Page:Archæologia Americana—volume 2, 1836.djvu/171

 SECT. IV.] BETWEEN THE MISSISSIPPI AND THE PACIFIC. 135 that quarter for information. A long list of the tribes, together with an estimate of their numbers, is annexed to the account of Lewis and Clarke's expedition, to which we must refer the reader. Captain Lewis was of opinion, that along his route there were three distinct families of languages on the waters of the Columbia River ; that of the mountains, that of the Col- umbia plains, and that of the seashore. According to his estimate of the population, which was almost entirely derived from Indian accounts, those on the waters of Columbia River amounted to eighty thousand souls. A more recent statement reduces the number to five thousand six hundred warriors. It is probable that they have been overrated in the one, and underrated in the other estimate. Considering the nature of the country and the means of subsistence which it affords, it is probable that they can hardly amount to fifty thousand souls. This however, as well as any estimate of the popula- tion of the Eskimaux, of the Athapascas, and generally of the tribes north of the United States, can only be founded on conjecture. That of the Indians within the territory of the United States east of the Rocky Mountains, is, with few ex- ceptions, as correct as the nature of the case will admit. With this observation we submit the following recapitulation. Eskimaux, Athapascas, Atnahs, and tribes on the Pacific as far south as Fuca's Straits G0,000 Indians of Columbia River, and the seashore of Pacific from 42° to 49° north latitude 50,000 Algonkin-Lenape ; in British dominions 20,000 ) _ in United States 40,000 f ' UU ' UUU Iroquois tribes; in British dominions 1.000 ) in United States. . 0,000 f ' ■ '> uuu Choctaws and Chicasas 24,000 Muskhogees and Seminoles 20,000 Cherokees 15,000 Ucliees, Natches, small Lousiana tribes .... 4,000 Sioux, including Assiniboins (7,000) in British Dominions 50,000 Pawnees 9,500 ; Panis or Towa-ash 1500. . . 11,000 Black Feet and Rapid Indians 33,000 Chiennes 2,000 Kaskaias, Kiawas, Bald Heads, and other small erratic bands 3,000 345,000