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Show I REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF INDIAN AFFAIRS. XXXIII question of their final disposition could be definitely determined. The Lieutenant-General of the Army strongly objected to this, on acconnt of the expense attendant on furnishing them with snpplies, and an order mas issned by the War Department, in November, 18i7, to seucl all the Nez Per& prisoners to the Missouri River, to Fort Lincoln or Fort Riley; on the 20th of the same month another order was issned to hare them forvarded to Fort Leavenworth, instead of keeping them at either of the points named. November 27, 1877, the Lieutenant-General noti-fied the Secretaq- of War of their arrival at the latter fort, and recom-mnendecl that this bnreau be requested to take charge of them at the earliest praoticab1e date. The ntunber of prisoners reported by the War Department, December 4 last,, was as follows : 79 men, 178 women, and 174 children, making a total of 431. A few scattered members of the band were snbseqnently taken by the military anc1 also sent to Fort Leavenworth. The necessary provision having been made by Congress just before the close of thelast session for the settlement of these In&ans in the Indian Territory, this office, on the 9th of July last, recommended that the War Department be reqnestetl to cause the necessmy orders to be issued to the conlmandant at Port Leavenworth to deliver the prisoners to an agent, n-ho woiild be designated by this bureau to receive them.. Ac-eonlingly, on the '1st of the same month they were delivered to United States Inclian Inspector McNeil and United States Indian Agent H. V*. Jones, n7ho without military escort conducted them to the location selected for them in the Indian Territory. The number reported to have been tnrned over to the inspector and agent was 410, three of n-ham-ehildi- en--died on the ronte. Inspector McNeil reported that the camping place selected b3- the commandant for theselndians, and where he found illem, was in the Mis-souri Rirer bottom, about two miles above the fort,. " between,a lagoon and the river, the worst possible plaoe that could hare been selected; and the s a n i tm~co ndition of the Indians prover1 it." The physician in charge said that "one-half could be said to be sick, and dl were affected by the poisonons malaria of the camp." After the arriral of Joseph and his band in the Indian Territory, the bad effect of their location at Fort eare en worth manifested itself in the prostration by sickness at one time of 2GO ant of the 410, and witl~iua few months they hare lost by death mole than one-quarter of the entire nnmber. A little care UI t,he selection of a wholesome location near Fort Leavenworth wonld have saved very mnch sickness and many lives. Since the location of these Indians in the IncIian Territov, others belonging to the band hare been arrested in Idaho, and with the appro-val of the department, Vnited States Indian Agent Monteith, of the Xez Perch Agency, has recently received instructions to take charge of and conrluct them to the Indian Territory. On the 1.5th of October last,, I visited the Nez Perc6 Indians at their IND-In |