X853.] 



NATIVE INDIAN POPULATION OP BRITISH AMERICA. 



195 



Blood Indians 250 



Gix)s Ventre's, or Fall Indians 400 



Cii'cees 45 



Cotone's ( T,, , . X -1 (100 



300 

 500 

 150 



Small a'obes. 



Monutain tribes ■ 



150 



1645 at 8 p. 1. 13,160 

 Mr. Shaw allowed to the BJackfeet, only 1 2,000 



Considering that these are perfectly independent estimates, 

 they agree remarkably, and we may take by their mean — 



The Blackfeet tribes 12,900 



"We have next the Assiniboines, a tribe of the Sioux, and said 

 to be of the Iroquois stock: they are distinguished into those fre- 

 <}uenting the woods, and those frequenting the plains, or Strong- 

 wood and Plain Assiniboines: — 



Mr. Harriet, in 1842, gave Strongwood 80 tents. 



Mr. Rowand gave Plaia Aissiniboines 300 3,200 



Mr. Shaw gave, both together 4,000 



Giving for Assiniboines 3,600 



TENTS. 



For the Strongwood Crees about Edmonton, 



Mr. Rowand gave 100 4,000 ) 



Other Crees of the plains . 200 2,000 [ 



Mr. Shaw gave ..4,000 



(S.) Cross -3,500 



(4.) Ojibbways, oi- Chippewas of the Saskat- 



chawan — Mr. Rowand 20 200 



I. The aggregate, then, of the tribes inhabiting the Plains, 

 in the British Territory, by competent authorities was, in 1843, 

 not more than 23,400. Catlin's estimate for the same tribes, is 

 35,000; but I found that all his numbers were regarded by 

 better authoi-ities (for Mr. Catlin did not visit the region hero in 

 question,) as too high. 



II. We have next the various divisions of that widely dif- 

 fused race, the E ijthinyuwule or Crees, which form the population 

 of the wooded country east of the Great Plains, and south of the 

 Churchill River, extending however in some instances on to the 

 one, and north of the othei'. The Crees of the Plains we have 

 already counted. There are a few Crees trading at Fort Chipe- 

 wyan, at Isle a la Crosse, and at Lesser Slave Lake. 



Families. Souls. 



140 

 341a 

 600 

 300* 

 150* 

 300* 

 100* 

 200* 

 100* 

 2000* 

 500* 

 500* 

 200* 



At Fort Chipewyan 26 



" Lesser Slave Lake 83 



" Isle a la C''0sse, and Green Lake 100 



" Cumberland House 



*' The Pas, or Basquau 



" Norway House 



" Oxford House 



" York Factory 



" Beren's River 



" Red River dependencies 



" Albany River, Martin's Falls 



" Moose Factory and outposts 



" Lake Tamiscaming 



S431 



To this division belong the Chippewas or Ojibwas, Saulteurs 

 and Tetes de Boule of Lake Superio)', Lake Huron, and their 

 tributaiy watei's. It was ascertained by tlie Honourable W. B. 

 Robinson, Indian Commissioner in 1851, that the Indians on the 

 north side of Lake Superioi-, from the Sault St. Mary to Pigeon. 

 River, and inland as far as the possessions of the Hudson's Bay 

 Company, forming 6 bands, or sub-divisions, were in all 1102 

 souls; and that the Indians on the north side of Lake Huron, 

 from the Sault to French River, forming 17 bands, amounted to 

 1,422 souls, giving a total of 2,521. The bands were found to 

 vary much in number, some comprising no more than 15, some 

 as many as 241 souls. We have then — - 



Brought forward 5431 



At Fort Alexander — Lake Winnipeg 200* 



« Rat Portage— Lake of the Woods _ _ .. 120* 



" Fort Franks— Rainy Lake 400* 



" Lake Superior as above 1,102 



" Lake Huron as above 1,422 



8,6 7 J 



With respect to the Indians in Canada proper, it is stated, 

 in a very interesting Report concerning them, (Journals 

 of House of Assembly, 1844-'5, Appendix 2,) that the 

 earliest document received by tlie Government, which contains 

 any detailed statement relative to the tribes, is one prepared by 

 Major-General Darling, Military Secretary to Lord Dalhousie, in 

 1828. The total number of Indiaus who then came under the 

 observation, and within the influence of the Government, in both 

 Provinces, did not exceed 1 8,000. I am indebted to Col. S.P. Jarvis, 

 late Indian Supeiintendent, for the following authentic returns of 

 their more I'ecent numbers. In 1835, the number of resident 

 Indians receiving presents, as they are improperly called, being 

 rather annuities or rent charges \\])Oxi the soil of tipper Canada, 

 was stated as follows : — 



TABLE I. 



Iroquois, or Six Nation Indians, 

 ir.cluding the Mohawks on the 



Bay of Quinle 



Hurons, or Wyandots 



Chippewas 



Chippewas, called Mississaugas.. 

 Munsees, Delaware, or Lenne-le- 



nape 



Moravian Indians. 



Men. 



598 



25 



414 



208 



44 

 78 



Women 



727 



25 



438 



240 



51 

 79 



Boys 



und'r 



15. 



543 



10 



31 S 



157 



36 

 55 



1397 1566 1114 10355082 



(Jills, 



u'nd'rj "a 



15. a 



5452413 



18| 78 

 2761441 

 125 730 



158 



256 



(a) About one-thirrl hnlf-breeds. 



• Estimates only. 



The following Table contains a statement in detail of the 

 Indians in Upper Canada in 1838, compiled from a return made 

 in answer to enquiries of the Secretary of State for the Colonies 

 (Lord (denelg.) The corresponding numbers in 1844 and 1846, 

 where they are given under the same denomination, are added 

 from the returns of the Indian Department 



TABLE n. 



Indians of Upper Canada. The details are from the very 

 complete returns o/ 1838, unless otherwise stated; and where 

 torresponding totals are not given for the years 1844 and 



