OCR Text |
Show temper; and in order that satisfactory iuformat,ion in regard to their uumber,,condition, aid means of support, might be obtained, especially with a Flew to intelligent action under representations made to this Office that an outbreak might at some time occur, steps have been taken bv this Office to have the Indians visited in their abodes amone the everglades by a gentleman of high official position in whose judiment and discretion the Office renoses meat confidence. No revort has vet been received as the result bf thismission. - " NEBRASKA, KANSAS, A m THE INDIAN TERRITORY. The tribes residing in Nebraska, Kansas, and the Indian Territory are divided as follows: In Nebraska about 6,485 ; in Kansas, 1,800; in the lndian Territory, 62,465. NEBEASKA. The Indians in Nebraska are the Santee Sionx, Winnebagoes, Oma-has, Pawnees, Sacs and Foxes of the Missouri, Iowas, and the Otoes and Missourias. TIce Santee Siom now numbering 965, a decrease from last year of 22, are a portion of the Sisseton, Wahpeton, Medilwakanton and Wah-pnkoota bands of Sioux of the Mississippi, belonging thus to the great Sioux or Dakota nation. They formerly, with other members of the same bands, now located on reservations in Dakota, one at Devil's Lake, in the northeast corner of the Territory, and another at Lake Traverse, near their old home, had an extensive and valuable reservation in Minnesota, stretching, with a width of ten miles, a long distance on the south side of the Minnesota River, and were comparatively wealthy and prosperous until the Sioux outbreak in 1862, iu which, it m~ll be reu~embered, nearlv 1.000 white citizens lost their lives. After the s~~pprvssio'onf 110~1ili1'ir~osl lsequent on thi* o~ltbrrak,t nost of tho S; t~~tSrieo ux were rcu~ooedi,n lJ(i3, to the C~owC welr reaerv;~rionx, c~d 611:rlls,i l l 1866, to their. 1)reeent locatio~u~ea r r l~eI ~ I J I oI t~'t~hr Yiol~~ara Rive<,'at which point their numbers were increased, to the extent of about 200, by the accession of other Sioux, who had been held at Daven-port, Iowa., as prisoners, charged with complicitg in the outbreak, but were ~ardonedb "v~ t~h e President. TI I~re's err;ltion of rile ~antc.&Si o ~ ~roxn tnins 83,200 :Icres, ot' whiclt a su~;tll l~ortion ouly is suit:thlc for ;cgricultural pnrposes, the co~rl~try -c r~~e r ;~hlrlinr c broken with hich hl~~tafnsd decn ravines. Laods have ~ been allotted i i severalty to oGer 200. These indiaus are peaceable, industrious and well advanced in the arts of life, and will soon render themselves independent of the assistance now afforded by the Ocvern-ment.. They have about 500 acres in cultivation, upou which good crops of wheat, corn, oats, potatoes, &c., are raised, when not destroyed by that scourge of the country, the grasshopper. The housesofthe Sautee Sioux are generally of rude structure; those first b ~ ~ ibletin g without windows aud h a ~ i n gon ly dirt floors and roofs. The Iudiar~sa re, how-ever, improving of late in this regard, building much more durable and comfbrteble dwellings. They are parties to the treaty made in 1868 with the nine bauds of the Sioux Nation, ranging in the region OF the Upper Missouri River. Inaddition to the benefits derived by the Santee Sioux under this treaty, they have moneys resulting from the sale of their lauds in Minnesota, which are being used for their benefit in imvrovinc their farms, and otherwise aiding them in their efforts to become self~supporting'. Three schools are i'n successfi~lo peration on their reservation, haviug in attendance 323 scholars. There are also |