OCR Text |
Show REPORT OP THE COMMISSIONER O F I N D I A N AFFAIRS. DEPARTDIENOTF THE TNTERIOR, OFFICE OW IXDIANA FFAIRS, TVaslbington, D. C., October 30, 1876. SIR: I hare the honor to submit herewith, in accordance with law, the annual report of the Indian Office, accompanied by the reports of its superintendents and ageuts. These reports give d8ta.iled statements of the condition of the Indian tribes, ant1 the progress abich has been made during the past year, and indicate that the condition of this branch of the public service is steadily becoming more efficient and satisfactory. The ma~~agemenoft Indian affairs is alwaxs attended with much of difficulty and embarrassment. In every other department of the public service, the officers of the Governlne~:t conduct business mainly with Civilized ar~d intelligent men. Tbe, Indiau Office, in representing the Government, has to deal mainly with an uucivilized and unirrtelligent people, whose ignorance, superstition, and suspicion materially iucrease the difficulty bobh of controlling aud assis:iug them. The traditionary belief, which largely prevails, that the Indiau serrice, throughout its whole history, has bee11 tainted with fraud, arises,I a,ppre-heud, not only from the fact that frauds have been cqplwitted, p!t also because, from the nature of the service itself, peculiar appor tu~~~ftorer s fraud may be found. The agencies are usually located in distant, and, in some cases, almost inaccessible places. They are, in many instances, so far from the accustomed abodes of our people as to be rarely ~isited by any civilized men except the agent and his employBs and persons furnishing supplies. It thus happens that the business of the agency is conducted without the restraints which generally surround public offi-cers. The agent is too remote to be under the immediate and constant surveillance of the central office. He is in a, great degree free from the espionage of an intelligent public&nd,tbose near him who are competel~t to detect frauds or criticise official conduct may be influenced by or he in collusion with him. The Indians to whom he distributes suppliesare tooignorant to protect bhem6elves from imposition, or, ill case dishonesty is suspected, to bring the fact to the knoaleclge of this office. Thus it happens that the fact that frauds are knovn to have been committed, oined to the knowledge that abundant opportunities for frauds exist, excites in the n~inds of a suspicious public a readiness to believe every rumor affecting the integrity of an ludian agent or the honesty of the Indian service. INCREASED SALARIES FOR AGENTS. The most important duties iu the conduct of our Indian affairs are, and of necessity must be, performed by the agent. Xot only are com- |