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Show bilities of the former agent, except that he has control of a smaller number of I~dians ,w hom one man oan handle effectively, living -actually among them as he does. The same plan has been carried out at other places, but San Jacinto has been chosen to illustrate the new policy for the purposes of this report because it presents the most strictly typical conditions. I may add that in course of time the Indian day schools are ex-pected to merge into the local common school system, and then the solution of the so-called "Indian problem," as far as these particular Indians are concerned, will be complete, for they will have been absorbed into the general b04y politic and become like all other Americans, except as to origin and ancestry. THUMB-PRINT SIGNATURES. Beginning in 1905, Iadopted the practice of requiring, as evidence of the authenticity of written agreements with Indians, the thumb prints of the signers in addition to their signatures. It has worked so well that it will be continued as a regularfeature in all negotia-tions of importance. For example, the agreement concluded on Janu-ary 21, 1907, by Inspector James McLaughlin with the Indians of the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota for the opening to settle- ,ment and entry of a part of that reservation bore, in addition to the signature or mark of each consenting Indian, the imprint of his right thumb. Where the thumb impressions are made with care there is so much individuality in the whorls of the different thumbs that it is seldom that more than a casual inspection is necessary to discern their distinguishing characteristics. The adoption of this system may prove invaluable where questions of identity arise, and if it can be extended to allotting operations, and it proyes practicable to obtain the thumb print of each Indian opposite his name andthe description of 'the land allotted to him, the liability of giving double allotments will be reduced to a minimum. Quite apart from its purely material aspect as a means of prevent-ing error and confusion, moreover, the practice has another and not less important consideration to commend it in its influence on the Indian himself. When an illiterate Indian who is called upon to sign a document sees a clerk make a cross with a pen and put some writing around it, and finds that his only share in the operation is to step up and touch with his finger tips the end of the penholder as a sign that the mark is his, he naturally attaches very little significance . . to it. Instances are of not" infrequent occurrence where the moral weight of evidence goes to show that an Indian has signed a certain-paper, but the Indian stoutly denies having signed it and falls back - upon the testimony of others who are ready to swear to an alibi or to |
