gold-bearing regions of the territory, has mingled the white and red races, and forbids future difficulty. The change from savage to civilized life is very great, and is beset with difficulties and perplexities requiring the aid of soil, climate, and seclusion to encounter them successfully. In Nevada Territory a talk was held with the Pah-Ute tribe on Walker River, which numbers 700, and with another tribe of the same Indians on Trackee River. Wunu-Mucka, their chief, made satisfactory declarations of his purpose to prevent all interference on the part of his people with the overland stage and the telegraph, which pass through their country between the Atlantic and the Pacific States. The Washoe tribe presents a painful contrast to the other Indians, even of that region. They are a poor and degraded race, living on insects and spontaneous products. The Apaches and Navajoes in New Mexico have been arrayed in hostility towards the whites. On the part of the former the hostility was open and undisguised, while the latter were more insidious but not less dangerous. On the other hand, the Pueblos and Mohuache Utahs have been friendly. The former are peaceable and loyal towards the Federal Government, and largely engaged in agricultural pursuits, and the latter are formidable in numbers, enterprising, intelligent, and loyal to such a degree that they tendered their services for the protection of white settlers against assaults of Confederate squads from Texas, as well as savage foes. The number of the Pueblos is 10,000; of the Navajoes, 9,000; Apaches, 10,000; Mohuache Utahs, 6,000. In Utah Territory an unfavorable state of affairs exists among the Indians. The natural poverty of the country, the destruction of the wild game by the introduction of white men, and the selfish policy of the Mormon people, have deprived the bulk, of from 15,000 to 20,000, of the original proprietors of the country of their accustomed means of subsistence, and driven them to the alternative of laying violent hands on the property of the whites, or of perishing by want. Cattle husbandry is regarded as the surest means of relieving these Indians. In California, a law has been passed by the Legislature, by which large numbers of Indians have been nominally indentured for a long term of years to white masters. By the operations of this law, Indians of any age under thirty, and of either sex, without their consent, or, if they be minors, that of their parents, are "indentured" to white masters, who thereupon become entitled to "the care, control, custody, and earnings" of those thus "indentured," whom, in consideration thereof, they undertake to "feed, clothe, care for, and protect;" but no security is required that this undertaking shall be performed, nor any penalties prescribed for its violation. In Oregon, ill-disposed persons have asserted to the Indians that the Government of their "Great Father" was destroyed, and that no more annuities would be paid. The conse quence has been that the Rogue River Indians abandoned their reservation, and the Indians of other reservations threatened to follow their example. The Cayuses, numbering less than four hundred, own property valued at more than $100,000. The number of Indians in Washington Territory with whom treaties have been negotiated, is about 14,000. There are many tribes and bands besides who live in their neighborhood. About ten thousand whites have gone into the Nez Perces country in search of gold, but no trouble has arisen between them and these Indians. At the Mackinac post, the greatest evil with which the Indians have to contend is whiskey. Those who live on the borders of the great lakes divide their time between the old pursuits of hunting, fishing, and trapping, and those of the interior depend on the cultivation of their farms. Large quantities of maple sugar are manufactured by them. Numbers of those Indians have been eager to manifest their good will to the Federal Government by enlisting in its military service, if the Government should desire it. The number of the Indians holding relations with the Federal Government has been stated. The schools of all kinds among them are 162, having 5,950 pupils, under 186 teachers. The station best furnished with educational opportunities is that of New York; then follow, in the order of excellence, the Northern, Central, Southern California, Oregon, and Washington. In New Mexico and Utah there are no schools, nor in Nevada or Colorado territories. There are two hundred and forty-one farms in cultivation by Indians or for Indian use, comprising an area of 6,112 acres, of which 3,156 are worked by Indians alone. The aggregate value of the movable personal property owned by the aforesaid Indian tribes, is $4,670,053. Those in the most prosperous circumstances are the Shawnees, Wyandots, and Delawares, who average more than $1,000 to each individual; the poorest are the tribes and bands in Utah. Indian wealth consists chiefly in horses, ponies, and mules; but cattle, farming implements, and household furniture are rapidly becoming important objects of acquisition. The moral and religious cultivation of the Indians is under the care of seventy-seven missionaries, twenty-five of whom are under the care of the Methodist Episcopal Church, north and south; nineteen are in the communion of the Roman Catholic Church; nine are Baptists; five are members of the Society of Friends; three are Congregationalists; two are of the Protestant Episcopal, and one of the Lutheran Church. The remainder are undesignated. Their presence imparts to the Indians, by example as well as precept, lessons in industry of all kinds: in the arts and sciences; in agriculture; in domestic economy; in temperance, manner of life and behavior, dress and deportment. How, great are the advantages thus communicated to those children of the forest and prairie, the imagination can more easily picture than the pen describe. Shares, Interest, last date paid up to, Arkansas... Chickasaw orphans $3,000 00 Jan. 1, 1855. Florida..... Cherokees, national 7,000 00 July 1, 1861. 