Chapter 17

Californian Indians.—Beginning with the foundation by Father Junipero Serra in 1769 of San Diego de Alcalá, and ending with that of San Francisco Solano in 1823, there were established, from beyond San Francisco Bay to the River Colorado, twenty-three missions of the Catholic faith among the Indians of California, whose direct influence lasted until the “secularization” of the missions and the expulsion of the friars by the Mexican government in 1834. In that year the missions counted 30,650 Indians and produced 122,500 bushels of wheat and corn. They possessed also 424,000 cattle, 62,500 horses and mules, 321,900 sheep, goats, hogs, &c. The mission-buildings of brick and stone contained besides religious houses and chapels, school-rooms and workshops for instruction in arts and industries, and were surrounded by orchards, vineyards and farms. Here Indians of diverse linguistic stocks were “reduced” and “civilized,” and their labour fully utilized by the mission-fathers. But, in the words of Mooney (Handb. of Amer. Inds.pt. i., 1907, p. 895), “Despite regular life, abundance of food and proper clothing according to the season, the Indian withered away under the restrictions of civilization supplemented by epidemic diseases introduced by the military garrisons or the seal-hunters along the coast. The death-rate was so enormous, in spite of apparent material advancement, that it is probable that the former factor alone would have brought about the extinction of the missions within a few generations.” Some of the missions had but a few hundred Indians, some, however, as high as three thousand. Kroeber thinks that their influence was “probably greater temporally than spiritually.” After the “secularization” of the missions decay soon set in, which the American occupation of California later on did nothing to remedy, and the native population rapidly decreased. When the supervision of the missionaries no longer sustained them the Indians fell to pieces and the practical results of seventy years of labour and devotion were lost. In 1908 there remained of the “Mission Indians” less than 3000 individuals (belonging to the Shoshonian and Yuman stocks), whose condition was none too satisfactory, the only human relics of the huge attempt at the “reduction” of the Indian that was planned and carried out in California.Iroquoian.—The French missions among the Hurons began in 1615-1616 with Father le Caron of the Recollect order; those of the Jesuits with Father Brebœuf in 1626. These missions flourished, in spite of wars and other adverse circumstances, till the invasion of the Huron country in Ontario by the Iroquois in 1641 and again in 1649 brought about their destruction and the dispersal of the Hurons who were not slain or carried off as prisoners by the victors. Some took refuge among neighbouring friendly tribes; others settled finally at Lorette near Quebec, &c. The Wyandots, now in Oklahoma, are another fragment of the scattered Hurons. The Hurons of Lorette numbered in 1908, 1 Anglican, 6 Presbyterians and 459 Catholics. The Wyandots of Oklahoma are largely Protestants. The mission among the Mohawks of New York was established in 1642 by Father Jogues (afterwards martyred by the Indians), and in 1653 the church at Onondaga was built, while during the next few years missions were organized among the Oneida, Cayuga and Seneca, to cease during the warlike times of 1658-66, after which they were again established among these tribes. The mission of St François Xavier des Pré (La Prairie), out of which came the modern Caughnawaga, was founded in 1669, and here gathered many Christian Iroquois of various tribes—Mohawk especially. About this time the Iroquois settlement on the Bay of Quinté, Ontario, was formed by Christian Mohawks, Cayugas, &c. The Lake of the Two Mountains mission dates from 1720, that of St Regis from 1756. Another mission at Oswegatchie, founded in 1748, was abandoned in 1807. The Episcopal missions among the Iroquois began early in the 18th century, the Mohawks being the first tribe influenced, about 1700. The extension of the work among the other Iroquoian tribes was aided by Sir William Johnson in the last half of the century and by Chief Joseph Brant, especially after the removal of those of the Iroquois who favoured the British to Canada at the close of the War of Independence. In 1776 the Congregationalists established a mission among the New York Oneida, and later continued their labours also among the Oneida of Wisconsin. The Congregational mission among the New York Seneca began in 1831. In 1791-1798, at the request of Chief Cornplanter, the Pennsylvania Quakers established missions among the Oneida, Tuscarora and Seneca. The Moravian missions among the New York Onondaga were established under the Rev. David Zeisberger about 1745. The Methodist missions among the Ontario Iroquois date from 1820. Of the “Six Nations” Indians of the Grand river, Ontario, the Cayuga and Onondaga are still “pagan,” the others being Anglican, Methodist and other denominations, including Seventh Day Adventists, Salvation Army, &c. Among the New York Iroquois great variety of religious faith also exists, the Presbyterians (largest), Methodists, Episcopalians and Baptists being all represented. The Iroquois of Caughnawaga and St Regis are mainly Catholic; at Caughnawaga there is, however, a Methodist school.Muskogian.—Several tribes of this stock came under the influence of the missions established by the Spanish friars along the Atlantic coast after the founding of St Augustine in 1565. The missionaries in this region were chiefly Franciscans, who succeeded the Jesuits. They were very successful among the Apalachee, but these Indians were constantly subject to attack by the Yamasi, Creek, Catawba and other savage peoples, and in 1703-1704 they were destroyed or taken captive, and the missions came to an end. A few of the survivors were gathered later at Pensacola for a time. In the early part of the 18th century French missions were established among the Choctaw, Natchez, &c., and the Jesuits laboured among the Alibamu from 1725 till their expulsion in 1764. From 1735 to 1739 the Moravians (beginning under Spangenberg) had a mission school among the Yamacraw, a Creek tribe near Savannah. In 1831 a Presbyterian mission was established among the Choctaw on the Yalabusha river in northern Mississippi, to which went in 1834 the Rev. Cyrus Byington, the Eliot mission over which he presided there and in the Indian Territory till 1868 being one of great importance. After the removal of the Indians to the Indian Territory more missions were established among the Choctaw, the Creek and the Seminole, &c. The work was much interfered with by the Civil War of 1861-65, but the mission work was afterwards reorganized. The Baptist missions among the Choctaw began in 1832 and among the Creek in 1839. The “Choctaw Academy,” a high school, at Great Crossings, Kentucky, chiefly for young men of the Choctaw and Creek nations, was founded in 1819 and continued for twenty-four years. In 1835 a Methodist mission was established among the Creek, but soon abandoned, to be reorganized later on. Among the Indians of Oklahoma, the Catholic and Mormon churches and practically all the Protestant denominations, including the Salvation Army and the Christian Scientists, are now represented by churches, schools, missions, &c. The missionaries among the Muskogian tribes during the last half of the 18th century, as may be seen from Pilling’sBibliography of the Muskhogean Languages(1889), furnished many able students of Indian tongues, whose researches have been of great value in philology. This is true likewise of labourers in the mission-field among the Algonkian, Iroquoian, Athabaskan, Siouan and Salishan tribes and among the Eskimo. The celebrated “Eliot Bible,” the translation (1663) of the scriptures into the language of the Algonkian Indians of Massachusetts, made by the Rev. John Eliot (q.v.), is a monument of missionary endeavour and prescientific study of the aboriginal tongues. In his work Eliot, like many other missionaries, had the assistance of several Indians. The names of such mission-workers as Egede, Kleinschmidt, Fabricius, Erdmann, Kohlmeister, Bruyas, Zeisberger, Dencke, Rasles, Gravier, Mengarini, Giorda, Worcester, Byington, Wright, Riggs, Dorsey, Williamson, Voth, Eells, Pandosy, Veniaminov, Barnum, André, Mathevet, Thavenet, Cuoq, Sagard, O’Meara, Jones, Wilson, Rand, Lacombe, Petitot, Maclean, Hunter, Horden, Kirkby, Watkins, Tims, Evans, Morice, Hall, Harrison, Legoff, Bompas, Peck, &c., are familiar to students of the aboriginal tongues of America.

