APPENDIX TO REPORT OF THE SECRETARY. 83 



Territory and the State of Oregon, was partially prepared for the printer, 

 but it was thought best to withhold its publication until further mate- 

 rials were collected from that region. 



The third volume of the series has been published. This relates 

 to the Indians of California. Mr. Stephen Powers, of Ohio, has been 

 engaged for several years in the preparation of this volume. The first 

 part contains an account of the habits, customs, mythology, &c., of the 

 several tribes. At our earliest knowledge of the Indians of California 

 they were divided into small chieftaincies speaking diverse languages 

 and belonging to radically dififerent stocks, and the whole subject was 

 one of great complexity and interest. The materials collected by Mr. 

 Powers were sufficient to successfully unravel the difficult problem rela- 

 ting to the classification and affinities of a very large number of tribes, 

 and his account of their habits and customs is of much interest. A 

 number of vocabularies of the Smithsonian collection are published with 

 those of Mr. Powers. The linguistic portion of the volume was edited 

 by Professor Powell. 



The volume is accompanied by a map of the State of California, com- 

 piled from the latest official sources and colored to show the distribu- 

 tion of linguistic stocks. 



The Eev. J. Owen Dorsey, of Maryland, has been engaged for more 

 than a year in the preparation of a grammar and dictionary of the 

 Ponka language. His residence among these Indians as a missionary 

 has furnished him favorable opportunity for the necessary studies, and 

 he has pushed forward the work with zeal and ability. 



Prof. Otis T. Mason, of Columbian College, has for the past year 

 rendered the office much assistance in the study of the history and sta- 

 tistics of Indian tribes. 



Brevet Lieut. Col. Garrick Mallery, U. S. A., has during the year 

 been engaged in the study of the history and statistics of the Indians 

 of the United States. His researches lead him to the conclusion that 

 the generally received opinion that a very large Indian population oc- 

 cupied this country at the time of its discovery is erroneous; that the 

 supposed rapid and general decadence of the Indians arising from con- 

 tact with civilization is not sustained, and that, when circumstances 

 have not rendered it impossible, they are making reasonable progress 

 toward civilization, together with which in many instances their num- 

 bers have increased. ISTo final publication on ihe subject has yet been 

 ssued, but he has read papers before the Philosophical Society of 

 Washington, and other scientific bodies, to invite the attention of 

 ethnologists to the subject. He has also been engaged in preparing the 

 history and bibliography of the Klamath, T'sinuk, Wayiletpu, Sahap- 

 tin, and other families of Oregon, and his papers on this subject will 

 appear in the second volume of Contributions to ISTorth American Eth 

 nology. 



In March last Mr. Albert S. Gatschet was employed to assist in the 



