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Show Pend d'OreiUes, 908; Rootenais, 273; total, 1,732. Agent Upson, at Fort Ben-ton, ha3 charge of the tribes east, and Agent Hutchins of those who are west of the mountains, Mr. Chapman having been appointed to succeed the latter. Whether or not there are any tribes or hands who range in the mountain country now being 'overrun in the search for gold in the southwestern part of the Territory, we have no means of knowing, as we have no report, either this year or last, from Governor Edgerton, ez ojicio superilltendent. Provision was made by Congress at its last session by which to effect a treaty with the Blackfeet nation, having for its object the cession of their right to oc-cupy all lands south of the Missouri rirer and the Teton, one of its upper branches, the object being to throw open to settlement by the large number of emigrants that region, supposed to abound in gold; and the sum of $15,000 was appropriated for the purpose. Under date of Mareh 24, instructions, prepared under the dire.ction of your predecessor, were given to Agent Upson for his guidance, and the funds placed at his disposal. No report has been received from 'him, except that on the 12th of June he had arrived within the hounds of his agency, and was met with reports that a portion of his Indians bad broken out into host~il-i ties. His informztion was tbat the Bloods and Blackfeet nrooer were ~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~ ~ ~ the hostile bauds, but^ that the Piegana and ~ r o s ~ e n t r ewser e skll'friendli. Should this latter statement be correct, the conduct of those tribes mavjuatly be adcribed to the pains taken Inst gear by Agent Upson to bring about-apeack Iletwreu them and a friendly fi~eliogt own ~ d st he whites. Nothing further baa been l>c~rftrla m the ascnt, the meana of co~municntionb etwrea this city and his post at Fort BeGon being irregular and precarious. As a confirmstion, however, of this unpleasant news, we have a letter from Agent Hutchins, dated August 3, in which he gives some information, obtained from a Flathead In-diap of much intelligence, who had just returned from a hunting tour east of the monntaiins, to the effect that the Blackfeet had broken out into war with the whites, but that the Crows, under the influence of the good treatment which they had received last year at Fort Union, would remain at peace.' Agent Hutchins's annual report, datea June 30, gives a favorable idea of the Indians under hie charge. He had distributed, partly last fall and partly in the early epring, the goods which were sent out the previous year, being ~lsefula r-ticles and mostly agricultural implements ; and the Indians, who are decidedly improving in attention to cultivation of the soil, expressed themselves as de-lighted withthesegoods. The Flatheads live mostly in the valley of the Bitter Root river, outside of the reservation, the Pend d'oreilles upon the rese~~at ioan few miles from the agency at Jocko, and the Rootenais just outside of the res-ervation, but intend to rembve upon it and open farms. A portion of the Koo-tenai tribe, whieh livea principally beyond the British line, did not share in the distribntion of goods. The agent thinks that theFlatheads ought to be re-quired to remove upon the reservation, to withdraw them from the influence of and from trouble with the white population which is "prospecting" the conn-try, but suggests tbat jwtice to the Indians re nires tlint if they do remove, some remuneration should he given to them for tleir improvements, the work of their own hands. There is now no school at this agency, a report made by Agent Hutchins, which reached this office last winter, showingthe one in operation to have been so useless that he had closed it, and submitted a plan for re-establishing it on the manual labor plan. He was directed to forward estimates for tbis purpose, and these have but recently come to hand. They appear to bequite reasonable, and within the means at the disposal of this office. Meantime a new agent has been appointed to succeed Mr. Hutchins, and the agency has been transferred See Appendix for Agent Upson's m n d report. |