372 ANNUAL REPORT . SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1942 



perity of the Iroquoians, and particularly of the Five Nations. At 

 the time of their greatest crisis, i. e., at the close of the colonial wars, 

 they were organized into a more compact unit than the Algonkians, 

 and they were led by men of courage and vision like Joseph Brant. 

 The same factors account for the resilience of the Blackfoot. It was 

 the able leadership and far-seeing wisdom of their chiefs, especially 

 of Crowfoot, that braced them against the shock of confinement, en- 

 couraged them to direct their energies to the growing of wheat and 

 the raising of cattle and horses, and maintained their morale at a 

 high level while that of the other plains' tribes languished. These 

 two examples from our Canadian Indians — examples that could be 

 multiplied the world over, among civilized and uncivilized peoples 

 alike — illustrate a truth that we often overlook, viz, that the strongest 

 forces for the regeneration or upbuilding of peoples come from within 

 their own ranks, not from without. Always the driving force is some 

 seemingly high and noble ideal, but this ideal may lie dormant for years 

 and even centuries (as did the longing for liberty in Finland and 

 Poland) unless some great leader arises to give it voice and to carry 

 the people with him. Every administration that deals with a native 

 race, therefore, should aim, first of all, to inspire or foster in that 

 race some desirable goal, and then to promote the evolution of native 

 leaders who will command the confidence of their people and guide 

 them toward that goal. 



The steadfastness of the Blackfoot when they were first confined to 

 reserves, and the progress they have made since in readjusting their 

 lives, scarcely affected the other plains tribes, whose partial recovery 

 in recent years must be attributed to their own vitality. As the older 

 generation passes away and the traditions of war and buffalo hunting 

 fade more and more from memory, the younger Indians in these tribes 

 are gazing out on a new world. Occasional travel by rail, but espe- 

 cially by automobile, is helping to enlarge their outlook, and the hope- 

 lessness that gripped them when they were first banded on reserves is 

 slowly passing away. They have noticed the economic distress of 

 the white farmers on the prairies during the last decade, and they are 

 realizing more and more each year that, however benevolent the gov- 

 ernment may be, however it may protect and safeguard them, in the 

 last analysis their future and that of their children depends principally 

 on their own personal efforts. 



Our picture changes completely when we pass to the Pacific coast. 

 There the climate is milder, the vegetation and fauna very different 

 from those in other parts of Canada. Any inland tribes that pushed 

 their way thither through the barrier of the Rocky Mountains found 

 conditions so favorable that they never returned. Actually the main 

 population drifts seem to have been from Alaska southward down the 

 interior plateau or along the coast. The region was largely a cul-de^ 



