The Administration of Indian Affairs in Canada

This book is a report of an investigation made in 1914 by American Frederick Abbott, secretary of the Board of Indian Commissioners under administration of the United States federal government. Pages 16-18 outline the contents of letter correspondence exchanged between George Vaux, Chairman of the Board of Indian Commissioners, and F.H. Abbott, Secretary of the Board of Indian Commissioners regarding Indian administration in Canada and the possibility of meeting with Duncan Campbell Scott, Deputy Superintendent General of Indian Affairs. Abbott reports that he visited the Ottawa office, 16 agencies and 26 boarding, industrial and day schools.

Abbott describes the assistance he received:

“I cannot find words strong enough adequately to acknowledge the courtesy and the fine spirit of the assistance extended to me personally and officially by Mr. Scott...all the time I was assisted by field men, who were acting under instructions from Mr. Scott, to ‘tell Mr. Abbott all he wants to know’” (18).

As it relates to Saskatchewan, Mr. Abbott visited a number of agencies and reserves he during his brief time in the province (seven days): File Hills Agency: Peepeekesis Reserve, Star Blanket Reserve; Touchwood Hills Agency: Gordon’s Reserve, Poor Man’s Reserve, Muscowequan Reserve; Qu’Appelle Agency: Standing Buffalo Reserve, Fort Qu’Appelle Reserve. He also visited a number of schools: File Hills Boarding School (File Hills), Gordon’s Boarding School (Punnichy), Muscowequan’s Boarding School (Lestock) and the Qu’Appelle Industrial School (Lebret).