Reservation

in American history, a name given to a tract of land set apart for the use of Indians. The Southern States managed to have the Indians removed chiefly to Indian Territory; in the Northern States local tracts of land were set apart. The tracts are scattered through the country from Maine to the Pacific Coast, numbering in all nearly 200 distinct reservations. They are placed under the direct control of national officers known as Indian agents, and are exempt from the operation of state laws. They are chosen usually with reference to water, timber, and game. The general government has made an effort to introduce schools, domestic animals, and to inculcate methods of stock raising and agriculture, but with only moderate success. Although the sale of liquor to reservation Indians is forbidden strictly by law, it goes on nevertheless. Even under the most favorable circumstances, there seems little prospect that the Indians will ever become civilized in the strict sense of the word. As a rule they are fond of hunting, fishing, and trapping. The wild instinct is strong. They do farm and raise stock, but the Indian does not seem to make a thrifty farmer. See Indians; Indian Territory