﻿116 
  [Assembly 
  

  

  of 
  the 
  town." 
  He 
  further 
  states 
  (ib. 
  12, 
  13) 
  that 
  Canagorah 
  con- 
  

   tained 
  150 
  houses, 
  Onondaga 
  140, 
  and 
  Oneida 
  100. 
  It 
  is 
  not 
  im- 
  

   probable 
  that 
  the 
  largest 
  of 
  the 
  Iroquois 
  villages 
  in 
  ancient 
  times, 
  

   or 
  about 
  the 
  period 
  of 
  their 
  discovery, 
  contained 
  from 
  two 
  to 
  

   three 
  thousand 
  inhabitants. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  difficult 
  to 
  form 
  a 
  correct 
  estimate 
  of 
  the 
  total 
  number 
  of 
  

   the 
  Iroquois 
  at 
  any 
  particular 
  period, 
  the 
  opinions 
  of 
  those, 
  hav- 
  

   ing 
  the 
  best 
  opportunity 
  of 
  judging, 
  have 
  been 
  so 
  various. 
  They 
  

   have 
  been 
  rated 
  from 
  ten, 
  to 
  seventy 
  thousand. 
  An 
  opinion 
  may 
  

   perhaps 
  be 
  indulged, 
  without 
  giving 
  the 
  statistics 
  upon 
  which 
  it 
  

   is 
  founded. 
  The 
  period 
  of 
  their 
  greatest 
  prosperity, 
  and 
  of 
  their 
  

   highest 
  military 
  supremacy 
  was 
  about 
  the 
  year 
  1650 
  ; 
  and 
  their 
  

   total 
  population 
  at 
  that 
  period 
  may 
  be 
  safely 
  placed 
  at 
  25,000. 
  

   A 
  higher 
  estimate 
  would 
  be 
  better 
  supported 
  by 
  such 
  data 
  as 
  the 
  

   case 
  affords, 
  than 
  a 
  lesser 
  one 
  ; 
  although 
  the 
  impression 
  of 
  later 
  

   writers 
  seems 
  to 
  be 
  the 
  contrary. 
  An 
  approximation 
  to 
  the 
  rela- 
  

   tive 
  strength 
  of 
  the 
  several 
  nations 
  of 
  the 
  League 
  upon 
  this 
  basis 
  

   may 
  be 
  made 
  by 
  the 
  following 
  aj)portionment 
  ; 
  To 
  the 
  Senecas 
  

   10,000; 
  to 
  the 
  Cayugas 
  3,000 
  ; 
  to 
  the 
  Onondagas 
  4,000; 
  to 
  the 
  

   Oneidas 
  3,000 
  ; 
  and 
  to 
  the 
  Mohawks 
  5,000. 
  A 
  century 
  later 
  or 
  

   about 
  1750, 
  their 
  total 
  population 
  was 
  probably 
  about 
  half 
  this 
  

   number, 
  the 
  Mohawks 
  having 
  wasted 
  away 
  the 
  most 
  rapidly. 
  

  

  To 
  return 
  from 
  this 
  digression 
  to 
  the 
  bark 
  house 
  from 
  which 
  it 
  

   proceeded, 
  it 
  is 
  proper 
  to 
  observe 
  that 
  among 
  the 
  articles 
  furnish- 
  

   ed 
  is 
  the 
  model 
  of 
  the 
  original 
  Gd-no-sote 
  of 
  the 
  Iroquois, 
  some 
  

   six 
  feet 
  by 
  four, 
  in 
  its 
  ground 
  plan, 
  and 
  made 
  as 
  large 
  as 
  it 
  could 
  

   be 
  conveniently 
  transported. 
  The 
  model 
  shows 
  very 
  perfectly 
  

   the 
  mechanism 
  of 
  the 
  bark 
  house 
  throughout 
  ; 
  but 
  it 
  is 
  defective 
  

   in 
  its 
  proportions. 
  It 
  was 
  designed 
  for 
  t^o 
  fires, 
  or 
  four 
  families, 
  

   and 
  therefore 
  should 
  be 
  either 
  longer 
  or 
  narrower, 
  and 
  not 
  as 
  

   high. 
  With 
  this 
  criticism 
  in 
  mind 
  the 
  plate 
  gives 
  a 
  faithful 
  im- 
  

   pression 
  of 
  the 
  primitive 
  house 
  of 
  the 
  Iroquois. 
  

  

  The 
  great 
  length 
  of 
  this 
  report 
  forbids 
  those 
  suggestions 
  upon 
  

   the 
  further 
  enlargement 
  of 
  the 
  Indian 
  collection, 
  and 
  those 
  

   reflections 
  upon 
  its 
  importance, 
  which 
  the 
  subject 
  is 
  calcu- 
  

   lated 
  to 
  inspire. 
  With 
  a 
  fair 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  fabrics, 
  implements 
  

  

  