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Show IDAHO AND MONTANA. I friendly tribes, who feared attacks from the Sioux; and I had further instructed Agent Latta to confer with General Sully, who was in immediate command in the Upper Missouri country, as to the proper course to pursue. With his con-sent, ahe goods were delivered to the friendly tribes mentioned above; 'the balance of the goods being stored at Fort Sully. The agents have all been instructed to co-operate with the military commanders in their operations; but, as I have heretofore stated in my communication of April 5, upon tl~i's subject,I am de-cidedly of the opinion that, where the tribes are friendly, and observe faithfully their treaty stipulations,.there seems to exist no necejsity for any interference ! with the ordinary duties of the Indian agents; in fact, such interference md3t . ; result disastrously to the governmsnt, siuce the Indians will necesssrily become ! dissatisfied on account of the failure of the government to fulfil its promises, while they are faithfully perForming those whic!l they have made. In regard to the result of the military operations which have been carried on under the command of General Sully, in the region covered by the Dakota su- ~I perintendeuhy, during the present year, I have not that information which ~ No reports from the governors, who are ex o$cio superintendents of Indian affairs for these new Territories, have yet been received. In regard to the Blackfeet Indians, and the Assinahoines, Orows, CrosVentres, enables me to form avery definite opinion, and I hesitate to express any opinion based upon the limited knowledge at hand. Governor Edmunds, ex oficio sn-perintendcnt'of Indian affairs for the Territory, as will be seen by his report, is very decided in his opinion that the campaign has been a failure. If the mili-tary posts established at variou~p oints along th!? Missouri river,an object which I have repeatedly urged as Tery desirable, are to eontinue to he held by suffi. cient garrisons, the expedition of General Sully, as resultingin the erection aud garrisoning of these forts, is, in my judgment, a success to that extent; and if the line of posts nearer to the white settlements, referred to by Agent Burleigh as co~ltemplatedb y General Sully, shall be erected, another good result will be obtained. As to how far the punishment of the Sioux, by destruction of their lives'and property by the United States troops, h8s had tbe effect to bring them to a disposition to submit and live peaceably hereafter, I am nt~t informed. I appreciate fully, I think, the difficulties to he encountered in carrying on mili-tary operations in such a region of country, far from the base of supplies, aqninst an enemy which, like the Sioux tribe, is difficult to find,and, moving at w~lla, nd without the impediment of baggage and supply trains, is here one day, and there the next; and I have not expected too much'from the expedition. I earnestly trust, however, that the hostile tribes, finding the country tt~rongl~ which they roam stndded with military posts, and becoming satisfied that they cannot longer successfully resist the forces brought against them, will, at an . early day, discontinue their hostilities, and become the sub,jects of amicable re-lations. In saying this, I heal. constantly in mind the policy which seems to he best adapted for controlling the Indian tribes, while conducing to their comfort and thus to their improvement in civilizatiun-that of concentrating them upon large resemations, where bad influences may with greater facility he kept from them, and good influences be brought to bear up:m them. The dictates of hn-manity to the Indians, the preservation of the white settlers from savage raids upon life and property, safety to the increasing trtvel and traffic through the Upper Missouri region, and a very great saving of expense to government in military expeditions, are all, in my judgment, involved in the application of this policy to the tribes of the great northwestern region at the earliest possible day; and with your concurrence, this policy will be steadily. persisted in by this office, with confident hopes of a good result. 1 |