Iroquoian.—The French missions among the Hurons began in 1615-1616 with Father le Caron of the Recollect order; those of the Jesuits with Father Brebœuf in 1626. These missions flourished, in spite of wars and other adverse circumstances, till the invasion of the Huron country in Ontario by the Iroquois in 1641 and again in 1649 brought about their destruction and the dispersal of the Hurons who were not slain or carried off as prisoners by the victors. Some took refuge among neighbouring friendly tribes; others settled finally at Lorette near Quebec, &c. The Wyandots, now in Oklahoma, are another fragment of the scattered Hurons. The Hurons of Lorette numbered in 1908, 1 Anglican, 6 Presbyterians and 459 Catholics. The Wyandots of Oklahoma are largely Protestants. The mission among the Mohawks of New York was established in 1642 by Father Jogues (afterwards martyred by the Indians), and in 1653 the church at Onondaga was built, while during the next few years missions were organized among the Oneida, Cayuga and Seneca, to cease during the warlike times of 1658-66, after which they were again established among these tribes. The mission of St François Xavier des Pré (La Prairie), out of which came the modern Caughnawaga, was founded in 1669, and here gathered many Christian Iroquois of various tribes—Mohawk especially. About this time the Iroquois settlement on the Bay of Quinté, Ontario, was formed by Christian Mohawks, Cayugas, &c. The Lake of the Two Mountains mission dates from 1720, that of St Regis from 1756. Another mission at Oswegatchie, founded in 1748, was abandoned in 1807. The Episcopal missions among the Iroquois began early in the 18th century, the Mohawks being the first tribe influenced, about 1700. The extension of the work among the other Iroquoian tribes was aided by Sir William Johnson in the last half of the century and by Chief Joseph Brant, especially after the removal of those of the Iroquois who favoured the British to Canada at the close of the War of Independence. In 1776 the Congregationalists established a mission among the New York Oneida, and later continued their labours also among the Oneida of Wisconsin. The Congregational mission among the New York Seneca began in 1831. In 1791-1798, at the request of Chief Cornplanter, the Pennsylvania Quakers established missions among the Oneida, Tuscarora and Seneca. The Moravian missions among the New York Onondaga were established under the Rev. David Zeisberger about 1745. The Methodist missions among the Ontario Iroquois date from 1820. Of the “Six Nations” Indians of the Grand river, Ontario, the Cayuga and Onondaga are still “pagan,” the others being Anglican, Methodist and other denominations, including Seventh Day Adventists, Salvation Army, &c. Among the New York Iroquois great variety of religious faith also exists, the Presbyterians (largest), Methodists, Episcopalians and Baptists being all represented. The Iroquois of Caughnawaga and St Regis are mainly Catholic; at Caughnawaga there is, however, a Methodist school.

Muskogian.—Several tribes of this stock came under the influence of the missions established by the Spanish friars along the Atlantic coast after the founding of St Augustine in 1565. The missionaries in this region were chiefly Franciscans, who succeeded the Jesuits. They were very successful among the Apalachee, but these Indians were constantly subject to attack by the Yamasi, Creek, Catawba and other savage peoples, and in 1703-1704 they were destroyed or taken captive, and the missions came to an end. A few of the survivors were gathered later at Pensacola for a time. In the early part of the 18th century French missions were established among the Choctaw, Natchez, &c., and the Jesuits laboured among the Alibamu from 1725 till their expulsion in 1764. From 1735 to 1739 the Moravians (beginning under Spangenberg) had a mission school among the Yamacraw, a Creek tribe near Savannah. In 1831 a Presbyterian mission was established among the Choctaw on the Yalabusha river in northern Mississippi, to which went in 1834 the Rev. Cyrus Byington, the Eliot mission over which he presided there and in the Indian Territory till 1868 being one of great importance. After the removal of the Indians to the Indian Territory more missions were established among the Choctaw, the Creek and the Seminole, &c. The work was much interfered with by the Civil War of 1861-65, but the mission work was afterwards reorganized. The Baptist missions among the Choctaw began in 1832 and among the Creek in 1839. The “Choctaw Academy,” a high school, at Great Crossings, Kentucky, chiefly for young men of the Choctaw and Creek nations, was founded in 1819 and continued for twenty-four years. In 1835 a Methodist mission was established among the Creek, but soon abandoned, to be reorganized later on. Among the Indians of Oklahoma, the Catholic and Mormon churches and practically all the Protestant denominations, including the Salvation Army and the Christian Scientists, are now represented by churches, schools, missions, &c. The missionaries among the Muskogian tribes during the last half of the 18th century, as may be seen from Pilling’sBibliography of the Muskhogean Languages(1889), furnished many able students of Indian tongues, whose researches have been of great value in philology. This is true likewise of labourers in the mission-field among the Algonkian, Iroquoian, Athabaskan, Siouan and Salishan tribes and among the Eskimo. The celebrated “Eliot Bible,” the translation (1663) of the scriptures into the language of the Algonkian Indians of Massachusetts, made by the Rev. John Eliot (q.v.), is a monument of missionary endeavour and prescientific study of the aboriginal tongues. In his work Eliot, like many other missionaries, had the assistance of several Indians. The names of such mission-workers as Egede, Kleinschmidt, Fabricius, Erdmann, Kohlmeister, Bruyas, Zeisberger, Dencke, Rasles, Gravier, Mengarini, Giorda, Worcester, Byington, Wright, Riggs, Dorsey, Williamson, Voth, Eells, Pandosy, Veniaminov, Barnum, André, Mathevet, Thavenet, Cuoq, Sagard, O’Meara, Jones, Wilson, Rand, Lacombe, Petitot, Maclean, Hunter, Horden, Kirkby, Watkins, Tims, Evans, Morice, Hall, Harrison, Legoff, Bompas, Peck, &c., are familiar to students of the aboriginal tongues of America.

