John Ewers was the first curator of the Museum of the Plains
Indian on the Blackfoot Reservation in Montana. This book
is most interesting for historians as his meticulous analysis
of the extent and direction of Indian trade in the area prior
to the contact period. He concludes that Indian opposition
to white traders was largely focused on keeping out the
competition. American cultural historians will appreciate the
authors discussion of how the Plains Indians came to symbolize
all North American Indians and his abundantly illustrated explor-
ation of white influence on Plains Indian painting. Gun buffs will
undoubtedly enjoy the accounts of the Northwest trade gun and
Sitting Bull's surrender of his Winchester.