POPULATION OF THE COLORADO VALLEY. 17 
A Mojave guide, who accompanied us from his village to the Mormon road, was skillful in 
communicating ideas of numbers, and proved accurate in statements that we had means of 
testing. We therefore endeavored to obtain from him certain statistics regarding his tribe. 
There are five principal chiefs of the Mojave nation, each of whom we had seen at the head of 
a band of warriors. Our guide informed us that Joaquin commanded 60 fighting men ; José 
Maria, 50; Oré, 80; Manuel, 80; Mezcal, 100. He said there were lesser captains like him- 
self, each having the command of smaller numbers ; his own band consisting of five only. The 
warriors above enumerated amount to 381. The whole number is somewhat greater. But, 
according to our observations when among them, many of the able-bodied young men choose 
to remain at home for the cultivation of their fields or the protection of the women, and, there- 
fore, are not included among the warriors. 
In order to get some idea of the rate of increase in the tribe, we asked concerning the wives 
and children of various chiefs whom we knew. The result is exhibited in the following table : 
Number of children. 
Names of men. Number of | 
wives. 
Boys. Girls. 
Iratéba i 0 1 
Cai-ruk 4 0 1 
José Maria 2 1 2 
Joaquin 2 1 0 
Oré 2 1 1 
Manuel 3 1 2 
ezca | 1 0 1 
If it were safe to draw inferences from such limited data, females would appear to be more 
numerous than males. Children seem to be less in number than adults; giving evidence of a 
gradual decay of the tribe. If this conclusion be correct, it is difficult to assign a reason for it. 
The region they occupy is fertile, and its climate salubrious. They are vigorous and healthy, 
and have plenty of food. Diseases are rare among them, and evidently they live to extreme 
old age. They are more powerful than their neighbors, and have few enemies, except the 
Coco-Maricopas, who are incapable of doing them much harm. 
The following estimate of the number of Indians now residing in the Colorado valley, from 
the Mojave villages down to the mouth of Rio Gila, is given by Mr. Leroux, based upon 
personal observations during various passages through the country : 
S Number of | Whole num- 
Name of tribe. gerer ber. 
600 4, 000 
Chemehuèvis .......- 300 1,500 
Yumas, (Cuchans?) -..-------- ------ 500 3, 000 
1,400 8,500 å 
This estimate does not include the Cocopas, (3,000,) who live near the mouth of the Colorado, 
nor the Yampais, (2,000,) now residing, as the Mojaves tell us, a short distance below the junction 
of Williams river. Those added, would make the population of the Colorado valley, below 
the Mojave villages, 13,500. ; 
ae to the manuscript report of Don José Cortes in 1799—a portion of which will be 
found in chapter vi—the population of this valley was then as follows, viz: 
37 