66 fund..... 59,000 00 Iowayst.... 22,000 00 66 Kaskaskias, Peorias, &c.. 87,000 00 132,000 00 1,500 00 Jan. 1, 1861. 8,500 00 10,000 00 Oct. 1, 1860. 7,000 00 Nov. 1, 1860. Cherokees, schools.. Delawares, gen'l fund Ioways Kaskaskias, Peorias, &c... 5,000 00 27,000 00 The Federal Government has steadily pursued the plan of purchasing of the Indian tribes their surplus land, after a portion has been reserved, sufficiently large for them to occupy. A portion of the purchase money has generally been retained by the Government, with their consent, and invested in such securities as would yield to the tribe an annuity. The amount of such investments in the securities of the seceded States, the tribes to which they belong, the amount of interest due, and the time when the last payment of interest by these States was made, are shown in the preceding table. INSURANCE. The amount of insurance in the United States has of late years grown to be very large, following the increase in property and the amount of general business, as well as the more strict adherence to the rule of insurance as a means of covering credits. The value of property covered by insurance risks in the United States is about $2,500,000,000, and a large proportion of that insurance is effected in New York and the Eastern States, under the two general systems of insurance, proprie tary and mutual. Before the formation of the present government, insurance seems in this country to have been confined to individual underwriters. In 1792 there was a company incorporated in Philadelphia, and in 1806 the Eagle Company in New York. Marine risks were the most sought after at those early dates in the New England States, where the interests were commercial. As the wealth and trade of 41,000 00 April 1, 1861, the country continued to accumulate, and the operations of commerce were conducted on credits, the value of which depended in a great measure upon the safety of the goods, insurance became a necessary element in most transac tions, and the demand for policies called into being a large number of companies. These have been the victims of frauds to a large extent, and have also been the means of victimizing the public through fraudulent organizations. 117,000 00 July 1, 1860 If, on rightly conducted principles, they are the 121,000 00 Oct. 1, 1860. 179,000 00 means of great benefit to the world, giving birth to numberless enterprises that would not have been undertaken if the individuals had no means of securing themselves from utter ruin through the unavoidable accidents of the elements; so also have they been the cause of a much larger destruction of property than would have taken place had they not been in existence. The total loss by fires in the United States in usual years is not far from 20 mil. lions per annum; and in the year 1861, it has, through the operations of war, been more than double that amount. The following is a record of the fires which occurred throughout the United States during each month of the year 1861, together with the value of the property destroyed, when the loss at each was estimated to be equal to, or to have exceeded, the sum of twenty thousand dollars, and also the day of the month on which the † 420,000 paid on, leaving half year's interest due on $2,000. fire took place. 19-Chicago 20,000 85,000 2-Boston 12-Bound Brook, N.J. 35,000 40,000 2-Gr't Falls, N. H. $30,000 4-Norfolk, Va...... 100,000 7-St. Louis........ 120,000 9-Chicago 40,000 60,000 80,000 20,000 23-N. Bedford, Mass. 60,000 25-Dunkirk, N. Y.. 25,000 26-Manches'r, Conn. 40,000 60,000 85,000 70,000 JUNE. 2-Marshall, Mich.. $25,000 21-Worcester, Mass. MARCH. 1-West Pt., N. Y..$100,000 1-Cincinnati... 20,000 6-Dundee, N. Y... 150,000 6-Berlin, Wis...... 20,000 8-New York.. 20,000 8-Sandusky, Ohio... 55,000 10-Cincinnati.. 150,000 80,000 11-New York. 12-Glouces'r Co., Va. 30,000 14-Suffield, Conn.... 20,000 15-Brooklyn 20,000 15-Hartford.. 80,000 15-Newport, Fla.... 100,000 16-Madisonvle, Ky. 30,000 17-New Orleans.... 100,000 18-Freeport, Ill.... 25,000 80,000 18-Jefferson, La.... 23-Newb port, Mass. 24-New York... January. 4-New York...... $25,000 Add to the above the value of property destroyed by fires in the United States during the year where in each instance the loss was estimated at less than twenty thousand dollars, and also the value of property destroyed in the South and West, such as the destruction of the products of Southern plantations, the burning of railroads and other bridges, together with private houses, barns, haystacks, &c., which have been destroyed by order of military commanders on both sides, and the 100,000 aggregate would be increased over forty-five 841,000 1,000,000 millions. We add the following table of estimates: $1,210,000 852,000 880,000 812,000 685,000 960,000 1,558,000 722,000 750,000 810,000 580,000 June.............. July.......... August. $8,690,000 445,000 805,000 $9,880,000 June......... 18 1,265,000 481,000 12 .......... 