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Show . , REPORT OF. THE CObIMISSIONEB OF INDIAN AFFAIRS. XI11 them very seriously in their work. They are far removedfrom civiliza-tion, feel none of the stimulating effects of an intelligent public senti- ' meut, and have little helpful supervision. The parents hare ready access to them, and often prove troublesome guests by reason of their . . clamors for the retorn of the childreu to~heitre pees. It is exceedingly difficult to break up theuse of the tribal tongue and to teach them to use the English language. Notwithstanding thesedifficulties, howerer,. they are doing a good work, directly upon their pupils and indirectly 1 upon the older people of tho reservations, and there goes out from them a civilizing force whose strength and value can scarcely be overesti-mated. (See page oxxxvr~~.) To render them still more efficient they should be increased in num-ber, be better equipped, more closelys~perviseda, nd subjected tomore ,, rigid discipline. The teachers shouldbe selected with oare, have a rea-sonably secure tenure of office, auci have pay equal to that received for a similar grade of work in the public schools of the same State orTer- . ' ' ritorx. These schools should be feeders for the training schools, and de- , , serving, capable pupilsshould be regularly and systematicallypromoted. Day sohook-During the past year there were in operation at the va,ricus agencies 106 day schools with an enrollment of 3,967, and an average attendance of 2,367. Of these schools I wish to say that I found them iu existence when I assumed the duties of the office; 11 new ones have been established, and 3 of the old ones have been abandoned. Of the whole number 81 are conducted by the Qovernment and 25 are carried on under contract. 1 . . The teachers labor under very great disadvantages. The houses are paor and the furniture scanty. The accommodations for the teachers are very primitive; the isolation and deprivations are hard to bear; the influences of the camps are often wholly antagonistic to those of , , the schools; it is extremely difficult to break up the use of the tribal language; many of the children are poorly fed, scantily clad, untidy in - ' theirhabits, and irregular in their attendance. On the other hand, it must be said that a good day-school well ad-ministered is an object lesson of civilizationin the midst of barbarism, for the children carry home daily some influence which tends toward a better life. It permits the parents the presence of their children, to which many of them attach great importance, and to whose prolonged . . ! absence they could not be induced to consent, and there is gradually . ' ' ; being produced, no doubt partly at least through these schools, a pub-lic sentiment among the camp Indians more friendly to education and ,, , progress in civilization. I believe it is possible to raise the character of these schools by pro. viding better houses and facilities for work, by introduciug some form of elementary iudnstry, and by paying more attention to supervision. The elloft to do this is nowbeing made? which, if it iu successful, may , , lead to the establishment of others on a better basis. . . \ .'. . . - |