When in 1900 the withdrawal by the United States of government aid to denominational schools occurred, it compelled some of the weaker churches to give up such work altogether, and interfered much with the activities of some of the stronger ones. According to the statistics given by Mooney (Handb. of Amer. Inds., 1907, pt. i. p. 897) the Catholic Church had in 1904 altogether, under the care of the Jesuits, Franciscans and Benedictines, &c., and the sisters of the orders of St Francis, St Anne, St Benedict, St Joseph, Mercy and Blessed Sacrament, “178 Indian churches and chapels served by 152 priests; 71 boarding and 26 day schools with 109 teaching priests, 384 sisters and 138 other religious or secular teachers and school assistants.” The Catholic mission work is helped by “the Preservation Society, the Marquette League and by the liberality of Mother Katharine Drexel, founder of the order of the Blessed Sacrament for negro and Indian mission work.” The corresponding statistics for the chief Protestant churches were as follows:—

This is exclusive of Alaska, where Greek Orthodox (18 ministers in1902), Roman Catholics (12 Jesuits and lay brothers and 11 sisters of St Anne in 1903), Moravians (5 mission stations with 13 workers and 21 native assistants among the Eskimo in 1903), Episcopalians (31 workers, white and native, 13 churches, 1 boarding and 7 day schools in 1903), Presbyterians (a dozen stations and several schools), Baptists, Methodists (several stations), Swedish Evangelical (several stations), Friends (several missions), Congregationalists (mission school) and Lutherans (orphanage), all are labouring.

Before the advent of the whites the children of the North American aborigines “had their own systems of education, through which the young were instructed in their coming labours and obligations, embracing not only the whole round of economic pursuits—hunting, fishing, handicraft, agriculture and household work—but speech, fine art, customs, etiquette, social obligations and tribal lore” (Mason). Parents, grandparents, the elders of the tribe, “priests,” &c., were teachers, boys coming early under the instruction of their male relatives and girls under that of their female relatives. Among some tribes special “teachers” of some of the arts existed and with certain of the more developed peoples, such as some of the Iroquoian and Siouan tribes, both childhood and the period of puberty received special attention. Playthings, toys and children’s games were widespread. Imitation of the arts and industries of their elders began early, and with not a few tribes there were “secret societies,” &c., for children and fraternities of various sorts, which they were allowed to join, thus receiving early initiation into social and religious ideas and responsibility in the tribal unit. Corporal punishment was little in vogue, the Iroquoise.g.condemning it as bad for the soul as well as the body. Appeals to the feelings of pride, shame, self-esteem, &c., were commonly made. As the treatment of the youth at puberty by the Omahae.g.indicates, there was among some tribes distinct recognition of individuality, and the young Indian acquired his so-called “totem” or “guardian spirit” individually and not tribally. In some tribes, however, the tribal consciousness overpowered altogether children and youth. With the Indian, as with all other young human beings, “unconscious absorption” played its important rôle. Parental affection among some of the peoples north of Mexico reached as high a degree as with the whites, and devices for aiding, improving and amusing infants and children were innumerable. Some of the “beauty makers,” however, amounted to rather serious deformations, though often no worse than those due to the corset, the use of uncouth foot-wear, premature factory labour, &c., in civilized countries.

Interesting details of Indian child-life and education are to be found in books like Eastman’sIndian Boyhood(1902), Jenks’Childhood of Jishib the Ojibwa(1900), Spencer’sEducation of the Pueblo Child(1889), La Flesche’sThe Middle Five(1901), Stevenson’sReligious Education of the Zuñi Child(1887), and in the writings of Miss A. C. Fletcher, J. O. Dorsey, J. Mooney, W. M. Beauchamp, &c., besides the accounts of missionaries and travellers of the better sort.

Outside of missions proper there were many efforts made by the colonists to educate the Indians. It is an interesting fact, emphasized by James in hisEnglish Institutions and the American Indian(1894), that several institutions still existing, and now of large influence in the educational world of the United States and Canada, had their origin in whole or in part in the desire to Christianize and to educate the aborigines, which object was mentioned in charters (e.g.Virginia in 1606 and again in 1621), &c. Sums of money were also left for the purposes of educating Indian children and youth, many of whom were sent over to England for that purpose, by colonists who adopted them (one such was Sampson Occum, minister and author of the hymn, “Awaked by Sinai’s Awful Sound”). In 1618 Henrico College in Virginia was founded, where Indian youth were taught religion, “civility” and a trade. It was succeeded by the College of William and Mary (founded in 1691 with the aid of a benefaction of Robert Boyle), where Indian youth were boarded and received their education for many years. The great university of Harvard has long outgrown “the Indian college at Cambridge,” whose single graduate Cheeshateaumuck, took his degree in 1665, but died afterwards of consumption. But its original charter provided for all things “that may conduce to the education of the English and Indian youth of this country in knowledge and godliness.” Since Cheeshateaumuck’s time, doubtless, there have been graduates of Harvard who could boast of Indian blood in their veins (e.g.recently William Jones, the ethnologist), but they have been few and far between. Dartmouth College, at Hanover, New Hampshire, founded in 1754, really grew out of Wheelock’s Indian school at Lebanon, Connecticut—at this period there were several such schools in New England, &c. In the royal charter, granted to Dartmouth in 1769, is the provision “that there be a College erected in our said Province of New Hampshire, by the name of Dartmouth College, for the education and instruction of Youth of the Indian Tribes in this Land, in reading, writing and all parts of Learning which shall appear necessary and expedient for civilizing and christianizing children of pagans, as well as in all liberal Arts and Sciences, and also of English Youth and any other.” The college of New Jersey long served as one of the institutions for the education of Indian youth. A glimpse of Indians at Princeton is given by Collins (Princeton Univ. Bull., 1902) in his account of the attempt to confer an academic education, at the end of the 18th century, upon Thomas Killbuck and his cousin, George Bright-eyes, son of a Delaware chief, and a descendant of Taimenend, eponym of the political “Tammany.” It would seem that at this period the states and Congress were in the habit of granting moneys for the education of individual Indians at various institutions.

At the present time the most noteworthy institutions for the education of the Indian in the United States are the Chilocco Indian Industrial school, under government auspices, in Kay county, Oklahoma, near Arkansas city, Kansas; the Carlisle school (government) at Carlisle, Pa.; and the Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute (private, but subsidized by the government), at Hampton, Va.

