Indians of North America; Indians of North America -- Government relations; Indians of North America -- Legal status, laws, etc.
_Umatilla Agency._--The tribes located at this agency are the Umatillas,
Cayuses, and a portion of the Walla-Wallas, and number 837. They have a
reservation of 512,000 acres, situated in the north-eastern part of the
State, set apart for them by treaty of June 9, 1855. This reservation is
very fertile, and, as usual in such cases, has attracted the cupidity of
the whites. A proposition was made last year, under the authority of
Congress, to have the Indians take land in severalty, or sell and remove
to some other reservation. The Indians, however, in the exercise of
their treaty rights, refused to accede to this proposition. These
Indians are successfully engaged in agricultural operations, are nearly
self-supporting, and may be considered, comparatively speaking,
wealthy. It is gratifying to state that the introduction of whiskey by
whites upon this reservation, and its sale to the Indians, has, during
the last year, received a decided check through the vigilance of Agent
Cornoyer in causing the arrest and trial of four citizens for a
violation of the law in this respect. All the parties charged were
convicted, and are now in prison. This is especially worthy of note,
from the fact that it is always exceedingly difficult to obtain
convictions for such dealing with Indians in any section of the country.
There is one school in operation on the reservation, with an attendance
of twenty-seven scholars.
_Warm-Spring Agency._--The Indians at this agency, known as the
"Confederated Tribes and Bands of Indians in Middle Oregon," comprise
seven bands of the Walla-Walla and Wasco tribes, numbering six hundred
and twenty-six. They have a reservation of 1,024,000 acres, located in
the central part of the State, set apart for them by the treaty of June
25, 1855. Though there is but little really good land in this
reservation, many of the Indians, by reason of their industry, have
succeeded measurably in their farming operations, and may be considered
as self-sustaining. In morals they have greatly improved; so that
polygamy, the buying and selling of wives, gambling, and drunkenness
have ceased to be common among them, as in the past. There are some,
however, who are disposed to wander off the reservation, and lead a
vagabond life. But little advancement has been made in education among
these Indians. One school is in operation at the agency, with an
attendance of fifty-one scholars.
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