The Indians of Cape Flattery, at the entrance to the Strait of Fuca, Washington Territory / by James G. Swan.

Date:
[1870]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The Indians of Cape Flattery, at the entrance to the Strait of Fuca, Washington Territory / by James G. Swan. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. The original may be consulted at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh.

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    ADVERTISEMENT. The following memoir on the Makah Indians was prepared at the request of the Smithsonian Institution by Mr. James G. Swan, who, for several years, resided among them in the capacity of teacher and dispenser of medicines under the Government of the United States, Mr. Swan had previously become avcII acquainted with the Indian tribes of the Pacific, and had published a small work detailing his adventures among them. In 1855 he accompanied the late Maj. Gen. Stevens, then Governor of Washington Territory, while making treaties with the Makahs and other tribes, and was subsequently appointed to the position above mentioned. For the information of those not acquainted with the relation of the United States to the Indian tribes it may be remarked that where lands occupied by them are required for settlement, or where their proximity to the whites is found inex- pedient, it has been the practice to extinguish their possessory rights by treaty, paying them generally in annuities of money or goods, and setting apart a portion of land, sometimes within their original territory, in other cases at a distance, for their exclusive occupation, upon which no white settlers are allowed to intrude. These tracts are known as reservations, and are under charge of government “ agents,” often assisted by teachers, mechanics, &c. In the absence of Mr, Swan, the editorial supervision of the work was committed to Mr. George Gibbs, who has added a few notes. JOSEPH IIENEY, Secretary S. 1. Smithsonian Institution, 1809.