The Chilocco school is, in many respects, a model institution for Indian youth of both sexes, devoted to “agriculture and attendant industries.” It was opened in 1884 with 186 pupils, and in 1906 the attendance was 685 out of an enrolment of 700. There are 35 buildings, and the corps of instruction, &c., consists of “a superintendent, 51 principal employés and 20 minor Indian assistants.” The Carlisle school, “the first non-reservation school established by the government,” whose origin is due to “the efforts of General R. H. Pratt, when a lieutenant in charge of Indian prisoners of war at St Augustine, Florida, from May 11, 1875, to April 14, 1878,” was opened in November 1879 with 147 Indians, including 11 Florida prisoners; it had in 1906 an enrolment of over 1000 pupils of both sexes, under both white and Indian teachers, and an average attendance of 981. In 1906 there were in attendance members of 67 tribes, representing at least 22 distinct linguistic stocks. According to J. H. Dortch (Handb. of Amer. Inds., 1907, pt. i. p. 207), “since the foundation of the school nearly every tribe in the United States has had representatives on its rolls.” The following statistics, cited by Mr Dortch, indicate both the success of the school in general and of the “outing system” (pupils are allowed to work in temporary homes, but keeping in close touch with the school), which “has come to be a distinctive feature not only of the Carlisle school but of the Indian school service generally”:Admitted during 25 years5,170Discharged during 25 years4,210On rolls during fiscal year 19041,087Outings, fiscal year 1904 (girls 426, boys 498)924Outings during 21 years (girls 3214, boys 5118)8,332Students’ earnings 1904$34,970Students’ earnings during 15 years$352,951The staff of the school consists of a superintendent, 75 instructors, clerks, &c. It has graduated “a large number of pupils, many of whom are filling responsible positions in the business world, and especially in the Indian service, in which, during the fiscal year 1903, 101 were employed in various capacities from teachers to labourers, drawing a total of $46,300 in salaries.” The Carlisle football team competes with the chief white colleges and universities.The Hampton Institute was established in 1868 by General S. C. Armstrong and trains both Negroes and Indians, having admitted the latter since 1878. It is partly supported by the government of Virginia and by the United States government, the latter paying $167 a year for 120 Indian pupils, boys and girls (in 1906 there were in attendance 112, of whom 57 were girls and 55 boys), belonging to 33 different tribes, representing 13 distinct linguistic stocks. The following extract from the report of the principal for 1905-1906 is of interest: “Fifteen catechists among the Sioux still hold their own. There are two field-matrons and seven camp-school teachers, all coming into close touch with the more ignorant of the people. Four are physicians getting their living from their white patientsand doing more or less missionary work among their own people. William Jones has his degrees of A.M. and Ph.D., and is doing valuable ethnological work for the Carnegie Institution, Columbia University and the American Museum of Natural History in New York. James Murie is assisting in similar work for the Field Museum in Chicago. Hampton has but one Indian lawyer. There are about 50 students holding positions pretty steadily in government schools. About 40 boys have employment at government agencies, 20 being employed as clerks and interpreters, either at the agencies or at the schools. Ten boys are working in machine shops at the north and three are in the navy. A fair proportion are working on their farms; some have accumulated quite a little stock, and five are prosperous cattlemen, seven boys have stores of their own and make a good living from them.” The Indian Department has now adopted the policy of giving industrial training and household economy the chief place in education, varying the instruction to suit the environment in which the boy or girl is to grow up and live and not mixing the needs of Alaska with those of California, or those of Dakota with those of Florida.

The staff of the school consists of a superintendent, 75 instructors, clerks, &c. It has graduated “a large number of pupils, many of whom are filling responsible positions in the business world, and especially in the Indian service, in which, during the fiscal year 1903, 101 were employed in various capacities from teachers to labourers, drawing a total of $46,300 in salaries.” The Carlisle football team competes with the chief white colleges and universities.

The Hampton Institute was established in 1868 by General S. C. Armstrong and trains both Negroes and Indians, having admitted the latter since 1878. It is partly supported by the government of Virginia and by the United States government, the latter paying $167 a year for 120 Indian pupils, boys and girls (in 1906 there were in attendance 112, of whom 57 were girls and 55 boys), belonging to 33 different tribes, representing 13 distinct linguistic stocks. The following extract from the report of the principal for 1905-1906 is of interest: “Fifteen catechists among the Sioux still hold their own. There are two field-matrons and seven camp-school teachers, all coming into close touch with the more ignorant of the people. Four are physicians getting their living from their white patientsand doing more or less missionary work among their own people. William Jones has his degrees of A.M. and Ph.D., and is doing valuable ethnological work for the Carnegie Institution, Columbia University and the American Museum of Natural History in New York. James Murie is assisting in similar work for the Field Museum in Chicago. Hampton has but one Indian lawyer. There are about 50 students holding positions pretty steadily in government schools. About 40 boys have employment at government agencies, 20 being employed as clerks and interpreters, either at the agencies or at the schools. Ten boys are working in machine shops at the north and three are in the navy. A fair proportion are working on their farms; some have accumulated quite a little stock, and five are prosperous cattlemen, seven boys have stores of their own and make a good living from them.” The Indian Department has now adopted the policy of giving industrial training and household economy the chief place in education, varying the instruction to suit the environment in which the boy or girl is to grow up and live and not mixing the needs of Alaska with those of California, or those of Dakota with those of Florida.

In Canada the most notable institutions for the education of the Indians are the Mohawk Institute at Brantford, Ontario; the Mount Elgin Institute at Muncey, Ontario; the Brandon Industrial school at Brandon, Manitoba; the Qu’Appelle Industrial school at Lebret, Saskatchewan.

The Mohawk Institute is the oldest, having been founded in 1831 by the “New England Company,” which began its work among the Canadian Iroquois in 1822. It is undenominational, aided by a government grant, and had in 1907 an average attendance of 106 out of an enrolment of 111 of both sexes. The Mount Elgin Industrial Institute was founded by the Methodist Missionary Society in 1847, and had an attendance for 1907 of 104 of both sexes. The Brandon Industrial school, under Methodist auspices, had in 1907 an attendance of 104 of both sexes. The Qu’Appelle Industrial school, under Roman Catholic auspices, had an average attendance of 210 of both sexes. All these schools receive government aid. As in the United States, Indian teachers and assistants are often employed when fitted for such labours.

The first appropriation by the Congress of the United States for the general education of the Indians was made in 1819, when the sum of $10,000 was assigned for that and closely allied purposes, and by 1825 there were 38 schools among the Indians receiving government aid, but government schools proper date from 1873 (contract schools are four years older), the order of their institution being day schools, reservation boarding schools, then non-reservation boarding schools. In 1900 the contract schools were practically abandoned and the Indian appropriation devoted to government schools altogether. Latterly some departure from this policy has occurred, following a decision of the Supreme Court. In less than a century the expenditure for Indian education increased from an annual outlay of $10,000 to one of about $5,000,000, to which must be added the expenditures from private sources, which are considerable.