1,623,000 80 1,608,000 18 1,122,000 12 1,273,000 13 790,000 10 771,000 8 810,000 19 825,000 18 680,000 25 2,517,000 9 7,341,000 22 1,804,000 $15,579,000 6,000,000 10,000,000 3,000,000 1,000,000 $18,020,000 the whole capital of the country bears it rather than individuals. In respect of the fire risks, 5,000,000 each State has different laws that govern the companies. In Massachusetts, where the most strict regulations prevail, the mutual principle has been most successful, while in New York the joint stock principle has been most popular. Where the business is skilfully conducted on sound principles, the mutual system seems to offer the most advantages, but each has its partisans, and in different States the local prejudices decide to some extent. Total value of property destroyed in 1861... $45,020,000 The following figures show the losses by fires in the United States during the past eight years: Total Loss by all Fires. $25,500,000 $20,578,000 18,040,000 21,159,000 22,000,000 15,597,000 Total in eight years.. $181,814,000 16,000,000 22,000,000 45,000,000 The difficulties of the year 1861 have had a marked effect upon Insurance, as upon most 17,000,000 27,000,000 other business. The decline in the business for 20,000,000 the year, as indicated in the amount of risks, seems to have been about 10 per cent., while the losses have not declined proportionately. Less marine business was done, because our shipping trade was interfered with by the operations of war, and what, was done was more hazardous; and less fire business was done, because merchants held less stock, and people generally had less money to pay for premiums, while the events in the disturbed districts involved greater loss. The Massachusetts reports for the year 1861, as compared with the year 1860, give results as follows: $194,500,000 This, although insured, is a positive destruction and utter loss of so much of the national capital, amounting very nearly to $200,000,000 in 8 years, or one half of the value of the gold raised in California in the same period. Under the supposition that the productions of the United States are worth $2,000,000,000, which is the census estimate, and that the dwellings are worth an average of $500 each, the aggregate of goods and dwellings would be $5,000,000,000, and the annual loss by fire would average twofifths of one per cent. The tonnage value of the United States is about $250,000,000, and the loss of vessels is about $13,000,000 per annum, which would be about 5 per cent. The marine losses for three years were as follows: Marine Risks. In 18 Stock Companies... Total Marine........ Total Fire....... Total Marine Losses.... Total Fire Losses..... Total Losses, Fire 1860. 1861 and The commissioners, in respect to the cost of insurance, remark: "It would be interesting to infer the average cost to policy-holders and profit to the companies of each branch of insurance, but the returns lack the completeness and distinctness necessary to give a proper basis of facts. In the marine business, we have no means of knowing the whole or the average amount of risk borne or business done during the year, and in a year of disturbance like the past, the amount of risk outstanding at the close is hardly an indication of it. As to average profits, a question which really pertains only to Stock Companies, nothing can be determined, because the companies are chiefly mixed, insuring both fire and marine risks, while the expenses of each are not distinguished. In regard to the average cost to the policy-holder of the dollar of indemnity for loss by fire, it is possible more nearly to approach it, in regard to the two classes of Stock and Mutual Fire Companies. In the Stock Companies, the cash received for fire risks during the year, and in the Mutual Fire Companies, the cash received less the cash dividend returned during the year, represent very nearly the whole premium for the risks borne during the year on which the losses paid have occurred. From this we can easily infer how much the policy-holder has on the average had to pay in each year, in each class of companies, for every dollar of indemnity he has received." The laws of New York, where the largest amount of insurance has been effected, indicate the changes which have taken place in the course of business. Up to the revision of the State Constitution in 1846, it was usual to grant special charters for the incorporation of companies, and fire, marine, and life powers were often granted to one and the same company. The growing jealousy of the people in respect to all corporations, led to the enactment of general laws, and in 1849 a general insurance law was passed by which any number of persons exceeding fifteen might organize into a company for fire and marine insurance, but it was expressly ordered that no company insuring lives should take any other kind of risks. In 1853 a new law was passed, enacting that no fire company should take any but fire and internal navigation risks. In 1836, when the great fire of 1835 had swept down all the companies of that day, 11 companies on the mutual plan were organized; these still exist. In 1837, 4 more were started, and 4 others were added up to 1849, when under the general law 42 were started, of which 9 only remain. Of late years, the increase of companies has been very rapid, and the profits large. In the last 8 years the 21 companies organized prior to 1838 have declared an average of 142 per cent., or 18 per cent. per annum average. The dividends of other companies are not so large, but give very good investments. In 1861 the New York State companies were as follows: No. 25 13 Amets. Net Premiums. 96 $26,860,190 $7,261,595 4,560,159 1,029,167 21,867,198 14,335,079 Losses. Dividends. Risks. $3,984,441 $2,469,090 $829,338,848 120,486] 87,136,107 :: $66,060,209 $25,002,501 $4,853,330 $2,469,090 $916,474,955 The Mutual Fire Companies, now in New 900,000, were organized in 1859. In addition York State, compare as follows: to the New York companies doing business in New York, there are English companies, and also large institutions chartered in other States. Formerly, or up to 1836, foreigners could do business in New York only by paying a tax of 10 per cent. This was reduced to 2 per cent., and this tax gave a revenue of $3,183, or $813 per annum more than was derived from the 10 per cent. tax. The two great fires of 1835 and 1845 demonstrated the importance of having as much capital applied to the insurance of city property as possible. Instead of keep ing foreign capital out by a high tax, it was manifestly advantageous that a portion of the city losses should be borne by that capital. |