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Show tory of Utah 100 miles; thence west, true courses, to the center of the channel of the Colorado River; thence southwesterly along the center channel of said stream to the southern boundary of said Territory of Utah; thence east along the southern boundary line of the said Territory to the place of beginning; excepting, however, such portion of the Territory above described lying south of the San Juan River now constituting a portion of the Navajo Reservation. 17 The Commissioner felt that this section of the bill would have to be amended to settle the Utes in the Uintah Basin despite their desire not to be located in that area. He opined against the San Juan area because four towns were located there, and three of the towns were post- office towns which meant that there were a sizeable number of settlers living within the proposed reservation site. Because the purpose in moving the Indians was to reduce the pressure from the whites, he saw little difference between the two proposed locations. 18 The Commissioner suggested that if the Utes could not be persuaded to move to the Uintah Basin area, a reservation just west of the one defined in the bill, but still in San Juan County, should be established. Another alternative mentioned in his report to the Senate was to move them to the area west of the Grand River ( Colorado River). With these recommendations the report was sent to the chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, H. L. Muldrow, on the 5th of April. 19 By April 22, Senate Bill Number 1916 had been amended in the Committee to include those suggestions of the Commissioner. It was reported to the Senate, 2o but was recommitted to the Committee on the same day to wait inspection by the Utes of the land suggested in the bill. The bill did not pass either House that year. However, the testimony of the Indians and the view of the Interior Department were important and had an influence on future negotiations with the Utes. Those views became the cornerstone of the Government policy to try to remove the Utes in 1888. The other bills introduced into both Houses during the 1885- 86 session met the same fate as did Senate Bill Number 1916. Six years had passed since the signing of the 1880 agreement, and the Southern Utes were still left unsettled. They didn't know when or where they were to be relocated. The continued inaction of the Government caused the Weeminuche Band to again request removal. They called a council of all their leaders to discuss the matter. The outcome was an appeal to their agent, Stollsteimer, to get the Government to remove the band from the present reservation. The agent replied that the Government would not remove only a part of the tribe. If all consented to be moved, then the Government would attempt to act. 21 17. Ibid. The northern area of the Navajo Reservation was added in 1884 as compensation for lands taken from the southern portion of their reservation. 18. Ibid., p. 4. The Compendium of the Tenth Census of the United States indicated he was right, for it stated that Bluff, the county seat of San Juan County, had a population of 107, with the rest of the county having 97 people and 31 farms. These figures were compiled six years before the bill was being considered and the Commissioner assumed that they had increased significantly since that time. The Rand McNally and Co's. Index Atlas of the World listed one of the other towns, La Sal, as having a population of 22 while the other two, St. Elmo and Montezuma, were not listed. 19. Ibid., p. 1. 20. Ibid., p. 5. 21. Denver Tribune - Republican, February 20, 1886, n. p. - 35- |