Exclusive of Alaska, there were in the United States in 1906, according to the report of the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, 324 Indian schools (government 261, mission 48, contract 15), with an enrolment of 30,929 and an average attendance of 25,492 pupils, costing the government annually $3,115,953. Of the government schools 25 were non-reservation and 90 reservation boarding schools, and 146 day schools; of the mission schools 45 boarding and 3 day; of the contract schools 8 boarding and 6 public. The schools of a denominational character belonged as follows: 29 to the Catholic Church, 5 to the Presbyterian, 4 to the Protestant Episcopal, 2 to the Congregational, 2 to the Lutheran, and 1 each to the Evangelical Lutheran, Reformed Presbyterian, Methodist, Christian Reformed and Baptist. Besides there were in all 446 public schools on or near reservations which Indians could attend.

In Canada, according to the report of the Department of Indian Affairs for 1907, there was a total of 303 Indian schools (day 226, boarding 55, industrial 22), of which 45 were undenominational, 91 Church of England, 106 Roman Catholic, 44 Methodist and 1 Salvation Army. The total enrolment of pupils was 9618, with an average attendance of 6138. In several cases Indians attend white schools, not being counted in these statistics. The total amount appropriated for Indian schools during the year 1906-1907 was $356,277.

The intelligence of the American Indians north of Mexico ranges from a minimum with the lowest of the Athabaskan tribes of extreme north-western Canada and the lowest of the Shoshonian tribes of the south-western UnitedIndian talent and capacity.States to a maximum with the highest developed members of the Muskogian and Iroquoian stocks (both the Cherokee branch and the Iroquois proper). It must be remembered, however, that the possibilities of improvement by change of environment are very great, as is shown by the fact that the Hupa of California and the Navaho of Arizona and New Mexico (also the cruel and cunning Apaches) belong to the Athabaskan family, while the Shoshonian includes many of the “civilized nations” of ancient Mexico and, in particular, the famous Aztecs. One way of judging of the intellectual character of the various stocks of North American aborigines is from the “great men” they have produced during the historical periods of contact with the whites. Many of these stocks have, of course, not had occasion for the development of great men, their small numbers, their isolation, their lack of historical experience, their long residence in an unfavourable environment, their perpetual and unrestricted democracy, &c., are some of the sufficient explanations for this state of affairs, as they would be in any other part of the world. The Eskimoan, Athabaskan, Koluschan, Wakashan (and other tribes of the North Pacific coast), Salishan and Shoshonian (except in Mexico) stocks, together with the numerous small or unimportant stocks of the Oregon-California and Gulf-Atlantic regions, have not produced any great men, although members of many tribes have been individually of not a little service to the intruding race in pioneer times and since then, or have been highly esteemed by them on account of their abilities or character, &c. Here might be mentioned perhaps Sacajawea (seeOut West, xxiii. 223), the Indian woman who acted as guide and helper of the Lewis and Clark expedition and saved the journals at the risk of her life (she has now a statue erected to her memory in Seattle); Louise Sighouin, the Sahaptian convert of whom the missionary de Smet thought so much; Catherine Tekatawitha, the “Iroquois saint,” &c.

The following list will serve to indicate some of the “great men” of the Indian race north of Mexico and the stocks to which they have belonged; in it are included also some products of the contact of the two cultures:—

1.Algonkian.—In politics and in oratory, as well as in combat, this stock has produced notable characters, the conflict with the whites and the Iroquois doubtless serving to stimulate native genius. Among Algonkian notables may be mentioned “King Philip” and Powhatan; Pontiac and Tecumseh; Black Hawk; Sampson Occum; George Copway; Francis Assickinack, &c.2.Athabaskan.—The possibilities of this stock have been recently illustrated by the Apaches, who, on the one hand, have produced Geronimo, the chief who from 1877 to 1886 gave the United States authorities such trouble, and, on the other, Dr Carlos Montezuma, a full-blood Indian, who, after receiving a good education, served the government as physician at several Indian agencies, and in 1908 was practising his profession in Chicago and teaching in the College of Physicians and Surgeons and the Post-Graduate Medical School. From these southern Athabaskans much is to be expected under favouring conditions.3.Iroquoian.—Here, as among the Algonkian tribes, circumstances favoured the development of men of great ability. Of these may be mentioned: Hiawatha, statesman and reformer (fl. c. 1450), the chief mover in the formation of the great “League of the Iroquois”; Captain Joseph Brant; “Red Jacket”; Oronhyatekha (d. 1906), the head of the Independent Order of Foresters, an important secret charitable society, a physician, and a man of remarkable power as an organizer.4.Sahaptian.—A remarkable Indian character was Nez Percé Joseph, the leader of his people in the troubles of 1877. In 1905, at the general assembly of the Presbyterian Church, a delegate representing both whites and Indians was Mark Arthur (b. 1873), a full-blood Nez Percé and since 1900 the successful pastor (fully ordained) of the church at Lapwai, Idaho, the oldest Presbyterian church west of the Rocky Mountains.5.Siouan.—The most famous Indian of Siouan stock is “Sitting Bull” (d. 1890), medicine-man and chief. Miss Angel de Cora, a Winnebago, was in 1908 instructor in art at the Carlisle school.

2.Athabaskan.—The possibilities of this stock have been recently illustrated by the Apaches, who, on the one hand, have produced Geronimo, the chief who from 1877 to 1886 gave the United States authorities such trouble, and, on the other, Dr Carlos Montezuma, a full-blood Indian, who, after receiving a good education, served the government as physician at several Indian agencies, and in 1908 was practising his profession in Chicago and teaching in the College of Physicians and Surgeons and the Post-Graduate Medical School. From these southern Athabaskans much is to be expected under favouring conditions.

3.Iroquoian.—Here, as among the Algonkian tribes, circumstances favoured the development of men of great ability. Of these may be mentioned: Hiawatha, statesman and reformer (fl. c. 1450), the chief mover in the formation of the great “League of the Iroquois”; Captain Joseph Brant; “Red Jacket”; Oronhyatekha (d. 1906), the head of the Independent Order of Foresters, an important secret charitable society, a physician, and a man of remarkable power as an organizer.

4.Sahaptian.—A remarkable Indian character was Nez Percé Joseph, the leader of his people in the troubles of 1877. In 1905, at the general assembly of the Presbyterian Church, a delegate representing both whites and Indians was Mark Arthur (b. 1873), a full-blood Nez Percé and since 1900 the successful pastor (fully ordained) of the church at Lapwai, Idaho, the oldest Presbyterian church west of the Rocky Mountains.

