaining a large produoa From the soil bnf imfler a systelu ofpiiv;cta property. It seems perfectly visionar,~t o nnppose tha t nu); stin111111a~b ort of t h a t which is excited i n man bg the desire for providi~~fogr himself and fanrily, and of bettering his con ditition in life, should operate or, the mass of wciety wilhaufficient foreeend constancy to overcome tho natural indolanoe of mnnkied. All the attempts vhich have beex, made sinoe the omnmenoement of anthentic history to prooeetl upon a pr i~~eipolfe oonlloon a.ron-ertr "have either bee;, ao iusirnifioaut that no inferenre onu be drern from thwi or have been luarkerl b~ the nmat signal hi lmea; a d t he changes whioli have been eReuted in modern times by educaiioll do uot,see~uto advance n, single atep towar4 makinLn. nneh s state of thin& nore rlrobable in fntl~re. We LUBV therefore - more sn.felg oonolede that ~vhileln au retailla the fiallle physical and oloral constitution which he is observed to povsere at present, ,to other than n system of private propellr atsucla the least ohauee of pro~idiupfb r 8uch a large allrl inoreaaing popnlation as that rrhich is to he folznd in many countries nt present. These principles apply as well to the Indiau as to the white man. Xo long as the government oontinnes to feed the Iud~an and enco~trages |