The Sacred Buffalo Vision by Robert J. Juneau and Robert C. Juneau pg.140

The Bureau of Indian Affairs manages “air”

                            

The Report of BIA Forester Percy E. Melis in 1931 detailed the original 1896 agreement for the exclusive use and occupancy of all lands on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation by the Blackfeet Indians: “The Blackfeet Indian Reservation, being located in the “short grass” country of the Northern Great Plains Region, is well fitted and adapted by nature to the large scale production of range livestock. The immense herds of buffalo that formerly grazed in this region indicate that for many generations this area has produced a large quantity of high quality forage. The large herds of cattle grazed on this area during the latter part of the nineteenth century and the early success of the [Blackfeet] Indian cattle industry bear further testimony to the adaptability of these lands to permanent grazing use. The frost-free seasons are too short and irregular to invite extensive diversified farming and the soil and moisture conditions over much of the area are not suitable to the production of small grains. The nutritive qualities and the production possibilities of the native forage plants are relatively high and the small amount of care required to sustain this production makes the natural cover superior in general to cultivated crops for livestock production.
-The Sacred Buffalo Vision by Robert J. Juneau and Robert C. Juneau  
pg.140