5.Siouan.—The most famous Indian of Siouan stock is “Sitting Bull” (d. 1890), medicine-man and chief. Miss Angel de Cora, a Winnebago, was in 1908 instructor in art at the Carlisle school.

Another, not always just or fair, method of gauging the intelligence of the North American Indians is by their ability toassimilate the culture of the whites and to profit by the contact of the two races. Curiously enough, some of the tribes at one time considered lowest in point of general intellectual equipment have shown not a little of this ability, and there is a marked difference in this respect between tribes belonging to one and the same stock. The Athabaskan stocke.g.shows such variations, or rather perhaps this stock in general exhibits a tendency to adopt the culture of other peoples, thus some of the Athabaskan tribes in Alaska have acquired elements of culture from the Eskimo; the Takulli have been influenced by the Tsimshian, and Nahané by the Tlingit, the Chilcotin by the Salish, the Sarcee by the western Algonkian tribes, and in the extreme south the Navaho by the Pueblos Indians. The Salishan stock has largely this same characteristic. Of these two peoples Mr C. Hill-Tout (The Salish and Déné, London, 1907, p. 50) says: “It would be difficult indeed to find two peoples more susceptible to foreign influences, more receptive of new ideas and more ready and willing to adopt and carry them out.” In the relations established between them and the whites not enough advantage in the proper way has been taken of this “philoneism,” which ought to have been the basis of their acquisition of our culture, or such aspects of it as suited them best. And perhaps there are other stocks of which, if we knew them well, similar things might be said. Of the Indians of the Shoshonian stock the Paiutes of Nevada and Arizona have shown themselves capable of making themselves necessary to the whites (farmers, &c.) of that region, and not falling victims to the “vices of civilization.” Although they still retain their primitivewickiups(or rush huts), they seem actually to have improved in health, wealth and character from association with the “superior” race, a rare thing in many respects among the lower Indian tribes of North America. This improvement of the Paiutes causes us not to be surprised when we find the more cultured Moquis and the “civilized” Aztecs of ancient Mexico to belong to the same Shoshonian stock. Acculturation by borrowing has played an important rôle in the development of North American Indian ideas and institutions. This is well illustrated by the history of the Plains Indians, with their numerous intertribal societies, their temporary and their permanent alliances, federations, &c. If ways and means for the transfer of elements of culture indicate intelligence, some of these tribes must rank rather high in the scale. The Algonkian, Iroquoian and Muskogian stocks, both in the case of individuals and in the case of whole tribes (or their remnants), have exhibited great ability in the directions indicated. Of the Caddoan stock the Pawnees seem gifted with considerable native ability expressing itself particularly in the matter of religion (the Hupas, of the Athabaskan stock, seem also to have “a religious sense”). Some tribes of the Siouan stock have, both in the case of individuals and as peoples, given evidence of marked intelligence, especially in relation to psychic phenomena and the treatment of adolescent youth. In their culture, their ceremonies and ritual proceedings, as well as in their material arts, the Pueblos Indians of the south-western United States show, in many ways, their mental kinship with the creators and sustainers of the civilization of ancient Mexico and Central America. From the table of Indian tribes it will be seen that aborigines of the most diverse stocks have shown themselves capable of assimilating white culture and of adapting themselves to the new set of circumstances. Progress and improvement are not at all confined to any one stock.

A very interesting fact in the history of the education of the aborigines north of Mexico is the success of the attempt to enable them to read and write their own language by means of specially prepared syllabaries, “alphabets,”Syllabaries.&c. The first of these, the still existing “Micmac hieroglyphics,” so-called, was the work of Father le Clercq in 1665, improved by Father Kauder in 1866; one of the most recent, the adaptation of the “Cree syllabary” of Evans by Peck to the language of the Eskimo of Cumberland Sound. The basis of many of the existing syllabaries is “the Cree syllabary,” or “Evans Syllabary,” invented about 1841 by the Rev. James Evans, a Methodist missionary in the Hudson’s Bay region from the study of the shorthand systems current at that time. This syllabary and modifications of it are now in use (with much printed literature) for both writing and printing among many tribes of the Algonkian, Athabaskan (modified by Morice for the Carriers, by Kirkby and others for Chipewyan, Slavé, &c.), Eskimo (modified by Peck), Siouan (Cree syllabary used by Canadian Stonies) stocks. Among the Salishan tribes of the Thompson river region, the Shushwap, Okanagan, &c., a stenographic modification (reproduced by mimeograph) by Father le Jeune of the Duployan system of shorthand has been used with great success. But the most remarkable of all these syllabaries is one more of Indian than missionary origin, in its application at least, the well-known “Cherokee alphabet” of Sequoyah, an uneducated Cherokee half-blood, who got part of his idea from an old spelling-book though his characters did not at all correspond to English sounds—at first 82, later 86 syllables were represented. Invented about 1821 the “Cherokee alphabet” was first used for printing in 1827, and has been in constant use since then for correspondence and for various literary purposes. The effect of this invention is thus described by Mooney (Myths of the Cherokee, 1902):—

“The invention of the alphabet had an immediate and wonderful effect on Cherokee development. An account of the remarkable adaptation of the syllabary to the language, it was only necessary to learn the characters to be able to read at once. No school-houses were built and no teachers hired, but the whole Nation became an academy for the study of the system, until, in the course of a few months, without school or expense of time or money, the Cherokee were able to read and write in their own language. An active correspondence began to be carried on between the Eastern and Western divisions, and plans were made for a national press, with a national library and museum to be established at the capital, New Echota. The missionaries, who had at first opposed the new alphabet on the ground of its Indian origin, now saw the advisability of using it to further their own work.”

In spite of absurdities of form and position in the characters of this syllabary, it serves its purpose so well that, as Pilling informs us (Amer. Anthrop., 1893), “a few hours of instruction are sufficient for a Cherokee to learn to read his own language intelligibly,” and in two and a half months the Cherokee child “acquires the art of reading and writing fluently in these rude characters.” The success of the “Cree syllabary” was also astonishing, and in 1890, according to Maclean (Canad. Sav. Folk, p. 283), “few Cree Indians can be found who are not able to read the literature printed in the syllabic characters.” Here again, “an Indian with average intelligence can memorize the whole in a day, and in less than one week read fluently any book written upon this plan,” and many Indians learn to read fluently “with no other teachers but the Indians around the camp-fires.” Morice reports equal success with his syllabary: “Through it Indians of common intelligence have learnt to read in one week’s leisurely study before they had any primer or printed matter of any kind to help them on. We even know of a young man who performed the feat in the space of two evenings.” Le Jeune’s experience with the Shuswap and Thompson Indians is the same. The creation of a “literary” class among so many Indian tribes within a comparatively brief period is certainly a very interesting result, and one which gives evidence of native intelligence among children and adults alike (Amer. Journ. Psychol., 1905).

