Jan. 1, 1962 - The Indians of the United States can no longer be considered vanishing Americans, the Bureau of Indian Affairs reported today. Historians estimate that about 850,000 Indians were in the area now occupied by the United States in 1492. Civilization almost proved their undoing, as smallpox, tuberculosis, whisky, and wars of extermination steadily reduced them to fewer than 250,000 by the end of the 19th century. From that low point, the Indians have been making a steady comeback with the 1960 census showing 509,147.
