2 o6 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



bering, in 1855, about seven thousand souls. The present population 

 of the three Canadian reserves is computed at about six thousand, 

 divided as follows : Blackfeet proper (Siksika), twenty-four hundred ; 

 Bloods, twenty-eight hundred ; Piegans, eight hundred. On the 

 American reservation there are said to be about twenty-three hundred, 

 mostly Piegans. This would make the total population of the three 

 tribes exceed eight thousand souls. The adopted tribe, the Sarcees, 

 have greatly diminished in numbers through the ravages of the small- 

 pox. There are now less than five hundred, who reside on a small 

 reserve of their own, near the town of Calgary. 



During the past five years, as is well known, a great change has 

 taken place in the condition of all the Western tribes through the 

 complete extermination of the buffalo. The Blackfeet have been the 

 greatest sufferers from this cause. The herds were not only their 

 main dependence for food, but also furnished the skins which made 

 their tents and their clothing. Suddenly, almost without warning, 

 they found themselves stripped of nearly every necessary of life. The 

 Governments both of the United States and of Canada came to their 

 rescue ; but in the former country the urgency of the case was not at 

 first fully comprehended, and before the necessary relief came many 

 of the Indians perished from actual starvation. On the Canadian side, 

 fortunately, the emergency was better understood. Arrangements 

 were at once made for settling the Indians on reserves suited for agri- 

 culture, and for supplying them with food and clothing, and teaching 

 them to erect wooden houses and cultivate their lands. The Indians 

 displayed a remarkable readiness to adapt themselves to their new 

 conditions. In 1880 the buffalo finally disappeared. In 1882, accord- 

 ing to the official reports, more than half a million pounds of potatoes 

 were raised by the three Blackfoot tribes, besides considerable quan- 

 tities of oats, barley, and turnips. The Piegans had sold one thou- 

 sand dollars' worth of potatoes, and had a large supply on hand. " The 

 manner in which the Indians have worked," writes the agent, "is real- 

 ly astonishing, as is the interest they have taken and are taking in 

 farming." Axes and other tools were distributed among them, and 

 were put to good use. In November, 1882, the agent writes that log- 

 houses "had gone up thick and fast on the reserves, and were most 

 creditable to the builders." In many cases the logs were hewed, and 

 in nearly all the houses fireplaces were built. In the same year 

 another official, the Indian commissioner, going through the reserves, 

 was surprised at the progress which he saw. He found comfortable 

 dwellings, cultivated gardens, and good supplies of potatoes in root- 

 houses. Most of the families had cooking-stoves, for which they had 

 sometimes paid as much as fifty dollars. He " saw many signs of 

 civilization, such as cups and saucers, knives and forks, coal-oil lamps, 

 and tables ; and several of the women were baking excellent bread, 

 and performing other cooking operations." Three years before, these 