For a general list of authorities on the American aborigines, see bibliography underAmerica, section 3,Ethnology. The literature on the subject, already vast, is continually increasing, and it is impossible to enumerate every contribution made by the large number of expert anthropologists working in this field. The chief works of a special nature have already been cited in the text.

(A. F. C.)

INDICATOR(from Lat.indicare, to point out), that which points out or records. In engineering, the word is specifically given to a mechanical device for registering the pressure of the working fluid in an engine cylinder during a stroke of the piston, the record so provided being termed the “indicator diagram” (seeSteam-engine). In chemistry, the word is generically applied to re-agents or chemicals which detect usually small quantities or traces of other substances; it is, however, more customarily restricted to re-agents which show whether asubstance or solution is acid, alkaline or neutral, the character being revealed in a definite colour change.

Here we shall only deal with indicators in this last restricted sense. They were first systematically employed in analytical chemistry by Robert Boyle, who used the aqueous extracts of the coloured principles present in red-cabbage, violets and cornflowers. The indicator most in use to-day is litmus (q.v.), whose solution is turned red by an acid, and blue by an alkali. Several synthetic indicators are employed in acidimetry and alkalimetry. The choice is not altogether arbitrary, for experiments have shown that some are more suitable for acidimetry, while others are only applicable in alkalimetry; moreover, the strength of the acids and bases employed may exert a considerable influence on the behaviour of the indicator.

The following are well-known synthetic indicators: hacmoid, obtained from resorcin and sodium nitrite, resembles litmus. Phenolphthalein, obtained by condensing phenol with phthalic anhydride, is colourless both in acid and in neutral solution, but intensely red in the presence of alkali; the colour change is very sharp with strong bases, but tardy with weak ones, and consequently its use should be restricted to acidimetry when a strong base can be chosen, or to alkalimetry when a strong base is present. α-Naphtholphthalein has also been used (Biochem. Zeit., 1910, p. 381). Methyl orange, which is the sodium salt of the acid helianthin, obtained by diazotizing sulphanilic acid and coupling with dimethylaniline, is yellow in neutral and alkaline solutions, but red in acid; the change is only sharp with strong acids. Para-nitrophenol, obtained in the direct nitration of phenol, yields a colourless solution in the presence of acids, and an intense yellow with alkalis. Of more recent introduction are: alizarin red, I.W.S. (alizarin mono-sulphonic acid), claimed by G. E. Knowles (Abst. J.C.S., 1907, ii. 389) to be better than methyl orange in alkalimetry; 3-amino-2-methylquinoline, used by O. Stark (ibid.1907, i. 974) in ammonia estimations; para-nitrobenzeneazo-a-naphthol, shown by J. T. Hewitt (Analyst, 1908, 33, p. 85) to change from purple to yellow when alkalis are titrated with weak acids; para-dimethylaminoazobenzene-ortho-carboxylic acid, proposed by E. Rupp and R. Loose (Ber., 1908, 41, p. 3905) as very serviceable in the estimation of weak bases, such as the alkaloids or centinormal ammonia; the “resorubin” of M. Barberio (Gazzetta, 1907, ii. 577), obtained by acting with nitrous acid on resorcin, which forms a violet, blue or yellow coloration according as the solution is neutral, alkaline or acid. Mention may be made of E. Linder’s (J. Soc. Chem. Ind., 1908, 27, p. 485) suggestion to employ metanil yellow, obtained by coupling diazotized meta-aminobenzenesulphonic acid with diphenylamine for distinguishing mineral from organic acids, a violet coloration being produced in the presence of the former.

Theory of Indicators.—The ionic theory of solutions permitted the formulation of a logical conception of the action of indicators by W. Ostwald which for many years held its ground practically unchallenged; and even now the arguments originally advanced hold good, except for certain qualifications rendered necessary by more recent research. In the language of the ionic theory, an acid solution is one containing free hydrions, and an alkaline solution is one containing free hydroxidions. A neutral solution contains hydrions and hydroxidions in equal concentration; this is a consequence of the fact that pure water itself undergoes a certain dissociation, and several different methods show that in the purest water obtainable the concentration of the free hydrions and hydroxidions is 10−7at 24°. Moreover, the law of mass-action (seeChemical Action) demands that the product of the concentrations of the hydrions and hydroxidions in any solution is constant at a given temperature, and we see from the above values that this constant is 10−14. It follows, therefore, that the acidity or alkalinity of any solution can be expressed both in terms of hydrion or hydroxidion concentration. Many researches have been directed to classify acid and alkaline solutions according to the concentration of the hydrion. Conductivity determinations show that the maximum concentration of hydrion occurs in 5.8 - N nitric acid, where it has a value of about 2 - N, and the minimum occurs in 6.7 - N potassium hydroxide, where its value is 5 × 10−15, that of the hydroxidion being about 2 - N. These figures apply to a temperature of 24°. Bearing in mind the concentration of the ions in a neutral solution, it is seen that a scheme of seven grades of “neutrality,” differing by successive powers of ten, may be formulated. The concentration of hydrion and hydroxidion in any solution may be determined by several independent methods, and it is therefore a simple matter to prepare solutions of definite ionic concentrations and to test these with the object of obtaining a list of indicators according to their sensitiveness. It is found that litmus responds to concentrations of 10−6H· and 10−6OH′, a result which shows this dye to be the best indicator of true neutrality. Methyl orange responds to between 10−4H· and 10−5H·; para-nitrophenol to between 10−5H· and 10−6H·; and phenolphthalein to between 10−5OH′ and 10−6OH′. Salm (Zeit. Elektrochem., 1904, 10, p. 341) gives a list of twenty-seven indicators classified on this principle. Other papers bearing on this subject are Friedenthal, ibid., p. 113; Salessky, ibid., p. 204; Fels, ibid., p. 208; Scholtz, ibid., p. 549; M. Handa,Ber., 1909, 42, p. 3179.The actual mechanism by which the indicator changes colour with varying concentrations of hydrion or hydroxidion is now to be considered. Ostwald formulated his ionization theory which assumes the change to be due to the transition of the non-dissociated indicator to the ionized condition, which are necessarily of different colours. On this theory, an indicator must be weakly basic or acid, for if it were a strong acid or base high dissociation would occur when it was in the free state, and there would be no change of colour when the solution was neutralized. Take the case of a weakly acid indicator such as phenolphthalein. The presence of an acid depresses the very slight dissociation of the indicator, and the colour of the solution is that of the non-dissociated molecule. The addition of an alkali, if it be strong, brings about the formation of a salt of phenolphthalein, which is readily ionized, and so reveals the intense red coloration of the anion; a weak base, however, fails to give free ions. An acid indicator of medium strength is methyl orange. When free this substance is ionized and the solution shows an orange colour, due to a mixing of the red of the non-dissociated molecule and the yellow of the ionized molecule. Addition of hydrions lessens the dissociation and the solution assumes the red colour, while a base increases the dissociation and so brings about the yellow colour. If the alkaline solution be titrated with a strong acid, the hydrions present in a very small amount of the acid suffices to reverse the colour; a weak acid, however, must be added in considerable excess of the quantity properly required to neutralize the solution, owing to its weak dissociation. This indicator is therefore only useful when strong acids are being dealt with, while its strongly acid nature renders it serviceable for both strong and weak bases.It seems, however, that in addition to a change in the ionic condition of an indicator, there are cases where the coloration is associated with tautomeric change. For example, J. T. Hewitt (Analyst, 1908, 33, p. 85) regards phenolphthalein and similar indicators as obeying the following equilibrium in solution,O : Xu·H ⇄ Xv·O·H ⇄ Xv·O′ + H·,Xuand Xv, being isomeric. This indicates the presence of two tautomeric forms, one being of a quinonoid structure, and an ionized molecule. A similar view is advanced by A. Hantzsch and F. Hilscher (Ber., 1908, 41, p. 1187) who find that helianthin is quinonoid when solid, whilst in solution there is an equilibrium between an aminoazo- and sulphonic acid-form; on the other hand, the sodium salt, methyl orange, is a sulphonate under both conditions.

