Bennett, B., "Passes for Indians to Leave Reserves"
Documents & Presentations
Author/Creator
B. Bennett
Description
Cites many letters between government officials, NWMP officers and Canadian Army officers regarding passes and concludes these passes certainly existed. Passes came into existence after the 1885 resistance. Evidence of their use was only found in Treaty 4, 6 and 7 territories, and it cannot be certain they were used in every agency. Author states evidence indicates passes were used as late as the 1930s, but no sources are given.
Sixty-three elders' interviews from the Treaty 8 area were reviewed for references to land, and of these, all but fourteen contain some sort of statement about land.
Author uses various anthropological and historical sources to throw some light on the way in which the Indians of the Treaty 6 and 7 regions might have interpreted the treaty promises.