The actual mechanism by which the indicator changes colour with varying concentrations of hydrion or hydroxidion is now to be considered. Ostwald formulated his ionization theory which assumes the change to be due to the transition of the non-dissociated indicator to the ionized condition, which are necessarily of different colours. On this theory, an indicator must be weakly basic or acid, for if it were a strong acid or base high dissociation would occur when it was in the free state, and there would be no change of colour when the solution was neutralized. Take the case of a weakly acid indicator such as phenolphthalein. The presence of an acid depresses the very slight dissociation of the indicator, and the colour of the solution is that of the non-dissociated molecule. The addition of an alkali, if it be strong, brings about the formation of a salt of phenolphthalein, which is readily ionized, and so reveals the intense red coloration of the anion; a weak base, however, fails to give free ions. An acid indicator of medium strength is methyl orange. When free this substance is ionized and the solution shows an orange colour, due to a mixing of the red of the non-dissociated molecule and the yellow of the ionized molecule. Addition of hydrions lessens the dissociation and the solution assumes the red colour, while a base increases the dissociation and so brings about the yellow colour. If the alkaline solution be titrated with a strong acid, the hydrions present in a very small amount of the acid suffices to reverse the colour; a weak acid, however, must be added in considerable excess of the quantity properly required to neutralize the solution, owing to its weak dissociation. This indicator is therefore only useful when strong acids are being dealt with, while its strongly acid nature renders it serviceable for both strong and weak bases.

It seems, however, that in addition to a change in the ionic condition of an indicator, there are cases where the coloration is associated with tautomeric change. For example, J. T. Hewitt (Analyst, 1908, 33, p. 85) regards phenolphthalein and similar indicators as obeying the following equilibrium in solution,

O : Xu·H ⇄ Xv·O·H ⇄ Xv·O′ + H·,

Xuand Xv, being isomeric. This indicates the presence of two tautomeric forms, one being of a quinonoid structure, and an ionized molecule. A similar view is advanced by A. Hantzsch and F. Hilscher (Ber., 1908, 41, p. 1187) who find that helianthin is quinonoid when solid, whilst in solution there is an equilibrium between an aminoazo- and sulphonic acid-form; on the other hand, the sodium salt, methyl orange, is a sulphonate under both conditions.

INDICTMENT(from Anglo-Fr.enditement,enditer, to charge; Lat.in, against,dictare, declare), in English law, a formal accusation in writing laid before a grand jury and by them presented on oath to a court of competent jurisdiction. The accusation is drawn up in the form of a “bill” of indictment, prepared by the officer of the court or the legal adviser of the prosecution, engrossed on parchment, and sent before the grand jury. The grand jury hear in private the witnesses in support of the accusation (whose names are endorsed on the back of the bill), and, if satisfied that a prima facie case has been made out, find the bill to be a true bill and return it to the court as such. If otherwise, the jury ignore the bill and return to the court that they find “no true bill.” Indictments differ from presentments, which are made by the grand jury on their own motion and their own knowledge; and from informations, which are instituted on the suggestion of a public officer without the intervention of a grand jury.

An indictment lies for “all treasons and felonies, for misprision of treasons and felonies and for all misdemeanours of a public nature at common law.” And if a statute prohibit a matter of public grievance or command a matter of public convenience all acts or omissions in disobedience to the command or prohibition of the statute are treated as misdemeanours at common law, and unless the statute otherwise provides are punishable on indictment. In other words, the ordinary common law remedy in respect of criminal offences is by indictment of the accused and trial before a petty jury; and except in the case of informations for misdemeanour and summary proceedingsby a court of record for “contempt of court” it is the only remedy, except where a statute creates another remedy,e.g.by trial before a court of summary jurisdiction.

The form of an indictment is still in the main regulated by the old common law rules of pleading, which as to civil pleadings were often amended during the 19th century, and finally abolished under the Judicature Acts.

An indictment may consist of one or more counts charging different offences. Each count consists of three parts: (1) the commencement, (2) the statement, (3) the conclusion. The formal commencement runs thus: “Surrey to wit.” The first count begins “The jurors for our Lord the King (i.e.the grand jurors) upon their oath present that, &c.”; and the subsequent counts begin, the “jurors aforesaid on their oath aforesaid do further present.” The first words, which are placed in the margin of the document, are the “venue,”i.e.the county or district over which extends the jurisdiction of the court before which the indictment is found. Subject to certain statutory exceptions it is necessary to prove that the acts or omissions alleged to constitute the offence occurred within that area. The conclusion consists of the words following: “against the form of the statute (or statutes) in that case made and provided, and against the peace of our Lord the King, his crown and dignity.” Where the offence is statutory the whole phrase is used; where it is at common law only the second part is used. A formal conclusion is not now essential to the validity of the indictment, but from inveterate habit is in continued use. The statement sets forth the circumstances alleged to constitute the offence,i.e.the accusation made. There are still in force a number of rules as to the proper elements in the statement; but in substance it is only necessary to set forth the facts alleged against the accused with accuracy and sufficient precision as to the time and place and circumstances of the alleged offence, and to indicate whether felony or misdemeanour are charged, and so to frame the statement as to indicate a definite offence for which a lawful sentence may be imposed.

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